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“It’s too busy. They know I’m not sick.”
She felt him release her and wanted to scream for him to stay. He grinned at her, and she told herself to grin back, like they were just joking around.
“You’re in pain,” he murmured.
“It doesn’t matter,” she said.
“What if it did?”
She couldn’t answer.
“Stay close,” he said.
Hayley was left to watch in confusion as Nick walked up to a high-top table in the center of the crowd, between the bar and the stage. She saw him flip through the pages of a karaoke songbook, then look up in a double take as if he recognized someone. He’d been turning pages with one hand while he leaned on the walker with the other, and now his left hand left the walker and came up in a wave while his right hand slid slowly off the songbook.
Nick disappeared.
It was the crowd that tipped her off, the gasps and the murmurs of concern as people backed away from where Nick had been standing. She dropped her tray and was halfway to the table before she even realized she was moving.
Once she’d finally battled her way through the crowd, she saw Nick lying on the ground, holding his knee. Alexa was already crouched by his side; Hayley knelt next to them so quickly she nearly lost her balance.
“What happened, baby?” she asked. “Are you hurt?”
She went cold with fear as confusion flitted in Nick’s eyes. Had he hit his head? But then he was wincing. “It’s probably just bruised,” he said. He tried to get up, and Alexa stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.
“Hold on,” she told him. Stephanie appeared out of the fray with a chair. “We’re gonna pick you up, okay?”
Nick let the women put his arms on their shoulders, and Alexa and Hayley carefully stood in unison and lowered him into the chair.
“What happened?” Alexa asked. “Did someone push you?”
Nick shook his head. “Nothing like that. Just clumsy, I guess. Wasn’t paying attention.”
“What can we do?”
He touched his knee gingerly. “I hate to say this, but I may have to call it a night.”
“Can we get you a cab?”
“It’s fine. I drove here.”
Alexa’s voice turned gently reproachful. “You don’t look in great shape to drive.”
“It’s fine, really.” Nick started to get up, gritted his teeth, sat down again. “The problem is getting to the car.”
“I’m sure we could have somebody get it. Theo could carry you out there.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
Nick beckoned both women closer, and Hayley took his hand.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Look,” Nick muttered, “I really don’t want to make a big deal of this, but I’m not sure I’ll be able to get into my apartment by myself, and I don’t have anyone to call. Could one of you …” He hesitated. “I know it’s busy, but I could pay you or something. I wouldn’t ask, but …”
Hayley watched him sitting there, eyes on his hands, the picture of reluctance. Then, as she realized what he was asking, the penny dropped.
Son of a bitch. She had to work to keep from gaping at him.
