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Her lips lifted "Don’t tell anyone, but I’erous Medical diagnoses intrigue me, so I watch every medical show I can when I have a spare minute"

"Get the fuck outta town"

"No, I’ what else he didn’t know about her "There are facets to you that continue to surprisepredictable"

"You are anything but predictable, Lizzie"

He leaned over and brushed his lips against hers "Thank you for being here with ht I couldn’t haveas you need me"

Her words made him lean back, look at her Really look at her There was so in her eyes

"Gavin"

Gavin lifted his gaze to Jenna He stood and so did Elizabeth

"Doctor’s back He said for us to oing to talk to us in about ten minutes"

They followed Jenna to the room and sat And waited Ten minutes turned into thirty Gavin’s skin crawled, and he was ready to climb the walls He squeezed Elizabeth’s hand on one side and his mother’s on the other

Finally, the doctor caeons here Mrs Riley, your husband has a blockage in three arteries"

His mother squeezed Gavin’s hand Hard

"What does thatto need triple-bypass surgery"

"Oh, God"

Tears fell down her face Gavin wrapped his arm around his mother, and Mick held her, too Mick held Jenna’s hand, and they all sat and listened while the doctor described the bypass surgery and what it would entail for their dad The doctors were going to strip veins froed arteries in his heart It was a coery, but the doctor indicated it was done frequently with a high success rate He would have to spend about five days in the hospital after surgery, and after that would be sent home with strict dietary and exercise instructions The recovery would be slow and would require so is, he’s alive He survived the heart attack Many don’t Noe’ll get him moved up to a room in the cardiac care unit, et hiery on Monday"

Everyone stood as the doctor left

"Well He dodged a bullet," Mick said

Gavin’s mother looked pale, her tear-streaked face more than Gavin could handle If his father had always been a rock, his ether, and if she fell apart, the rest of theile as a cracked egg

Jenna took both of Mom’s hands in hers

"He’s alive, Mo to h this just fine"

"That’s true," Gavin said "Dad’s one of the toughest guys I’ve ever known He’s going to fight"

She nodded, glanced at each of theaze to Tara and Elizabeth "And the two of you, too I don’t knohat I’d do without you all into need all of you to get through this--to get Jih this"

"We’ll all be here for you, Mom," Gavin said "Whatever you need"

She swept her paloing to go see your father now before they get his rooh his hair He didn’t even knohat tiht, or what time Jenna had called It felt like there was a boulder tied around his neck, dragging hiet some sleep"

"I’ll take her," Jenna said "She’ll probably want to stay up here with Dad tonight, so she’ll need a shower and a change of clothes I’llto eat"

Mick nodded "We can do shifts up here with her so she’s not alone"

"I don’t know that they’ll allow more than one family member at a time in there," Elizabeth said "ICU usually only perht want to check"

Mick narrowed his gaze at her "And now you’re an expert on hospitals? You just know everything, don’t you?"

Tara laid her hand on his ar here anyway, Gavin? Just because you’re fucking her doesn’t mean she’s family"

Tired, wired on bad coffee, and worried about his dad, Gavin didn’t need this right now But he understood Mick probably felt the same tension "Whatever beef you have with Elizabeth doesn’t belong in the halls of a hospital Dad wouldn’t want this, and Moo"

"It’s okay I can go I don’t want to be the cause of fa around your rasped her arm as she turned to leave "You’re here because I asked you to coht to be here as anyone else"

"Gavin, really, it’s all right Your brother doesn’t want o"

"Nonsense, Elizabeth I want you here You’ll stay"

Gavin turned at his mother’s words She stood outside the door to his father’s roo small and lost, but her eyes burned fire as she looked at Mick

"Michael, this is the last ti word to Elizabeth Is that understood?"

Mick gave a curt nod

"I need all of you here I need all the support I can get right now, and that includes Elizabeth, who I consider faiveness isCome here, Elizabeth"

Elizabeth walked slowly over to Gavin’s mother, rapped her ar time Remember the talk we had You’re alelcome around us Gavin will need you now aze to his mother "I’ll do whatever I can to help all of you"

She kissed the top of Elizabeth’s head "Thank you"