Sundae's Best (Briar County 2)

“It’s okay. I got you. I’m here.”

“I’m sorry, Grady. I’m so damn sorry,” she said, still weeping, making Grady tense up. He feared something had gone wrong, that he’d missed his father and he was gone.

“What happened? Is he not stable anymore? Did he—”

“No. Gosh no.” She pulled away, wiped her eyes. “I meant I’m sorry to you…about us…about everything.”

“Oh.” He hadn’t expected that. Sure as shit didn’t know what to say to it either. Over ten years and she was sorry? So for now, Grady pretended she hadn’t said it. He’d sort through his feelings on it later. He steeled his spine, stood tall, and said, “Cat, this is my partner, Deacon Sharpe.” Then he reached for Deke’s hand, to make sure she understood what he meant by partner.

“Oh,” she replied, sounding like Grady had just seconds before. “It’s nice to meet you, Deacon. I’m Cat.”

“You too, ma’am,” Deke replied. “It’s real nice meeting Grady’s family. He’s a good man, the best. He means the world to me.”

Jesus, this man. Grady would never get over hearing Deke say things like that about him.

“I’m glad to hear that, and…I’m glad he has you.” Cat turned back to him. “There’s so much I need to say to you, little brother. So much we all should say, things we should have said a long time ago, things we never should have allowed to happen. I won’t get into it right now, but I’ve done a lot of growing…a lot of soul-searching. I should have found you sooner, but I was afraid.”

Damned if his heart didn’t swell at that, if Grady wasn’t filled with home. “I’m here now.”

“Yeah, you are. You came the second I called. We don’t deserve that, but before we get into that, we should go see Mama and Daddy. Betsy’s here now too. Todd is with the kids.”

“Let’s do it, then.” Grady reached over and laced his fingers with Deacon’s again.

They were quiet as they went into the building, as they took the elevator to the ICU waiting room. It was empty except for Betsy, who stood there wringing her hands, watching them as if she didn’t know what to do.

Grady didn’t either. She’d always been a bit standoffish.

“Hi,” she said when they approached.

“Hey,” Grady replied.

“Mom’s in the room with Dad. I think we can probably go in. Or, I can see if she wants to come out or… Hell, I don’t know what to do or say right now.”

He was surprised at that. Betsy didn’t admit things like that easily. “The hi was a good place to start. This is Deacon Sharpe, my partner.”

Her gaze darted back and forth between the two of them, and Grady waited to hear how she would respond.

“I’m sorry to meet you under such difficult circumstances,” was what she settled on, which was so her. Cat wore her heart on her sleeve, Betsy fiercely protected hers, and Grady was somewhere in the middle.

“I’m sorry about your father. It’s good to meet Grady’s family, though. He’s told me about all of you,” Deke replied.

“Well, I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not,” Betsy said.

Silence followed, until Grady let out a loud laugh all of a sudden, one he had no idea where it was coming from, why he felt it so much, and how he could do it at a time like this. But then Cat was laughing too, Betsy following, if more subdued.

“Oh goodness,” Betsy said. “We’re a mess. I can’t believe we’re such a mess. How did it get this bad? I don’t know how to fix it. I hate it when I can’t fix something.”

Deacon’s hold on him tightened. “It’s not Grady who needs to change. I know I’m not family to you, but he’s family to me, and I can’t—won’t—let anyone make him feel like there’s something wrong with him, with us.”

Grady hadn’t thought he could love him more, but in that moment, he did.

“I like him,” Cat said.

“Thank you,” Betsy replied. “For being to him what we haven’t been. I have—”

“Grady?” His mom’s voice interrupted whatever Betsy was going to say, and Grady turned to see her standing in the doorway, her eyes red and watery. She looked older; he knew that was logical, but she looked older than she should. “How…? When…?”

The ache in him grew, spread out. She hadn’t known Cat got ahold of him.

Maybe she didn’t want him here.

“I called him,” Cat said. “Daddy asked for him, and even if he hadn’t, it’s about time, don’t you think?”

Grady waited, held his breath, until she said, “Past time.”

And then she was in his arms, and they were hugging.

Chapter 30

Deacon

Deacon hated being in hospitals—it reminded him too much of when Patricia had been sick, of all the times they’d been in and out of facilities—but as it turned out, they weren’t going to stay very long. Apparently, Grady’s dad had to have a procedure, and they wouldn’t be able to see him for at least a few hours, maybe longer.