Chapter 24
“ W ho are you?” Indie’s doctor asked Spencer bluntly.
In true Spencer style, he just smiled charmingly. Indie sighed quietly, waiting for the doctor to fall under his spell.
Everyone fell under his spell.
But to her surprise, the doctor’s frown deepened. However, Spencer didn’t falter.
“I’m Indie’s boyfriend. Spencer Hensley. Lovely to meet you.”
“Boyfriend?” The doctor turned to her. “Is he your boyfriend?”
Oh no.
Indie realized that she probably thought he was the person who had hurt her.
“He didn’t do this,” she told the doctor hastily. “He’s an old family friend. Not my boyfriend.”
There was a flash of pain in Spencer’s face as she said that. But it was the truth and she shouldn’t feel bad.
He was the one lying.
He knew he wasn’t her boyfriend so why was he upset?
“Hmm. Then you need to wait out in the waiting room. ”
Spencer’s eyes narrowed. He wasn’t used to not getting his own way. Everyone always fell for his charm.
Spencer gave the doctor a tight smile. “I’ll be just outside, Princess. Okay? Yell if you need me.” He gave her a firm look.
“I will.”
She wouldn’t, though.
The doctor asked her several questions and went through everything with her. Then she leveled her with a firm look. “The head nurse said that you had several visitors last night.”
“My stepbrother and his friends. I’m sorry if they were disruptive.”
The doctor waved her hand through the air. “That isn’t the issue. Do you feel safe with them?”
Oh. Was that what she was worried about? Well, she guessed that the doctor would ask that of anyone in her position.
“They didn’t hurt me. That was someone else,” she said.
“So you said. But that doesn’t mean you feel safe with them. If you don’t, we’ll have them banned and you can get a protective order against them.”
Oh wow.
The doctor sounded almost . . . fierce.
“I don’t want anything like this to happen to you again, Indie,” she said in a softer voice. “It should never have happened in the first place.”
No, it shouldn’t have.
She blinked back tears at the doctor’s words though. Shit. She must be really starved for a kind word if this was affecting her so much.
“Thanks for caring, doctor,” she whispered. “But these guys would never hurt me. Physically, that is.”
Oops. She didn’t mean to add that caveat.
A knowing look came over the older woman’s face and she nodded. “I see. As long as you’re certain you’re safe with them. Physically, I mean.”
“I am. ”
“Good. Now, we need to talk about what happens next.”
“Can I leave?” she asked.
“Yes, you can.”
Oh. Well, that was great. She hated being in the hospital. It meant calling Maggie and getting her to come get her. And then . . . well, she didn’t know what would happen next.
You’re not alone.
You have Maggie. She’ll help you.
So why did she feel so upset?
“You’re going to need some help, though,” the doctor added. “I can’t let you go home if you’re going to be on your own.”
“Yes, right. My friend, Maggie, she lives with me and she can pick me up. She’ll stay with me.”
“Good. Because I want someone to keep an eye on you. I also don’t think it’s a good idea for you to go back home with your attacker still on the loose.”
“No. I, uh, I definitely don’t want to go back there.”
Indie shuddered at the thought. That place held nothing but bad memories now. Her sense of safety, of having an actual home, had once more been stolen by that bastard.
Was he ever going to let her have something good in her life?
Then her hand moved to her stomach. She had Button and she had Maggie. Maybe Maggie’s men, although she didn’t know them.
She should be grateful for that, right?
“All right, I’ll get the discharge papers ready. I think it would be best if your friend was here when you go through everything with the nurse. Just so they know what to watch for and what you need.”
“Thanks, doctor. For everything.”
It wasn’t more than thirty seconds before Spencer strode back in, concern in his eyes. “What did she say? Can you go home today?”
She winced. “I don’t really have one of those anymore.”
“Fuck, sorry, Princess. I didn’t mean it like that. I . . . shit.”
“It’s all right, really. But yeah, the good news is that I’m out of here today. ”
“That’s good. I’ll message the guys and let them know. I think they’re on their way here, but your bedroom is all ready for you anyway.”
“My . . . bedroom?” she asked. “What do you mean?”
“Your bedroom at the penthouse,” he said.
“Um, Spencer, I’m not going to the penthouse with you.” The idea made her heart race. Why would she go to the penthouse with them? What was he thinking?
He paused and stared down at her. “Princess, you’re going to need someone to take care of you, right? The doctor wouldn’t let you just leave and be on your own, would she?”
“No. No, she said I can only leave if there is someone at home to help me. But that’s why I’m going home with Maggie.”
“Maggie?”
“Yes.”
“Didn’t she live in the same apartment with you? Where exactly are you going with her?”
“I think they’ve got a hotel suite,” she said.
“A hotel suite? With Maggie and those guys?”
“Yes. Maggie’s men. They’re good guys.” But would they really want Maggie to spread her time between them and Indie? Wouldn’t she just be in the way?
God. She hated feeling like a burden. That’s what her mother had always told her that she was.
Her mum had gotten pregnant with her when she was eighteen and she’d never failed to remind Indie how she’d ruined her life.
Would she be getting in the way with Maggie? She couldn’t help but feel she would be. But what other choice did she have?
Go home with Spencer and the guys?
Yeah, that wouldn’t be a good idea.
She guessed that this was their way of apologizing to her.
She wasn’t mad at them anymore. However, just because she’d forgiven them didn’t mean she could trust them .
Bloody hell.
She was so confused over what to do.
“Indie, you need someone to take care of you. We can do that. I know we’ve fucked up in the past, big time. But let us help you. Use us.”
“I don’t want to use you, though.” Her voice broke.
Urgh.
She hated how her every emotion showed on her face and in her voice. It was so hard for her to hide when she was scared or upset or happy. Life with Billy had given her a few tricks, though. So she lowered her face to her hands, hunching her shoulders out of habit.
To make herself smaller.
Subservient.
Spencer let out a pained noise that had her head shooting back up. She winced as pain lanced through her neck.
Urgh. Was there an inch of her that didn’t hurt?
Maybe her little toe. She wiggled all of her toes. Nope. They hurt too.
Fucking Billy.
“Don’t do that,” he said in a hoarse voice that shocked her. Why did he sound so upset? Where was the cocky smile? The craziness that lived inside him?
“Do what?” she asked.
“Don’t make yourself smaller. Never make yourself smaller.” There was an intensity in his voice that stole her breath, her ability to think.
All she could do was stare into those gorgeous blue eyes. The same ones she used to fantasize about as a girl. And the same eyes she’d seen in her nightmares when the crazed happiness had turned into something hard and harsh.
Don’t think about that now
You don’t need the stress.
Reach for the numb.
She took a small breath, drawing it around her. “I don’t know what you mean.”
He winced and she wasn’t sure why.
“Yeah, I deserve that.”
“What do you mean?” she asked. “Deserve what?”
“Deserve you shutting me out. Going behind a wall. I know you’re doing it to protect yourself.
But, God, Princess, it fucking kills me that you think you have to protect yourself from me.
” He paced up and down. “I haven’t been the best protector, though, have I?
So, yep, totally deserve the coldness. Need to be a better knight. ”
Knight?
Was he losing his mind? What was he talking about now? He wasn’t a knight. He was her sunshine.
He shone so bright that sometimes it hurt to look at him. So far above her that she knew she could never reach him.
“And the coldness, that’s better than you making yourself small. I fucking hate that. Understand?” He turned suddenly and glared at her.
She was so confused that her mask slipped.
“I don’t think I understand at all,” she whispered.
He took a deep breath and let it out. “No. I can see you don’t.
What I’m saying is that you are not less than us.
You don’t need to stare at your hands to avoid us or try to fade away.
Stand up and fight for what you need, Indie.
Or, let me do it for you. I’ll fight any battle you tell me to, milady. ”
Oh, he was such a dork sometimes.
Especially when he attempted a bow and hit his head on the end of the bed.
“Ouch. Shit.” He straightened and rubbed his head, his cheeks slightly pink with embarrassment.
To her surprise, she found herself smiling. Not because he hit his head. She wasn’t laughing at his pain.
But he was pretty funny sometimes.
“And that was worth the brain injury,” he said quietly.
“What was? And brain injury? Really? Slight exaggeration isn’t it? ”
He pouted. “I really hurt myself. Shouldn’t you be offering to kiss it and make it all better?”
Indie forced herself to scoff even as the heat rose inside her. She pressed her legs together as she thought about kissing him in another place.
And making everything all better.
No. Nope.
That was a terrible idea.
“I’m sure you’ll be fine.”
He sighed. “I suppose I’ll live. Just. But do you know what would make me feel better?”
“What?”
“You coming to stay with us,” he said. “Please, Indie. Come stay with us. Let us take care of you.”
“I don’t . . . I can’t. I just . . . c-can’t.”