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By my side.
His eyes check me over from head to toe, surely taking in my horrible appearance and the pile of vomit just over my shoulder. “Hey,” he whispers softly, kneeling beside me and taking my arm.
“Hey,” I finally say, my voice dry and fatigued. Suddenly, I can’t keep my eyes open. Sleep is pulling me under, my body willingly following.
“No, no, no, Meg, you have to stay awake. I saw the blow to your head when you hit the car. You have to stay awake for a bit, okay, honey?” He cradles me in his arms, positioning me between his legs. Comfort wraps around me like a worn, familiar blanket from my past. It’s nice.
“I just want to take a quick nap,” I reason, my eyes already falling closed once more.
“Meg!” I hear moments before Levi drops to his knees in front of me, surveying the damage from tonight’s ordeal. “Jesus, Meggy. What the hell happened?” he asks, grabbing a little flashlight and shining it in my eyes.
“Stop that,” I grumble.
“We need to get you to the ambulance and checked out.”
“I need to go to sleep,” I retort, slipping back into the warm little cocoon I’ve created in Nick’s arms.
“No can do, sweetheart. You need to get checked out. You could have a concussion. The only place you’re going is to the hospital,” Levi says, taking my hands and making me wince. “And you need to get these cleaned up,” he adds when glancing down and seeing the damage to my hands.
“Come on, Meg. Let’s get you looked at,” Nick says, sweeping me into his arms and somehow standing up without needing assistance. Before I can even think about protesting, he’s walking me toward the waiting ambulance.
Levi’s friend Tucker is standing there, as we climb inside the waiting rig. Nick gently sets me down on the gurney, my body becoming stiff, sore, and protesting all movements. Levi grabs the blood pressure cuff and wraps it around my arm, while Nick hovers at my head. With the doors open, we have a front row view of the police as they place the cuffs on the man who attacked me, read him his rights, and slowly walk him toward the awaiting cruiser.
“How’s the head?” Tucker asks, writing stats down on a form on a clipboard.
“Sore. I think I’ll have a lump,” I answer, reaching up to gingerly touch the side of my head, wincing as my fingers connect with the swollen, sore skin.
“Definitely a nice little goose egg,” he replies with a smile.
I answer Levi’s questions as he gauges my injuries and helps get them cleaned up. “I think we need to go to the hospital. You have a slight concussion and should be seen by a doc. Plus, we want to rule out a brain bleed,” he says, reaching down and setting his hand on my knee in a comforting manner. When he does, I wince. “Sorry,” he adds, giving me a sheepish grin that I’m sure makes Abby’s knees buckle.
“Is it really necessary? To go to the hospital? I mean, I feel like I just need to sleep it off and be fine tomorrow.”
“Absolutely. I’d insist if it were any other patient, but because it’s you, I’m more than insisting. And I like my balls. One of your sisters would rip them off and toss them in the Bay if I didn’t make sure you were taken care of,” he replies with a wink.
I try to smile back, but it just hurts. “Fine.”
“I’ll go finish locking up and meet you there,” Nick says, slowly brushing hair off my forehead with his finger. When he does, it leaves a trail of fire against my skin.
“You don’t have to. I’m sure Levi has already called Abby,” I respond without moving. For some reason, I kinda like the way his finger feels. I kinda like it a lot. Way more than I should, that’s for sure.
“Texted her. She’ll meet us there,” Levi says, not even embarrassed that he probably broke some sort of confidentiality law or something.
“I’m going.” He’s firm and direct as he crosses his arms over his chest, daring me to argue further. But all I notice is the way his dress shirt molds to his arms, his muscles ripe and taut beneath the material.
Stop it, Meghan! He’s your friend. You don’t ogle friends!
Even if they do have arms that make your mouth water…
“You really don’t have to,” I reply, somewhat lamely. The truth is: I kinda want a friend with me right now.
He doesn’t reply with words, just gives me a look. It says, ‘Forget about it, Meghan. I’m going and that’s that.’
So instead of replying with my own words (because frankly, words hurt), I nod my head gently and relax on the gurney. Levi follows Nick out of the ambulance where they exchange a few words. I can’t tell what they’re saying, but when they both glance up at me, I know who they’re talking about.
Just as I’m about to ask what’s going on, Levi slaps Nick on the back of the shoulder and hops back into the ambulance. Nick hurries off in the direction of the office, and Tucker jumps in the front seat. “We’ll be there in a few minutes,” Levi says, taking a seat next to me.
“Did you really text her?”
