AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I leapt to my feet. “I am.”
The door slowly closed behind us as I followed her down the gleaming white hallway. My nose twitched as the harsh stench of bleach and other disinfectants assaulted my senses, reminding me of what scent they intended to mask.
I don’t remember a lot from right after the shooting, but I do recall waking up briefly in the ER. Doctors were shouting orders as nurses and other personnel scrambled to staunch the massive amounts of blood bubbling out of my chest. The most prominent memory though, was the strong odor of copper. I’d smelled it the day Jimmy bled out in front of me and I knew, right then…I was gonna die.
With a shake of my head, my thoughts returned to the present just as we reached a stretch of rooms separated with hanging curtains.
“We gave her something for pain, so she might be a little drowsy and loopy,” the nurse said as she slid the curtain to the side.
Lying on a gurney with her eyes closed, my beauty looked a little pale and so incredibly small. She was wearing a hospital gown and curled on her side, knees drawn to her chest in the fetal position, like she was trying to protect herself from the world.
I walked to the side, sliding a chair close to her and took a seat. Reaching over, I gently swept a few blond locks off her face and tucked them behind her ear.
“Emory,” I spoke softly.
A quiet pain-filled moan left her lush pink lips, drawing my attention to the splint on her left wrist.
Later.I said to myself.You can take out your anger on the heavy bag later.
“Babe,” I tried again. “You need to wake up so I can take you home.”
Her eyelids fluttered, struggling against the weight of the medicine running through her system, until they slowly opened. Her body jolted slightly when those chocolate eyes focused and she saw who was sitting at her side.
“Luc?” She lifted her head off the pillow about three inches, looking around the room in confusion.
“You’re at the hospital.”
“I know, but why are you here?”
“Ouch.” I brought my hand to my chest, as if she’d wounded me with her words. “Is that any way to talk to your boyfriend?”
“Oh shit. It wasn’t a dream?” she muttered, collapsing back down on the pillow.
“Do you dream of me often, Emory?” A grin pulled at my lips when she gasped, her face flushing bright red.
A different nurse than earlier entered the room before I had a chance to tease her further. Discharge instructions were given on how to care for her sprained wrist, including a follow-up with her regular doctor, then a prescription for pain medication was handed to me, before I was ushered back through the curtain so the nurse could help Emory get dressed.
“I’ll bring her out front in a minute. Go ahead and pull your car up,” the nurse instructed.
“Great. Thanks,” I answered, turning to stroll down the long hallway toward the waiting room.
*****
IT WAS AFTERseven in the evening when I pulled into a parking spot, near the front door of the bakery, with a sleeping Emory strapped into my front seat. I’d barely had the car in drive before her head drifted to the side, resting against the window with her eyes closed. She didn’t even stir when I stopped at the pharmacy to pick up her medication.
Me: I just pulled into her apartment. The pain meds are kicking her ass.
River: Oh no. I’ll get Rico to bring me over.
Me: Keep your ass where it is,SorellinaLittle Sister.
River: Luc! She shouldn’t be alone!
Me: She won’t be.
Secrets didn’t stay quiet in my family for long and I’d been keeping a big one. To my knowledge, Alec had been the only one to notice my interest in a certain teacher, but with the bomb I’d just dropped, I was under no illusion River would keep the information to herself.
I turned off the ringer before placing the phone in my jacket pocket. There would likely be a hundred texts by the time I checked it again, but I had more important things to deal with. Or more accurately,someonemore important.
