He nodded numbly.
With Riot tightly wrapped in my arms, I managed to get us out of the hospital and into the cool night. He immediately started shivering, and that was when I realized he wasn’t wearing a coat.
“Fuck. Where’s your jacket?” I slipped mine off and wrapped it around his shoulders before bringing him back close to me. It was likely more nerves than the cold that had him shaking, but I wasn’t going to take chances. Besides, I couldn’t deny I enjoyed seeing him in my clothes, even under these circumstances.
My truck looked lonely in the parking lot at this hour, but it made it easy to find. I tapped the handle to unlock it and opened Riot’s door for him. Once he was inside, I leaned over and buckled his seat belt. He laughed a little at my ridiculousness, but I didn’t care. I kissed his cheek before closing the door and going over to the driver’s side. I sent Emily a quick text that we were leaving, though hopefully she was asleep, and then finally left the fucking hospital.
Riot was quiet during the ride. He was looking out the window, arms wrapped around himself. I reached over and put my hand on his thigh. After a beat, he covered it with his own, holding it tight against his leg.
It was by sheer willpower that I made it home without falling asleep. When I pulled into the driveway, exhaustion overcame me. We somehow made it into the house without collapsing.
Emily was asleep on the couch and clearly as tired as we were, because she didn’t even stir.
I debated waking her up but decided against it. She could sleep here till morning. Besides, Melodie was probably downstairs in Wynter’s room. No point waking them up to leave in the middle of the night.
Riot didn’t even seem to notice her. He dropped my jacket by the door and then walked past, pretty much a zombie, as he slowly started climbing the steps.
He stopped on the fifth, hunched forward and breathing heavily. He swayed slightly.
I caught up to him before he could collapse, his legs buckling as soon as I got my arms wrapped around him.
“I got you, baby. I got you. Let’s go to sleep.”
My hands slipped to his upper thighs, and without any more prompting, he wrapped his legs around my middle. I carried him the rest of the way, silently thanking my daily workouts. Riot might be smaller than I was, but he wasn’t a small man. Still, Igot us into our bedroom without dropping him or falling on my fucking face.
We both could use a shower and to brush our teeth, but I didn’t bother. I gently laid Riot on the bed, then sat down next to him. His boots came off first, and then his pants. I left his socks on because the weirdo always slept with them on. Said his feet got too cold without them. He was pretty much asleep by the time I got to his shirt. That was a little more difficult with his body limp, but I managed to strip him to his boxers.
Once he was undressed, I quickly got my clothes off until I was also in my boxers, then climbed back into bed, not bothering with pajamas for either of us.
Riot turned to me the second I got us under the covers. His arms tightened around my middle, his face pressing against my bare chest and his leg wrapping over mine.
“Rest, sweetheart. I won’t let go.”
Seconds later, Riot’s breath evened out. I listened to it for about a minute before I followed him into sleep.
Chapter 14
Riot
Maybe if Ididn’t open my eyes, I wouldn’t have to face the reality of the day. I could pretend yesterday had been a fucking nightmare and that Cara was healthy and strong and currently painting in the studio, not in the hospital, stuck to all those tubes and wires.
My last visit to St. John’s General had been over seven years ago, when Mom had gotten in that accident. She’d been in a coma for a few days, but I’d never even gone to her room. Rumor had also been admitted to the NICU, and I’d refused to leave his side the whole time.
It was an experience I never wanted to have again. Though it was different seeing Cara rather than Rue, it still brought back all those horrible memories, and somehow they tangled in my mind until it was hard to tell the past from the present. I hadn’t told Koa because I didn’t know how to explain it, but when we’d been in that waiting room, every time I’d closed my eyes, I would see Rumor lying there next to Cara, both of them lifeless and so, so weak.
I’d had to remind myself several times that Rumor was safe. That he’d survived that night and was alive and healthy and so full of life.
Then, just as the relief would hit, my brain would remind me that Cara wasn’t. I couldn’t even fathom it. She ate so well and exercised regularly. She was still relatively young. That should have never happened.
My chest tightened painfully as I imagined every possibility. Would Cara ever wake up? If she did, would she get to create art again? What would she do if she couldn’t? That was her whole life.
“Hey, sweetheart.” Some of that pressure in my chest eased at the sound of Koa’s voice. He was lying next to me, his arm wrapped around my middle. I could feel the comforting weight of his front pressed up against my side. He traced random patterns over my bare stomach, his way of trying to settle me.
His lips pressed against my neck. I wiggled around, turning in his arms because I was suddenly overcome by the need to see his face.
Sleepy Koa was one of my favorite versions of him, and he looked extra bedhead adorable today. There were even lines in his cheek from the pillow.
“Did you get any sleep?” he asked gently.
