Seducing Mr. Grumpy

18. Denial. [Part 3]

"How the hell could you take my daughter like that?!" Aaron yells, storming toward me like he’s ready to kill me.

My father steps in front of him, blocking his path.

"Calm the f**k down and don’t you dare lay a hand on him," he says. He doesn’t raise his voice, but the warning is clear.

"I walked into the kitchen to see nothing but blood, and your son taking her away without saying a damn word! What happened?! Where’s my daughter?!"

"It’s just a hand cut," the nurse explains, glancing around with wide, nervous eyes.

"Please, everyone, calm down," the security guard pleads.

"Let me go with her," Aaron and I growl at the same time.

"Enough!" Mrs. Cooper steps in. "I’m her mother. I’ll be the one with her, and don’t you dare try to stop me."

The nurse nods nervously and leads her inside with Summer. I try to follow, but the guard blocks me again, shaking his head.

"Please wait outside."

"But—"

"Outside," he says, pointing toward the exit.

Bastards.

I try to push forward one last time, but his hand on my shoulder stops me. I shove him off roughly and, seeing no other option, head out—but I can’t stand still. I pace back and forth, desperate for answers.

There was blood. A lot of blood.

Aaron’s death stare doesn’t go unnoticed, and I turn to face him, fed up with his s**t and needing to let it out.

"Why the hell are you angry?! I was just trying to get her to the hospital!"

"He’s jealous because you got to her first and acted before he could," my mom says, almost amused.

Aaron glares at her—anyone else might’ve flinched, but my mother just laughs in his face again.

"Watch how you look at my wife," my dad warns.

This time, my dad becomes the target of Aaron’s angry stare.

"Your son didn’t even say a word, Thiago," Aaron says. "He just took her like she was his. She’s my daughter, damn it. I nearly died when I saw all that blood."

"It’s fine," my dad says calmly. "Relax. You heard the nurse—it was just a cut."

"Let’s see how you’d react if it were Heaven."

That shuts my dad up. He looks at my sister and finally seems to notice what she’s wearing. I’d laugh at his expression if I weren’t in the middle of one of the worst moments of my life.

"You came to the hospital in a swimsuit, Heaven?"

"I have a cover-up on," my sister shrugs, as if being half-naked in this weather and in public were no big deal.

Dad sighs, massages his temples, and shakes his head. Then he turns to Mom and says, "Should we just go back to the cruise?"

"It’s too late now," she replies sadly.

I want to scream at them, tell them to shut up—how can they act so normal when Summer’s inside, bleeding?

I keep pacing, desperate.

Why can’t anyone tell us anything?

"Can’t you call your wife and ask for information?" I growl at Aaron.

"What do you think I’m doing?" He still glares at me. I’m pretty sure that if he didn’t already hate me, after today he definitely does.

He steps aside when his wife seems to answer, and I move forward, ready to snatch the phone from him—but my mother and father step in my way, eyes wide.

"What are you doing, Dominic?"

"Calm down, son."

"Why is he stepping aside to take the call, huh? Is he too old to know what speakerphone is?"

My mother and Heaven laugh, and my father looks at me like he doesn’t recognize me.

"I’m going to ignore that," Aaron says after hanging up. "They stitched her up and she’s awake. Summer’s a bit disoriented but okay. No head injury, and everything seems fine."

Everyone nods, but I’m still not satisfied.

"I want to go in and see her."

"And who should I pass that command to? The King of England? Maybe he’ll listen to your orders, boy."

I growl at the man. He must be in his late fifties, just a few years older than my dad, but the tension between us is obvious.

"Calm down, Dominic," my sister says gently, taking my hand to try and soothe me.

I look into her eyes and breathe with her, slowly calming down.

My dad gestures at my sister—probably asking her to keep me busy—while he and my mom approach Aaron and begin whispering. I can’t make out what they’re saying.

"f**k that," Aaron says, shaking his head at whatever Dad told him.

Dad keeps whispering, more insistently now. Mom joins in, too, but I still can’t hear them.

"What are they talking about?" I ask my sister.

"Come on, walk with me. Let’s talk."

I let her lead me to a wall, where she leans and looks at me with nothing but seriousness in her eyes.

"Are we going to have the conversation now, or are you going to keep pretending?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" I hiss at her. "They’re stitching Summer up like she’s a torn pair of jeans and you want to have some damn talk with me?" I glance over at our parents and Aaron whispering. "And them—whispering like lunatics. What the hell is wrong with everyone? Am I the only one thinking—"

"You’re in love with Summer."

I freeze, staring at my sister.

"What?"

"That’s what they’re talking about. That’s what they’re trying to make Aaron understand—why you brought her here like she was yours. You’re in love with Summer, and today, you made it obvious to everyone."

"No, I didn’t. I’m not."

"Oh, come on, Dom," she steps closer. "You got to her before her father. You got to her before anyone. You acted faster than life itself. Do you even recognize yourself right now? You almost got into a fight with that security guard and made a scene in there—you, of all people!"

"That doesn’t mean anything."

"Just listen to me, please, just listen..." she pleads.

"Talk," I say, clenching my jaw.

"Even before Mom got sick, you’ve always run from love. You like control. You need logic. But love doesn’t come with logic, and you’ll never control it. So let me ask you again—why have you always run from Summer?"

"If you’re suggesting—"

"No," she shakes her head quickly, "I’m not saying you’ve always loved her. I know that’s not true. But I think deep down, you’ve always known you could. That’s why you’ve kept your distance your whole life. You’ve always run from love—and Summer, even without knowing it, has always represented that for you."

"That’s not true," I deny again. It makes no sense. None of this is true.

Heaven looks at me with a gentleness, but also with a certainty that’s terrifying—like she knows me better than I know myself.

"The truth is, you’ve been running from Summer for years. You’ve been running from love for years."

I start shaking my head again, overwhelmed by everything—her words, the blood, the image of Summer unconscious… so completely out of control.

So damn out of control.

No. I’m not in love.

I refuse to be.

And I want to run away and forget it all, but then Summer’s mother steps outside—and I find myself running toward her.

"How is Summer?"

"Oh, sweetheart, she’s fine," she says with a smile.

"Can I go see her?"

Mrs. Cooper glances at her husband. They share a long look, and he finally seems to give in, because she says, "Of course. Go ahead—she was asking for you anyway."

I nod and follow a nurse who shows me the way.

My heart is pounding like crazy, and I’m desperate to see her—but I keep denying my sister’s words.

No. It’s not love.

It’s not.

[3/3]