One of the paramedics shakes his head. “It’s against hospital policy. You’ll have to meet him there.”
“I’ll be fine,” Dozer soothes, and I nod as his dad pulls me back so they can work on him.
Griff comes out of the house, and I’m not even sure when he went in. He moves to Dozer’s side and puts a hand on his shoulder. “You good?”
“I’m good,” he says, but we know he’s not. He needs to be patched up big-time.
Griff walks toward us, his eyes moving over Bebe to make sure she’s okay. His voice is grim as he says, “We found the Grecos. Mom, dad, and daughter are dead in one of the guest bathrooms.”
It’s now that I think of Borovsky, and I remember when Dozer told me he hoped the outcome would be Ivan’s death. I didn’t understand how he could think that way. Life is precious.
But Borovsky didn’t see it that way. People were expendable, and now I’m so glad he’s dead and can’t hurt anyone else again.
The paramedics start to move the gurney toward the ambulance, but Dozer yells, “Wait.”
They stop and his head pops up to address me directly. “Get busy working on the wedding plans.”
And now I smile. “Is that your way of proposing?”
“It’s all I got in me right now,” he admits.
I push through the EMTs and bend over Dozer, bringing my lips to his. “I love you, and I’ll get hopping on the wedding plans.”
I lift up and stare down at him. The man who would have died for me.
“Sooner rather than later, okay?” he says. “I want to get married sooner rather than later.”
“Okay,” I whisper.
“We have to go, ma’am,” one of the paramedics says, cutting into my marriage proposal.
“We’ll follow you to the hospital,” I promise as they wheel him toward the waiting ambulance. Dozer offers me a thumbs-up.
James puts an arm around my shoulders and brings me in tight. We stand that way until they have Dozer loaded and they’re shutting the doors.
Squeezing my shoulder, James looks down at me. “Wedding, huh?”
“Appears so,” I reply with a smile, my eyes still on the ambulance where I can see them working on Dozer through the window as it pulls away.
He’s leaving me for now, and I’ll be right behind him. But in this surreal moment, following such horror, fear, and tragedy, I’ve never felt better knowing that our future starts now.
CHAPTER 22
Dozer
I’m sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting on my woman to get ready. I take the opportunity to scroll through the messages on my phone.
Jess walks out of the bathroom, head tilted as she puts in an earring. “Have you seen my heart necklace? I wanted to wear it today.”
I bought her a Tiffany gold interlocking hearts necklace, and I know damn well she hasn’t lost it. JJ’s just not very good about keeping things in proper places.
Nabbing the pair of silk panties beside me on the bed, I twirl them around my finger. I ignore the matching bra she set out. “No clue where your necklace is, but I found these.”
“You didn’t find them,” she says with an eye roll. “I laid those out to wear. Two very different things.”
“Why don’t you come over here and let me put them on you?” I leer openly at her. She’s so fucking beautiful, how can I look at her any other way in her short satin robe, barely closed in front, her very naked body underneath? Probably the worst thing that could ever happen is for me to go blind so I couldn’t see this vision every day for the rest of my life.
Jess saunters my way, a sexy smile on her face. My blood quickens, even though we spent a luxurious hour in bed this morning thoroughly wearing each other out.
It just as quickly slows when she grabs the panties and takes two steps back. “No way in hell I’m letting you put these on me, because that’s just code for getting me back in bed, and we’re going to be late.”
“My dad won’t care,” I insist, moving fast from the bed to grab her. I pull her into me and she laughs, arms going around my neck. Slipping my hands under the back of her robe, I squeeze her bare ass and kiss her hard.
“Stop,” she moans into my mouth, “or we’ll never get out of here.”
“Don’t care.” I move my mouth to her neck.
“You totally care.” She laughs, hand pressed to the back of my head as I nibble down to her collarbone.
Lifting my head, I lock eyes with her. “Fine. I care.”
Reluctantly, I release her and tug at the tightness of my pants that she just created. I’m uncomfortable, but she’s right. We really can’t be late.
“Your necklace is on the dresser,” I say, nodding toward it.