Page 93 of Everything Has Changed
Gwen sits next to her grandmother, her head on Ophelia’s knee while she brushes through her hair. Gwen’s eyes are on me though. And when she sees that I’m looking back at her, her lips try to lift in a smile but it’s wobbly at best.
“I’ve got her,” I promise him.
My phone vibrating in my pocket has me reluctantly removing my gaze from the woman inside.
“Fuck,” I mutter as I read the screen. “I’ve gotta take this,” I tell Jackson while stepping toward the porch steps. When I’m out of reach for Jackson to overhear, I place the phone to my ear.
“Where have you been?”
“Hello, father. How are you?”
“Don’t bullshit me, Logan. I have been trying to reach you since last night.”
And I’ve been ignoring your calls since last night, is what I want to say. But I hold my tongue. “I had to go out of town. You wanted this to be the best festival ever, right? Gotta bring in that extra money to look good is what you told me.”
My father scoffs in my ear. “Leave it for that girl. We’ve got bigger problems.”
I want to react to his comment, but the latter part of what he says has my ears pricking. “What are you talking about?”
“The Willow Grove Gazette and the hack job of a journalist they have employed asked if I have a comment on the whispers that we are expanding the town. Care to explain why some lowly reporter would have the thought to even ask that question?”
My feet slowed from the pacing I had been doing. “I haven’t said a word to anyone.” No matter how badly I wanted to, I kept my cards close to my chest. “Maybe you should ask your business partners over at Triton.”
My father is silent for a moment. “If I find out you’re lying, boy–-”
“You’re going to what? Force me into a life I don’t want? Too fucking late for that.”
I can practically hear the steam releasing from his ears. “You ungrateful piece of shit.”
I roll my eyes, no longer affected by the words he spews at me after all these years.
“I better see you in the office first thing in the morning. I have a gag order on that paper, but I can only hold them off for so long. We need to prepare.”
Not waiting for my response, my father disconnects the call, leaving a ringing in my ear. Either from his shrill voice nagging me or the stress he has me under, I’m not sure. But I need to get a handle on it fast because I think whatever plan I might have imagined just ramped up quickly.
33
Gwendolyn
If I nibble on my thumbnail any longer, I might not have it anymore, but at this moment I really don’t care. Obviously Logan does, as he takes my hand and gently pulls it from my mouth. My gaze leaves my grandmother, where it’s been since we flew into the hospital this morning like a bat out of hell, travelling over to Logan.
Like all the other times my eyes have sought his today, those hazel eyes are already on me. Looking down at me with an expression that begs to ask if I’m okay. But his voice doesn’t bring those words to light, because he knows I’m not. Instead, he offers a smile or a wink, just a little reminder to let me know he sees me. And knowing that he is here has made this bomb drop of a horrible day tolerable.
How can everything go from being so magical, waking up in the arms of the man of my dreams, to receiving the worst news of my life?
A brain tumor.
How can this be real life? How can my grandmother be sick? She is supposed to be the strongest one of all. The glue that held us together since we lost our parents. The one that took the role of grandmother, mother, and father when we needed it.
I squeeze my eyes shut to stop the pressure of tears threatening to spill over. I wouldn’t cry right now, not in front of everyone. Thebreakdown can wait until I am back in the comfort of my bed and surrounded by the darkness.
A touch caresses my cheek, and I lean into Logan’s palm. The warmth of his skin calmed me in a way I never thought possible for another person. The tingles of anxiety still dance over me, but he eases them enough to breathe normally again.
A loud noise from across the room has my eyes opening again. They jump right to my grandmother as fear spikes my heart rate that something is wrong only to find her tickling Rowan, who is snuggled in her lap.
Between giggles, Row releases a soft yawn, reminding all of us how late it is.
“Alright, bug,” Jackson stands from the loveseat, groaning as he stretches his long limbs. “It’s time for bed. You have school tomorrow, and you are already up way past your bedtime.”
