Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
Cam had all his prescriptions. He had his PT orders and all that crap, his discharge papers, and he was ready to go home.
Now, all he had to do was wait for the hospital to release him, which was always a pain in the ass. They had a rhythm to that, and he knew it, but he didn’t have insurance, so he needed to get the hell out of Dodge.
He was sitting on the edge of the bed, contemplating trying to get up to go to the bathroom because his IV was already out, when Mitch showed up carrying a Jack-in-the-Box bag for breakfast.
“Hey, babe.” Mitch studied him carefully, looking at his arm in a sling, and he was all taped up and wrapped and all the good stuff. His wrist had a brace on it to keep it from moving, but they hadn’t bothered to cast it, which was good, he thought.
“Hey, lover. I’m ready to go home.”
Mitch’s slow grin warmed the cockles of his… well, something lower than his heart probably, which told him he was recovering because his head wasn’t pounding at the very thought of having sex. “In that?” he jerked his chin toward Cam, obviously indicating his hospital gown.
“No, one assumes you brought me some clothes. I see a bag over your shoulder.”
“You do at that, and yes, I brought you some soft sweats and a button-up shirt that we can put on so you don’t have to raise your arms.” Mitch set down the bags and raised an eyebrow. “You need to hit the head?”
“Yeah, and do all this stuff before I eat.”
“Come on. I’ll help you.” Mitch held out an arm on his good side, and Cam eased to his feet, letting Mitch steady him. Oh, that made him a little wobbly and a little woozy, but once he stood for a minute, his head cleared, and he slowly made his way to the bathroom.
He was sweating pretty hard by the time they got back to the bed, but he felt stronger and better than he had even last night. So he guessed he would take it.
He managed to get back on the bed, and Mitch helped him turn and lie down, careful to only touch the side without the broken bones. “So, what’s the plan, babe?”
“It really depends on when they get you out of here. If they get you out of here in a decent amount of time, we’ll just drive home.
If they don’t get you out of here until this afternoon, we’re going to drive out of the city and stay somewhere on the road on the way back.
The hotel we’re in here just doesn’t have enough room for all of us.
” Mitch grimaced. “I’m sorry. I know that’s probably going to suck for you, but… ”
“Hey, no. I can just leave the seatbelt down and sit in the front seat. No problem. I have a pillow you put between me and stuff, too. I can put it against my belly and keep the seatbelt out a ways.” He wanted to head home.
He didn’t want to stay someplace that wasn’t his own bed for the night.
But he understood if they had to stay. The kids were probably already tired.
He would work with either option, but if they could get home, it would be easier on Fire, too.
“It will be simpler with the horses as well,” Mitch said.
“Yeah, I can’t believe that she’s in there with Fire, and they’re both happy.”
“She is. I tell you what, she’s a good little girl. Sweet as pie. Sarah is all the way in love with her. I just want you to know that Sarah called to her yesterday, and she just came running and loved on that little thing like it was meant to be.”
“I did. She’s got an amazing disposition and a really good confirmation.” She had to have been a damned expensive horse. “Did you get her papers? Her Coggins test results and all?”
“You know it. I got everything. It’s in the glove compartment of your truck.”
He couldn’t believe somebody would just sign her over. He was going to have to call Dale and talk about this, offer him some money.
The nurse came bustling in, and she was the one Cam had had pretty much the whole time he was there.
She gave him a grin and a thumbs-up. “I got your orders. The doctor signed off on getting you out of here, so it’ll probably take about half an hour to get everything finalized, and then you can hit the road. ”
“Hallelujah!” He grinned back at her. “I’m ready.”
“You’re going to have to watch him,” she told Mitch. “He’s going to overdo it and be a jerk about it.”
“Oh, I know, but I suppose he owes me that. I broke my back and he took care of me then.”
She shook her head, looking sorrowful. “Are you a rodeoer too?”
“No, ma’am, I’m a roofer. I fell off a roof.”
She peered at Cam’s arm, checking out to make sure the IV was out, he was sure. “Well, make good choices, you two. I know you’re not from around here, but one way or the other, I don’t want to see you back in my hospital room.”
Cam had to laugh. “Yes, ma’am, I promise we will make good choices.”
“Good deal. I’ll be back. If you want to get dressed now, you totally can.”
“Thank you, ma’am. I think I’ll do just that.”
“I’ll be back with some forms for you to sign, and then we’ll get you a wheelchair. Just hang out; it’ll probably be about half an hour like I said.” She lifted a hand and waved and walked out of the room.
“Well, that’s a good sign.” Mitch told him, “Eat your breakfast, and then I’ll get you dressed.”
“Yes, sir.” Cam let Mitch dig out his food, and then took the sausage biscuit, munching on it. It was the first time since he’d woken up that he didn’t feel nauseated at the sight of food or the smell of it because his head had finally eased off quite a bit.
This whole being injured thing sucked, and he knew how Mitch had felt now. Oh, he’d known it already, because he’d been hurt more than once in his life, but never at this age, and never with so many people counting on him to be able to do stuff around the house.
Cam ate the little crispy hash browns, too, and then wiped his hands clean on a napkin. “Okay, babe, I can have my coffee after I’m dressed. Get me up and clothe my happy ass.”
Mitch rolled his eyes, laughed, and did exactly that. He had to sit again and breathe by the time he had on the sweats and the soft button-up, and Mitch dealt with his socks and slippers. He felt like an idiot.
Still, anything was better than the damn hospital gown.
“I need to step out and call Mark so he knows what’s going on. You can holler at your momma and fill her in, and you can also call Dale and make sure Copper Penny is good to go.”
Mitch knew him too well. He knew he was going to have to find out what happened there.
He puckered up, begging a kiss, and Mitch gave it to him before he stepped out into the hall. Cam started his calls with Dale, because that would be the easiest. He just needed to know what had happened with the damn horse, which was basically, “It all worked out in the end.”
He got the feeling Dale had paid for the mare out of some kind of misplaced guilt, but the official story was the guy had given her over because it was his fault both the mare and Cam were hurt because he hadn’t ridden like he was supposed to.
He knew it was bullshit, and so did everyone else, but he guessed this was intended to be. He wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth, figuratively.
Literally, he was totally going to check out the mare’s teeth.
He settled to call Momma, smiling at her voice.
“Hey, baby, how you doing?”
“Good, Momma. I’m good. I’m fixing to head home. I’m all dressed, the tubes are out, and we’re just waiting for those last bits of discharge papers.”
“Good. Good. So are y’all going to go to a hotel tonight?”
He shook his head, his collarbone making him wince.
“No, no. Mitch’s friend Mark Bray—I think you remember him; we went to high school together, and then he went into the service?
—Well, he’s going to drive my truck and trailer and the horses home.
I’ll ride with the girls in the SUV, and we’ll be home by supper-ish.
I don’t suppose you could bring some goodies for the girls. ”
“Of course I will. I know they’ll be glad to get home.”
Yeah, he would too. He wanted their bed, their house, their Rosie dog. “Say, how’s your belly?”
She chuckled softly. “It’s fine, it’s fine. We’re all finally over that bug now. We’re getting ready for Christmas—I’m a week behind!”
“Heaven forfend. However will you completely overdo now?” He teased because there was nothing—nothing—like the wild and wooly Halley Christmas. From cookies to trees to caroling to parties, his folks loved the season.
“Shut up, you. Susan is driving home this weekend, and the girls haven’t missed any of the Girl Scouts or school parties or any of the activities. So you all get them home, and we’ll help them with transportation if need be.”
“It sounds perfect. I love that they didn’t miss anything.
” It was bad enough there were hotel bills and gas bills and the girls missing a chunk of school.
Mitch said that they were learning remotely, but he still felt bad.
“I can’t believe Mitch had to drive out here and come get me in the middle of a school week. ”
“Well, that little bastard who threw in those fireworks ought to be drawn and quartered. I can’t believe he wasn’t raised better, whoever it was. How security let fireworks and a lighter through, I don’t know. Maybe you should sue the arena.”
“Oh, Momma.”
“I know, I know.”
No one was to blame for that firework going off in the arena except for the kid who’d thrown it.
Cam kind of wanted the kid to get more than a slap on the wrist, because if that horse was ruined for arena work, then that was a lot of money, and his medical bills were going to cost him too.
“Well, come on home. We’ll get you healed up and Christmassed, and things will start to look up here soon.”
“I know. I’ll see you tonight. I love you. Tell Dad too.” As freakishly weird as they all were, they were damn good to him.
Mitch came back in and came to sit next to him on the bed, grabbing his good hand. “You okay, love? You ready to go home?”
“I’ve never been more ready to go home. And I want those girls for hugs. I miss them.”
“They miss you.” Mitch’s thumb rubbed a lazy circle over the top of his hand. “They were hot that they didn’t get to come see you here, but they are packed up and ready to take you home. Mark has the horses and your truck at the hotel, and we’re going to trek back where we belong.”
“I’ll need to stop and get some pillows from the Walmart or some such.”
“Mark is making a delivery order. He’s having Cokes, pillows, and God knows what delivered to the hotel.”
Cam’s eyes went wide. “Look at him.”
“I know, right? He’s something else. I can’t wait for you to get to know him again.”
“He coming to stay for Christmas?”
“He is.” Mitch kissed his hand. “I appreciate you being cool with this.”
“Babe, it’s your house.” He didn’t have a real voice in the decision.
“No. No, if we’re an us—and Rachel is calling you Daddy Cam, so we’re a fucking us—it’s our house. Our decisions. Ours.”
He beamed at Mitch. “Ours, huh?”
“Yeah, man. Ours.”
“And Daddy Cam? For real?” That warmed him up, even as it made him chuckle.
“Swear to God. You are the Daddy Cam, congratulations.”
“That’s too damn cool.” Jesus, that made him happy. He had no idea how this had come about, but it had, and in what seemed like a short amount of time. He wasn’t about to be ungrateful, though. In fact he was experiencing his own damn personal joy.
Even if he had to do it with a busted collarbone and wrist.