Page 45 of Waiting for Devon
“You’re not going anywhere. Dr. Bailey told me you are malnourished, dehydrated, and exhausted, so you were unable to fight a nasty bacterial infection. Frankly, he was surprised you haven’t taken better care of yourself. He’s not releasing you until you regain your strength.” She paused. “Dev, did something happen after everyone left the clinic? You have strange bruises on your arms.”
Devon frowned. “What?” She looked at her arms and saw the purple imprints. “No, I don’t think so. I mean…” A chill ran up her spine. Had she been alone in the clinic? She couldn’t remember anything after delivering Inez’s baby. “I guess I have no choice but to stay until I speak to Dr. Bailey.” She met Blair’s eyes. “Where’s…?”
Reed.
His name hung unspoken in the air between them.
“Shane is in New York until Saturday. He left yesterday,” Blair explained. “Dad has been to see you every day. Isn’t that remarkable?”
“I suppose those apricot roses are from Shane,” Devon observed with a quiver of disappointment in her voice.
“Yes, they are.” Blair’s eyes slid away. “I’m going to let you rest now. I’ll be back to see you tomorrow after I close the clinic.”
Devon despised the helpless tears filling her eyes as she realized Reed had abandoned her and did not care enough to visit her. Even Jasper had that much decency in him. Too fatigued to think about it anymore, Devon fell asleep with her cheeks still wet from her bitter tears.
“Is she asleep?”Reed asked one of the nurses on duty on the second floor of Dallas General Hospital.
“Yes, Mr. Barrington,” the nurse replied with a secretive smile. “You may visit Dr. Brooks now.”
Reed set the bunch of balloons he carried next to the bouquet of roses he had brought the previous day and put a box of Lady Godiva’s finest chocolates on the movable tray where Devon could see it when she awoke. He sank into the chair next to the bed where he had kept vigil every night over Devon as Dr. Bailey did all he could to get the infection under control.
Gently, Reed brushed a stray lock of Devon’s thick brown hair from her forehead as he watched her sleep. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t stay away from her, couldn’t get her out of his mind, and couldn’t stop wanting her. His self-denial only increased the incredible yearning and desire that raged through his blood whenever he recalled every moment she was in his arms. Reed understood the reason she spent all of her time at the clinic because it was the same reason he didn’t want her to know he was here. Silently, he cursed Fate who had brought Devon to Texas as his brother’s future Barrington bride.
If he had never met her, he wouldn’t have known what it meant to crave something he couldn’t have.
When Blair visitedDevon late the following afternoon, she thanked her for the balloons and the delectable box of chocolates. “You’re spoiling me with chocolate. I’m afraid I won’t be able to have enough.”
“You’re allowed one or two a day,” Blair teased. “More than that is strictly out of the question.”
“I spoke to Dr. Bailey today. He’s going to release me sometime tomorrow afternoon since I’m stronger today. I’ll be able to return to the clinic on Monday.”
“That’s good news. I can’t tell you how many brokenhearted children I’ve had to comfort because they couldn’t see you. Anyway, I’ll be here to take you home when you’ve been discharged.”
The following afternoon Dr. Bailey released Devon and issued a stern warning for her to take better care of herself. She agreed and signed her release forms. Afterward, she took a shower, dressed, and waited for Blair to arrive.
At five-thirty a nurse entered with a wheelchair and announced, “Your ride is waiting for you, Dr. Brooks. Do you have all your personal belongings?”
“Yes. I’m ready to go.”
When Devon saw who waited for her outside the entrance to the hospital, her heart slammed into her chest, and she swallowed the lump of emotion rising in her throat. Dressed in his typical jeans, white T-shirt, worn boots, and cowboy hat, Reed radiated a raw sexuality, drawing the admiration of every woman passing through the lobby.
He helped Devon from the wheelchair. “Your chariot awaits.”
As soon as she was settled comfortably in the family’s Rolls Royce instead of Reed’s truck, Devon declared in a waspish tone, “I expected Blair.”
“Sorry to disappoint you, Doc,” Reed replied with a sideways glance. “Blair has a date with…oh, yeah…Tall, Dark, and Obnoxious, I believe she called Gennaro.”
Devon managed a smile. “I like him.”
“You approve of Blair’s relationship with him?” Reed raised a dubious eyebrow.
“Absolutely! Tony scorns her money, thinks she’s haughty and spoiled, and calls her ‘Princess.’ He’s a lawyer, by the way, for Matthews, Lawrence, and Morgan. I think he and Blair have an opportunity for a serious relationship, if you and your father don’t scare him away.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. The first time you accuse him of being a fortune-hunter, he’ll throw a punch or two before Jasper banns him from ever seeing Blair again.”
“You show an incredible lack of faith.”
