Hayley wilted and leaned against Ronan.
“So, the prognosis is?” Gideon asked.
“Excellent. He’ll make a full recovery if he follows orders and lets someone take care of him.”
“I’ll take care of him,” Carmella said.
“I’ll help,” Julianne put in. “I’m off now for the summer.”
“We’ll all help.” Rafe’s tone was reassuring. Safe. “If he lets us.”
“He will,” Carmella insisted.
When the doctor left, Hayley caught something in the corner of her eye. Finn had come into the surgical waiting room. About five feet away, he slowed, then rushed forward.
Lifted his arm.
And slugged Ronan in the jaw. Ronan stumbled backward, then went down. Finn lunged for him.
Carmella screamed.
Rafe jumped between the two of them.
Gideon said, “I didn’t know our Finn had it in him.”
Finn still had his arms up, boxer style.
And Ronan rolled to his feet. Turning, he kissed Hayley on the forehead and walked away. She wanted to run after him, convince him to stay, but Finn was visibly upset. And her duty was to the man who’d been there for her, day after day, year after year. He deserved her attention.
Not the man who abandoned her.
* * *
“Well, that was a shit show.” Hayley threw her purse and coat on the chair, then flopped down onto the bed, on her back, arms out. She looked absolutely bedraggled with her hair down and messy, her lipstick bitten off.
Standing before her, Paul cocked his head. “Finn seems so mild-mannered.” They’d already talked about Seth and his recovery.
“Ronan was his champion. Whenever kids picked on him for being a bookworm, Ronan was there to punch back, sometimes literally. Sometimes with his quick wit. I think maybe Finn took Ronan’s disappearance from our lives harder than I did, though he never would talk about him after he left.”
Dropping down next to her, stretching out, Paul crooked his elbow and put his head in his hand. She was so precious he wanted to take away her pain. “By the looks of you two together, he was your champion, too.”
“You should have seen how he went after my mother whenever she got on us.”
“What about your father?”
“Dad talked to him, and Ronan told him if he didn’t stand up to her, he—Ronan—would.”
“Gutsy move.”
“Still, Ronan was close to Dad.” She seemed far away. “The same week he passed away, Ronan’s ex-girlfriend died, and Ronan said he had to get out of Hidden Cove. We never heard from him again.”
Because he could tell she was getting sad again, he reached out and brushed back her hair. “That’s good news about Seth.”
“Yeah. I’m glad Aunt Carmella and Rafe stayed the night with him.”
“He’ll be sore for a long time.”
“Can you imagine, somebody walked right into Legal Aid and went after him?”
“Aren’t there any security precautions in place?”
“Some, but they’re not enough. He complained to the bosses but they never put in an alarm. They will, now, though.”
“Too late for Seth.”
“I need a shower.” She frowned as she glanced down at his body. “I have clothes here, but you don’t. Hold on a sec.” Bolting up, she walked out of the room.
Paul laid back on the bed as she’d been and stared up at her ceiling, where a fan whirred. God, he had to have another chance with this woman. He had to. The thought of losing her was untenable.
She came back bearing an armful of clothes and tossed them on the bed. Shirts, pants, shorts, a bathing suit, some pajama bottoms. “Help yourself.”
He rolled to a sitting position then stood. “Did you disturb Finn? He said he was going straight to bed.”
“I didn’t want to do that. Those are Ronan’s clothes. I guess he doesn’t have a whole lot of interest in coming back into the fold.”
“I was thinking, Hayley. He must be close by. He got to the hospital fast, almost as fast as we did.”
A startled look. “What are you saying?”
“Maybe he’s living in New York.”
Her face flushed. Not with sorrow, this time. But with anger. “Fuck him, then. If he’s been that close.”
He stared at her.
“Sorry. I know your situation—”
“No, don’t apologize. I’ve been back in the area and I didn’t contact my family for a year. Comparing me to Ronan is accurate.”
She stood before him, watching him carefully. “Why did you come to my apartment tonight?”
“I decided I wasn’t going to let you go without a fight. Some things happened, good things, which I’ll tell you later. But they gave me the courage to come after you.”
She smiled.
“There’s one thing I want to say now.” He brushed his knuckles down her cheek “I love you, Hayley.”
Her eyes widened, then crinkled up at the corners. “I love you, too.” She didn’t even hesitate to say it back.
He was shocked at her admission.
Even more so, when she started undressing.
“Are you going to take a shower?”
“No. Later. Now, I think the talking should end on that lovely thought.” Wearing only a pink skirt and black bra, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.
He picked her up and whispered in her ear, “I’ll take it from here.”
* * *
Two weeks later
“Is it straight?” Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, Paul stood on the ladder after nailing in the sign over their new space on the edge of the commercial district in Brooklyn. They’d been lucky to get the spot, as someone canceled their lease.
“Yep, you nailed it.”
“Ha ha.”
Hayley smiled at her fiancé. He was light-hearted these days. It was hard to believe that it had only been two weeks since Seth’s injuries. He was recovering just fine. Right after the incident, and their confessions of love, she and Paul both gave notice in their respective jobs.
Paul joined her on the grass, sliding his arm around her waist. It felt wonderful to be outted. “Think we’re going to make it?”
“I know we are. Covington, Casella and Covitz will be a real success.”
“I wish it could say Covitz and Casella.” He sounded sad.
“It will, someday. But we gotta attract bigshot clients to establish our practice. And you’ve got the reputation now to do it.”
She knew Paul didn’t like exploiting his heroic actions of that one night, but he was willing to endure it until they could build up enough paying clientele so they could afford the rent and their salaries. She’d invested some of her own money in the startup and he wanted to contribute. Best of all, Hayley was going to get to do the pro bono work she’d always wanted.
A car drove up and a woman with thick dark hair down her back and blue eyes got out of the little Chevy Trax. “Hey guys, I like the sign.”
“Thanks, Zofia,” Paul said.
She kissed his cheek. “You didn’t have to give me top billing.” Zofia had not changed her name from Covitz after she married.