Page 94 of Night Shift

The room fell silent for a moment before Dr. Fitzgerald turned his attention to Atticus. “I’d suggest you consider seeing someone as well, Atticus. It’s been a lot for you to handle too.”

Atticus’s body tensed immediately at the suggestion. I reached for his hand, squeezing it gently. “Atticus, it might be good for both of us. What we’ve been through, it’s not something we should try to deal with alone.”

After a moment, he sighed, and his posture relaxed as he looked from me to Dr. Fitzgerald. “Okay,” he relented. “For you, Sam, I’ll give it a try.”

Dr. Fitzgerald nodded, pleased. “I’ll make the arrangements and get you both the contact information. Remember, it’s a sign of strength, not weakness, to ask for help,” he reminded us, then looked pointedly at Atticus before leaving the room.

I giggled a little. “You know therapists don’t bite.”

Atticus rolled his eyes.

It was then I noticed just how drained he looked. He was still covered in dirt and grime, and his eyes were shadowed with fatigue, like he’d been in a war zone—which wasn’t far from the truth. “Atticus, you need to go home and get some rest…and maybe a shower,” I added with a small smile. “I’ll be okay here. You’ve already done so much.”

He started to protest, setting his jaw in that familiar, endearing way, but when he saw the look in my eye, he relented. “Okay, but I’m coming back later,” he said, standing up reluctantly.

He called Conan and asked him to come pick him up. After he’d spent a few minutes updating his brother on my condition, they discussed what the police had discovered at the warehouse. Midway through the conversation, Atticus got that wicked gleam in his eye that told me he was up to something.

But before I could ask him about it, he gave me a quick kiss and headed for the door. “Promise me you’ll rest.”

“I promise.”

As he walked out, I settled back against my pillows, feeling a wave of love for this man who had become my everything. The silence soon enveloped me once more, but despite the circumstances, I didn’t feel alone anymore. And I was at peace.

Two days slipped by in a haze of routine hospital checks and restless nights. Atticus was a constant presence, coming to be with me as often as he could, his visits punctuating the monotony of my recovery. Each time he walked through the door, it was like a breath of fresh air had swept into the room.

Today, his mood seemed noticeably lighter. And the lines of worry that had etched themselves into his face were a little less noticeable. “You seem…happy today,” I commented, curious about the shift.

“Yeah,” he said, giving me a genuine smile. “I’ve got some good news. The mess your father got you tangled up in? It actually helped the FBI make significant progress against the Volkovi Nochi’s operations here.”

I sat up a bit straighter, interested despite the dull ache that still lingered at the back of my head. “Really?”

“Yes,” he confirmed, leaning back in the chair beside my bed with a pleasant sigh. “They’ve made a bunch of arrests, and it looks like they’re finally getting a handle on shutting down the drug trade in Tacoma. It’s a big win.”

“That’s…that’s amazing, Atticus.”

He grinned, and it was a rare, full-hearted smile that reached his eyes, transforming his entire face. “Yeah, it is. And it’s all thanks to you.”

“Me?” I laughed lightly, shaking my head. “All I did was get kidnapped and hit my head on a concrete floor.”

“And shared your location, which led us straight to them,” he reminded me. “You played a big part in this, Sam. Your life was on the line.”

It was nice to see this side of Atticus. He beamed like all his burdens had been lifted, and his happiness was infectious.

“So, how’s your house coming along?” I asked. “Have you been able to get it cleaned up and the doors replaced?”

Atticus’s lips quirked up into a mischievous grin. “Just wait until you see it. Braxton and Conan, plus a crew of others, have worked their magic on it. You’ll see. Now, how about us getting out of here? I snagged your discharge papers on the way in here.”

“What, really? I thought I’d be here until the morning.”

He smiled brightly again. “Nope, let’s go,” he said, leaning in to kiss me soundly.

Chapter twenty-eight

The moment I stepped out of the hospital, the fresh air hit me like a wave of freedom. “Wow, it feels so good to be out of there,” I said.

When we reached the car, Atticus opened the passenger side door for me, and I slid in. “Being on the patient side of things really puts it all into perspective. Makes me appreciate what our patients go through.”

Atticus chuckled, dropping into the driver’s seat. “I bet it does. Let’s go home.”

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