SUSAN MEIER - Married In The Morning

By the time Ethan arrived, Gina had been greeted by Josh and Olivia Brady—Josh’s fiancée and one of Gina’s best friends—had spoken to the doctor and was by her father’s bed, where he lay sleeping. Because Ethan wasn’t family, he wasn’t allowed to come into the room. After her short visit was over, she joined Josh, Olivia and Ethan in the waiting room.

“Everything’s going to be fine,” Josh said immediately, while Olivia slid her arm around Gina’s shoulders and helped her to a chair. Like Ethan, Olivia and Josh were dressed in jeans and simple T-shirts. Olivia’s long blond hair was pulled into a bobbing ponytail. Josh’s black hair was rumpled, as if he’d combed his fingers through it in frustration.

“Yeah, I know.”

“And Ethan explained your plan about sending Gerrick home to run the company while you’re up here.”

“I think you all should go home.”

“But…”

“No buts,” Gina said, shaking her head. “I’m fine. But Dad’s recovery will take weeks, and with all of us up here, the company will not be fine.”

“The company will be fine without me,” Olivia disagreed. “I quit last week, remember?”

“You quit to plan your wedding.”

“Which is next month. Besides, everything’s under control. I can spare some time away. Before you got here the doctor told us your dad could be transferred to a hospital in Atlanta as soon as he’s able to travel. So it’s not like you’ll be here forever.” She paused, caught Gina’s gaze. “I’m staying.”

Gina nodded. “Okay.”

“Good,” Olivia said, then removed her arm from around Gina’s shoulders. “Now, when was the last time you ate?”

“Breakfast.”

“You haven’t eaten since breakfast!”

“Well, breakfast in Vegas was your lunchtime. So it wasn’t that long ago.”

“Vegas?” Ethan and Josh said simultaneously, before they exchanged a speculative look.

“Let’s leave that alone,” Gina said, then bit her quivering lip. For all her toughness about making sure the company would run smoothly, she suddenly wished Gerrick were here. But as quickly as she had the thought she stopped it. What they had done was wrong. Leaning on him was wrong. Leaning on anybody was wrong. She had to depend on people for business things, but that was simply letting them do their jobs. But she would not, could not, depend on anybody personally. She might not be in a position to take over this company today, or even next year, but by God she had to be someday and that meant she had to start being strong now.

Because there wasn’t another direct flight to Pittsburgh, Gerrick had to endure a layover, then rent a car and drive from Pittsburgh to Johnstown. He didn’t arrive at the hospital until almost midnight that night. When he stepped off the elevator onto the cardiac care floor, Gerrick didn’t see Ethan McKenzie or Josh Anderson and assumed they were already on their way back to Atlanta. Olivia Brady, dressed in blue jeans and an old shirt, as if she’d dropped everything when she got the call about Hilton, was sleeping on a blue plastic sofa. Gina stood by a floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out at the lights of the city.

“I got here as soon as I could,” Gerrick said, rushing over to Gina. He took her shoulders so he could turn her around and pull her into his arms. She accepted his comfort, but stiffly.

“Thank you, Gerrick, but I’ve thought this through…and talked about it with Josh and Ethan and you’re actually the person who should be home, running the company.”

“But I…”

“You’re the only one of us who’s in Operations. Actually, you’re the only one of us who is a vice president. Josh and Ethan aren’t that high on the corporate ladder yet, plus Ethan’s in Legal and Josh is in Public Relations.” She looked up at him, her pale-blue eyes blank and distant. “You’re the only one who knows how to run the business.”

Gerrick licked his dry lips. “Yes. You’re right,” he said, remembering that Olivia was in the room, remembering that they hadn’t yet told anyone they had gotten married, and realizing that as they had never dated, the marriage would be as much of a shock to Olivia as Hilton’s heart attack.

“How is your dad?”

“Resting.”

Frustrated that they couldn’t really talk, Gerrick glanced around. With the exception of sleeping Olivia, Gina and Gerrick had the huge waiting area, which was actually a wide corridor banked with chairs and fronted by little alcoves that also held chairs, all to themselves. He directed Gina to one of the cubbyholes and helped her sit. Continuing to hold her cold hands in his, he took the chair beside her.

“So, what’s up?”

“Gerrick, I can’t deal with this right now.” She pulled her hands out of his, fished into her trouser pocket and retrieved his ring. She handed it to him.

Pain flooded Gerrick, but he ignored it. “I know,” he said, taking the ring and sliding it into the pocket of his jeans. He didn’t think she was breaking up with him, but giving him the ring for safekeeping. With three one-karat diamonds, it had been very expensive and it wasn’t wise to have the ring rolling around in her pocket.

“So, I guess we’ll talk when you get home.”

Looking at her entwined fingers, she nodded. “The doctors say it will be at least a week before he can travel. I’ve made arrangements for a cardiologist friend of his to fly up from Atlanta tomorrow. He’ll check Dad out and make a decision.” She peeked up at him. “I won’t know anything concrete until tomorrow.”

He nodded.

“So there’s no point in you hanging around.”

“I can stay until…”

She shook her head. “I wish you wouldn’t. Olivia’s getting a hotel room and has agreed to keep me company. Josh and Ethan have already gone home.” She paused, drew a quick breath. “It looks better this way.”

“Your father and I are friends, Gina,” Gerrick argued desperately. “Won’t it look odd if I…?”

“Josh is my father’s nephew and he’s gone. It won’t look odd if you return to Atlanta, but it will look odd if you insist on staying.”

“Especially since I’m the one who should be at home minding the store,” Gerrick conceded quietly because it was clear she wasn’t going to budge, and he knew he had to let her handle things in the way that was easiest for her.

“Exactly.”

“Okay,” Gerrick said, rising. “Can I see him?”

She shook her head. “Only family can…”

“Gina, I am family.”

Gina swallowed and nodded, then glanced over at Olivia, Gerrick guessed, to make sure she was still sleeping. Then she led him down the hall to the nurses’ station and whispered that he was her husband and he would like to see her father. They were given orders to be out of the room in five minutes. When they slipped in, Gerrick got a full dose of seeing his idol, his mentor, his friend, attached to life support and breathing through tubes. Then he pressed his lips together and motioned to Gina to leave.

She nodded and followed him to the door.

“Walk me to the elevator?”

The relieved look on her face sent another shaft of pain through Gerrick, but again he ignored it. Seeing Hilton had impressed upon him that Gina had plenty to deal with handling the situation with her father. She shouldn’t be sorting through the complications of an unexpected marriage, too. Yes, he knew that leaving her was risky. That she could talk herself out of their marriage in the few days they were apart. But if he didn’t leave, if he insisted on staying, if he insisted they announce this marriage, he would not only be an insensitive clod, he knew with almost absolute certainty, the marriage would be over.

He held Gina’s hand as they walked to the elevator. To an onlooker it was simply a friendly gesture, but Gerrick realized how quickly, how easily he had fallen into the role of her lover, her husband. They had been romantically involved less than forty-eight hours, yet he knew if he lost her it would kill him.