Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 37970 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 190(@200wpm)___ 152(@250wpm)___ 127(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37970 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 190(@200wpm)___ 152(@250wpm)___ 127(@300wpm)
"She needs plenty of rest and fluids," Belle continues. "And it'd be best if she had someone stay with her to keep an eye on her."
"She's got a brother at home. I'll pass on the instructions."
"I'll get her discharge paperwork ready. You can break the news that she's free to go." Belle grins at me. "Maybe she'll like you a little more if it comes from you."
"Thanks," I mutter. "I don't even know what the fuck I did to piss her off."
Belle pats my arm as she sails past, laughing quietly. "You're the reason she's here. Guess that makes you the enemy."
Fuck my life. What was I supposed to do? Leave her in the damn bathroom?
I heave a sigh and then slip through the curtain into the room with her. My heart clenches when I catch sight of her curled up in the bed. It's a little fucked up how my dick jerks in my pants at the sight of her when she looks like she's having the worst day of her life. And yet, the hard bastard reacts anyway. It's fucking impossible to keep him from reacting when she's so fucking beautiful. Even miserable, she's stunning.
Her long red hair is tangled across the pillow, but even under the dim lights, it shines. She's regained a little color since I saw her last, leaving a healthy glow to her porcelain skin. Her eyes are closed, her long lashes fluttering as she mumbles to herself. Even miserable, there's no missing the stubborn stilt to her chin. She's full of life and fire. The hospital gown should look like a goddamn potato sack on her, but it's tangled around her, hugging every voluptuous inch of her body.
And that body? Fucking hell. My hands itch at the memory of feeling her pressed up against me. Even through my fucking turnouts and gloves, I felt how soft she was.
Nina Gregori was built for a man like me. She's thick and lush everywhere, her curves overflowing. It's sexy as hell, even when it shouldn't be. Like right now.
"If you're here to tell me that I'm not allowed to leave, you can save your breath," she says without even opening her eyes. "Dr. Arakas has been telling me the same thing for the last nine days."
I grin down at her, unable to help myself. "Nine days, huh? Time must move differently in this room than it does on the other side of the curtain. I could have sworn it'd only been a few hours."
Those gorgeous blue eyes pop open, fixating on me. "A few is more than two but less than six, Emmett."
"Your math is off, Red. A couple is two. A few is three to six. Several is seven to ten."
She scoffs dismissively and then grimaces, reaching up to massage her throat. "I don't know where you learned math, but you suck at it. I've been here all night. That's more than a few."
"I learned in Dallas."
"That explains it."
"Is your throat sore, baby?" I ask, ignoring her cute little attitude to focus on more immediate concerns, like the way she's rubbing her throat.
She shrugs noncommittally and quickly lowers her hand…which I take to mean it does, but she doesn't want to tell me. So, she's stubborn then. I can work with that. Why the fuck do I like the thought of working with that so much?
Jesus Christ. She's a witness.
Maybe if I tell myself that often enough, it'll sink in.
"Why are you here, Emmett? I don't know anything about the fire."
She's a terrible goddamn liar.
"I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't ask anyway, Red," I murmur quietly, my eyes locked on her as I try to get a read on her. What is she hiding? What doesn't she want me to know? It's definitely something. "You could have died in that bathroom."
"Believe me, I'm well aware. It doesn't change the fact that I didn't see anything."
"You were in the bathroom the entire time?"
"No. I was in the attic, trying to pack up some things," she says, shivering slightly. "I smelled smoke and went down to check it out. By the time I got down the ladder, there wasn't anywhere for me to go…" She swallows hard, squeezing her eyes closed. "I tried to get out through a bedroom but it was already on fire. I saw the bathroom and thought maybe if I could get it wet enough, it'd give me a chance."
I don't have the heart to tell her that it doesn't really work that way. A fire that hot needs more than a little bit of water to slow it. The fire would have burned off most of the water relatively quickly. All she was going to do was create a little steam before she either drowned in the bathtub, died of smoke inhalation, or cooked to death.