Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 57201 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57201 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 286(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
“I’ll let the doctor know,” she says.
“My cell is 494-1200, I want notified of any changes in Katie’s condition or her mother, Hazel.”
“Yes, sir.”
I hang up before she can say anything else. I turn to look at Mom and I can’t breathe. I’ve not lived a safe life. I’ve been thrown, trampled, and trapped by the meanest bulls around. Yet, I’ve never been truly scared before. Thinking about Katie over an hour away, critically injured and metal lodged in her back…
I’m so scared that it could easily bring me to my knees.
CHAPTER 23
Jake
Beep. Beep. Beep.
I never realized that sound could tear you apart from the inside, but it can. The noise of Katie’s heart monitor has somehow seeped in and is burning inside my chest. I want to yank it out of the wall, and yet, every time it reassures me that Katie’s heart is still beating, I’m relieved.
I scrub my hand over my face feeling the stubble there. It’s been twenty-four hours since I got here, and Katie still isn’t awake. They’re giving her meds to help keep her sedated and told me not to worry, but that’s like telling the sun not to rise. I rub the tension out of my shoulder and neck. My muscles are so tight it’s almost painful to touch the area. I feel so damn useless. I don’t know what to do to help her or even if she wants me here.
But I’m not leaving.
I can’t. I have no idea how Katie feels about me, but I know that night at her house, when we were fixing her sink, there were sparks between us. It felt right—like something I lost long ago snapping back into place. Now, she needs me and I’m here. The thought that she could be dead right now has haunted me since I found out about her accident. She coded on the damn operating table as they removed shrapnel from her body. That’s how close I came to losing her—not just me, but Lennon.
My son has no idea how close he came to losing his mother. We’ve downplayed everything and he’s safe at home with Callie and Reed right now. I don’t want him to see Katie like this. It would scare him. Hell, it scares me.
I hear the door open but don’t turn to see who it is. I figure it’s one of the nurses coming in. They do it constantly.
“Here, drink this.”
I frown, looking up at Mom as I take the cup from her hand. More coffee. I’ve drank so much that I’ve lost count. I don’t suppose it matters anyway. Thankfully, this is not the crap they give away here at the hospital, so the taste soothes my frayed nerves.
“I thought you were going to a hotel to sleep.”
“I was, but I felt so lost that I didn’t know what to do with myself. So, I took a shower and swung by Starbucks and grabbed us some coffees and muffins.”
She rattles the bag at me as she says muffins. I don’t want to tell her that the thought of food turns my stomach. My face must have given me away, however, because she just sits the bag down on the window sill. Then takes the seat across from me.
“Wake up, sunshine,” I murmur, reaching out to touch Katie’s hand.
“No change?” Mom asks.
“None. They are giving her meds to keep her a little sedated, but not the strong ones. They said she should start waking up on her own. So far there hasn’t been the slightest indication that it is happening, though.”
“Shit,” Mom mutters under her breath. “I tried calling your brother, but it just went to his voice mailbox. I left a message, but who knows if he will check it. My kids have a way of cutting out everyone when they sulk.”
“I don’t want him here,” I snap.
“You might not, but this isn’t about you. Jeff loves Katie, too. If the roles were reversed, I’d call you too, Jake, and you know it.”
“You need to keep him away from me.”
“Stop that. The two of you are brothers. Whatever else is going on, you need to learn how to put it aside. Family matters, son.”
“Family is just a word to some people.”
“Jake—”
“I don’t want to talk about it, Mom. Not now. My focus and energy need to be on Katie and getting her better for our son.”
“Fair enough, but this isn’t over,” she says grudgingly.
“You’re right about that.”
I’m not letting it go. There will be a day of reckoning between me and Jeff. I don’t know when, but I will definitely make it known that I’m aware of what a fucking liar he is.
“Good. We’ll revisit this soon.”
“How’s Miss Hazel?” I ask, changing the subject because that seems safer.
“I’m fine.”
I jerk around to see Hazel being wheeled in by a nurse.