by Natalie Dean
13
Elizabeth
Fuzzy.
Fuh-zzzey.
Everything was fuzzy.
Everything was fuzzy and blurry, and nothing made sense over the blaring horn of agony in her head. Ow. Ow. Ow. The same throbbing of hurt over and over again until she thought she might puke. Every time she thought she might almost have a thought, it rushed off in another vicious surge of pain. It was like someone had shoved two long fingers into her brain and was scrambling around her skull’s insides just for funzies.
It was hell, that was the only word she had for it, and it felt like an age passed before the stabbing, throbbing, malicious pain softened just enough for her to breathe steadily. But it did start to ebb, ever so slightly, and after another age of just breathing in and out… in and out, her thoughts stopped being so fuzzy around the edges.
Where… where was she?
Blinking, Elizabeth opened her eyes to look around. Except they were already open, and it was like someone was sketching her surroundings in real time until she could finally see them as they actually were.
That was certainly trippy.
“Hello?” she called uncertainly before a wave of nausea had her hand going to her mouth. She managed not to upchuck, but it made the throbbing in her head return in full force for several seconds, and she had to work herself all the way back down again.
That was unpleasant, so she tried just moving her eyes around. As far as she could tell, she was in some sort of hospital-like setting. An ER, perhaps? The size of the room and the fact that it was curtained off seemed pretty indicative of an emergency room.
Almost as soon as she concluded as much, the curtain was opening and someone who she assumed was a nurse stepped in. “Hey there, you look more alert. How are you feeling?”
Elizabeth stared at her a moment, trying to remember anything of the past couple of hours. She remembered hands carrying her. A ride in the truck. She remembered a very strange phone call and then more riding. She also remembered that she went from being very, very cold and wet to being just damp and warm, a noted improvement.
Except… she was pretty sure that she was dry.
Looking down her body cautiously, she realized that she was in a hospital gown. That was strange. “Who changed me?” she heard herself ask, voice gravelly.
“You did, sweetie. I mean, I was there to make sure you didn’t fall down, but you insisted on doing it yourself.”
“I don’t remember that.”
“You don’t? Okay then, love, do you mind telling me what you do remember?”
Elizabeth did so, and the nurse came up alongside the bed she was in. The woman didn’t seem condescending, just appropriately concerned, and her smile was sweet once Elizabeth shakily finished.
The nurse nodded her head. “Alright, so it seems like you missed quite a bit there. I’m going to tell the doctor that, okay? You’re currently in our ER, which I figured you guessed since you were so calm about me poppin’ in here. As far as the doctor said, you don’t need to be admitted overnight, but they did some tests and are waiting for a couple of results to come back.
“You’ve been conscious the whole time, and able to answer questions for the most part, but you have been very confused. Please don’t be surprised if random memories of this time come back to you over the next week or so. You took a nasty hit to the head.”
“Can I have a glass of water?” It felt like her mouth was filled with mud and grit. She hated it.
“Sure, let me go grab that for you. It’s on your charts that it’s fine for you to have clear liquids right now. I’ll be right back.” The nurse headed out but, true to her word, she came right back with a plastic cup. “Your friend is still out in the waiting room; we need your permission to disclose your status to him.”
“My friend?”
“The man who brought you in. You know, he’s over six feet tall, chiseled jawline. Real intense eyes, if you ask me.”
“Oh. Sterling. Yeah, you can tell him he can come in. He’s my boss.”
“Wow, from what I heard he had quite the trip to bring you here. That’s a pretty good boss.”
She gave the woman a kind of shrug. “I suppose so.” He wasn’t a bad boss, per se, but there was some awkwardness with what had happened at their one lunch. And it was hard not to resent him a little for being just so filthy rich.
But then again… the hands that had picked her up… had they been his? Had he saved her? If that were true, what was he even doing out in the fields? He mostly avoided the pens ever since that trip to the city. And he certainly never was there at the end of the day.
“Hey there,” Sterling said softly as he entered, looking sheepish. He also had a whole ton of mud on him, lending credence to her theory that he had indeed been the mysterious hands that had helped her. “You’re looking better.”
“I feel better,” she answered honestly. “A lot more like myself.”
He let out a sigh of relief that surprised her, and he shot her a soft smile. “You were definitely out of it. Very concerned about the cats.”
That startled a memory back to her, and she sat up so quickly that her head spun. “The cats! Are they alright? I—”
“They’re fine,” he said with a soft chuckle, coming around the side of the bed just like the nurse had. “Mom’s got them in a box, and I’m sure is doting on them. She’s always had a thing for animals, although usually it’s towards her chickens.” Elizabeth opened her mouth to say something, but he cut her off. “And yes, she treats her chickens better than the pigs. They’re her babies, and she takes care of them herself. They’re not for profit or anything; I have the feeling the only reason Dad let her pour so much money into them was to get her a hobby that didn’t include horses or any sort of gambling.”
“Is, uh, is that a problem for your mother?”
“No, but it’s not uncommon for housewives with too much money to develop bad habits.” He frowned. “Now that I think about it, that sure does sound condescending when said out loud.”
“Let me guess, something your father told you all?”
“Often and emphatically.”
She chuckled lightly before taking a sip of her water. It helped wash down some of the filth in her mouth, which was nice, but she still grimaced at the taste.
“Are you alright? Can I get you anything? Are they letting you eat or drink?”
Another chuckle. “I’m fine. Just kinda piecing my world back together. Have a seat, please. Your standing is making me feel nervous.”
“Alright then, if the lady insists.”
She didn’t take into account just how close that would bring him, and her heart skittered in her chest. That was about the last thing she needed at the moment, but she pushed through it.
“So,” she started, after swallowing more water. “How did you find me?”
“Honestly, it was mostly luck. I nearly ran into your car and then when I got out, I heard the cat’s yowling.”
“She was pretty loud, wasn’t she?”
“Well it worked. She got someone to come save her kitties.”
Oh yeah, that was right. Elizabeth had managed to save them. Somehow, that made everything seem much less awful. Like all of it was worth it. …even if she wasn’t exactly clear on what all of “it” was at the moment.
“You sure your mom will be alright with them? Kittens that young are a lot.”
“Hey, how about we worry about you right now, the human?”
Her eyes flashed. That was something someone said when a horrible thing happened. “They’re kittens. I’m less fragile then they are.”
He let out a sigh, reaching out to take her hand. She almost didn’t notice the motion at first, but then his fingers were winding around hers, warm and calloused.
He didn’t ask to touch her hand, and yet she didn’t mind. There wasn’t a threat to it or a declaration of ownership. It was just… a touch. A confirmation that she was real. And when she looked
over at his face, she saw nothing but deep concern etched into his handsome features.
And… had he been crying?
She didn’t think she had ever seen him look scared or even that uncertain. Sure, she’d managed to confuse him a few times, surprise him even, but he’d never looked so rattled to his core since the moment she’d met him almost two months ago.
And she realized, with a strange sort of uncurling warmth, that he felt that way because he thought she was hurt.
Oh.
Oh wow.
It was certainly a thought, and a heady one at that. It made her toes want to curl and her skin kind of itch. She instantly dismissed it, of course. He was just concerned about the liability of his family’s insurance. He just cared about the fallout if his family found out that he not only hired a vet but then let her die on their grounds.
But as “realistic” as those thoughts might be, they just didn’t match up with the expression on his face. An earnestness that she wasn’t used to seeing. It seemed like he cared, really and truly cared that she was safe.
“They’re safe with Mom. She’s probably spoiling them rotten, in fact. She was training to be a nurse for a while, you know.”
Elizabeth nodded, feeling embarrassed for having almost snapped at him. He was the man that had saved her life. Dragged her up from the ground and—oh goodness, had he carried her in the storm? She wasn’t exactly a lightweight, and she’d had the cats with her too.
“Are…” She paused, licking her lips. Even with the water her mouth was so unbelievably dry. “Did you get hurt?”
He shook his head. “Just some windburn and a bruise on my shin. I’m fine. The nurse told me that you took a really hard blow to the back of your head. That’s what they’re running the tests on. Luckily the slice on your leg cleaned up really well.”
“My leg?”
She turned her head enough to look down, lifting her leg at the same time, and sure enough there was a line of sutures there. “Oh. Right. A piece of metal sheeting slammed into me.”
Sterling whistled quietly. “Metal sheeting? You’re lucky you still have a leg.”
She settled, laughing dryly. “You know, there isn’t a lot about this situation that really feels lucky.”
“Fair enough. Considering I didn’t so much as get a rock in my face, I suppose we could question your fortune.”
Another laugh, but smaller, and she paused to drink again. Her brain still felt fuzzy, but whenever she looked at Sterling, she felt her world shifting slightly. Like her perception of him was rebuilding, bit by bit, to have an entirely different picture of him.
“You’re not so bad, you know that?” she said.
He sat up at that, looking back and forth as if he wasn’t sure she was talking to him. But who else would she be talking to? When she let out the slightest of chuckles, his cheeks colored, and he relaxed.
“I know a lot of people who would disagree with you,” he said finally, something odd in his tone.
“Yeah, but those people weren’t saved from bleeding out in a puddle in the middle of a storm.”
“You wouldn’t have—”
“Ah-ah,” she held up a finger. “I’m being gracious and complimentary. This doesn’t happen often, so just enjoy the moment.”
His lips curled into a smile and wow, if that wasn’t just a thing and a half to behold. God really wasn’t pulling any punches when he made that Miller bone structure, was he?
“Alright, whatever you say, ma’am.”
“Now you’re talking,” she said, letting herself relax further. Already she was exhausted, and her head was getting swimmy again. She wondered if she could take a nap before they came back for more tests…
14
Elizabeth
Elizabeth looked at the clock, her phone long dead. Actually, she wasn’t sure if it was just a lack of charge or if all the water damage from it being in her pocket had caused it to die permanently. She supposed she would find out when she got home and plugged it into her charger.
Wait… was she supposed to put it in rice first just to be cautious? She couldn’t quite remember. Although she had mostly come back to herself in the hours since she had arrived at the hospital, there was still a gentle sort of brain fog in her head, making it hard to think about things that weren’t everyday issues.
But they had run all of their tests and seemed satisfied that she was safe to be released, so at least that was good. Unfortunately, it was two in the morning, too late to call any of her friends to ask for a ride, and she didn’t really have the energy to drive back home if she made it to her car.
Oh, her car! She had forgotten that she’d left it basically in the middle of the work road, door open and still running. There was no way that it wasn’t soaked and completely out of gas. Poor thing. As if her poor little junker needed anything else stacked up against it.
Granted, all the money she was getting on a biweekly basis had certainly helped her and her father a lot already. She was finally caught up with her bills, and they both had full fridges for once. Her tank had been consistently full for the first time in… well, since she had bought the old junker, and it was a nice feeling.
Maybe she could call some sort of rideshare thing? Wait, no, her phone was dead. Right. She had forgotten.
The nurse finished trundling her out to the waiting room, having insisted that she sit in a wheelchair while she was discharged, and she was surprised to see Sterling waiting right there. He had disappeared sometime while Elizabeth was sleeping, and she was sure that he’d gone home.
“You’re still here?” she asked cautiously.
“Of course,” he said, looking at her like it was strange to think that he would be anywhere else. “I had to use the restroom and then you were passed out, so I decided to take a walk rather than wake you. Parked my car in the garage too. By the time I came back, they told me you were being woken up and discharged, so I went back to the garage and got my car. Figured I’d just wait out here for you since they said you’d only be a couple of minutes.”
He’d done all that for her while she was out? Maybe it wasn’t really that much, but after years of taking care of herself, it boggled her mind that someone would jump through so many inconveniences just to make sure she had a ride.
Swallowing the strange rush of feelings that forced its way up her chest, she realized she could ask him for his phone so that she might at least call a taxi and not bother him anymore. But before she could vocalize even a single word, he was speaking again.
“Oh man, I just realized I should have asked one of my brothers to drive your car down once the storm cleared. I didn’t even think of it.”
“The storm cleared?” she asked, looking out the windows. But all she saw beyond the front lights of the hospital was darkness. Right, the emergency room faced two large industrial buildings that had been abandoned, cutting off almost all streetlights or other illumination. Not very cheery. Hopefully, those who had to stay overnight in the hospital had better views.
“Yeah, about a couple of hours ago. A lot of accidents, though. I’m not surprised the ER’s been swamped the entire time we were here.”
She looked around at the waiting room, where there were only about ten people or so. “It was?”
His responding chuckle was gentle, without a hint of teasing to it. “It’s alright, you were preoccupied with other things. Now, where am I taking you?”
“Oh, my house isn’t in this city. I live in a small town about thirty, forty minutes on the opposite side of your family’s estate. Just take me to a hotel where I can power nap then take a taxi back to my car.”
Sure, she would be without her phone for a while, but she would survive. She’d been in tougher scrapes. And she was relatively fine thanks to Sterling. She had been so sure that he was a selfish, self-involved rich boy, but he really had risked his life to go out there into a wild storm to save her. That was just about the exact opposite thing that he was supposed to do.
Elizabeth didn’t answer right away, licking her lips nervously. It seemed like it was crossing another boundary, one that was very, very stark. And the last time she had even come close to the line, it had ended disastrously.
And even though she knew Sterling wouldn’t hurt her, that he and his brother Silas had never once done anything untoward with her, she still couldn’t shut off the worry that pretty much every woman had when staying somewhere strange.
“Or even my parent’s wing, if you want,” Sterling continued, his cheeks coloring in that way that was far more adorable than it had any right to be.
She thought about it, her weary mind trying to slug through the risks of it, but eventually she decided to risk it. After all, Sterling had gone out into a storm where he could have had a limb chopped off by a piece of metal. He’d then driven through that same storm to get her to help. It was pretty unlikely that he would do all of those things just to molest her in some grand and elaborate scheme.
…or, at least she hoped so? Why was it so hard for her to trust people?
“Alright, that sounds like it might be the best plan. I can rest up as much as I need then head out when I’m collected.”
The smile on his face looked like it could have illuminated the whole hospital for a few hours. “Really? Great. It makes me feel better knowing you’ll be one hundred percent yourself. You’re far too agreeable when you’re not yourself, you know that?”
She scoffed. “I’m pretty sure that was just an insult.”
“But I meant it in the most complimentary way.” He offered her his arm and she took it, feeling steadied by his strength. His warmth.
They headed outside, his steps slow and measured for her. It wasn’t something that she normally needed, but she was grateful for it, considering that she felt like a fawn taking its first few steps.