Tough Love

Chapter Seventy-Six

Chapter Seventy-Six

Eli

As I lay here with Dani in my arms, I try to go over everything that happened last night. That nightmare really freaked her out. I don't think she would have made me take my shirt off or climb onto the bed with her if she was thinking straight. I'm glad she did ask though. It points to some progress and she even admitted she doesn't want me to leave. That might not seem like a big deal, but trust me, it is. For her to admit something like that is major progress. I don't want to move, but I know I'm going to have to leave soon. I'm running my fingers up and down Dani's arm as she sleeps and for once, she looks peaceful. I wish she could sleep like this all of the time. Maybe when she goes home then she'll feel safer and she'll be able to sleep a bit better. I can only hope, even if I don't think it's a possibility.

I brush a kiss over Dani's knuckles as I let my eyes drift shut again. I just want a few more minutes of this peace. Just a few more minutes of the feel of her in my arms. I don't know when I'm going to be able to do this again so I need to make the most of it now.

I'm startled awake when I hear a noise at the door. My eyes fly open and I listen for any little sound. It takes me a while to get my bearings because I'm still shirtless, with Dani wrapped up in my embrace. I look over Dani's shoulder to see Dr. Stone's face in the doorway and I let out a sigh.

Dr. Stone whispers, “Sorry Lieutenant, I was just doing my morning rounds.”

I frown, “What time is it?”

“7:30.”

My eyes widen in shock. I fell asleep again. That's really not like me. I let go of Dani's hand to reach for my cell in my pant's pocket. I quickly send a text to Ash, letting him know I'm still at the hospital and I need to see the doctor before coming into work. I ask him to apologize to the Cap and to tell him I'll be there as soon as I can. Ash asks me if everything is ok, so I just tell him I need to talk to the doc about Dani's PT and that I'll speak to him later on.

Dr. Stone checks Dani's vitals and then adds her meds to the IV bag. While Dani's asleep, I take this time to talk to the doctor.

“Hey, Doc?”

“Yeah.”

“Dani's worried about her PT.”

“How come?”

“She doesn't like being touched, as you're well aware. She doesn't want anyone to touch her in PT. In fact, she doesn't actually want anyone near her...”

The doc shoots me a look, eyeing our current situation. I sheepishly smile and say, “I'm a different case entirely. It's taken me a while to get here, trust me.”

I don't know why I feel the need to explain to him. Maybe it's because I don't want him to think that Dani is easy or that she's just being difficult for the hospital staff.

“We had trouble yesterday with taking the casts off. As you know, we had to sedate her. How was she last night? Sometimes sedation can cause crazy dreams.”

“Yeah, I know. We had a rough night. My Captain was in here last night to go through the case with her, so she wasn't particularly settled going into sleep.”

“The nurses said she woke up screaming, but when they came to check her, you were handling it. Anything we need to know about?”

“No sir, just stuff we're dealing with. It's of no medical importance. What's going to happen about PT?”