Page 7 of Grim's Gem

“Yeah, I’ll have it to you asap,” he says simply.

“And let Swift know I’ll probably be gone for a bit. Apparently, I’m the only doc not down with some flu or something. So I got called in. Just giving you a heads up.”

“No problem, man. We’ll hold the fort down. I’ll let Prez know,” he says, and I give him a nod before kissing Paisley on the head and patting Rome on the shoulder. Then I'm rushing to my bike and to the hospital.

When I get there, it's nothing but chaos. Straight madness. The ER is full to capacity. We’re not only down a few doctors, but nurses as well. A particular strand of the flu has been circulating that even the annual shot can’t fight. That means it’ll be more than a few days before I see the light of day again. I’ll spend the next two weeks in this hospital, and I’m already in a pissy mood.

I didn't get my morning meal from my woman. Fuck, the paradise that's between her legs would have been my source of life to get me through this shitty-ass situation. Now, I have to wait two fucking weeks to track her ass down. She better be ready when I finally find her, because she ain't getting away this time.

******

Three weeks later, it's my turn to lie in my bed, groaning and dying. It turns out the flu decided I was its next target, and it's doing its best to kill me. I’ve had it for a week, and it's only now getting better.

“Oh, stop with the fucking whining. You men act like such babies when you're sick. Doctors are even worse than that, I swear. Rae and Paisley got over this shit in three days. You better get healthy soon, or I'm carving out your vocal cords so we can't hear the crying,” Halle threatens, dropping a tray of food on the bed.

“Anyone ever told you your bedside manner is both the worst I’ve ever heard and the scariest?” I mumble.

“Do I look like a fucking nurse? I like taking lives, buddy, not saving them,” Halle says, placing her hands on her hips. “Oh, I could probably pull off a sexy nurse. With the funny-looking hat with the cross on the top and everything.” She pulls out her phone to find a costume for her and Loki’s fun times, I’m sure.

“Wouldn't you burst into flames or something?” I ask her.

“Why the fuck would I go up in flames?” she asks, not looking up from her phone.

“You know, the cross being anywhere near your devil ass.” If I weren't so sick and not thinking right, I would have realized Halle might just kill me for a comment like that. She looks up from her phone slowly, and I wish I could take the words back, or I at least had some kind of weapon to defend my balls. Instead, she surprises me.

“You might be right. Best to skip the hat.”

Close call avoided.

“So, when’ll you give me Jade's last name or phone number? When I get out of this bed, the first thing I'm doing is finding my woman,” I say. We’ve been having this argument for over a week now, and I know her answer before she says it.

“If she wanted you to have it, she would have given it to you. I'm no snitch, and I ain’t ratting out my girl,” she replies, just like I knew she would. I close my eyes and lean my head back on the pillow.

“I will tell you Rome is getting his hair trimmed tomorrow. Jade is his hairstylist.”

She just gave me a crumb. That means I’m that much closer to finding the pie, and I'm damn well going to be eating all my pie very soon and then chaining her sweet ass to my bed.

Chapter Six

Jade

“Baby, you’re looking a little out of it. Are you sure you're not coming down with anything?” mama asks me, looking up from the perm she's working on. I finish the braid I'm working on before turning and looking at her.

“I don't know. I’ve been so tired lately, and I’ve been nauseous,” I say honestly.

I finally broke down and told her about Robby. I hide almost nothing from my mama, mainly because I can't. She sees right through me and saw me the morning I tried to sneak back into the house after my night with Gray. I didn't tell her all that, but I did tell her I stayed with Halle. I’m just not too keen on telling my mom I had a one-night stand. Sue me.

Either way, I confessed about the whole situation with Robby and his attacking me. Let's just say he was met with a curling iron to the face the next time he tried to enter the store. Did I mention my mom doesn't take shit from anybody? Luckily, he hasn't been back, but I know it's not the last we’ll hear of him.

What helps is knowing that the fucker was lying. My mom and the shop are both doing fine and thriving. The shop is doing better than we ever hoped and dreamed it could. That might have to do with Loki and Halle putting their stamp of approvaland offering protection to our shop. That type of trust goes a long way in a community like ours.

“Maybe you should go to the back and lay down. I’m working on my last client. I can take over your appointments for the day,” she says, looking at me worriedly.

“No, it's okay. I think I can…” my words are cut off when I see the last person I thought would show up at the shop.

Gray.

What the hell is he doing here? One-night stands are not supposed to show up again, are they? I wouldn’t know; I've never had one.

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