Chapter 26

26

By the time Chad was free to leave the hospital he was beyond exhausted. He had known Ryan Hanan since the kid had been two days old. He had been there for every check-up, and half the kid’s birthdays. He and Hudson had been good friends for years. Working in a small-town hospital meant he would see—and even lose—people he knew and cared about at some point or another. He was just damned glad things would work out for the Hanans.

But he was exhausted when he made it back to the ED—he had been searching for Genny. His plans to talk her into going home with him for dinner were long gone. Now he just needed to see her for a moment before he drove to his condo in Barrattville.

He just needed to see her now.

He found her in the ED, with Aubrey and Aubrey’s younger sister next to her. And her sisters and her mother. Chad stepped up to them, putting one hand on Genny’s small shoulder. She just turned and looked up at him, with red-rimmed, tired eyes that broke his heart. “Hey…”

“Chad, how is Ryan?” Giavonna asked, quietly. “Is he okay?”

“He’s sleeping in recovery now. Things went well, he’s going to be okay. How’s his father?” He looked at Aubrey, assuming she had had care of Hudson.

“He was Dr. Michaels’s patient, but I’ve heard he’s doing well,” she said.

“I’ll check on him in a minute, before I go.” He didn’t want to drive the thirty minutes to Barrattville. He considered heading back to his own parents’ house and crashing there. He could ride with Chantal, if she was still around. But…he didn’t see his sister anywhere. “Where’s Chan?”

“We sent her home. She wasn’t feeling well and needed to rest,” Genny’s mother Gayle said. “Gunn and Gene had stopped by to check on Hudson, and Gene insisted on driving her home.”

Chad looked at Genny. “I was going to bum a ride with her, but…I’ll just crash in the break room. I’m too tired to drive. Especially…after this.”

“Nonsense, young man, you’ll go home with my girls. They’re heading out now. George’s room is still right there, and empty. You’ve spent enough nights there, you know you are welcome any time. And it’s only ten minutes away.”

Here Genny’s mother was, offering a way into Genny’s inner sanctum. And Chad was too tired to use that to his advantage. “I thank you for the offer. I’ll gladly take you up on that.”

“I just bet you will,” he could have sworn he heard Genny mutter behind him.

He would definitely be taking advantage of the opportunity—as soon as he got some sleep.

Chad was too exhausted to do anything else tonight.