Now Joker looked pissed. He came at me, but the guys stopped him. “I’ve never fucked Madisen. We’re friends, Reb. Just friends. Why the fuck do you care, anyway?”
His words slowly sank into my brain. She wasn’t his? They’d never had sex? They were just friends? I shook my head in confusion. “What’s up with all the flirting, hugging, and calling her sexy?”
“Just that, harmless flirting. Yeah, when I first met her, I asked her out. She told me we would never be more than friends. I accepted that. Since then, we’ve become great friends. I think of her like a sister now. Jesus, Rebel, are you into her?” he asked me, smirking. I looked at the others who were watching me expectantly. I ignored the question. I turned around and headed toward my bike.
They hollered at me, but I kept going. As I swung on my bike, Bull reached me and asked, “Where are you going?”
“I’m going to the hospital to check on the woman who's going to be mine.” They all grinned, and I flipped them off. I roared out of the parking lot. Right now, I couldn’t have cared less about the bakery. Madisen was my only worry. As I rode, I thought about what Joker had said, and what I’d said to Bull. I realized I meant every word. She was going to be my woman. She just didn’t know it yet. Now that I didn’t have to worry about cutting in on a brother, there was nothing standing in my way. Madisen Collins was about to become mine. And not for a night or two. This shit would be permanent.
At the hospital, I parked near the ER and raced inside. I saw the two paramedics who had transported Madisen coming out of the back. I ran over to them. “Where is she?” They both pointed to the back of the ER. I pushed past them. I got to the door only to be stopped by an orderly.
“Sorry, sir. You can’t go back there.” I glared at him, and he swallowed nervously.
“My goddamn woman was just brought in. If you don’t want to find my fist down your throat, you’ll let me pass.” He looked around at the other staff watching us. I was about to punch him when I heard Bull.
“Calm down. Let’s find someone who can let you back there. Beating his ass won’t do anything but get you thrown out. You don’t want that, do you?” he asked in a reasonable tone. I wasn’t feeling reasonable. I was feeling afraid, and out of control.
While the others kept me calm, Bull went to talk to the staff. It took at least a half an hour for him to get anywhere. I was about to say fuck it and charge back there, when a nurse came over to us.
“I understand one of you is Madisen Collins’—”
“Man,” I grunted.
“Yes, her man. She’s had some tests and blood work drawn and she’ll need more. We can give you a few minutes to speak to her, just don’t expect a lot. Her oxygen levels are still low and she’s confused. She’s not able to say much due to the smoke inhalation. Follow me.”
Bull clapped me on the shoulder and pushed me after her. I didn’t hesitate. Back in the actual treatment part of the ER, I saw people all over the place. She led me to a cubicle with the curtains drawn around it. She indicated for me to go in. I slipped through the gap in the curtains. My heart dropped when I saw Madisen.
She was lying in the bed looking small and so damn fragile. Her face was still covered in soot. Her eyes were closed and machines were making noise all around her. The oxygen mask covered most of her face. I leaned over the side of the bed and took her tiny hand in mine.
“Madisen, babe, can you hear me?”
Her eyes came fluttering open. She looked at me puzzled. I pushed her hair back away from her face. “Baby girl, it’s Rebel. Do you know where you are? What happened?” She looked around confused and shook her head no.
“There was a fire at the bakery. You were trapped inside. You’re at the hospital. They need to check you out.” She got a fearful look in her eyes and struggled to sit up. I gently held her down.
“No, you need to stay still. Everything is okay. We’re handling the bakery. I need you to be calm and let them work on you. Don’t worry, I’ll stay here with you.” Her struggles lessened. She watched me with a question in her eyes. I couldn’t help it. I had to touch her. I leaned over and pulled off the mask. I gently kissed her lips. She stayed still. When I pulled away, she was looking at me in shock.
“We’ll talk later, baby. Just lie there and rest.” Before she could say anything, the curtain opened and in came a doctor.
“Hello, I’m Dr. Warner.”
“Hello, doc, I’m Rebel. How is she?”
“Nice to meet you both. We need to take Madisen for a bronchoscopy. We need to sedate her to put a scope down her throat and take a look at her lungs and suction out any secretions and debris from her lungs. Also, we want her to undergo hyperbaric treatment.” I knew what that was. I had been diving for years. Divers went into those when they got the bends. He talked to Madisen, but it was obvious she was still muddled. “Madisen, do you have any family who can sign the consent? You’re too confused right now for you to do it and it be legal.” As far as I knew, she had no one. I pulled him aside.
“I’m her man. She doesn’t have any family. I’ll give you consent. Just take care of my girl.” He looked at me. I knew he wasn’t thrilled with me speaking for her, but he’d have to get over it. Finally, he reluctantly nodded. In no time, I had signed the paperwork, and they were taking her away. I gave her one more kiss before they rolled her away. I went to the waiting room to pace.
Bull and the guys came over to me. I saw what looked like the rest of the club behind them. They asked what was going on, and I filled them in. After that, we all sat down. I was holding my head in my hands when Joker came over.
“Can I talk to you a minute, privately?” he asked. I nodded and followed him outside. We stood off to the side of the ER entrance. He gave me a puzzled look.
“I can’t believe you thought I was with her. Hell, Rebel, if I’d known that, and that you had a thing for her, then I’d have said something. But, brother, she’s not one of the bunnies. I know her well enough to know she won’t be okay with being a booty call. Are you prepared to give her more than that?”
“I’m prepared to give her fucking everything. It has been eating me up that she was with a brother. I wouldn’t ever have done anything to break that up, but if you’d been with her and broke up, you need to know, I’d have been after her in a heartbeat. She does something to me. I can’t even explain. I know I need her, and not just for a little while. I need her in a way I can’t describe or shake.”
“Wow. Looks like you’ve caught what Bull and Ace have. Well, good luck, brother. I hope she feels the same. And if she does, just remember, if you hurt her, I’ll beat your ass.” He grinned at me. I grinned back and gave him a man hug. We laughed and went back inside. Time to wait and pray she’d be okay. Thank God, I had my family with me.
We went back to the waiting room. I paced as the others sat quietly talking and watching me. I couldn’t sit still. I needed to know what was going on with her. Over an hour later, a nurse came out asking for the family of Madisen Collins. I rushed over to her with Bull and the rest of the crew behind me. Her eyes got enormous seeing all of us.