The Billionaire’s Savior

Chapter 9

Friday night dinner had become a tradition in the time since the film had gone into production. Chris’ master class had been instrumental in raising the venture capital for the movie and he was hosting them this Friday as a ‘thank you’ since Robyn and the crew were away on a night shoot. Robyn had grown into a different person that year, more responsible and business-minded. She’d been a saving grace to Chris and any representation he needed both personally and in business. Chris, too, had changed. He’d spent most of the year in recovery, trying to get over his agoraphobia, as he did his best to get Robyn’s project off the ground. He’d found purpose in it, and it had allowed him to begin to heal.

When the movie project, still without a working title, got off the ground, Chris had wanted nothing more than to be more hands on. He and his architect colleague had created most of the futuristic props for the set and they looked damned good if Chris did say so himself. But it was frustrating not being there on site when they were being used.

He’d tried to go a few times but the panic attacks he’d suffered had rendered him almost insensible every time. Robyn urged him to be patient with himself. He was at least able to attend his self defense classes albeit after hours when the building was empty. But it was definitely progress from not leaving the house at all. Chris knew this, but the slow rate of his progress irritated him.

He’d also invited his family; his mother, Ruth and his father, George; to come by so he could finally let them know that he’d acquired a wife. His sister, Sarah was also invited although she already knew.

They were in the middle of dinner one Friday night when Cleo ran into the dining room.

Chris stood up immediately, every nerve on edge. “What’s going on?”

“You weren’t answering your phone,” Cleo panted out of breath. No, Chris had left it in his room.

“What happened?” Chris demanded firmly.

“Robyn,” Cleo told him. “There’s been an accident.”

Time froze for Chris, and he felt like all the breath had been knocked out of him. His mind was suddenly a jumbled mess of all the outcomes of this news.

“Is she-” he began to ask.

“Alive,” Cleo responded immediately. “But… It’s bad, Chris.”

“Robyn? Who is that? What’s going on, Chris?” Ruth asked. She didn’t know Robyn. Sarah, who did, was looking at Chris worriedly. She’d gotten to know Robyn, however superficially, while visiting with her brother.

Chris nodded, turning to his family. “I’m sorry, I need to go.”

“We’ll all go,” George told him, standing. “We’ll meet you there.”

Chris didn’t want to waste time arguing, so he nodded as he followed Cleo out.

Once they were in the car, he got the rest of the information.

“It was just an accident, Chris,” Cleo explained. “She was coming back from the night shoot with Pam and her guy, what’s-his-name. Anyway, Robyn was at the back and they were crossing an intersection when this drunk driver ran straight into them, right where Robyn was sitting.”

Chris ran a hand over his face, the anxious feeling in his stomach making him feel torn apart.

“We’re almost there,” Cleo assured him. That wasn’t surprising, they were going well over the speed limit.

Two minutes later, Chris and Cleo were running through the hospital doors.

Chris found a nurse. “I’m here about Robyn Andrews, can you tell me where she is?”

The nurse was non-pulsed by his demand, and looked at a chart.

“Robyn Andrews. She’s in surgery right now. Are you family?”

Chris nodded his head, “I’m her husband and emergency contact. Her family doesn’t live nearby.”

The nurse nodded.

“You can wait in the surgery waiting room, and a doctor will speak with you when they’re finished. It’s on the 3rd floor.”

Chris turned to Cleo, who indicated that he should go on without her. “I’ll wait for your family, so they know where you are.”

Seven hours later, they were all still sitting in the waiting room. Sarah had raided the vending machines for snacks, and Cleo had tracked down coffee. George and Ruth were sitting across from Chris, holding hands. Chris found himself staring at their joined hands, wondering if he’d get to hold Robyn’s hand like that again.

Chris’ mind flew to their last interaction; when Robyn opened up to him about getting pregnant at sixteen and having to deal with that in addition to school. Her boyfriend, the father of the kid had bailed as soon as she told him and her father had been so mad he had wanted to throw her out of the house. Her mother had sent her to New York to stay with her sister for the duration and then after all that, she’d had a late term miscarriage. It had been one of the most depressing times of her life and she’d contemplated suicide. She’d gotten through it all with the help of her mother, her aunt and her friend Pam. The story had touched Chris because he could understand the loss…and the guilt. And fighting to come back from it all. And now here they were, once again. He was not going to lose Robyn though. He was not.

A doctor entered the waiting room, and Chris’s head snapped to attention. He stood slowly, a weight in his stomach.

“Are you Robyn Andrews’s family?” the doctor asked.

Chris nodded numbly, and Cleo came to stand next to him.

“We performed surgery to stop some internal bleeding and a partially collapsed lung she received during the accident. Everything went fine. She’s in the ICU now.”

Chris released a haggard breath. “She’s okay?”

The doctor nodded confidently. “She has some recovery time ahead of her, but we’ll manage her pain and she should be able to go home in a few days.”

Chris closed his eyes in relief as Cleo slapped him on the back joyfully. When he opened his eyes, the doctor was turning away.

“Wait,” Chris called out. “Can I see her?”

The doctor frowned. “She’s unconscious right now-“

“That’s okay,” Chris told him, dismissing the obstacle.

The doctor regarded him critically, then nodded in approval. “Alright. Just you though. Follow me.”

Chris looked back at Cleo and his family, and they were all smiling at him reassuringly. “We’ll be waiting for you here,” his mother told him.