Page 167 of Wicked Grumpy Heart Doc

Asher leaned back but didn’t let go of Aiden’s face when he cocked his head and observed, “You haven’t visited Nana in a while.”

He glanced over at Dakota, unsure what to say.

Thankfully, Asher continued, “Mama says you’ve been busy at the hospital,” while releasing his hold on Aiden’s face.

Aiden didn’t have to lie when he replied, “That I have.” He glanced at the rest of the family anxiously watching him. “Hey, little man, I need to talk your grandma about how your grampy is doing, okay?”

He gave a serious nod. “Okay.”

Setting the boy on his feet, Aiden walked closer to the group. All eyes were wide on him as they waited expectantly for what he had to report.

“He has an almost completely blocked artery.”

He paused for the expected gasps that came.

“He’s being prepped for surgery. I’m going to perform an angioplasty—which is the insertion of a balloon to stretch the artery and get blood flowing to his heart again. That’s temporary. But I’m also going to insert a stent which will be permanent.”

Aiden then answered all of the family’s questions about the risks involved and the expected outcome.

“How long will he have to stay in the hospital?” Dakota asked.

“I’ll have a better answer for you after surgery.”

She nodded and looked up at him tenderly. “Thank you. I’m so grateful you’re the one doing the procedure.”

He clenched and unclenched his fists to keep from touching her. She could so easily be his undoing, which is probably why he replied, “I’m glad I was still here. Fortunately, my date is okay celebrating Valentine’s Day on February fifteenth.”

Her face fell, but she recovered quickly, telling him, “I’m sorry your plans were ruined. Please thank her for being so understanding.”

“She knows my job can be unpredictable.”

Aiden didn’t know if that was really true or not, but it made it sound like they had an intimate familiarity.

See? I’m not still hung up on you. At. All.

I’ve moved on. You don’t have any power over me anymore.

Maybe if he told himself that enough he could make it true.

****

Dakota

Of course, he had a date tonight. That’s why he was wearing the suit.

Knowing Chloe was watching, she tried to maintain some semblance of dignity, when all she wanted to do was curl up in a corner and cry.

Cry for her dad and the fear she was feeling about his health. And cry for herself at having ruined the best thing to come into her life since Asher was born. And for no fucking reason other than she was scared.

As big a believer as Dakota was about the Universe having her back about all other areas in her life, she’d never really believed it when it came to love.

She’d brought this on herself.

“She knows my job can be unpredictable.”

Dakota felt the corner of her mouth tug up, and she murmured softly, “I remember.”

There had been times he’d had to cancel dinner, but he always crawled into bed with her when he finished his shift. Would he be doing that tonight with his new girlfriend?

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