“Shh, it’s okay, Baby. Let me call the nurse and have her come check you out. I don’t know if I can give you any water, so let me go get her.”
I grab his hand with what little strength I have when he goes to move away from me. Tightening my weak fingers around his hand, I desperately hope he understands that I don’t want him to leave my side. My eyes refuse to budge, so I slowly turn my head to where I think he is. Opening my mouth, I try to tell him not to leave me, but that sickening noise comes out again.
“Dee, please don’t try and talk. I’m not leaving, I’m right here. Coop, go get the nurse.” I feel him move closer from where he must have been standing, his free hand brushing against my hairline. “I’m not leaving,” he vows.
The energy around me goes still, and he continues to murmur in my ear. I can’t tell what he’s saying because he’s speaking too low, but it’s still comforting. His soothing tones calm my out of control heart in seconds.
“Well, I see sleeping beauty decided to wake for her prince, after all. My name is Destiny; we’ve been waiting for you. I’m going to move your bed up slightly so that I can move the straw into your mouth. Okay, Honey?”
When the nurse’s soft voice starts explaining to me why I hurt, I start to panic again. What the hell happened to me?
“All right, Honey, open up and let’s see if we can get you talking. Your throat’s going to hurt, but let’s see what we can do. That’s it, small and slow sips.”
When I get enough to make my throat feel less like I’ve decided to eat sandpaper and closer to a dull throb, I unlatch my lips from the straw.
“That’s good, that’s good. Can you tell me your name, Honey?”
“D-de-nise.” My voice causes me to jump slightly. A low moan of pain escapes, and I try to calm my breathing when the pain gets a little too intense.
“I’ll get you something for that pain in just a second, okay? You’re doing great.” I hear as she moves around the room, and then places a cuff on my arm. When it finishes its tight squeeze, she reads my blood pressure out loud.
I try for a few seconds to calm myself down by taking shallow breaths. My right eye finally cracks open, and I take in the room around me. My nurse, a beautiful woman with skin as dark as night and hair back in a tight bun, is still moving around the edge of the bed. I can see Maddox, Coop, and Chelcie in the corner by the window. Maddox has both of his thick arms crossed tightly over his large chest. His face is hard, but I can tell by the slight tick in his jaw that he isn’t holding his emotions in as well as he would like. No, he’s pissed. To my shock, Coop has Chelcie wrapped tightly in his arms, slightly rubbing her back.
When my eye finally hits the worried, dark gaze of the man sitting by my bed, I want to cry. His eyes are red, and I can tell he’s either been without sleep, or he’s been crying, and I desperately hope he just hasn’t slept. His brows are drawn in tight, his lips are pressed into a line, and his thick brown hair is mussed and standing in a million directions. Even looking as terrible as he does right now, he still is the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen.
“Everything looks great, Honey. I’m going to get you some more medication for your pain. It’s going to make you sleepy, so let me get the doctor to explain what’s going on before you turn into Sleeping Beauty again.”
My eyes never leave Beck’s face.
“That’s right. This prince of yours hasn’t left your side once, so I imagine I wouldn’t want to stop looking at him either.” She lets out a soft giggle before I hear her slip from the room.
I try to offer him a small reassuring smile, but it must fall flat because his eyes look even more pained. He leans in and kisses my forehead softly right before I hear footsteps next to my bed again. I turn my head from Beck’s worried face and focus on the new arrival. She’s wearing a white coat, so I’m only assuming this is my doctor. She puts me instantly at ease with her calm smile, but it’s her eyes that make me feel like I’m in good hands. She has the kindest eyes.
“Hello there. I’m Dr. Knott. I understand you just woke up?”