A gay story: The Magic in Your Touch Ch. 05 The last time they were at a hospital together, Brandon used his sick sense of humor to help Nate hold it all together. Now he wished someone could do the same thing for him. But even as he wished it, he knew better. All the laughter in the world couldn’t erase the fear in his soul as he sat in the surgical waiting room of Chicago General, desperate for any word of Nate.
Keith sat down beside him and handed him a cup of coffee and an ice pack. “If you’ll come down to the office, I’ll disinfect that for you.”
Brandon’s fingers gingerly brushed the raw flesh of his cheek. “That’s what I get for passing out like some rookie at the scene of his first accident.” He took a sip of the scalding coffee, barely noticing when it burned his mouth.
“Under the circumstances, I think you can be excused.” Keith leaned back as far as the plastic chair would allow. “At least come down to my office and wait. The surgical staff will know to page us down there as soon as any news comes in.”
Brandon started shaking his head before Keith even finished. “I’m not leaving him, Keith. I’ll wait right here until he comes out of surgery.”
Keith knew better than to argue. “I called Mom. She’s gathering up the troops and heading on over.”
“Nate hasn’t even had a chance to meet the rest of them yet. We were supposed to have dinner at Grandma’s next Sunday.”
“There’ll be other Sundays, Bran.”
“For me, maybe, but what about Nate?” He glanced at the closed doors of the operating wing. “It’s been over six fucking hours, Keith. Why haven’t they told us anything?”
“He has internal bleeders that have to be sealed off, buddy. You know it takes time to do that.” He was quiet for a minute. “You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”
Brandon discarded the coffee cup and icepack, put his head in his hands, and nodded. “You know what the worst part is? I’ve never even told him. I kept telling myself that I couldn’t possibly be in love with him after only two weeks. Now I’m sitting here thinking that if he dies, I’ve got nothing left. Fourteen days and already I can’t imagine my life without the guy.”
“Love’s like that sometimes. I knew within three days of meeting Maria that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. It only took me two years to convince her that she felt the same way.”
“Yeah, well, if Nate makes it out of this, I’m going to have some convincing of my own to do. We had a fight right before he left. I said some really bad things, Keith. He said some stuff, too, but you know me, I always have to have the last word.” He choked on the words. “I never thought I might literally have it. What if I don’t get the chance to take it back?”
Keith hauled him to his feet and pulled him against his chest. “Stop talking like that, Bran. Dr. Lincoln’s the best surgeon we’ve got. The chief of surgery asked him to operate on Nate as a personal favor to me. The guys a complete asshole, but if anyone can repair the damage, it’s him.”
A commotion at the other end of the hall broke them apart. When Gale told Keith she was bringing in the troops, she wasn’t kidding. All of his brothers and sisters, except for Les and Randy, who were away at school, crowded into the waiting room with their various spouses. Brandon’s dad came in next, explaining that the grandparents would be there first thing in the morning, but tonight they were keeping the kids so the adults could come to the hospital. That was fine with Brandon. As much as he loved his nieces and nephews, he had about all the distractions he could handle at the moment. As it stood, twelve people, counting him and Keith, were crammed into a private waiting room built to seat eight. Brandon never knew standing-room-only could feel so good. For the first time since Nate was brought in, he felt a glimmer of hope. Amazing what family could do for a man. He made a mental note to introduce Nate to this crazy mob the minute he was able.
Gale came over and gave him one of those soothing hugs that only mothers know how to give. “How are you holding up, sweetheart?” She touched his scraped cheek. “And what happened to your face?”
“My face is alright. Physically, I’m fine, but they won’t tell us anything, Mom. I’m going out of my mind here.”
“Patience never was one of your virtues, son. I’m afraid you inherited that from your father. Let me go up to the desk and see what I can find out.”
Keith shook his head. “They won’t tell her anything.”
His father walked up behind them. Dean Nash was a big man, his body strong and fit from the long hours spent building up his construction company. Now semi-retired, Dean kept fit by helping his son Wayne with his own contracting jobs. Dean patted Keith on the arm and put his other hand on the small of Brandon’s back. “Never underestimate your mother, boys. She’s a force to be reckoned with.” He turned Brandon around so he could see his eyes. “You okay, son?”
“No, sir, but if he makes it, I will be.”
Keith went to watch his mother do her magic, while Brandon’s sisters and sisters-in-law left to get snacks and coffee. Wayne stepped outside to smoke, giving them some privacy. Dean led Bran over to a couple of empty chairs, all but pushing Bran down into one, and taking the other for himself.
“Have you called his folks?”
Brandon’s face hardened. “No, and I’m not going to, either. His friend Amy and her husband Mike are coming as soon as Amy finishes up an emergency call, but I have no intention of contacting his parents. As far as I’m concerned, they gave up all rights to know about Nate’s welfare when they threw him out six years ago.”
“Your mother said Nathan’s brother came to visit him a few days back. Don’t you think he’d want to know?”
“Last time we talked about it, Nate still hadn’t made up his mind about whether or not he even wanted to see Seth again. The last thing I’m going to do is call him so he can summon the rest of the family up here to cry crocodile tears all over Nate’s bedside.”
“Speaking of family, you know your mother’s adopted that boy, don’t you? She thinks Nathan Morris is two steps away from sainthood.”
Brandon smiled for the first time since arriving at the accident scene. “He says the same thing about her.”
“He has good taste, then. I can’t wait to meet this young man who has my wife and my son so captivated.”
“He’s amazing, Dad. He’s funny and loving . . . God, he
has the biggest heart. Did you know they call him ‘Magic Touch Morris’ because he spent his residency taking care of premature babies born with addictions to heroin and cocaine? He and Amy don’t even charge the patients who can’t afford to pay. And he does other things, too. Every night when I come home, he’s there waiting for me. Usually has dinner on the table, too. I tease him about making someone a good little wife someday, but he’s one of the least feminine men I know. He is gentle, though. He lets me vent and rave about my day without ever saying a word. Sasha’s totally in love with him. Hell, he’s even taught her to shake. She won’t even sit for me, but Nate’s got her doing tricks after only two weeks.”
“Sounds like Sasha’s not the only one in love with him.”
“No, she’s not. Does it bother you, Daddy?”
Dean was genuinely confused. “Why should it bother me? By all accounts, Nate’s a great guy. Keith called your mother right after the two of you left the hospital that first night, and he was absolutely giddy. Seems he thinks Nate is the next Jonas Salk because of his work with those babies. Why wouldn’t I want to see you settled down with a man like that?”
“It’s not that, Daddy. I just . . . why didn’t you hate me when you found out I was gay?”
“You mean, why didn’t I throw you out like Nate’s parents did?”
“Yeah.”
“Son, I can’t explain why the Morris’s did what they did, but I can tell you how I feel. I believe that God made you the way you are. I also believe that God doesn’t make mistakes. How, then, could I hate you because of the way you were created? That would be like hating you because you have blue eyes.”
Brandon reached over and gave his father a hug. “I love you, Daddy.”
“Same here, boy.”
Gale came back into the room with Keith on her heels. “Am I included in this love fest?”
Brandon got up and kissed her cheek. “You know you are.”
“Good, because I have news: Nate made it through surgery. Dr. Lincoln is finishing up now. That nice nurse I talked to said he’ll be out in about five minutes to talk to us.”
Keith just shook his head. “How the hell does she do that? I’m one of the doctors on staff and they wouldn’t tell me anything.”
Dean pulled his wife down onto his lap. “Son, let me tell you, I gave up trying to figure out your mother forty years ago. Just be glad she’s on our side.”
Brandon heard footsteps and turned to see the surgeon standing in the doorway, still wearing his blood covered scrubs.
“Who’s the next of kin?”
Brandon said, “I am.”
Dr. Lincoln gave him a quick once over, not an easy task considering Bran was a good eight inches taller than the pudgy surgeon, and Lincoln had to crane his neck to look him in the face. Still, his tone was cocky when he said, “You gonna prove that?”
Brandon was running on caffeine and nerves. No way in hell was this little prick going to keep him from seeing Nate. Still, he owed the man for saving Nate’s life. He would keep it civil as long as he could.
“Do I need to prove it?”
“As a matter of fact, you do.”
Bran could feel the blood rising to his face. “Now look here—”
“No, you look here. I’m sick and tired of you people thinking you can come in and push everybody around. It’s bad enough that mister high and mighty neurologist here,” he motioned towards Keith, “called in a favor to have the head of surgery pull me out here in the middle of the night just to operate on his brother’s queer boyfriend, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you walk all over hospital policy, too. Now, unless you can show me proof that you’re the next of kin—”
“Actually, he isn’t the next of kin. Yet,” said the man standing in the doorway. “Technically, that would be me. I’m his brother, and I do have proof.” Seth reached into his wallet and pulled out a couple of cards. After handing them to Lincoln, he held up the cell phone in his left hand. Either he didn’t know about the hospital’s policy against cellular phones, or he didn’t care. “It’s for you.”
Lincoln gave Seth a startled look, but took the phone. He didn’t say much, only listened, every now and then offering a “yes, sir” or an “I’m sorry.” After about a minute he hung up and handed Seth back his phone.
Seth said, “I trust you and Dr. Hanson had a good talk.”
Lincoln gritted his teeth and nodded. Seth said, “Good. Now, as next of kin, I want my brother’s partner to be extended full privileges, just the same as any husband would have with his spouse. Any decisions that need to be made concerning Nate, Brandon makes them. I assume that won’t be a problem?”
“No.” Lincoln looked like he was about to throw up. He started to leave, but Seth stopped him.
“Oh, and Dr. Lincoln?”
“What?”
“As of that phone call, you’re no longer Nate’s doctor. Dr. Hanson is bringing in someone else.”
Lincoln was outraged. “I saved his life. If it hadn’t been for me, he would be dead right now.”
“Why do you think I asked Hanson not to fire you when he heard you calling one of your own patients a queer? You better hope my brother makes it, Lincoln. Your career longevity line and Nate’s lifeline now have the same expiration date.”
Lincoln paled, but left before burying himself any deeper. Keith looked at the younger man in awe. “Who are you and how the hell did you get Hanson on the phone? His wife can’t even get through to him most of the time.”
Seth gave a sheepish grin and stuck out his hand. “Seth Morris.” Keith shook his hand much like a ten-year old would shake the glove of his favorite baseball player. “And to answer your question, Dr. Hanson is now the proud owner of a hundred-and-fifty-thousand dollars worth of new equipment, courtesy of Mor-co Incorporated. I called him to make sure Nate was getting the best care possible. It was just dumb luck that I happened to be on the phone with him when Lincoln threw his little tantrum.” He turned to Brandon. “I hope you didn’t mind me putting everything off on you.”
Keith spoke up and said, “You know, Lincoln never did give us the complete rundown on Nate’s condition. I think I’ll go see what I can find out.”
Gale said, “I’ll go with you, son. Dean, why don’t you track down Wayne? He’s had enough time to smoke a whole pack by now. When you find him, go get the girls, too.”
The room cleared and Brandon and Seth were left just standing there, staring at each other. Finally Brandon said, “Thanks for what you did, man. I owe you.”
“You don’t owe me anything. I’m the one who owes Nate. I just hope I get the chance to make up for all the dumb-ass things I’ve done to him.”
“Not to seem insensitive or ungrateful or anything, but what are you doing here?”
Seth said, “Apparently, Nate still had that card I gave him the other day in his wallet. One of the nurses saw it and called me. I know you’re probably pissed off at me, and I don’t blame you, but I had to come.”
“Did you call your parents?”
“No. I figured neither of you would want that. Look, I know I’m not welcome here, and I promise I’ll go just as soon as I know Nate’s going to be alright.” He had tears in his eyes when he looked up at Brandon. “I just had to see him, you know?”
Bran said, “Actually, I think I do. Look, can we start over? Nate’s going to need both of us. I’d hate to think you and I weren’t men enough to put our differences behind us.”
Seth gave Brandon a smile so much like Nate’s it was all he could do not to howl in agony. Seth only nodded, and Bran was grateful. If he didn’t get in to see Nate soon, he was going to go slowly insane.
Gale and Keith came back with a nurse wearing surgical scrubs. “Mr. Nash?”
Brandon stepped forward. “How is he?”
His father and Wayne came in, followed by his sisters and the rest. They all fell into silence the minute the nurse started giving her report.
“He’s lost quite a bit of blood, but we were able to
replace it before any serious tissue damage was done. He had three arterial bleeders in his abdomen and chest which Dr. Lincoln closed without incident. He was wearing his seatbelt, so most of the injuries were confined to his
midsection where the steering wheel hit. The MRI shows no sign of head trauma. Most likely, he passed out from blood loss. The cut on his head was probably caused by flying glass. We cleaned and stitched it and we also set his broken arm. He’s in the recovery room right now, but I’d say, barring infection, he should make a full recovery.”
Brandon grabbed the startled nurse around the waist and lifted her off her feet, spinning her around until they were both dizzy. “Thank you. Oh, God, thank you so much.” He put her back on her feet and kissed her soundly on the mouth.
She laughed. “Is it true what they’re saying? Are you and Dr. Morris really partners?”
Brandon thought back to all the terrible things he’d said and only hoped Nate was still speaking to him. He wasn’t about to tell the nurse that though, so instead, he simply said, “Yes, we are.”
She shook her head. “I thought so. Well, on behalf of the nursing staff, concerning both you and Dr. Morris, all I can say is, what a waste.”
* * *
Keith led Brandon and Seth down the hallway of the Intensive Care Unit. “Let me go in first and see what kind of restrictions are in place, then I’ll come back and get you guys.”
After he left, Brandon propped himself up against the wall. Seth took the same position on the opposite wall. Bran said, “I think you should go in first.”
“No way, man. He’ll want to see you first. Hell, I’m not even sure he’ll want to see me, period.”
Brandon took a deep breath. “Look, Seth, there’s something you should know.”
“Let me guess. You and Nate had a big fight before the accident and you said something stupid. Now you aren’t sure whether or not he’ll want to see you.”
Brandon put his hands on the back on his neck and leaned against the wall again. “How did you know?”
“Nate is my brother, remember? Everybody thinks because he’s kinda quiet, he must be real laid back and easygoing, too. Maybe he is most of the time, but get him mad and that boy has a temper like you wouldn’t believe. I guess you found that out firsthand, huh?” He thought for a minute before he said, “I know it’s none of my business, but can I ask what you two fought about? I mean, if you want to tell me to go fuck myself, I don’t blame you.”
A few hours ago, Brandon probably would have told him to do exactly that, but now he felt some kind of kinship with Seth. Maybe tragedy really did bring out the best in people. Either that, or Keith slipped some kind of tranquilizer into his coffee. Regardless of the reasons, he found himself pouring out the whole story, including the things they both said. When he got to the part where he told Nate he was afraid of contracting a first-class case of frostbite, Seth let out a low whistle.
“Damn. And I thought Nate had a temper. You know he was just trying to protect you by leaving, right?”
“Now I do. I had just made up my mind to find him and drag him back home, if I had to, when I was called to the scene of the accident. I didn’t know it was Nate until I got there.”
“God, that must have been hell. For what it’s worth, I don’t think Nate will hold what you said against you. He’s a pretty forgiving guy. I mean, look at us. Nate forgave me for turning my back on him the first time, and what did I do? I turned my back on him again. I’m the one who doesn’t deserve a second chance. But I’ll tell you this: if Nate can find it in his heart to give me another go, you better believe I’m going to take it.”
“If it makes you feel any better, I think he will. He’s talked about you a lot since you came to his office the other day. He even showed me some pictures from when the two of you were kids.”
Tears rolled down Seth’s cheeks. “Thanks, man. That means a lot to me.”
Keith came back with a big smile on his face. “His stats are looking good. If he keeps improving, he could be moved to a private room by tomorrow. Right now, he’s only supposed to have one visitor at a time, five minutes each visit. I pulled a few strings and got them to let you stay longer, Bran, but I’m afraid the one at a time rule stands. That’s for Nate’s protection. He’s still asleep, but that’s just the anesthesia. He should come around soon.”
Seth said, “Look, it’s after two in the morning, already. Why don’t I go to my hotel and come back tomorrow?”
Brandon said, “No.”
“No, I can’t come back tomorrow?”
“No. I mean, yes, you can come back, but I don’t want you to stay in a hotel. You can stay at our house, mine and Nate’s. Keith can show you how to get there.” He turned to his brother. “Do you still have your key?”
Keith nodded. “I’ll take him to your house and send the rest of them home, too. I’m off tomorrow, but I’ll come back here after I get everybody settled.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I haven’t had to kick your ass since you were in the third grade, Brandon. Don’t make me have to start now.” He pointed to Nate’s door. “Now go in there and see your boy. Just remember, he looks a lot worse than he is.”
Brandon pulled him into a rib-crushing embrace. “Did I ever tell you that you’re my favorite brother?”
“Just remember that come Christmas.” He looked at Seth. “You ready, kid?”
“Yeah.” Seth started past Brandon, then stopped and gave him a quick hug. “Thanks, Brandon. Tell Nate I’ll see him tomorrow.” Before he knew it, Bran was standing in the hall, alone. A nurse came along a few minutes later and helped him into a sterile gown and mask. All that was left was for him to go on inside.
The first thing he saw when he walked through the door of Nate’s room was the reassuring, wavy line on the heart monitor. The rhythmic beeping should have been enough to convince Brandon that Nate was still alive, but it just wasn’t good enough. He walked over to where Nate lay, fell to his knees beside the bed, and wept. All the anguish of waiting and the pain of not knowing poured out of him like poison. When he was finally able to slow the flood, he crawled into the chair beside the bed and carefully laid his head down on Nate’s chest. He closed his eyes and thanked God as he listened to Nathan’s heartbeat.
* * *
Nate’s first thought was that he really needed a toothbrush. His teeth itched and his tongue felt thick and swollen. His second thought was, who in the hell punched him in the stomach? He remembered arguing with Brandon, but he didn’t remember exchanging blows. He couldn’t move his right arm, and his left eyebrow stung. Only when he looked down at the I.V. in his left hand did he remember the accident. He also remembered that he had something important to tell Bran, but the pain was making it hard to concentrate. He had to try, though. He focused all his energy on his vocal cords and managed to croak out one word.
“Brandon.”
Almost the instant he said the word he felt two warm hands encompass his left one, carefully so as not to disturb the needle. He struggled to focus his eyes as Bran’s masked face came into view.
“Bran, need to—”
“Shh, baby. Let me call the nurse and get you something for the pain, okay? If you raise a fuss and get all upset, they’ll throw me out of here.”
“’K.”
Brandon fiddled with the switch at the side of the bed and a minute later, a nurse came into the room, syringe in hand.
“Well, hello there. It’s good to see you awake. Let me just shine a little light in your eyes and then I’ll give you something for the pain.” She pulled a penlight out of her pocket and checked Nate’s pupils. “Everything looks good.” She depressed the contents of the syringe into his I.V. while she talked. “Your partner here has been telling me what beautiful eyes you have, but I had to see for myself. He was right. They do look like big ole’ Hershey’s kisses.” She checked his blood pressure, and after promising to bring some ice chips to moisten his mouth, she left.
The medicine started working almost immediately. A warm fuzziness crept through Nate’s bones. He turned his heavy head towards Brandon. “Partner?”
He could just make out the uncertainty in Bran’s eyes through the drug-induced haze. “If you don’t want me anymore after the things I said, I understand, but God Nate, I love you so much. Please. . . God, please don’t leave me, baby. I’m so sorry.”
Nate felt the soft darkness creeping in. He managed to say, “Me too,” before sleep took over.
* * *
Keith stuck his head in the door not long after Nate got settled into his private room. A pretty brunette nurse named Lisa was flirting around the patient, checking and rechecking his pillows, filling his water glass, and arranging the dozens of flowers dotting the tables and windowsill. Obviously, she didn’t know much about the handsome doctor or she would have known her efforts were all for nothing. Keith wasn’t about to enlighten her. He had been on the receiving end of Lisa’s razor-sharp tongue more than once, but because her father sat on the hospital board, there wasn’t anything he could do about her attitude. Now though, he planned to have a little fun.
“Lisa, you don’t have to wait on him like that. We have aides and candy stripers who would be more than happy to fluff his pillows and rearrange his flowers.”
Lisa whirled around and arched her heavily tweezed brows. “I’m aware of that,Doctor, but I’m on my break right now, so I can do whatever I want.” She turned back to Nathan and gave him one of those sugar-pie grins. “Dr. Morris is good company.” She reached down and smoothed Nate’s blankets, all but pressing her ample chest into his face.
Poor Nate was looking desperate. “Come on in and have a seat, Keith. You just missed Dr. Lincoln.”
Keith took the chair closest to the bed. “Damn. I hope he wasn’t bothering you, Nate. He was told in no uncertain terms that he was being replaced as your doctor.”
Nate laughed. “Dr. Rinehart is my doctor now, but he’s already come and gone this morning. Actually, Lincoln came up here to apologize for a certain off-color remark he made last night. Seems that little brother of mine really put the fear into him.”
Keith’s grin covered his whole face. “Damned right, he did. I wish you could have seen him, Nate. I’ve wanted to put that look on Lincoln’s face ever since he came to work here three years ago. Seth did in five minutes what I’ve been plotting for thirty-six months.”
Nate eased back against his thrice-fluffed pillows, struggling to comfortably situate his broken arm. Keith could tell he was still a little groggy from the medicine, but he was lucid, at least. Lisa was at the other end of the room fiddling with some English ivy sent by Brandon’s Grandma and Grandpa Taylor. She was also taking in every word.
Keith saw Lisa straining to hear what they were saying and winked at Nate. “Speaking of your brother, I stowed him at Bran’s last night. He’s really anxious to see you.”
“I’m looking forward to seeing him, too. I think it’s past time we worked this thing between us out. It’ll be nice having a brother again.”
“You’ve got more than one brother, my friend. You are now an official member of the Nash Clan. Mother has spoken.”
“How does Brandon feel about that?” His voice dropped so that Lisa was forced to move to a flower arrangement closer to the bed.
Keith said, “How do you think he feels?”
Nate closed his eyes. “I honestly don’t know. I thought I remembered seeing him last night, but I was so out of it, I wasn’t sure. Then, when I woke up this morning, he was gone. I haven’t seen or heard from him all day.”
“And you thought once he realized you weren’t going to die, he might have changed his mind about you.”
“Yeah. We had a fight right before the accident.”
“I know. Brandon told me all about it. He also told me he didn’t mean a single thing he said.”
Keith could see the relief on Nate’s face. He hesitated. He didn’t want to tell Nate the rest of it, but he couldn’t have him thinking that Brandon was deliberately staying away from him. He finally gave in and said, “Nate, the reason Bran hasn’t been here has to do with your accident.”
“My brake lines were cut, weren’t they?”
Lisa nearly dropped the flowers she was holding. Keith just ignored her. “Yeah. You remembered?”
“Just bits and pieces. I remember trying to slow down for a curve and not being able to. I also remember that odd sensation you have when you mash the brake pedal and your foot goes all the way to the floor. My car is only three years old, and I keep it serviced. It didn’t take much for me to realize mine was an accident by design. At least now I know why Bran hasn’t been here.”
“He went over the edge when the mechanic who examined your car said the lines were cut. He’s been on the phone all morning with the State Police trying to get them to investigate this as a potential hate crime. Even as we speak, he’s got undercover patrols roaming the hallways of the hospital. There’s an armed deputy outside your door, too.”
Nate shook his head. “That doesn’t make any sense. He’s told me time and again that he believes this is a personal attack made to look like a hate crime. Why would he get the State Police involved if he doesn’t believe it’s really a hate crime?”
Keith patted his uninjured arm. “Doesn’t matter. He’s going to do whatever it takes to keep you safe, even if it means calling in the Feds.”
“He called the FBI?”
“Yep. He still has a lot of friends left over from his days with the Bureau. He’s called in every favor he’s got coming and a few he didn’t. He’s having one of those high-tech security systems installed at the house and he’s upgrading the system at your office.”
Nate nodded. “I knew about the upgrade at the office. Amy called me not long before you came in. She’s afraid to come by because she’s been exposed to mono.”
“That was her emergency last night?”
“Yeah. One of her pediatric patients has it. The little girl’s temperature went up and wouldn’t go down, so Amy met the girl and her mother at the office to see what she could do. She finally had to ice the poor little thing down, but it did the trick, thank God. She’s wasn’t happy about not being able to come up here, but Amy’s a fanatic about germs. She wouldn’t even let Mike come for fear he’s picked up the virus from her.”
Keith laughed. “Better safe than sorry, I guess. Anyway, the new security means at least you’ll be covered at home and at work. Hell, Bran’s even talking about sending Sasha to be trained as an attack dog.”
It was Nate’s turn to laugh. “Nowthat I would like to see.”
Lisa couldn’t stand it anymore. No one was paying her any attention. She used her silkiest voice and said, “Dr. Morris, there must be some mistake. I find it hard to believe that someone would deliberately want to hurt a man like you.”
Keith couldn’t resist. “You may change your mind about that, Lisa. You know what they say about doctors making the worst patients. You may be ready to kill him before he’s sprung from this place.”
Lisa’s demure sniff was so phony Keith almost cracked up. “You must not know Dr. Morris at all if you think that. He’s been a perfect sweetheart.” She stared at Keith with yellow-green eyes that reminded him of cat’s eyes. He’d always hated cats.
Lisa leaned against the side of Nate’s bed. “I couldn’t help overhearing, but a few minutes ago you said Dr. Morris was like a brother to you.”
It was the moment Keith had been waiting for. “Maybe ‘brother’ wasn’t the right word. Brother-in-law is more accurate.”
“You’re married to Dr. Morris’s sister?”
“No.”
Lisa looked at Nate. “You aren’t married. You don’t wear a wedding band, and I haven’t seen any signs of a wife.”
Nate closed his eyes again. Keith could tell he was tired, but he seemed to be enjoying this little game as much as Keith was, if his smile was any indication. He said, “No, Lisa, I’m not married.”
He couldn’t have given Keith a better opening. “But if I know my brother, he will be soon.”
How Lisa made it through nursing school was a mystery to Keith. She scrunched her eyes up and said, “What on earth does your brother have to do with—Wait a minute. Are you saying Dr. Morris is gay?” She looked at Nate. “You can’t be gay.”
Nate opened his eyes and raised his bandaged brow. “Really? Why not?”
Lisa shook her head. “You don’t priss around or lisp your words. You’re one of the manliest men I’ve ever met.”
A knock sounded on the open door. Brandon stood there holding an armload of roses and wearing an awesome grin. He said, “Well, I certainly agree with the manly part.” He dropped the flowers on a chair and came to stand beside the bed. “How are you feeling, baby?”
Nate sounded better than he had since Keith got there. “I’m fine now that you’re here.”
Brandon needed no further encouragement. He bent down and gave a Nate a kiss guaranteed to raise his blood pressure. It certainly raised Lisa’s.
“That’s disgusting! I can’t believe that you . . . that you’re a. . .”
Keith said, “Better be careful, Lisa. Our chief of staff takes a dim view of certain words. Just ask Dr. Lincoln.”
Lisa didn’t say a word. She stalked off, but Brandon and Nate were too wrapped up in each other to even notice. Keith just smiled and slipped out.
* * *
Nate whimpered a little when Brandon broke the kiss, but a least he didn’t go far. He sat on the edge of the bed and took Nate’s hand.
“Wow.”
Brandon smoothed Nate’s hair away from the bandage on his forehead. “Wow, yourself. It’s good to see your eyes looking so clear. Last night they were all glassy and unfocused.”
“They’ve decreased my level of pain killers a notch or two. So I wasn’t dreaming last night? You really were there with me?”
Brandon lifted Nate’s hand to his mouth, kissing the sore spot just above the I.V. “I was there, all right. I would have been here when you got up, but I was called out on business.”
“I know. You were terrorizing law enforcement the world over trying to find the guy who cut my brakes.”
Brandon’s jaw went rigid. “And Iwill find that son-of-a-bitch, too, even if I have to call in the National Guard.”
“I think calling in the FBI and installing a NASA grade security system is enough, don’t you? And what’s this I hear about you turning Sasha into a pit-bull?”
“I think our dog is canine enough to take it.”
“Our dog?”
Brandon shifted so that he was looking directly into Nate’s eyes. “I know you said last night you were leaving me, but I can’t let you go, Nate. I convinced myself that you were only leaving to keep me safe. Was I wrong about that?”
“No. I thought I was doing the right thing. The idea of that bastard doing something to you is more than I can take, Bran.”
“Not gonna happen, sweetheart. I’m not going to let anything happen to either of us, Nate. I haven’t waited thirty-two years to find you just to lose you now.” He lowered his eyes. “That is, if you still want me.”
Nate reached out and stroked Bran’s injured cheek. “Oh, I want you, alright. What happened to your face, angel?”
Bran leaned into his touch. “Angel. You’ve never called me that before. I don’t think I’ve ever heard you call me by any endearment, come to think of it.”
“I never really felt like you belonged to me before. Now tell me what happened to your face. It looks like a concrete burn.”
Brandon leaned forward and nuzzled his neck. Even as bruised and battered as he was, just the heat of Brandon’s breath on the sensitive skin was enough to make Nate’s pulse race. “If you don’t stop that, a nurse is going to come in here and run you out.”
Bran stopped kissing him, but he pulled back only enough to see him as they talked. “Nate, last night. . .I thought you were running out on me because you didn’t trust me enough to protect you. It never occurred to me that you were trying to protect me. Well, it did, finally, but only after I’d made a complete ass out of myself. All those things I said—”
Nate carefully leaned forward enough to press his lips softly against Brandon’s. “Shh. I said things I didn’t mean, too. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust you enough, Bran. I was trying to keep you safe. I should have talked to you about it instead of running away. For what it’s worth, I had just made up my mind to come back and try to make you understand when my brakes failed.”
“It took me a few minutes, but I finally realized what you were doing. I had Amy’s number half-dialed in a desperate attempt to track you down when Sam came in and told me about a bad accident on the highway. I didn’t know it was your car until we were already on the scene. When I saw them pulling you out of that wreck, I just blacked out. You were so still, baby.” Nate’s heart broke when he saw the tears on Brandon’s lashes. “I guess my mind couldn’t cope. I saw you lying there, and I thought I’d lost you.”
He pulled Nate as close as he could without hurting his tender belly and spoke against his ear. “I can’t go through that again. As soon as they’ll let me, I’m taking you home, to our house, with our dog. I love you, Nate. I know you wanted to take things slow, but—”
Nate kissed his temple. “I think we’re past the slow stage, Bran. I’m ready to take our relationship to any level you want. I love you, angel. I’m ready to show it.”
Brandon kissed just below the bandage on Nate’s head. He pulled back and lifted Nate’s chin with the tip of his finger. “You know we’ll take this at your pace. You show me your love just by the way you look at me. You don’t have to prove it. But before we take this any further, I want you to understand what I’m talking about here.”
“Okay.”
Brandon took his hand again. Nate was shocked to feel him trembling. He started to speak, but Bran shook his head. “Just let me get this out.” He took a deep breath. “Nate, when I said I wanted to take you home, I didn’t mean just until this is over. When I called it our house, I meant I want it to be your home from now on. I’m talking your name on the deed, me taking out the garbage, us doing the dishes together, the whole family bit.”
Nate wasn’t following. “I understand. You’re asking me to live with you.”
“No.”
“No, you don’t want me to live with you?”
“No. Yes.” Brandon raked his hand over his face. “Fuck, this is hard.” He took a deep breath. “I’m not asking you to live with me, Nathan. I’m asking you to marry me.”