Page 33 of Only The Strong

“Look at me, Red. Let me see those beautiful green eyes.” Callum’s rough voice shocks me and my head snaps up to meet his drowsy eyes. His smile is weak, and it takes the breath right out of my lungs. I seriously thought I’d never see his smile again, never hear his voice. God, I don't know what I would have done without him. “There she is.”

“You almost died,” I whisper, tears sliding down my face again.

He reaches across himself and holds his hand out for mine. “Outlaws never die, babe.” I grab his hand, shaking my head. His hold on my hand is weak but it’s there, he’s here with me. “Are you okay?” His brows crease together and when I nod he lets out a sigh of relief. Callum brings my hand to his lips and kisses my knuckles, turning to face Finn he smiles again. “You want a kiss too, Finny?”

Finn laughs. “Yeah, big boy, come here.” He leans into Callum with his lips puckered. Cale lets go of my hand to push him back and then he reaches for my hand again.

Keeping his eyes on Finn, “How’s the Raptor?”

Finn slouches back into his chair, resting his feet on the bed next to Callum’s. He scoffs. “Fucked.” Callum sighs, his eyes closing briefly. “I’ll get the prospects to find you a new one and have it at your house.”

“Who hit us?” With every sentence, it seems that Callum is gaining more strength.

Finn crosses his feet at the ankles. “We can talk about it when you get home.”

Callum glares at Finn. “Fuck off. I want to talk about it now.”

Finn rolls his eyes. “Fine, grumpy. It was a hit-and-run. I got off of my bike and ran towards you guys and the van sped off.”

“Did you tell the club to look for the van?” Callum stares at Finn.

Finn’s eyes go wide. “No, fucker. I was too busy thinking you were fucking dead!”

I interject before Finn strangles Callum. “Yeah, you might have a damages bill for that wall in the hallway.” Finn waves off my comment, clearly not concerned about paying for the hole in the wall.

31

REESE

After a whileof the three of us sitting together, the doctor came in to tell us that Callum would be staying the night for observation and be released in the morning. Much to Callum’s disagreement we were finally able to convince him to stay in bed and rest.

“That was a close call,” Mason says as he drives me to Callum’s townhouse to get a change of clothes.

I lean back into the seat, staring out of my window. “I know. I really thought I lost him. It put a lot of things into perspective.”

Mason nods, staring out at the road. “Near-death experiences usually do.” The accident and the emotional whirlwind are starting to kick in and the adrenaline is wearing off. “When Finn called us on the way to the hospital everyone lost their shit. Ronan and Saint are good at hiding their feelings, but you could tell they were about to break too.”

I close my eyes. “I’m glad they stayed at the hospital with him.”

Mason chuckles his happy personality back again. “I don’t think you could pry Finn away from that room right now.”

I laugh too, remembering Finn convincing the nurse to bring in a cot for him and Huntley to bring his Xbox for him and Callum to play. “I know, I didn't want to leave either but I figured Cale and I needed clean clothes.”

“You mean you didn’t want Cale to go home in that sexy hospital gown with the open back?” Mason asks, barely hiding his amusement.

I grin imagining Callum’s naked tattooed back walking away from the bed after we slept together the first time. “He does have a nice butt.”

Mason makes a disgusted sound. “Okay, now I’ve heard enough!”

I laugh, the most honest laugh I've had all day. “What did you expect when you brought up the hospital gown?”

Mason chuckles next to me. “Yeah, I guess I did walk into that one.”

With that, we pull into the driveway and quietly walk into the house, me using the key Callum had given me when I kind of moved in with him. Mason drops onto the couch while I go upstairs to take a shower, change, and pack clothes and toiletries for Callum. I'm walking down the stairs with a small overnight bag when there's a knock at the front door. I pause on the steps and Mason looks back at me confused.

“Are you expecting anyone?” He stands from the couch and peeks through the blinds on the bay window. I shake my head. “Stay there, let me get it.” I sit on the steps, hidden behind the door and Mason.

Mason opens the door a small amount and I can hear a guy talking on the other side. “Hi! I have a delivery for Reese Thomas.”

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