Page 15 of Scorched

Chapter 3

Heels clacking on the tile floor, Maggie hurried down the corridor to Declan’s room, finally free. Work dragged today. She didn’t want to be in court or her office. Just here with him. Which was crazy. They were friends. And not even particularly close ones. They didn’t hang out. She saw him when he was with her brothers or Macy and she happened to be around. But it didn’t matter. Her mind was on him all day. She just wanted to see him and make sure he was all right.

She reached his room and pushed the door open, entering as quietly as her shoes would allow in case he was asleep.

Macy looked up from her seat beside the bed. “Hi,” she whispered.

“Hey. How’s he doing?” Maggie tiptoed across the floor to stand next to them. Declan was asleep, his mouth parted slightly. His rusty hair fell over his forehead in soft waves, and stubble dusted his jaw. An IV snaked out of his forearm and a white bandage covered the left side of his naked chest.

“Good. He’s just been resting. Nothing’s really changed since I talked to you earlier.”

Maggie was glad. Macy called her after he was out of surgery to tell her it was a success and that he was resting comfortably. She shrugged out of her coat and laid it over the back of a chair before sinking into the seat. “Have you eaten?”

Macy shook her head. “Not yet. The doctor was going to come in again for evening rounds. I didn’t want to miss him.”

“Do you know when he’ll get to go home?”

“Not yet, no. I’m hoping they’ll be able to tell me that. I need to make arrangements for the shop.”

“I can help. Not at the coffee shop. You don’t want me anywhere near your espresso machine. But with Declan. I can work from his house. I don’t have to be in court again until next week.”

“That would be great. He mentioned something this morning about you staying, but I wasn’t sure if you could actually do it. London and Rayna manned the coffee shop today, but they have their own responsibilities to tend to, so it would be nice to have the help.”

“Let’s plan on that, then. I’ll stay with him.”

Macy’s shoulders drooped, some tension leaving her. “That would be great. I’ve been stressing all day about what I’m going to do.”

“It’s not a problem, really.” She preferred it, actually. She would be useless at her office. All she would do was wonder how he was, even though she knew Macy would take good care of him.

The door opened. Maggie and Macy turned to see a man in his fifties walk in, dressed much like Dr. Demarco in the ER yesterday. A younger doctor and a nurse followed him inside.

“Hello. I’m Dr. Calvin.” He held out a hand to Maggie.

“Maggie Archer. It’s nice to meet you.” She shook his hand.

He smiled, then turned to Declan, who was now awake with the commotion. “How’s our patient?”

“Sore.” Declan’s voice was gruff from sleep.

“That’s to be expected. Any nausea or vomiting after you woke up?”

“No.”

“Good. How about shortness of breath?”

“No.”

“Perfect. You did very well, Mr. Briggs. I suspect you’ll be right as rain in no time. I suppose you’re ready to get out of here?”

“Hell, yes.”

“Tomorrow morning. After rounds. Let’s make sure we have your pain under control and give your sister a chance to prep for your arrival home. You’re going to need help for a few days.”

“How soon until I can go back to work?”

“You should be able to resume light duties—and by that I mean desk work—in about a week. After that, you can gradually increase your workload. But no running into burning buildings or training for at least four weeks. We’ll reassess at that point.”

Declan nodded, his expression grim.

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