Page 73 of Knockout (Whiskey Dolls 2)

I’d been in the middle of a particularly grueling rehearsal when the call from Jude had come in, and because I was still pissed as hell at him, I’d let it go to voicemail instead of answering. Now I was kicking my own ass for being so goddamn stubborn.

When I’d listened to the message nearly half an hour later and heard the fear in Jude’s voice as he said the words “Gram” and “heart attack” in the same sentence, my knees nearly gave out. I honestly couldn’t remember a single thing that had happened from the time I ran out of the studio in the back of Whiskey Dolls to when my Mercedes came to a screeching halt in the hospital parking lot, but when I finally spotted Jude pacing the corridor of the hospital, frantically dragging his fingers through his hair, I broke into a dead sprint.

“Jude,” I shouted as I ran in his direction.

He stopped and whipped around at the sound of my voice, and the look of absolute relief that filtered across his face when he spotted me brought tears to my eyes.

He opened his arms and I ran straight into them without a second thought. All the hurt and anger of the past week disappeared as soon as I got that call. I didn’t care about any of it. All I cared about was being here for him and that Gram was okay. That was all that mattered.

“Christ, Layla. Thank God,” he grunted as he pulled me into a tight, fierce hug. “Thank God you’re here. I can’t—I don’t—”

“Hey, hey. It’s all right,” I said softly, pulling back so I could look at him and take his scruffy cheeks in my hands. “It’s all going to be okay. Have you spoken to the doctors? What have they said?”

“They’ve taken her back to run some tests,” he told me, panic coating his words and making them hoarse. “They think she had a heart attack, but they won’t know for sure until they get the results back. She was awake, though, so I was able to talk to her for a bit before that.”

I let out a breath, realizing in that moment that I hadn’t been able to take a full breath until just then. “Okay, that’s good. That’s great, actually. If she was awake and coherent enough to be talking, that has to be a good thing, right?”

He was still clinging to me, holding me like I was his lifeline, and I didn’t mind it one bit. If I could offer him any kind of comfort during this, I’d do it, without a doubt. “Really?”

“Well, I mean, I’m not a doctor or anything, but I would imagine if she was able to talk that’s a good sign.” Sliding my hands down to the sides of his neck, I willed some of my strength into him. I didn’t have the first clue if shit like that worked, but I’d be willing to try anything it took to ease his fears. Even if it meant trying to mentally infuse him with strength. “Honey, listen to me,” I said as I snaked my fingers into his hair at the nape of his neck. “It’s all going to be okay. Sybil is going to be fine. We’re going to get those results back, and they’re going to show she’s so healthy she’ll outlive all of us. And I’ll be right by your side when the doctor gives you the good news.”

He closed his eyes and pulled in a deep breath as he lowered his forehead to mine. “I love you, princess,” he said in a rough grunt, rendering me speechless. He lifted his head, looking down at me with those midnight eyes, love and adoration swimming and glittering in their depths as he held on to me like he never wanted to let me go. “And I know what you’re going to say. You’re going to say this is an intense situation and I’m not thinking straight because I’m worried about my grandmother, but that’s not the case.

“I love you. I’ve been in love with you for a while now, and I’ve been trying to tell you all week. You said not to come knocking on your door until I was strong enough, and I’ve tried, baby. I’ve tried for fucking days. But you wouldn’t answer. I need you to know that. I knew I fucked up the moment you closed the door on me, and I’ve been wracking my brain every goddamn day, trying to think of a way to fix it. I still haven’t come up with anything worthy of you, so this is all I have. The truth is all I’ve got, Layla. I love you and I’ll do whatever it takes to win you back. I can’t—”

“I love you, too,” I said on a croak as tears spilled from my eyes. Then I proceeded to ramble like he had just done. “I love you, and I’m sorry for not answering any of those times you knocked. I was just being proud and stubborn because you hurt my feelings and I wanted to stay mad at you a little longer. You have this talent for driving me crazy and pissing me off, and I wanted to make you suffer a bit more before I eventually gave in. But I was going to. Give in, that is. I already told myself I was going to answer the door the next time you knocked. And sure, I wasn’t going to make it easy, and I fully intended to rake you over the coals a bit because you totally deserved it, but I love you too, Jude. So much. And I was going to tell you I wanted to be with you.”

“You want to be with me?” he asked in a tender voice as the most brilliant smile stretched across his lips. He cupped my cheeks in his hands and brushed at my tears with his thumbs.

“I really do,” I admitted on a sniffle. “There’s no one I like fighting with more than you.”

“We really are perfect for each other, aren’t we?”

“H-how do you mean?” I asked, suddenly unable to get ahold of my tears. “I mean, of course we are, but in what way are you meaning?”

“I mean we’re both stubborn, hardheaded idiots when we want to be who are both just a little crazy.”

I let out a watery laugh, feeling like a weight had just been lifted off my chest. “I’d say we’re just the perfect amount of crazy, actually.”

“Oh, absolutely. The perfect amount.” He inhaled deeply, his features growing serious. “So does this mean you’ll give me another chance? I know I’ll probably screw up more than once, baby, but I swear I’ll always have your back. From here on out, no matter what.”

“And I’ll always have yours.”

He lowered his head toward mine, prepared to kiss me, and I was more than freaking ready for it, when someone cleared their throat and interrupted the situation. Suddenly reality came spilling back in and I remembered where we were and why as we both turned to look at the man dressed in a white lab coat just a few feet away. “Are you the family for Sybil Kingsley?”

“Yes, that’s me. I’m her grandson,” Jude said quickly, grabbing hold of my hand and pulling me toward the doctor. “Is she going to be okay?”

“Your grandmother is going to be just fine.” And with those words, everything suddenly felt right in my world again.

“Oh, thank God,” I breathed. “So what happened? Was it a heart attack?”

“All her tests came back clear,” he informed us. “My best guess is it was a bad case of indigestion, but I’d like her to take it easy for a few days and cut out spicy foods or foods that are high in acid. I’ve written my number down for her to call for a follow-up appointment just to make sure everything still looks good, but I don’t see any reason why she can’t go home. I’ll get started on her discharge paperwork, and in the meantime, you can go back to see her.”

Jude and I thanked the doctor profusely before sprinting down the hall to Sybil’s room. I moved through the door after him, only to crash into his back when he jerked to a fast stop two feet inside.

“Gram, what the hell are you doing? You should be in that bed, resting.”

I poked my head around the broad expanse of his back to see Sybil was already fully dressed in another brightly colored, stylish caftan, standing beside the bed, scrolling through her phone. “Sit down. You shouldn’t be on your feet,” I ordered. “The doctor said you need to take it easy. At least wait to get up until they bring a wheelchair in.”

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