“He got hit in the head, and they kicked him in the ribs when he went down,” a man I recognize as his brother Trace says gently, coming abreast of me at Rhys’s side. “Dr. O’Rourke is a surgeon. He’s my brother-in-law and best friend. He’ll take care of Rhys.”
I step back as the doctor removes the eye mask to check Rhys’s pupils, the side of his skull, and his chest.
“Cormac also teaches at Hamilton Medical College,” Raina whispers his Ivy-League medical school cred to me.
Her husband Connor leans against the wall, arms crossed, sneering like he’s ready to end the world for whoever did this.
“What are we looking at, Cormac?” Trace says, looking stressed.
“Just give me some pain meds and let me go home,” Rhys grounds out.
“After I do some X-rays. But either way, I recommend strict bed rest for several days.” Cormac drapes the stethoscope around his neck.
“I’ll bring him back to my place,” Trace says. “Shea and I will take care of him.”
Panic claws through me. “No!” I blurt.
They all stop and turn toward me. Their dark eyes, Irish mob bosses staring at me, weaken my knees.
“It’s Christmas in a few days,” I say with a shaky voice. “He promised to spend the weekend with my family.”
The room goes still at my outburst. This is too much. I am juggling too many demands. If I don’t show up for Christmas, my father will send one of his men for me and stick me somewhere he has more control over me. If I show up without Rhys, he might keep me there until Kosta makes parole.
“She’s just shaken up,” Trace says, meaning me. But nottome. Over me. Around me. “Given her calming meds, Cormac, do we need to worry about a reaction? She’s been on SSRIs, beta-blockers, and a mood stabilizer,” Trace reports.
My vision narrows, faded at the edges. “How do you know what medication I’m on?”
Trace glances up, startled. “I, uh, looked up your medical history.”
“Mymedicalhistory?” My voice cracks, and the room tilts. “You all know about my… My struggles and the meds I am being forced to take?”
“You goddamn wankers.” Rhys pushes up on one elbow, wincing. “Fallon, love?—”
“Don’t youloveme.” I glare at him, my throat burning. “How could you tell them?”
He swallows hard, color draining from his face. “It was years ago. You were just starting to act?—”
“Crazy?” I say, sounding a little, yeah, crazy. And paranoid.
“No. You started telling people I was your boyfriend. I didn’t care, but I had to be sure you were okay.”
“Okay?” I snap. “So you had me checked out like a criminal?”
“Fallon, baby,” Rhys says on a strangled breath.
“Did you all discuss my diagnosis behind my back?” I whisper, looking at these powerful men. “See all meds I’m on and think, oh, she must be a liability. Her brain issurely broken?”
I don’t realize it, but I’m mimicking my father’s voice. Tears start to spill out from my eyes.
Raina moves closer, voice soft. “Fallon?—”
“Don’t.” I back away. “You all think I’m some fragile thing, don’t you? A freak you have to manage. That’s why I’m here, right? To have your doctor here make sure the Quinlans aren’t tied to someone unstable?”
“I’m not qualified to?—”
“Shut up, Cormac,” Rhys snaps, struggling to sit up. His hand grips the edge of the gurney, white-knuckled. “Baby, please. That’s not true. Come here. You’re upset. Come hold my hand. You’re strong.”
“Stop saying that. I’m not always strong, Rhys.”
