He allowed a tired smile in response.
“What time is it?”I asked.
He glanced at his watch.“Almost 7:30 a.m.”
I frowned.“Did you sleep here all night?”
He dropped his gaze.“I didn’t mean to.I just fell asleep.”
I squinted at him.“Yeah, hospital chairs are so comfortable.Who needs beds?”
His cheeks flushed a little.“Seriously, I didn’t plan on staying.I just wanted to make sure you were okay, and I was going to head home.But I dozed off.”
“Okay.”Despite his words, I knew he was lying.He’d been worried about me, and that made me feel kind of good.I liked the idea he cared.Caring about people was a good trait in a person.I’d have cared if he got hit by a car too.
He let go of my hand, and his expression became more serious.“Do you remember any details about what happened?Maybe about the vehicle?”
“I definitely didn’t get a license plate, if that’s what you’re asking.”I let out a careful breath.
“Well, what do you remember?Anything?”
“I just remember I was walking home from the Rusty Anchor, and I heard a car behind me coming up the hill.I didn’t think much of it at first.But they had their high beams on, which was mildly annoying.”I paused when my head throbbed painfully, then continued.“When I realized the vehicle was coming up on the shoulder, where I was, I… I tried to jump out of the way, but I was too slow.”
His mouth thinned, and his eyes were dark with anger.“Did you hear the sound of brakes?”
“No,” I said bluntly.“Not once.But I heard the car accelerating.”
“Jesus,” he rumbled.
“After they hit me, they just kept going,” I said gruffly.“They didn’t even slow down.”
He was quiet for a moment.“It’s possible it was a drunk driver.They wouldn’t want to stop.”
“Could have been,” I agreed.“Just because it felt personal doesn’t mean it was.”
Declan’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t respond to that.“We’ll investigate it, of course.Hendricks is handling the scene.We’ll see if there’s any physical evidence on the road, tire marks, debris, broken headlight glass, anything.”
“Okay.”I closed my eyes.“I’m sorry.I can’t keep my eyes open.I’m so tired.”
“Rest.”Declan touched my hand.“I have to go to work anyway.”He sounded guilty that he had to leave.
I forced my eyes open.“Thanks for coming by.”I managed a weak smile.“I’m flattered.”
He narrowed his eyes.“Of course I came.”
“Not every patient gets a visit from the Chief of Police,” I mumbled as sleep began to take over.“I feel pretty special.”
“You are special, Spencer.”His voice was husky.“And I’m going to do my best to find whoever hit you.”
“Aww, thanks, Declan,” I slurred, and fell asleep.
I slept most of the day.Margot called, sounding unnervingly concerned for me.She even told me not to worry about work and to just focus on getting better.I wasn’t used to that sort of kindness from her.It was like getting a Valentine from the guy who usually stole your lunch money.
The concussion made my head feel like it was wrapped in cotton, and my ribs ached constantly, a deep, grinding pain that got worse when I breathed.That was inconvenient, since I had to do that fairly often.
The doctor came by that afternoon.She reviewed my chart and said the X-ray showed a probable minor fracture along with the contusion.She also told me they’d be discharging me in a few hours.There wasn’t much they could do for ribs except manage the pain and let them heal.She said it would be a good idea to have a friend check on me now and then to make sure I was doing okay.
I had no idea who to call to drive me home.I didn’t have many friends in Coral Cove.I knew a lot of people, but not in acan you do me a huge favorkind of way.I thought about asking Margot, but it didn’t feel right.That left Declan.I went back and forth about whether it was asking too much of him.I didn’t want to overstep with Declan.We didn’t know each other that well, if you weren’t counting biblically.Was it too much to ask of him considering we’d only slept together once?
