Page 100 of Sebastian

“She’s in pain and her skin is red and inflamed around her wound. It looks like an infection. I expect you to call the doctor and alert him immediately.”

“Ms. Sullivan, why don’t you let me look and then I can better assess what you need?”

“Of course. Thank you.” She gave Seb a scathing look, but he didn’t care. Emma was supposed to be monitored. Surely something was off, or trending that way, earlier. The nurse missed it, and he wouldn’t let that slide.

Emma sucked in a sharp breath as the nurse pressed on her incision and Sebastian’s hands formed into fists by his side. How much more pain would she have to endure?

“Alright beautiful, how about you tell me how much of your hair you want to cut off, and once Eileen is done, I’ll do my best barber shop impression?”

Her eyes squeezed shut. “A-all of it.”

He couldn’t imagine cutting off all her beautiful hair.

“He grabbed the hair on the side of my head. It has to go. But m-maybe we can keep some on the top.”

“Sure, Sprinkles. Whatever you think. I’m imagining something punk rock and super bad ass. It’ll be perfect for you. I think we’ll need clippers though. Are you okay with that?”

“I just want it gone, Seb.”

Eileen finished looking over Emma, a fresh bandage now on her wound. “I think everything is okay, for now. No fever, the redness could just be from moving around too much. Let’s have you just stay in bed for the rest of the day. If you need to use the restroom, Mr. Montgomery will need to carry you there and back, understood?”

Panic flared in her eyes.

“I can carry you back into the bathroom to cut your hair, too.”

“Okay. C-can I take a shower after?”

“As long as you have a chair you are sitting in, I think that should be fine,” Eileen said.

“I’ll be right back.” Sebastian left Emma in the bedroom to grab a chair and his clippers, so thankful in that moment that he’d been cutting his own hair since the early days of his career in the Navy.

“Let’s go, Sprinkles.” Sebastian picked her up, loving the way she immediately melted in his arms.

He set her down gently on the chair, closing the door to reveal the full length mirror. “Shall we start with the sides?”

“Yes. Let me tie up the top.” He watched as she gathered a section of hair, wincing as she tried to tie it in place.

“Here, let me.” He slid his hands over hers, taking the hair tie and securing the section. “Look good?”

“Yes. Please start cutting, Seb.” The tears were already gathering in her eyes.

He worked for a few minutes, stopping after every stroke of the clippers to check in with her. When he moved from the first side to the other, she smiled and let out a huge sigh. His heart felt lighter than it had in days, that being the first genuine smile he’d seen from her in what felt like a lifetime.

He turned the clippers off, letting the hair on top of her head down. The way she sectioned it off, when laying flat, you almost couldn’t tell she’d cut her hair.

“You are so fucking beautiful, Sprinkles.”

“Thank you, Seb. It feels like, I don’t know. I can’t feel his touch any more.”

“Perfect. Now let’s get you in the shower and clean you up.”

Sebastian turned the water on and let the bathroom fill with warm steam before he placed Emma, chair and all, into the shower.

“If you hand me the shampoo, I can be done in just a few minutes,” she said as the water cascaded down her body. Her eyes never left him as he stepped out of his pants. “What are you doing?”

“I’m getting in the shower with you. I’m going to wash your hair and then bundle you up and take you to bed.”

“You don’t need to—” Sebastian pulled his shirt over his head, and Emma gasped.

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