Unexpected Eva (Triple Trouble #3)(108)

That’s not a good sign.

“I’m getting dressed. I will need to get Charlotte from next door to come and look after the boys. I’ll be ten minutes.”

I tap the speakerphone button on my screen, allowing me to flip my hoodie over my head.

“Thank you, Eva. I know you don’t have to come.”

“He’s the father of my children and we are still married, Frances.” Propelling myself off the bed, I grab my phone and run down the stairs. “I’ll see you in ten.”

“Please be careful. The roads are dangerous. We've had a few inches of snow.”

I hang up.

“Ewan, please be okay. Our boys need a father.”





“He has three broken ribs. His scaphoid bone in his hand is also broken. His shoulder was dislocated. We have popped that back into place. The lacerations and bruising on his head and face are superficial. The CT scan showed no signs of bleeding on his brain. He’s going to be okay. He was very lucky.” The doctor gives us a rundown of Ewan’s injuries. “The police are in there talking to him, but as soon as they are finished, you can see him. Cubicle five.”

“Thank you, Doctor.”

I walk to cubicle five to wait. Frances grabs the top of my arm. “You go first, Eva. We’ll see him after you.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I know you won’t believe me when I say this, but he still loves you.”

“He’s got a funny way of showing it. What about Ruby?”

“She split up with him. I think that’s why he went out for a bit of a session tonight. I’m sorry for the hurt and pain he has caused you.”

“Hey, this is not your fault. None of it. We need to work together to get him the help he needs or he’s going to end up killing himself or someone else. This is serious, Frances.”

She takes my hand in hers and pats it. “You’re a lovely girl, Eva. Thank you for being here.” I smile gratefully.

“That means a lot to me.”

She tilts her chin up. “The police officers are leaving. I want to speak to them. You go see Ewan.”

I turn around and head for cubicle five.

“I’m not allowed to be near you. You shouldn’t be here,” he says gruffly as I enter. I notice he’s handcuffed to the bed by his good hand.

“I don’t care about that.”

“The police will charge me with breach of the injunction if I break the terms and I am already in deep shit. I don’t want you here. Please go.” He closes his eyes, turns his head away from me, and rests it on the pillow.

“Well, I’m here and I’m staying. What did the police say?”

He ignores me.

“What were you doing out so late?”

No answer.

“I’m going to sit here until you tell me.” I drop down into the chair by his hospital bed. This gives me a chance to examine his injuries.

His face is bruised. He looks thin. Ragged. Not himself. Not the handsome man I married, that's for certain.

I feel sorry for him.

His arm is in a sling and his hand looks swollen.

His hand and ribs are broken. So is he.

Broken emotionally and physically.

“Will your hand need a cast?”

Still no answer.

“So you’re not going to speak to me at all?”

“No.”

“Okay. Well, you can listen to me instead then. I came here tonight because I still care about you, Ewan. I know you don’t think I do, but I do. We have two beautiful boys together and I think it’s about time we worked together to make sure they have a father in their lives, don’t you? They need a dad. They need you. But the old Ewan. Not this one. What happened to you? You are heading down a dangerous path. You could have killed yourself tonight or someone else. Did you even think about that?”

“Stop talking.”

“No, I will not. You have dictated the last year of my life and I will not put up with it anymore. It’s time to hear a few home truths.”

And I do. I tell him everything about his credit cards, forcing us to sell my campervan. I inform him I am selling the house because I can’t afford to keep it myself. I lay all my cards on the table. It’s neither the time nor the place but I don’t care. He needs to hear it all.

“You will go to jail for this. Did the police tell you that tonight? It's six months imprisonment. I looked it up.”

His face scrunches up. I have never seen Ewan cry before, but he has a complete emotional breakdown.

“Oh God, what have I done?”

His chest heaves in and out, and he grimaces with pain from his ribs.

I stand up and lean over the bed.

“Look at me.”

He does.

His eyes are bloodshot. The fumes of his alcohol addiction puncture the air.

He needs help.

I thumb his cheek.

“You should fuck off back to Knox Black. I heard you were with him now.” He sneers.

“Don’t do this, Ewan. Don’t be that guy. I’m not with Knox anymore. My father saw to that.” I didn’t realize Ewan knew. Of course he knew. The whole of Castleview Cove knows.

His pulls in a shallow breath. “He’s a fool to let you go. He should have fought for you. I should have fought for you. Please forgive me?”