32. Ozzie
32
OZZIE
“Excuse me, sir… this area is for family only.”
The voice barely registers at first. My head jerks up, eyes unfocused, and I realize I’ve been staring at the same crack in the floor tile for who knows how long.
When I finally meet the nurse’s gaze, I try to answer, but my throat locks up. “I… she’s…”
The words get stuck, tangled in the mess of my thoughts, in the gnawing anxiety that’s been clawing at my insides since we got here.
A firm hand clamps down on my shoulder, grounding me.
“We’re here for Zoe Strauss,” Mace says out of nowhere, his tone steady. “She’s receiving emergency treatment.”
The nurse doesn’t look convinced. Her eyes scan over the both of us, taking in our many tattoos and my mohawk. “Are either of you next of kin?”
I don’t even think. The words fly out before I can stop them. “She’s my fiancée.”
The nurse blinks then softens, giving me a small nod. “Alright, then. You’re allowed to wait here. I’ll let you know as soon as there’s an update.”
The nod I give is slight as she walks off, my brain still playing catch up. I’m so damn out of it, I just called Zoe my fiancée like it was second nature. My heart pounds as I exhale and run a hand down my face.
“Didn’t even notice you got here,” I murmur, glancing sideways at Mace.
He watches me carefully, arms crossed over his broad chest. “Figured you might need some backup. The rest of the club’s worried. Cash is here too. He was circling the lot trying to find parking.”
I drop into one of the rigid-ass waiting room chairs, scrubbing my hands over my face some more. The antiseptic smell of the hospital burns my nose, the fluorescent lights too bright, the whole place feeling too sterile, too unnatural. It freaks me out and makes me wish I could somehow fix this. Undo what’s happened.
“I need her to make it, Mace. If she doesn’t… I might seriously lose it.”
Mace sinks into the chair beside me, his presence appreciated. “She’s gonna pull through, Oz. I don’t know much about Zoe, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that she’s pretty damn tough. You know that. She’s not going down like this.”
I want to believe him. I really do. But all I can see in my head is the moment Boone ran her through with the knife and how her face had gone slack from the impact. All the blood that quickly spread.
“It should’ve been me,” I mutter, voice hoarse, stomach churning. “Boone should’ve come for me , not her.”
“Men like Boone are pieces of shit. They go after whoever they think will break their enemy most.”
“It’s not enough that I killed him. Not if Zoe doesn’t make it.”
“She will. And look…” Mace draws in a breath, using the second to sort out what he wants to say. “It’s my bad for acting the way I have. Toward you and Zoe. I’ve been a huge asshole about what’s been happening.”
“I deserved it. I’m not exactly innocent. Me and my benders, going off and making trouble, getting involved with Boone…”
“Yeah, but you’re a brother. You’re one of us. You’ve been fighting demons. I should’ve been more understanding. It ain’t like I don’t have demons of my own.”
“It’s alright,” I say. “We’re good. Even if you swung on me.”
The corner of Mace’s mouth pulls back in a slight grin. “You threw some jabs yourself.”
The elevator doors open and Cash strides into the waiting room, his expression tight with concern. He heads straight for us, running a hand through his shoulder-length golden hair to push it out of his face. “Any news yet?”
We both shake our heads.
Cash exhales, shoulders tense. “Korine and Sydney send their well wishes. Told me to tell you they’ve got Zoe’s back, whatever she needs.”
I nod, swallowing past the lump in my throat. “Appreciate it.”
A silence stretches between the three of us, heavy with everything we don’t say. Then Cash speaks, voicing his thoughts aloud. “This whole thing is far from over, you know. Boone’s gone but Wheels is alive and well… somewhere. He’ll be back for another round.”
“We need to stay tight,” Mace says. “Keep our guard up. Who knows what’s next.”
I stand abruptly, the restless energy inside me too much to sit still. My boots scuff against the tile as I start pacing, hands gripping the back of my neck. The waiting is killing me. Every minute’s begun to feel like a fucking lifetime.
What the hell’s taking so long?
As if aware of the impatient thoughts running through my head, the ER nurse returns with a calm expression and clipboard in hand. “I’m happy to say I have some updates regarding your fiancée. She’s in stable condition. The doctor performed surgical suture to close her wounds. Luckily, none of her organs were damaged. She’ll remain in the hospital for the next forty-eight hours for observation. The stab wounds were quite deep, so we want to keep an eye on her and make sure there’s no infection or internal bleeding.”
Relief crashes into me so hard I almost feel dizzy. I nod, clearing my throat, my voice rougher than before. “Can I see her?”
The nurse gives me a small smile. “Give it a few minutes. I’ll come get you when she’s settled.”
I nod again, forcing myself to breathe, but it still doesn’t feel real. The tension in my chest doesn’t fully recede. It won’t until I set eyes on her and confirm she’s really okay.
Mace claps me on the back. “Told you she’s tough.”
“Yeah,” I say, huffing out a delirious laugh. “Yeah, she is. Fucking tough as nails.”
Cash nudges my arm. “You going to be alright?”
I rub a hand over my face again, exhaling sharply. “Not ’til I see her.”
Zoe’s awake when I tap my knuckles on the door to her hospital room. Her eyes lift to mine, and the relief is so damn immediate and intense that I have to pause for a second to steady myself. The last time I’d seen her she’d been bleeding out with an open gash on her stomach, the life draining from her by the second.
To see her awake and alert is such a rush of relief that it almost feels too good to be true.
She’s sitting up in the hospital bed, her braids draped over her shoulders and an IV in her arm. They’ve put her in one of those paper-thin hospital gowns and she’s got scratches and bruises marring her dark brown skin from tonight’s confrontation, but she’s okay.
She’s alive.
Her lips fucking curl at the sight of me, like she’s just as relieved to see me as I am her.
The weight that’s been pressing on my chest lifts just enough for the air to get through, my breaths coming out steadier. I step toward her bed and mutter, “Fuck… miracles do happen.”
Zoe’s brow furrows slightly. “What do you mean?”
“I meant to say…” I take in another breath, still so damn overwhelmed by the moment. “I meant to say… you’ve never looked better.”
A slow, confused smile tugs at her lips, her eyes blinking at me like she’s trying to figure me out. “Meanwhile, you look like you’re on the verge of passing out.”
“Yeah, kinda sorta happens when the girl you’re crazy about has a brush with death.”
Her smile fades into something else, something uncertain, making my stomach twist up tight.
Shit, that was too much. Too honest.
“I mean… uh… not trying to make it weird… but you know… I’ve got feelings for you… and stuff…”
Now she laughs, the sound weak but genuine, before she overdoes it and winces. “Ow.”
I lurch forward. “You need me to get the nurse?”
“I’m okay… just have to get used to the fact I had a gaping hole in my stomach not too long ago. But you… damn it, Oz… you never fail to make me laugh. Stuff , huh? What sort of stuff?”
I rub the back of my neck. “You know better than to expect articulate words outta me. I guess what I meant was… I know we didn’t plan this. We started out pretending, playing a part while we were undercover. But during that time, real feelings grew. It stopped being fake. At least for me. Somewhere along the way… I started to care about you. A lot. And I don’t think I ever wanna let that go. I don’t ever wanna… let you go.”
Her lips part, my name barely a whisper on them. “Ozzie…”
“There’s something between us, right?” I ask almost desperately. “There’s something here, Zoe. I know there is. I fucking feel it. Something I’ve never felt before. And you do too.”
The next few seconds are like torture. She releases a slow breath as it seems to take her a moment to gather herself. I see the hesitation, the doubt she has about this moment. Her reservations about opening up and being vulnerable.
I get it ’cuz I get her. I know how difficult these things are for her.
She licks at her chapped lips and then says, “I do. I feel it too, Oz. I feel it so much that sometimes it scares me. You know that I don’t… I’m the last person to open up in that way.”
“I’m scared too, Zoe. Fucking terrified,” I add with an honest laugh. “But I’m more scared of losing you. We need to explore this. Don’t you think it’s worth it?”
“When Boone stabbed me…” she starts, voice quieter than I’ve ever heard it. “My entire life flashed before my eyes. I know it sounds cliché, but it did. And I thought about my sister. How Zani and I would finally be reunited.” Her voice catches for a second, and I grab her hand to give it a squeeze, grounding her, letting her know I’ve got her. She blinks, long lashes lifting as she meets my gaze again. “But then… I also thought about you. How I didn’t want to leave yet. I wanted to live. I wanted to experience life in a way I haven’t let myself before. And I wanted that to be… by your side.”
Her confession is so damn earnest and real that it takes me another second to grasp what she’s said. I break out in a slow, stunned laugh as if I’ve just won the fucking lottery. Except a million times better.
“I know we don’t make sense on paper. That’s what I keep telling myself anyway,” she continues, giving me a small, almost self-deprecating smile. “But somehow, we work. And that’s all that matters. I want to find a way for us to be together. Whatever that looks like.”
I don’t wait. I move instinctively, wrapping her hand in mine and leaning in, capturing her lips in a kiss. It’s soft and gentle given her condition, but there’s nothing hesitant about it. It’s a promise shared between us, the beginning of what’s to come. Her fingers squeeze mine as she melts into the kiss and we let the moment sink in.
When we pull apart, I grin down at her, brushing my knuckles over her cheek. “Told you I’d win you over, Special Agent. You just had to give me time.”
She laughs, her hazel eyes full of warmth and affection, before she tugs me by the front of my shirt and kisses me this time.