Viper answers for me. “He took a few hits on a job today. Ribs, mostly. We want him to see a doctor, but?—”
“I’m fucking fine.” The words come out louder than I intend, and my first reaction is to look at Aurora in case I scared her. She’s sitting up inside her crib, her wide crystal-blue eyes looking right into mine. “Sorry, baby,” I mutter.
I lean back against the couch cushions and groan. “Lemme rest for five minutes, all right? If I don’t catch my breath, we’ll call in the doc.”
Claire jumps to her feet and talks in a low voice with Shadow and Viper. They are chatting through something, but the second I close my eyes, I feel the first bit of relief from pain in hours.
The next thing I know, the door is closing, and Claire, Aurora, and I are alone.
“I’m fine,” I try to tell her, “I just?—”
I feel her hand on my arm, and the words die in my throat.
“I know you’re not okay,” she says, her voice calm but firm. “I’m going to take care of you, if you’ll let me.”
I open my eyes, and I don’t know what’s on my face, but she reaches forward and strokes my hair back from my face. “You don’t need to worry about me,” I tell her,but the words end on a cough. “I’ve been through worse.”
“That doesn’t mean you have to go through this alone now.” She shakes her head. “I asked Shadow to bring some ice and ibuprofen. When was the last time you ate?”
She peppers me with questions while she lowers herself to the floor and helps me work my feet out of my boots.
“Glad I wore my cute socks today,” I croak out. They’re plain black, but at least they don’t have holes or anything like that.
She gives me a wry smile and sets my boots by the door. Then she grabs all the pillows from the bed and lines them up on one of the armrests of the couch. “Do you want to move to the bed?” she asks. “Will that be more comfortable?”
“Unless you put me in a coffin, I don’t want to move,” I admit. My ribs burn like they are on fire. My jaw feels stiff and swollen at the same time. It hurts to talk, to hold my eyes open, to do anything. “Can I just lie here a few?”
“Of course.” She helps me stretch my legs onto the couch, and I lie back. God help this woman, because I don’t know if I’m going to be able to move again.
She puts a warm hand on my forehead, and I close my eyes. “I came to check on you,” I grit out. “How was your day?”
She laughs softly as the couch dips. She’s so close, her thigh touches my hip. I try to move to make moreroom for her, but trying to shift my torso makes me feel like someone is sawing into my rib cage with a very dull hacksaw.
I huff a hard breath, and she gasps.
“Shit. Sorry.” She smooths my hair back, and there’s a knock at the door. “Come in,” she calls.
I hear voices and feel movement, but I start to let myself settle into the pain. Someone cups the back of my neck and holds my head up so I can swallow some chalky pills. Then my head is back against the pillows, and I feel a cool weight on my ribs. As soon as my head hits the pillow, I focus on the soft sound of Claire’s voice, and I crash hard into sleep.
When I wake up,the room is mostly dark, except for one dim lamp. I can hear soft white noise, and I squint my eyes open.
“Hey, you’re awake.” Claire jumps off the bed where she was sitting with her laptop. She’s changed into gray pajama pants and a matching button-down pajama top. Her hair is loose and free, and she looks tired.
“Sorry,” I grunt. “I must have dozed off.”
She nods and rests a hand against my forehead like I have a fever, but I ain’t complaining. “How are you feeling? You can’t have any more pain meds for about another hour.”
“How long was I asleep?”
“It’s five in the morning,” she says with a smile.There are soft shadows under her eyes, but she’s looking at me sweetly.
“Holy shit, you’ve got to get some sleep. I’ll get my ass up.” I turn my head and realize the crib is gone. “Where’s Aurora?” I demand, my pulse picking up. “Is she okay?”
Claire nods. “I moved the crib into the bathroom.”
I’m confused. I lift a hand to my ribs and feel ice zipped into plastic bags and wrapped in towels under my T-shirt. It all starts to come together for me. “You’ve been taking care of me all night?” I ask.
“Just a few ice changes, and I rubbed a little of that pain gel you gave me on your jaw.” She sweeps her fingertips lightly over my stubble. “You’re probably going to have some bruises.”
