Nadia surfacedback to consciousness but kept her eyes shut. Her mouth felt like she’d been sucking on a big wad of cotton wool. The ache in her head was still there but faint. She shifted but her movement was limited due to the taping over her ribs. Not broken, just bruised. They’d taped them as a precaution anyway. The tape would probably come off when she was discharged. Now that was going to be painful.
A warm hand brushed the side of her cheek.
Mitch.
She was becoming to recognize the gesture and his touch. Opening her eyes she looked into his blue ones. “You’re still here.” When he’d said he’d be there when she woke she hadn’t quite believed him.
“I said I would. Do you remember being woken up a few times after I arrived?”
“Vaguely.” The interrupted sleep had been annoying at the time and even though she grumbled about it, she understood the reasons for it. It’s what she would’ve recommended had a patient arrived in the ER presenting the same symptoms shehad. Memories of before waking in the hospital room formed in her mind. “Oh my god, I threw up in front of you, twice.”
Mitch laughed. A deep and throaty laugh that sent fissures of electricity zooming through her. “Yes, you did.”
“I’m so embarrassed,” she groaned and closed her eyes, wishing she could turn the clock back and not throw up in front of him.
“Don’t be,” he said quietly. “You have nothing to be embarrassed about. Not after what you’ve witnessed me go through. Not to mention helped me out of.”
Nadia opened her eyes again. “I’m glad I could be there for you.” And she was, thank goodness he’d come out of his attack before she’d succumbed to her concussion symptoms. What would’ve happened if he’d still been lost in his mind? Would he have left her collapsed on the ground?
He shifted in his chair as if her words made him uncomfortable. “You should be able to get out soon,” he commented changing the subject. “You’ll probably have to stay home a couple of days until you’ve properly recovered.”
Home.
Shit, Cerise. She’d been hurt so badly. What happened to her? Was she okay? But she was scared to ask in case the news wasn’t so good. Only one way to find out, she had to jump off the cliff of fear and hope that the fall wouldn’t end up in tragedy. “I can’t believe I haven’t asked about Cerise. What sort of person am I? She was seriously hurt and here I am wallowing about having to be woken up to be asked questions.”
“Nadia, calm down, it’s not unreasonable you didn’t think about it. Your mind was a little jumbled after all you went through. But in answer to your question I believe she’s doing fine. She had surgery to repair a laceration to her liver. Her kidneys are bruised but she’s not going to have any lingering after-effects from her injuries.”
Relief swept through her that her friend was going to be okay. “I need to see her. See for myself that she’s okay.”
“And I’m sure once you’re discharged, you’ll be able to go see her, but in the meantime, you need to rest and recover from your own injuries.”
“A concussion. I just had a concussion. I didn’t have surgery on one of my major organs.”
Mitch took hold of her hand and immediately her frazzled nerves settled down. Was this what it felt like for him when she touched him during an attack? Even lost deep in his mind, did his subconscious somehow pick up on the fact that she was nearby and calmed him like he did to her.
“Boston, your injuries, although different to Cerise’s, were just as serious. You know what can happen with a concussion. Now if you don’t settle down, the nurses are going to come in to see why your heart rate monitor is beeping like crazy and why your blood pressure is about to go through the roof. If that happens, you’ll be stuck in that bed for longer than you’d like to be. And I’m pretty sure that’s the last thing you want to have happen.”
“Fine.” Mitch was right and she’d already glimpsed the surgeon and doctor he’d been when dealing with an emergency, she was now getting a front row view of his bedside manner.
She liked it.
She liked it a lot and that was dangerous. No way could she let herself fall for Mitch. But it may be too late. Which was completely ridiculous considering she’d only seen the guy three times. So what if he’d saved her and her friends from a crumbling building. And coped with her tossing her cookiestwicein front of him. She grappled for another neutral topic, but her brain was getting foggy again and she wanted to sleep.
“You look like you’re about to pass out on me again.”
Was that a hint of smugness in his voice? As if he expected her to wear herself out. Probably, if the roles were reversed she’d expect him to be falling asleep after being awake for a short period of time.
“Yeah I am. I’ll never be let out if I keep falling asleep.”
“It’s only six in the morning after the night before. I think if you get a good five or six hours sleep you’ll be back home by late this afternoon. The nurses won’t bother you as often now to check your vitals and your memory.”
“I hope you’re right.” As much as she wanted Mitch to stay, it was selfish of her to ask him too. The guy looked dead on his feet. He’d worked hard all while she’d been in the hospital. Not to mention he’d had another attack which would be mentally tiring. “Umm, you don’t have to stay while I’m sleeping. You should go home and get some rest of your own. You have to be exhausted as well.”
Her words triggered a yawn from Mitch. “I am, but I can stay. It’s not an issue.”
The sweetness of the gesture wasn’t lost on her. Mitch didn’t have to go out of his way to stay with her. The fact he was willing to spoke volumes to her. He was beginning to lose the gruffness that was his outer shell. He was losing it around her. “I appreciate the offer, but it’s fine. You need to go home.”
Mitch studied her and she hoped the longing in her to have someone by her side wasn’t showing on her face. Clearly she managed it hide it because he nodded. “Okay, but I’ll be back here in a couple of hours. You’ll need a ride home and that’s me. I’m just going to check on Buck before I leave.”
