Nobody But You B&N (10 page)

"You were a nurse tonight. You saved Max's life."

"I hope I helped, but you did the hard part, Spencer."

"You told me what to do. And you talked to Max. You kept him quiet. You made him believe in Emma and their love."

"Instinct took over." She sipped her tea, feeling surprisingly better and a little lighter having told the whole story. Maybe she had needed to say it out loud. And Spencer hadn't judged her. There had been no disgust in his eyes, only kindness. "Thank you, Spencer. For doing what you said, offering no opinion about what I did, or didn't do. My father had a lot to say. And it was not good."

"Is that why you haven't spoken to him?"

"He's extremely disappointed in me, so yes."

"How could he not understand why you acted the way you did?"

"Because he's a brilliant doctor, and he would never walk away from a patient, no matter what they'd done."

"Maybe he's never been tested the way you were."

"I think he has. He's just stronger than me. He's really an incredible person. I've always loved him and admired him and wanted to be just like him. But I couldn't live up to his example. I fell really short."

"So you told him, and he said…"

"Nothing. He just stared at me. It was the longest silence of my life. Then I left. That was it. I don't blame him. I know what I did was wrong."

Spencer frowned. "You're being extremely hard on yourself, Hallie. You'd just seen your fiancé die. It's surprising you could do anything at all at that point."

"Don't let me off the hook."

"I couldn't do that if I tried. You're the only one who can do that. I don't know if what you did in that operating room was as horrible as you think it was. But I do know what you did today, and it was amazing. Just coming to my aid put you in danger, but you did it anyway. And then you take on a man with a gun twice your size? You were brave and selfless, and you should be proud of yourself."

Her eyes filled with tears, the intensity of his words breaking down the walls of guilt and shame she'd built up in her head. "You're being really nice, Spencer."

"You have to stop defining yourself by one moment in your past."

"Isn't that what you've been doing?"

"I'm trying to change. So should you. Because when I thought we might die in that bank, I realized how much I want to live."

"I had the same thought," she admitted. "I wanted to die for a long time. I kept asking why Doug, why not me? But when I saw death staring me in the face, I knew I didn't want that at all."

"And Doug wouldn't want it for you. He'd want you to make the most of your life."

"He would," she said, tearing up again. "You're right." He squeezed her fingers again, and she realized they were still holding hands, and she didn't want to let go. "We are quite a pair, aren't we?" she asked. "And I'm not talking about the bruises anymore."

"We've both been to hell. But we're not there anymore."

"What have you been doing since you got out of prison?" she asked, curious about who he was now.

"Working in a deli. It's a quite change from my old job as a commodities trader, but I couldn't do that anymore. And with a record, I couldn't be too choosey. Anyway, since being at the deli, I've been toying with the idea of becoming a chef.

"Really?" she asked in surprise.

"It's probably a crazy dream."

"But it's a great dream."

"I like to cook. I need to get better."

"So you'll get better. I hate to cook, but I really like to eat."

"Maybe you'll let me practice on you."

"Maybe." She paused as the staff began to close down the cafeteria. "I think it's time to go."

"Yeah." He let go of her hand. "I need to get upstairs anyway."

She nodded, feeling a little chill now that there was distance between them.

"Would you come with me?" he asked as they headed out the door.

She hesitated. "Oh, I don't know. You have your family and friends."

"But I want you."

His simple words sent a shiver down her spine.

And once again, when she should have said
no
, she found herself saying
yes
.

As they walked out of the cafeteria, Spencer stayed close to Hallie's side. It was strange and rather amazing the connection he felt to her. He'd felt closed off and numb for so long, but now his skin was tingling, and his black and white world was filling with color. He just needed Max to recover in order to really enjoy the new feelings of hope and optimism for the future.

They took the elevator to the third floor and walked down the hall to the waiting room. There were at least twenty people inside, most of them Callaways, and many of whom he'd met the night before at the rehearsal dinner. That seemed like a lifetime ago.

"I should go," Hallie murmured, holding back when they reached the doorway. "I don't belong here."

"I don't, either," he said.

"You're his brother."

"And these are mostly his in-laws. I could use a friend."

"Fine, but stop telling everyone I saved Max's life. You're giving me too much credit."

He smiled. "And you're being way too modest. You don't have to meet everyone, but I do want to introduce you to my mother."

"Really?" she asked, doubt in her voice. "Your mom?"

"It won't hurt a bit," he said lightly.

"You know when nurses say that, they're lying," she told him.

He smiled and led her across the room to where his mother was sitting next to Emma's mom, Lynda. They both got up to hug him. And when they were done, he found himself the recipient of many more Callaway hugs. By the time he got through the family, he could see Hallie caught up in the same warm receiving line, as Emma told her family that this was the woman who saved Max's life. At least, Hallie couldn't blame him for the attention.

When they'd gone through the line, they took a seat against the far wall.

"Well," Hallie murmured. "That was crazy. Are these people always so welcoming?"

He nodded. "Yeah, pretty much. They already consider Max a friend, a son, a brother, and a brother-in-law."

"I hope you're not worried about losing him to the Callaways, because I think they're officially adopting you and your mother, too."

"They've been great," he agreed. "I'm happy for Max." As he settled into his seat, he saw her take out her phone and check the messages. "Anything important come in?"

"No, just an alert that I missed my flight."

"There's probably one tomorrow. You should check."

"I'll do it later," she said.

He was happy to see her put away her phone, because the last thing he wanted her to do was get on a plane. "What do you usually do for Christmas, when you're not heading for the tropics?"

"I actually missed Christmas last year. I couldn't get home. But before that I always celebrated with my dad, and sometimes with my brother, if he could make it back. My Aunt Debbie, and her husband and kids, would come over on Christmas Eve. She was like a second mom to me after my mother died. We'd have a big dinner and exchange presents. Then on Christmas Day we always went to church in the morning and then had a big lunch after that. Sometimes we'd invite the neighbors in or some of my father's friends. It was different every year."

"It sounds nice," he said, hearing the wistful note in her voice. "Aren't you going to miss that?"

"I'd just put a damper on things."

"No one else besides your dad knows about…"

"They know about Doug, but nothing else, unless my father told Aunt Debbie, but I doubt he would do that."

"You've had no communication with him since the day you told him?"

She hesitated. "He's texted a few times."

"Really?" he asked, shifting in his seat. "You didn't mention that before. Did you text him back?"

"No."

"Hallie, what are you doing?"

"Hey, you said you weren't going to judge."

"I'm not judging, I'm asking you a question. Why haven't you responded to his texts?"

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do."

"Look, I had a plan to get out of town and take my problems with me. It was a good plan, until it all went to hell when I decided to stop at the bank."

"Maybe something good will come of today."

"Like what?"

"A chance to make things right. We both know life is short. You love your dad. You should talk to him again. Give it one more try. He deserves that, and so do you."

"Maybe. I'll think about it." She crossed her legs and folded her arms in front of her chest, as if she were settling in for the long haul, and they probably were.

He was glad Hallie had stayed for so many reasons, but one of the biggest was that he'd rather spend the waiting time getting to know her than thinking about how badly Max was hurt. He couldn't get the sight of all that blood out of his head, especially when his clothes were still covered in it. He just hoped the bullet had missed the vital organs and that they hadn't waited too long to act.

"Spencer?"

He met Hallie's gaze.

"Don't go back there," she said.

"Are you reading my mind now?"

"Max is in good hands. There's nothing to do but wait," she said.

"You're right."

"So what do you like to cook?" she asked.

"A lot of things."

"Like?"

"Well, I just made a really good curry dish with lamb."

"Sounds delicious. I love curry. Tell me more."

He gave her a doubtful look. "You really want to talk about food?"

"It seems like a good topic to me, and one that isn't going to upset either one of us."

"I might bore you to sleep."

She smiled. "I'll take that risk."

"You are the daredevil."

"Don't you know it," she said lightly.

He smiled back at her. "Okay, then let me tell you about this stew I'm working on…"

* * *

Emma glanced at the clock on the wall, feeling as if the minutes were passing with agonizing slowness. Max had been in surgery for almost four hours, and she was tired of waiting. Her siblings and parents had been great at trying to keep her distracted, but they'd eventually run out of things to say, and she'd drunk enough coffee to sink a ship, which probably hadn't been a good idea. The caffeine had only made her more jumpy and anxious.

Nicole came into the room after having gone to check with the nurse's station. She immediately shook her head at Emma's silent question. "No news yet, but they think it will be soon."

"They said that an hour ago."

"I know," Nicole said. "But let's go with no news is good news."

She saw the weariness in her sister's face. "If you need to go home, Nicole, I can call you—"

"Don't be silly. I'm not going anywhere. Jessica is keeping Brandon overnight, so I'm all yours."

Shayla came over to join them. "I talked to a friend of mine who's an intern here. He said he thinks the surgery is almost done. He also reiterated that Dr. Holland is brilliant."

Emma was happy to hear both of those statements.

"I never think about the people waiting," Shayla said, as she took a seat. "In medical school, we're so focused on the physical body, on diagnosis, treatment, pharmaceuticals, but we don't spent a lot of time thinking about the people in the waiting room. I'm going to remember this feeling when I'm a surgeon."

"You're going to make a really good one," Emma said. Shayla had always been an academic overachiever, but it was nice to see her taking in the whole picture.

She'd no sooner finished speaking than the door opened, and a doctor walked in. He was dressed in scrubs and booties and looked like he'd come straight from the O.R.

Emma jumped to her feet and rushed across the room. Susan was just as fast. They grabbed each other's hand as they faced the doctor together.

"I'm Dr. Holland," he said. "Mr. Harrison is doing well. He made it through the surgery without complications, and we're anticipating a full recovery."

It took a minute for his words to register through the fear. "Oh, my God," Emma said, putting her other hand to her heart. "Can you say that again?"

The doctor smiled. "He's going to be fine, but he'll need some recovery time."

She blew out a breath, feeling an enormous weight lift off her chest. "That is the best news. Thank you so much."

"Mr. Harrison did the hard work," the doctor said. "He's a fighter."

"I know," she replied, never doubting that Max would fight to come back to her. "When can I see him?"

"He'll be asleep for a few hours."

"I want to sit with him. Can I do that? Please."

He nodded. "Of course, but only one of you. We'll save the other visits for tomorrow afternoon."

Emma nodded her agreement.

"The nurse will come and get you when Mr. Harrison is back in his room."

As the doctor left, she looked around at her friends and family, the people who had stood by her on the worst day of her life. "He's going to be okay," she said again, happiness racing through her veins.

Her words were met with a chorus of cheers and smiles, all except for Max's mother, who was quietly weeping into her tissue.

"Susan," Emma said, squeezing her hand.

"Don't mind me," Susan said. "These are happy tears now." She gave Emma a watery smile. "My boy is going to be all right."

"He is." Emma hesitated. The last thing she wanted to do was give up her seat at Max's bedside, but she knew his mother was very worried about him, too. "Do you want to go in and see him first?"

"Oh, no, dear," she said, shaking her head. "Max will want you there, Emma. Just tell him we're all thinking about him."

"Spencer?" she asked, offering him the same courtesy.

He smiled. "Are you kidding? I'm not the pretty face my brother wants to see when he wakes up. But tell him next time he wants to go to the bank, I'm going to pass."

"Online banking from here on," she agreed. She looked back at her sister, Nicole. "We should make some calls, let people know."

"I'm on it," Nicole said. "I'll start with the guys downstairs."