Million Dollar Cowboy (Cupid, Texas #5)(83)

"So soon?" Dr. Cheri sounded disappointed.

"He's headed to China for six months, where his company is introducing the drilling technique he pioneered. According to Archer, it's going to revolutionize silver mining."

Dr. Cheri sighed dreamily. "Ridge was always an overachiever."

"So is Mason," Kaia said.

"Don't worry." Dr. Cheri laughed. "I'm not about to throw my husband over for a guy who is allergic to commitment. Ridge Lockhart might be hot as blazes, but he's certainly no one's idea of husband material."



Duke had made it through a five-hour open-heart surgery, but he was in ICU on the ventilator and hadn't regained consciousness.

Right now, it was just Ridge, Ranger, and Vivi in the waiting area. Rhett was on a plane home from Montana, where he'd been on the PBR circuit, and Remington was catching the next transport flight from the Middle East.

Ranger had had the presence of mind to drop by the mansion and pack an overnight bag for Vivi, saving Ridge from having to go clothes shopping for her. On the downside, he now had no excuse to leave the hospital.

He was stuck.

Ridge had gotten on the smartphone and played catch-up calls, texts, and emails. Because of the thirteen-hour time difference, he would have to wait until the evening to let Beijing know he would not be arriving as planned, but his second in command was on the way in his place.

God, he hated waiting. Hated hospitals too. And this was just the start of it.

He paced the length of the waiting room until a visitor glared at him, and he finally sat down. He crossed his legs, flipped through a magazine, uncrossed them again, and stared at the clock that seemed to be broken.



       
         
       
        

At four p.m. the ICU opened for visiting hours.

"Two at a time," a stern-faced nurse chided.

"Ranger and I will go in first," Vivi said to Ridge. "And then you can go."

Ridge nodded, understanding why it was easier for her to go see Duke with his brother at her side instead of him.

Ten minutes later, Ranger and Vivi came back out and it was his turn. He walked into the small private room punctuated by the whooshing sound of the ventilator breathing for Duke.

Seeing his larger-than-life father crumpled up in that bed, eyes closed, tubes snaking into his body, shook him. This was serious business.

Duke could die. This could be it.

They had a complicated relationship, but when push came to shove, Ridge loved the old son of a bitch.

Emotion flooded his system. His throat felt raw, and his stomach roiled. And he wished like hell that Kaia and her optimistic hope were with him.

Here lies Duke Augustus Lockhart caged by a machine that breathed for him. Unconscious. Unable to speak. A victim of a life of excess, lying in the darkened room that smelled of antiseptic and disease.

Dying by inches.

Was his father full of regret? Did he wish he could live his life over, make different choices?

What about his own regrets? What would he do differently if he had the chance?

Ridge swallowed, realizing he'd made just as many mistakes as his father.

"Visitation is over," said the nurse from the doorway.

He nodded curtly, went back to the waiting room. Vivi was on the phone. Ranger read a book. He sat apart from them. Closed his eyes. A lifetime of loneliness swallowed him whole.

"Ridge?"

He opened his eyes, bolted to his feet. Blinked to see Kaia standing before him. Ember was with her, and she took a seat beside Ranger.

"You're here," he said, a crazy impossible burst of joy pressing into the center of his chest so hard that it hurt.

"Of course I'm here." She stared at him as if he were a damn fool. "Where else would be? I got here as soon as I could."

At any other time a question such as this would have struck him as rhetorical. Either he expected her to be there or he didn't, no answer needed. But under the squeeze of circumstances and her intent dark eyes, his reason stumbled.

If he were being honest, would he admit he hoped she would show up? Subconsciously, had he been watching for her every time the door to the waiting room opened?

The concept was so distant and indistinct that he couldn't lay claim to it. The harder he tried to decipher the reason she was here the more uncertain he became about whether her question needed an answer. He never would have suspected that something as innocent as her steadfast belief that he should expect her to show up would cause so much bewilderment. 

"I don't know," he said, feeling keenly aware that the remark was inadequate. "You've got things to do. Work. Your pets-"

"There is nothing more important than being here to support you," she said so vehemently that her voice cracked. "Ember told me she was coming for Ranger, and the clinic was slow this afternoon, so I left work early and came with her. I simply had to be here for you. Aria's promised to look after my animals."