Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 70551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Her eyes seem heavy, but she keeps looking for me. I smile reassuringly, but all the while, my stomach is in knots, and pure adrenaline runs through me.
I want to punch someone as hard as I can.
She could have died on that mountain, and it would have been my fucking fault.
Soon after we arrive, they wheel Jenna out for a CT scan of her head and neck, and I’m left in the room alone.
Until Brad and Max walk in.
“Jesus,” I mutter and push my hands through my hair. “I’m glad to see you guys. I don’t think I’ve ever been so fucking scared.”
“Is she okay?” Max asks.
“They took her back for a CT scan,” I reply. “That airbag hit her hard. I would be surprised if she doesn’t have a concussion, but I’m not a doctor.”
“What happened?” Brad asks. His face is taut with worry, his voice is hard.
“Fucking elk ran out in front of us coming down the mountain.”
“Thank God you went into the ditch and not down the dropoff,” Max says, rubbing his forehead.
“We hit ice and spun out. Hit the ditch and the snowbank.”
“Could have been much worse,” Brad says, agreeing with Max. “That mountain road can be a bitch in the winter.”
Finally, Jenna is wheeled back in, looking tired but still awake.
“Oh, good,” she says. “My three favorite guys are here. You can tell them,” she says to the doctor.
“Jenna has a concussion,” he says. “But no broken bones. She’ll be sore and maybe a little black and blue.”
The doctor glances at me, and his eyes narrow. “You were the driver?”
I take Jenna’s hand in mine and nod.
“Have you been checked out?” he asks.
“I’m fine,” I insist. “We need to take care of Jenna.”
“You need to get checked, too, Christian,” Jenna says and squeezes my hand. “I’ll be okay. I have two brothers here to watch over things.”
“Come with me,” the doctor says, but I hang back with uncertainty.
“We’ll come get you if anything happens,” Brad assures me. “But she’s fine.”
I nod. “Thanks, man. I’ll be right back.”
I’m led to a small room not far from Jenna’s.
“Put this gown on—”
“Fuck that. Just look me over, take my blood pressure, and let me get back to Jenna.”
The doctor scowls. “Just because you’re famous—”
“Oh, for godsake, I don’t give a shit about my job. I need to get back to my girl. I don’t have any pain.”
“Yet,” he says but starts looking me over, poking and prodding. He takes my temperature and checks my blood pressure. “That’s up a bit, but I’d expect that after the trauma. I don’t see anything concerning but listen to your body over the next couple of days and take it easy.”
I nod and stand. “Thanks. Can I please go back now?”
“I don’t think I could stop you.”
I hurry back and stop at the doorway, taking in the scene before me.
Max is sitting next to Jenna, holding her hand and making her smile. Brad is standing on the other side of her, talking on the phone.
“She’s going to be okay,” he says. “They’ll spring her out of here soon. I’m sure Christian will stay with her.”
“Damn right, he will.”
All three pairs of eyes turn to me. Jenna’s light up in happiness, and she holds out her free hand for me. Brad steps out into the hall to finish his call, and I take her hand, kiss it, and then sit on the bed near her hip.
“How do you feel, fancy face?”
“Like my face isn’t so fancy,” she replies.
“It’s not,” Max says, making her giggle.
“Don’t make me laugh, idiot. It hurts.”
“I’m sorry,” he says. “You know I have a bad sense of humor when I’m scared.”
“You’re not scared of anything,” she says. She pulls her hand out of his and cups his cheek. “You’re the fiercest person I know.”
“No,” he replies, kissing her hand. “That’s you.”
Brad returns. “Hannah’s in the middle of delivering a baby so she can’t come see you herself, but she said she’d look in on you later.”
“She’s sweet,” Jenna replies. “But I swear I’m okay. Do I get to sleep?”
“It says here,” I reply as I’m reading the material the doctor gave me, “that you can sleep, but I have to wake you every couple of hours.”
“Lovely,” she says.
“Glad it’s not me,” Brad says with a laugh. “She’s a bear when you wake her up.”
“I’m not afraid of bears,” I reply.
“You should be.”
***
It’s a couple of hours later by the time Max delivers us to Jenna’s house in town. He hurries in ahead of us and flips on the lights and turns on the gas fireplace.
I carry Jenna in my arms into the house. She’s curled against my chest, her head tucked under my chin.
“Do you want to snuggle up on the couch?” I ask her.
“I think I need a shower,” she says, her voice still quiet. “And then bed.”