LITMIR.BIZ

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got here as soon as I could.”

      Ascending, the elevator lurched.

      She crossed her arms. “When was the last time you visited Truelove? It’s been ten years, right?”

      He didn’t remember Amber being this bossy or pushy. “I was deployed.”

      “But you’ve been out of the Marines for four months, Ethan.”

      “Not visiting Truelove isn’t the same as not seeing Grandma. She’s visited me in Wilmington several times.” He jutted his jaw. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

      “Where were you when Miss ErmaJean got the flu? When her identity was stolen? When—”

      “I get it, Amber,” he growled. “Since I returned to North Carolina, I could’ve been around more, but I’ve been looking for work.”

      Elevator dinging, the doors opened onto the third floor.

      She stepped out. “But not looking where you have family and friends?”

      He followed on her heels. “You know how I feel about this one-stoplight town. Grandma Hicks understands. Why didn’t she call me when the other stuff happened?”

      “Because your grandmother doesn’t want to infringe on your life.” Amber glared. “She doesn’t want to relinquish her independence or be a burden.”

      He scowled back. “Grandma Hicks isn’t a burden. She knows I’d do anything to help her.”

      “Here’s your chance to prove it. Until she’s mobile again, she is in no shape to live alone.”

      He wasn’t used to Amber being ticked with him. When they were younger, she’d sort of had a crush on him. He never acted on it because she was Matt’s little sister. Kind of an unspoken guy rule. That and he enjoyed breathing. Amber’s dad was overprotective.

      “The doctor says she’ll need physical therapy. The cast probably won’t come off for six weeks.” Amber’s eyes narrowed. “No doubt, you’ll be long gone by then. But Miss ErmaJean has lots of friends who will look out for her.”

      Amber’s low opinion of him stung.

      “I’ll take care of my grandmother.” He squared his shoulders. “This incident settles it. I’m moving her to Wilmington.”

      Amber’s eyes widened. “You can’t do that, Ethan.”

      He drew himself up. “I can do that, Amber. And I’ll make sure she gets the best of care.”

      Amber shook her head. “She’ll hate it. She’ll miss Miss GeorgeAnne and Miss IdaLee. Her house. Her church. The mountains.”

      “You and those old women should mind your own business.” He cocked his head. “I’ll take care of Grandma.”

      Hurt flashed through those sky-blue eyes of hers. Her lips trembled. And he felt about two inches tall.

      She was only looking out for his grandmother. But she’d hit a nerve. He wasn’t his deadbeat dad. He’d never be him. Grandma Hicks had practically raised him by herself.

      Amber stopped outside the second door on the right. “Here’s her room.”

      He’d been harsh. Anger had always been his fallback, rather than fear.

      “I’m sorry.” He scrubbed his face with his hand. “I didn’t mean to bark at you. Thanks for showing me the way to Grandma’s room.”

      There were purple shadows under Amber’s eyes. She looked tired. And, at twenty-six, older than she should. Nursing school must be exhausting.

      She bit her lip. “I was headed here, anyway.”

      Ethan steeled himself for what he’d discover on the other side. But what he found wasn’t anything like what he expected.

      His heart in his throat, he pushed through the door to find his rosy-cheeked grandmother lying propped against the pillows. And two little ash-blonde girls—twins?—standing on either side of the bed.

      The sight of his pleasantly plump grandmother in the hospital bed caused his heart to swell with unexpected gladness. Apple round, his grandma was what he liked to think of as fluffy. Her salt-and-pepper hair was no whiter than when she’d visited him over the winter.

      “Ethan?” Catching sight of him, Grandma Hicks’s face lifted. “Oh, honey, it’s so good to see you.”

      Behind him, Amber slipped inside the room. “Lucy. Stella.” She held out her hand.

      The little girl in lavender let go of the bedrail and ducked behind Amber. The one in pink maintained her hold on the steel bar and peered at Ethan.

      “Grandma, are you all right?” He took her blue-veined hand. Her skin felt warm to the touch.

      She squeezed his fingers. “GeorgeAnne shouldn’t have bothered you. I’m fine.”

      “You are not fine.” An uncustomary emotion clogged his throat. “And you’re not a bother.”

      “I’ll be right as rain, give or take a few weeks.” She patted his arm. “Can’t keep a good woman down for long.”

      The little girl in pink came around the end of the bed, bypassing Amber. “Gigi got hurt.”

      Ethan raised his eyebrows. “Gigi?”

      His grandmother’s cheeks dimpled. “Closest I could get to Great-Gran.”

      Ethan frowned. “Who do these children belong to, Grandma?”

      “Me.”

      His gaze flicked to Amber and then to the child beside him. His mouth opened and closed. The adorable little girl gave him a bright smile, and his breath caught. She was the spitting image of Amber at that age.

      Sky-blue eyes. From the tip of her tiny nose and stalwart little chin, same as her mother. A mini-Amber.

      Grandma Hicks reached through the railing and touched the child’s hand. “Lucy, this is my grandson, Ethan. The one I told you about.”

      Out of the corner of her lashes, Lucy looked at him. “Hey, mister.”

      Sunshine. Warmth. And a sense of well-being flooded over him.

      “It—it’s Ethan.” He cleared his throat, glancing from his grandmother to this slender princess of a child. “Telling tales about me, Grandma?”

      “Only the truth.”

      He rolled his eyes. “That’s what I was afraid of.”

      “The good things. The stuff you don’t like to think people know.”

      He tried to wrap his mind around a grown-up Amber with children of her own. “Matt never told me you have daughters.”

      “Like on the ark, they came in twos. This is Stella.” Amber stepped aside, giving him a clearer look at the child hunkered next to her mother. “Stella, this is Ethan, Uncle Matt’s best friend.”

      Pert nose. Dimpled chin. Identical to her sister. Yet somehow not. A person entirely in her own right.

      The notion of Amber being married left him with an unsettled feeling in his gut.

      “You just missed Callie, Amber.” Grandma smiled. “I didn’t want her to miss the golden photography hour for her client’s engagement pictures so I sent her off. I knew you’d be here soon.”

      “I was so relieved Callie was available to pick up the girls from school this afternoon. She texted me she’d dropped the girls off here. I came over as soon as I finished my shift at the diner. She said the twins were worried.” Amber sighed. “I know they feel so bad about what happened this morning.”

      Ethan frowned. “The girls were there when Grandma fell?”

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