Chapter 42
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Olivia
We fell into silence then, each lost in our own thoughts. The steady tick of the wall clock seemed unnaturally loud in the quiet room. I checked my phone, surprised to see a text from Alexander.
Alexander: Made it back to the office. Let me know when your father is out of surgery. I can have dinner delivered if you’re staying late.
The thoughtfulness of the gesture made my chest tighten. I typed a quick response: “Will do. Thank you.” Just as I put my phone away, Nick’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen and stood up.
“I need to take this. I’ll be right back.”
He stepped into the hallway, his voice a low murmur through the partially closed door. Mom closed her eyes, looking exhausted, while Ethan continued his endless shuffling of cards.
“Want to play War?” he asked me, breaking the silence.
I smiled, remembering how we used to play for hours as kids. “Sure, why not?”
We were halfway through our game when Nick returned, but he wasn’t alone. Amelia Hayes walked in beside him, her auburn hair pulled back in a neat ponytail, still dressed in her office attire, a pencil skirt, and blouse that somehow looked fresh despite the late hour. Her presence immediately brightened the somber atmosphere of the waiting room.
“Amelia!” Mom exclaimed, standing to embrace her. “You didn’t have to come, sweetheart.”
“Of course I did,” Amelia replied, hugging Mom back. “I left as soon as Nick called. Mr. Harrington was surprisingly understanding about me ducking out of the quarterly budget meeting.” She worked as an executive assistant at some investment firm downtown; I could never remember which one.
Ethan abandoned our card game, moving to give Amelia a quick hug. “Perfect timing. I was just about to lose spectacularly to Liv.”
“You were not,” I protested, gathering the cards. “I had terrible cards.”
“Sure you did,” Ethan grinned, returning to his seat.
Amelia sat next to Nick, her hand finding his automatically. They had been dating for almost two years now, and watching them together always gave me a pang of something, not quite jealousy, but a wistfulness for that kind of easy companionship.
“How’s David doing?” she asked, looking around at our tired faces.
“Still in surgery,” Mom answered, checking her watch. “The nurse said it’s going well, but we won’t know more for another hour or so.”
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Amelia nodded, reaching into her oversized tote bag. “I brought reinforcements.” She pulled out a bag of chocolate chip cookies from the bakery near her office. “Sugar and carbs. Essential hospital waiting room supplies.”
“God, I love you,” Nick said, grabbing a cookie.
“I know,” she winked, passing the bag around. “So, fill me in. What have I missed?”
“Not much,” I said, taking a cookic. “Just waiting. Alexander was here earlier.
Amelia’s eyebrows shot up. “Alexander Carter? Your boss Alexander Carter?”
“Boyfriend Alexander Carter,” Ethan corrected with his mouth full of cookie. “Apparently, they’re dating. Super serious. He was here playing poker with us.”
“Wow,” Amelia said, looking at me with new interest. “That’s… unexpected. When did this happen?”
“Recently,” I said vaguely, not wanting to rehash the whole fake backstory again. “It’s still new.”
“New but serious enough that he came to the hospital?” Amelia asked, her journalistic instincts kicking in despite working in finance. She’d studied journalism in college and never lost that nose for a story.
“He wanted to be supportive,” I explained, feeling my cheeks warm under her scrutiny.
“He arranged for Dad to see the best cardiologist in the city,” Mom added proudly. “Dr. Weaver wouldn’t normally take new patients, but Alexander made some calls.”
“That’s impressive,” Amelia said, looking genuinely surprised. “And sweet.”
“He can be sweet,” I found myself saying, wondering why I felt the need to defend Alexander’s character to
everyone.
Nick snorted. “When he’s not being intimidating as hell.”
“He’s just intense,” I corrected.
“Intensely into you,” Ethan teased. “The way he kept looking at you? Like you were dessert.”
“Ethan!” Mom scolded, but she was smiling.
“What? I’m just saying what we all noticed.”
I rolled my eyes, trying to ignore the heat creeping up my neck. “Can we please stop talking about Alexander like he’s not going to walk back through that door any minute?” –
“Oh, I hope he does,” Ethan grinned, wiggling his eyebrows. “I have so many more questions for him.”
“Like what?” I challenged, crossing my arms.
“Like how he managed to get you to date him when you’ve been in hermit mode since the Stone Age.”
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Chapter 42
“I have not been in hermit mode!”
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Mom patted my knee. “Sweetheart, you’ve been all work and no play for years. We were starting to worry you’d joined a convent.”
“Mom!” I gasped, while Nick and Ethan burst into laughter.
Amelia hid her smile behind her hand. “Your mom’s not wrong, Liv. You’ve turned down every guy I’ve tried to set you up with.”
“Because your taste in men is terrible,” I countered. “Remember that guy with the ferret collection?”
“He only had three ferrets,” Amelia defended weakly. “And they were very well–behaved.”
“One of them crawled up my pant leg during dinner!”
Ethan nearly choked on his cookie. “How did I not hear about Ferret Guy?”
“Because I’ve been trying to block it from my memory,” I muttered, reaching for another cookie. “Let’s just say I’m now traumatized by small furry animals with long bodies.”
Everyone laughed, and for a moment, the tension in the waiting room lifted. It felt good to talk about something ridiculous instead of staring at the clock, counting down the minutes until we heard about Dad. “Remember when Olivia tried online dating?” Nick asked, a mischievous glint in his eye.
“Oh god, please don’t,” I groaned, covering my face with my hands.
“The guy showed up wearing a cape,” Nick continued, ignoring my protests. “Not like a costume cape. Like an actual velvet cape, he thought was fashionable.”
“It wasn’t just the cape,” I corrected, unable to help myself. “It was the combination of the cape, the walking stick with a crystal on top, and the fact that he insisted I call him ‘Lord Marcus‘ even though his profile said his name was Mark Johnson.”
