A low groan met my ears. Yanking my attention away from the heart monitor, I looked at X. He was slowly peeling his eyes open, and he muttered a curse. I quickly stood and hovered over him, cupping his unbruised cheek. “X?” I whispered.
His eyes finally met mine, and he lifted one corner of his mouth in an attempt at a smile, but his face was too swollen to really pull it off.
“Hey, baby,” he rasped. “You look like hell.”
I scoffed. “I look a lot better than you do right now, I assure you.” I stroked my thumb over his stubble, my heart in my throat. “I was so fucking worried, X. You were so goddamn pale.” Reaching over him, I pressed the button for the nurse’s desk to alert them he was awake. “Don’t ever fucking do something like this to me again.”
He shifted a little to the side, then patted the spot next to him. “Lay with me?”
I laughed softly, shaking my head. “Not yet.”
He pouted, but before he could complain, the speaker on X’s hospital bed crackled, and a feminine voice said, “Yes?”
“He’s awake,” I told her.
“I’ll let his doctor know.”
The speaker went silent once more, and I eased onto the bed beside X. He wound his arm around me and sighed. “I’m sorry,” he apologized. It sounded a bit like he didn’t mean it, but I knew that was because he didn’t actually feel regret or remorse. He was just saying what he thought he should say because he cared enough to try, and that was enough for me. “I didn’t mean to scare you. He just came out of fucking nowhere.”
The door opened, and I glanced up, expecting the doctor, only to be surprised at the sight of Shane. He was wearing different clothes than he’d been earlier—a fresh pair of jeans, a black long-sleeve, and boots that looked somewhat new—and his hair was damp. He smelled strongly of his body wash and deodorant, which meant he’d just showered before coming here.
“Shane…” I breathed.
He smiled and shut the door, then moved closer, leaning in to softly kiss me. He looked at X next and sighed. “How are you feeling, boy?” he asked.
X shrugged. “Been better.” He glanced up at the IV bag. “Think they’re pumping me with the good shit.”
Shane snorted, then lightly gripped his chin, kissing him soft but deep. “You scared the shit out of us, boy. I saw the camera feed.” X frowned at him. “Don’t ever do some dumb fucking shit like that again. He could’ve killed you.”
X grunted. “He caught me by surprise. Just fucking disappeared as soon as we got outside.”
“No, you walked right into his trap,” Shane corrected, releasing him. But he rubbed his knuckles down X’s cheek in a rare show of affection before straightening and taking the seat I’d been occupying.
“Did you—” I started, but he shot me a look that had me quickly snapping my mouth shut.
“Not now,” he warned just as the door opened.
The doctor walked in, smiling at us. It was a different doctor than the night before, and I recognized him immediately. I smiled a little and sat up before getting off the bed, ignoring X’s noise of complaint. I held my hand out. “Dr. Connor. Nice to see you.”
He grinned. “Wish it was under better circumstances, Dr. Hale, but it’s good to see you. How have you been?”
“Been better.” I laughed it off, though I found nothing about this entire situation amusing. I stood beside Shane’s chair, watching as Dr. Connor began asking X questions and checking his stitches. Shane wordlessly hooked his arm around my waist, then tugged me around to the front of his chair before pulling me down to sit on his lap. I sank back into him, letting his warmth seep into me. And God, he smelled so good. It had to be illegal to smell as good as he did.
“I’m surprised you don’t have blurred vision with how hard you were hit,” Dr. Connor was telling X. “Once we take you off the pain medicine in your IV, you’ll probably begin to really feel the pain in your head, but all in all, I think you’re considerably lucky, Mr. Oliver.”
X clenched his jaw at the sound of his last name, but just nodded and forced a smile to his lips. “Thanks, doc.”
Dr. Connor nodded. “We’ll work on your discharge paperwork. I suggest you follow up with your primary care provider in two weeks, and you need to get those stitches removed in two weeks as well.” With that, he looked at me and dipped his chin. “Good to see you again, Dr. Hale.”
“You, too, Dr. Connor. Have a great day.”
Dr. Connor left the room, and X looked at Shane. “Dealt with?” X asked.
Shane nodded once, then X did, too, closing his eyes again. “Good,” he muttered. “You can tell us about it once I’m fucking out of here.” He patted the spot beside him. “Baby, come lay with me again.” He even poked his lower lip out in a poor imitation of a pout, and I laughed softly. Shane released me, allowing me to crawl onto the tiny bed beside X. The moment I was pressed against his side, X relaxed. “Much better,” he whispered.
I melted a little.
Chapter 28