“Yes. I’d gone out to the store. We were having friends over for dinner. When I got back, the dog went crazy and ran up here and I followed her.” He swallowed hard. “Is he going to be all right?”
Caruso didn’t answer. “Rico, get the stretcher.” Hernandez sped out to the hallway, and Caruso snapped on a pair of thin rubber gloves.
After checking Jordan’s pulse and blood pressure, Caruso turned to him. “Any other medical issues?”
“No, none.”
Hernandez came back in then, and begrudgingly, Luke had to admit they got Jordan on the stretcher and down the stairs within minutes. Except for a few moans, Jordan didn’t make a sound. When Luke tried to get into the ambulance, Hernandez stopped him.
“Sorry, sir, you can’t come with us. Family only.”
Unwilling to hold them up, Luke merely nodded and watched them drive away, the red taillights receding, taking his heart with them.
* * * *
By the time Luke arrived at the hospital, Jordan had already been whisked into an examining room in the ER. He jammed his hands into his pockets and nervously rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet as he waited to speak with the woman at the desk.
“I’m sorry, sir, but I have no information on his condition at the moment.” She offered him nothing more than a sympathetic smile. “Have a seat, and I’ll let you know when his status changes.”
Frustrated, he jerked a nod of thanks and stalked back to the row of uncomfortable plastic chairs and slumped down in one of the few vacant ones available. As usual, it was a crowded night in the emergency room. Though it had been over ten years since he’d set foot in a hospital, the harsh, antiseptic smell remained as familiar as his aftershave, curling through his senses. It evoked the dark memories of the night he’d been brought in, broken and bloodied after that cataclysmic fight between him and his foster father. Even now, he struggled for air, recalling the days of pain that followed. How alone he’d been when only Mrs. Cartwright from down the road had come by to see him, to tell him his “family” had left in the middle of the night and no one knew where they’d disappeared to.
No fucking way was he allowing his head games to start now. Luke squeezed his eyes shut, willing away his thoughts of the past. All his concentration needed to focus on Jordan.
“Luke.”
He opened his eyes to see Drew and Ash in front of him.
“I don’t know anything. They won’t tell me. You could find out though, Drew.” Luke jumped out of the chair and grabbed the man by his arm. “Come on. You’re a doctor; they’ll let you in to see him.”
“Excuse me, miss.” He pulled Drew over to the desk. “This is Dr. Klein. He’s a friend of Dr. Peterson, who I came in with. He can go in and see him, right?”
Drew showed her his credentials, and she nodded. “He’s in room three, Doctor. Through those doors and past the nurses’ station.”
“Thank you.” Drew gave her a brief smile, then led Luke back to the waiting area. And Ash. “You wait here, and I’ll be out as soon as I can.” Drew surprised Luke by pulling him close in a short, hard hug. “Don’t worry. Jordan’s not going anywhere except home with you.” He walked swiftly through the swinging doors, and then Luke was alone.
With Ash.
He expected to have to make excuses not to talk to Ash, but his fears were unwarranted as Ash sat in a vacant seat. A faint yet sardonic smile crossed his lips. “I’m not going to try and speak to you; don’t worry. There’s a time and a place for everything, Luke. This qualifies as neither.”
Feeling as if a small weight had been lifted from his shoulders, Luke collapsed into a chair. “Thank you for that.” Jordan’s face rose in his mind.
See? You can do it. Remember what I said the other night. I fucking love you. Own it; take control of it. You are stronger than your fear.
As if a switch had turned on inside him, it all clicked into place. Not knowing Jordan’s condition, whether or not he was critically injured, made Luke take stock of himself and his own life. What purpose did his hatred of Ash serve? They couldn’t go back. But maybe they could use this tragedy—or he could, at least—to make himself stronger and move on from his anger. He loved Jordan. He was certain of that fact, and if loving him meant putting up with seeing Ash occasionally, it was worth it to keep Jordan in his life.
“Hey, Ash?” Luke almost laughed at the look of shock on Ash’s face.
“Yes?” Ash’s voice wavered.
“Hopefully, Jordan will come out of this and be home soon.” Luke took a deep breath. Though he’d made the decision to put it out in the open between them, the reality of saying it was harder than he’d anticipated. A drop of cold sweat trickled down his back. “I’d, um, I’d like us, along with Drew and Jordan, to get together one night. To talk.”
Ash blanched, turning into a marble statue. His pale eyes glittered in the harsh fluorescent light of the waiting room. “This isn’t some sort of cruel joke you’re playing on me, is it?”
“No.” Luke shook his head. “Sometimes it takes a crisis to see what’s important.” He stared off, unseeing, into space. “Nothing’s more important to me now than making sure Jordan is all right. I finally get what you feel for Drew.”
Ash’s lips curved. “Scary as shit, isn’t it?”
Luke joined him in that smile. “Yeah. It sure is.”
