Dani Weston pressed “L” as the elevator doors closed. She’d been at the hospital for hours, and she leaned her head against the cool metal of the wall and closed her eyes.

Her breath hitched, and she squelched it, knowing full well that if she started to cry she might not stop. She was relieved that her brother, Wade, was going to be fine and that the heart attack they’d thought he’d had was just a panic attack, but she and her siblings had been worried, nonetheless, most of the day. Very worried.

She reached in her pocket and pulled out her cell phone, flipping through her contacts until she found “parents”. The elevator doors opened as she rolled over in her mind what she was going to tell them—she didn’t want to worry them too much, but also wanted to make sure they backed off requests of Wade. As general manager of the family’s resort, he’d been pulled in a million directions and it wasn’t helping with his stress level. Obviously.

“Ouch,” Dani said as she headed out of the hospital elevator and ran right into the chest of her brother, Wyatt, who stood at least a full head taller, maybe more.

The lobby of the hospital would normally be empty at this time of night—well past midnight—but it wasn’t. Wyatt shoved his hands in his pockets and Dani took a step back as Wes, Will and Kelsi stood—Kelsi’s husband Shane helped her up, her pregnant tummy getting in the way—and they all crossed over to the elevator. They’d left Wade’s room a while before so that she and Wade could plan to cover for his time off, and she’d assumed they’d all gone home. She should have known they wouldn’t have.

“How is he?” Kelsi asked, her Weston blue eyes rimmed with red.

Dani shoved her phone back in her pocket—she’d have to place the call to the folks later when it was quiet.

“Good, good,” she said as Shane wrapped his arm over his wife’s shoulders and pulled her close.

Belinda walked up and softly squeezed Wyatt’s hand, her own belly swelling with another Weston on the way. Amber looped her arm through Wes’s, and Will reached out for Ellie as she joined the group by the elevator. Dani looked from concerned couple to concerned couple, and an odd sensation flitted through her own belly. Each one of them had married in the past year, and she realized with a start that she and Wade were the only single Westons left.

She cleared her throat and held up her hands. “Look, I know it was really scary when we didn’t know what was wrong. But now that we do, we can manage. He’s going to just take time off. We can handle it.”

“You can, maybe,” Kelsi said as she rested her head on Shane’s shoulder. “Thank you, Dani.”

“Yeah, Dani, thanks,” Will said as he ran his hand through his hair that even in the dead of winter looked like it should be on the water somewhere. “You know the most about what Wade does. Really appreciate it.”

Wyatt put his cowboy hat back on and wrapped his arm around Belinda. “You know if there’s anything we can do to help, we’re able and ready.”

“Of course,” Belinda said. “Just holler.”

Dani looked down at Belinda’s hand resting on her growing lump and smiled. “I think we’ll be good. We talked about Bernie helping out—she’s got a degree in hospitality and can do way more than Wade the control freak has let her do.”

Wes laughed and squeezed Amber’s hand. “Good point. But seriously, just let us know. Anybody talked to Mom and Dad yet?” He glanced at his siblings and they all shook their heads, except for Dani.

“I hope not,” Dani said. “I mentioned earlier I’d call when we knew something and I was just getting ready to do it. Thanks for waiting.”

They all murmured thanks and Dani laughed. She hadn’t imagined any of them would be chomping at the bit to call their parents, anyway. They’d likely just get another assignment. She’d been the one who’d tried to get their parents to back off before, ease up on the projects, and she actually was happy to have an excuse for them this time. All of her siblings and she had agreed they needed to just enjoy their first year of retirement, and having them trapped in their motorhome—named the Blizzard—in Florida for the moment suited her, for one, just fine.

“He just needs rest,” Will said as they all filed out the door into the parking lot, snow falling softly, the quiet a stark contrast to the beeps of the hospital.

“Right. I’m going to see what kinds of other things he can do to relax while he’s off,” Dani said as they headed toward their respective vehicles.

“What about massages with Maddie?” Kelsi asked. “I bet they’d help a lot, and I know he’s been to see her several times. Probably would be open to it.”

“Good idea,” Dani said, making a mental note to call Maddie first thing in the morning.

“She’s a sweet girl, and they’ve been friends for a long time,” Kelsi added as she wiggled her eyebrows.

Will laughed. “Nobody say anything to Jaclyn. Last thing Wade needs is the stress of a relationship right now.”

“I beg your pardon? Stress,” his new wife said as she poked her elbow into his side.

“And if Maddie’s right for Wade, Jaclyn will already know. You know how that goes,” Belinda said.

Dani laughed at her siblings. As long as she could remember, they’d teased each other and now, even with this stress, was no different. It helped them—they were all very close, and this had been a major event. Laughing helped.

“I’ll call her first thing in the morning. Meeting with Wade, and I’ll let you guys know what’s happening,” she said as she closed the door to her truck.

She waved as they all turned onto the road and headed back to River’s End Ranch. She peered up and out the windshield when the ice melted, grateful it wasn’t snowing too hard. She hated to talk on the phone while she was driving, especially at night. Glancing at the clock on the dashboard, she added three hours in her head. Three o’clock in the morning in Florida. Her parents would probably have quite a scare if she called them now.

She took a deep breath and called anyway, glancing up at the stars in the cold, clear night as the phone rang in her ear.

“Dani?” Her mother’s voice was soft, and she knew she’d woken her. “What’s the matter, darling?”

“Hi, Mom,” Dani said before she rushed into her account of the past day, from Wade’s ambulance ride to the outcome they’d decided on—that he’d take some time off to rest and Dani and Bernie would cover for him.

“Oh, goodness. I know your brother’s been working hard. All of you have. I didn’t realize...”

“I know, Mom. Wade’s got pretty big shoulders and I don’t think any of us knew how much he was keeping to himself.”

“No, no. I suppose that next project—”

“Can wait a while,” Dani cut in. “Let’s just get through Christmas, and see what things look like. He’s going to give Bernie more responsibility, and this will be good practice for him.”

“Yes, yes. I suppose so. What about you? Should your father and I—”

“No. Absolutely not,” Dani interrupted, knowing how much this trip meant to her parents. They’d been planning it their entire lives, and were now all the way across the country. None of her siblings had pressed them to come back for their weddings—Kelsi had flat out kept it from them—and she didn’t want to change that now. “We’ve got it covered for now. I’ll let you know if we need anything.”

Her mother sighed. “I know you all have everything handled. We never would have left if we didn’t think you could manage,” she said. “Wilber, Wade’s okay. Dani says we don’t need to come back.”

“Tell her about—”

“No, she doesn’t need to know about that,” her mother interrupted.

“Mom, I have to go. I’m almost to the ranch and I need to get some sleep before everything gets crazy tomorrow.”

“Of course, honey. But you take care of yourself. Your father and I are rooting for you. Give Wade a kiss for me, and we’ll send some help.”

“Mom, we don’t need any help. We’ve got everything—”

“Of course you do, sweetheart,” her mother said in the way that only she could. “Sleep tight, darling, and don’t worry about a thing. Help is on its way.”

Dani breathed a sigh of relief as she ended the call. She tossed her cell phone on the seat beside her and rolled her shoulders. She blinked a few times as headlights came toward her and she slowed, erring on the side of caution on the icy roads this late at night.

She hit the brakes hard as a truck turned right in front of her and she fought the urge to honk. The maroon Dodge Ram turned in to the Starry Night Motel and she waited for it to clear the curb before she started again.

Her heartbeat slowed and her thoughts turned back to Wade. In the blink of an eye, everything had changed—and she headed for home hoping that nothing else would change for a very, very long time.