flushed face I left her with. Like all of the blood has drained from her.
Pat yelps when I shove her out of my way. “Kate, I’m here. I’m here, Kate.” I fold her hand into mine.
“You need to step back, young man,” I hear her say. I ignore her because if she’d have only listened to me in the first place, then…
Her voice rises when she says my name. “Damian, you need to—”
“Pat,” Tammy cuts her off, shaking her head. Tammy’s all business, and I could fucking hug her for it. “Page Doctor Lowell.”
Pat shuts up, nods once, and hurries out of the room.
“Is it that bad?” Marcy asks, her arms wrapped around herself.
Tammy checks Kate’s IV before answering. “Her blood pressure’s dropped, and it’s straining her heart.” She sighs, her eyes teetering to me. “I’m sorry, but when Dr. Lowell arrives, you’ll need to wait outside.”
I open my mouth to object when Marcy says, “Of course. Whatever you need.” She’s on the verge of tears.
I rake my hand through my hair, frustrated. The last thing I want is to leave Kate here alone. But I feel myself nodding my agreement.
Slowly, I raise Kate’s fingers to my lips. “You’re in good hands, baby.”
I don’t care that Tammy heard me and is now staring at me. I let Kate’s hand slip from mine, and it takes everything I have to follow Marcy out.
As soon as we leave, I see my dad rushing toward us. He doesn’t look at me, not that I expect him to. Like me, his only concern is Kate.
I watch him enter Kate’s room, Pat right behind him. At the same time, I see Matt the security guard step off the elevator. Perfect fucking timing.
“I’ll go grab us some coffee,” I tell Marcy.
“Thank you, Damian,” she says, and walks down the hallway to the Commons.
I, on the other hand, saunter toward Matt. The man doesn’t look happy.
“I received a call from Patricia that you assaulted her. Damian—”
Assaulted? What the fuck?
I hold up a palm. “Now’s not a good time, man.”
Matt gives me a skeptical once-over and sniffs the air around me. “Have you been drinking?”
I wish.
“No. Kate needed help. It was an emergency. The shit with Pat, dude that was all a misunderstanding.” He doesn’t know who Kate is, and I doubt he cares.
Matt glares at me, and I don’t think he’s buying my story. I need to do something because I’m not getting kicked out of here. Not today.
“Where’s Patricia?” he asks.
“I told you. There was an emergency. She’s in there.” I point toward Kate’s closed door.
“Damian,” he starts, “you have a history here, and assault is a very serious accusation.”
“I’m not leaving. Not as long as Kate’s here in this hospital.”
Matt sighs as he considers his next move. I’m resilient, and he knows it. No one on earth could get away with the shit I’ve evaded here. My dad’s the best oncologist they have, and they don’t want to lose him. It’s the only reason I’m allowed inside.
“Tammy,” he says, pushing past me.
I swing around to see her exiting Kate’s room, her face solemn. What does it mean that she left? Her eyes bounce up to me for a split second before they fall on Matt.
I move in closer to hear them.
“—assaulted her,” Matt finishes.
Again, Tammy’s gaze flashes to me then back to the security guard. “It was a misunderstanding, Matt. We’ve all had a rough morning. I’ll talk to Pat. Thank you for your quick response in this matter, but I assure you, everything is fine.”
Mat hesitates. “Okay, then,” he says, before he turns to me. “Stay out of trouble, Damian.”
“Yes, sir,” I mutter as he stalks away. “Tammy—”
“You really care about Kate, don’t you?” she interrupts me.
All I can do is nod because I don’t think I’m strong enough to say it out loud. “Is she okay?”
“They’re still working on her. She’s a tough girl.”
“Yeah, she is.”
“Hang in there, Damian,” Tammy says, placing a hand
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