She laughs, but she flinches, too, and her hand is still resting on her abdomen.At the moment, a sharp fear grips me, digging in its talons.A sickening sense of alarm slips under my skin and nearly takes my breath away.
I’m being overly dramatic, I’m sure.But the look in Summer’s eyes tells me she’s minimizing whatever pain she’s experiencing.It’s entirely possible that they were so focused on her brain swelling that they didn’t look for any other injuries.
What do I know?I’m a pilot and a tech nerd, not a doctor.
“Ready for your scan?”A patient care assistant enters the room with a wheelchair for Summer.
Neither Summer nor I answer.We lock eyes.She asks and I answer in silence, and I try to smile for her benefit.
I don’t know how to label the emotion that passes between us, but it feels a lot like dread.
CHAPTER 42
Summer
Time passes, and Declan keeps trying to entertain me.
Distract me.
I throw jokes right back at him, trying to entertain and distract him, too.His face is ashen.He’s worried.I hate seeing him like this.It’s all because of me.
I’ve already put him through hell.No more.No more.
“I feel fine!Really!”We’ve waited for three hours now.Nobody has any news for us and I’m going stir-crazy.“You know I have bad periods, Declan.You know how uncomfortable it can get.I’m sure it’s connected to that.So, if I were you, I’d go ahead and get the annulment, because having to deal with this shit every month up close and personal is going to be a real buzz ruiner.”
Declan takes his phone out of his pocket.“Thank goodness you gave me the go-ahead.I’ve been itching to call my attorney all day and cut you loose.I wonder if I have enough time to get a dinner date for tonight.”
“Very funny, flyboy.And your attorney is Evander.It shouldn’t be hard to get ahold of him.”
“You’d be surprised.The asshole never answers my calls.”
I smile at him, but there’s a lump forming in my throat.“You’re joking about the dinner date, right?”
“Well, I am getting a little hungry.”
“You can ask me out.I’ll go to dinner with you.But…”
“No booze.Agreed.Who knows what kind of crazy shit we’d get up to.”
“Not that I regret any of it,” I tell him.“I know it was touch and go at first, but I’d do it all again.Just you, me, Beyoncé, Tina, Aretha, Bryttni, and Kirk.”
His deep violet eyes darken, and I see the beginnings of his dimples.My breath catches.Has Declan always been this impossibly handsome?I can’t recall ever seeing his face with this kind of clarity before.Every distinct edge in relief, every smooth plane catching the light, and all of it perfectly proportioned.
Those sensual lips.Violet eyes rimmed in thick black lashes, the same hue as his scruffy beard and thick black curls, now an inch longer since we landed in Las Vegas to look for Evander and Phoebe.
It seems like a million fucking years ago.
“I’d do it all over again, too,” he says.“In a heartbeat.A thousand times over.But I’d still like the opportunity to do it right one day.I want to remember every detail, including any ceremonial boob flashing that might happen.”
He hops up on the bed, takes me into his arms, and I immediately fall apart.The tears come and I know I have to tell him.
“I’m so scared,” I whisper.
“Baby, I got you,” Declan says.“I’m right here and everything is going to be okay.I love you.”
“I love you, too.But—"
The door opens.Declan scoots away a bit and holds my hand tight in his.Two doctors and a nurse enter.I’ve never seen any of them before.All I’m thinking is that two doctors and a nurse aren’t necessary to inform a patient that she’s fine and is being discharged.
