Willow
I rushthrough the doors and spot Piper sitting in a chair. She stands the moment she sees me.
“Where is he?”
She puts her hands on my shoulders. “Before we go back, I need to warn you; he looks bad. He’s heavily sedated.” Her eyes well with tears. “They are going to try to wake him up this afternoon. Willow, if he doesn’t wake up?—”
I pull Piper into my arms. “He will wake up.” He has to.
As far as I knew, Durango has been on assignment for the last couple of days. But I have since found out something went terribly wrong before he even left the Seattle area. And now he’s in the ICU.
“You must be Willow.”
I turn, and there is a man standing there. His hands are shoved into his pockets, and he has bags under his eyes. Based on the obvious muscular build underneath his form-fitting T-shirt and the confident air he gives off, he must work atMorgan Thompson Security. While I haven’t met the guys there, Durango has told me a little about some of them.
“Willow, this is CT. He was with Durango when the accident happened,” Piper says.
CT holds out his hand, and I shake it.
“What exactly happened?” Piper told me Durango had been swept over some falls, but none of what she said made any sense. He was here for work, so why was he in a river?
CT swallows. “It was raining so hard. I picked him up at the airport, and I was driving us to Pine Valley. But the road was closed, and we had to take a detour. This woman was in the road, and she needed help with her animals.” He shakes his head. “It all went so wrong so fast. One of her dogs escaped, and Durango tried to save it. It ended up in the river. So, he climbed on a log that was over the water and saved the dog. But then, the log broke off, and I lost sight of him so fast.”
Piper wraps her arm around his waist, and CT moves his eyes to the ceiling. “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have stopped.”
“No, it’s not your fault,” Piper says. “If you hadn’t stopped, Durango would have insisted on it. He wouldn’t have left that woman out there in a walker and helpless.”
Piper’s right. Durango wouldn’t have left a woman out there like that.
“He tried to get out, but due to all the rain, the river was running so fast. He went over the falls with all the debris.” CT stares at the floor. “He was pulled out of the water fairly quickly. But he hit his head on something. He has a traumatic brain injury. That’s what the doctor is most concerned with.” His voice cracks, and he wipes his eyes.
“How bad is it?” My legs feel weak, and the next thing I know, CT has an arm around my waist. I regain my footing, and he lets go.
“The doctors aren’t sure of the full extent of the damage yet,” Piper says. “But he’s still alive. That’s what we need to hold on to.”
I nod as I take it all in. When Piper called and told me Durango was in the hospital, I knew it was serious, but I crazily thought by the time I flew out here, he’d be much better.
“Let me take you to him.” Piper wraps her arm in mine.
She leads me to the nurse’s station. “We’re going to see my brother,” Piper says.
The nurse arches a brow. “And is this another sibling?”
“No, this is his wife.”
The nurse’s eyes widen. “Oh, yes, of course. Go ahead.”
His wife. For the past few months, Durango and I have been getting reacquainted. He’s made it clear he wants to date, but I’ve held off. And I haven’t fully explained why. It’s all because of my ex.
“He’s in here. Please keep your voices low.”
I don’t hear her next words as my eyes take him in. His face is bruised, and so is the arm that’s exposed. His other arm is in a cast. His gown is open in the front, where there are several things taped on his chest that are hooked up to the monitors. I’ve never seen anyone look so beaten. But what startles me the most is that he’s on a ventilator.
There is a chair beside the bed. I sit down and place my hand on his, but I don’t squeeze. Hell, everything has to hurt.
A nurse steps into the room. “As the doctor mentioned earlier, we’re going to reduce the sedation. We hope he wakes up sometime today. But we still don’t know the extent of his injuries, so he may be confused.”
“I understand,” Piper says.
