Chapter 19
Derek
“I gotta go!” I tell Mav, tilting my head toward the door. “I called in our order over thirty minutes ago.”
“George’s Greek isn’t going to give it away,” Mav argues, pulling up the clip he wants me to watch. He has an idea for the cover of our new single. “It’s only two minutes long.”
He thrusts his phone in my hands. I tap play and watch the video, feeling the edgy vibe of the beer commercial.
“It’s a cool vibe,” I agree.
“It’s a sick vibe,” he kicks it up a notch.
I laugh. “Bro, I’m cool with it. Share your ideas with Claire. Make a fucking mood board. Run with it.”
Mav rears back, surprised. “Seriously?”
“Yeah.” I clasp his shoulder. “I trust you, man. Do you.” I shoulder my backpack. “Now, I really gotta—”
“Derek!” Henny rushes into the small kitchen attached to the studio.
I freeze at the thread of panic in his tone. Hendrix is laid-back. One of the calmest dudes I know. For him to be visibly worried has my nerves on high alert.
“What’s wrong?” I ask, a sense of déjà vu, quickly followed by sheer terror, rushes through me.
Mav is still beside me, his gaze trained on Henny.
The temperature in the small space, usually stuffy, plummets.
“It’s Allegra,” Hendrix breathes out. “The hospital called and—”
“The hospital?” Mav asks.
“She was attacked,” Hendrix supplies.
“Attacked?” The blood drains from my face.
My hands curl into fists as I try to steady the tremble of my fingers.
“What the fuck does that mean? How bad? Is she—” Anguish cuts my tone.
“Is she hurt? Fuck, of course she’s hurt.
The hospital…” I trail off, trying to make sense of what Hendrix is telling me.
“Which hospital?” Mav asks.
“What’s going on?” Levi barrels into the cramped space.
Mav cuts him a look. “It’s A.” His voice is quiet.
Fear floods Levi’s expression. Jameson steps up behind him.
Hendrix swears. “She’s at St. Clara’s, downtown. The nurse said a bus dropped her off.”
“A bus?” Levi asks, bewildered.
“Let’s go,” I command, rushing the door.
“I’ll drive.” Jameson is right behind me. He pulls my backpack from my shoulder and rifles inside for my keys. I let him because my head is too fucked up to drive. My mind is all over the damn place.
Someone hurt my girl.
Someone put his fucking hands on her.
The hospital.
Hurt. Alone. A goddamn bus.
I slide into the passenger seat of my Camry. Levi and Mav pile into the back seat. Jameson pulls away from the curb. We sit in silence, without music, as the car speeds toward the hospital.
My heart thuds in my temples. My stomach is slick with worry. My throat choked with emotion. That anger I used to feel in an instant is dormant. Instead, it’s snuffed out from straight-up panic for my Stellina. For her well-being. I need to see her, hold her, care for her.
I need her more than I need to seek revenge on the fucker who hurt her.
That will come afterwards. Right now… “Fuck,” I swear out loud.
No one responds.
Jameson drops us at the front of emergency. “I’ll park and meet you in there,” he says.
Mav, Levi, and I rush from the car and into the hospital. We skid to a stop in front of reception.
I open my mouth to bark questions at the nurse, but Maverick steps in. Leaning closer, he lowers his voice and explains our situation.
Her gaze darts to me, then Levi, before settling on Maverick. Recognition flares in her eyes and my heart sinks. If she asks for a fucking autograph, I’ll lose my goddamn mind.
“Right this way,” she says instead, surprising me.
The nurse leads us to a secluded waiting room and I’m relieved to have a moment of privacy. A second to pull myself together before I barrel into Allegra’s room.
The doctor appears a moment later. She sizes us up. “Which one of you is Derek?”
I step forward. “I am.”
She nods. “I’m Dr. Reese. Allegra has been asking for you.”
“I’m her boy—fiancé,” I lie, in case there’s some bullshit family rule.
The doctor doesn’t reply but from her expression, I know she knows I’m lying. I mean, technically. But, one day, I will be Allegra’s fiancé.
“I’m her brother.” Levi steps up beside me.
“Her best friend.” Mav raises his hand.
Dr. Reese nods again. Her eyes cut back to me. “She’s asking for you.”
I glance at Levi.
His expression is unreadable, but he shoves me forward. “Go.” His eyes meet mine. In them, I read acceptance.
Without overthinking it, I reach out and pull him into a hug.
He smacks my back. “Go. She needs you.”
“Thank you,” I tell him, thanking him for so much more than this moment. Déjà vu rocks through me again, momentarily disorienting, and I shake my head to clear the dizziness. It feels like we’ve been here before. And chance dictates we shouldn’t be back here again. Not this soon. Not like this.
I follow the doctor toward the double doors that lead to a hallway of patients’ rooms.
“A nurse will be out in a moment to explain Allegra’s care,” the doctor says over her shoulder.
We enter the long hallway and she leads me to Allegra. “She’s resting,” she cautions. “She’s okay. But she has a pretty severe concussion. Two of her ribs on the right side of her body are fractured. One is badly bruised. Her lip is stitched up and the side of her face is swollen.”
I pull in a sharp inhale as she explains Allegra’s injuries.
I don’t know what I expected but hearing them laid out like a grocery list pulls me up short.
I glance at the doctor. “Who was he?”
She shakes her head. “I don’t know.”
I close my eyes for a moment. “Will she be okay?”
“Yes. She’ll heal.”
“I mean emotionally. Mentally.”
Dr. Reese regards me with a look I can’t decipher. “I hope so.”
Fuck. “Me too.”
“She’s in here.” The doctor touches the doorframe to room 204.
“Thank you, Doctor,” I say.
She nods before continuing down the hallway.
I stand outside Allegra’s room for a second. Draw in a deep breath. Blank my expression. Then, I knock lightly and push inside.
She turns and meets my eyes as I enter.
The emptiness in them plunges into my chest like a knife.
Her eyes widen.
My heart breaks. I stride to her side and drop to the floor. My knees hit the tile and the jarring sensation pulses up my body, slamming into my throat. I barely feel it. I carefully reach for her hand. “Stellina.”
“Derek,” she breathes out. She slides her hand out from underneath mine and I hate the red scrapes that mar her knuckles. She grasps the back of my head and pulls me closer, and I go willingly, laying my head on her chest as she cradles me.
I should be comforting her but right now, she’s holding on to me for dear life, and I need it. I need her.
The urge to run, to take off and clear my mind, to track down the fucker and ruin his life, all take a back seat to her. To being with her, having eyes on her, caring for her.
Again, I don’t want to run as much as I want to stay. Need to fucking stay.
“You’re here,” her voice cracks.
I look up. “Of course, I’m here.”
A small smile tilts the corner of her mouth. “I was so scared.”
“I’m so fucking sorry, beauty.”
“But I did it. I got myself here.”
“I know. You’re brave, Allegra. So fucking strong.”
A tear forms in the corner of her eye. “I might be broken.”
“You’re perfect,” I refute her statement.
“I’m tired.”
“Then sleep, my love.”
She blinks slowly. “Will you stay?”
“I’m not going anywhere,” I promise.
“Because I’m exhausted. And too scared to close my eyes.” Her voice is a whisper, sleep already dragging her under.
I cup her uninjured cheek. “I’ll watch over you. Sleep, beauty.”
She closes her eyes. Her jaw relaxes. Her head turns, resting in my open palm.
I study her split lip. Her bruised cheek. Her scraped hands.
Fury rolls through my veins. Anger beads in my blood. Pure hate pulses in my temples. I want to destroy the man who did this to my Stellina.
Instead of reacting to the overwhelming emotions coursing through me, I take a deep breath. I shift to sit on the chair beside Allegra’s bed.
I pull out my phone and text the guys to let them know that Allegra’s sleeping. To inform them that I’m not leaving her fucking side. To tell them that she’s in room 204 if they want to pop their heads in but not to disturb her.
They come by to check on her. Levi looks crushed. Mav appears sickened. Jameson is withdrawn.
We all share a heavy look. Anger and anguish.
“You can’t all be in here,” a nurse warns. “She needs her rest.”
Levi cuts me a look. I arch an eyebrow.
He sighs. “Call me when she wakes up.”
“Promise,” I swear.
Mav and Jameson dip their heads. The three guys leave me with Stellina as I keep watch over her.
I listen to the evenness of her breathing. I watch the monitor that keeps track of her heartbeats. I study her beautiful face as she sleeps.
When she whimpers in her slumber, I place a hand on her chest. Immediately, she calms, quiets, and falls back into her dreams.
It soothes me just as much as her that I can provide her reassurance. That I can comfort her. That I am the man she needs in this moment. More than enough.
I don’t know how many hours pass. The nurse comes in several times to check on Allegra. She administers pain meds through an IV. Takes her temperature and checks her vitals.
When I feel myself start to doze off, I stand, stretch my legs, and call Dex.
“Hey!” He picks up on the first ring.
“Dad.” The word shoots out of my mouth without my thinking it. It feels natural. Normal. Surprise rocks through me.
He’s quiet for a beat. “You okay, son?”
Fuck. My throat squeezes. Emotion rolls through me. I clear my throat. “Allegra’s in the hospital.”
“What happened? Is she okay?” Worry laces his tone.
I exhale. “She was attacked.”
“What hospital? I’m on my way.” In the background, I hear the jangle of his keys.
I rattle off the information. Twenty minutes later, my father walks into Allegra’s hospital room with a tray of coffees and a bag of doughnuts. He places a chair beside mine and sits down quietly.
For several long moments, we stare at Allegra’s sleeping form.
Then, Dex takes a swig of his coffee and glances at me. “Close your eyes for a few, Derek. I’ll watch over her.”
My eyes burn even as I try to protest his suggestion. “I—”
“I promise to wake you the second her eyelashes flutter,” he swears.
I snort, but the drag of sleep pulls harder at his words. At his presence. “You won’t leave?” I ask, staring at my Stellina.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he promises.
“Okay,” I agree. I scoot my chair closer to Allegra’s bedside so I can hold her hand.
Then, I let my eyes drift shut. I let my father watch over us both.
And for the strangest fucking reason, I’m not as scared anymore.