"So, Carrie walks in the patient's room, and all we hear is her yelling, 'OH, MY GOD!' We go in the room, and this crazy bitch pulled her dialysis line out of her neck. Blood just everywhere — on her, on the bed, all over the floor — and we're trying not to slip in the giant puddles all while the patient keeps throwing haymakers at us."
I could see the customers seated near us turning to look at me with appalled expressions. But Striker simply raised his eyebrows and chuckled. "Well, damn."
"Yeah," I said, taking a quick sip of my drink. "So I step around the bigger puddles of blood to get to her, then I just bear hug her and body slam her ass back in the bed!"
Striker laughed in amusement, lightly running a finger over his brow. "I can't imagine you doin' that, darlin'," he said, shaking his head.
I smirked and leaned forward. "Well, you haven't seen me in my element, cowboy."
He mirrored my expression. "I reckon I haven't, sugar cube."
Though I maintained my playful smirk, I felt the heat rising in my cheeks at his pet name. It must have shown because Striker's lips curled into a shit-eating grin. I shrugged and continued in an attempt to distract him from my blush: "And I stay on top of this lady pinning her down while Carrie tries to stop the bleeding." I shrugged. "I've got plenty more stories like that — never a dull moment with these patients, I swear."
"Sounds like it," he remarked.
"Oh, I almost forgot." I opened my purse and extracted Striker's faded red bandana that I'd folded into a neat square. "Since my bruise is pretty much all healed up, I figure I should give this back to you."
Striker took his bandana by one of the corners and quickly flicked it open before tying it around his neck. "Much obliged, darlin'. My neck was startin' to feel naked without it."
"No problem. The cowboy look wasn't quite complete without it."
The server approached our booth and set our orders on the table in front of us, and Striker immediately began to chow down.
I smirked at him and quipped, "I guess I made you work up an appetite this time, huh?"
Striker swallowed his bite and snickered, his gold tooth glinting in the diner's fluorescent light. "I'd say it's more a case of refueling for round two."
YOU ARE READING
Come Hell or High Water - Striker x Reader (18+)
RomanceWhen your injured friend Stolas sends you on an errand to the Wrath ring, you meet a roguish imp who offers to work as your body guard during your time there. Taking place after the events of the season 2 episode "Western Energy". A she-fell-first-h...
