Nope, definitely can’t hate him when he’s looking at me with hungry eyes.

I force my eyes away, and the bastard chuckles like he knows the effect he has on me.

“How are you feeling?” he asks.

“Like I got hit by a car.”

He winces. “I’m sorry.”

I sigh. Kade’s sorry seems sincere. When he speaks, his whole body matches his mood. His eyes grow heavy, his voice softens, and his body stills.

“It’s not your fault, but I feel like shit. I want to rip my head off…” I move to sit up more. “Fuck, that hurts.” I grab my side.

He frowns. “You had a sizable piece of glass stuck in your large intestine. They removed the glass along with part of your intestine. They removed your appendix too.”

My eyes widen. “What else?”

He blinks, and I swear I saw a tear there. “You have been unconscious for forty-eight hours. You have a concussion, that’s why your head hurts so much. Glass in your stomach. Small shreds of glass in your legs, stomach, and head. A couple of broken ribs. Lots of internal bleeding. A couple of broken bones in your left wrist.”

I look down and see the small cast on my left arm for the first time. How did I not notice that? Oh yea, because my fucking head hurts so badly I can’t think of anything else.

“And a couple of broken bones in your ankle. The doctors were amazed you didn’t break more bones.”

The last part hurts the worst. Broken bones in my ankle. That will take forever to heal. I won’t be able to run for months.

Tears.

Dammit.

No.

Kade holds my gaze, reaches out, and touches my hand over the covers.

I let him.

I need the comfort.

“The doctor wants you to stay in the hospital for another day or two. And then, she’ll set you up with a rehab program to help you gain your strength back. She gave you pain medicine a half hour ago, but I can call her back if you want more?”

“No, thanks.”

He runs his hand through his hair, and I permit myself to look at him closer. He’s still wearing the suit he wore two nights ago. The collar is open with multiple buttons undone, revealing a chest that looks hot, dark, and delicious. Then, I see the red blotches. Blood. My blood.

“Do you want me to call your family? Your emergency contact lists Serena, so they called her. But she said she didn’t have any of your family members’ numbers, and they never found your cell phone.”

“I didn’t bring my cell phone. And, no.” I don’t offer him any more explanations. I sure as hell don’t need my father lecturing me for walking home in the dark on a busy highway. If he finds out, I’ll deal with the lecture later.

“Okay,” he says, rubbing his neck.

My throat locks up, and my hand trembles a little in anger thinking about Sebastian, but I need to know. “How are Sebastian and his date doing?”

Kade moistens his lips and smiles softly. “Sebastian is a jackass, but he and Naomi are both fine. Sebastian was lucky, only a cut on his forehead requiring stitches. And Naomi has a little back pain from the collision.”

I nod. I hate them, but I’m glad they aren’t injured.

“Sebastian would like to apologize when you’re ready to hear it. I told him that would probably be months or years from now. He understands. He’s offered to give up his driver’s license, and do some community service. He will also pay all of your hospital bills, and pay you well for your emotional damages.”

The words Kade is speaking make sense, but I don’t want to hear them.


Tags: Ella Miles Pretend Romance