Chapter 298

Conrad came in with a bouquet, his face etched with worry. "What happened to you?" It seemed inappropriate to remain lying in bed, so I grabbed the bedside rail and heaved myself upright. Conrad hurried over to pin me against the pillows. "No, you don't have to get up." "I'm fine," I insisted as I tried to sit up. I never felt self-conscious while lying down while Brandon was around, which set him apart from the other men in my life. Conrad stared at me. "So what happened?" What was I supposed to tell him? That I went into shock after learning the gravity of my parents' accident? It wasn't that I didn't know how to explain it to him, but that I didn't want to. I wondered when I had grown tired of explaining and resorted to giving vague, if not untrue, responses. "Low blood sugar, that's all," I lied. When I caught Conrad's skeptical look, I asked before he could press further, "What did you want to talk to me about?" He parted his lips and humored me with a white lie in return