Page 104 of Deliverance

“Oh, for Pete’s sake—”

“You decent?” Ian interrupts their bickering.

“Yeah.”

The manager pulls the curtain aside, revealing Zander sitting upright in the hospital bed. Bruising mars the left side of his face. A nurse is adjusting the Velcro cuff on his bicep. There’s another woman in the room. Short, fit, perhaps in her mid-fifties. She’s standing in the corner and I can tell she’s a relative. Probably Zander’s mother. They have the same dirty blond hair. The same cheekbones. The same lips, the bottom one slightly fuller.

“Hey.” He grins, his gaze meeting mine, and I feel beyond stupid for thinking coming here was something I had to do.

“Hi.” My throat closes in, my fingers fumbling with the strap of my bag.

The nurse finishes whatever she’s been doing and swiftly leaves the room. Ian does too. Now it’s just me, Zander, and his mother. For some reason, I’m certain she’s his mother.

Her sky blue eyes linger on me for several long seconds. “I’m Penelope,” she says, moving toward the bed.

“Drew. It’s nice to meet you,” I mutter.

Zander clears his throat and skewers her with a hard glance. “Mom?”

“I’ll go get something to drink,” she continues to look at me while patting his shoulder. “Would you like coffee or tea?”

“I’m fine. Thank you.”

The room goes silent for a few heartbeats when Penelope exits. The only sound is the steady beeping of the monitor.

“I honestly don’t know what I’m doing here,” I confess, still standing near the curtain, unable to move. My pulse stutters against my temples. I’m uncomfortable. I don’t belong here. “Hazel told me.”

“I’m glad to see you,” Zander says quietly. “Sorry I look like shit.” A tiny smirk tilts up the corner of his mouth.

“You don’t.” He does. Dark circles ring his eyes and several scratches line his forehead. “What happened?”

He attempts to draw a breath but clutches his side and winces. “Lost control.”

I take a tentative step forward and grab a chair.

“Thank you for coming.” Zander watches me settle in front of the bed.

“You scared me.” I never thought I’d feel this way about a man, but I really was terrified for the briefest moment when Hazel dropped the news.

“I didn’t mean to.”

“I believe you.”

He laughs softly. “I’m sorry I didn’t text you back. Apparently, my phone was busted during the accident and I’m still waiting for Ian to get me a new one.”

“He said someone sneaked into the building yesterday.”

“Comes with the territory.” Zander blows out a loud breath and his face twists with pain again. “The band’s fans can be a little enthusiastic.”

“There’s a crowd outside.”

“There always is.”

“What about all those people in the waiting area?”

“PR team, probably someone from the label too.” He gives a casual shrug.

“Do you get tired of it?”

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