Chapter 12
Twelve
Kingston
I’m finalizing our dinner reservations for tonight when Ella’s name flashes on my phone with her call.
“Hey, sweetheart,” I say, “I was just thinking of tonight—”
“Bash is in the hospital,” she says in a panicked voice.
My heart stops. “He’s what ?”
“There was a fight. He got cut up, he’s hurt, Kingston, and I don’t know what to do, they won’t let me in to see him—”
“I’ll be right there. Which hospital?”
“Margaret Chung.”
“Okay, baby girl.” I stride to the door, mentally mapping the fastest route to the Margaret Chung Medical Center. “Hang tight. Who’s with you?”
“Kellan and Natasha.”
At least she isn’t alone. I need to be there with her, though. For her, and for Sebastian. “I’m on my way.”
The ride to the hospital is a blur. Garth drives so I won’t have to worry about parking. As soon as he drops me off, I stride into the building and go to the ER waiting room to find Ella.
Her eyes are wild and fearful. She stands in a waiting room, wringing her hands together.
The nurses won’t inform me anything other than that they’ll send a doctor out to speak with us shortly. Ella calls Bash’s cousin, Lin. Natasha and Kellan leave to get us food. Nobody’s actually hungry, but I think they’re looking for an excuse to take a break from the tension.
I hold Ella’s hand and give her another hug before stepping back to look at her.
Her hair looks good—she must have at least finished her salon appointment before Bash got hurt.
“Tell me what happened,” I say.
She recounts being followed into an alley with Natasha, then Sebastian and Kellan coming to the rescue. There was a fight.
“Were you hurt?” I ask. “Or Kellan or Natasha?”
“No, we’re all fine. Maybe some bruises, but—”
“Show me,” I say, reaching for her arms.
“I’m fine , Kingston,” she says. “Sebastian was stabbed . Don’t worry about me.”
I whirl around. I am worried about her. I’m worried about Bash. Staring beyond the hospital windows, out over San Esteban, I think about how easy it would be to lose them. One moment here, the next moment, gone.
I pack the thoughts up, shove them into a box in my mind to take out later.
Turning back to Ella, I ask, “Have you talked to the police yet?”
“Yes. They didn’t seem like they were hopeful about finding the men who hurt Bash.” She shakes her head. “I don’t know what else to do.”
“We’ll ask Ironwood to look into this, as well,” I say. It certainly couldn’t hurt, and Lin is going to have a more vested interest in this investigation, anyway, given that it involves her cousin.
“Sure, I…I actually have a photo of them,” Ella says. “I tried sending it to my brother to ask if he knew them. I texted it to the police detective, too.”
“Yeah, we’ll give it to Ironwood as well. You can talk to Lin when she gets here.”
Natasha and Kellan return with food, which is shared all around.
Lin arrives, and Ella goes through the incident again.
Then, Detective Baldwin from the police department shows up to ask Ella some more questions about the attack.
He also talks to Natasha and Kellan. When he’s done, we still don’t know how Bash is doing.
Ella’s holding herself together, but I can tell she’s retreating, mentally.
So much so, I don’t think her emotions are only about Bash.
Then I remember. “You’ve had some bad hospital experiences, haven’t you?”
She gives a little shrug. “Yeah, some.”
“How about you go back to my place?” I suggest. “You can rest, and I’ll stay in touch.”
“It’s okay. I want to be here for Sebastian. This isn’t about me.”
I lead her to two cushioned seats and take one, gesturing for her to take the other. She sits down gingerly and I tug her until she leans against my shoulder.
“Are you sure you’re not hurt?” I ask.
“Very light bruising,” she says. “I got knocked over, but I’m really okay, I promise.”
The doctor walks through the doors, his face expressionless. “I’m looking for Sebastian Crown’s family.”
“That’s us,” Lin, Ella, and I say, standing up.
“He’s out of surgery,” the doctor says, “and he’s doing well. We’d like to keep him here for a few days and make sure he heals up properly.”
Ella exhales in relief, and so do I.
Ella
On Monday, I’m back in the hospital at Sebastian’s bedside. He’s recovering quickly, getting up to use the restroom on his own, holding down his food. The wound is healing well, according to the doctors, but they want to keep him until Wednesday, and he’s getting antsy.
“Ugh, this is bullshit,” Sebastian says, jabbing the power button on his remote control to shut off the news playing from the TV bolted to the wall across from his bed.
“Do you want me to get King’s tablet?” I ask. “We could stream something.”
“No, sorry, princess. I’m just bored as hell.”
I stroke his arm, careful to avoid the bruises left from his IV. It’s tricky because they’re hidden by his tattoos. “Understandable. What kind of medicine do they have you on?”
“Some pain killers, mostly. I told them I didn’t care what they gave me, as long as it doesn’t come from Perdure Pharma.”
“Is that Joel’s mom’s company?”
Sebastian nods. “Yeah. They’re mostly famous for manufacturing diet pills, though. Not pain meds. I don’t want to talk about those assholes, though. How’s Schrode?”
I’ve been taking care of Schrodinger for the past few days. Kingston and I even slept at Bash’s place last night, so the kitty wasn’t neglected.
I pull a few pics up on my phone, proud of the new cardboard scratching house I’ve assembled. It’s designed to look like a donut shop.
“I like it,” Sebastian says.
His approval is like a drug, and I give him a big grin.
“Fuck, you’re gorgeous,” he says. “Climb up here with me.”
I give a dubious look to the hospital bed.
He scoots to one side, wincing slightly. “Come on, plenty of room.”
“Yeah, maybe if I were on top of you,” I say.
He chuckles. “Well, I wouldn’t argue against that, but the nurses might have something to say.”
I ease onto the bed next to him. Up closer to him, everything is better—his natural scent, spicy and clean like peppermint, overcomes the hospital smells. Immediately, I feel my muscles easing, some of my worry melting away.
Leaning toward me, he kisses my cheek before falling back. “You don’t have to hang out with me, you know.”
“I want to,” I say simply.
“If you say so.”
“I mean it.” I can’t help but sound a little harsh, because the thought of him believing, for one single second, that I don’t want to be here with him, is intolerable. “I want to be here, so don’t try to drive me away, okay?”
He puts his hand over mine. “Okay, Ella. Thank you.”
I must drowse off after a little while, because Sebastian nudges me gently, waking me up.
“Hey, princess. Kingston is here.”
I open my eyes and see him leaning against the end of the bed.
“Hi, Daddy.” Turning to Sebastian, I say, “Why did you let me sleep? I’m supposed to keep you company.”
“It’s not your job to entertain me,” he says. “You simply being here is enough for me.”
“Hmph,” I say, sounding grouchy and groggy.
He just grins at me.
“Well, do you want me to grab some food for us all?” I ask.
“Already brought some,” Kingston says, pointing to a couple of takeout bags on a little table to the side of the room.
We share the Chinese food, eating and talking.
It isn’t the same as being at home, though, and that bothers me.
It kills me that Sebastian is here, and I wish the two of them would talk about it, talk about how close he came to death, how just a few inches to one side or the other could’ve meant our entire world falling apart.
But I can’t bring it up, not while he’s still here and healing. I don’t want to upset him.
After we’re done eating, I say, “Well, I should probably head over to Bash’s place and feed Schrodinger.”
“I already did that, too,” Kingston says with a smirk.
“Well, you just think of everything, don’t you?” I say.
His stormy eyes darken. “What can I say, I like to have things under control.”
“There’s something we wanted to talk to you about, together,” Sebastian says, looking over at Kingston. “Stop flirting, this is serious.”
“Serious?” I ask, setting my empty plate in my lap.
“We’d like to hire some personal security for you,” Kingston says.
I switch my focus between the two of them. “Like, bodyguards?”
“Exactly like that,” Sebastian says. “We’ve been talking to Jaxon and Ryder at Ironwood Security, but we want to make sure it’s okay with you.”
Kingston adds, “The final decision is up to you, Ella, but I really want you to take the threats seriously, and—”
“Yes,” I say. “It’s okay. If having someone around can help prevent things like what happened on Saturday, then it’s okay with me.”
Kingston and Sebastian both look at me with astonished expressions.
“That easy?” Sebastian says.
“Yes, it’s that easy. If it weren’t for me, it wouldn’t be necessary, and I feel like shit about that.” As I speak, a familiar feeling of shame clouds my happiness. “But that doesn’t change anything. I just wish I could contribute to paying for it.”
“Maybe when you’re rich and famous,” Sebastian says. “Which shouldn’t be long from now. Yeah, I saw your VideYou subscriber count earlier today. You’re killing it, Cinderella.”
“Well, as soon as VideYou’s checks start coming in, expect me to contribute,” I say.
These first checks won’t be huge—not even enough to live on, really. But extra money coming in from doing work that I love is a mental game-changer.
“Ironwood won’t have anyone ready until Friday, so until then, we’re being careful and vigilant, okay?” Kingston gives me a stern look.
“Gotcha,” I say. “Very careful.”
Kingston
The next night, Ella and I have dinner with Bash in the hospital again. He’ll be coming home tomorrow unless something changes, and it’s obvious he can’t wait. I can’t imagine how much it must suck for someone like him, who’s always moving around, to be stuck in a bed.
I bring Ella back to our place after dinner with Bash.
Our place . I fucking love the sound of that.
She retreats to the bedroom to change from her jeans to sweatpants. It cracks me up that she does this—every time she comes home, without fail. As soon as she’s in the door, she puts on something that could pass for pajamas. I love that about her—comfort trumps style.
She doesn’t come back out from the bedroom, though.
“Ella?” I call.
“Yeah?”
Her voice sounds weird—tight and upset. Immediately alarmed, I hurry into the bedroom.
She’s sitting on the edge of the bed, in her t-shirt and underwear, crying.
“Oh, baby girl,” I say, gathering her in my arms.
“I’m sorry, I just—I miss Bash, and I miss the three of us hanging out together, and if those guys hadn’t been after me, he wouldn’t have nearly died. He could’ve died, King!”
“He could’ve died,” I say, “but he didn’t. He’s coming home tomorrow, too. It’s okay.”
“It’s not okay. My stupid brother and his stupid gambling addiction brought this about. If it weren’t for me, Bash would be okay.”
My poor little girl has the entirely wrong idea about all of this shit.
“First,” I say, “none of this is your fault, Ella. None of it. The real people to blame here are the guys in the alley. It sounds like the police will never find them, even with your photo, but you’ve helped as much as you can. You did not do this to Sebastian.”
“I know,” she says, sniffling. “I just feel so bad, just the same.”
“I know, sweetheart. Come on, let’s brush our teeth and go to bed.”
“I don’t want sex.” She scrubs her hands over her cheeks and looks up at me apologetically.
“No problem, and don’t feel bad about that, ever. I just want to take care of you, however you need.”
We get ready for bed and I tuck her in, then turn out the light before climbing under the covers beside her.
I’m not tired in the slightest, but as I hold my girlfriend, I feel at peace.
I feel restful and content, because even though things are shitty right now, we still have each other.
And tomorrow, Sebastian will be here to hold her, too.
She reaches for me in the middle of the night, her fingers tracing the waistband of my boxer briefs. Faint city light filters through the blinds, and I can make out Ella’s outline, her hair fanned out on the pillow next to mine.
Her voice is low as she whispers, “I need you, Daddy. Please.”
“You have me.”
“I’m still upset,” she says.
“That’s okay. What do you want?”
“I want you to fuck me. Take my mind off of everything. I can’t sleep and I want you and I want Bash and he’s not here…”
“Shhh,” I say, kissing her cheeks, her lips. “I’ll take care of you, little girl.”
Her body is lush and soft against mine. I hold her close, running my hands over her smooth skin.
I move my hands beneath her tank top and ease it off of her, cupping her sensitive breasts with my palms as I go.
Her nipple is tight and hard as I draw it between my lips, sucking gently while Ella moans.
“Daddy,” she whimpers, clutching at my shoulders. “Daddy, I can’t wait anymore.”
Continuing my attention on her nipples, I bring down a hand and stroke her through her panties. Even through the fabric, I can tell that she’s nice and wet.
“Please, please, please,” she moans.
I yank down my boxer briefs, slide the fabric of her panties aside, and push into her. She’s tight, and although she’s wet, I don’t go all the way in at once—I don’t want to hurt her. I want to cherish her.
“Kingston,” she gasps, wrapping her legs around me.
“I’m right here, little one. Let me in.”
She relaxes her inner muscles and I rock back and forth, easing farther in with each stroke. Once I’m fully sheathed by her, I kiss her mouth and stare into her eyes.
“Hey, little one. Doing all right?”
“Better than all right,” she whispers.
Stroke after stroke, I replace her pain with pleasure.