“I’m not a hero.”
“Today you were.”
I didn’t know what I expected, maybe a joke, a deflection, the dry sarcasm he always seemed to have when his profession came up. But instead, his expression shifted.
Not dramatically.
Just…softened. For a second, he almost looked like it was something he wanted but couldn’t accept.
He opened his mouth, closed it again. And then just stared at me like he was trying to make sense of me. Or maybe of himself.
“Are they here?” I asked, my thoughts skipping back to Roger and Helen.
“Still in Moab,” Noah said, still watching me like I might float off the bed. “They’re keeping him for observation, and once he’s released, he and Helen will fly back to Kansas.”
“Oh.” It was good that Roger would recover, but sad that they’d miss the rest of their trip.
“Luna.” Noah’s voice was measured, but there was a tenderness in it now. “Let’s take care of you now, okay?”
And well, I did feel like I’d slammed into a brick wall. “Do you have any Tylenol?” I asked hopefully.
Of course, he had Tylenol. Hadn’t he had a stethoscope in that pack he’d carried around all day?
“I’d really like to get you hooked up to an IV.”
An IV. As in a hospital.
I bit down on my bottom lip. “I can drink on my own.”
Noah did not look convinced.
“Hydrate or die-drate.” I forced myself to sit up straighter, ignoring the way my vision blurred at the edges. “I don’t need an IV. I just—” I swallowed. “I just need water.”
Noah sighed. “I don’t suppose you have anything to drink in here.”
I blinked up at him. “Just the sink.”
His deadpan expression showed just how unimpressed he was with that answer. “I’ll be right back.”
Before I could argue, he had already gotten to his feet. Grabbing the ice bucket from the counter, he propped the door open with the extra lock on the frame, then disappeared.
I curled up on my side. I knew better. I’d broken Tay’s golden rule. She’d literally reminded us to hydrate at every opportunity. She would kill me if she found out.
After going MIA back in Glenwood Springs, I really didn’t want to land on her bad side again.
And the others—all those sweet people on the bus, the ones who actually listened when Tay reminded them to hydrate—they’d probably be just as disappointed in me.
If Mom and Ashley ever found out, they wouldn’t be surprised. Because that was who I was. The irresponsible, scattered one.
I clenched my eyes shut, willing the queasy feeling away.
I absolutely would not go to a hospital.
A few minutes later, I heard his footsteps again.
He was balancing a can of soda, a bottle of Gatorade, and a package of crackers on top of the ice-filled bucket. And he must have stopped off at his own room, because the pack he’d carried around today was slung over one shoulder.
Without a word, he let the door close behind him, then crossed the room, dropping his bag and arranging everything else on the bedside table.
