Chapter 10
“Sexy distraction needed? I’m on my way.” ~ Kai
Kai
M y phone rings and I frown at the caller ID – Smuggler’s Hideaway Police Station.
“I didn’t do it and I was with my brothers the entire time,” I answer the phone.
“It’s Lucas.”
“Officer Fellows, how can I assist you today?” I don’t bother pretending I don’t know who Lucas is. It would be a lie and, while I’m a proficient liar, lying to the police never works out.
“Harper’s at the emergency room.”
My stomach drops and my heart clenches. “What? What happened? Is she okay? Of course, she’s not okay. She’s at the hospital.”
“Calm down, Raider. She’s fine. Her dad fell.”
I blow out a breath. “Okay. Good. Well, not good. How’s her dad?”
“Unknown. ”
“Shit. Should I go? Never mind. I’m going.” I jump to my feet, grab my keys, and rush for the door.
“Don’t make me regret phoning you, Raider.”
“You won’t.”
Thankfully, the hospital isn’t far from the distillery. I make it there in less than five minutes. I rush inside and scan the room for Harper. She’s sitting in the corner with her face in her hands. No.
I sit next to her. “Hey, Harper.”
She whips her head up. “What are you doing here?”
“I heard you were here and was worried.”
“This town,” she mutters before raising her voice. “I’m fine. Go home.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“Don’t you have some shenanigans to pull?”
I turn my pockets inside out to show her they’re empty. “I’m all out of shenanigans.”
“I’m serious, Kai. I’m fine.”
“What about your dad?”
Her face crumbles. “I don’t know. They haven’t told me anything.”
“I’ll ask.”
“They won’t tell you anything.”
“I’m going to try anyway.” I kiss her cheek before standing and sauntering to the reception desk. I give the receptionist – an elderly woman named Moira, whom I’ve met a time or two – my biggest smile.
“No,” she says before I can speak .
“You don’t know what my question is.”
She lifts an eyebrow. “But I do know you, Kai Raider. And you’re not bleeding or vomiting. Have a seat and wait.”
I open my mouth to question her more but notice Dr. Allens walking my way. My smile widens. “Dr. Allens.”
She sighs. “Who’s injured today?”
“No one. I’m actually worried about my friend’s dad. She’s been waiting a while and is really worried.”
I motion toward Harper, who is now pacing the waiting room.
“This is Henry’s daughter?”
“Yes,” I say, although I don’t know Harper’s dad’s name. I’m guessing he’s the only man with a worried daughter in the ER at the moment.
“She can come through.”
“Harper.” I motion her over and she rushes to me.
“Follow me,” Dr. Allens says.
I capture Harper’s hand and she squeezes. Squeeze as hard as you want, Harper. I’m here and I’m not leaving you, no matter how many times you ask me to.
Dr. Allens opens a door and motions us inside. There’s a man asleep on the bed. He’s hooked up to various machines and has a cast on one arm.
Harper drops my hand and rushes to him. “Why is he unconscious?”
“He’s not unconscious,” the doctor explains. “He’s sleeping. We gave him a powerful dose of painkillers.”
“Powerful dose? Was he in a lot of pain? What’s wrong? ”
The doctor motions to his arm. “He broke his arm and pulled his shoulder out of the joint.”
I wince. My shoulder’s been pulled out of the joint once. It was more painful than breaking it. “Ouch.”
“Can I take him home? Does he need to stay overnight? He’s going to lose his mind if he has to stay in the hospital overnight.”
Dr. Allens chuckles. “He told me in no uncertain terminology he was not staying overnight, no matter what.”
Harper sighs. “That’s my dad for you.”
“He should be ready to go in an hour.”
“Okay.” She nods as she searches for a chair. “I’ll wait with him.”
“Go away,” her dad mumbles. “Let me sleep in peace.”
“Dad!” She smiles down at him. “You’re okay.”
He scowls. “My arm is broken.”
“Remember what you told me when I broke my arm in fourth grade?”
“What?”
“Better a broken arm than a broken ass.”
I bite my tongue before I laugh. I think I’m going to like Henry.
“I’m…” Henry breaks off to yawn. “I’m going to sleep for a while.”
Dr. Allens opens the door. “Come on. You can handle his paperwork while he sleeps.”
Harper bites her lip as she contemplates her dad. She’s obviously reluctant to leave him alone. I place my hand on her lower back and steer her toward the door. “He’s not going anywhere.”
When we reach the hallway, I thank Dr. Allens and she rushes off without a backward glance.
“Shall we get a coffee while we wait? The cafeteria coffee isn’t bad. It’s not Parker’s coffee, but it’s drinkable.”
“I don’t want to leave Dad.”
“Not a problem,” I say and stop in front of Moira. “We’re going for a coffee in the cafeteria. Can you let us know if anything changes with Harper’s dad?”
She directs her answer to Harper. “Of course, honey. You go have a break.”
Harper wrings her hands but I grasp one and lead her to the cafeteria. I wait until we’re seated with our coffees before I speak again.
“It’s a broken arm. He’ll recover.”
“You don’t get it. It’s the only arm he can use.”
Is he missing an arm? “What?”
“There’s a reason I live with my dad and it’s not because I’m young and immature.”
The blow hits me, but I ignore the pain in my chest. “Why?”
“Ugh. Why do you want to know this?”
I reach across the table to clasp her hand. “I want to know everything about you, Harper.”
“Maybe when you realize how boring my life is, you’ll leave me alone.”
“Nothing about you could be boring. ”
“Really? I don’t have millions of dollars to jet off to fancy locations for vacation.”
“Neither do I.”
“Or a billionaire brother to rely on.”
I don’t rely on Eli. Except he gave me a job which pays more than most twenty-four-year-olds earn. A job Jaxon doesn’t think I’m qualified for.
I shove those thoughts away. Harper isn’t going to distract me from the matter at hand.
“You can try and distract me for as long as you want. I have five brothers. I’m used to distraction.”
She tugs her hand from mine. I frown. I was enjoying feeling her small hand in mine. She has callouses from how hard she works but they don’t bother me. They remind me of how strong she is. I suspect she’s much stronger than I know.
“Fine.” She huffs. “A year after my mom died, my dad had a stroke. He worked hard in rehab to regain mobility, but his right arm and leg never recovered. He had to quit working. It’s hard to construct buildings when you have to use a cane to walk and your right arm doesn’t work properly.”
I was correct. Harper is much stronger than I knew.
“And now you take care of him.”
“As much as he’ll allow me to. He’s stubborn.”
I snort. “A family trait.”
She glares at me. “I’m not stubborn.”
“Of course not, Slugger.”
“I didn’t slug anyone.”
“Because I stopped you. ”
“You did not stop me.”
“No?” I feign innocence. “You weren’t distracted by my sexy abs and forgot you were in the middle of a fight?”
She narrows her eyes at me. “Sexy abs?”
I inch my t-shirt up. “I can show you again in case you forgot.”
“No!” She squeals. “No stripping in the hospital.”
I drop my shirt with a sigh. “Boring but okay.”
“I told you I was boring. Hold on. Are you wearing glitter?”
I groan. “I’m going to kill my brothers.”
“What did they do?”
“They glitter bombed me.”
She giggles and the sound fills me with warmth. Harper should laugh more. She needs more fun in her life. Not to worry. I’m on the job.
“I amend my question. What did you do?”
I raise my hands in the air. “I’m innocent of all charges.”
She barks out a laugh. “Kai Raider innocent? You haven’t been innocent a day in your life.”
I bat my eyelashes. “I was an adorable baby.”
“All babies are adorable.”
“Do you want children?”
She motions to the room. “Do you not see where we are? I can barely handle my life as it is.”
“It’s not your fault your dad fell.”
“I should have hidden the lawnmower.”
“Lawnmower? ”
“Dad didn’t ‘approve’ of the neighbor kid’s mowing and decided to handle the task himself.”
“With one working arm and a cane?”
“Told you he was stubborn.”
“It’s still not your fault he was injured.”
She blows out a breath. “I feel responsible.”
“You can’t be responsible for everything and everyone.”
“Oh yeah? Watch me.”
I drain my coffee and gather our mugs before standing. “Come on, my little responsible slugger. Let’s go bust your dad out of the hospital.”
“Responsible and slugger don’t go together,” she says as she follows me.
I raise a brow. “Really? Have you looked in the mirror lately?” I point at her. “Responsible slugger.”
“I need to buy you a dictionary.”
“Good idea. I need a doorstop.”
She shakes her head but her lips are turned up and there’s no longer brackets around her eyes. She might not realize it yet, but I’m good for her. I can be her distraction when she needs one.
I can be a whole lot more.
Patience, Kai. Patience. I’ve chiseled a crack into the ice surrounding Harper’s heart. I’ll keep chiseling until it breaks wide open and she lets me in. She’s worth the effort.