“What happened? How did I get here? Where is here?” I ask. “You’re in the Bon Secours Hospital. I brought you here when you collapsed in your…cottage.”

Landon pauses after that. I do not know if he is waiting for me to say something or is just waiting to make sure I am comprehending what he is saying. After a beat of silence, he leans forward in his chair, resting his elbows by my legs on the bed.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were sick?” His question is so soft I thought I heard him wrong.

My heart feels like it is going to pound out of my chest. The beeping on the monitor picks up. Beep…beep…beep. But then, Landon takes my hand again. He gives it a small, reassuring squeeze, drawing my gaze to his. His eyes were kind, loving, and forgiving. Beep…beep…beep…beep.

When my heart rate slows again, I take a deep breath before talking. “I was afraid.”

Landon’s eyebrow rise in confusion. “Why?” he asks.

I look away from him, unable to meet his gaze. “I don’t know. I guess… I just…” I pause and Landon gives my hand another small squeeze. “I didn’t want you to look at me differently.”

Landon’s fingers grasp my chin and urge me to look back at him. “Different how?”

“With pity, sadness. Like I was a disease. I did not want you to want to be my friend out of obligation. I wanted you to want me for me. To know who I am, not my disease.”

“Beagchaithnini sneachta, I would never have…the way I feel about you…it wouldn’t have been clouded by the knowledge of your disease.”

“And how do you feel about me, Landon?”

Landon opens his mouth to answer me when the door opens.

“Awe, look who’s awake,” an extremely tall man in a lab coat asks. He looks to be in his late fifties and has an American accent.

I look at Landon in confusion. “I thought we were still in Ireland?”

Landon nods. “We are,” he said.

I glanced between the doctor and Landon. “But…?”

“Mrs. Campbell, I am Doctor Parker. I specialize in gastroenterology. Specifically, the liver and liver transplants. I have worked for many different hospitals throughout my career but have been most recently working for Campbell and Boland Medical Center.” I blink in shock. “Your husband flew me halfway across the world to perform your surgery. I guess he wanted to make sure his wife was getting the best, and trust me, I’m the best.” He gives me a cheesy grin, but my mind is still stuck on the thought that Landon and Jared own a hospital.

Then it hits me. “Surgery? What surgery?”