Page 137 of See You Again
“Only you.”
James’s brow smoothed with her words, and his breath evened out. Cami leaned forward to kiss him again and whispered against his lips, “I love you.”
Assured by the nurses that James would sleep for several hours while he was being monitored, Cami sent Luke and Dahlia home, promising to call when it was time for James to be discharged. Cami pulled a small chair up to the side of the bed, refusing to let go of James’s hand. She promised him she wouldn’t leave, and she wouldn’t.
The question was, would James remember any of the things he’d said while he was on heavy pain medication?
A hand stroking her hair woke her, and Cami lifted her head. She’d fallen asleep on crossed arms at the edge of James’s bed. She arched her back, wincing when the sore muscles of her lower back twinged.
Cami searched James’s eyes, happy to see that they were clear, and his color had mostly returned to normal.
“You scared the shit out of me.”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “It wasn’t how I’d planned to spend the evening either.”
Relief had tears flooding her eyes.
“Don’t cry, Tig. I’m just a little busted up. I’ll be okay.”
She struggled to swallow her tears as she pushed to her feet. James wrapped one large hand around her hip and tugged her toward him. “Come up here.”
“I can’t. You have been stabbed! In multiple places! No way I’m going to jostle one.”
“The asshole conveniently only got me on one side.” James gestured up and down the side of his torso closest to her. “Injury free. Besides, you’re only a third of the length of this bed. I probably won’t even notice you’re up here.”
“I’m not that small,” she groused. But inside, Cami was thrilled James felt well enough to make jokes. She gingerly hoisted herself to a seated position on the bed, but that wasn’t enough for James.
Cami didn’t miss the small grunt of pain when his arm flexed around her stomach and he pulled her further up the bed. It forced her to recline next to him so that her head rested next to his. He nuzzled his nose into the hair behind her ear. “Mmm. That’s better.”
James grouched the entire time it took to get him situated in his bed inside the hotel suite. Despite the wound to his thigh, James angrily waved off any help and limped from the car to the elevator. It was only when his brother left the room and James collapsed against the pillows that he winced.
“Damn. That shit stings.”
“Gee, I wonder why,” Cami drawled.
“I just need some ibuprofen and I’ll be ready to go tonight.”
“You can’t be serious. James, you aren’t going to the auction tonight.”
“It’s too important. If we don’t take advantage of this opportunity, we might not get another shot at him. The more suspicious Crawford gets, the harder it will be to get a sample.”
Luke rapped on the open door with his knuckle. “We have your medicine.”
Dahlia looked at Cami. “We weren’t trying to eavesdrop, but I agree with you. Cami should still go to the auction.”
James’s brows dove. “No.”
“You said it yourself. This might be our only chance. We can’t let it slip away.” Cami flashed him an innocent smile.
“It’s too dangerous.” A flush crept up his neck.
Cami kept her voice calm. “It’s a crowded party, and all I’m doing is picking up a piece of trash he leaves behind. He won’t even know what I’m doing.”
“And what do you think he’ll do when he realizes?” James said through his teeth.
“What can he do?” Cami shrugged. “I’ll get a car straight back here, and then tomorrow we can send it off to a private lab.”
“No. You can’t go alone.”