Chapter 24
APRIL
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The noise is insistent as I wake up. But it’s not the noise that bothers me so much as the fire in my throat, which becomes overwhelming. Tears fill my eyes as a whimper escapes.
What happened to me? Why does my throat hurt so badly?
“Easy, sweets.” I hear his voice, feel his hand in mine, but I’m not sure I’m ready to face him. “You’re safe. I’m right here with you.”
Hearing his voice puts a crushing weight on my heart. The memory of him in his room with another woman.
Now, he’s right here with me. But why? Why would he want someone like me, who’s stupid and completely foolish?
He could have any woman he wants. It’s a proven fact. I heard him in his room.
Didn’t I?
I try to snatch my hand away, to get away from his touch, but it feels like a lead weight. He doesn’t let me go either.
“Open your eyes, April. I need to see those beautiful eyes of yours,” he says softly.
I shake my head, my breathing coming faster, the beeping growing in speed.
“April, baby, you need to calm down. You’re understandably upset and have every right to be, but you gotta get your breathing under control,” he says, letting go of my hand, only to cup the side of my face.
The warmth of his hand eases me. The feeling of safety comes with it.
Slowly, I open my eyes and meet his emerald gaze. I suck in a breath, then another, before croaking out a whisper, “Why?”
He seems to know exactly what I’m asking about as he sits on the edge of my bed. “Baby, there’s a lot you don’t know, and I’ll tell you. If you don’t believe me, Kayla can tell you, she was there. Hell, she beat the fuck out of Venus for her part in it all.”
Suddenly, everything comes rushing back to me, and I realize I blocked it out. Samuel showing up at my hotel room. Him hitting me. His hand at my throat, squeezing the life out of me. Him saying he’d gotten to . . .
I try to catch my breath, but it hurts. My heart feels like it’s about to shatter even more than before. How could I be such a foolish idiot?
“Shh, sweets, it’s okay. You’re safe. I’m here.”
When he touches me, I want to believe him. Every time he touches me, I feel that way. But now I’m wondering if it’s a feeling I can trust.
Venus was right about one thing. I’ll never be enough for him. How could I be? I’m . . . I’m me. Bland. Shy. Meek.
Sure, I have no trouble speaking my mind, but I have to feel safe before I do.
I struggle to meet Fool’s gaze and speak three words that rip the rest of my heart out, “You should go.”
Fool’s eyes flash with pain before he masks it and shakes his head.
He firms his grip on either side of my face without hurting me.
“I’m not leaving you, April. We’re gonna talk about this.
First, though, I need to know. Are you in pain?
They haven’t been able to give you anything yet because they’re waiting for toxicology to come back with the blood work. ”
Other than my heart breaking?
Humiliation?
Yes, I’m hurting in more ways than one, but I don’t tell him.
“I’m fine.” It’s a total lie. My throat hurts. My face hurts.
Fool narrows his gaze and strokes my cheeks with his thumbs. “You’re a shitty liar,” he whispers.
I look away and try to relax. He pulls away and takes my hand in his.
“I know what you think I did, but I wasn’t with one of the clubwhores in our room.
” He gets right to the point. “After I got back and saw your car was gone, but Torpedo and Kayla were both at the clubhouse, I went up to Rimfire’s room when you didn’t answer your phone.
As I was leaving his room, I noticed the door to mine was partially open.
One of the clubwhores took a prospect in there.
I saw them stepping out of there in the hallway camera footage. ”
Wait, there are cameras in the clubhouse?
I didn’t see any.
“No one knows about the cameras except members. Not even prospects know about them until they patch in. It’s a safety feature.
You wouldn’t see them. They’re concealed from anyone who might be looking.
” He pauses and lets out a heavy breath.
“I lost my mind when I realized what the hell happened and that they drove you away. But April, you gotta know I’m in this with you.
Always. I’d never fuck you over. I meant it when I married you.
No one,” he leans in, forehead pressing against mine, “no one could ever take my attention from you. You’re all I want and need. ”
I suck in a breath, tears pricking my eyes, and slide down my cheeks. “You mean that?” I croak in a husky whisper.
“Damn right I mean it.” He draws back, eyes locking with mine as he reaches up to brush away my tears. “You gotta know you fuckin’ own me, woman. Have since the moment I set eyes on you.”
“You own me too,” I admit.
“We’re going to get you through this, and we’ll figure out the rest.”
I nod and sink deeper into my pillow.
“Now, you want to answer my question about you hurting?” he prompts.
“My throat.” I wince, having already talked too much.
“Let me see if they’ll give you something for it,” he says, pressing the nurse call button.
Only a minute or two passes before a guy in blue scrubs enters the room. I stiffen slightly until he smiles.
“Well, it’s good to see you’re awake now. You’ve had this man here ready to bite everyone’s head off. I wouldn’t mind it, but I don’t think my husband would appreciate it. I’m Timothy,” he says, introducing himself as he comes closer.
“She says her throat hurts. Is she able to get anything for the pain yet?” Fool speaks up for me.
“Let me check with the doctor and get her in here. I know the toxicology report has just come in,” Timothy answers with a nod. “I’m just gonna grab your vitals really quick while I’m in here. Are you warm enough? Need another blanket?”
Honestly, I wouldn’t mind another blanket, so I nod in agreement. I definitely need to stop using my voice right now. The little talking I did made the fiery pain worse.
“I’ll get that for you in just a sec.” Timothy continues talking, treating me not like a patient but like a friend as he checks my vitals and then gets me a blanket. “I’ll track down your doctor and see what she says.”
“Appreciate it,” Fool thanks him for both of us.
When Fool brings his gaze back to me, he retakes my hand. “I might as well admit it now, before he comes back. Timothy is the only nurse allowed in here. I refused to have any of the women in here or any men who weren’t gay.”
I cock a brow, not understanding him.
“The nurse who was in here at first hit on me, and I got pissed. I told the doc to get someone who knew how to act professionally and wouldn’t make you uncomfortable when you woke. Timothy, the doc said, would be the best. I’m not so sure about that, though.”
I smile at him and shake my head.
Moments pass before Timothy comes back into the room with a woman behind him. She’s got gray hair pulled back into a slick ponytail and gentle eyes.
“Mrs. Underwood, it’s good to see you awake. How are you feeling? Can you feel your limbs?”
“Her limbs?” Fool questions.
Other than a slight movement of my head, I hadn’t even tried to move the rest of my muscles.
“Yes, the report said she had a high dose of a paralytic in her system,” she explains, then continues going over the symptoms. How it could take days for me to regain my equilibrium fully. “Can you try to move your toes?”
I try to focus my attention and barely manage a twinge, but it is something.
“That’s good. It should be fully out of your system in a few more hours.
Now that we know what was administered to you, we can finally provide pain relief.
You were lucky your attacker didn’t crush your windpipe.
You’ll want to take it easy with talking for the next few days to a week, maybe longer.
The bruising will fade in time, but nothing is broken. ”
“Thank you, Doc,” Fool remarks, giving my hand a squeeze. “When can she get out of here?”
“I’d like her to stay overnight, and we can release her in the morning, so long as she’s showing more motor skills.” Her eyes were on me the whole time. “You’ll want to follow up with primary.”
I give a jerky nod and swallow.
“Also, the police are still waiting to talk to you. I’ve told them you won’t be able to talk much. They understand this, but of course they still have their procedures to follow, as I do.”
I didn’t want to talk to the police. What exactly could they do, anyway?
After Timothy quietly administers something through the IV for the pain and then follows the doctor out of the room, I shift my gaze to Fool.
“It was Samuel,” I breathe out softly, hoping it wouldn’t hurt. It didn’t. Perhaps the meds they just administered were taking effect.
Fool’s eyes flash again, this time with murderous rage, as he leans in toward me and speaks in a low voice. “He’s going to pay for this. All of it.”
I don’t bother with protesting. If I’m honest with myself, after the way Samuel hurt me, it proved he wouldn’t stop until he got what he wanted.
I also know it could have been a whole lot worse.
I don’t know what happened after I passed out, but I remember someone coming to the door.
His friends getting pissed. Him, angry for not getting what he wanted right then–my refusal to be compliant and let him rape me.
“You should know . . .” I pause to clear my throat. It hurts, but I push through as I grow drowsy. “He or one of his friends who were with him said they did something with the whores at the clubhouse.”
“You don’t worry about that shit anymore, sweets,” he murmurs. “Right now, I want you to rest. Focus on getting your strength back so we can get you home where you belong.”
I nod and try to do that. To relax and not think about what happened to me. It’s not easy, and as the medicine fully takes effect, I do my best to think about the positive in all of this. I’m still here. Fool is with me, and he won’t let anyone come near me without him standing in the way.