Denton: A Hathaway House Heartwarming Romance Read online

  Denton

  Hathaway House, Book 4

  Dale Mayer

  Books in This Series:

  Aaron, Book 1

  Brock, Book 2

  Cole, Book 3

  Denton, Book 4

  Elliot, Book 5

  Finn, Book 6

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  About This Book

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Epilogue

  About Elliot

  Author’s Note

  Complimentary Download

  About the Author

  Copyright Page

  About This Book

  Welcome to Hathaway House, a heartwarming military romance series from USA TODAY best-selling author Dale Mayer. Here you’ll meet a whole new group of friends, along with a few favorite characters from Heroes for Hire. Instead of action, you’ll find emotion. Instead of suspense, you’ll find healing. Instead of romance, … oh, wait. … There is romance—of course!

  Welcome to Hathaway House. Rehab Center. Safe Haven. Second chance at life and love.

  Navy SEAL Denton Hamilton has checked himself into Hathaway House, hoping for a fraction of the results his friends have gotten at the rehab center. Now missing a rib, muscles and a portion of his stomach, as well as suffering from PTSD, Denton would be happy to have his physical self healed. He’s not so sure he’ll ever get his mental health back, and finding a woman who’ll have him now—as his friends have been lucky enough to do—is out of the question. Who would be willing to love a man like him?

  Administrative Assistant Hannah Forsythe helps Dani run Hathaway House. A loner at heart, she’s drawn to Denton’s struggle and dismayed at his belief that no one could ever love him. But when an ill-advised observation she makes has unexpected consequences for Denton’s recovery, Hannah’s only choice is to separate herself from him to help him progress without her.

  As time passes, Hannah wonders if her choice has cost her everything she’s ever wanted or whether Denton can work through his feelings to give them both their happy ending at Hathaway House.

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  Chapter 1

  Denton Hamilton couldn’t believe his luck. His life had a tendency to go off the rails on a regular basis, so when good things happened, he always tried to stop and make a point of recognizing the moment. In this case, arriving at Hathaway House was beyond good luck. He hadn’t had the funds to pay his own way, so when the benefactor money had been offered, he’d been over the moon. Both Brock and Cole were already there, and that made the trip all that much sweeter.

  His brothers in arms were no longer big strapping men, ready to take on the world, like when they had first met. Now both of them were broken and damaged, nowhere near the men they were when they had first signed up for the military to train as SEALs. Still, Denton knew they had improved at Hathaway, and he was fully prepared to do what he could to improve his own physical health.

  He was missing a ton of muscles, and his right calf was a mess. He would likely never do any heavy lifting again because he’d lost some back muscles to rebuild those calf muscles, plus, he was missing a bottom rib and part of his stomach. Food sensitivities were now a thing of everyday life as were blood sugar issues … Life could be a whole lot worse. The right calf muscles … those were traumatizing.

  Waking up the first time with his right leg a mess had been a hell of a shock. Who knew so many muscles were required to get that leg moving properly, not to mention doing simple things like climbing stairs? On top of that, he had also lost the baby toe on his left foot. He felt like a real idiot anytime he complained about it. The doctor had just chuckled and told him that missing toes meant relearning to walk again. But he had lost just one, and it shouldn’t cause him that much trouble.

  So, for now, a cane was his best friend. In the meantime, his goal was to return to be as fit as he could. He had to build up his right leg, and he had to build up his back. But he still counted himself lucky. He would do his best to make sure that whoever paid for him to come to Hathaway House wouldn’t regret choosing him.

  “Thank you so much for the ride,” he said to the man beside him.

  Dr. Wiseman smiled. “You’re welcome. I’m always happy to deliver somebody here. It doesn’t happen often enough. You’re blessed that you are here.”

  “And I know it.” He shook his head. “I’m not even sure how I made the cut. I don’t have any money. Apparently, the center has donors, and one of them paid for my transfer and medical costs. The military said I’d been through everything they could do, but my leg is still useless. I hope all this is worth it.”

  “Not useless.” The doctor shook his head. “It needs a lot of work, and the latest round of surgeries will take a lot of effort on your part to rebuild that leg. But the necessary muscles have been reattached. They need time to heal.” Wiseman parked the car, exited, came around to Denton’s side and opened the door. “This is only my second visit here,” he said. “I’m looking forward to seeing the place again.”

  “I do appreciate the ride. I wasn’t sure how all this would work.”

  “Sometimes the world works in mysterious ways,” Dr. Wiseman said. He gave Denton a big smile. “Don’t knock it. You’re here. Make the most of it.”

  “I promise I’ll do that much.”

  If Denton’s reply was a little too emphatic, it was to be expected. He felt a little overwhelmed, truth be told. All those months and months of surgeries and the recoveries thereafter, seemed like a never-ending road where standing on his own two feet would be not only impossible, but also something that only the truly rich could afford. Not even the military had that much when it came to ongoing medical assistance. If Denton had stayed at the VA Hospital, he could have had all kinds of assistance, but none of it would have been as specialized as offered here at Hathaway House. Unlike some other people, he didn’t have a problem being a charity case.

  As Dr. Wiseman opened his car door, Denton struggled to his feet with the doctor’s assistance. The front door to the medical center opened, and an orderly came toward them, pushing a wheelchair. Denton looked at it and sighed. “I’d hoped my wheelchair days were over.”

  Dr. Wiseman laughed. “You should be grateful that there is even a wheelchair for you. No overdoing it.”

  Once in the wheelchair, Denton turned to look up at Dr. Wiseman. “I don’t have a problem accepting help. I was raised by a single mom. I learned from her. When she needed something done or when she needed something for me, she didn’t care. She would ask people for help, or she would barter for what she needed. She was an expert at that. Pride was never an issue for her.” He shook his head. “Pride will never be an issue for me. I’m just too damn grateful to be alive.”

  “Good.” Dr. Wiseman squeezed Denton’s shoulder and walked beside him as the orderly pushed the wheelchair along the ramp. “There’s a lot of people here. They come from all walks of life, all suffering traumatic events. Make sure you talk about your nightmares.”

  He nodded. “Will they ever go away?”

  “PTSD is something a lot of men and women deal with. Military veterans are all over the world. Anybody who’s been through the sort of traumatic experiences you have, well, it’s to be expected. Let’s ju
st say, it’s not necessarily forever. Having the right attitude and finding a strong positive support system are ways to improve your life and to help ease the traumatic stress of what you’ve been through.”

  At the front doors, he pushed a button, and both glass-paneled doors opened wide to allow the wheelchair through.

  “Ah. There she is—Dani Hathaway.”

  Dani came around the front counter and shook the doctor’s hand. “I’m so glad you came back for a visit.”

  “Thought I’d visit a couple of my favorite patients while I’m here.”

  Dani turned her gaze to Denton, and he shook her hand.

  “Welcome to Hathaway House, Denton,” she said brightly.

  He answered simply and honestly. “Thanks. I’m glad to be here.”

  She smiled. “I believe two men are here who can’t wait to see you.”

  Denton brightened. “I was so afraid they’d be gone before I got here, and I wouldn’t get to see them,” he confessed.

  “Nope. They’re waiting for you. However, we do have to get you through a quick orientation before you have time for yourself and them. So let’s get you to your room.”

  She spoke to the orderly pushing his wheelchair. “George, would you take Denton to Room 73, please?” She looked back at Denton. “I’ll be there shortly.”

  As he was wheeled away, he called over his shoulder, “Thanks again for the ride, Dr. Wiseman.”

  “No problem,” he replied. “Good luck!”

  As they rolled through wide, spacious hallways, Denton twisted around to look up at George. “How long have you worked here?”

  “Forever,” the orderly replied wryly. “It seems like forever.”

  Denton winced. That wasn’t what he’d hoped to hear. “It’s that bad?”

  George’s laughter rolled free. “No, not at all. I’ve been here since the place first opened. I came on board when Dani’s father was still figuring out how to make this place into a working, viable business. That was ten years ago, at least, and I’m still here. I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon.”

  Ten years. Denton sighed in relief. “That’s good to know. I thought for a minute there you were saying this wasn’t a good place to be.”

  He chuckled. “Just the opposite. You’ll see a lot of people who have been here a long time.” He turned a corner. “You’re down on this side. I believe your buddies are on the other side though.”

  “Is that a big issue? Surely we can go back and forth to see each other?”

  “Absolutely not a problem. They’re more mobile than you are.”

  “And I’ll be catching up real fast—at least as fast as I can,” he vowed, eager to get started.

  “Not too fast though,” George cautioned. “That’s the worst thing you could do. Talk to Cole about that. You’ll end up with a setback that’ll take you even longer to recover from.”

  Denton’s excitement disappeared. “So how do I do this? I want to make the most of my stay. I don’t want to go too fast and have a setback, and I don’t want to go too slow so that whoever pitched in to bring me here feels like they made the wrong choice.”

  “Don’t you worry about that,” George said. “Everybody here has an equal chance. There’s no report card. There is no better or best. You must listen to your doctors and your body. And everybody’s system, injuries, and mental state are all different. It’s really important that you be true to yourself.”

  On that note, George pushed Denton through an open door. “This is your private room, with your own bathroom and a full shower. And your view overlooks the horse pastures.”

  “Cole said something about horses, and we can spend time with them,” Denton said, enthralled. “And Brock talks about being with the animals in the vet clinic all the time.” Denton shook his head. “Is that true?”

  George nodded. “Stan runs the veterinary clinic on the lower level. We have a lot of animals in similar situations as our human patients. Some are in need of prosthetic limbs and special surgeries, and they are religiously cared for. Stan and Dani also do special rescues, and we keep the animals until we get them adopted out. You’ll find several dogs visiting upstairs. They’re comfort animals, so they will come around to make you feel not quite so alone. When you’re capable physically, you can go downstairs to see Stan and meet the other animals. He’s always got an animal that needs a hug. Because, like you, they’ve suffered enough.”

  Denton nodded, feeling a bit emotional.

  George motioned to the bed. “Do you need any help getting on the bed?”

  He spoke in such a commonplace tone of voice, Denton didn’t take offense. “I think I should get there just fine. I have been doing decently enough, but my progress has slowed.”

  “That’s fairly typical. Everyone plateaus at one point or another.” George walked to the closet and opened the door. “Extra blankets and towels are here, and you have a couple drawers and the clothes hangers to put away some personal items. The desk is right here if you need it for your laptop, and as you can see beside the bed, you have one of those tables you can swivel over and back as need be.” He glanced around the room. “I think that’s all you need to know about in here. If you don’t have any other questions, I’ll let you settle in. Hannah should be here soon. She’ll give you a tablet with further instructions and a timetable for your daily schedule.”

  Denton nodded. “I think I’m fine for the moment. Thank you so much.”

  He watched George leave. He hated to say he was a little nervous, but he was. Still, he was here. He made his way out of the wheelchair and sat down on the bed. He could walk but not far. Instead of walking around the bed, he rolled on his back and flipped his legs over, getting to the other side. Using the bed for support, he made the few steps to the window so he could look out. He smiled. A little filly was outside with a couple older horses in one great big pasture. Beautiful rolling hills. He shook his head and smiled widely. “This place is fantastic,” he murmured.

  Hearing a noise behind him, he turned a little too fast and had to grab hold of the window ledge.

  “Easy there, tiger.” Dani Hathaway stood in the doorway, her gaze concerned. Beside her was a tall, slim woman, holding a manila file folder and a tablet, wearing dark dress pants and a fitted white shirt.

  “I’m fine.” He smiled reassuringly. “You startled me.”

  Moving carefully, he took a few steps to the bed and sat down. With a lot of effort, he shifted back to lean against the headboard.

  Dani smiled. “This is Hannah. She’s here to get you settled in. I’ll stop by a little later.”

  Hannah handed him a tablet and a notebook. “The notebook is for you, if you want to jot down any goals, any progress you want to keep track of, notes for yourself, whatever you like,” she said. “Here is a pen and more are always at the front desk. The tablet gives you information on your team and your daily schedule. We have quite a system here. You don’t have one practitioner. You will have five.”

  Denton’s eyebrows rose at that thought. Then he looked at the screen and saw not only a short biography but a photograph along with the list of experiences and specialties of each medical professional. Dani was thorough, if nothing else.

  Hannah continued. “If you check the Schedule tab at the top, you will see your daily events. It is not the same for everybody. The same team works on multiple patients a day and sometimes twice as many as that in a week. Everybody shuffles now and again, when we make changes. Also, you won’t have the same physiotherapist. You will have several.”

  He glanced at her. “Is there a reason for that?”

  She nodded. “That way, fresh eyes can see from different perspectives what a patient needs.”

  He nodded. “That makes sense.”

  She smiled at him, then handed him a cell phone. “This is yours. It has all your team members’ numbers programmed in. Anytime you need any of us, including myself,” she said, “you can call. It doesn’t matter what time of day o
r night. Your team, in particular, happens to all live on-site.”

  He nodded and scrolled through the list. “Brock’s on my team though, right?”

  She laughed. “No, Brock’s not on your team. Only employees are on your team. I understand that you, Brock and Cole are great friends.” Something strange flickered through her voice as she said that.

  He glanced at her, wondering what that was about. “We are. The three of us were inseparable.”

  “Good. Feel free to call them any time. If you look, you’ll see both their numbers programmed in your phone on a secondary contact list. Okay, I’ll explain the meals and how that works for you, but I’m sure they’ll fill you in with a lot more as soon as they get a chance to see you.”

  So much information tumbled out of Hannah’s mouth, Denton struggled to keep up. His expression must have given him away because she laughed when she came to a stopping point.

  “I know I’ve dumped a lot on you, but it’s not that bad. Everything I said is also written in here.” She handed him a folder.

  “Oh, thank God,” he said. “I was so afraid I wouldn’t remember.”

  “Not at all.”

  They shared grins.

  She turned and walked toward the door. “I suggest you take a little time to get accustomed to your surroundings,” she said. “In that folder is a map of the ground floor. Downstairs is a vet clinic. The public comes and goes on a regular basis to see the vet, to visit the animal patients. Some of the animals are permanent residents, and some are here for only short-term help. But all of them need as much loving care as any of the people in this place can give.”

  “Just like the patients.” He liked the sound of that. “And I can go down there?”

  “Eventually. Brock or Cole can take you in a day or two.” At the doorway she stopped and faced him. “I do want to caution you. Please don’t rush anything. Take your time. The move alone to transfer you here is hard on your body. You need time to adjust, so please honor that and give your body the time it needs.”