Leah Mitchell isn't the same shy, poor girl anymore. Now a college student, she is enjoying her life in the city and the freedom she longed for. She works hard and knows her worth. She has it all, but her heart aches for the only person from her pas...
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My head aches. There's an uncomfortable throbbing in my temples, and my mouth is dry. Slowly, I open my eyes. Panic pierces through me when I don't recognize where I am.
The darkness around me prevents me from seeing anything. I want to move my hand and turn on the light, but someone is holding it.
I recognize his touch. Even now, ten months later, I remember his slightly calloused fingertips and palm and the way his warm skin feels on mine.
I move my hand just barely, but it's enough for Brian to realize I'm awake.
He turns on the light, and I can see it all—him and the hospital room I'm in.
Brian is sitting on a chair next to my bed, wearing a lab coat. His eyes are rimmed with red, and his hair is disheveled. A loose strand lies on his forehead, and I want to brush it away.
I almost do it, but then I remember everything—telling him I was seeing someone, then getting on my bike and crashing because I was too rattled to pay attention to the road.
I fell off my Harley and some people called an ambulance.
"How are you feeling?"
Brian's voice is barely a whisper. He let go of my hand, but his hand is on the bed next to mine.
I want to touch it, and I hate that I do.
"My head hurts," I manage to say past the dryness in my throat.
"You have a concussion, some bruises, and scrapes. Luckily, nothing major. Nothing's broken, but you'll stay here for a couple of days. They want to make sure everything's okay before they let you go home."
I open my mouth to reply, but then something more important makes me change my mind about what I was going to say. "How did you know what happened?"
"I volunteer here at the hospital. Doctor Morris was in the ER. He told me."
"You volunteer here?"
What he told me explains his coat and the fact he's with me despite the late hour, but I am surprised, regardless.
Brian smiles slightly. "Yeah, I do. I enrolled in college, too. Premed."
My eyes widen, and Brian chuckles. "Who would have thought, right?"
"I'm glad you decided to study, but why premed?"
Brian hesitates. Then, his hazel eyes meet mine. "I'll tell you everything if you want, but first I need to know if you want to call someone, your dad or...Nash."
My face warms. I swallow and avert my eyes. "How did you—"
"My roommate Sean saw us. He's friends with Nash. I know him too."
"Did you tell him?"
Brian bites his lip and buries his face in his palms, shaking his head as he lets out a strained laugh. "Why would I, huh? To be an asshole? Do you really think nine months away from you didn't change me?"
