His eyes locked on Gino, Griffin willed the life raft over the next wave. They were still too far out. If he went over now…A wall of water crashed over them, and Griffin lost sight of Gino for a matter of seconds. It was all it took. When his vision cleared, Gino had managed to pull himself halfway over the side. One more good pull…
“Sit your ass down, old man!” Griffin yelled, trying to make himself heard over the howling winds and crash of the surf. Gino’s head came up, turning their way. That’s it; just a minute or two more was all Griffin needed. “Don’t do it. Think about Ava!”
The Lady Lou dipped and rolled, and Gino went over the side. There was barely a splash as he slid into the water.
Griffin cursed, signaled he was going in, and rolled over the side of the life raft. A wave lifted Gino from the water, flinging him against the side of the boat. Mind blank of anything but saving the old man, Griffin powered through the water. A foot from where Gino disappeared, he dove deep. Even with the lights from the cutter and life raft, the water was dark and murky, offering no sign of Gino.
Griffin’s lungs burned the deeper he dove. He stopped swimming, turning in a circle to search the dark depths. He was beginning to wonder how long he’d be able to hold out when he spotted something. Four powerful strokes brought him to the unconscious man. Wrapping his arms around Gino, Griffin kicked his way to the watery light on the surface. They broke through the churning water several feet from the lifeboat. Griffin pushed Gino’s upper body into the boat, then lifted his legs. One of the crew was working on him when Griffin finally managed to pull himself into the raft. Gino’s heart had stopped.
“We didn’t go to all this trouble just to lose you, old man,” Griffin said through clenched teeth as his body reacted to the cold and rush of adrenaline. He had basic medical training and took over chest compressions.
He felt a flutter of a pulse at the same time he heard a familiar whoop whoop. “Thank Christ,” he muttered. The Coast Guard helicopter had a defibrillator on board; the cutter didn’t. As they reached the cutter, the chopper hovered overhead. Within minutes, Gino was strapped into the lowered basket and on his way to North Shore General.
By the time Griffin and Sully finally arrived at the hospital, it was well past midnight. The late hour and snowstorm didn’t seem to matter to the press who were gathered outside the doors leading into the trauma center.
“Play nice,” Sully warned him.
“I’m too tired to be nice,” Griffin grumbled. He didn’t add that he didn’t want to waste time answering questions he’d already answered down on the docks. He wanted to see Ava and check on Gino. They got word he’d coded a second time on the flight back. Last they heard, Gino was in critical but stable condition.
“Yeah, two cold water rescues in one night is enough to take it out of anyone. Old man like you must be bagged,” Sully said with a grin.
Griffin flipped him off. Five minutes later, he was close to flipping off the reporters who wanted a minute-by-minute replay of both rescues. Knowing him as well as he did, Sully took him by the arm. “That’ll be all for now, folks. Mr. Gallagher—”
“Is a true hero,” said an older man with a gleaming head of white hair, batting the reporters aside with his cane to make his way to Griffin. It was the Admiral.
Out of the corner of his mouth, Sully said, “Let it go for now.”
Griffin nodded. He’d learned his lesson. He didn’t plan to embarrass the old man in front of the press. He’d talk to him about his great-grandson later. In private.
The Admiral gave Griffin a hardy slap on the back. “We breed our men tough here in Harmony Harbor. Gallagher is a prime example of the best of the best. A true Guardsman. We’re proud to call him a member of our Coast Guard family.”
Griffin raised an eyebrow at Sully, who was trying to keep a straight face. “Just go with it or you’ll be stuck arguing with him for an hour. From firsthand experience, you won’t win,” his friend said loud enough for only Griffin to hear.
“Reminds me a little of myself. You’ve probably heard…”
Sully nudged Griffin, and the two of them escaped into the warmth of the hospital while the Admiral regaled the reporters with stories of his youthful exploits. “You realize he’s going to be on my case to hire you, right? So what do you say you do a bro a major and accept my offer?”
Sully had offered him a job as soon as the cutter docked and again when they were driving to the hospital. Griffin had said thanks but no thanks both times. It wasn’t that he found the idea of working for the Coast Guard unappealing. It was the idea of moving back to Harmony Harbor.
So he wasn’t sure if Sully had purposefully set out to put him on the spot just now when he made the offer loud enough for Griffin’s approaching brother, father, and grandmother to hear. He knew they had because the three of them were looking at him with hope shining from their faces, and damned if he didn’t want to say yes for them. As hard as it was to be in Harmony Harbor, it was just as hard to be away from his family. He’d missed out on a lot—time with his great-grandmother that he couldn’t get back, and his Grams and father weren’t getting any younger.
Then his eyes went to the real reason he was second-guessing his decision not to accept the job—Ava. She stood with her back to him between the waiting room and admissions desk. Her Aunt Rosa, Dana, Sophie, and the older woman in the winter white coat were with her.
Once Gino was airlifted off the cutter and on his way to the hospital, Griffin had had time to think. Whether it was out on a storm-tossed ocean or on one of his many missions as a SEAL, there was always a chance he wouldn’t make it back. Sometimes, like tonight, it made him reevaluate his life, where he was going and what he regretted most. One of his biggest regrets was letting Ava go. He sometimes thought he could have fought harder. But at the time, he’d been shell-shocked, and then angry, and then hurt. As tonight had proven, his feelings for her weren’t all in the past. He found himself wondering if they had a shot at a second chance.
“Son?” his father said, looking concerned.
Griffin drew his eyes off Ava, at the same time speculating on how much of the conversation he had missed. “Sorry, I’m a little out of it. What did you say, Dad?”
“That as long as Sully was offering you a desk job, I think you should take it.”
“He couldn’t pay me enough to be a desk jockey. Don’t start getting your hopes up. I haven’t said yes.”
Liam cocked his head. “But you haven’t said no?”
“He has, twice. So I’m taking this as a good sign. Keep working on him, folks. I’m going to speak to Ava before heading out.” Sully shook Griffin’s hand. “All kidding aside, that was one hell of a performance out there tonight. We’d be honored to have you as a member of our team. Plus, I could use a good wingman at the bars.”
As Sully walked away, Kitty wrapped her arms around Griffin’s waist. “I’m so very proud of you and so very happy you came back to us unharmed.” She lifted her head from his chest. “But do you think you might consider staying onshore? It’s not easy being the grandmother of Harmony Harbor’s heroes.”
“You love it, and you know it. You’ll have something to brag about at the next Widows Club meeting,” his father said to Kitty, throwing an arm over Griffin’s shoulders. “Proud of you, son.”
“You know what? Maybe you shouldn’t take the job with HHCG. Dad and I will have to share the spotlight with you.” Liam grinned, giving Griffin a playful punch on the arm. “You couldn’t be satisfied with saving just one life; you had to save two. You always were an overachiever.”
Griffin smiled, reminded once again of how much he’d loved and missed his family. “Thanks, guys. Now would you mind telling me how Gino’s doing?”
The three of them shared a look. “You should talk to Ava, dear,” Kitty said, adding, “Colin, we better be leaving. Liam, you and Sophie stay as long as Ava needs you. Mia’s in good hands.”
Once his father and grandmother headed for the exit doors, Griffin turned to his brother. “Something I need to know?”
Liam rubbed his stubbled jaw. “Yeah. Jimmy got a little emotional when they brought Gino in. He told Ava what Gino had planned to do. So she’s…Oh, shit,” his brother said when Sully lifted his chin in their direction and Ava turned. “Okay, whatever she says, don’t take it—”
Focused on the woman striding their way, Griffin tuned out his brother and walked toward her. “Ava, I—”
She shook her head. “I don’t want to hear your apologies and excuses. Because of you, my father nearly died tonight. You took away his dignity, embarrassed him in front of his friends. If he d-dies, it’s your fault!” Her eyes were bloodshot and swollen, her face pale, the finger she stabbed in his chest shaking.
He closed his hand over hers. “You’ve gotta believe I never meant—”
She jerked her hand away, raising it as though to slap him, and then she clasped it with her other hand. “Go. Just go. Get out of here,” she demanded, her voice rising hysterically on each word.
Sophie hurried toward them with her grandmother following close behind. His sister-in-law reached for Ava. “Come on, honey. Let’s go sit down.” Sophie cast Griffin an apologetic glance as she tried to steer her cousin away.
“No, he needs to get out of here. He needs to leave!”
Rosa reached for Ava’s hand, giving it a gentle shake. “Cara, that is enough. Griffin, he doesn’t deserve this. You owe him your thanks. Your father is alive because of him. He risked his life to save Gino’s.”
“He’s the reason my father is even here. He’s the reason he’s fighting for his life!”
“No, cara, there is only one person responsible, and that is Gino. The drink, it has made him pazza.”
She put up her hand. “Don’t. You always hated my father. You—”
Rosa cut Ava off. “Griffin only said what someone should have said years before. What I should have—”
Her intentions were good, but Rosa was making matters worse. Griffin gave the older woman’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. “It’s okay. I’m leaving.”
“Good. Go. Go, now!” Ava practically shouted at him.
Rosa brought her hands to her cheeks, shaking her head as she watched Sophie lead Ava away. “What’s the matter with her? She’s acting crazy.”
“She’s afraid she’s going to lose Gino, Rosa. She’s angry at me.”
“Angry? You went out in a storm and risked your life for him. You all did. He’s a no-good, selfish somabitch.”
Ava obviously heard her aunt and turned to shoot daggers at Rosa. Sophie forcibly dragged her cousin to a chair while holding her husband’s gaze. She nudged her head at her grandmother.
Liam nodded and said to Rosa, “Why don’t I take you home? It’s getting late.”
Rosa ignored his brother and pressed a firm hand to Griffin’s cheek. “You’re a good man. Don’t let her push you away. She needs you.”
“She doesn’t want me. She hasn’t for a long time,” he said without thinking, grimacing when he caught the sympathetic expressions on his brother’s and Rosa’s faces. He reached in the pocket of his leather jacket for the gold chain and placed it in Rosa’s hand, closing her fingers around it. “I appreciate everything you said. But Ava needs you. Don’t drive a wedge between the two of you because of me. I’m good.”
He might not be good right now, but he would be. He’d needed the reminder of just how deeply Ava could wound him. The twist in his gut, the ache in his chest, they were nothing compared to how much he’d suffered twelve years before. He still bore the scars. And the reason why he’d never set himself up for that kind of heartache again. He knew when to cut his losses, and this was one of those times. He hoped his family hadn’t gotten their hopes up, because he wasn’t taking the job with HHCG.
Ava held her father’s hand. Her eyes felt like they were rubbing against sandpaper as she tracked the shallow rise and fall of his chest, listened to the steady beep of the monitor. It had been two days since that horrible, awful night. Other than to change into the clothes Sophie had brought her and use the washroom, Ava hadn’t moved from Gino’s hospital bedside. Every time she left his side, she was overcome with panic, terrified that he was going to die. Afraid that if she stopped willing him to live, willing him to fight, he’d let go and slip away.
“How is everyone doing this morning?” a cheery young nurse Ava hadn’t met before asked.
Her chirpiness was annoying. Ava wanted to say, How do you think we are? She could read her father’s charts. He had pneumonia. There’d been no improvement. He’d barely regained consciousness. But she’d done her clinical practicum in a hospital and knew how difficult the job could be. She forced herself to respond politely. “Fine, thank you. How’s your morning going?”
The nurse gave her a wide smile. “Aw, that’s sweet of you to ask. I’m having a great morning, thanks. The snow has finally let up, and the sun is shining. And my patients are all in a good mood. I guess in your case, my patient’s family.” She unhooked Ava’s father’s chart from the end of the bed. “Oh, wow, now I know who your father is. My best friend’s brother was rescued by the same man who rescued your dad.” Her face took on a dreamy expression. “He’s been in all the papers. He’s so brave. God, I’d love to meet him. Has he come to see your father?”
“No, he hasn’t.” Because I screamed at him and kicked him out of the hospital. She wondered what the young girl would say if she told her. Probably look at her like her aunt had, like she was an ungrateful lunatic. Her face burned at the memory. She’d acted like a crazy person. Only an hour before Griffin had arrived at the hospital, Jimmy had told Ava that her father meant to take his own life. After the anguish of waiting on the docks for news, it had been too much to deal with.
She’d taken her fear and anger out on Griffin. And he’d just stood there and taken it. She’d hurt him. She knew she had. But she’d been so ashamed, so embarrassed and afraid for her father…She’d been angry at him too. Because Rosa was right. Griffin had put his life on the line for Gino and so had the other men.
“Maybe he’ll come by today.” The nurse smoothed her hair from her pretty face and then looked down at her powder-blue scrubs. “I should have worn my other uniform.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it. He won’t be coming today either.”
“I bet he’d come if you called him. I can find out his number for you. I’m sure—”
Ava was back to being annoyed. Her father may be taking his last breaths, and all this girl could think about was Griffin. “That isn’t necessary. I have his number. He’s my husband.”
The nurse’s eyes went wide. “Oh, um, I should probably check on my other patients.” She hurried to the door, then pivoted. “I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have been going on about your husband like that. But you probably get that all the time, don’t you?”
Husband? Had she not said ex? Why wouldn’t she have said ex? “Ex. He’s my ex-husband.”
“Really?” The girl broke into a wide smile. “That’s awesome.” Her smile faltered. “I mean, wow, that sucks for you. I’m sorry for your loss.” Ava thought she must have made an aggravated noise in her throat because the girl looked startled and flapped her hand. “I’ll just go now.”
Ava forgot about being annoyed when her father’s eyes fluttered open. For the first time, they held hers, and she saw awareness there. He made an anxious sound in his throat, lifting his hand to the tube in his mouth. “No, you have to leave it in, Papa. Calm down. Everything’s going to be all right.” She rubbed his hand while reaching to press the call button for the nurse.
He shoved her hand away and pulled at the tubes in his arms, his eyes wild. “No, Papa.” She tried to take hold of his hands but he was beyond reason and fought her. “Help, I need help in here!” she called out.
He sat up and shoved her out of the way. She lost her balance, tripping over the chair. It overturned, and she fell on top of it.
And that was how the young nurse, her Auntie Rosa, Dorothy, and Dr. Bishop found her. The nurse and Dr. Bishop ran to the other side of the bed to subdue her father while Rosa and Dorothy helped Ava to her feet. Another nurse rushed into the room to administer the sedative Dr. Bishop had called for.
Her face flushed with anger, tears in her eyes, Rosa cried, “Now you see. Now you see what Griffin tried to protect you from.”
Ava knew her father hadn’t meant to hurt her, but it was like everything crashed in on her at once. Her father nearly dying, the hurtful words she’d shouted at Griffin. And underneath all of that there was something else, something she didn’t want to admit even to herself. Her fear that her father was going to live, and she would never be able to leave him alone in case he tried to hurt himself again. She’d have to quit her job to care for him full-time. She’d grow old in the house on South Shore Road.
“No, lovey, don’t cry. You know he didn’t mean to hurt you. You know that,” Dorothy crooned, taking her in her arms.
“Come, we’ll go to the cafeteria. You have something to eat. You’ll feel better,” Rosa said.
Ava drew back from Dorothy and self-consciously wiped at her face. “I’m okay. I need—”
“Rosa’s right. Let’s get out of their way. If they need you, they know where to find you,” Dorothy said.
Ava glanced at her father, who’d calmed down, and numbly allowed herself to be led to the cafeteria. She sat in a plastic chair, barely able to hold herself upright. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept. Rosa returned with a cup of coffee and a chocolate donut.
Taking the seat beside her, her aunt’s anxious gaze searched Ava’s face. “Enough, cara. You can’t go on like this. You must go home at night.”
“I need to be here, Auntie Rosa. The nurses are busy. I can—”
“If you don’t agree, I will talk to Dr. Bishop and have him ban you from your father’s room.”
“You can’t do that.”
“Sí, I can. Dr. Bishop, he likes me, and he likes my lasagna.” She gave Ava a smug smile.
“You’re going to bribe my father’s doctor to keep me out of the hospital. Is that what you’re telling me?”
Dorothy pressed her lips together as though trying not to laugh, and then her eyes went wide. “Rosa, Dr.—”
“No, I’m going to seduce him. That’s what I’m telling you.” Rosa ignored Dorothy frantically trying to get her attention and took Ava’s hand. “You see the lengths I would go to protect you? I love you, cara. I’m tired of seeing you this way. It hurts my heart. So for me, please, please, do this. Or sí, I will seduce Dr. Bishop.”
“As intriguing as I find the idea of you seducing me, Rosa, it won’t be necessary,” a deep voice said from behind them.
Rosa blushed, glaring at Dorothy as Dr. Bishop took the seat across from them.
Dorothy shrugged.
“Your aunt’s right, Ava. I’ve allowed this to go on long enough. I should have stepped in years ago. You can visit your father during visiting hours, but you have to…”
Ava strained to hear the words coming out of Dr. Bishop’s mouth. It was as though he were talking underwater and in slow motion. She swayed on the chair and everything went black.