Elliot drove her over to the waiting area and took a seat for himself. He took his phone out, scrolled through it for a few seconds, and then frowned. She wanted to ask him if everything was okay, but she stifled the question. She’d already promised herself not to be so nosy.
“You don’t have to wait with me.” She was already beholden enough to him. “And you aren’t paying my medical bills. Why did you do that anyway?”
He shrugged. For all of five seconds his eyes didn’t look so intense. Instead they seemed tired and yes, just a little amused. “Same reason I ordered the beer.”
CHAPTER THREE
“Do you needto call anybody?” The thought struck him from out of the blue. Maybe she had a boyfriend, or a husband even. He unlocked his phone again and handed it over. They might not have cell coverage inside the ER, so she ought to make any necessary calls now.
She bit her lip and took the phone. Sitting it on her lap, she input a series of numbers and then held it up to talk.
“Carly, it’s me, No… yeah, it’s not my phone… Hey, just wanted to let you know… No that’s all right. I have ten dollars in my night stand. You can have that. But he can’t stay past midnight… No, I’m serious… Okay… well… oh, never mind. I might be late tonight… No, if it’s snowing too bad I’ll crash at Rory’s… okay… love you too…” And then she ended the call and held it out to him.
He didn’t ask but she explained anyway. “My sister. She’s pretty independent but I’m kind of all she’s got.”
Oh, hell. She had a younger sister to take care of? No insurance and now she was missing a night’s worth of tips. No wonder she didn’t want to leave the hotel.
She smiled a little sheepishly at him.
Emotionally, she seemed all over the place. He wondered if this was due to the loss of blood or her actual personality. He imagined it could be a little bit of both. “How old is she?”
He’d already deduced that Noel was twenty-eight. Just two years younger than him. He felt less depraved for having ogled her. She barely looked twenty-one.
Except when she was thinking. When she concentrated on something he noticed that her flashing emerald eyes showed a combination of steely determination and fear.
The fear aged her a little. What was she afraid of? Not him anymore.
The money. That look came into her eyes when she’d been asked about insurance. He would have bet, had he not insisted she come to the hospital, she would have, in fact, forced herself to finish her bar shift.
Even if it killed her.
Because always, after the fear, came determination again. This girl had grit.
He couldn’t help comparing her to Ellen. His sister had been given every opportunity in life and yet, it seemed like she was always giving up. She’d quit college, quit jobs, been divorced twice already.
He’d spent the afternoon with her, first at detox, and then later, across town, at the upscale addictions facility. Ellen blamed everyone except herself for her problems.
Fine, Elliot would concede their parents hadn’t always been present. They’d been jetsetters in their younger years, leaving their three children with a nanny, and then later, on their own.
Well, not alone. Servants ensured they’d have some sort of supervision. Left alone for weeks at a time, what kind of trouble could three teenagers possibly get into?
Except that Elliot and Thomas hadn’t gotten into trouble. Nothing serious anyhow. Only Ellen.
“What?” Noel asked suspiciously. He hadn’t realized he’d been staring at her.
Even with blood caked all over, she did something for him– this tiny vibrating package of womanly curves.
Not his normal type. Perhaps that’s what intrigued him.
“Noel Blake?” A different attendant appeared from behind swinging doors, presumably, to the actual examination rooms, and glanced around.
Elliot took hold of Noel’s chair and followed the nurse. He’d come this far, might as well make sure she didn’t bolt out some back exit.
They considered him her husband, anyhow.
“Right this way and we’ll get you cleaned up.” The efficient looking woman lead them into a curtained off exam room and then handed Elliott a pink hospital gown. “If you don’t mind helping her, I’ll be right back.”
Noel’s cheeks no longer appeared rosy from the outside cold. In fact, she’d gone rather pale. Elliot helped her out of the wheelchair and over to the bed. When she dropped onto it, she looked as though she might start to complain.
