Logan

The worry was overwhelming. The muscles in my body were so tightly strung they felt as if they might snap and I had to remind myself to breathe. “How are you feeling?” I asked my grandmother for the ninetieth time.

“Like I’m going to hit you over the head with a cricket bat if you ask me that again.” My grandmother shifted on the bed, trying to sit up. “It was no big deal. You heard the doctor—I didn’t break anything.”

“Let’s wait for the results of the scans before you tell me it’s no big deal.” I wasn’t taking any chances. My grandmother was my only family. She was the driving force behind my success—hell, she was the reason for my survival. If she hadn’t rescued me from my father, God knows where I would have ended up. And I would protect her, just like she’d always protected me.

She rolled her eyes at Darcy, who was sitting on a visitor chair by the door.

“I should go.” Darcy dropped her mobile into her bag.

The last thing I wanted was for her to leave. She had been so capable, calmly talking to the doctors while I paced and lost my temper every five seconds when no one would give me a straight answer. “Would you wait until we get the results? You speak medicine better than I do.”

“You mean Darcy doesn’t treat people as if they’re conspiring to murder me?” my grandmother asked.

“Maybe.” I smiled at her. At least she hadn’t lost any of her feistiness.

“Darcy’s a very busy woman—she’s already spent most of the day here,” my grandmother said.

Of course, I was being selfish. Darcy had been here hours, just sitting and waiting, fetching us coffee, encouraging us both. I just wanted her to stay a little longer. I’d missed her in the week since I’d seen her, which was ridiculous, given we didn’t know each other very well.

We were interrupted by one of the doctors who looked younger than some of my favorite ties. Surely we should be talking to someone more senior?

“We have the results of the MRI. There’s no sign of any bleeding, which is good news. We just want to keep you overnight for observation.”

I exhaled. Thank God. It could have been so much worse.

“I told you I was fine,” she said, admonishing me as I squeezed her hand.

“I’ll be happier when you’re discharged,” I replied.

“And I’ll be happier when you stop looking at me as if I’m about to curl up and die.”

“Granny! I’m doing no such thing. I’m just concerned—anyone would be.” Maybe I’d overreacted. But she was the only person in the world I cared about. The only person who cared about me. Without my grandmother, I was nothing.

“Visiting hours are over,” the doctor said. “And your grandmother is in the best place. There’s nothing you can do here, Mr. Steele.”

“I don’t care if I have to buy this place. I’m not leaving until my grandmother can come with me.”

The doctor raised his eyebrows. “I’ll let you speak to the nurse in charge.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Darcy said.

“Yes, thanks,” I growled under my breath.

As the door shut behind him, my grandmother patted my hand. “Darcy, will you please take my grandson home? I want to listen to the radio and then have a sleep.”

I glanced at my watch. Where had the last five hours gone? “I won’t be any bother. I’ll just sit over there.” I pointed to the chair next to Darcy. “You won’t even know I’m here.”

“You heard the doctor, Logan. I’ll be fine, and you can come back tomorrow morning.”

Before I had a chance to reply the door swung open and an older woman in a nurse’s uniform bustled inside. “Right, visiting has been over for more than an hour. Please leave Mrs. Steele to rest.”

My grandmother shot me an expression I’d seen a hundred times before. Usually when she’d warned me something would turn out badly, but I’d ignored her warning and slunk back with egg on my face.

“You have your mobile, right?” Darcy asked my grandmother.

“Is it charged?” I asked.

My grandmother sighed. “Yes, it’s charged, and Darcy put the charger in my overnight bag, too.”

I pulled out the phone and the charger from the small bag on the table beside the bed and turned up the volume.

“We’re only fifteen minutes away, Logan, and your grandmother does need to rest. It’s been a stressful day,” Darcy said. “You can’t do anything constructive here and you’ll only make things worse by fussing.” As always, Darcy told it to me straight. Part of my frustration was the fact I was so helpless. But the last thing I wanted was for my stress to spill over and make my grandmother more anxious.

I took a deep breath. Darcy was right. I should leave and maybe my grandmother could sleep. “And you’ll call me if you need anything?”

“Yes, Logan. But I’ll be fine, especially knowing Darcy is looking after you.” My grandmother had great instincts about people and had instantly liked Darcy, making comments all the time regarding what a lovely girl she was. How capable, pretty and clever. None of it passed me by. I knew she wanted me to be happy, and thought me having a wife and family of my own would provide that.

Although I’d never defined my success like that, I understood what my grandmother saw in Darcy. She was lovely and capable and clever. Not to mention sexy as hell and breathtakingly beautiful.

“I’ll wait for you outside,” Darcy said.

“No, you take him with you or I’ll never get rid of him,” my grandmother said, brushing my hands away.

I chuckled and stood, leaning over the bed to kiss her on the forehead. “Try to behave and don’t give the nurses any trouble.” I glanced at the formidable woman standing at the end of the bed.

“Stop fussing, Logan.”

I would never stop fussing over her. She had been my world for as long as I could remember. “I love you, Granny,” I said.

“I love you, too, my darling boy.”

I blew her a kiss and headed out. Having to rely on others to take care of my grandmother wasn’t comfortable, wasn’t who I was, but making her happy by leaving was all I could do.