chapter twenty-nine
kira
“Noah,” I scream as his body goes limp. I duck under the caution tape, needing to run to him, but arms wrap around me before I can go anywhere.
“Kira, you can’t go over there,” Jeff says, his grip tightening as I squirm against him. A sob escapes my chest as I call his name again.
“Hey, it’s okay. Let them do their job,” Maddie says, looking toward the EMTs. My hand covers my mouth as tears stream down my cheeks. I watch as they hoist him up onto a stretcher, his body moving like a rag doll. He’s going to be okay. He has to be. He’s still unconscious when they wheel him over to the ambulance.
“I’m going with him,” I grunt as I pull out of Jeff’s grasp.
“ Kira, ” he scolds, but I’m already halfway to Noah, leaving Maddie with Jeff.
My heart plummets as they load him in the back of the truck.
“I’m coming,” I demand, my voice cracking.
One of the paramedics, a man about my height, opens his mouth like he’s going to protest, but something on my face changes his mind.
“Get in,” he orders.
I listen, not wanting to give him any reason to kick me out.
“All set?” His colleague, a woman who looks to be in her forties, calls over to him.
“Yup, let’s go,” he says, stepping up into the ambulance with me.
The sterile scent invades my senses as I try to calm my breathing. He’s right there, his face bruised and bloody. I want to touch him, but I don’t want to get in the way of the man currently working on treating him across from me. The siren blares as we start to move.
Please wake up.
From what I can tell, his heart rate seems normal; the little monitor beeps steadily. He puts a mask over Noah’s face, probably for oxygen. No longer able to stop myself, I reach for Noah’s hand, giving it a squeeze. I relax for a second, remembering that day downtown at the bookstore, his rough hand as it brushed mine. I almost break down again, but I steel myself. I can’t be a sobbing mess when he wakes up because he will .
It doesn’t take long before we’re pulling into the hospital, and my heart rate spikes again. What if they don’t let me stay with him? I can’t leave him like this.
“Dave,” Noah mutters, his voice hoarse.
I bite back a sob, relief flooding my veins.
“Oh my god, Noah,” I cry.
“Kira? What’s going on? Where’ s Dave? ”
“Sir, you were injured in a fire. We need to get you inside, okay?”
“Where’s Dave, the man that came out with me? Where is he?”
The fear in his voice crushes me.
“I’ll find out, okay?” I tell him.
He nods, wincing in pain.
The staff instructs me to sit in the waiting room as they bring Noah back to work on him. I tried to fight them, but they explained that I could see him after treatment and I would only get in the way.
My phone vibrates in my pocket as I sit on the cold plastic chair. Shit, Jared. My hand still shaking from the adrenaline, I swipe to answer, bringing the phone to my ear.
“ Kira, I ’m here. Where are you?”
I should have called him in the ambulance.
“ We ’re at the hospital,” I say softly. “He’s okay, at least I think he is. Jared, he—”
“I’m on my way,” he says before hanging up.
I push away the hurt of that action. He has the right to be angry with me.
“ Kira? ” an older man asks. With his stout frame and sandy gray hair, he looks familiar. Where do I know him from?
“I’ m Al, Noah ’s boss, for now at least,” he explains. “Jeff told me you’d be here.”
Right, Al, the fire commissioner. He sits down on the chair next to me, and I’m sure I look like a mess, my face puffy from crying.
“He’s going to be okay, you know,” he soothes, his hand resting on my shoulder. I nod, forcing myself to believe him.
“Do you know anything about Dave? Is he okay? And the woman?”
“The woman seemed okay when they took her. She was badly burned but conscious. Dave, on the other hand… Let’s just say he’s in worse shape than Noah.”
“But, he’ s alive? ”
Al bobs his head and sighs. “He wouldn’t be without Noah.”
“Jesus, Kira,” Jared’s voice is filled with concern as he rushes over to me. I stand, unsure if I should hug him, but he beats me to it, pulling me to his chest. I inhale his comforting scent, my nerves immediately calming.
I sniffle, trying to keep the tears at bay. I need to be here for Jared, not the other way around. Wiping my cheeks, I back away, looking up at him.
“They’re checking him out right now. They said they’d tell me when we could go back and see him.”
Jared doesn’t respond as he sits across from us.
“I’m going to check on Dave. Let me know if we get any updates,” Al says, gesturing to my phone in my hand. He gave me his number so we could keep in touch.
We wait for what feels like hours, and I am all too aware of my surroundings.
Jared’s knee bouncing relentlessly, machines beeping in distant rooms, and the ticking of the clock all add to my anxiety.
The tension between us grows by the second, and it’s getting to the point where I can’t take it anymore.
“Jared,” I start, needing to clear the air.
“Not right now,” he says, his jaw tightening. His usual easy-going demeanor is replaced with a coldness that I’m not used to from him.
“Please, let me explain,” I beg.
“ Miss Williams? ” a doctor calls from the doorway.
I shoot up, wasting no time as I rush toward him.
“Is he okay?” I ask as Jared steps up behind me. My chest pounds as I wait for his response.
“Yes, he’s going to be fine. He has a sprained wrist, a concussion, and he inhaled a lot of smoke, but he should be good to go home tomorrow.”
I let out a breath, my hand on my chest.
“When can we see him?” Jared asks.
“Right now, if you’d like. He’s awake.”
“Yes, please,” I say.
We stop at the door to Noah’s room, and I look up at Jared.
“You can go first,” I tell him, taking a seat in one of the chairs lining the hallway. He deserves to talk to his dad without me breathing down his neck.
“Thanks,” he says as he steps into the room.
The words are muffled, but Noah’s voice soothes the remaining anxiety in my chest. My phone buzzes in my pocket. I check my notifications seeing a text from Al.
Al: Dave is going to be okay. His leg is broke in multiple places, and they had to intubate him because of the smoke, but they think he’ll make a full recovery.
I breathe easier with that knowledge as Jared emerges from the room, the heavy door clicking as it closes.
“He’s all yours,” he says. “I’m going to head out. Let me know if anything changes.” His voice is reserved, and I realize how badly I want the old Jared back.
I don’t respond as he disappears down the hall.
“ Noah? ” I say as I enter the small room.
“There’s my princess,” he says.
My heart stutters at that. This man can make me swoon even when he’s in a hospital bed with tubes in his nose. His left wrist is wrapped with compression tape, and a cut above his right eye adds to his rugged appearance.
“Come here,” he says, gesturing to the hospital bed.
“I can’t lay there with you, Noah. They’re going to yell at me.”
He tilts his head at me as if to say, since when do you care about getting in trouble?
I roll my eyes at him but obey his request anyway. I climb into the small bed as carefully as possible, not wanting to hurt him. He hisses as I lean into his ribs, and I instantly pull back, but he wraps his arm around me, pulling me closer.
“It’ s fine. I ’m just a little sore,” he explains, running his fingers through my hair.
I lean into his touch, my heart melting at its intimacy. He pulls my head to him, pressing a kiss to my forehead.
“You scared the shit out of me, Noah,” I scold, my voice breaking on his name. He holds me while I cry, rubbing my back.
“I know, princess. I’m sorry.”
I nestle my face into his chest, breathing him in.
“But I’m okay, I promise,” he tells me, guiding my face to look at him. “Now, when was the last time you ate?”
I look at the clock, noting the time. He’s not going to like my answer.
“Eight-ish hours ago,” I say in more of a question than a statement. His eyes narrow on me as he presses the call button on the bed.
“Noah!” I gasp.
A nurse steps into the room, his eyes briefly grazing over me before speaking. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, could I get some food sent up though? Maybe some chicken tenders or something?” Noah asks like he’s ordering at McDonald’s. The nurse chuckles, looking at him with amusement in his eyes.
“Of course, coming right up!”
He returns with two orders of chicken tenders, and Noah and I eat together. The nurse eventually tries to get me to leave, citing “visitor hours are over,” but he ultimately caves, my stubborn attitude coming in handy for once.
“Have you heard anything about Dave?” he finally asks me.
The concern in his voice is audible, and it breaks my heart.
“Yeah, the doctors said he will fully recover.” I leave out the bit about him having to be intubated and his shattered leg.
His chest sinks under me as he exhales.
“You saved his life,” I tell him, in complete awe of the man holding me.
“That’s my job,” he says, brushing it off.
“That doesn’t make it any less impactful,” I tell him.
“He would have done it for me.”
I sigh, knowing that he won’t accept the compliment. Instead, I run my fingers over his jaw, swinging my leg over his body to straddle him.
“Now, don’t fucking do it again,” I say as I brush my lips over his. He chuckles at my demand, his breath hot on my neck.
“I can’t promise I won’t,” he says, nipping at my skin.
And even though it scares the shit out of me, I’m okay with it. It’s who he is.
It’s why I love him.