I’m not an avid fan of hospitals, though I can appreciate them after the few times I’ve been shot, beaten or otherwise physically broken. The beep of the heart monitor is rhythmic and gently draws me from sleep. It’s cool and quiet with the lights above me extinguished, leaving the light of the bathroom to illuminate the far side of the room. The television is on mute and brightens another corner of the darkened room.
Alisha is curled up on the chair beside my bed in a position that appears painful. Her laptop and pwn pad are tucked between her body and the back of the chair while her head lolls over the armrest.
The meds they used to put me under make it harder to think thank usual, and I have a headache interfering with my usually sharp cognitive abilities. I can’t quite pinpoint what emotion it is I feel knowing she’s probably been beside me since I was brought in. Appreciation. Gratitude. Amusement. Something warm that makes me reconsider Natalie’s teasing words about how I’m only fooling myself if I think my relationship with Alisha is anything but serious already.
I think Natalie’s right. I think I made that decision when I spent the night fucking Alisha like it was the first and last time we’d ever be together.
“Alisha,” I murmur in a gravelly voice.
She shifts and looks groggily at me, straightening quickly when she sees I’m awake. “Omigod! You’re alive! Are you okay? Do you need painkillers? A doctor? Any-”
Her tense, distressed energy makes me want to wrap my arms around her until she’s calm once more. “I’m fine,” I tell her.
“You don’t look fine!”
My left hand is numbed and bandaged halfway to my elbow in a soft cast. I hadn’t realized how hard it was crunched in the door of the container, but it must’ve been bad enough for a cast. I can hardly move my abdomen from the bandages wrapped around my midsection.
“They did three surgeries on you, George. Three!” She’s worried, the skin around her gorgeous eyes tight and her features drawn. “I had to hack the system because they wouldn’t tell me anything. I’m not family.”
I almost smile. Any doubt I might have about her feelings melts in the face of her concern, and the knowledge she’s the one beside me at the end of everything. I want to tell her my own family never bothered showing up when I was in the hospital and reassure here there’s no part of me that disagrees with the idea of considering her family.
I want to say a lot for once in my life, and I’m too weary, drugged and fatigued to say any of it.
“I’m fine, Alisha.” I hold out my good hand to her.
She takes it tightly. Her hands are cold whereas mine is warm. “You’re going to live, right?” She searches my gaze.
“Yeah.” I chuckle and then grimace at the corresponding movement of my sore abdomen. “No more GPS tags in my shoes, if you please.”
She blushes. “It kind of came in handy.”
“You won’t need them.”
“Really?” She brightens. “Because …”
“I don’t plan on … being kidnapped again.” I know what she’s asking, and I can’t help playing with her a little. I’ve always enjoyed teasing her.
“Wrong answer, George.” She frowns. “I have to tell you something.” She stands, agitated once more. “Okay … so, there’s room for you in my life. You have to tell me now if you want to be there.”
“Couldn’t wait until I’d had breakfast?”
“Oh. Yeah. Sorry.” Her face grows crimson. “You probably want to recover first, before we start talking … serious stuff.”
YOU ARE READING
Twisted (erotic) (#6, 101 Nights)
RomanceEJ and Alisha struggle to get along long enough to save their friends. Time is running out for Natalie, who is trapped and growing weaker after several weeks with little food. It’s up to George to help keep her spirits up and get her out of there wh...
