Page 112 of Fierce-Jonah

Guess his sister knew what was going on. He wasn’t going to get annoyed over that either.

“She’s right,” he said. “I’m stubborn. I’m glad you’re here. Come sit down. I’ll be fine.”

She moved closer to the bed and sat on the side of it. “Anything hurt other than your head?”

He wanted to say his heart but not in front of his sister. He didn’t want to come off like a wuss.

“My ribs,” he said. “They said they were bruised, not broken. That’s a plus. I’ve had some broken bones in my life.” Though bruises could hurt just as bad, he knew that too.

“Don’t remind us,” Raina said.

He pulled Megan closer so that she was almost lying next to him. “I was scared,” she said softly. “When Raina came in and told me, my heart just jumped out of my chest and I couldn’t breathe.”

“Don’t be scared,” he said. He couldn’t remember Molly ever being scared for him. She was more the one encouraging him to go back in the ring and inflict more damage than worrying he might be hurt.

She sure the hell didn’t care for him much after he did get hurt. Not in an emotional way. More like a mechanical one to get him ready to start training again.

Talk about being an idiot back then.

“Hard not to be when you’re lying here. The head is a tricky thing,” she said.

She was looking into his eyes and he was thankful she didn’t say much more. “It’s going to be fine. The meds are taking the edge off the pain now,” he lied. It wasn’t a migraine so he could deal.

“I’ll go get Mom again,” Raina said. “I know she’ll want to see you some more. Sam came out to talk to us about an hour ago and said he asked someone be in contact. Otherwise I think we’d be sitting there waiting for news still.”

“That was nice of him,” he said. He supposed he should be thankful for the Fierce interference at this point. To take some of the worries away from his family.

“They are nice people,” Megan said. “They don’t do anything to hurt anyone.”

His sister had left the room when she said that. “I know. I’m sorry I reacted the way I did. I shouldn’t have.”

“I love you, Jonah. Don’t ever doubt that.”

He kissed her on the forehead. “I don’t. I won’t again. I guess I really can be a bull, but you can handle that. You’ve done it before.”

She laughed. “Not sure if that is a joke or not, but it was funny.”

“It’s the truth more than anything else.”

She leaned up and kissed him softly on the lips, then laid her head back down on his chest.

They’d get there, somehow.

40

Being Helpful

“You didn’t need to come home with me,” Jonah said hours later. He was starving at this point and it was past three. Who would have thought he’d spend this much time at the ER?

“It’s me or your mother,” Megan said. “Which one did you want to give you a sponge bath tonight?”

He turned and shut one eye at her. She was being cute and funny and though he appreciated she seemed to be back to normal—or they appeared to be as a couple—he wasn’t in the joking mood.

“Neither,” he said.

“Bummer,” she said. “I wouldn’t mind doing that. Maybe I can steady you in the shower? I know you want to take one. You’ve said a few times you felt dirty on the drive home. I don’t think you mean dirty in a sexual way.”

“Not funny,” he said.