Chapter 11 Creed #2
“Mr. St. James, we need to get in there. She could be hurt.” The nurse sounds genuinely concerned, but I don’t give a shit. Nobody is seeing her before I can get my eyes on her to make sure she hasn’t hurt herself.
“I’ll check on her,” I practically growl, fucking irritated that she isn’t backing up. The other girl looks like she’s ready to bolt, though.
“Sir, please. It’s hospital policy—“
“I’m checking on her,” I grit through a clenched jaw. “If she’s wounded, I’ll call you in, but until then, fuck off.”
Nurse Jo looks genuinely hurt and confused by my dismissal, but luckily Ayla is there to play peacekeeper and tries to guide them away.
No longer my concern, I turn back to the door where I hear Collins’ broken sobs and wheezes mix with the sound of running water. “Baby, I’m coming in,” I speak cautiously through the door before pushing it open slowly.
If my heart wasn’t already on the floor, it’d be shattered into a million pieces from what I’m seeing.
Collins sits huddled into a tiny ball in the corner of the room, her head buried between her arms that are folded over her legs, and her shoulders shake with silent sobs.
Every inhale sounds like a struggle with the way she cried out, but it’s followed up with a deep, agonizing wail that’s so quiet I can barely hear it now.
I’m across the room, kneeling in front of her before she has time to let another tear fall.
“Collins look at me,” I placate, softly stroking a hand over her hair. She’s not under the stream of water running from the shower head, but her hair and skin are damp from the steam and mist flowing throughout the room.
I bend to kiss the top of her head. “Talk to me baby, tell me what happened. Did you fall? Are you hurt?”
Slowly, she shakes her head before lifting it, and the anguish taking over her expression is enough to slay me. Her jade eyes are void of the tiny spark of fire that was there just minutes ago. Her lips move, but once more, her vocal cords are once again shot and no sound escapes as she speaks.
It takes me just a moment to read her lips, but when I do, my heart clenches more painfully in my chest than I’ve ever felt.
“He ruined me.”
“He ruined me.”
“He ruined me.”
“He. Ruined. Me.” The words are mouthed between short staccato breaths. Her eyes shift past me and over my shoulder. I follow her fixed stare, but all I see is the mirror on the wall—
Oh, shit.
She must have finally seen her injuries. I knew she was avoiding looking at them when Dr. Munn had gone over each one and their care instructions.
I turn back to my girl. “He didn’t, baby.”
I turn carefully and slowly until I’m sitting next to her, my body just barely under the spray of the shower. Collins’ eyes track the movement, and she watches me cautiously.
“He did.” she tries to argue, voiceless.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“Come ‘ere,” I beckon, stretching out my legs and holding out my arms in invitation.
I’m pleasantly surprised when Collins doesn’t hesitate to shift, moving carefully to straddle my lap, her hands resting delicately against my chest. Her face is hidden behind a curtain of wet hair, and her gown is rapidly soaking through.
I’m nowhere near aroused with how broken Collins feels right now, but her body wrapped around mine like this feels like coming home, and I can’t fucking stop the way my cock hardens beneath where Collins is perched on my lap.
“Look at me, Stardust.” When she hesitates, I gently shift my hips, unintentionally causing her core to rock against mine.
Her eyes dart up and lock onto mine. The soft gasp that escapes her is music to my ears. Licking my lips, I grip the back of her neck in a soft but firm hold and pull her closer until our mouths are a hairsbreadth apart.
“Show me where you think he ruined you, and I’ll show you a fucking masterpiece.
” My words dance across her skin on a breath.
Canting my hips just enough to let her feel what she does to me, I nudge through the water droplets that fall between us and allow my lips to brush against hers in a barely-there kiss.
“If my cock isn’t still as hard as a goddamned rock by the time you’re done, I’ll admit defeat. ”
I pull back and rest my head back against the tiles and wait. “Go ahead, Stardust,” I challenge, “Prove me wrong.”
Collins is in full control here. My hands rest lazily at the junction of her hips, but I don’t dare touch her skin or expose her body beyond the now thoroughly soaked gown that covers her core.
I won’t push her, I won’t ask for details, but I want to prove to her right here and now that she’s a fucking vision with or without her new scars.
She’s the embodiment of strength, resilience, and beauty that has nothing to do with her outward appearance. Though, she’s still the most beautiful thing I’ve ever laid eyes on.
I can tell she doesn’t believe me, like I’m joking or speaking in hypotheticals, but quickly realizes I’m not when I continue to sit here with her under the spray, on the hospital bathroom floor, waiting for her to try and prove me wrong.