Cardiologist? Perhaps his spell wasn’t an isolated incident. Her natural inclination was to pity him, but it felt wrong to pity a menace. Sympathy persisted through her recognition of this wrongness.
Good or bad, Dr. Merino was a human being; and since no one else rushed to be by his side during this critical time, Kenna stepped up to the plate. She continued to creep along the hallway until one of the nurses stopped her.
“Hey doll, if you’re here visiting I need you to sign in on this sheet.” The nurse pointed to a clipboard on the counter. She obliged and filled out the required information. “He might be asleep. They put a mild sedative in his IV.”
Dayton blinked several times, adjusting to the dim glow of the hospital room. The bright light filtering in stung his tired eyes. His sluggish movement made it difficult to push himself to a sitting position. The pain in his chest was minimal, no doubt a result from whatever swirled through the IV drip.
He regarded the medical gown he wore and groaned. So much for impressing Kenna with his athleticism. He was sure he’d looked real stoic when he collapsed in front of her.
Worse yet, the weakness he’d fought so hard to keep hidden since starting anew in Branch Spring had been exposed.
“Dr. Merino?”
The lucid voice made him straighten in the bed.
Kenna occupied a chair off to his right, still clad in her running attire. The jacket had been shed and tied around her waist to reveal a gray t-shirt.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
She leaned forward, hands on her knees. “Do you remember what happened?”
“When I hit the ground, I thought you’d rejoice that your midterm break had resumed.”
She readjusted her position in the chair, compacting her entire person atop the vinyl cushion. Dirt stained her yoga pants. A lightness settled over his limbs, like he’d been filled with hot air. Had Kenna knelt down to help him? Had she put her delicate hands on him? Whispered soft words of assurance?
“You’re a horrible judge of character, you know that? I lied to the EMTs so I could ride in the ambulance with you and I’ve been at this hospital going on four hours.”
Her level of concern was surprising, yet amusing.
The corners of Dayton’s mouth twitched, restraining a smirk. “The ambulance. How did you swing that, tell the EMTs that you were my girlfriend?”
“Yeah, not my finest moment.” A nervous laugh escaped her lips. He’d been joking. Oh, why wasn’t he conscious for this heavenly white lie? “I hope I haven’t overstepped, it’s just that I was caught up in the urgency of everything. I know we really don’tknoweach other, but I see you practically every day and I guess I kept thinking about how weird it would be if you weren’t around, all of a sudden.”
Kenna’s strained expression reignited his madness. Her red-rimmed eyes bore into him, begging Dayton to accept her words. This was what he’d waited for. Despite their disagreements and rocky partnership, there she was.
He had her.
A loud knock startled them both. It swung open without permission, exposing the presumptuous visitor: Dr. Stein, his cardiologist. A white patch of hair hugged his mostly bald head, which was littered with emerging liver spots.
The doctor jerked a thumb at Kenna. “Do you want the lady present for this discussion?”
Were she ever to know of his health problems, she’d hear it from him directly.
Now wasn’t the time for such complications.
“Could you step out for a few minutes?”
“Of course.” She practically jumped from the chair, shutting the door behind her.
Dr. Stein served him a stern look as he roosted at the end of the bed. “You didn’t get my calls?”
“I was on a 5K. I didn’t have my phone.”
Dayton acted like the mishap was no big deal but the severity of the situation wasn’t lost on him.
He had put himself at risk.
“You knew your device was on its last leg. I made that clear at your previous appointment. Do you think tackling a 5K is taking it easy? Though, I’m pleased to see you’ve heeded my advice about running with a partner. You’d be dead had that young lady not accompanied you.”