“You saved them,” she says. “Cara’s already back on her feet, fighting like hell with the nurses taking care of Dean.”
“And Dean?”
Her eyes fill with tears again, and she sniffles. “He had to have surgery. They amputated his left leg below the knee, but he’s alive.”
There’s a tightening in my chest, a confusing mix of emotions threatening to overwhelm me. If I’d only gotten to them sooner…
As if sensing where my thoughts have strayed, Ruby’s soft hand touches my cheek. “They’re still here because of you.”
“Where’s Aiden?” The words get stuck in my throat, causing me to cough violently.
Ruby lifts the cup of water and a straw to my lips. It does little to soothe the burn.
“He’s with Ivy and Luca, having the time of his life at the ranch. Don’t worry.”
“Come up here so I can hold you,” I murmur.
She slides up my body, and I sweep some of the hair off her forehead, bringing my lips to her temple in a soft kiss. “Thank you for being there when I couldn’t.”
“Of course. You know I’ll always be there for Aiden. He’s my little bestie.”
I smile and hold her against me, fighting the urgent need to kiss her. Now isn’t the time. We both thought I would die in that building, and I don’t want our first kiss to be something she’ll regret when the smoke has cleared.
Quiet footsteps approach, and my attention turns to the doorway.
“Good to see you’re awake, Mr. Murphy,” the doctor says, flipping through the pages on a clipboard. “Do you want the good news or the bad news?”
“It’s all news to me, doc. Give it to me straight.”
“You have four broken ribs and a possible concussion. I’ll have to do some tests to confirm. You also inhaled a significant amount of smoke. We’ll be monitoring you for the next twenty-four hours at least. Some more severe damage may not appear until hours after the initial exposure, so we want to keep a close eye on you.”
He removes the stethoscope from around his neck. “Miss, if you wouldn’t mind giving us some space.”
Ruby slides out of the bed and stands off to the side with her arms crossed over her chest as the doctor checks my airways. She’s swaying back and forth in that anxious way of hers, and I’d do anything to have her back in my arms.
“Your team got to you fairly quickly, so the smoke inhalation could have been much worse. You’ll need to sleep in an upright position to allow better airflow. Staying hydrated is very important. We also recommend hot showers with lots of steam to clear the airways, and it may benefit you to develop a taste for cough drops.”
All things considered, that doesn’t sound too bad. “When can I go home?”
“We’d like to keep you here for observation for another day or two at least. After that, you’ll want to have someone with you at all times for the first few days to monitor your condition. If your breathing worsens or your concussionsymptoms include vomiting, severe and increasing headache, confusion or agitation, slurred speech or numbness, you will need to go directly to the ER.”
I glance at Ruby, and she nods. “I’m not going anywhere.” She returns to the bed and settles herself back against my side, one hand resting over my heart.
“Anywhere but here,” I whisper, inhaling more of her familiar scent.
Ruby adjusts the blankets around my legs for the hundredth time, folding down the portion covering my stomach.
I grab her wrist to calm her restlessness. “Leave it.”
She exhales a long breath, slumping onto the side of my bed. I pull her into my arms, my muscles tensing when the pain radiates from my ribs all the way up my abdomen.
“Shit. Did I hurt you?” She lifts the gown to check my ribs, and I stop breathing altogether as I wait for her to mention the tattoo. Her fingertips trace over my abs, tickling me. “These bruises look terrible,” she says sympathetically.
I glance at where she’s looking, taking in the dark bruises covering the vast majority of my side. On a good day, there’s an inky black compass arrow behind a mountain range above a triangle of trees with the words ‘anywhere but here’ written in the top right corner. Now it’s barely visible beneath the damage.
I let out a sigh and take her hand in mine, bringing it to my lips. “I’m fine, baby. But you haven’t slept all night. Close your eyes.”
She shifts onto her side, resting her head near my collarbone, her arm draped around my waist. I rub circles up anddown her arm in a soothing motion until her soft snores fill the room.
