Married By Midnight(38)
For many years he had convinced himself he was indifferent to his father’s emotional neglect, and his cruelty, yet in this moment he could not deny a crippling need to hear a loving word from this man.
“So am I,” he replied, his heart fracturing just a little inside, while at the same time, that old animosity simmered beneath it all. All his father had to do was utter a single word of kindness, and all was forgiven?
But Garrett needed kindness now. He needed to know he had some worth. And to hear it from this man, of all people.
His father reached out with a trembling hand and cupped Garrett’s cheek. “You’re a good boy. I think I was too hard on you.” His eyes filled with fear while he struggled to remember. “Was I?”
Garrett swallowed over the emotion rising up within him. “Sometimes...yes.”
A look of regret flashed across his father’s face. Then he lowered his hand and blinked up at the canopy. Garrett leaned back.
“Brother Salvador said there is a reason you are still with us,” the duke said. “A reason you were not lost.”
Garrett looked up. “I beg your pardon?”
“You’re not meant to leave yet.” The duke rolled over onto to his side and closed his eyes.
Garrett frowned in bewilderment. Did the duke know that he meant to return to Greece immediately after the wedding? Or was he referring to something else? Something about the accident? Could he know? If so, how?
Garrett pulled the covers up over his father’s shoulders and tucked him in as he drifted off to sleep.
A short while later, Dr. Thomas walked in. “How is the patient?” he quietly asked.
“He seems better,” Garrett replied.
The doctor laid the back of his hand on the duke’s forehead. “His temperature seems normal. I believe he is going to be fine.”
“Thank you for everything,” Garrett replied. “Especially for taking him out of my arms in the hall. I couldn’t have carried him much further.”
Dr. Thomas listened to the duke’s heart with a scope on his back while consulting his timepiece. “Well. He might have died if you hadn’t found him when you did. He’s a lucky man to have such a devoted son.”
Garrett leaned back in his chair and studied the doctor for a long moment. “Thank you, but I do not feel I can accept the compliment, for I’ve been absent for the past seven years. I’ve been sailing around the Mediterranean while my brothers have remained here for the most part, steadfast in their duties.”
The doctor glanced up. “I’m sure you had your reasons. You’re young. Sometimes it’s necessary to fly the coop and expand your horizons. Learn about the world. It all becomes a part of your life experience and later those experiences shape your future.” He put his scope back into his medical bag.
Garrett watched him with growing interest. “How long have you been a medical man, if you don’t mind my asking?”
“Quite a long time. Since before you were born.”
“Did you always know you wanted to be a man of science?”
The doctor sat down in the chair on the opposite side of the bed. “Most of my life, yes, though my father wanted me to join the army or navy. He felt it was beneath me to enter the medical profession.”
“Who is your father?” Garrett asked, realizing he knew very little about Dr. Thomas.
“Viscount Bradley. He’s dead now. My elder brother inherited the title, so at least now I am permitted back home to visit.”
Garrett’s eyebrows lifted. “Your father cut you off?”
“Yes, when I didn’t do what he wanted. He cut me out of his will entirely and we never spoke again.” Those familiar eyes met Garrett’s. “Which is why you have done the right thing by coming home. I will always wonder if perhaps my own estrangement with my father could have been resolved if I had made the effort. I would sleep better now if it had been.”
Garrett considered all this. “If you could go back, would you do things differently and join the army instead? Do you regret your choices?”
Dr. Thomas lowered his gaze. “Certain choices, yes, but not that one. I was never cut out for war. I have no desire to be anywhere near flying bullets—sent or received.”
Garrett chuckled. “I cannot blame you. And I envy your ability to restore health to someone who is sick or dying.”
They sat in silence for a while.
“What will you do with yourself, Lord Garrett, when you have your inheritance? I understand you will receive a settlement on your wedding day. The duchess tells me you plan to return to Greece.”
Garrett sighed. “That was my intention when I returned home, but now I find I am not as eager to leave as I thought I would be.”