Page 53 of The Head Game

“He’s still my best friend but we haven’t been together that way in a long time.”

August nodded. He had no idea how they managed that but it was clear she truly cared about Nico, so good for them for figuring it out.

August sure couldn’t do it.

CHAPTER NINE

A woman in a white lab coat stepped inside the waiting area. “You’re both here for Nico Arents, correct? I’m Dr. Douglas, his neurosurgeon.”

“Yes.” Skylar reached out, gripping August’s arm. “How’s he doing?”

“He’s stable at the moment.”

That didn’t sound encouraging. August covered Skylar’s hand with his.

“On the drive here, I got a text from him saying he had a brain tumor,” Skylar said.

August blinked. What the hell?

Skylar cleared her throat. “But he didn’t say much aside from the fact he was having surgery tomorrow.”

Holy shit. Not a brain bleed then.

“Yes,” the doctor confirmed. “Unfortunately, he had a second seizure a short while ago and we can’t delay any longer. When the nurse said he had visitors, I wanted to stop by and give you a quick update on what was happening but I will be heading to the OR shortly to get scrubbed in for the procedure.”

“Can we see him before he goes in for surgery?” Skylar asked.

“No. I’m sorry. He’s been heavily sedated already and he’s being prepped for surgery now.”

“Shit.” Skylar’s grip tightened. “Will he be okay?”

The doctor gave them a kind smile. “I have every reason to believe he will. The seizures are a concern of course, but they’re not uncommon with this type of tumor. We were hopeful medication would stabilize him until tomorrow but unfortunately that wasn’t possible. We’ll know more once we begin the surgery. Do you have any other questions?”

August shook his head and Skylar said, “No, I don’t think so.”

“Okay. Well, I’ll try to send someone out to update you partway through the surgery but it is a rather long procedure so be prepared for a wait.”

“How long?”

“Three to five hours is typical. But it could take a little more or less depending on the complexity of what we find.”

Skylar nodded. “Thank you, doctor.”

When she was gone, August released the air he’d been holding in a loud gusty breath. “Shit.”

“Yeah. When he told me he had a brain tumor I kinda freaked but …”

“I thought maybe he had a brain bleed or something from the hit,” August admitted. “A tumor though? I never saw that coming.”

Skylar glanced at him and August realized they were still more or less holding hands. Huh, that might be the only time he’d ever held hands with a woman he wasn’t related to.

He let go and she settled back in her chair.

Skylar sighed. “He’s been feeling like shit for a while. Damn it. I should have pushed him to go to the doctor.”

She sounded frustrated.

“I can’t imagine anyone can get Nico to do something he doesn’t want,” August said doubtfully.

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