Page 84 of Surrender (Angels Halo MC Next Gen)

Samara stood over Nishia protectively as the other woman continued to scream. My baby girl looked like a cornered momma bear, ready to tear the throat out of anyone who threatened to harm her cub. Nishia pressed her back to the wall as she attempted to make herself smaller. Blood trickled from a gash on Samara’s forehead, the area around her left eye already swollen and discolored.

“Sammy!” I staggered forward, tears blurring my vision. “Baby girl. Thank God. Ah fuck, thank God.”

She squinted at me, as if she was having trouble focusing. “Elias?” Her body seemed to deflate as the fight left her. “D-Daddy.”

Crossing the distance, I swung her up. She wrapped her legs around my waist. “I’m here, baby girl,” I assured her, fighting a sob so I didn’t scare her. “Never letting you go. Fucking never.”

I barely noticed when Jack stumbled in behind me. Sirens wailed outside as I carried Samara out of the cabin, her arms clinging to my neck. “You didn’t kiss me!”

I pressed my lips to her right temple, being careful not to cause her more pain. “What?”

Leaning back, she glared at me, but I was caught off guard by how mismatched her pupils were. “We need a medic over here!” I yelled, finally taking notice of everyone else and our surroundings.

Ben was there, along with two uniformed EMTs. At least a dozen MC brothers had arrived, including my dad, Max, Reid, and Chance, with more coming down the road.

She winced at the loudness of my voice. “I have a headache.”

“I don’t doubt that, baby.” I walked toward the ambulance, where one of the EMTs waved me over.

She blinked a few times. “You didn’t kiss me.”

I lightly brushed my lips over hers. “Better?”

“No!” She frowned. “Well, a little. But that’s not what I meant. You just left. Without kissing me!”

Understanding finally hit me, and I felt like I’d been sucker-punched. “I’m sorry, baby girl. I was mad and…”

And what if I hadn’t gotten to kiss her ever again? My knees nearly buckled when that realization hit me. But before I could tell her how sorry I was, the EMT came up beside us and started prodding the gash on her forehead.

Samara startled and swung her right arm out. Even with her slower-than-normal reflexes, the paramedic just barely missed being clocked in the face.

“Easy, baby,” I soothed, adjusting my hold on her. “He’s a friend who is going to help you.”

She frowned at me in confusion. “My head hurts.”

“I know, Sammy. That’s why he’s here.”

“Oh,” she muttered, blinking rapidly. “I guess that’s okay. But you won’t leave me…right?”

“Never.”

CHAPTERFORTY-FOUR

elias

A womanin blue scrubs and a white lab coat stood at the foot of Samara’s bed. At some point while the EMT had been assessing her, my baby girl had started to get a little more lucid, which had only tempted her to argue with me about going to the hospital.

If Nishia hadn’t needed to be checked over, Samara probably would have thrown a tantrum.

Not two minutes after we got to the hospital, Samara started throwing up, and they rushed her into a CT. I’d been holding my breath ever since.

“We didn’t see any bleeding,” the doctor said with a grimace, and I was able to inhale fully.

“Did she just smile at him?” Samara muttered from the bed.

“No, darlin’,” Dad told her from the plastic chair where he sat close to her. “She’s not smiling at anyone.”

Dr. Hollis pressed her lips together, fighting the smile Samara was worried about. “That’s a hell of a concussion your sister has, though. I would feel better if she stayed overnight for observation.”

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