Page 80 of Hesi-Dating
I wanted to comfort her. She had to give me the chance to explain what happened face-to-face.
Bruno released a rough sigh. "Seems like the reality of what you do finally hit her. She doesn't deserve to be with someone who will always be putting himself at risk or might be willing to put her in harm's way to get what he wants."
The air left my lungs. "That's not what happened. I would never put her in harm's way on purpose."
But I had. He was right. Isiah proposed that we invite her to the speech. He suspected Nosh was stalking her close enough that he'd show up, maybe threaten her a bit, and then we could nab him. He was wanted for so many other crimes that arresting him would've kept him away from her in prison. But would that have kept her safe? Nosh had tentacles everywhere.
Perhaps, I had assumed this would end with his death.
"You forced her to protect a toddler against the guy who's been terrorizing her for most of her life."
Although I'd intended to get her free, I'd caused this. What I felt for her was deep and rich. We'd barely scratched the surface of what was between us, but so long as Nosh hung over her, we couldn't figure it out. I'd messed up. He was right. I understood all too well the dangers of my job and didn't want another woman to regret being with me because of that, like my ex. I could die or I could put her in harm's way again, even if unintentionally.
Although it hurt, I nodded. "I'll keep my distance. All I wanted was for her to have a chance to live her life the way she wanted without external threats." I held out the flowers. "Give these to her, would you?"
ChapterThirty-Two
JOLEY
The beep of a heartbeat on the monitoring machine was the only noise piercing the quiet of my hospital room. I'd been dozing on and off for as long as I could remember. Sometimes Amber was there and sometimes not. At one point she told me they'd done some tests. The bullet had gone through and torn muscles in my arm, but I didn't need surgery. At least, not yet. It'd grazed the bone. No breaks.
Time made no sense to me in this windowless place. The hallway light was on all the time, as was the bathroom light. I couldn't remember if I'd gotten up to use the bathroom or not. The pain relief they put into my IV every few hours made me dizzy and disoriented. It also made me forgetful. It somewhat took away the pain, but I still felt like someone shoved a metal pole through my arm.
Commotion outside my room had me craning to the side to see. My arm burned as I propped myself up to see through the frosted glass windows by the closed door. I longed to see a man in a cowboy hat. I heard a low voice. My heart skipped a beat, but then plummeted when it wasn't him. It was another doctor and nurse. Where was Seth?
I needed to understand what happened in the park. Why had he put Junior at risk? Why hadn't they told me what was going on? Why was he staying away?
Isiah had come by briefly right after I'd been admitted, but I was too woozy on pain medication to ask questions. All I remembered was finding out Junior got out safely.
Bruno came through the door with a bouquet of flowers. "Hey, beautiful. How're you doing?"
"Pain relief makes me dizzy. Those are pretty."
He glanced down at the flowers and threw them on the bedside table. His jaw pumped as he chewed his gum fast. The pop of a gum bubble echoed in the silence broken only by the beat of my heart rate monitor. Hospitals made him extra nervous. He'd been in a car accident in his teens that forced him to stay in the hospital for weeks. Many surgeries later, he'd been able to walk, but the process soured him to medicine.
"I'm good," I squeezed his hand. "You don't have to sit here with me or anything. I know you hate these places."
"It's the least I can do." He popped another bubble. "Can't believe we almost lost you."
"You didn't. I'm right here. Seth saved me." I tried to smile. He needed me to be brave and convince him I was fine. "Anyone else here to see me?"Where's Seth?
"Amber went to grab some dinner. She'll be back soon."
"Is Seth here?"
Shadows passed through Bruno's eyes. He wouldn't look at me. Either this meant he was angry or hiding something or…hell, I was too woozy to figure out his look. "No. He has no business here, anyway. Not after he put you in that situation."
"He didn't even come by to visit? I doubt he meant for it to escalate like that."
"Why would he check on you? He got what he wanted. He killed a gang leader. Now he can reap the glory. I've already seen him all over social media about it."
Seth wasn't like that, or was he? He was running for reelection. Maybe he needed the good press. "He didn't even send a message to ask about me?" I craned around to look for my stuff, which hurt. "Where's my phone?"
"Let's forget about him." He took my hand. "Time to move on. We're all free of Nosh."
I don't want to forget about Seth."You don't think anyone in the Red Crips will retaliate?"
He rocked his head to the side. "I have someone putting out feelers on that. So far, seems they think he acted alone. The organization is adjusting."
