Wishing he could reveal everything he knew about Kara Dickson, he finally decided to keep it simple.
“She’s dishonest—you can’t trust anything she says. It’s quite possible she made the whole story up. We have no way of knowing Brad slept with her.”
She regarded him with wide eyes, but didn’t respond. He tried to imagine what she was thinking. But she was a woman—she could be thinking almost anything.
/> “Grace, did you hear me? I said it might not even be true.”
She sat up straight and lifted her chin. He detected only a slight tremble in her chin when she spoke. “By the rules of logic, you’re saying what she said might actually be true. Right?”
He groaned. “Technically, yes. But since when do women think logically? It’s just Brad was totally out of it today after he hit his head. He doesn’t remember anything. Nothing he said or did made any sense whatsoever.”
She pressed her lips together, giving a small nod and lowering her head to hide the tears that began to puddle.
“But Grace, the only thing he thought about from the moment he woke up until now, was you.”
She looked up through her lashes with wide eyes. “Really?”
“I’ve never lied to you, and I’m not about to start now. I can tell you truthfully I got really tired of having him ask me where you were, over and over and over again. Especially when he couldn’t even remember who I was.”
One corner of her mouth kicked up. “He didn’t remember you?”
“He didn’t remember me or anyone else. He couldn’t remember his own name. He certainly didn’t remember Kara Dickson. But he kept asking about you. Where were you? Were you okay? Only you, Grace. Only you.”
He watched her trace the seam on the arm of the chair with one finger, while she chewed on her cheek. “I love him, you know. I won’t stop loving him. Even if I find out he slept with her. I know he wasn’t in his right mind.”
It wasn’t until Josh released a breath he realized he’d been holding it. “That’s great, Grace. Come back with me and tell him that yourself.”
“But Josh.” Her brows knotted on her forehead. “If she’s pregnant with his baby... that would change everything. Not because I wouldn’t love him or I couldn’t forgive him, but because of the child.”
“He wouldn’t marry her, Grace. He would support the child and be a father, but he wouldn’t marry her. Could you love a man who had a child with another woman? If it was a man who loved you with all his heart? One who broke all of his own rules to save you from some imaginary threat and then busted his head to protect you from falling?”
Her eyes closed, and a tear rolled down her cheek leaving a salty, wet track. She whispered, “Only if it was Brad. But it would be hard... really, really hard.”
He took her hands and lifted her to her feet. “You can do it, Grace. I believe in you.”
His breath whooshed out as she lunged into his arms and hugged him. “Thanks Josh. You’re pretty good at this.”
He chuckled, patting the top of her head. “Wow, I forget how short you are.”
Grace straightened and pulled her shoulders back. “I may be short, but I’m action-packed. I’m gonna go fight for my man. Kara Dickson won’t know what hit her!”
*****
She followed him back down the hall toward Brad’s room. The closer she got, the faster her heart was beating. She wasn’t afraid of facing Kara. She was terrified of expressing her feelings to Brad. After all, only a short time ago she broke up with him because he told her he loved her. And now she’d decided she felt the same way. Could she really say the words? Should she? Did he still feel the same way? She wanted to talk to him in private, and she didn’t want to talk to him in front of Kara Dickson. Maybe she would sock that woman in the stomach when she saw her. Though she knew she’d never do it, the thought gave her extreme pleasure.
A man in a white coat came hurrying from Brad’s room. “Dr. Branson. I got the lab results on that lumbar puncture.”
Josh scanned the report with a pained expression. “Grace, we need to postpone your confrontation. Brad needs another test right away.”
“Is something wrong? Did he get a bad report?”
“It’s not what I hoped for. But I don’t have time to explain it. I’m sorry, Grace.”
“Dr. Branson? Isn’t it possible the blood is from trauma from the puncture?”
“That’s why we took four vials. With consistent levels even in the last vial, we lessen the chance of a false positive.”
He nodded. “Okay, so what’s our next step? Find the blood source?”