“Looks like we’re ready to go home.” He said cheerfully. “Baker, you need to be more careful. Clubs are a dangerous world these days. Keep plenty of fluids going through your system for the next twenty-four hours and take over-the-counter meds for your headache. Other than that, regular activity should be fine.” He patted Baker’s shoulder and shook my hand. “Looks like you were correct, Mr. Wilkinson. The gastric lavage did speed up his recovery time. It’d been a while since I’ve performed one.” He hung the clipboard at the end of the bed and said, “You’re free to go, but please be more careful next time.”
“You?” Baker hissed. “You had them do that to me?”
Well, shit. That doctor had a goddamned big mouth. “I was worried, Baker. I wanted the poison out of your system as quickly as possible.” When he stood up with his usual grace, I knew I’d made the right decision. The drugs were completely out of his system or he’d be staggering around the room like a drunk.
“I’m going to pay you back for that one. I want that on the record,” he growled as he reached for his folded clothes that the nurses had laid there during their last check-in. “So help me, I will. I don’t know how, but it’s coming, so don’t be surprised.” He snatched up his leather pants and frowned. “Fuck, I don’t have the energy to stuff myself into these things again. Find me some scrubs to put on.”
“Bossy, aren’t we?” I teased. “Nurse!” I poked my head through the curtain and tried to get the attention of a nurse. No way was I leaving Baker’s side, even if it was to get him some much more comfortable scrubs. After a few minutes, he was dressed, papers signed, and the nurse was wheeling him toward the parking lot while I checked with the Uber driver to make sure he was waiting for us at the entrance. Baker sent me a questioning look but climbed inside without saying a word and remained silent during the short trip back to the apartment building.
We rode the elevator in silence and my apprehension level had peaked to its highest level yet. I wasn’t certain of the exact moment that Baker Daley became the most important person in my life, but it had happened—snuck right up on me when I least expected it, I guessed. He was clearly angry with me and I had a feeling the anger was fueled by much more than me requesting they pump his stomach. Did he feel like I let him down?
If that was it, I was in some serious shit because he still didn’t know he’d nearly been abducted. Right now, he was merely pissed because I’d allowed him to drink the drugged cocktail and then left him alone. The doctor had explained to me that there was a good chance he might not remember any of the night. While they hadn’t had a chance to run lab tests on what drugs Baker had been given, most date rape drugs affected short—term memory.
Inside the apartment, I motioned for him to not say anything. “Lay down on the couch, babe. Let me grab you a blanket, pillow, and some water. It’ll just take me a few minutes.” While talking, I pulled out the electronic device we would use to sweep the apartment for any listening or video devices. He nodded, walked over to the couch, and plopped down. His eyes, however, tracked my every move.
A few minutes later, I returned to the living room and said, “We’re good. How are you feeling?”
“Where’s our usual driver?” he asked, diving straight in.
“Landon pulled our driver and the other men to work on gathering some video evidence of what happened outside the club. They should be back in force by mid-morning.” I told him
He huffed out a breath. “So you think it was more than two guys trying to get some free ass, huh?”
“It definitely was,” I admitted. “By the time I got back to the table to check on you, you were gone. They’d taken you.” My voice trembled with emotion that I’d rather he didn’t witness. It made me feel weak but then, I heard that love always did.
“What?” His shock was evident. “Are you serious? What happened? How did you get me back?”
“They were about to load you into a vehicle when they saw me. To save their own asses, they dropped you on the sidewalk and took off. Another man helped us with the tag number, but it was stolen. Landon’s pulling all the surveillance tapes available in that area to see what we can find out.”
“Shit. Fuck. I don’t remember any of that.” His hand reached up to touch the back of his head. “I guess that’s why I have a headache, huh?”