He took care of me in a way I hadn’t expected, once again proving to me just how deep his love ran.
He’d even sat me down on the closed toilet, and blow dried my hair.
“You’ve surprised me,” I whispered later as we laid in bed facing each other. It was early morning and my eyes were heavy with discomfort. I snuggled into my pillow, ready for sleep to take me.
“How?” he asked, his voice gruff and thick with exhaustion.
“You reallydolove me,” I said, yawning a little. I closed my eyes.
“You doubted that?”
“Not doubt, but…I guess I just didn’t expect for you to love me this much. You’ve surprised me, that’s all.”
He sighed deeply and scooted his body closer so we were pressed together. “You’ve spent your life with guys who didn’t deserve you, Rose. They took you for granted and showed you a watered-down version of love, if it was even that. You protected your heart by being with shitty men after what I did to you. But, Rose, the scars on your heart are mine and I plan to make sure each one is fully healed and that you only experiencereallove for the rest of your life.Mylove. And my love for you is nothing short of unconditional.”
Kissing me softly, he ran his fingers down the side of my cheek rhythmically until I fell asleep.
CHAPTERTWENTY-EIGHT
The call I’d been waiting for came a little after three in the afternoon. I’d made sure my phone was on the loudest ring setting when I placed it on the charger by my bed, and curled up with Cain. When the ear-splitting ring sounded, I reached over immediately and answered it.
“Hello?” I said, sitting up quickly. My hand flew to the top of my head, the sudden movement causing a ricocheting pain through my skull.
“Hello, is this Ms. Adler I’m speaking with?”
“This is she.”
Cain sat up next to me, the call waking him, too. His hand reached to where mine sat on top of my head. Pushing it aside, he started to lightly massage my scalp.
“My name is Marie Bonvie, I’m Sylvester Lucchetti’s nurse.”
My heart skipped, and I looked at Cain with the first genuine smile I’d had in days. “Yes, hi! How is Sly? Is he awake? Can we see him?”
She laughed politely. “Yes, Mr. Lucchetti is awake and has asked for you and also a Mr. Michaels. He said you’d be together? You’re welcome to come pay him a visit whenever you’re available.”
“We’ll be there as soon as possible. Please tell him we’re on our way.”
“Will do, sweetheart.”
“Thank you! Thank you so much.”
I hung up and tossed my phone on the bed, ripping off my covers. “Sly’s awake and wants us to come to the hospital. Get dressed.”
Standing too fast, I swayed slightly, my head feeling floaty. Cain was out of bed and by my side within a millisecond, grabbing onto me.
“Slow down, Rose. We’ll get there, but not at the expense of you hurting yourself.”
Ignoring him, I walked over to my dresser and pulled out a pair of leggings and a t-shirt, and got myself dressed.
“Do you have any of my shirts lying around?” Cain asked, tugging yesterday’s jeans back on.
My stomach rolled at the dried blood stained on the legs. It wasn’t a lot, but it resurfaced things I was trying to push out of my mind, if only for a little while. My gaze transfixed on the little dark red splotches, and I felt my heartbeat spike. My hearing muffled—the noise around me sounded like I was underwater. What I knew was Cain’s voice was distorted and distant as memories flew rapid-fire through my brain.
“Baby,” Cain’s voice cut through the fog as he wrapped his arms around me. “Baby, breathe.”
I blew out a breath.
“I’m sorry,” I said, snapping out of my daze. “I’m sorry. I just…”
