Chapter 29
TWENTY-NINE
Clay and Joshua come rushing in, looking around frantically while I sit in the waiting room, my body still trembling from the adrenaline rush.
“Fuck, kitten.” Clay comes over to me, eyes brimming with tears when he tugs on my right arm to pull me to my feet and into a hug.
“Ah…” I whimper, pressing my eyes closed, and Clay lets go of me immediately.
“Are you hurt?” Joshua asks, nearly pushing Clay out of the way to look at me. “Haven’t they checked you?”
I was so lost in my thoughts about Xander and the accident, holding my arm still, that I had not thought about my shoulder.
“I’m fine. I just dislocated my shoulder,” I grunt out.
“What? And why has no one treated you yet?” Joshua looks at me with disbelief. “Wait, I am going to find a doctor,” he announces, but I halt him.
“No, it’s fine,” I argue.
“It’s not fucking fine, you’re hurt, you—” he starts, but I just take my arm by my elbow and push it up at an angle.
Now I am no longer panicking, the move works on the first try, but the pain makes me whimper slightly.
“Fucking badass,” Clay mumbles.
“How did you…” Joshua looks at me with wide eyes.
I shrug and explain, “Not the first time,” making him grimace.
“Here,” Clay says softly, taking off his parka and putting it around my shoulders. It’s still warm from his body, and I finally realize how cold I am without shoes and wearing only the dress.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
“Come on, let’s get to Xander. He is out of his mind with worry. He woke up, and you were gone, and nobody could tell him where you were.”
“He’s awake?” I ask, tears starting to form in my eyes.
“Yes, he is fine. It is just a little concussion,” Joshua reassures me, putting a hand on the small of my back to lead me before he stops abruptly. “Where are your shoes?”
“Ditched them.” I shrug.
Clay gets in front of me and bends down to grab me under my thighs.
“What are you doing? No!” I protest when I realize he wants to carry me bridal style.
“I won’t let you walk barefoot in a hospital, kitten. Come on, Xander is waiting.” he urges.
I hate it, but I am just too tired to argue, and I need to see Xander, so I put my arms around Clay’s neck as he bends down again. He puts one arm under my thighs and the other around my back, then stands, making me cling to him even more.
He looks at me and says softly, “Let’s go get our man.”
We enter a hospital room, and Clay gently sets me down. With a deep breath, I glance at the bed on the right, where Xander sits upright.
He is wearing a hospital gown, his temple is patched up, and he gives me a grumpy look.
Fuck, is he mad at me?
“You!” he growls out. “Come here.”
I freeze in place, unsure of what to do, when Clay wraps his arms around my waist and carries me the few steps to the side of the bed.
“Don’t make him ask twice,” he whispers in my ear, and I can hear the smirk in his voice.
I’m trembling, but Xander reaches out and grabs my wrist, pulling me toward him. As soon as I am close enough, he places his hands on my hips and lifts me onto the bed and in his lap, hugging me tightly from behind.
Relief washes over me as he holds me close, and I have to bite my lips to keep them from trembling, tears brimming in my eyes, making the room blurry. I close my eyes for a brief moment, savoring the feeling of his breath against my neck.
We made it.
He’s okay.
“Babe, they told you not to overdo it,” Clay reminds him from beside us, but Xander is just breathing in my hair, holding me close.
“I am so sorry,” he whispers, and when I turn my head to look up at him, there are tears in his eyes. “I lost control. I shouldn’t have—” I lean in to silence him with a kiss, and he grabs the back of my head to deepen it.
“Oh, that’s new,” Clay snickers from beside us. “At least that whole ordeal brought something good.”
I break the kiss, looking into his eyes. “It wasn’t your fault. Someone wanted us to crash.”
“Why do you think that?” Joshua asks, coming up on the other side of the bed and looking at me with a frown.
“Del Moro warned me to be careful because accidents happen. And two days later, another car that miraculously disappeared right afterward pushes us off the road?”
“What happened anyway? I remember we spun on the ice before we crashed into something,” Xander asks.
“We hit a streetlamp. It wasn’t that bad. You just hit your head pretty hard.” I grimace.
“You didn’t get hurt?” he asks me, scanning my face.
“I am fi—” I start.
“She dislocated her shoulder,” Joshua interrupts, crossing his arms over his chest.
“That wasn’t because of the crash,” I brush him off, regretting it the moment it leaves my mouth.
“What was it then?” Joshua raises an eyebrow at me.
“Wait, the towing company I called is calling back. Do you know where you crashed so they can go get the truck?” Clay asks me.
“It should be right outside the emergency entrance if they haven’t moved it yet.”
They all fix their eyes on me.
“Wait, you didn’t call an ambulance? Why did Tom call me then?” Clay asks, confused.
“You drove him here? In the snow? Do you even have a driver’s license?” Joshua asks at the same time.
“I don’t know if I should answer that question while two cops are present,” I half joke. “But in my defense, you guys had our phones, and there was no way to reach anyone.”
Clay steps to the side, answering the call, and Joshua steps closer to the bed.
“How did you dislocate your shoulder?” he asks, not letting it go.
I turn to look at Xander, who is also looking at me intently before I try to scoot off the bed. But he doesn’t let me go. He only pulls me even closer to him.
“I needed to move something heavy.” I shrug. “But honestly, I dislocate it all the time. It’s no big deal.”
“Fuck, you had to get me out of the driver’s seat,” Xander breathes out, his eyes wide as realization sinks in.
“So, you drove here, in the snow, with a dislocated shoulder and no driver’s license?” Joshua summarizes, searching my face.
“Please don’t arrest me.” I wince.
Xander huffs a laugh against my hair before he kisses the top of my head.
“We’re off duty and not going to tell anyone, right, Josh?” Clay confirms when he comes back to the side of the bed.
“Did you see the Del Moros in the car that hit you?” Joshua asks, reaching out to push a strand of hair behind my ear.
“No, I didn’t see anything. It’s just a feeling,” I admit, but I feel in my gut that I am right.
“We’re going to look into that,” he promises with a nod.
Xander turns my head, holding my chin and pecking my lips. “My heroine.”
“I am never going to let you two go out by yourself again, that’s for sure,” Clay chimes in.
I lean my forehead against Xander’s, huffing a laugh. “Called it.”