Honor

his personal tailor palpitations. His eyes were brighter, though.
“Wondered where you’d gone,” he said, accepting the cup of tea and ignoring the toast.
Even in this crisis he obviously had no intention of veering from his Spartan routine, Lacey thought with a mix of admiration and frustration. No wonder Kevin found his father such a tough act to follow.
“The doctor was by a minute ago,” he said, interrupting her thoughts. “Can’t believe that boy who used to climb trees in my backyard is a cardiologist these days. You suppose we ought to call in someone else?”
“Linc is one of the best and you know it.”
“I suppose.” He still looked doubtful.
“What did he say?”
“He thinks the worst is past. If Kevin stays stable another forty-eight hours, he’ll consider moving him to a private room.”
“And then what?” she asked, more to herself than Brandon.
His sharp gaze pinned her, the blue eyes glinting with a challenge. “Then we’ll all do whatever it takes to help Kevin get his health back. All of us, you hear me?”
Lacey shook her head ruefully. An order like that was all too typical of her father-in-law. “Brandon, you can’t bully us into a happy marriage.”
He scowled and waved a finger under her nose. “Maybe not, but I can damn well see that you stick it out until this crisis is past.”
Determined not to let him see how his threat disturbed her, Lacey returned his fierce expression.
“I will not argue with you about this,” she said, carefully setting her tea on the table, then turning and walking away. Maybe it was the cowardly thing to do, but she couldn’t see any other choice. The stress of the present on both of them was bad enough without battling over the future.
Outside the hospital, where winter hadn’t quite given way to spring, a bed of purple crocuses were forcing their way through the still-icy earth. Lacey circled the grounds, holding her thin jacket closed against the damp breeze. The nip in the air cleared her head. She reminded herself that for all his blustering, Brandon couldn’t control whatever decision she and Kevin reached about their marriage.
That decision, however, was far in the future. Brandon was right about one thing: the most important task now was to see that Kevin pulled through, that he took this latest warning more seriously than he had the last. She, more than anyone, wanted to see his masculine vitality restored, to see his pallor replaced by the healthy glow he’d once had.
She recalled the way he’d looked on their wedding day, his hair too long by his father’s standards and tousled by a spring breeze. Used to seeing him in jeans and denim jackets, she’d thought he looked outrageously sexy and impressive in custom-tailored gray slacks and a blue dress shirt. She’d never guessed he owned clothes like that, though it stood to reason he would, given the family’s business in textiles and their social standing. Usually, though, Kevin had rebelled at anything that hinted at his privileged background.
Most of all, Lacey recalled the expression of adoration on his face when she’d joined him on that blustery hillside. She had been so proud to become his wife, so touched by the tender vows he’d written himself. The emotions she had felt that day had only deepened with time. In the end she had loved him enough to leave, loved him enough to risk everything she cared about on the one slim chance that the desperate measure would force him to face the dangers of his present life-style.
Steeped in bittersweet memories, Lacey walked until it was time to go back in to see Kevin. She avoided the waiting room and Brandon, going instead straight to the cardiac unit.
She found Kevin with his eyes closed, his expression more peaceful. His jaw was shadowed by the first faint stubble of a beard that under other circumstances she might have found sexy because of its ruggedly sensual look. It would have reminded her of the rebellious, bearded young man who’d marched for peace at a time when his father was backing the Vietnam War. Today it only reminded her of how sick he was, because that shadow emphasized his pallor.
Seated by his bed, his hand in hers, Lacey’s thoughts began drifting back again. She was startled when she heard him whisper her name.
“Lacey, is that you?”
“It’s me, Kevin.”
“You stayed,” he said, gently squeezing her hand. He sounded surprised.
“I stayed,” she murmured, then added wearily, “but dammit, Kevin Halloran, did you have to go to this extreme just to get my attention?”
“You’re here, aren’t you?” he responded with that familiar teasing note in his weakened voice. His tone sobered. “What’s Linc saying?”
“He says you’re going to be all right, if you take care of yourself and slow down.”
A faint twinkle sparked in his eyes as his gaze met hers. “Sounds like a fate worse than death.”
“Don’t you dare joke about it,” she said furiously, jerking her hand from his and poking it into her pocket. “You scared the daylights out of all of us.”
“Does Jason know? He came to see me at the office. Was it last night? Or before? I’ve lost track of the time.”
“It was two nights ago. He came to see me last night. He was with me when the hospital called.”
“I’m afraid we had words.”
“So he mentioned. He’s frustrated and confused. He wants to help, but he doesn’t know how.”
Kevin sighed heavily. “That makes two of us.”
Lacey bit back a retort that would match the faint edge of bitterness in his. If she started saying all that was on her mind—the whole jumble of fury and regrets—Linc would throw her out of intensive care.
“Lace?”
She met Kevin’s troubled gaze. “Yes.”
“You haven’t forgiven me, have you?”
Faced with that unblinking, uncompromising stare, she could only shake her head. Instead of saying more, she deliberately changed the subject.
“Your father is outside. He’s been here all night. In fact, he was driving the staff crazy because he had to wait to find out