Page 16 of Saving Emily
I swipe at the tears rolling down my cheeks unchecked. “It’s perfect, Jacob. He’ll love it.”
After wrapping my arms around Jacob’s broad waist, I weep into his chest. Although Noah’s present is technically from both of us, I still feel incredibly guilty I forgot today is his twenty-third birthday.
I’ll make it up to him. I just need him to wake up first.
11
Over the next several days, the swelling on Noah's face improves. His bruises shift from black to purple, and the gashes on his lip and nose are almost healed.
Slater, Marcus, Nick, and Jacob spend most of the days and nights filtering in and out of Noah’s room, reminiscing about the band, and how it formed. They share stories about the things they’ve achieved the past several years, what the future will hold once Noah recovers, and how they plan to do a bigger and better concert than being a supporting act for the O’Reilly Brothers.
They also mentioned how they get propositioned by groupies and members of the public anytime they drink in their hotel’s bar. Marcus assured me I had nothing to worry about when he saw the mortified look on my face, but I still hate the idea of women throwing themselves at Noah and Nick.
Nick just became a father, but that won’t stop some women. Groupies have no boundaries when it comes to chasing taken men.
When my stomach loudly declares its hunger, the band convinces Jacob to go with them to get some real food. We’ve been eating hospital food the past week. Let me tell you, it’s beyond disgusting. Jacob only agrees to venture outside of the hospital walls on the strict agreement I call him if Noah so much as twitches his nose.
I agree readily, more than eager to have some alone time with Noah. I will forever love his bandmates and friends, but we’ve barely had a moment of silence all week.
Once they leave, the room plunges into silence. I can hear the ventilator pumping oxygen into Noah’s lungs, but other than that, it’s blissfully quiet.Eager to gobble up our alone time, I pace over to Noah’s bed to gawk at his ridiculously handsome face. Even battered and bruised, his looks can’t be denied. He is a truly handsome man.
After glancing into the corridor to ensure the flurry of nurses who filter in and out of Noah’s room throughout the day are absent, I slip out of my ballet flats, then carefully slide into Noah’s bed. My heart beats at an unnatural rhythm when I cuddle in close to his side. I’m careful not to lean on him. His leg is still in a cast, and his body is badly bruised, but the instant I snuggle into him, I feel like I’ve returned home.
“I love you, Noah,” I whisper into his ear a mere second before his hospital room door slings open.
I jump out of his bed, certain I’m seconds from being ostracized by his nursing team.
I’m saved from slaughter when the strawberry blonde hair of my greeter registers as familiar. "It's okay, Emily; it's just me," Jenni whispers, stepping into the room. "Nick asked me to keep an eye on you while they get dinner."
She kisses Noah on the cheek before whispering a greeting into his ear. I don’t know what she’s saying to him, but it eases the deep groove in between Noah’s dark brows in an instant.
* * *
A short time later, the boys return with enough Chinese food to feed a small army. The silence in Noah's room is replaced with the pleasant moans of the boys enjoying food that doesn't taste like cardboard. I'm so hungry, I eat over half a container of fried rice and nearly a full box of honey chicken.
With my stomach almost as full as my heart, I glance over at Noah. Excitement scorches my veins when I notice his fingers tapping against the bedsheets.
“Do you see that?” I ask Jacob, who’s sitting next to me.
He peers at me with suspicion on his face before drifting his gaze to Noah. I can tell the exact moment he spots Noah’s faint movements, as the biggest grin stretches across his face. “Marcus, look!”
In sync, Slater, Nick, and Marcus follow the direction of Jacob’s head nudge. My heart thrashes against my ribs while watching Noah tap out a rhythmic beat on the stark white hospital sheets.
After dumping his food onto the trolley at his side, Nick paces closer to Noah’s bedside. “That’s the beat to Hollow.”
“One two three, one two three, one two three four,” Slater chants as he taps his fingers on his jean-covered thigh in the rhythm Noah’s fingers are moving.
Marcus leaps out of his chair. “It is!” He jumps onto Nick’s back, his face beaming with unmissable excitement.
Once again, the room plunges into pin-drop silence, but this time, it’s because we’re too shocked to speak. Our eyes are rapt on Noah, equally delighted and in awe. We’ve heard Noah sing Hollow numerous times before, so we’re confident that’s the tune he’s tapping out.
If I was willing to close my eyes, I could imagine him singing it in front of me right now. He’s belting it out as fiercely as he’s fighting to come back to us. He is giving it everything he’s got, and I’m so incredibly proud of him.
My attention diverts from Noah when a knock sounds from behind my shoulder. A lady wearing a crisp black pantsuit and a ruthless smirk is standing outside Noah’s door. I thought Isaac was the only person capable of making grown men quake in their boots with nothing but a smirk, but this mysterious stranger is making a quick liar out of me.
“God, what does she want?” Slater snarls, his tone vicious.
I lean into Nick’s side. “Who’s that?”
