Until Then (Cape Harbor #2) - Heidi McLaughlin Page 0,32

between them, she would always care for him. “What happened?”

Graham pulled away and clasped his hand with Rennie’s. “I see Bowie over there. I might as well tell you both at the same time.”

She nodded, and they walked toward Bowie, who pulled his friend into a hug as soon as Graham neared.

The three of them sat down, with Graham in the middle, who continued to hold Rennie’s hand. “Grady was found on the side of the road. He overdosed, but the officer who found him had Narcan. He coded on his way here. They revived him . . .” Graham paused and covered his face with his hands. Rennie put her arm around him and hugged him as best she could. She considered telling him everything would be okay, but the words would be empty. Graham cleared his throat and continued to speak, telling them everything the doctor had said. “Bottom line, if my brother survives, it’s going to take a miracle and then another one to get him into rehab.”

“He didn’t hurt anyone, did he?” Bowie asked.

Graham shook his head. “Not that I know. My mom is with Grady now, but I asked one of the nurses, and she said she wasn’t aware.”

Rennie’s grip on Graham’s hand tightened. She couldn’t imagine what he felt or the thoughts going through his mind. She was an only child, and Brooklyn was the closest she had to a sibling. When Austin died, she had done her best to be by Brooklyn’s side but couldn’t put her life on hold. Not like the friends Brooklyn had in Cape Harbor.

“You guys didn’t have to come up here,” Graham said.

“I wanted to be here for you,” Rennie told him. He looked into her eyes, and she felt her heart beat faster than it should. They had an undeniable connection, one she never questioned. One she never thought she had, too, until recently.

“And I figured George would be itching to get out of here,” Bowie added with a hint of humor.

Graham laughed. “You have no idea. He’s so lost in his head, thinking Grady is fine. Even when a doctor tells him his son is going to die if he doesn’t get help, my dad doesn’t believe what he’s hearing.”

“When you’ve lived in denial for so long, it’s hard to overcome the emotion and face reality. I’m sure he acted the way he did because he was afraid to lose Grady,” Bowie said.

“Well, now he has no choice.” Graham sighed. “Anyway, I’m sure if you offer him a ride home, he’ll take you up on it. You guys really didn’t need to come all the way here.”

“You need us. You would’ve done the same.” Rennie squeezed Graham’s hand to bring her message home.

At Graham’s suggestion, they took the stairs down to the cafeteria, where they found George watching television. He was gruff with his hello but perked right up when Bowie offered to take him back to town. It was clear to Graham that his father was uncomfortable and wanted to go home, which made him angry. He should be there for Grady. George should stay for his wife.

“Dad, before you leave with Bowie, you should stop in and see Grady. And say goodbye to Mom.”

George grumbled some unintelligible response, which Graham took as a “Yes, son, you’re right,” even though he knew his father would never say such a thing. He sensed his pleas fell on deaf ears when it came to his father. Graham thought about pressing his father for a solid answer but knew it would only piss the old man off, so he turned his attention toward Rennie. He pulled her into a hug and thanked her for coming. She pulled away and shook her head. “I’m not leaving you, Graham.”

EIGHT

The shrill sound of the phone ringing jolted Graham out of bed. One hand fumbled for his phone, determined to stop the noise before his roommate woke up, while the other hand worked to remove his entangled legs from the bedding.

“He . . . ,” he croaked. Graham cleared his throat and took a deep breath to calm his rapidly beating heart. Before he could regain any semblance of composure, he looked at the clock and saw that it was shortly after three in the morning. Who could be on the other line this early—or rather, late? Was something wrong with his mom or dad? His brother? “Hello?”

“Graham.”

Rennie. His mind relaxed. It wasn’t uncommon for her to call at all hours of