“Uh, uh, Brooklyn! Keep those eyes open. No sleeping for you,” Mark demanded.
Sighing, she followed his directions. Maybe she could doze with her eyes open.
“Talk to me, Brooklyn. Tell me about your family,” Giana interrupted her plan.
Between Mark and Giana, she didn’t have a chance to snooze. That became even more impossible when they reached the emergency department. The flurry of activities overwhelmed her. She clung to Giana’s hand as her lifeline between tests, injections, and stitches. Her headache never got better.
Completely exhausted and overwhelmed, Brooklyn sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for her discharge papers. She pulled at the stiff, blood-soaked neckline of her shirt, suspecting it would never be the same. All she wanted to do was take a shower and sleep forever.
They wouldn’t send her home without someone to stay with her. Giana had to return to the firehouse to take care of the paperwork, so Aspen and Pippa had already packed a change of clothes and necessities. They should be there to pick her up by the time the hospital released her.
“Little girl…”
Her head popped up at the sound of his voice. Surely, she was imagining it. That quick motion made her weave with dizziness.
“Whoa, Brookie. Take it easy.” Caden steadied her with his powerful hands on her shoulders.
She stared at him. His skin and uniform were dirty, and he smelled like he hadn’t showered for days. She reached a hand up to grab his shirt. “You’re here? I’m not imagining you?” Brooklyn asked, almost afraid to find out she was hallucinating. The material felt solid in her fist.
Caden leaned forward to kiss her lightly. “I’m here. I got home and found a lot of blood smeared on the floor. Are you okay?”
“I fell. My head split open. They had to shave part of my head,” she told him as tears ran down her cheeks.
“I’m so sorry. Hair will regrow, sweetheart. Don’t cry. That will make your head hurt,” Caden said.
“It already throbs,” she whined.
“Badly, I bet. Zale is talking to the doctor so he can tell me how to help you.”
“The entire team is back?”
“Yes. Jerico is giving them my insurance information. I had you added to my account before I left,” Caden told her.
“Really? I was so scared. I tried to talk them out of bringing me here, but they didn’t listen.”
“It’s a good thing they didn’t,” Zale said, catching the end of her statement as he walked in the door.
Brooklyn was so glad to see him. Zale would take care of her. He lifted her chin to check out her eyes and winked. “You aren’t supposed to have this much excitement when we’re out of town. You scared us.”
“I’m sorry,” she said, tearing up.
“Don’t cry, Brooklyn. Think happy thoughts. Your daddy is here,” Zale reminded her.
Brooklyn blinked the moisture from her eyes and leaned on her daddy’s chest. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
He looked at Caden and reported, “Sixteen stitches, probable concussion, no brain swelling or skull fracture. She’s got nausea meds on board and can take acetaminophen when she gets home. I’ve got you covered on that to protect her stomach.”
“Thanks, Zale. I don’t know what we’d do without you,” Caden told him.
“I don’t plan on your ever finding that out. Now, they’re going to send you home. Sponge bath tonight. Bath tomorrow. You can’t get those stitches wet for a while.”
“Can I take this off?” Brooklyn reached up carefully to touch the tight bandage around her head. “This is making my headache worse.”
“Not for a while. It keeps you from bleeding. From what we saw in Caden’s kitchen, you need every drop of blood left in you to stay there.” Zale told her.
“I’ll clean it up when I get home,” she promised Caden. She definitely didn’t want to mess up his immaculate house.
“You will not. It’s Daddy’s job,” Caden told her.
