Being wheeled away from Ronan and Ryker is like my heart being torn straight from my chest. It’s not rational, but nothing about my life is right now.
Everything is a mess, my own mind included, and I don’t have it in me to question what I need right now.
I just know I need them close, and I’m rolling with it.
Camilla helps me change into a gown, her movements just as stiff as my own, but she doesn’t complain, not even once.
“You shouldn’t have come,” I whisper.
She shakes her head, a smirk tugging up the corners of her lips. “You think I’m going to let the guys get all the credit for saving you? I don’t think so.”
I snicker. I’m endlessly amused by the way she bickers with her men, and not for the first time, I find myself jealous of what she has with them.
It’s not that I don’t want her to be happy, because I want that more than anything, more than my own happiness, but I know what it feels like to be loved like that, and I miss it.
I miss it so fucking much my heart aches for it.
“You’re still recovering from life-saving surgery,” I remind her.
“If I wasn’t okay to come, the guys wouldn’t have let me get on the plane.”
“Did you threaten them?”
“Of course I did.” She giggles.
I can’t help but follow along, because honestly, it’s still hilarious to me the way the five-foot-nothing woman wrangles four ruthless mafia men and continuously gets her way.
“But even with the threat of bodily harm, they would have put my health and safety first.”
Camilla steps behind me and ties the gown before helping me lean against the raised back of the hospital bed.
I have no clue where we are or how they organized a completely private clinic at this time of the night, but I know they wouldn’t put me in danger, so I don’t bother asking.
For once I need to let the people around me keep me safe.
Her features turn serious as she gathers my hands in hers. “I need to ask you if you were sexually assaulted while you were there. The nurse needs to know if she needs to do a rape kit.”
I shake my head as a ragged sob tears from my chest. “Almost, but Ronan saved me.”
She nods, tears gathering at the corners of her eyes. “Okay, I’ll let them know it’s not necessary. Do you have any injuries other than your head?”
“No,” I whisper. “They didn’t hurt me.”
Camilla lets out a sigh of relief and squeezes my hands in hers. “Good. I’ll go grab the doctor, and once you get the all clear, we’ll get you back to New York.”
“What about Ronan?” I ask before I can catch the question. “I mean, he’s risked everything to get me to safety. I don’t want them to hurt him because of me.”
“You don’t have to defend anything to me, Chloe. If you want Ronan to come with us, Ronan can come with us.” She flicks her eyes to the door with a half smile. “Plus, watching him and Ryker argue the whole flight home might be entertaining.”
I scoff, watching as she crosses the room and pulls the door closed behind her.
She’s right, that would be fun.
I drop my head back against the pillows and allow my eyes to fall closed.
Even though I’ve spent days sleeping, I’m still exhausted.
There’s a good chance I have a concussion, but even if I fall asleep, I’ll only be alone for a few minutes, so I give in to the need to rest.
