Page 58 of Saving His Heart
Glancing around the plane, I see the men and women of honor, Julia, Trevor, Lanie, and Dexter, all of my brothers, our mother, Julia’s parents, Lexi, GG, Emory, and all the kids. Of course, Seth and his team of spy guys are also in attendance. They’re all sitting at the front of the plane pissed off about this little excursion, but seriously, they can all suck it.
“Dexter, I thought this was a Jack and Jill party, not a Jack and Jill went up the hill party. What’s with all the kids?” my brother, Halton, asks as a teetering Harper screams down the aisle.
“Lanie is weening, but she still has to nurse sometimes, so it was easier to bring everyone along and have the grandparents watch them all together in a suite,” Dexter explains.
“Fucking hell,” Easton grumbles next to me.
“Swear jar. Swear jar, Uncle East.” Dexter’s oldest son, Tate, comes flying out of nowhere with a large plastic tub that has money overflowing from this plane ride alone.
“You’ve got to be kidding me, Tate. You’re like a goddamn ninja.”
Tate’s giggles are infections as he informs Easton that he now has to pay double.
I catch Ashton’s eye as he passes my seat on his way to the restroom. This is my chance to corner him. Standing just inside of the cabin, I wait for him to exit. When he does, I drag him into the bedroom and quietly shut the door.
“What the hell is taking so long to get that info, Ash?”
“Nice to see you, too, asshole,” he says, sarcastically pushing me off of him. “I’m working on it. There is a lot of shit that doesn’t make sense. I’m heading to Boston next week after Trevor’s wedding to weed through some shit, so just keep your pants on.”
“Sorry, Ash. I-I just can’t fuck this up. I need you to pull through for me.”
Placing a hand on my shoulder, youngest brother to oldest, I realize how much of his life I’m going to miss out on. “I won’t let you down, Pres. Is there anything else you want to tell me?”
I knew asking him for help was a risk. He doesn’t leave any stone unturned, so he may discover my secret, but I decided it was a risk worth taking. Emory is worth the risk.
“No, I’ve told you everything I can.”
He glares at me for a moment.Does he already know?
Giving me a curt nod, he turns to go. As I follow him down the narrow aisle of our private plane, I’m not ready for the chaos we walk into.
“I swear to God, Colton, I’m going to kill you.” East is standing at the front of the plane while Colton is standing up in a seat four rows back, ready to run for it.
“That is enough.” My mother’s voice cuts through the crowd just like when we were kids. “There will be no killing anyone because your poor mother cannot handle another round of life support, so I suggest you all calm down and take a seat like the adults I raised you to be.”
I didn’t hear much after the life support comment because it sucked all the air from my lungs. I think I might have a panic attack, but that’s when Emory’s voice cuts through the cabin.
“Dexter, I can fix her. There won’t even be a scar.”
“No offense, Emory, but we need to land this fucking plane so I can have a doctor look at her. The cut is on her face. I don’t want to take a chance with a scar. I appreciate you trying to help, but this is for the professionals,” Dex says, coolly holding a crying Harper.
Emory jolts back as if he struck her, and I know his words hit harder than a punch. I’m running toward them, anger boiling over when I finally reach them.
“Watch it, Dex,” I warn.
He looks up at me in surprise.
Emory notices my clenched fists and places a hand on my thigh. She is crouching in front of the toddler and peers at me with watery eyes. She tells me she will handle this without saying a word, just as Lanie pushes through with a first aid kit. Noticing the tension, she sits back.
“Everything okay here?”
“No. Emory offered to help, and I said I would prefer a doctor take care of it,” Dex confesses. If I wasn’t so fired up, I would be rational enough to understand, but I’m not, so I don’t.
“Dex,” Emory’s voice comes out just above a whisper. “I am, I mean, I was a doctor. I’m not practicing right now, but I can take care of that cut. I’m, I was a surgeon, stitching people up was my specialty.”
Dexter and Lanie glance back and forth between us, then Lanie lays a hand on Dexter’s arm. “We would really appreciate that, Emory. We trust you completely. Thank you.”
We all watch on as Emory expertly cleans and closes the gash on Harper’s tiny chin. Dr. Camden is in full force as she talks sweetly to the little girl, explaining why it is so important to stay still for her, and to all our surprise, Harper listens.
