“There’s nothing you could’ve done anyway. We were right here when it happened, and there was no sign that anything was wrong.” She drew a shaky breath. “One minute he was standing by the table arguing with Adam, the next he clutched his chest and just fell over.”
Her fiancé, Jackson, came up behind her and looped an arm over her shoulders. “She’s right, dude. Nothing anyone could’ve done. Adam was right on the chest compressions while Lizzie called Dr. Tio, who sent for the medevac team.”
Kaiden sat down so suddenly he saw black spots and grabbed hold of the table edge.
“I should’ve been here, I—”
“Stop beating yourself up.” Danny patted his shoulder. “You wouldn’t have been able to do anything we didn’t do. Dad’s in the best place right now. Adam’s going to call us when they get a proper diagnosis, okay?”
He managed to nod, and someone shoved a mug of coffee in his hand while everyone continued to tell him their version of what had happened. All he could think was that he was glad his father hadn’t been alone, because what would have happened then? He shuddered and half the coffee slopped over the rim of his mug, scalding his fingers.
“Give that to me.” Julia took the mug from him and set it on the table. He’d forgotten she was there. “You said they took him to Mammoth, Danny?”
“Yup.” Danny, who had perched on the edge of the table on the other side of Kaiden, spoke up. “If he needs major surgery, they might transfer him to a bigger hospital, but we won’t know that until Adam calls.”
Kaiden struggled to find his voice. “I should take you home, Julia. You don’t need to deal with this.”
She took his hand. “I’d rather hang with you at least until we know how things stand. I already texted Dad and he knows where I am. He sent his best wishes by the way.”
“Thanks,” Kaiden replied automatically. “That’s good of him.”
Julia squeezed his fingers and looked over at Danny. “How long is it since Mr. Miller was helicoptered out?”
“About two hours. We should hear something soon.” Danny sounded his usual quiet, reassuring self. “If it makes you feel any better, Kaiden, he was already complaining when they wheeled him out of here on the gurney.”
Kaiden managed a smile. “Typical.”
“So don’t count him out just yet.” Danny nodded at Julia. “If you’re staying, can I get you some coffee?”
“That would be awesome,” Julia said as she brought her chair as close to Kaiden’s as she could manage.
“Did anyone let Mom know?” Kaiden asked just before Danny turned away.
“Yeah, Adam did. She’s fully in the loop.”
“What about Ben?”
“He and Silver were on a plane back to LA when it happened so I called Ben when he arrived. He’s standing by to get Dad to an LA hospital if necessary.”
“Good,” Kaiden said as his brain finally decided to function more normally again. “Let’s hope Adam gets back to us soon.”
* * *
“Hey.” Adam waved from the screen of Daisy’s phone. He looked worn out and he wasn’t wearing his cowboy hat, which made him look like a stranger. He appeared to be standing in a large parking lot, which Kaiden guessed belonged to the hospital.
Everyone waved back but kept the noise level to the minimum, not wanting to burst Adam’s eardrums, or miss what he had to say.
“Dad had a minor heart attack. They did a whole load of tests and decided to do stent surgery to alleviate the blockages they found. He’s got to stay here for twenty-four hours and then they will assess him again. If it’s all looking good, he’ll be discharged and he’ll be able to come home.”
Kaiden felt like a deflated balloon as his breath hissed out.
“So, he’ll be okay?” Daisy got to ask the questions because it was her phone.
“Apparently so, although he’ll need to take medication and change his diet and lifestyle.” Adam managed a tired smile. “He was cursing up a storm when I stepped out to make this call, so I’d say he was on the mend. His color looked good too.”
“Are you going to stay the night in his room?”
“You’re kidding, right? I offered, and he told me he wasn’t five years old and to stop trying to mother him. He said he’d get enough of that when Mom turned up—which she is planning on doing, by the way.”
Adam rubbed a weary hand over his unshaven jaw. “I’m going to get a hotel room and