One Heart to Give (Heart's Intent Book 1) by Dawn Brower Page B

anywhere. At first it had bothered her, but she’d grown used to it over the years. It’d made her strong and resilient. Dani was independent and glad for it. Yes, she had Matt if she needed someone, but it was nice to not have to rely on anyone if she didn’t have to.
    She smiled. “Go get cozy with someone who’ll know Sullivan Brady’s social schedule. I’d like to arrange an informal meeting. Enlist Amy’s help if you need it. I want to know as much as possible before I act.”
    “I’m on it. I’ll come by to fill you in after I gather the information. I can tell you one thing now though.”
    Dani raised an eyebrow. “What?”
    Claire reached under her files and pulled out a newspaper. She flipped through it until she found what she was looking for and handed her the society section of the Envill Post. “I was taking a break and looking at the paper before you called me to your office. I like to see what’s going on in our community.” A picture of one of the most gorgeous men she’d ever seen graced the top of the page. Her assistant had been right. Sullivan Brady was indeed beautiful. Underneath it was an article about a charity event his family was hosting. It was for the new pediatric wing of Envill East.
    “You can find him here if you’re willing to go to one of those tedious fundraising events you hate so much.” Claire smiled. “You might even know a handsome doctor willing to take you.”
    Damn it, Ren had mentioned a fundraiser. It had to be the same event. She would have to call him and agree to go. She sighed. He’d take it to mean more than she was willing to accede to. If she played it right, she might still be able to get him to go slow. Dani wasn’t ready to jump into anything yet.
    “I’ll give Ren a call.” She frowned.
    The more information she gathered, the more her anxiety level rose. It was proving to be colossal level chaos. In her gut, she knew it was all going to blow up in her face.
     

Chapter Eight
    Dani put off calling Ren. She was being ridiculous and knew it. Why did she keep putting off the inevitable? Instead, she headed for the hospital to check on Matt. If she ran into Ren, she’d talk to him then. It gave her a reprieve of sorts. She had to talk to him at some point, but she wasn’t ready to. She’d never be at the rate she was going.
    She strolled through the hallways of the hospital until she reached Matt’s room. She pushed the door open and breathed a sigh of relief. There wasn’t anyone else in the room. It would give her some time to visit with her friend and pull herself together. Ren hadn’t called her either, he’d said he would. Why did her insecurities have to rear their ugly head? For the most part she was a strong independent woman. She took the world by storm. When it came to Ren, she was the little girl whose parents abandoned her. Her self worth took a hit every time. She wasn’t good enough to keep, so why would anyone else want her. The yo-yo emotions had to stop. Avoiding Ren wasn’t the way to get anything done. She’d go see him after her visit with Matt. It was time to face her fears and set them aside. She was acting like a silly school girl and it was plain stupid.
    “How’s my favorite person in the world doing today?” she asked as she entered the room.
    “I’ve had better days,” he replied. “Where have you been hiding yourself?”
    The sight of him laying damn near helpless in the bed was hard to see. She’d never get used to it. He was usually so strong and steady. A rock when she was on the verge of falling apart. Now she had to be the glue to hold it all together. For Matt, she’d try. She owed him that much.
    “Someone has to keep the office running.” She sat in a chair by his bed. “If you hadn’t decided to take this impromptu vacation I’d have more time to dote on you.”
    She was attempting to keep things as light and carefree as possible. He didn’t need to know they were on the verge of losing one