The fluorescent lights of the hospital corridor buzzed with a sickening hum.

Emaline stood outside the examination room, her arms wrapped tightly around her chest. Walter had been wheeled inside twenty minutes ago.

Cullen stood two feet away from her. He was leaning against the sterile white wall, his hands in his pockets. He did not hover, but his presence was a heavy, solid weight in the chaotic hallway. It made her feel anchored.

A nurse walked out of the room holding a stack of clipboards.

"Ms. Finley? I need your signature on the admission forms," the nurse said.

Emaline reached for the pen, but her hands were shaking so badly she dropped it.

Cullen stepped forward instantly. He picked up the pen, handed it to her, and placed his large hand flat over the top of the clipboard to steady it.

His knuckles brushed against hers. Emaline sucked in a sharp breath, her skin burning at the contact. Cullen did not pull away. He just watched her sign her name.

Before she could finish the last page, her cell phone shrieked from her pocket.

Emaline pulled it out. The name flashing on the screen made the blood freeze in her veins.

Kitty Hawkins.

Her former best friend. The woman who was now sleeping with her ex-boyfriend, Kendall.

Emaline's thumb hovered over the red reject button, but a sick sense of dread forced her to answer. She pressed the phone to her ear.

"What do you want?" Emaline asked, her voice dropping to a block of ice.

"Emaline! I heard your dad is back in the hospital," Kitty's voice dripped with fake sympathy. "It is just so tragic."

Emaline's fingers dug into the plastic casing of her phone. "Do not talk about my father."

Kitty let out a high, tinkling laugh. "I am just checking in. You know, I felt so bad when I ran into him at the clinic last week. I saw his chart sitting on the desk. I just had to tell him the truth."

The air vanished from the hallway. Emaline stopped breathing.

"What did you tell him?" Emaline whispered.

"I told him he was dying," Kitty said cheerfully. "I told him the treatments were a waste of your money and that he was bleeding you dry. And look! He checked himself out the very next day. I did you a favor, Emmy."

A wave of nausea hit Emaline so hard her knees buckled.

Kitty was the reason Walter gave up. Kitty had murdered his hope just to spite her.

"Are you insane?" Emaline screamed into the phone. People in the hallway turned to stare, but she did not care. "Why would you do that?!"

"Because you are pathetic," Kitty snarled, dropping the sweet act. "You are a poor, miserable loser. Kendall and I are getting engaged next month. You have nothing. Go watch your father die."

The line clicked dead.

Emaline stood frozen. The phone slipped from her hand and clattered onto the linoleum floor.

Her chest heaved. A violent tremor started in her hands and violently spread to her entire body. The walls of the hospital spun.

Cullen moved before she hit the floor.

He closed the distance between them in one stride. He grabbed her arms, pulling her flush against his chest.

"I am here," Cullen said, his voice a fierce rumble against her ear. "Let it out."

Emaline broke.

She buried her face in his expensive wool coat and sobbed. It was an ugly, agonizing sound. She gripped the lapels of his coat, twisting the fabric in her fists as if she were trying to tear it apart.

Cullen's arms wrapped around her, locking her in a cage of warmth and cedarwood. He rested his chin on the top of her head. He did not tell her to calm down. He just held her tighter.

"She told him," Emaline choked out between sobs, her tears soaking through his shirt. "Kitty told my dad he was dying. She made him give up."

She felt the muscles in Cullen's chest turn to stone.

His hand moved up to cup the back of her head, his fingers tangling in her hair.

"I will handle it," Cullen said. The words were quiet, but they carried a terrifying weight.

Emaline pulled back slightly, looking up at his face. His jaw was clenched so tight a muscle ticked in his cheek. His eyes were completely black with rage.

"Handle it?" Emaline sniffled. "She is Kendall Britt's fiancée. You cannot touch her."

Cullen reached up and wiped a tear from her cheek with his thumb.

"I do not care whose fiancée she is," Cullen said softly. "She hurt you. She will pay for it."

Emaline stared at him. Her heart gave a violent, painful thump in her chest. No one had ever defended her like this. No one had ever looked at her like she was something worth protecting.

She looked into Cullen's eyes, and for the first time, she realized she was falling.

The door to the examination room clicked open. Dr. Ramsey stepped out, pulling off his latex gloves.

Emaline quickly wiped her eyes and stepped away from Cullen's chest, though she immediately missed his warmth.

"He is stable," Dr. Ramsey said. "But he is awake, and he is refusing to let us move him to a permanent room. He is demanding to go home."

Emaline groaned, pressing the heels of her hands into her eyes. "I will talk to him."

She pushed past the doctor and walked into the room.

Walter was sitting up slightly, an oxygen tube taped beneath his nose. He looked frail, but his jaw was set in that familiar, stubborn line.

"I am not staying, Emmy," Walter rasped before she could even speak. "This place costs a fortune. I am going home."

Emaline walked to the side of the bed. She grabbed the metal bedrail.

"Dad, you cannot leave," Emaline said desperately. "The charity program is paying for it."

"I do not believe in charity," Walter said, turning his head away. "I will not leave you with a mountain of debt."

Emaline's mind raced. She needed a lie. A big one. One that would make him stay. She glanced back at the small window in the door. Cullen was standing in the hallway, watching her.

She took a deep breath.

"It is not charity," Emaline blurted out. "It is my boyfriend."

Walter snapped his head back to look at her. "Your what?"

"My boyfriend," Emaline repeated, her heart hammering in her throat. "He is wealthy. He is paying for everything. He arranged the doctor. He wants you to get better."

Walter stared at her, his eyes narrowing. "You have a boyfriend? Since when? Why have I never met him?"

"We have been keeping it quiet," Emaline lied, her palms sweating. "But he loves me, Dad. And he wants to take care of our family."

Walter looked unconvinced. "If this man is real, I want to see him. Right now."

Emaline froze. She had trapped herself.

Before she could figure out how to backtrack, the door swung open.

Cullen walked into the room. He was holding two steaming cups of coffee. He looked completely relaxed, as if he belonged there.

He walked straight to Emaline and handed her a cup. Then he set the other one on Walter's bedside table.

"Black coffee, sir," Cullen said, his voice smooth and respectful. "Emaline mentioned you hate the hospital tea."

Walter looked at the tall, impeccably dressed man. Then he looked at Emaline.

"Dad," Emaline said, her voice shaking slightly. "This is Cullen. My... my boyfriend."

Cullen did not miss a beat. He stepped forward and held out his hand to Walter.

"It is an honor to finally meet you, sir," Cullen said. "I am Cullen Preston. I am sorry it had to be under these circumstances."

Walter hesitated, then reached out and shook Cullen's hand. His eyes darted between Cullen and Emaline.

Suddenly, Cullen reached out and took Emaline's free hand. He laced his fingers through hers. His grip was warm and possessive. Emaline's breath hitched, a blush rushing to her cheeks.

Walter saw the blush. The suspicion in his eyes began to melt.

"You know about our situation?" Walter asked Cullen, his voice gruff. "We do not have anything."

"I know everything, sir," Cullen said, looking down at Emaline with a softness that made her stomach flip. "Emaline is the strongest woman I have ever met. Taking care of her, and her family, is my privilege."

Walter's eyes grew wet. He looked at their joined hands.

"Will you make her happy?" Walter asked, his voice cracking.

Cullen squeezed Emaline's hand. He looked straight into Walter's eyes.

"I give you my word," Cullen said firmly. "I will do everything in my power to protect her."

A tear slipped down Walter's cheek. He nodded slowly, sinking back into the pillows.

"Alright," Walter whispered. "I will stay. I will do the treatments."

Emaline let out a breath she felt like she had been holding for years. She squeezed Cullen's hand tightly, silently thanking him.

"When I get out of here," Walter said, looking at Cullen, "you are coming over for dinner."

"I look forward to it, sir," Cullen smiled.

Emaline and Cullen walked out of the room together. Once the door closed behind them, Emaline immediately dropped his hand. Her palm felt cold without his touch.

"Thank you," she whispered, staring at the floor. "For playing along."

Cullen reached out and tilted her chin up with his index finger, forcing her to look at him. His eyes were dark and intense.

"I was not playing, Emaline," Cullen said softly. "I meant it."

Emaline woke to the sound of fists hammering against a door.

She bolted upright in the hard plastic chair. The harsh fluorescent light of the hospital corridor buzzed overhead. She had fallen asleep in the waiting area outside her father's room, exhausted from the long night.

The pounding continued.

She threw off the thin hospital blanket someone had draped over her and stumbled toward the door of her father's private room. She yanked it open.

Leo stood there. His face was the color of chalk. His eyes were wide with pure terror.

He raised his hands and signed frantically.

Dad. Blood. So much blood. He will not wake up.

Emaline's blood turned to ice. She shoved past Leo and sprinted into the room.

Walter was lying on his side in the hospital bed. A dark, wet stain covered his pillow. Thick, bright red blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth, pooling on the white sheets. His eyes were rolled back in his head.

"Dad!" Emaline screamed.

She threw herself onto the bed, grabbing his shoulders. His skin was freezing. His body was limp.

"Get the nurse! Call the emergency station!" she yelled at Leo, forgetting he could not hear her. Leo was already holding his phone up, showing her that he had pressed the bedside call button. The alarm light above the door was flashing red.

Emaline grabbed her own phone from her pocket. Her fingers were shaking so violently she dropped it twice before she managed to unlock it.

She did not call the nurse. She called Cullen.

He answered on the first ring.

"Cullen," Emaline sobbed, her voice a hysterical shriek. "He is bleeding. He is coughing up blood and he will not wake up. I do not know what to do!"

"Where are you? Is he still in his room?" Cullen's voice was a sharp crack of thunder. "Do not move him. Keep his airway clear. I am two floors down. I am coming."

Emaline dropped the phone. She grabbed a towel from the bedside rail and pressed it to Walter's mouth, trying to stop the bleeding. Her hands were covered in his blood.

Leo knelt beside her, crying silently, gripping Walter's ankle.

Every second felt like an hour. Emaline's chest burned. She could not breathe. She watched her father's chest struggle to rise, the rattling sound in his throat growing weaker.

Footsteps pounded down the corridor.

The door flew open.

Cullen filled the doorway. Behind him, a team of nurses and a doctor in a white coat rushed in, pushing past him with a crash cart. The doctor was shouting orders, and two nurses immediately began strapping an oxygen mask over Walter's face while another inserted an IV line into his arm.

Cullen stepped back against the wall, his jaw locked. He stayed out of the way, watching the medical team work with efficient precision.

Emaline stumbled backward, hitting the wall behind her. She slid down to the floor, pulling her blood-stained hands to her chest.

Cullen walked over to her. He did not care about the blood. He crouched down, grabbed her under the arms, and hauled her up against his chest.

"I have got you," Cullen murmured into her hair, wrapping his arms tightly around her shaking body. "They are going to stabilize him. He is in the right place."

Emaline buried her face in his neck, sobbing uncontrollably. The smell of cedarwood and his solid heartbeat were the only things keeping her from passing out.

"We need to move him to the ICU now," the doctor shouted.

The team unlocked the bed wheels and rushed Walter out the door. The corridor swallowed the sound of their urgent footsteps.

Cullen kept his arm wrapped tight around Emaline's waist, half-carrying her out into the hallway. Leo followed closely behind.

They followed as far as the heavy double doors of the intensive care unit. A nurse held up her hand, telling them to wait outside.

Cullen guided Emaline to a row of chairs against the wall. He eased her down into one and sat beside her. Leo dropped into the chair on her other side.

Emaline sat rigid, staring at her bloody hands. "If he dies... if he dies, I have nothing."

Cullen reached over and grabbed her hands. He did not flinch at the blood. He held them tightly between his own.

"He is not going to die," Cullen said, his voice vibrating with absolute authority. "The best doctors in the city are in this building. I will not let him die."

Emaline looked at him. Through her tears, his face looked like it was carved from stone. He looked like a man who could fight death itself and win.

She squeezed his hands back, clinging to him like a lifeline.