Page 45 of Her Honorable Hero

“Hell, she sometimes even wore pearls.”

Jack laughed. “Yeah, you were doomed. What else?”

“The wreck cinched it for me. I love her. I’m in love with her. When I saw her go after Hope…”

“Hope? That’s the baby, right?”

“Yep. Miranda waded in without a thought to her own safety to save that little girl. She got in my face and demanded that she be the one to climb out that train window and pluck the kid off the cliff. When I demanded she not take any risks, she shouted me down. She said she’d lie to me if she had to, but don’t make her, because she was going to do what the situation required. Fuck, Jack. Need I say more?”

“Let me guess, she took the right risk, and saved the kid.”

“Yep, and ended up in that hospital bed because of it. She’s a crazy woman, and she’s mine to take care of.”

“What makes you think she would ever, in a million years, agree to this?”

“I’m not sure she has a choice.”

“You mean it’s convalescent hospital or you?” Jack asked.

Griff stood up straight and walked around the bar to face the window in the dining room. He could still see Jack. “I can’t believe you would think I would throw down on her like that. I would move heaven and earth to make sure she has the best recovery possible, outside of a convalescent or rehab facility.”

“I call bullshit. You intend to glue her ass beside you.”

Griff rubbed a frustrated hand through his short hair. “What’s wrong with that? She needs care. I can offer that. Ergo, she needs to stay with me.”

“Ah, fuck, you just said ‘ergo’. You’ve lost the argument before it even starts.”

“All right, Brainiac, what would you suggest?”

Jack put his empty glass of water in the sink and joined Griff in the dining room. “Are you doing this because you need to fill the void left now that your daddy’s getting well?”

Talk about a question coming out of left field. He glared at Jack, then he really took the time to think it through.

“I hated it when Dad was sick. Hated it with a passion. I hated that he felt like shit. He was so weak, and he felt impotent. I wanted to fix it for him. But the fact that he needed help and I could provide it…? To the man who made me who I am today? Yeah, that was a bit of a rush. But that was a miniscule amount of what was behind me doing it. Because I would have given my left nut for him not to have had to go through cancer.”

Griff could see Jack’s shoulders release some tension.

“This is a whole different ballgame with Miranda. We don’t know what to expect when she wakes up. She has a traumatic brain injury. To tell you the truth, depending on the level of care she needs…” Griff’s voice trailed off.

“Don’t think that way,” Jack’s hand clamped down on Griff’s shoulder.

Griff shook off his melancholy thoughts. “Let’s go get the food. The doctors said that there was no damage to her brain. They just had to repair a couple of blood vessels, they really think that there’s no reason not to expect a full recovery.”

“There you go,” Jack said easily as they headed to the front door. “Focus on that.”

“I’m going to.” Griff said as he locked the door behind him.

They got into the SUV and decided to change the subject. “So when are you and Beth going to tie the knot?”

“You really have been out of it.”

“That goes without saying, but humor me, why are you saying it?”

“You should have checked your mail, there should be a wedding invitation in it.” Jack pulled into the restaurant’s parking lot. “Stay here, I’ll be right back.”

“I’m paying,” Griff said, as he got out his wallet.

“I’m rich,” Jack said with a self-deprecating grin. “Put your money away.” He slammed the door shut.