61. Camilla
When I woke up from my nap, Kovu was missing, but Kaos and Bishop quickly assured me he’s fine and that he just had to run out and do a quick job, and as much as I wanted to ask questions, I was too tired.
The concussion the doctor told me I have has really thrown me for a loop, and if I could, I’d sleep the rest of the week away. But then another doctor came in to give us an update about Crew, and all thoughts of sleep disappeared.
The middle-aged man with a receding hairline gives Kaos a curious look. He still hasn’t removed himself from the bed, and every time a nurse has come in to check my vitals, they’ve had to do so around him because he refuses to move.
“You’re the family of Crew Black?” he asks, and Bishop quickly steps forward.
“I’m his son. This is his nephew and girlfriend.”
The doctor’s eyebrows shoot almost as high as mine do at the title Bishop has just given me, but then butterflies take flight in my stomach, and I can’t wipe off the stupid smile that forces its way onto my lips. I never thought much about a title for what I have with these men, but calling them my boyfriends doesn’t quite seem like enough. Plus, there’s nothing about them that screams “boy.” Each one of them is one hundred percent man.
“Very well.” He shakes himself off. “Your father is stable and recovering in the ICU. We almost lost him a couple of times, but we’re confident he’s going to make a full recovery.”
“When can we see him?” I ask, my voice sounding a little too vulnerable for my own liking.
“We’re going to move him into a private ICU room shortly, and then I’ll send a nurse to bring you up.”
Some of the tension that has been beating down on me since I woke up finally releases. He’s going to be okay. Everything’s going to be okay. Or at least it will be until the next threat to our lives.
Suddenly, the arranged marriages in the mafia world make so much fucking sense. If you’re forced to marry someone, even if you come to love them, it probably won’t be an all-consuming kind of love. But when you find your person, or people in my case, the idea of losing them is crippling.
It’s not long before a nurse comes to take us to Crew, and I find myself being pushed in a wheelchair. Truthfully, it’s a small miracle Kaos has let me out of his arms, but he’s the one steering me while Bishop walks at my side, his fingers trailing down my arm like he can’t bear to lose the contact.
“I could have walked,” I grumble.
“I’m sure you could have, Princess, but how about for once in your life you just do as you’re told and enjoy the ride?”
I roll my eyes, but there’s a small smile playing on my lips that I can’t wipe away. If I was unsure of what Kaos felt for me before, all those doubts have been wiped away.
The nurse pauses at a closed door and turns back to us, making the smile drop from my face. “There are a lot of tubes and machines, but as far as the doctors are concerned, he’s doing well.”
I nod, but my eyes are locked on the door like I can make it disappear with nothing but my gaze, but then she steps aside and pushes the door open, and the sight steals the breath right from my lungs.
Kaos pushes me closer, and I struggle to drag in a breath as tears fill my eyes. The man I’ve come to see as a pillar of strength has never looked so small. I mean, he still makes the bed look like a child’s size, but between the tubes and how frail he looks, I can barely believe it’s the man who so calmly protected me this morning. Who would have done anything to save me.
Tears fall against my cheeks as Kaos parks me next to the bed, and I immediately reach for his hand. I flinch when I find it cold, but it only makes me hold onto him tighter.
I could have lost him today.
We all could have lost him.
“It’s okay, love. You heard the doctor, he’s going to be just fine.”
I shake my head and bury my face against his hand as rough sobs tear from my throat.
It should have been me. I should be the one in this bed. I should have been shot. He should have let me if it meant saving himself.
“Little Menace, you know I hate it when you cry,” Crew croaks, and I whip my head up to look at him. His mismatched eyes are dull, but the fact he’s staring back at me only seems to make my tears come harder and faster.
Without a word, Kaos plucks me from the wheelchair while Bishop moves the tubes and wires aside, making a place on the edge of the bed for me.
“No, I’ll hurt him.” I shake my head, clutching on to Kaos so none of my weight rests on Crew or the bed.
“You could never hurt me, Camilla,” Crew murmurs, and I finally give up the fight.
Kaos arranges me beside him, and he immediately pulls me closer, pressing a kiss to my forehead.
“Thank fuck you’re okay.”
“You’re the one that was shot. That’s my line,” I half sob and half snap.
He chuckles. “Not the first time, Little Menace. Probably won’t be the last.”
My head snaps up. “Oh, it will absolutely be the last. If any of you come home with a bullet wound, I’ll kill you myself.”
Bishop chuckles, and for the first time since I woke up to the call from Trevor this morning, everything feels like it’s going to be okay. Even if it’s just for a minute. Even if it doesn’t last, if today has taught me anything, it’s that I need to enjoy the good moments, because they’re few and far between in this life.
“It’s a good thing Kovu’s not here. You know how he loves when you get bloodthirsty,” Kaos jokes, and I can’t help but laugh.
I allow myself to relax, even if it’s just for a moment. Because this is a long way from over, and as much as I would love to bury my head in the sand and pretend everything’s fine, that’s just not the reality.