Beast: Learning to Breathe (Devil's Blaze MC #5)

Liese Haley, said she would come and get me and she will. She offered to be here early today, but I felt guilty about making her miss her shift. She lives from check to check much like I do. Charlie would have done it, but she’s out of town today. Pastor Sturgill is out of town, so that makes my options limited.

I told her I’d find a McDonalds or something and crash till she got in town. It was the simplest solution. I’ll grab a taxi to McDonalds and text Liese and tell her where I am. I have just enough minutes left on my crappy pre-paid cellphone to do that.

“We normally can’t release you unless you have a ride home,” the nurse says, worry lines appearing and crinkling in the center of her forehead, showing obvious concern.

“I’m afraid I don’t really have anyone. It’s just me and Maggie,” I tell her, rubbing my stomach. “We’ll be fine. I technically have a ride.”

“I’m not sure that’s what the hospital guidelines mean,” she says, shaking her head. She looks at me and she’s about my age. Her name tag says Jana Kick. She’s a beautiful woman with mocha skin, dark hair with almost purple highlights and the kind of body men are drawn to. She has a professional job, one that ensures she will always be able to take care of herself and her children.

The last thing she would probably understand is the mess I’ve made of my life. The bad decisions, the pain, the hurt…all of it. I pray she’ll never know it, because I wish I didn’t. I’ve lived through it, and I wouldn’t want other people to do the same. Still, I don’t want to risk that she won’t let me go home. I need out of here. I need to get back to work. I need to get more baked goods out. I was just starting to get my head above water, and I can’t lose that now. My hand pats my stomach again on reflex. Especially now.

I put my hand on her arm to get her attention. Her soft eyes look at me, and I let my guard down enough so she can see me pleading, and how desperately I need her to agree.

“I’ll be fine. I promise.” Jana stares at me for a minute and my breath lodges in my chest while I wait to see if she will agree. Then she gives me a tight smile.

“A ride is a ride, right?” she says, and I take a deep breath in relief. She goes over the rules and the follow-up appointment they’ve made with the local clinic. I’m dreading that, but it definitely needs to be done. She hands me a bunch of papers along with a few prescriptions, and just like that, I’m free.

I always thought hospital policy was wheeling you out in a wheel chair, but I’m not offered one. She walks me down to the elevator. Then we’re at the front doors, before she’s telling me bye. I’m sure she’s skirting one or two rules for me. Maybe more. I’m more excited that I won’t have to hire a taxi. I have no idea how much it would have cost me to take a taxi to the nearest McDonalds, but any amount right now is more than I can afford.

I step out into the cold air, wishing I had a coat to wear. I’m waiting for a truck to go by so I can cross to the walkway. Instead, the big gray truck pulls up and parks in front of me. It’s thrown into park so hard, it jerks causing it to rock on its wheels. I sigh, as I hear the driver getting out. I mean, it’s kind of rude, but it is the pick-up and drop-off lane, so not unexpected. Still, the driver had to see me standing here. Just another reason people are annoying.

I turn to walk around the truck, dismissing it and the driver. I need to get inside somewhere before I get sick again. I can’t afford to, and it wouldn’t be good for the baby. I’ve only taken a few steps when I feel a hand grab my arm. I cry out, looking at my shoulder and seeing a large, tattooed hand wrapped around my upper arm. Fear instantly hits me. My head goes back to see who it is. For a moment, I’m scared to death it’s him. Then my eyes focus on Michael. The fear dies down, even in the face of his anger.

“What are you doing here?” I ask. He pinches the bridge of his nose and for a second I think he might roll his eyes at me. It’s hard to tell he has so much hair, and when he leans his head down it covers his face like a shroud.

“Let’s go,” he says, not really answering.

I’m in his truck—I didn’t even know he had a truck, and he has me buckled in before I know what is happening. He closes my door after testing the belt to make sure it’s secure. Then he gets in on his side, starts up the vehicle, and we’re merging into the traffic on the main road all before I think I can even blink. He also does all of this without one word. Not a grunt, a groan, or even a huff of breath does he offer. But then I don’t guess he needs to, because in a way he answered my question. He’s here for me.

Crap.





18





Beast





“What are you doing here? How did you know I was getting out? When did you get a truck? Why are you here? Do you know how to talk? How many tattoos do you have? Did it hurt when you had your fingers inked up? Do you have lips under all that hair?”

That’s the questions I find myself ignoring from my chatty passenger. Admittedly, the first part of those questions came pretty quickly into our ride. The last few, are kind of strange and a little funny— or they might be if I still laughed. They came farther into the ride, and in ten to fifteen minute intervals.

I haven’t answered any of them. I haven’t really looked at her. The last question was about thirty minutes ago. I’m taking that to mean she’s given up. Which is good, because I don’t plan on answering her. Part of that is because for the fucking life of me, I don’t know why I picked her up. I have no idea what I’m doing. All I know is that when I heard Charlie discussing with some other waitress that they would have to wait until evening to get Hayden…I stepped in again to help her. I don’t know why, and it has me confused as hell.

Charlie, however, she found it funny. I was also right about her. I like her. Since she heard I rescued Hayden and got her to the hospital, she has let me start eating at the diner again. By that, I mean she brought me breakfast out to my place the next morning and told me she would see me tomorrow at the diner. Charlie is a woman of few words, and that is one characteristic of hers I can definitely appreciate.

She also laughed at my reaction about Hayden not having a way home. I growled. I did this loudly, and since I was staring right at the women, Charlie knew immediately why. The waitress, she called Liese, jumped a good foot in the air, but Charlie just grinned. She knew she had me, and that’s when I found myself really liking her…even against my will.

Nothing else was said between us—see a woman of few words. But, when I went to the counter to pay my bill, she handed me a to-go-bag instead.