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Hollis wrapped his arm around Ian’s tense shoulders and pulled him against his side as they continued to walk. “Then we’ll keep it in the family,” Hollis whispered as they started down the hall again.
He understood Ian’s desire to keep his past hidden. The strong man at his side had worked far too long and hard to rise above that sordid ugliness and make a great life for himself. If the world found out the truth, they would never let him move on. He’d forever be labeled Jagger’s victim. No one would care about his other accomplishments. It wouldn’t matter if he was the world’s greatest chef or owned a string of five-star restaurants that had lines of people waiting to get a table.
Ian deserved better than that.
As they reached the waiting room, they found Jude talking to a pretty brown-haired woman in the same uniform as Jude. This had to be the infamous Rebecca. Jude straightened from where he was leaning against the wall when he spotted them and ended his conversation with the young woman. They waved and Jude turned to meet them, a tentative smile on his lips.
To say that Jude was a fucking catch was an understatement. The dark-haired man with the swarthy skin and constant five o’clock shadow looked like he should be modeling clothes and not riding in an ambulance, covered in blood and other fluids. If Hollis had never met Ian, then yeah, he would have definitely hit on Jude, convincing them they’d have a wild night. But Jude had eyes only for his General, just like no one would ever catch Hollis’s attention but his husband beside him.
“They’re okay,” Jude said before Ian could even speak.
Ian breathed a deep sigh of relief and Jude immediately pulled him in for a brotherly hug. “I’m so glad you were the one called to the scene,” Ian replied.
“Honestly, I wasn’t really needed. Don’t get me wrong. They took a good beating. Sean definitely has a concussion, and it looks like Wade has a few fractures. Maybe some internal bruising. But I wouldn’t expect either of them to be here for more than a night just for observation.”
“Thanks, Jude,” Hollis said. Jude wouldn’t normally share patient information, but they all knew Ian was about to barrel into those rooms and get the information from his employees. It was better that they weren’t allowed to sugarcoat it for Ian. They would both need some time off work to recover.
“Do you think this is related to the recent problems that Snow was telling me about?”
“Very likely.”
Jude turned his attention to Ian, but there was something assessing in his gaze, as if he were slipping into paramedic mode the same way that Snow went into doctor mode. “How are you doing? Recovered from…”
Ian quickly waved a hand at Jude. “I’m fine. Just fine. Recovered. It was nothing.”
“He had a concussion,” Hollis corrected.
“A small, baby one. Not even worth mentioning.”
“All concussions are worth mentioning,” Jude said firmly, but his expression softened. “I’m glad you’re okay and so are your people. If you need anything, you know that Snow and I are here for you.”
“We know. Thank you.”
Jude stepped backward and turned toward the double doors leading into the emergency department. He flashed his badge in front of a reader and the doors automatically opened. He led them through the busy room with people rushing from one place to the next. Curtains were pulled around half of the beds.
“Is Snow working tonight?” Ian asked, following after him.
Jude nodded. “In surgery now. It’ll probably be a few hours.”
“Busy night?” Hollis asked.
Jude shrugged a shoulder. “Not really.” He paused in front of a pulled curtain and flashed a little grin. “At least it’s not a full moon.”
Ian started to open his mouth, but Hollis didn’t know if he was going to tease him or ask if that old superstition was true. From his years as a cop, Hollis could confirm that shit really did get crazy when the moon was full. And he was sure that just by close association, so did the ER. But Ian never got the words out as Jude poked his head in the closed-off area and asked if whoever was in there was up for a visitor. They didn’t hear the reply. It didn’t matter because Jude had pulled back and was waving for them to enter.
Lying on the bed, they found Wade in his uniform from Rialto with small splatters of blood on it. He was a little pale, and one arm was now wrapped up from fingers to elbow. At his side was Jackson Kent, a bodyguard for Ward Security and Wade’s boyfriend.
“No! I told them not to bother you,” Wade cried as he saw Ian. “You had a foster parent class tonight.”
Ian hurried around to the side of his bed and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “And this is exactly where I should be. Everyone at Rialto is my family too. Now, are you okay? What has the doctor said?”
