Page 7 of Bloom: Part 2

Outside Bloom’s room, I inhaled deeply and fixed a smile on my lips. If Bloom suspected something was amiss, he would get involved. My stomach knotted. No matter what happened, I couldn’t have him in the middle of my mess again. He’d already come close to losing his life because of me. Once was enough.

I had no choice but to keep my past a secret from him. The less he knew, the better it was.

The door stood ajar, and the knob was cool against my palm. The murmur of voices reached me, one of them unmistakably Bloom’s.

“I’ll yank the needles out if you don’t let me go!” His voice was belligerent and hoarse, laced with frustration.

What in the world? I opened the door, the sterile smell of antiseptic hitting my nostrils.

“Don’t make me order you to be strapped down, Bloom.” Sven had Bloom by the shoulder, shoving him back against the bed. “I will do it if that’s what it takes to—”

“What’s going on here?” My voice was sharper than intended, but the sight of Bloom being manhandled ignited a fierce protectiveness within me.

The nurse jerked back, releasing his hold on Bloom. He huffed out a breath, big gray eyes flashing in his red face. “I’m simply doing my job, but by all means, criticize me for insisting he stay in bed instead of walking out of the hospital like he was about to do.”

“Bloom.” He pursed his lips and raised his chin. “Is this true?”

He twisted the crisp white sheet between his fingers. “I wanted to find you. I was worried.”

Tension seeped from my shoulders. Everything else became secondary to the young man in the hospital bed. His long, black hair flowed down past his shoulders, framing a small oval face that was void of makeup. Without the cosmetics, he looked even paler. So young. So vulnerable. So incredibly beautiful.

And I was fucked because, quite frankly, I couldn’t imagine my life without him in it.

“Sven, thanks for taking care of him.” I gave the nurse a nod of approval. When I was working at the hospital, I’d never cared what the staff thought of me, but it was different now. They took care of Bloom when I couldn’t.

“Just doing my job,” he said. He gestured at the aide who’d brought Bloom’s lunch. “Just set it on the table next to the bed. Dr. Collier, since you’re here, will you see that he takes his medication once he’s finished?”

“Of course.”

I took the pills from the nurse’s hand gently. They left the room quietly, and I was alone with Bloom, who had his head averted and his chin set in a stubborn line. Petty energy radiated from him. He still had so many childish tendencies. With anyone else, I might have been annoyed, might not have bothered, but with him, never.

“I’m sorry I’m late.” I leaned in to kiss his forehead, but he shifted away. “You’re not going to talk to me?”

He picked up the remote from the bed and turned up the television. I plucked the device from his hand. “I said I was sorry.” Placing my hands on the bed on either side of him, I trapped him within my arms. “Bloom, look at me.”

“I sure hope Crowe comes by soon,” he said in a wistful tone. “Sucks to be in this hospital room all alone.”

As usual, the mention of Crowe sent a twinge of irritation through me, even though I knew what their relationship was. I didn’t like him relying on someone else for anything—even company. “Maybe I’ll forbid him from visiting you.”

His eyes grew wide. “You wouldn’t!” His chest rose and fell in small, rapid motions. He couldn’t fool me. He loved this side of me, which I hated—the other end to his extreme. I might not wield a gun or knife like him, but my possessiveness over him was a sharp tool that could cut deep too.

Funny how I hadn’t even known I had such a powerful weapon until him.

He brings out the worst in me. I know it, and yet I can’t walk away.

“I will if you keep ignoring me.” He shifted away from me, but he didn’t have far to go. With his neck exposed, I leaned in to sniff him. I hadn’t liked the scent of hospital on him, so I’d brought him toiletries similar to the ones we used at home. I rubbed my nose against the soft skin, inhaling deeply. “Is that what you want, Bloom? Me to lock you up and keep you as mine? I know plenty of ways to keep you busy on your back so you wouldn’t have time to miss your friends.”

I placed soft kisses down his neck. His pulse fluttered under my lips, and his breathing became sharper. His thin hospital gown wasn’t nearly enough to hide his erection.

“Yes, Logan.” He caved in, dug his fingers into my hair, and pulled my head up, slamming our lips together.

His kiss tasted urgent, unbearably sweet, a cry for contact hidden beneath a stubborn facade. As he twined his fingers in my hair, he arched his body toward mine, a needy whine escaping his lips. He was like a starved kitten desperate for attention. Desperate to be held, petted, and loved.

Beneath me, his body felt so fragile. He had such a big personality that it was easy to forget that he was physically vulnerable. Easily breakable.

Pop!

A gunshot from the past blasted in my ear, and an image flashed through my mind of Bloom on the floor, his life dwindling away beneath my gaze. I could have lost him.

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