The Player's Game

by Alice Gaines

  Finally, her turn came, and she plastered on a pleasant smile as she approached the nurse behind the desk. “I’m here to see Mr. Grant Howard.”

  The nurse glanced up from a memo or something she’d been reading. “The football player?”

  “Yes.”

  The woman’s stare would have made an inquisitor proud. “Who are you?”

  Katy straightened her back. “I’m his wife.”

  “Mrs. Howard?”

  “Actually, my name’s McCord, but I am his wife.” Katy stared right back at the woman.

  “I’m not allowed to give out any information.”

  There it was again, institutional concern for Grant’s privacy as a celebrity. A hospital would be even worse than a hotel. “He was injured today. As his wife, I know he’d be brought here, and I want to see him.”

  The nurse hmphed. “Are you the one from the video?”

  She didn’t have time to count backward from ten. “Yes, I’m the one from the video.”

  “Then you’re his ex-wife.”

  Katy clenched her hands into fists by her side. That way, she couldn’t reach across the desk and slap the woman. “If you’ve seen us on the television lately, you know we’re exploring possibilities. I can’t do that with him in there and me out here.”

  “Look, ma’am.” The nurse leaned toward Katy. “I’m not allowed to tell you if he’s here or not. I can’t help you.”

  “Let me talk to one of his doctors. I’ll sit out here and wait.”

  The woman only crossed her arms and glared at her as if she was stupid.

  “Send any doctor.” Katy threw her arms out to her sides. “Please.”

  The nurse picked up the receiver of her phone. “If you’re going to cause trouble, I’ll have to call security.”

  “I’m not.” Katy backed away. “I’ll be quiet.”

  She found a seat not far from the reception desk and sat, her heart racing. The nurse put the receiver back down, which meant she hadn’t called security. But it also meant that she hadn’t called for a doctor to come out and talk to Katy. Damn it all. What now?

  Her phone rang. Beth again. “Where are you, Katy?”

  “At the hospital. They won’t let me see him. They won’t even confirm that he’s here.”

  “What the hell?”

  “Confidentiality. It’s especially rigid with celebrities.”

  The nurse glanced in her direction, her expression particularly sour. What did she have to be angry about? Her husband wasn’t in there, hurt, with some officious a-hole keeping her away. Katy smiled at her.

  “You’re not going to accept that, are you?” Beth asked.

  Katy smiled for the nurse’s benefit. “It’s a really nice day out, isn’t it?”

  Beth didn’t say anything for a few seconds. Then, “I get it. You’re being overheard.”

  “Yes, I’d say so.”

  The nurse glowered at Katy a bit more before turning to her next patient.

  “What are you going to do?” Beth asked.

  “Ummm…a couple of things.”

  The door to the inner sanctum had opened and closed a few times while Katy had been sitting there. To let people in, the nurse pushed a button mounted under her desk, and the door would buzz. Once it closed, it locked again, so simply getting up and heading in that direction wouldn’t get Katy anything except the attention of hospital security. Occasionally, though, someone would come out. If the door was left open a little longer than normal, Katy could make a dash for it.

  “Can you get to Grant on your own without their help?” Beth asked.

  “Maybe we can work that out.”

  “Are you going to get in trouble?” Beth asked.

  “You never know,” Katy answered.

  The door opened, and a pair of doctors came out. Katy noticed that the door was open longer when two people exited. So the next time more than one person came out, she’d go for it.

  “Go get ’em, tiger,” Beth said.

  “Love you, too.” Katy ended the call and sat. She felt as if every muscle in her body was tensed, waiting to pounce. Unfortunately, she’d never done anything like this. She could only hope she didn’t mess up her only shot at this.

  Damn it all, why did she always have to be such a goody-goody? Crossing the street only at crosswalks. Turning in all her papers on time. Wearing all those strict clothes at the firm when the other women attorneys showed at least a flash of color.

  Well, this was about Grant. And if she’d learned anything from him, it was that substance mattered more than appearance. Love mattered. Taking care of the person who needed you mattered. She’d come here to do that, and she’d just have to figure out a way to make it happen. Think. Think.

  What had Grant always told her about his job? The most important thing for him to do was remain calm. To assess his surroundings and read the defense coming after him. That’s what she had to do now.

  The next time the door opened, she watched as three people came out—a doctor and a couple of civilians. The doctor held the door open while he spoke to the others. A super-quick glance at the front desk showed the nurse bent over talking to a child. Bingo.

  Katy made a rush for the door and managed to squeeze in behind the doctor as she crossed the threshold.

  “You can’t go in there,” the nurse yelled from behind her. “Security!”

  The door closed, drowning out the nurse’s voice. Except for the beeping of machines, it was pretty quiet inside. She walked slowly, as casually as her hammering heart allowed. Another desk lay straight ahead. It would no doubt have the same sort of personnel as outside.

  She ducked into an alcove to regroup, and then her gaze fell on a treasure. One of the hospital employees had left his security badge lying on a table. It hung on a lanyard. If Katy wore it around her neck, she might be able to fool the staff into believing she belonged here. As long as no one got close enough to notice the picture on the badge was male.

  She put it on and then grabbed a nearby clipboard. That would make her look official. If only there’d been a lab coat, too. She didn’t have much time before security found her, so she headed out at a decent clip.

  One of the staff at the desk glanced up. “Can I help you?”

  She waved the clipboard in the woman’s direction. “I’m good.”

  Now, she just had to find the patients and Grant. It would be easiest to run through the place calling Grant’s name until he answered, but that would surely bring security down on her fast. So, she kept a dignified pace as she went around a corner. Here she found the walls on either side lined with little rooms, separated from the main work area by curtains. Behind each curtain, no doubt, lay a patient.

  Several people worked at the central station—techs and nurses, no doubt. As Katy went along, she stopped at each curtain. “Grant? Grant? Grant?”

  The staff eyed her, one nurse in particular, but Katy kept a dignified smile on her face as she walked, holding her clipboard in front of her to make her look like she belonged there. Maybe.

  “Grant? Grant? Grant?” Still nothing.

  She paused. He had to be here—he just had to be. The transport had had plenty of time to get to the hospital from the stadium. So she kept going, using up precious time before security descended on her. They might kick her out or they might arrest her. That would not go over well at the office. Even Charlie would have a hard time defending that sort of behavior. But she had to find her husband. He was hurt. He needed her.

  Finally, she reached the end of the room. If Grant wasn’t here, she’d gone to the wrong place somehow. “Grant? Grant?”

  Damn it, Grant. You have to be here. Please answer. Please!

  “Katy?” His voice was soft but clear. Grant. Glory hallelujah!

  She dashed behind the curtain. “Thank h
eaven I found you.”

  His eyes were closed, as though he was unconscious. But then, he’d just called her name loudly enough for her to hear it. She went to him and bent to listen for his breathing. It was shallow, but it was there, thank God. She’d been so scared, only now realizing just how much. Grant—her lover and her friend—had been hurt. Badly.

  She very, very carefully brushed his hair off his forehead and planted a kiss there.

  He opened his eyes, although they didn’t focus. “Katy. It was you I heard.”

  “It was.” The big, strong man who’d dedicated himself to protecting and providing for everyone he loved seemed so helpless right now. Tears clogged her throat. And because she couldn’t do much of anything else, she stroked the side of his face. “I was so worried about you.”

  “Sweet.” The word came out slurred.

  “Are you all right?”

  “Never better.” He grinned. “They have some amazing drugs here.”

  He was doped up. Otherwise, he’d be suffering right now. That explained the drowsiness. She could stop worrying about cognitive deficits.

  “You’re not…” How was she going to say the word…paralyzed? If he was, she’d take care of him. He’d move back into the condo, and she’d hire people to help when she had to work. She’d make sure he had whatever he needed.

  “Can you move everything?” she asked.

  “Huh?” he said. “Oh, yeah. Wiggled all my fingers and toes for the doctor.”

  “You’ll be all right, then,” she said.

  “My knee’s all busted to hell,” he said. “Musta been some hit. I wanna see the replay.”

  “Well, I don’t. I was scared witless.”

  “Nothing scares my Katy.”

  That was normally true—or, at least, she’d done her best to act as if nothing frightened her—but from the moment she’d heard the fear in Beth’s voice, her heart had started to beat in triple time. She could have lost him. One moment, he could have been in her life and the next…gone. Because he’d never truly left her, not deep down, where real emotions lived. How stupid she’d been never to see that before.

  She got out her phone to call Beth with the good news, but before she could pull up Beth’s number, security appeared in the form of two uniformed officers complete with squawking walkie-talkies.

  “You can’t be in here, ma’am,” the taller one said. “Come with us.”

  “Please. I’m his wife. I need to be with him.”

  Grant grasped her hand. “My wife. Let her stay.”

  “She got in here without proper procedure,” the other officer said.

  “You’re not taking her.” Grant held up their linked hands. “If she goes, I go.”

  The two officers glanced at each other, probably trying to figure out how to remove her without agitating Grant. Agitating patients no doubt went against protocol.

  “What’s going on in here?” Finally, a doctor wearing a lab coat showed up.

  “This woman broke into the ED,” the tall officer said.

  “She’s my wife,” Grant said, still clutching Katy’s hand. “My wife.”

  “I am,” Katy said. “Let me stay, please.”

  The doctor stared at the badge hanging around her neck. “Gerard?”

  Katy checked. Sure enough, she was Gerard Little, a radiology tech. She removed the badge from around her neck. “I’ll be good. I promise.”

  “I need her,” Grant said.

  “All right,” the doctor said then turned to the two men. “I’ll take responsibility.”

  The officers glanced at each other again, obviously disappointed they didn’t get to take her to hospital jail or something. Then the shorter one put out his hand. “I’ll take the badge.”

  She handed it over to them, and they left. The doctor remained, now with his arms crossed over his chest. “Aren’t you the one in the video?”

  “Yes.” Not this again. “I’m the one in the video.”

  “This is a hospital,” he said. “Behave yourself or I’ll have you removed.”

  “She will,” Grant said. His fingers were now interlaced with hers. “I’ll make sure.”

  With a soft huff, the doctor left them again. Katy stared down at their joined hands. “You’re sure you’re going to be all right?”

  “I am now.” He closed his eyes. “Stay with me, Katy. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Chapter Nine

  Grant felt more or less normal when he woke up. And then, the familiar perfume pulled him into total consciousness. Floral soap and Katy’s own spicy scent. He turned his head to find her asleep in a chair next to his hospital bed, and the world was a much better place than it had seemed before two defensive players had laid him out on the turf like meat ready for the barbecue.

  He drank in the sight of her. With no makeup, she was the most beautiful vision any mortal could hope to see. Dark circles under her eyes told him she hadn’t slept much while he’d dozed. She wore her grubbies, the fleece she wore around the condo while working. Definitely not clothing for taking on the outside world. She must have rushed to the hospital the moment she’d learned about his injury. She’d come to him, and she’d stayed. Unless the drugs had completely addled his brain, she’d said she loved him.

  After a minute or two of him worshiping her with his gaze, she opened her eyes. For a split second, they held worry in them. Worry for him. She didn’t need to be so afraid for him, and he’d make sure she knew it, but the concern warmed his heart. She really did care.

  “Hi, there,” he said softly.

  “Hi, back at you.”

  “Did you get any rest at all?” he said.

  “You’re not taking care of me now. Until you get better, I get to do all the fretting and fussing.”

  “That sure sounds good.”

  She pulled the chair closer so she could lay her face on the bed near his—almost as if they’d awakened next to each other. “How do you feel?”

  “Good.” He touched her cheek. “Better than I have for weeks.”

  She kissed him. Nothing overly sexy but seriously sweet. Her lips lingered against his for a few seconds before she pulled back. “Sitting here, I had a lot of time to think about things.”

  “Yeah, me, too.”

  “What you said about how I got my job—”

  “I didn’t mean that, Katy, I swear.”

  She put her fingers over his lips. “I know you didn’t, any more than I meant what I said about you being dumb.”

  “Then you forgive me?” Finally.

  “I forgave you long ago. But I couldn’t forget about it because I thought it was true.”

  “Katy, I—”

  “Hear me out, and then we can talk.”

  He could do that. He’d do anything for this woman. If it had been possible, he’d have jumped out of the bed and done a jig on his bad knee to prove how much he loved her. So keeping his trap shut for a few minutes? No problem.

  “You’re right about my father,” she said.

  Okay, he was going to have to bite his lip not to respond to that, but he managed to keep his thoughts to himself.

  “I never measured up for him. No matter what I accomplished, I thought I wasn’t good enough. So, naturally, I couldn’t help wondering if Jim had hired me so he could hang out with you,” she said. “The feeling got to be like a thorn in my side. Anything that bumped it gave me a jolt of pain and insecurity. When you said it, too, it exploded inside me.”

  “I’m sorry.” What else could he say? He’d never regretted anything more than those few words he’d uttered in anger.

  “It’s fixed now. Charlie set me straight. I should have figured it out myself.” She smiled, looking at peace. It was a good look on her.

  “Then, I have something to say
, too.” He’d rehearsed this many times, during the nights when he hadn’t been able to sleep for worry—and hope—about the future. All he knew now was that Katy had come to him, that she’d stuck with him. She hadn’t left his side. “It looks like this might be the end of football for me.”

  “It doesn’t have to be. We can work on rehab. I’ll be with you the whole way. If you want to play, we’ll make it happen.”

  Could he love her any more than he had a moment ago? “We have to be realistic. Even if I manage to come back, I won’t ever be 100 percent again. This is the right time to leave.”

  “Whatever you say,” she said.

  “I still want to adopt at least one kid from the agency. I’ll have all the time in the world for parenting. We have a lot of blessings to share, Katy. The child would be my job. It wouldn’t affect your career at all.”

  She didn’t pull back or get angry. That was a good sign. Instead, she looked pensive and a little sad.

  “I’m afraid I don’t know anything about children,” she finally said. “Especially one with special needs.”

  Progress. She was thinking about it. “I helped Mom raise Beth, and I’ll learn how to take care of my daughter. Our daughter…”

  “Then…maybe…after the Berkshire case settles down some, we could try to get me pregnant,” she said. “Give her a little brother or sister.”

  The air emptied out of his lungs, and he suddenly had trouble taking a breath. He could only stare at her, although his vision was blurred a bit, for some reason. He’d have to track down the guys who hit him and give them a big, sloppy kiss. They’d given him everything he’d ever wanted in life, including this incredible woman.

  Finally, he was able to speak. “We’ll have a lot of fun working on that.”

  She laughed, and her eyes looked a bit moist, too. “We will, indeed.”

  “Then you’ll marry me again?” He knew the answer, but hearing her say it would make his heart float somewhere up near the ceiling.