Romance Collision ✔

Chapter Sixty-Five: Temper, Temper

Riley wore a small smile on her lips as she brushed her daughter's short hair off her forehead. Her gray eyes could see color returning to Eve's face after being able to rest for some hours now.

She and Daniel had been sitting down at dinner discussing the plans for their last summer alone with Eve before the new baby arrived next year, when their front door was frantically pounded on. Just as Daniel had risen to head to the door, the house phone was ringing.

The father opened the door and blinked at Bea and a blue eyed boy standing in his doorway completely out of breath and leaned over with their hands on their knees. 

Daniel raised a brow, tilting his head and asked the teenagers if they were alright. Bea raised her hand, shaking her head and squeezed her eyes shut trying to speak.

Looking over his shoulder, Daniel heard Riley's panicked voice informing Garrett that she couldn't understand what he was saying, that he was speaking too fast!  

Daniel narrowed his eyes when Riley placed a hand over her right ear and turn her chin towards the phone against her left.

"What...? What's wrong---" Her hand shot to her mouth and those gray eyes of hers brimmed with tears as she looked at Daniel, dropping the phone.

The father gave instruction for Greg and Bea to get Riley into the car while he got her shoes since she was already halfway out the door with her bare feet. His heart pounded loudly in his chest after Riley had run by him in a panic about Eve being taken to the hospital after an allergic reaction.

Outside, Daniel wiped his face with the back of his sleeve and swallowed hard trying to stay calm for Riley's sake. She was franticly shouting at him to please hurry. He saw Garrett waving his arm out a car window and told the father to follow him to the hospital Gabriel took Eve to.

Daniel narrowed his eyes for a split second before his girlfriend's panic-filled voice reached his ears. He jumped into the car and followed behind the boy's car. The whole way to the hospital, Daniel couldn't help the irritation... the anger... the blame he felt towards his daughter's boyfriend.

Eve had gone to a party before and nothing bad had happened then. She had done a lot with her friends that never had any misfortunes, up until now that Gabriel McNeill had romantically come into his daughter's life.

 Perhaps it was just because Daniel was worried about Eve that he felt the need to steer the blame on the one person who made most sense to do so. But Daniel shook his head, re-focusing his mind-set on getting to the hospital. On getting to Eve.

Riley was the first one out when they had arrived. She didn't even wait for Daniel to come to a complete stop. Her door was thrown wide open and carried her sandals in each hand as she ran towards the automatic doors under the bright red EMERGENCY sign.

Panting at the front desk, the worried mother asked for her daughter's room. The older nurse sporting little tiny ice cream cones on her uniform was busily flipping through the paperwork in front of her and then pointed in a certain direction.

"Room twenty-nine. At the end of the hall."

Riley could see Charlie standing outside with her arms crossed and lightly biting on the tip of her fingernail as a lookout. The teenage girl dropped her arms, lifting her hands and waved them around, "Riley!" as the mother started to slow down and panted heavily, asking what happened to Eve.

Charlie gave a brief summary of Eve having eaten mashed potatoes with peanuts crushed into them. Riley clamped a hand to her forehead asking if Eve was alright.