Page 153 of Sassy Love
I sag against his side as the first tear spills over and rolls down my burning cheek.
If anything happens to Mills, I will never forgive myself.
Chapter 38
LAWSON
Carlie flies out of the Uber as it breaks away from traffic and slows for the curb.
Fuck.
I follow, thanking the driver briefly before a swift exit. The ambulance is already here. Lights flashing still, it idles by the curb, one paramedic still prepping or whatnot in the back with the doors open.
I rush inside, finding Carlie pacing by the elevator. I slam a hand over the up button repeatedly.
“That won’t make it go faster,” she says weakly, biting down on her thumb.
The second it dings, she flies past me, grabbing my hand and yanking me in with her. One small gesture that speaks volumes. This woman’s hell-bent on taking on the world on her own. Now, anxious and upset, she wants me by her side.
I fold her into my chest as the doors close. “Breathe, Carlie. She will be okay, we will make sure of it.”
“Don’t say that.” She pushes from my hold, brown eyes tight with emotion.
“Let’s just assess what trouble Mills has gotten herself into when we get up there, hey?”
As if on cue, the elevator dings, and the doors swoosh open.
We’re at her front door a heartbeat later, but it’s open with Miles waiting in his firefighter uniform.
“Hey Carlie, she’s in the bathroom, and she’s been asking for you.”
“Hey bud,” I say as Carlie flies through the apartment toward the bathroom. “How’s it look, Milo?”
“Not great, but she seems like a fighter. As far as we can assess on scene, she’s fractured her ilium.”
“Little words, Miles.”
“She’s broken her hip on those marble tiles.” His face is all sorts of concern wrapped in empathy.
“Fuck.” I rub my hands over my face with a groan.
Poor Millie.
The fact she’s been lying here for hours...
“Has the delay of getting help made it worse?” I ask.
“It’s difficult to say. The hospital docs can tell you more after they give her a full assessment.”
“I should find Carlie,” I utter.
He claps a hand on my shoulder. “She was in a fair amount of pain when we got here, but from the second the meds kicked in, she hasn’t stopped talking. She likes you, bud.” He gives me a wry smile.
“Thanks for coming.” The words are weak, and they don’t quite fit. But what else can I say?
I head for the main bathroom that Millie uses as her own. More EMS staff stand at the bathroom door by a gurney, and I can hear Carlie talking softly to Millie before I see them.
Carlie kneels on the tiles, clutching Millie’s hand. Her face is wrecked but still dry. Millie is watching the paramedics as they go about securing her onto the backboard. She has a C-collar on already and an IV in the hand.
