As I let my hand fall back to the mattress, I do my best to remember what happened, but besides a few muddy memories, I can’t remember anything that happened.
“Ah, look who’s up.” A pleasant voice breaks through my thoughts, and when I open my eyes again, I see a tall man in a doctor’s coat holding a stethoscope. “How are you feeling? How’s the pain in your head?”
“I’m okay. It’s a little worse than a hangover, but I’ll survive.” I try to joke, but the second I laugh, pain slingshots from one temple to the other. I wish I had a drink right now.
A lightbulb goes off in my head as I think about my own silly request. I can’t have a drink right now, I’m pregnant. I grumble as the list of things that I can’t do rushes through my mind, and it’s only then that I realize that no one has said anything about the baby.
“Doctor, why hasn’t anyone checked on the baby? Is she okay? Did I . . .” My throat closes up as uncertainty and fear detonate like a bomb inside of me.
The doctor tilts his head and looks down at the chart he’s holding, examining it for a few seconds. When he raises his eyes to mine, he gives me a tight smile.
“Everything is fine. I’ll let your boyfriend and your brother come in and speak with you,” he says, and those simple words provide all the relief that I need. Muffler’s here. He’s not going to let anything happen to me.
“Okay, thank you.” I relax against the bed with the oxygen mask still on my face, but at least I’m a little more comfortable.
The doctor leaves, and a few moments later, Hoodrat walks in. I have to do a double-take when I see his face. He must’ve really been worried about me. My brother looks like he aged a freaking decade instead of the few days that I’ve been out. This is normal, though. He always gets really worried about me.
“I was going to ask you if you were taking care of yourself while I’ve been stuck in here, but the answer to the question is obvious. You look like hell.” I smile at him, and he gives me a small smile back.
“What did you expect? You have me all worried about you. You know I don’t do well when something is wrong with you. I need you to be healthy and moving around all the time, or I don’t know what to do with my life,” he admits before he comes to stand next to my bed.
“Yeah, I know. I don’t know what you’d do without me. I hope Giada is going to be able to whip you into shape.” With as much strength as I can muster, I push myself up on the bed so I can speak with my brother better.
His eyes squint, and he tilts his head as if he’s confused about what I’ve just said to him, “What? Don’t tell me you and Giada are arguing about her parents again.”
Giada is basically a godsend to my brother, but her parents don’t want her to have anything to do with him. Probably because they think he’s too rough around the edges. My brother may be violent and not fit for high society, but there’s no one else that I’d trust more than him. The loyalty is unparalleled.
“No, nothing like that. G and I are straight. I just was trying to figure out the last thing you remember. The doctor said that . . . you might have forgotten a few things?” His voice is softer than I would expect.
“Stop being such a whiner. I got a bump on the head. I’m not dying. Of course, I forgot a few things, but I’m sure it’s nothing important.” With a shrug, I look behind Hoodrat toward the door. Muffler’s probably trying to give my brother some time to be alone with me, but I want to see him.
I’m not a vulnerable person so being stuck here in the hospital feels way out of my comfort zone. The only person I’ve ever truly felt at ease with, with my guard down is Muffler. Still, I know my brother would never understand what kind of relationship Muffler and I have. It’s the only reason we’ve been keeping things a secret so far. It’s getting old, though. I don’t want to hide the way I feel for Muffler anymore. I’m going to need to talk him into telling Hoodrat the truth.
“Besides the bump on the head, how are you feeling? Does anything hurt more than the other things? Do you need something? What can I do?” Hoodrat asks, and I feel like a shitty sister. How do I tell him the only thing I want him to do is leave so I can kiss my boyfriend?
“I’m okay. Things are a little fuzzy, and the lights are bright, but I think that just comes along with the territory of having a head injury.”
Hoodrat squints his eyes, and I reach over and jostle him. “I promise, I’m fine, but if you are so set on doing something for me, I have just the thing.”
His eyes open wide, and he waits for me to tell him what I need from him.
“I want you to go home, wash your ass and go to sleep. Sleep for like twenty hours. You’re starting to look like the weight of the world is on your shoulders.”
He huffs out a chuckle, “Is that your way of telling me that you think I look old?”
“Not old, but you damn sure look like you lived a rough life.” I yawn for effect to get him moving.
“All right, I’ll head on out.”
“That’s good.” Now how do I bring this up without making it seem like I’m checking for him? “Um, I’m not sure if he’s around, but could you send Muffler to come check on me? I wanted to speak with him about something,” I say, trying to keep things as vague as I can.
“Yeah? Like what?” The hardness settles in my brother’s eyes once again.
“None of your business, last time I checked, I was a grown woman. I don’t need to tell you what I want to talk to anyone about.” It’s hard having an attitude when I know I’m wrong.
“Yeah, whatever, he’s out front. I’ll send him in.” Hoodrat leans down and kisses the side of my head, away from the area where the bandage is before he turns and strolls out the door without sparing me a second glance. He seems so pissed, but that’s to be expected when he’s got so much lack of sleep.
I wait excitedly for Muffler to come in. My heart nearly leaps out of my chest when he rounds the corner and stands at my doorway.