Page 14 of A Lot Like Forever
Chapter 4
Nate sucked in a deep breath and gripped both hands tight on the steering wheel, waiting for Ryder to pick up the phone. He’d been happy and relaxed surveying the parcel of land he’d earmarked for oil drilling, but that mood had quickly disappeared the moment he’d gotten back in the car. He’d had an irate message from his younger brother and a call from work, and Nate could already feel his blood pressure rising for the day.
“Hey.”
“Hey,” Nate replied, easing off on the accelerator a little.
“Whatever the hell you’ve done to piss Sam off, I need you to deal with it.”
Nate groaned. He guessed his brother needed Sam to work a problem horse, which was why Nate was getting the blame for his mood. “What did he say?”
“Nothing. Except to mutter that you were an asshole and he wanted to smack his fist into your face about now.”
“You do know I’ve done nothing wrong, right? His sister turned up on my doorstep needing a place to stay and--”
“Whoa, she what?” Ryder roared with laughter. “You haveFaithstaying in your house?”
“Yup.” His brothers had always loved giving him shit about her. He hadn’t exactly done a good job of pretending not to be attracted to her, because she’dalwaysmanaged to rile him up the wrong way. Or the right way, depending on which way he looked at it.
“So you need to convince him that you’re a goddamn monk where his sister’s concerned, okay?”
A monk?Now that would be an impossible task. “Why?”
“Because he just walked off the job before,Brother. And if we don’t get these three-year-olds started under saddle soon . . .”
Nate had no idea Sam had been scheduled to work on the ranch. They’d used him in the past when they needed him, but Ryder and Chase dealt with anything ranch related. “I’ll deal with it.”Damn.“He’ll cool off soon; it just surprised him, that’s all. He’s probably around seeing Faith again now that I’m gone.” He didn’t know if that was a good idea or a very, very bad one. As much as he hadn’t wanted Faith staying in his house, the thought of her going pissed him off, too.
“He better be just letting off some steam. We haven’t been breeding these horses just to have them as goddamn paddock ornaments, and I need his help. I need him here yesterday, so whatever the hell you have to do to get him back and focused, do it.”
“Don’t lecture me, Ryder.” Nate was getting pissed off. “I’ve got an appointment now, but I’ll call you later.”
They said good-bye as Nate pulled into the entrance to the hospital. Every time he arrived it scared the crap out of him. Give him a raging bull, an unbreakable horse, a husband whose wife he’d screwed, hell, there was nothing on this planet that really scared him shitless, but looking up at the hospital looming in front of him . . . He pulled into the lot, parked his car, and took a sip of his now lukewarm coffee.Hell. Clay King had summoned him to his bedside, told him not to tell his brothers, and now here he was about to face the one man in the world he admired above all else. No amount of bravery was ever going to prepare him for losing his grandfather, and the fact that he’d called for him, rather than just waited to see him that evening, told him something was wrong.
Nate locked the car and stuffed his hands in his pockets as he walked. He entered the building, nodded at the receptionist he passed on his way in, and headed for the elevator. Within moments the doors were opening on the correct floor, and less than a minute later he was standing outside his grandfather’s private room, the suite that was as comfortable as any hotel room now that they’d spent time making it feel like home for him. But it was the fact that it might be the last room he ever saw that always sent a gut-deep stab of pain through Nate.
The staff on this floor all knew him well, which was why he’d been able to pass through the hall undisturbed. If he had it his way he’d have them reporting directly to him, but Clay wasn’t ready to be babied and hadn’t allowed it.
“Granddad?” Nate said his name quietly, not wanting to startle him in case he was sleeping. The room was filled with sunlight, more like a pretty bedroom than a hospital space, with flowers and photos adorning almost every surface, a lamp from home on the bedside table for him to read under at night if he had the energy.
A hand rose in the air, slowly but surely, followed by a croaky voice. “Nate.”
He took another deep breath and crossed the room, reaching to help his granddad sit up in the pillows. It only seemed like yesterday that he had been coming home for a week here and there in between treatments, proud as hell to be meeting Ryder’s wife and then even attending Chase’s wedding. His brothers had sure made the old man happy when they’d settled down. Clay loved the way his daughter-in-laws fussed over him, too, seemed to enjoy the extended version of their family.
“How you feeling today, Granddad?”
“Like I need a damn strong whiskey. You have one for me?”
Nate settled on the big armchair beside him and leaned forward, slipping his hand into his jacket pocket and taking out a small silver flask. Chase and Ryder might not have been so forthcoming, but Nate didn’t give a damn.
“Here,” he said, unscrewing the lid and raising it to his granddad’s lips for him to take a sip. “Just a little.”
“Good boy.” The words were strained, his grandfather breathless even on oxygen.
“The others would kill me, but who the hell am I to deny you, huh?” Nate couldn’t see the point in not letting the old man have a little of his favorite drink. He had weeks or less to live now that the cancer had spread like wildfire through his body—what would a few sips do now?
“Glad you’re here, son.” Clay reached for Nate’s hand, his movements slow, but Nate clasped it and held on tight. A lump formed in his throat, one he was unfortunately getting used to, and he swallowed it away.
“You’re getting ready to leave us, aren’t you, Granddad?” His voice sounded deeper, huskier, than usual, the emotion almost choking him as he tried to stay strong.
