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All Snow’s friends had filed into the room moments after the ambulance arrived. Lucas stood beside the bed, his hand heavy on Snow’s shoulder. He hadn’t stopped touching him since he’d arrived, so Snow knew his friend just needed the reassurance that he was okay. Apparently, he did not look okay. Snow wanted to laugh at the role reversal since it was not that long ago that Lucas had been the injured party and Snow was the growling worrier, but he suspected Lucas wouldn’t exactly appreciate the humor in that moment.
Ian hadn’t reacted any better and he still frowned from his wheelchair—his nurse and the bodyguard he no longer needed milling in the hall. Gratton was dead, but he supposed the blond giant wouldn’t leave until he was officially dismissed.
Andrei sat in a chair next to Ian and Snow had to swallow a smile. The Romanian had taken to the young man as much as they all had.
The only person missing was Rowe. As the one to pull the trigger, he was still with the police. Snow wasn’t worried about repercussions for Ward. It had been a clean kill in obvious defense of everyone, including a cop. He wondered if Hollis was being checked out somewhere in the hospital, too.
“Looks like bruising and a pretty hard knock on the head. We’ll run a CT to make sure, but I’m sure you have a mild concussion. You’re better off than him.” The doctor nodded toward Snow where he sat, holding his side. “We’ll do an x-ray on your ribs, too, though.” Dr. Simmons leaned over and lightly prodded around the bruise on Jude’s bare chest.
Irrationally, Snow didn’t want the man’s hands on him—wanted to be the one to make sure he was fine. He knew it was just an emotional response from the fight with Gratton. From seeing Jude with a gun to his head. Even now, the memory of that scene in his living room sent nausea swirling fast and hard in his gut. In that moment, he’d understood that he wanted it all with Jude. He didn’t want to wait for them to move in together. His clumsy admission of love earlier in the car had been heartfelt, but thinking the man had been about to die had scared the living shit out of Snow.
He’d insisted on waiting to get his x-rays so he could be here to make sure the other doctor did his job. Besides, he knew he had broken ribs. Every breath felt like knives through his muscles and lungs.
Dark eyes met his and Snow smiled at Jude, who gave him the warmest look of love back, he forgot his chest pain for a moment and sucked in a deep breath. It was like being stabbed and a groan escaped before he could stop it.
“That’s it,” Lucas announced. “I’m getting another doctor.” He strode from the room.
Both Ian and Andrei laughed, and it took effort for Snow not to as well. He held off because he knew it would fucking hurt.
“Where are my boys?”
Startled at the new, feminine noise, Snow’s eyes widened as Anna Torres swept into the room in a small bundle of rainbow colors and made a beeline for Jude, shoving the doctor out of the way. She fussed over him, stroking her hand through his hair, hugging him gently.
“I’m fine, Mana,” he murmured. “I promise.” He leaned over to kiss her. “Snow got hurt worse than I did.”
She stared at her son until she finally nodded, then came to the other hospital bed to Snow.
His eyes widened as she started fussing over him as well. She touched his bruised cheek gently, patted his head and even opened his shirt to look over his bruised ribs. Her pretty, dark skin paled and her eyes watered. “I want to hug you but I’m scared of hurting you.”
He could only stare in shock at the way she looked at him. “You barely know me,” he said half under his breath.
Her dark eyes, so like Jude’s, filled with warmth and she touched his face again. “My son loves you and he’s a good judge of character. So I know I will love you, too.”
Snow didn’t know what to say to that. He looked over her head, saw Jude’s grinning face and tried to smile back but he was too shocked and too…touched. He held out his arm on his good side and Anna hurried around to that side of the bed to gently hug him. He caught Ian’s happy smile and huge, stunned eyes.
He looked down at the small Greek woman gently hugging his side and smiled at her. “Anna? I’d like you to meet my friends—my family.”
He introduced her to Ian and Andrei and when Lucas strode back into the room, still wearing his long dark coat over his jeans and another cashmere sweater, Jude’s mother actually blushed as she stared up at him. Lucas pushed the doctor he’d grabbed toward Snow and gave Jude’s tiny mother a smile.
