Total pages in book: 31
Estimated words: 28678 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 143(@200wpm)___ 115(@250wpm)___ 96(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28678 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 143(@200wpm)___ 115(@250wpm)___ 96(@300wpm)
“I’m staring because you scared the hell out of me,” Colt answers and suddenly I’m aware that his fingers are intertwined with mine. He’s holding my hand and stroking my thumb. It feels so good I could purr.
“Why am I here?” I murmur, managing to open my eyes again. The light is still too bright. Colt rises to his feet when he sees me blinking and adjusts the lighting until there’s only a soft, faint glow in the room.
I know I swayed on my feet. I must have but I don’t remember the sensation of hitting the floor. “Do I have a concussion?”
“No concussion. I caught you before that could happen. But you are dehydrated and have more than a few nutritional deficiencies.” He scowls at the last part. He scowled when he heard that Albert was limiting my food intake too. He’s so grumpy and it shouldn’t be so hot but it is.
“Is it finally over?” I whisper, needing the assurance one more time. I’m afraid I’m going to wake up and be back in that nightmare again. Back in the place where Curtis is pushing me toward Von Hagel.
“It’s over,” he repeats. His voice is solemn, and his eyes are even darker than usual in the low lighting. I can’t help wondering what happens between us next. The other night didn’t feel like a one-time thing but then again, I have no experience with men. How would I know?
“I was so scared,” I admit. I’ve been going out of my mind with the fear for so long. I thought I’d become Von Hagel’s newest doll. I thought he’d do terrible, degrading things to me.
“You’re safe now,” he puts a hand on my cheek and it’s only then I realize I’m crying. Weeks of pent-up stress and trauma are finally leaking out of me and spilling down my face.
Then he’s nudging me over on the mattress and he crawls into the hospital bed beside me. For the first time in weeks, I feel safe. I feel safe with this big man crowding me and stroking my hair and reassuring me that I can let it out now.
All the horror of what’s happened is catching up with me. It’s not lost on me how lucky I was. I had Colt in my corner. He and his bulky friends would have charged hell itself to get me out. I don’t doubt that for a minute. “Those girls had no one to rescue them!”
“They had you,” he answers. “Because of your testimony, they’ve been set free. And yeah, it’ll be a hell of a road back and they’ll always be scarred in a way that most people will never understand but they’re alive. They can rebuild. They can live. All thanks to you.”
His words make me cry even harder. He makes me feel like a hero even with snot dripping down my face and my body wracked with sobs. He squeezes my hip gently and cradles me close. But he doesn’t urge me to stop crying, he just rocks me through the storm.
I don’t know how long I cry for. I only know that when I finally stop, I’m softly hiccupping against Colt. He’s still running his fingers through my hair, humming a gentle song under his breath. For such a grumpy cowboy, he’s amazingly good at this.
“What happens next?” I ask with a yawn. My eyes are heavy, and the exhaustion is pulling me under again. But I don’t know what my next step is. Should I rent an apartment here in Kentucky and try to get back to my classes? Will I still see Colt? Will he want a long-distance relationship with me?
Before I can voice all the questions in my head, I drift into a sweet sleep. One filled with images of a sexy cowboy who makes my heart beat fast and my stomach fill with butterflies.
“You don’t have to help with this. I’m fine now,” I insist to Colt. I’ve been in the hospital for three days now and I’m finally not dizzy anymore. Apparently, my potassium levels were too low and that’s why I kept pitching for the floor.
Now that I’ve had two potassium infusions, I’m feeling much better. In fact, I feel like my usual self which is why I want a shower even if that shower is in the grimy hospital. I don’t know what it is about hospitals. They always use antiseptic, yet I never feel clean in one.
Colt gives me a look and scoops me into his arms. He carries me to the walk-in shower that he’s already turned onto warm. This man has waited on me hand and foot since I’ve arrived. He still hasn’t told me what comes next and I haven’t had the courage to bring it up since I first asked.