Page 105 of Catch My Fall
I clear my throat, setting a reassuring hand on the back of her head, stroking softly. “Princess, it’s okay. I’m alright.”
“I was so scared, Alec. I… I thought—”
“Hey, look at me,” I say, and she pulls back, those hazel eyes glazed with tears. “I’m okay. I’m right here.”
I cup her cheek and she leans into my hand, a tear escaping down her cheek. “I thought I lost you.”
I shake my head. “Never. Nothing will ever tear us apart, I won’t let it.”
“Seeing you lying here, not being able to help you, I… I hated it.”
“I felt the same when you were in the hospital. The waiting felt like an eternity, not knowing if you’d make it out. It was the worst kind of torture.”
I shake the memory away, not wanting to feel anything like that ever again. I’ve known fear at numerous points in my life, but nothing anywhere close to that.
“How long have I been asleep?” I ask.
“You’ve been in an induced coma for three days, but they’ve been slowly bringing you out of it. You’ve been slipping in and out of consciousness for the past several hours.”
A coma?
I try to shift my head into a new position but the pain that radiates through my skull has me wincing. “What happened?”
She frowns. “You don’t remember?”
I try to force my mind back, but it only makes the heavy throb there even worse, but tiny flickers of images flash behind my eyelids.
The car crash. The warehouse. Austin. Then… Nothing.
“Why am I here?”
“You had a brain bleed. You collapsed at the warehouse and they think it was caused by the car accident. They took you into surgery as soon as we got you here and they managed to relieve the pressure by putting you in a coma.”
Jesus.
I let my thumb drift over her face, noting the dark circles under her eyes and the heaviness in her eyelids. “You look exhausted, baby. Have you been with me all that time?”
“Near enough. I couldn’t bring myself to leave you. Your uncle and Della forced me to go home to sleep and shower but I came straight back, even if it was just to sit with you.”
My heart expands in my chest and I reach forward, dusting my lips over hers, my skin erupting in tingles the moment our mouths connect. Her lips against mine is the best feeling in the world.
“Did you say my uncle? Ray’s here?”
She nods. “He’s been staying at the house. He’s been so worried about you. We all have.”
I try to pull myself up to sit, but I’m too weak and my arms give way beneath me.
“Don’t try to move. I’ll go find the doctor, he’ll want to know you’re awake.” She shifts off the bed and disappears out of the room, returning a few minutes later with an older gentleman in a white coat.
“Hello, Mr. McKenna, I’m Doctor Clark. How are you feeling?” he asks.
“Exhausted. Weak. My head is splitting.”
“I’ll have the nurse stop by and give you something for the pain. The rest is to be expected given everything you’ve been through.”
“How long will it take to recover?” Si asks.
“It varies from patient to patient and depends on the damage sustained from the hematoma. Some in a few days, worst cases can take years to make a full recovery, sometimes never, but there’s no indication to why you won’t recover in a week or two. We’ll keep you in the hospital for a few more days to monitor you, but so far everything seems to be in order. For now, I recommend rest and no strenuous activity, nothing that will elevate your heart rate. If you notice any changes in speech, memory, etcetera, please notify us immediately. I’ll return later on today to check on you again, but in the meantime, I can see you’re in safe hands.” The doctor’s eyes flick over to Sierra with a knowing smile before exiting the room.