Chapter 32
Parker
The annoying sounds of beeping woke me up. The smell of disinfectant and the distant sounds of voices coming from beyond the door told me immediately that I was in a hospital room. Most of my previous pain was dulled by whatever was making my head feel heavy.
I turned bleary eyes to the right, unsurprised to find my room filled with three large, incredibly handsome men.
Two were spread out on the uncomfortable looking couch, while the third was reclined in the hard plastic chair next to my bed, his head tilted at such an uncomfortable angle I winced in sympathy.
Dante was going to have one hell of a crick in his neck.
At least Gage and Ry looked adorable as they used each other to lean on.
The door opened, and I turned to see a nurse walk in, dragging a cart with her. I lifted a finger, telling her silently to not disturb my guys. She paused as she saw me awake, then grinned with a wink.
“I’m happy to see you awake, Miss Parker. Those guys over there haven’t left the room once since you got out of surgery.”
I frowned. “Surgery?” I whispered back.
“The doctor will come in to talk to you, but yes. You had to have emergency surgery for internal bleeding. You should make a full recovery, though, so don’t worry.
” I just nodded as she took my vitals and made notes on the tablet she had sitting on top of her cart.
When she was done, she patted my arm. “I’ll let the doctor know you’re awake. ”
As the door closed behind her, the sound had Dante jerking up.
I watched as he winced and brought a hand up to rub at his neck.
It took him a good minute to notice me staring at him.
“Cherish! You’re finally awake.” He leaned over me, brushing at my hair.
It made me wonder who had cleaned me up.
I was sure I must have been a mess after killing that bastard.
I waited for something to hit me. Shame, regret, self-recrimination. I felt nothing but relief that he was finally gone.
Ry jumped up from the couch, making Gage snort awake as he jerked upright to keep from falling over. It made me start to laugh, but then I groaned as I pressed a hand to my belly. Laughing hurts. Duly noted.
Ry pushed Dante to the side and leaned over me. He took my face in his hands and started kissing me everywhere. My cheeks, my nose, my forehead, then finally, he settled on my lips.
When he pulled back, his face was full of pain, hurt, and anger. “I’m so fucking mad at you right now.”
I reached up with the hand that didn’t have an IV poking through it and gripped one of his forearms. “I know. I’m sorry.”
Nothing had gone as expected. Sure, I had managed to take care of Morris all by myself, but I had never accounted for the insanity that happened with Walker.
“Don’t you ever do that shit to me again, pretty girl!” There were tears in his eyes as Ry’s gaze roamed over my face.
“I won’t,” I whispered.
Gage moved closer and placed a hand on Ry’s shoulder. Ry looked back at him with a glare, but stepped back, allowing Gage to come next to me. I could feel the intensity of his stare as his eyes ran over every inch of me, before settling on my face. “You don’t have to do things alone anymore.”
A tear escaped the corner of my eye and trailed down my cheek before he stopped it with one of his fingers. He gently swiped the tear away as another quickly took its place. A groan seemed to tear from his chest as he watched.
“I don’t want to see you cry anymore.” His voice sounded raw and so full of pain it made my heart clench. “You don’t know what it does to me to see you like this,” he said brokenly.
“Gage,” I whispered.
“Walking into that cabin and seeing you lying there on that table, knowing what that man was planning to do to you…” He dropped to his knees beside the bed. “God, Cherish. Fuck.”
His hands gripped my free hand tightly in his. As I stared at his bent head, I hated myself for what I had done to him. I lifted my gaze and found Dante and Ry, seeing the same agony that Gage was feeling reflected in their eyes.
I choked on a sob. “I’m so sorry.”
Gage lifted his head, his eyes rimmed in red. “I can’t do this anymore, Cherish.”
I sucked in a breath at his words. Was he telling me that he no longer wanted me? Did he want me out of their lives for good? I would accept whatever they wanted, even knowing that it would kill me slowly inside every day.
“I need you to decide.”
I blinked. “What?”
“Cherish,” Gage said, “you made each of us fall in love with you just by walking into our lives. We need you to decide if you want to stay here with us. If you choose to leave, we won’t stop you. But I can’t keep wondering where your heart is at.”
My heart beat rapidly, the heart monitor telling the whole room in an instant. I looked between Ry and Dante again to see that, once again, they were in agreement with Gage.
“You want me to stay,” I said it as a statement instead of a question. “You—you love me?” His previous words finally penetrated my shock.
Gage smiled at me. “How could I not?”
A short, disbelieving laugh burst from my chest. “I don’t know what to say,” I choked out.
Gage’s smile faltered, then slipped away. The brightness in his blue eyes dimmed as I watched, my heart clenching at the sight. Before he could pull his hands from mine, I jerked my hand free, then I covered both of his hands with mine, stopping him from moving.
“That’s a lie,” I whispered. “I know what to say, it’s just hard to say it.
” I glanced between the three of them again.
“You three have shown me more patience, more tenderness, more compassion, and more caring than anyone has since before my sister died. When you approached me with your proposal, I accepted because I wanted more of what you had already given me. I knew it was only temporary, and I knew it would hurt when I left, but I wanted it anyway, knowing it would be enough to carry me for the rest of my life. Only,” I shook my head. “I was wrong.”
“Cherish,” Dante said quietly.
“I was wrong because temporary could never possibly be enough. I love you. I love all of you more than I could ever have imagined I could love another person. You took my broken soul and pieced it back together. You showed me how beautiful life could be just sitting by a pond.” I looked at Dante.
“You showed me how someone could look past the scars of the past and see the strength that grows from those scars.” I looked at Ry.
“You showed me that there’s beauty that can come from the pain,” I whispered to Gage. “I can’t live without you. I never want to try.”
“So, you’ll stay?” Dante asked, and I turned to look at him, seeing his beautiful face, not marred by scars, but enhanced by them, because scars don’t mar someone’s soul. They make your soul brighter when you survive them. Ry taught me that.
“I’ll stay,” I agreed without hesitation.
“Then there’s only one thing left to discuss,” Ry said with a grin.
I tilted my head as I eyed him. “What’s that?”
“Which one of us you’re going to marry.”
I sucked in a breath, the heart monitor going wild again behind me.
Before anyone could say another word, there was a sharp knock on the door before it opened.
A tall man with a balding head walked in holding a tablet and wearing a long, white coat.
Gage got to his feet, but gripped my hand tightly in his.
“Miss Parker, I’m Dr. Patel. It’s good to see you awake. How are you feeling?”
I took in a breath, still reeling from Ry’s last words. “I’m good.”
“Are you in any pain?”
I realized that I hadn’t even thought of pain since the guys and I started our little confessions to each other. “Umm, my head hurts a little. My ribs. My stomach hurt when I laughed.” I shook my head. “Other than that, I just feel a little woozy from whatever medication you have me on.”
He chuckled as he made notes on his tablet.
“All of that is to be expected. You have a minor concussion and bruised ribs, but we had to do an emergency surgery to remove your spleen. There was a small tear that caused internal bleeding. We will keep you under observation for a couple of days, but I don’t expect any complications.
You will have to take it easy for a few weeks as you heal.
No lifting anything over ten pounds, no driving until you are off pain meds.
You can return to work after three weeks. ”
He looked over my vitals, seemingly satisfied by whatever he saw there.
He glanced at my guys. “I trust one of you will be taking care of Miss Parker during her recovery period?” Every one of them immediately replied in the affirmative.
Dr. Patel smiled. “It’s good to see that you have so many people who care about you.
Alright, I’ll leave you to rest. I’ll check back with you before it’s time to be discharged, unless the nurse sees any problems arise. Have a good day.”
“Thank you, Dr. Patel,” I said. He nodded at me first, then gave a nod to the guys before leaving just as quickly as he arrived. I glanced back at my men. “Holy shit. I lost a spleen?”
Gage’s grip on my hand tightened almost painfully before loosening his grip again. “I could kill that bastard all over again.”
I sighed as I leaned my head back against the pillow. “Thank goodness he’s finally gone.” I yawned and felt my eyes grow heavy.
I felt lips press softly against mine. “Rest. We will go grab you something so you don’t have to eat hospital food.”
I heard Ry speak up. “You’d better ask the nurse first, she might be on a special diet.”
“Fine. But I’m still getting her something from the diner. My grandma’s food will be better for her than the hospital garbage.”