A small man wearing a white jacket over blue scrubs approaches us and smiles compassionately at Jane. Clearly, he’s spoken to her before. “Morning, all.” He shakes my hand. “Graham Harlan, right? Emmy’s husband? I’m a big Pythons fan.”
“Right, how is she?” I ask, brushing off the “Pythons fan” part. The last thing I want to do right now is talk about football. In fact, it feels pretty damn unimportant. “I’m a little out of the loop here.”
He nods. “Everything went exactly as it should. A perfect procedure. We did a mini-maze surgery and targeted the upper chambers of her heart, the atria, with cold energy to create a maze of scars to correct the faulty electrical issues with her heart. We used a small camera through one of the incisions to direct us to her heart. A second tool was used to create small areas of scar tissue. She’ll have stitches on her sides that will dissolve. I’ll see her back in a week for a postop to make sure everything’s okay.”
“So it didn’t work last time?” I ask, my tone insistent as I try to drag out the information.
“It’s not uncommon to get another procedure. Emmy is a careful person. She was fully aware when she felt the signs of her A-fib recurring.”
I frown, wondering when that happened.
“What if this doesn’t work? What happens?” I ask.
Jane nods, agreeing with me for once.
“Her main issue is that most of the drugs for A-fib don’t work with Emmy. Right now, we’re giving her fluids and pain medication through an IV line. She’ll also be given medication to help control the buildup of fluids. She’ll do some deep-breathing and coughing exercises. This will help reduce the risk of fluid buildup in her lungs.”
My hands clench as I commit every detail to memory.
The doctor taps on his computer, then looks up and smiles. “Hopefully, we can get her up for a walk today. She’s young.”
“And strong,” Jane adds.
“She’ll need to keep her regular appointments for checkups,” the doctor adds. “There’s always the possibility of other ablation treatments, but considering how young and healthy she is, I’m hoping for a successful outcome.”
“Can I see her?” Jane and I say at the same time.
“Of course,” he tells us.
Jane and I walk into her room, a large single room with beeping machines and an IV attached to Emmy’s arm. Her hair is spread out on the pillow as she lies in a reclining position, sleeping.
A nurse is in the corner, sitting on a stool as she types information into a computer. She gives us a smile and tells us that Emmy hasn’t woken up yet, but if all goes well today, they’ll move her to a regular room tomorrow.
Jane rushes past me, grunting as she bumps my shoulder to get past me. She throws me a look over her shoulder. “Points for coming, but I’m the first person she’s going to see when she wakes up. I love her, Graham. She is the toughest person I know. The most beautiful soul. And you can’t see it.”
My heart is in my throat. I do see it. Emotion claws at my throat with sharp nails. She looks entirely helpless lying there.
All those dreams I had, the ones where I’m tackled and can’t breathe, and then she shows up, beckoning me to safety, to love. I’ve been so blind, trying to push her away, when she’s everything. I’ve just been too afraid to face it head on.
“She’s the one,” I whisper under my breath as I grip the rails of Emmy’s bed.
Jane frowns, rearing back. “Don’t you dare fucking cry on me.”
Ignoring her, I sit down and take Emmy’s hand and thread our fingers together, and then I speak to her, even though she probably can’t hear me. “I’m sorry, darling. I’m yours, I’m here, and I’m not leaving. I came back from the dead—for you.”
Chapter 31
EMMY
My eyes flutter open, adjusting to the light overhead as I take in the room. I woke up a couple of times earlier, but only for a few moments before I drifted back asleep. The room has a small table in the far corner next to the window, with a bouquet of pink-and-white peonies. From the light coming in through the window, it looks to be late afternoon. Wilbur the pig is next to my leg. Jane is asleep on a cot, and on the other side of me Graham sits, his eyes wide as he stares at me. His face is unshaven, his hair sticking up and clothes rumpled. I remember him from the last time I woke up but thought it was a dream.
He leans forward. “Hey. I’ve been waiting for you to wake up. Everything went great. How are you feeling? Are you in any pain?” His gaze goes to the area on my side where my bandages are under my gown.