Page 25 of Tied Over

“What? I almost died, man. I’m a fuckin’ saint.”

He rolled his eyes again and was gone.

“You are very lucky,” Letti told me as she clicked off my IV. “If I had a man like that sitting at my bedside day after day, I’d keep him.”

“Not mine to keep,” I muttered. “And besides, he’s just my partner.”

“I don’t know about that. He seems awfully devoted for you not to make a play.”

“No, remember what I told you,” Grace scolded her. “Men are stupid. They don’t know what’s best for them. Better not to get involved.”

Letti nodded. “You’re right, you’re right. I know you’re right.”

“And now for the catheter,” Grace announced. “Did you want to do any more shouting?”

“No, ma’am,” I assured her.

“Excellent.”

I kept my mouth shut and didn’t look.

When Bodhi returned, I was sitting up, waiting, flipping channels. I was very happy to see that the bag was big, meaning he was eating with me.

“Did you get hot dogs for you?” I asked, hopeful.

“No, I got the veggie burger.” He put everything on the rolling table and moved it next to me. “And I got you a chocolate shake and a Coke. Since you almost died.”

I grimaced. “That was crappy. Forgive me.”

He grunted.

As we ate, he explained that Washington, Rasha, his mother, sister, Greta the golden retriever, and Daisy the Himalayan cat—that was what she was, not a fluffy Siamese—were all off on their new adventure.

“Do we think Rasha will be happy with Terry?” I asked seriously.

He nodded. “She really likes him, and just as important, she’s crazy about his mother and sister. You’ve been doing this long enough to know that family compatibility is huge.”

True.

His phone rang then, and seeing the number, he turned around. “Hey,” he said, and from the soft tone, I knew it was Hayden. “I was going to call you later.”

He was quiet, and I went back to eating.

“No,” he replied curtly to whatever question had been posed. That fast, from sultry to sharp in a single breath, was not good. “I know you want him to meet Davis, but it’s not going to be while he’s lying in the hospital.” Silence again, then, “I told you, as soon as he’s out, I’ll be home. This is not only my partner, but my best friend in the world. You get that, right?”

At times, Bodhi could be a real asshole. Not often. I teased him, but as a rule, the man sailed a steady boat, even through rough seas. That part, staying calm in both physical and mental confrontations, was one of his very best qualities. Conversely…when he’d made a point and, for whatever reason, you were making him reiterate it, he got surly, and even worse—he got snide. This was to remind you that he was repeating himself. I knew from watching others go through it that it was uncomfortable. Why he’d never done it to me, I couldn’t say, but the absolute coldness of it, I was happy to have missed out on.

“Perfect.” He bit out the word. “I’ll see you later.”

When he turned to me, I was grimacing.

“What?”

“Since you’re marrying him, maybe you don’t want to be your regular prickish self.”

I got a scowl.

“You know what I mean.”