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She nodded once more. Every now and then, she’d sit forward, try to take a deep breath, and then lean back in her seat again. Oliver watched this with growing worry.
Surely, if there wasn’t any inhalation damage from the smoke, she’d be breathing normally by now. He sped up.
Oliver couldn’t bear the thought of anything happening to her. The thought of losing her had him white-knuckling the steering wheel. She was everything to him.
He couldn’t let anything happen to her, especially now. Despite his every attempt to keep his heart safe and secure, he’d lost that battle to Lillian. Life without her would hold little meaning.
His thoughts traveled to Kenzie … the last woman he loved and lost. He remembered the agony of her death. Because of him, a young woman was dead. He barely survived that, and she wasn’t even his fated mate. There was no way he’d live through losing Lillian.
It was far too late to protect his heart. He already loved Lillian. In all honesty, he’d loved her from the moment he set eyes on her at the masquerade. She was his fire, his passion, his soul mate.
A momentary idea invaded his mind. He could leave her despite his heart. If he walked away, maybe she’d be safe. He dismissed that thought a split second later.
Reasonably, even if he wasn’t around, bad things could still happen. He might as well stay in her life and do everything he could to protect her.
As her mate, that was his sole purpose … to cherish her, to protect her, to love her. He owed her that much.
Finally, the towering brick of the hospital building came into view. He parked as close to the emergency room entrance as he could before opening her door.
He picked her up and carried her into the antiseptic-smelling waiting room. Lillian was admitted immediately, and for that, he was eternally grateful.
Oliver waited unobtrusively in the corner of her room while the nurses worked on her. Before long, she had on an oxygen mask, and an IV drip started. He felt better with her getting the medical care she needed.
As a nurse slipped a pulse oximeter on her finger, the monitor by her head began to beep. Oliver overheard the nurse announce her blood pressure.
“Is that good?”
The nurse assured him with a wide smile that her blood pressure was fine. A moment later, the doctor came in.
He was an older man with kind eyes and white hair. “Hi, Lillian. I’m Dr. Riley. Let’s see what we’ve got here.” He picked up her chart. “How’s your breathing?”
He performed a thorough examination, asking her questions throughout. After ten minutes, he pulled up a rolling stool and took a seat.
“Everything looks good, Lillian. We’re going to keep you overnight for observation, and I want you to keep that oxygen mask on. There’s a likelihood of carbon monoxide inhalation when there’s a fire. This will help you breathe easier.”
Lillian managed a small smile. “I’m feeling better already. Thank you, Dr. Riley.”
“Your nurse is …” He paused while he flipped through the paperwork in his hand. “Ah, Grace. She’s our overnight RN. I think you’ve already met her. She’ll be in to check on you at some point. If you need anything, here’s your call bell.”
Dr Riley pulled his attention off his patient and looked at Oliver. “You’re very quiet over there in the corner.”
Oliver managed a small smile. “I didn’t want to get in the way.”
Dr. Riley waved his hand. “You’re welcome to stay the night with her. We always allow spouses to stay. We believe that provides a lot more comfort to our patients than being left alone with a bunch of strangers.”
Lillian thanked him once more, and after ensuring the call bell was clipped to the sheet where she could reach it, the doctor left the room. Lillian turned her head to look at Oliver and gave him a weak smile.
“How ya doing, handsome?”
He arched a brow as he pushed off the wall. He sat on the same stool the doctor was sitting on and rolled it closer to her side.
“How am I doing? Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”
“Well, according to the doctor, you’re my husband. So, as your wife, I feel it is only appropriate that I check in on you.”
He let out a hearty chuckle. “I did notice that.” He shrugged. “But I’m fine. I’m worried about you.”
She pushed herself up in bed and used the remote to tilt the entire bed in an upright position. “I’m okay now. A little shaken up, but I feel much better. This stupid mask makes it hard to talk.”
