A Million Kisses or More (40 page)

“I’m sorry,” the woman said with a hint of sympathy in her voice. “No one mentioned a fiancée.”

Ana growled, wishing she hadn’t insisted on keeping the engagement a secret. She blamed the
Phantom of the Opera
for romancing such an action. Hadn’t Christine’s secret come back to bite her in the ass later on? “Please. I just flew in from California. I haven’t had time to change, my blood sugar is really low, and in two seconds, I’m going to start crying.”

“You’re already crying, miss.”

“This is nothing compared to what’s coming. If you don’t let me see him, I’ll start screaming,” Ana said, the threat coming out harsher than she had wanted. Unfortunately, she was prepared to follow through with the threat. And if that failed, she was prepared to use the pregnancy card, even though she wanted to tell Harrison before she told anyone else, especially since she had blurted it to Nolan Mars. When the woman hesitated, Ana took a deep breath and opened her mouth.

The nurse glared at her but pointed down the hall towards the elevators. “He’s in room 312, just don’t tell anyone I let you bully me into giving you the information.”

Ana wanted to kiss the woman but she settled for a shaky smile and murmured, “Thank you!”

Not willing to risk the nurse changing her mind or calling security, she rushed over to the elevator bay and pressed the up button. Since it was late and there weren’t a lot of people wandering around, the doors opened right away and she got in. Now that she was so close to him, she was terrified of what she would find. Absently, she rubbed her belly, taking comfort from the little life that grew there. Harrison would be okay; he had to be. He had a daughter and in six months, he was going to have another one, or maybe they’d have a son. It didn’t matter just so long as Harrison was there.

When the elevator doors yawned open, Ana hesitated a moment, needing to steady her nerves. No matter what greeted her when she stepped into Harrison’s room, she wasn’t going to freak out. If there were tubes coming out of his nose and ears and chest, she would deal. If he was wrapped in bandages from head to toe, she’d find the areas that were uncovered and kiss him softly. As long as his heart beat, she’d never leave his side again. As much as she had enjoyed her time in California, as much as she loved getting to know her sister, Harrison was her future. She’d just have to learn how to love flying so she could visit Abby and she was certain if Harrison held her hand, she’d be fine.

With one more deep breath, she scurried down the dim hall, needing to know one way or the other. Pushing open the door, she found her eyes automatically drawn to the still form on the bed. In a daze, she walked to his side, seeing more and more of him with every step she took. She hadn’t realized she had been holding her breath until she saw his chest rise and fall, saw the fluttering of his pulse along his throat, and she gulped down some air. There was a bandage on the left side of his face, his left arm was on top of the covers wrapped in stiff gauze, and his left leg was being propped up.

“Ana?” a tired voice said from the dark. Spinning around, she saw one of Harrison’s co-workers sitting there… Livingstone? No, Liverpool. She opened her mouth to say something but no words came out. Instead, she could only watch as he stood up and gave her his seat. She was in no shape to protest the kind offer. Pulling up another chair, he sat down next to her. “The family asked me to keep an eye on him tonight while they figure out what to do about Jolie.”

When Ana didn’t say anything, he forced out a laugh before he said, “You look awfully fancy for a hospital visit.”

She leveled a glare on him and it must have been something fierce because he held up his hands and let out an uneasy chuckle. “Sorry. My sense of humor isn’t always appropriate.”

For several long minutes, she simply sat there and listened to Harrison breathe. She was afraid to touch him in case this was a dream and he disappeared on her. Was this how her mom felt every time she visited Maddox in the hospital, wondering if he would ever wake up? Ana took a shuddering breath at the thought.

“What happened?” she finally asked in a hoarse voice, sliding her hand beneath Harrison’s. The warmth of his palm washed over her and the aching in her chest eased a little further. Absently, she noted that her clutch was still strapped to her wrist but she wasn’t going to worry about that. She was just happy that she still had it since it had her phone and her ID.

“There was an altercation at the supermarket the other day,” Liverpool explained, his voice tight with barely suppressed anger and helplessness. “Some asshole Miller arrested a few months back started raging about how his wife had left him, how he had lost everything. He blamed Miller and tried to goad him into a fight but Miller subdued him pretty quickly and told him to go home and sober up. The man left and that was that.”

“Only it wasn’t,” Ana said when he drifted into silence.

“Only it wasn’t,” he repeated, lifting his head and looking at Harrison’s still form. “The asshole ran Miller down this afternoon after he picked Jolie up from school.”

Ana sucked in a pained breath. “Jolie….”

“She’s fine,” he assured her. “A little shaken up at seeing her father getting hit by a car, but fine. Luckily, Miller has a hard head and the asshole was a poor driver. Miller only has a few minor injuries: a broken arm, a broken leg, a few scrapes and bruises, but otherwise he’s fine.” Liverpool licked his lips as he finally looked at Ana, “However, he hit his head and hasn’t woken up since they brought him in.”

Ana felt the blood drain from her face and she squeezed Harrison’s hand to reassure herself that he was still there. He had to wake up. Not able to consider the possibility that he wouldn’t, she rasped, “Is the guy who did this behind bars?”

“Oh, yeah, the guy who hit him is in custody. The bastard’s blood alcohol level was off the charts. He isn’t going to see the light of day for a very long time,” Liverpool said darkly. She heard him stand up but she couldn’t tear her eyes away from Harrison. A warm hand pressed down on her shoulder, a silent offer of support, as he said, “I’m going to leave the two of you alone.”

“Thank you,” she managed. As soon as the door closed, a tear slid down her cheek as she stood up and leaned over Harrison. Pressing a soft kiss against his lips, she whispered, “Wake up, Harrison.”

His fingers twitched, or she thought they did, and she nearly fainted with relief. Now that she knew he was only a little banged up, exhaustion swept over her and all she wanted to do was crawl up next to Harrison and sleep for a hundred years. Carefully so as not to bump any of his injuries, she got up on the bed and lay her body along the length of his. Her silver dress wasn’t very warm but she didn’t dare try getting under the blankets, no matter how badly she wanted to be closer to Harrison.

“Ana,” he mumbled, startling her as he tightened his hold on her. “I’m sore.”

“I know, my love,” she whispered, pressing a gentle kiss against his jaw. “I wish I could kiss it and make it better.”

He almost laughed but it came out as a groan. Wanting to keep from hurting him further, she made to get off the bed but his hold on her tightened. “Don’t leave.”

She stilled, staring at his beautiful profile. His eyes were still closed, his long lashes a dark curve against his cheek, and she doubted he was even fully awake. Kissing the hidden dimple on his right cheek, she whispered, “Don’t worry. I’ll never leave you.”

*****

Someone was shaking her shoulder. Groggily, Ana turned her head and saw a woman glaring down at her. “Miss, you’re not supposed to be here and you’re definitely not supposed to be on the patient’s bed.”

Blinking her eyes, she turned her head and saw the early, early morning light coming through the window. Snuggling further against Harrison’s side, she let her eyes drift shut as she asked, “What time is it?”

“It’s almost six,” the woman said, physically grabbing Ana and pulling her from the bed. Perhaps Ana should have warned her that making her stand up before she had some crackers wasn’t a wise idea but she hadn’t remembered. Luckily, she was able to keep the morning sickness down. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to prevent her body from swaying. The woman grabbed her arm to hold her steady. Concern mingled with the anger as she asked, “Are you okay?”

“Just a little woozy,” Ana admitted as the room spun around her. “It’ll pass in a moment.”

She watched as the nurse checked Harrison’s vitals and when she was almost certain she’d be able to talk without anything coming up, she said, “He woke up in the middle of the night.”

“And you didn’t notify anyone?” the nurse asked, pushing past Ana.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized, moving out of the way. The dizziness wasn’t getting any better and she knew that she was going to have to find somewhere to crash before she passed out, split her head open, and ended up in the hospital as well. She didn’t want Harrison to find out from strangers that his fiancée was pregnant with his child. The nurse was preoccupied, so with one final glance at Harrison, she stumbled out of the room and right into Abby’s arms. “Abby.”

“Ana,” her sister murmured, stroking her hair as she hugged her. Leading her down the hall, she continued, “Is he okay?”

“He will be,” Ana answered, stifling a yawn. “I fell asleep with him.”

Abby chuckled, “I know. I peeked in about an hour ago.”

“You’ve been here ever since?”

She shook her head no. “No. I got us a room at the hotel across the street and came back. It looks like I was just in time. Are you doing okay?”

“Yeah,” Ana managed, pressing her hand against her rebelling stomach, her head filled with white noise. Furrowing her brow, she came to a stop and faced her sister. “We don’t need to stay in a hotel, Abby. We can stay at my aunt and uncle’s house.”

Abby nodded though she looked troubled by the idea. “Sure. But we’ll have to stop by the hotel and grab our stuff.”

Taking Ana’s arm, she steered her out of the hospital and out towards a sleek sports car. Ana would have laughed about that but she was too exhausted, too worried, to summon the energy. As soon as Abby opened the passenger door for her, she collapsed onto the seat and didn’t wake up until Abby came to a stop in front of her aunt and uncle’s house. Rubbing her eyes, she glanced around, “How did you know where they lived?”

Abby snorted as she turned the car off. “I’m psychic.” When Ana gave her a look, Abby laughed, “I called them on your phone. I’m pretty sure they’re not still upset I woke them up.”

“Oh, jeeze,” Ana groaned, watching as the front door opened and her aunt came out. She had thrown on a bathrobe but her hair was a mess and it was obvious she had been abruptly woken up.

Abby sucked in a breath and when Ana glanced at her, her face was ashen. “My god, she looks just like your mother.”

Turning her gaze back to her aunt, Ana had to admit there was a resemblance… okay, a strong resemblance, she had just never noticed it before. They had the same strawberry blond hair, though Heather always took pains to make sure her hair was perfect. They had the same eyes, the same mouth, but before Ana could think on it too much, her stomach rebelled. It was all she could do to get the door open and her head over the edge of the opening before she lost what little was in her stomach. Great, now there was yet another person who’d know before she got the chance to tell Harrison.

Avoiding her aunt’s stunned gaze, Ana stepped out of the car, carefully sidestepping the mess, and muttered, “I’m going to run across the street and check on Jolie….”

“She’s at her grandparents’ house,” her aunt said, a hint of question in her voice.

“Then I’m just going to check on Harrison’s plants,” she mumbled, staggering across the street to the house that had become her home in a ridiculously short amount of time. Automatically, she reached into her clutch and pulled out his house key, the one thing she took with her wherever she went, thank god. Even though she knew she looked absurd in her wrinkled evening gown, she just needed to be close to Harrison anyway she could at the moment. In a few hours, after she took a nap and got a shower, she’d head back to the hospital and then spend the rest of the day with him. If she was quick, she’d be able to be back before noon.

Chapter 19

Slowly, Harrison swam through the murkiness in his brain, trying to pry his eyelids open. He could still feel the warmth of having Ana in his arms and he almost expected her to be there when he finally managed to open his eyes. Any disappointment he felt was pushed to the side when he realized he was in a hospital, his arm in a cast and his body more sore than he had ever thought possible. Blinking to make sure he was awake and not still dreaming, he realized his entire family was there, standing around the bed. His mom had tears in her eyes and a watery smile as she clung onto his dad’s arm, Tanner and Brandy were next to them, and on the other side of the bed were Ellen and Dan. The only one missing, other than Ana, was Jolie.

“Jolie’s with a sitter,” his mom explained, as if she had read his mind. Knowing his mom, it was a distinct possibility. “We thought it would be better to bring her once you’ve been given the all clear.”

“Where’s Ana?” he asked in a raspy voice. His throat was dry and a little sore but it didn’t matter because Ana wasn’t there and he needed to know where she was.

Everyone exchanged wary glances before his mom said, “She’s gone, Harrison.”

He remembered holding her the night before, the feel of her body against his, the smell of her skin. Even if she hadn’t spent the night, it was too soon for her to go…. Shaking his head, he said, “She’s not supposed to leave for another week.”

“It’s the beginning of July,” his mother said carefully, watching him closely.

Blinking slowly, he glanced out the window and saw that the sun was shining brightly, the trees were green, and there were birds everywhere. That didn’t explain the lingering scent of Ana on his pillow, though. Why did his head, his body, hurt like the very devil and how the hell did he lose six months?