Page 29 of Too Broken to Love

Damn, did he look like one straight out of a medical drama. Like her, he’d showered and changed into dark blue scrubs. Did the hospital order a custom size to accommodate his broad shoulders and thick biceps? She’d have to check the stats to see if visits by females spiked when Dr. Hudson Langley was in town.

He eyed the remains of the vase. “Is throwing things against the wall part of your daily routine?”

“Only on days when everything I own burns in a blast.” She pulled in a deep breath and pressed pause on her meltdown. “Did Malcolm’s test results come back yet?”

“Yes. I looked at the scans myself. No sign of a brain injury, to which he took great pleasure in telling me, ‘I told you so.’”

“Did you check on Lia?”

“I sutured her wound and left Malcolm to keep her distracted.”

Tessa’s hand drifted to her hairline. “You stitched her up? How bad was she hurt?”

“The forehead laceration was fairly deep. She’s had a rough day. I wanted to make sure she was taken care of quickly so she could rest. I also know my work won’t scar.”

Tessa’s heart did a little flip. He’d been through a lot today too. A half-dozen staff members in the emergency room could have attended to Lia, but Hudson had made sure her friend had been taken care of. “You’re that good?”

“Yes, but I can’t do much about the damage she may do to Malcolm. Seems he hit his head hard enough to cause dizziness. She kept trying to help him up, so he pretended to be unconscious to make her run for help. She’s pretty pissed he duped her into letting him burn.”

Tessa smiled, her body tired but her heart a smidge lighter as she backed to her desk and leaned against it. How could Hudson have known her for such a short time and already be so good at pulling her out of her own head?

Because he was Sam’s grandson, and Sam had been good at that.

Hudson stepped up to the desk and placed the energy drink next to her. With his thumb, he wiped away the remains of a tear. “You’ve stopped flinching when I touch you there. Glad to see you aren’t afraid of me anymore.”

“I was never afraid of you. Just of a memory.”

“Tell me about it.”

She shook her head. “I can’t.”

He shifted his fingers to her chin. “You will. Soon.”

Bracing both hands on the desk, he leaned into her. “The police will be here shortly to take the rest of our statements. I need to talk to you first, but you look like you’re about to either have a heart attack or break something again.” He reached for the energy drink and unscrewed the cap. “Drink this. I need you sane and conscious to get answers and to tell the police what happened.”

She took the bottle from him. “Do I look that bad?”

He picked up a damp curl from the neckline of her top and curled it around his finger. “You look like a warrior who just walked through fire. Tell me what else you need from me to reset and recharge.”

“I need⁠—”

I need you.

Her body remembered how unrelenting and secure he’d felt when he pulled her against him after the fire. When their lips had brushed, he’d tasted of flames and sweat and coiled tension. Everything a superhero running on adrenaline and emotion should taste like.

Now, his hard features inches from her face, and even harder muscles bunched to explode like her house, needed an outlet.

So did she.

Nothing would get broken. How could it? They were both already shattered. Or maybe she needed to break down completely. Let him wreck her. She had no doubt he could in the very best way until she couldn’t think any longer. Maybe it would help him forget, and not just about everything that had happened since he’d come home.

She knew the signs of PTSD firsthand. Her mother had suffered from it thanks to Frank.

She died from it thanks to Tessa.

Hudson’s eyes dropped to Tessa’s lips. “What were you about to say? Tell me what you need.”

Saying she needed him to lock the door and fuck her on her desk was riskier than telling him about her past. Once she told him the things she’d done, he’d look at her like the boy on the beach had.