Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Chloe had a hard time falling asleep. Between that and Jamie waking her every two hours, it was near impossible to join the land of the blissfully unconscious.
Especially with Davin in the room and the stress that whoever had knocked her out and shot Versed into her might try to come after her again.
Neither of them spoke, but she could hear his breathing, and it was not the settled pattern of a sleeper.
The text Davin had received was from Robinette.
Chloe would bet her favorite Nike burnt orange sweat outfit on it.
He’d acted all guilty and wouldn’t tell her who had texted him, but he’d been at lunch with Robinette today and that was why he’d come into the bookstore later than usual.
He even admitted he felt guilty about that.
He’d tried to play it off, claiming the guilt was because he could’ve prevented her injury, but she could bet he felt uncomfortable revealing he was dating Robinette when it had to be obvious that Chloe was gone over him.
Why had he offered to stay, then? It had to be awkward to be here with Chloe, knowing about her crush on him, when he was dating the gorgeous Robinette.
Her friend Maho claimed that Robinette’s last name shouldn’t be Valentine as the woman had no heart, just like the rest of her family, except for Nash.
Robinette was a brat to Chloe and females her own age but not to older ladies and especially not to any man.
Jaxon, Dylan, and Smith claimed she was a bit of an airhead but a genuine sweetheart.
Ick. Men. How did they not see through a mean girl like Robinette?
What did Davin see in her? She would no doubt be gushy sweet with Davin, and her beautiful face, red curls, long legs, and the pronounced front end realignment couldn’t hurt.
Ugh. Chloe couldn’t compete with any of that. She was a smart aleck, not sweet at all, and her shape was just … normal.
She rolled over in the hard bed. Once again. She heard Davin shifting as well on the couch. Her heartbeat spiked simply thinking about him so close as they tried to sleep. The monitor beeped, and she wished she could hide under something better than these thin sheets and blanket.
“Chloe?” Davin’s voice penetrated the darkness. “Are you all right?”
“Yep. Peachy. You?”
“I’m fine. What can I do for you?”
Why did he have to be such a nice guy?
A nice guy who liked Robinette Valentine. Chloe couldn’t forget that. She imagined Robinette could be more than ‘nice’ to secure dates and kisses with a man as appealing as Davin.
“You want to know what you can do for me?” she asked into the darkness.
“Yes, please. Anything.” His voice sounded so sincere she almost told him to dump Robinette and like Chloe. Did that make her just like Robinette, stealing other women’s boyfriends? She didn’t want to think about it, and hated the pettiness in her heart.
“You can go to sleep so I stop feeling guilty that you’re stuck on an unyielding hospital couch for this miserable and never-ending night.”
He chuckled. “Have I ever told you that I absolutely thrive on your vivid descriptions?”
She laughed too, letting the tension dispel and appreciating the change in the room. “I’ve got nothing on you, master writer. ‘I’m your number one fan. I’m your number one fan’.” She quoted from Misery.
“Well, thank you. That was a bit disturbing of a quote and compliment.”
She loved when he teased with her and that they shared old movie quotes. He was more serious than she was, but he could rise to the occasion and tease beautifully.
“Now ‘go to sleep or I will put you to sleep’,” she commanded, utilizing the disturbing voice of Ben Stiller’s character in Happy Gillmore.
“‘Sun’s getting real low’.” His voice was full of mirth as he quoted Black Widow.
They both laughed and then, with things more comfortable between them, Chloe tried to sleep, squeezing her eyes shut and focusing on his breathing to calm her. Now that the tension was alleviated, his presence was reassuring and calming.
Too many checks from Nurse Jamie, worries about a lurking bad guy she couldn’t identify, and multiple prayers to please let her sleep, and somehow the night passed. Morning finally arrived, and new hopes and fears along with it.
Dr. Palmer checked her over while Davin waited in the hallway, and Nurse Jamie took all the probes and junk off of her.
Then the doctor called Davin back in and released Chloe from the hospital, repeating his instructions to watch for confusion, vomiting, trouble speaking, seizures, or changes in pupil response.
Chloe wanted to ask how Davin was going to watch for all of that. Was he going to stay by her side? The idea made her pulse spike, and she was relieved to have the stupid heart rate monitor off of her.
They said their goodbyes to Dr. Palmer. Nurse Jamie helped her dress in some hospital scrubs, as apparently her clothes had been cut off of her.
She didn’t even remember what she’d been wearing as she’d somehow lost all of Wednesday.
All she remembered was going to bed Tuesday night and then waking up in the hospital.
She prayed once again that Davin hadn’t been privy to the moment her clothes were cut off and she was shimmied into a thin hospital gown with the back gaping open. Should she ask? No. How humiliating to know if he had.
She found she liked the idea of him carrying her from her shop to his car and racing for the emergency room with her.
How romantic. Maybe it was an indication that he liked her more than Robinette, or maybe it just meant he was a very nice guy, and a friend, like she’d come to believe over the last three months of him hanging out at her shop six afternoons a week.
Jamie rolled her in a wheelchair out to Davin’s fancy dark gray SUV. Davin helped her load up, and her heart rate soared off the charts at the warm touch of his palms. Thankfully the monitor was gone.
“All right, you take care of our beautiful patient. Hopefully I won’t see either of you again soon.” Jamie smiled and headed back through the sliding glass doors.
“Or ever again,” Davin said.
“I’ll pray for that,” Chloe teased back.
She’d be happy never to come to the emergency room again.
Everyone had taken great care of her and been kind, but no sane person wanted to be in a hospital, especially not an emergency room.
She prayed she could get her memory back and identify her attacker before someone she cared about got hurt.
It still made no sense why someone would target and drug her.
Davin smiled at her, shut her door, and strode around the vehicle. He moved like an athlete, smooth and sure.
Chloe drew in a breath to calm her racing heart. It was a tall order. She was half in love with Davin Ambrose and now he was taking care of her like a champion.
If only she could shove Robinette out of the picture, like the realtor had done to her, Cassie, and other girls and women on the island.
It was a snotty thought, but to have Davin in her life … she might do something untoward.
Please forgive me, she prayed, but her heart wasn’t in it.
Her heart was Davin’s, and he already had a girlfriend.