Total pages in book: 171
Estimated words: 162003 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 810(@200wpm)___ 648(@250wpm)___ 540(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 162003 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 810(@200wpm)___ 648(@250wpm)___ 540(@300wpm)
“It looks like he’s in recovery right now,” she said. “He just got out of surgery twenty minutes ago. He’s been given a strong sedative, so it’s still going to be awhile until he’s able to accept visitors.”
“Surgery?” It was all I could do to get the most basic of words out.
“Yes.” She nodded. “He sustained several stab wounds during the attempted mugging. His shoulder, his chest, and his abdomen. He had a collapsed lung and internal bleeding. That’s all I can tell you right now.”
“But he’s okay?” I persisted.
“He’s stable,” she replied clinically. “Which is all I know at the moment. You’ll have to wait until he’s conscious, and then you can speak with the doctor.”
I opened my mouth to protest when she pointed down the hall.
“Get yourself a cup of coffee, honey and have a seat. I will send the doctor as soon as we know anything else.”
***
By the time the doctor came in three hours later, I’d practically worn a hole in the floor.
“Miss Valentine?” he questioned, his eyes scanning the file in his hand.
“Yes, that’s me,” I said quickly.
“He’s asked for you,” he said. “So you can go on in.”
I rushed towards the door before pausing at the frame to turn back.
“Is he going to be okay?”
“He’s in stable condition,” the doctor explained. “He’s very lucky that he survived, but he will need to be monitored closely over the next few days.”
“Thank you.” I clenched my hands together. “Thank you for… taking care of him. I don’t know what I would have done…”
“It’s okay.” He smiled. “Why don’t you go see him now.”
I nodded and scurried down the hall to Ryland’s room. The door was cracked, and I dragged in a mouthful of air as I pushed my way inside.
He was lying in the hospital bed, covered in blankets and tubes. I bit my lip to keep from making any noise as I leaned over and clasped his face in my hands. His eyes were closed, and he looked like he was asleep.
My first instinct was to pepper his cheeks with kisses while I smoothed his hair down with my fingers. He wouldn’t have wanted it out of place. He didn’t want anything out of place.
Big droplets of water splashed onto his face, and I realized they were coming from me. I was sobbing all over him. At how close I had come to losing him. I didn’t understand how Brayden could do this. I hated him. I hated him so much it scared me, and I feared what would happen when I saw him next. But I knew without a shadow of a doubt I couldn’t leave Ryland right now. I worried I might not ever be strong enough to leave him again.
“Why are you crying, baby girl?” Ryland’s voice was scratchy when he opened his eyes, staring up at me with the hint of a teasing smile.
I shook my head, unable to answer, and the tears continued to pour. Ryland brushed my hair back with his fingers, getting a clear look at my face as he tried to comfort me.
“Hush,” he whispered. “Don’t cry for me.”
“Don’t say that,” I snapped, threading my fingers through his. “Don’t tell me not to cry for you.”
A moment of silence fell between us, and when he spoke again, his words were heavy with the weight of relief.
“I didn’t think you would come.”
“Of course I would come,” I sniffled. “I love you, Ryland. That doesn’t just go away.”
He winced as he moved his body to the side, leaving a small gap between the frame and him.
“Come up here,” he pleaded. “Lay with me.”
I glanced at the cracked door, mentally calculating how long it would be before a nurse would come through it to scold me. But the longer I thought it about it, the less I cared. I needed to be beside him. To feel his warmth, his heartbeat, his life.
I crawled up and laid on my side, careful not to touch him anywhere on his torso. The blankets covered his bandages, and I was grateful for it. I wouldn’t have been able to handle that. Not yet.
Ryland clutched my hand in his and stared into my eyes as though he didn’t believe I was really here with him. There was still so much that needed to be said between us, and we both knew it. But neither one of us brought it up. Instead, he said the only thing he could in that moment. The only thing I knew within my soul was not a lie.
“I love you, Brighton.”
***
The nurse ended up kicking me out after midnight. Ryland didn’t want me to go, but he needed his rest. So I promised him I’d be back first thing in the morning, and I meant it.
As I walked out of the hospital lobby into the cool evening air, someone clutched me around the arm and pulled me to the side.