7. Brogan
Ijust stared down at the beer, unable to even drink it. All I could do was dwell on the events of the day. My head shook softly back and forth as one disaster after another replayed in my mind. The last hour or so was on repeat.
“Whatever it is, I’m right here with you. Step for step,” Declan said as I raised my gaze to look at him.
How I love this man! Sometimes I truly believe that I don’t deserve him at all.
Sure, I saw all the same things that everyone else did when he graced their television screens.
From his dark hair that he normally kept swept back to his strong jawline and short-cut beard that I loved to feel against my groin when he’d deepthroat me.
And there were the dark, reflective pools of his blue eyes that I loved to stare into.
But there was so much more than his classically good looks.
He was fiercely loyal, and I couldn’t remember a single time in my life when he hadn’t been here for me.
A memory came to mind of the two of us running through the mountain trails with large sticks in our hands, talking about vanquishing monsters.
I bet he never thought the biggest one he’d ever know would end up being me. With all the shit going on, I wouldn’t have blamed him if he’d cut his losses and left me to deal with this bed I’d made. He hadn’t, and tonight was further proof of that.
“What if she doesn’t wake up?’ I voiced, now second-guessing the decision not to call the EMTs and letting them handle things with her at Sinclair Pharmaceuticals. It’d been an accident, and while it would’ve been inconvenient to deal with filing a report, it was the right thing to do.
Too many times in recent months, I’d made the wrong choice.
If only I’d stayed home the night of Layla’s disappearance, I would’ve had the alibi I’d needed.
Instead, the two of us had gone our separate ways after dinner, and I’d ended up at Declan’s Manhattan penthouse.
She’d gone to what I’d thought had been home, but who knew where she actually had ended up.
We’d fought at dinner, then she was gone, and I now had fingers pointing at me for her disappearance.
“She’ll wake up. I’m certain of—”
“And she has,” Declan and I jumped at the sound of Dr. Pierce’s voice as he walked into the kitchen.
“S-She has?” Declan asked.
“Yes, but I must warn you that she’s disoriented.”
Disoriented I could deal with it. “We need to go and see her.”
“Very well. Let’s go.”
Declan and the doctor followed me into the bedroom. When I entered, I noticed the woman in the bed, and I was definitely happy to see some of the color had returned to her skin. She was no longer as pasty white as she’d been upon arriving here.
“Enslee,” I said as I approached her.
Not sure if I had expected her to back away in horror or what, but her calm demeanor was surprising. She just stared at me as I took the seat the doctor had just been in, then picked up her hand. Wide doe eyes swept over my face before landing on my gaze and holding it.
“Do I know you?” she asked in a soft voice.
“Do you not recognize us?” he asked her.
She furrowed her brow as she looked between the two of us. She then froze once more at Declan, and color bloomed in her cheeks. “No. Who are you and why am I here?”
“I’m Brogan Sinclair.” I then pointed at the man standing beside me. “And this is Declan Fitzgerald.”
Dr. Pierce came over and placed a hand on my shoulder. “And I’m the physician they called in to check on you.”
“Physician? Am I sick?”
“No, absolutely not. You had a fall and bumped your head.”
“It would explain why it hurts so bad then.”
“Could she take Tylenol?” Declan asked the doctor.
“I have something for her in a bit.” He then looked at me, and I finally realized that he wanted to examine her further, so I rose from the chair so he could sit. Once he did, he picked up her hand and was checking her pulse. “Do you remember your name?”
“Enslee,” she said confidently.
“Age?”
She pursed her lips together. “I don’t know.”
“Do you know what year it is?” She shook her head. “What city you are in?” Again, she shook her head. “Do you remember where you were when you fell?”
“I-I don’t remember anything,” she stammered, and as distress filled her, I could see her getting more agitated. “What happened to me?” she asked as she turned to Declan and me.
“You were with us when you fell and hit your head,” I said to her.
“Noooo, that cannot be. I don’t know you. Or you,” she said, pointing to Declan. “I have to get out of here.”
“Where are you going to go?” I asked her.
Tears now threatened to fall, and as her watery gaze landed on mine, she let out a sob. “I don’t remember anything other than my name. I don’t remember falling. I don’t know how we know each other. I just want to leave, but I don’t know where to. What’s wrong with me?”
“I’d like to know that too,” Declan said to the doctor.
“Shhh,” he said to Enslee as she grew more agitated. “It’s going to be okay. You’ve suffered a traumatic injury, and you just need to get some rest. I have something for the pain. Does your head still hurt?”
“Yes,” she said, and the doctor asked Declan and me to leave for a few minutes. I hesitated until Declan pulled at my arm.
Once out in the hallway, I started to pace. A few minutes later, Dr. Pierce joined us with his medical bag in hand. “How is she really?”
“I’ve given her something mild to help with the pain and also put her out so she can get some rest. Neurologically, everything checks out.”
“But she doesn’t seem to remember anything,” I said to him.
Declan’s hand came down on my shoulder as my voice shook. Lee smiled sympathetically at me. “She’s experiencing TGA, or transient global amnesia, which is short-term memory loss.”
“Will she regain her memories?”
“Yes, in time. She needs to be surrounded by familiar things and people. This can last from a few hours or days to weeks or months. There’s no definitive amount of time.”
“Amnesia, fuck!” I cursed.
“Thanks, Lee. Will you be back in the morning to check on her?”
“Absolutely, and I suspect she should sleep peacefully for the rest of the night, but please call me if her condition worsens or she wakes up agitated.”
We agreed to do so, and once he left, I stood there in the doorway of the room she was in. The brunette was sleeping peacefully, as evidenced by the soft snoring she was doing. I let out a sharp exhale and tensed when Declan wrapped his arms around me.
“Let’s go and shower while she sleeps. We can then come back and check on her,” he suggested.
I nodded, then we went down the hallway to our bedroom. Once inside the bathroom, I could see the blood stains on my white shirt, and even on Declan’s T-shirt. There were also patches of it on my skin.
As soon as Declan started the shower, we both got undressed, then moved inside the oversized enclosure. The water was scalding hot as I stood under one of the two large rain showerheads above me. Eventually, I pressed my palms to the tile in front of me as my head hung low.
“When am I going to catch a fucking break?” I asked aloud as I balled my hands up into fists, then smacked them down repeatedly on the stone.
Declan pulled my hands back. “Hey, it seems dark as fuck right now, but I believe the light is nearby. You have to believe it too.”
“I want to, but it’s just one shitty thing after another. I’m going fucking crazy, man.”
“I know, baby,” he said as he wrapped his arms around me from behind. He began to kiss along my flesh with his full lips, and as his beard grazed my wet skin, I let out a small groan. “We’re going to get through this. I promise.”
“I’m just so tired… frustrated… angry… If I don’t let something out, it’ll completely consume me. I can’t slip into the darkness like I did in the past. If I do, I’ll—”
“Shh, Brogan. Nothing needs to be said. Just feel. Be with me in this moment. I want to shoulder all that hurts you. You just have to let me.”
I groaned again as his hand came up around my throat and my head was roughly tipped to the side. Seconds later, his mouth came down hard on mine. I returned his kiss and jerked slightly when his free hand wrapped around my cock.
Instant hardness. Just a few hours ago, his warm mouth had been where his hand was, but either one would be great in this moment.
Only, I needed more. I needed to feel pain.
Basically, anything to remind me that I was still alive.
Lately I’d felt like a dead man walking, but I needed to make this good for Declan, and I would.
But first… I wrapped one of my hands up and around his neck as he held me, while the other wrapped around his hand. As soon as it did, I began to show him how I needed him to be. We often fucked roughly, but I needed it tonight like one needed air to breathe.
Groaning more against his lips, I helped him jerk me off hard and fast. The water helped in that endeavor as it allowed my shaft to slide more easily through our hands. Declan would squeeze me at alternate times and spots, and each one brought me that much closer to the climax I was chasing.
“Damn!” I let out the moment his mouth left mine. I still tried to draw his tongue back between my lips, but he nibbled on it, sending more pain racing through my bloodstream. “I’m about to come,” I warned as he dug his fingers more tightly into my aching flesh.
“Do it,” he said, and I threw my head back as spurt after spurt of my seed covered our joined hands.
He continued to stroke me through it, which kept me hard the entire time.
When he finally did loosen his grip and step back, his next words sent renewed arousal coursing through me. “Now fuck me, Brogan.”
I turned and watched as he moved to the other end of the shower. I followed, and seconds later, I gripped his throat and slammed him face-first against the tile.