by Debra Jupe
She nodded at Blaine and took a step inside moving closer to Eric “Maybe we can ask for some ice for your head?”
His frosty blue stare caught her eye and stopped her in her tracks.
“I’m a lot better and I’m ready to leave,” Eric told Blaine in an aggravated voice. “You promised we’d only stay for a while and it’s long past that.”
“Yeah, but you’re not going anywhere until the doctor sees you,” Blaine answered in the same annoyed tone.
Eric shuffled his legs and laid further back though he didn’t reply.
Blaine eyed Stephanie. “Can we talk a minute?” He gestured to the doorway. “In the hall.”
“Sure.” She smiled at him before she shot Darla a worried glance. Then she pointed to the entrance. “We’ll be right out here if you need us.”
Darla kept an eye on them until they disappeared. Once gone, she anxiously returned to Eric. He’d managed to relax. He’d tilted his back and shut his eyes. His chest moved up and down in an even motion, though his body twitched ever so often. He fell asleep too quickly. The massive swelling could only mean something serious going on. Him injured frightened her more than she cared to admit.
She twirled a lock of hair while she continued to observe him. A wet cloth would be a big help in wiping away the dried blood and make him not appear so incapacitated. But she’d have to touch him and she wasn’t sure she could handle that. Even bloodied and beaten up, the guy somehow managed to arouse a series of flutters deep down in the pit of her stomach.
The door opened. Blaine and Stephanie returned to the room, holding hands both wearing big smiles. Nervously they looked at Darla, then back at each other. Blaine gave Stephanie a slight nod.
“Darla. We need a huge favor,” Stephanie rushed, clutching Blaine’s hand tight between both of hers.
Darla’s brows dropped as her insides delivered a swift kick. Whatever they wanted wasn’t going to be good. For her. And she was sure they’d persuade her into honoring their request. Stephanie glanced at Blaine.
His head bobbed again.
“Blaine wants me to take him to pick up his car so I need to borrow yours.” She inhaled. “Eric shouldn’t be alone and we”—she glanced at Blaine one more time—“were wondering if you could stay”—she returned to Darla—“and watch him until we get back?”
Darla gnawed on her bottom lip as her heart skipped a beat. Spending another instant with Eric Boyd, even battered and bruised, left her excited, but flustered. Though tempting she couldn’t trust herself around him. The man was too unsettling and he’d figure out how much he rattled her.
“Why can’t you and I go get the car and you drive back here? Hopefully by then the doctor will have visited and he can leave. Besides, he’ll be uneasy if he wakes up and finds someone unfamiliar with him, and he doesn’t need to be agitated.”
“You’re over thinking this.”
Darla glared at her friend. Love did some strange stuff to people. Like turn their brains into spaghetti. “What if something worse happens while I’m with him? I won’t have any means to handle the situation. I have no authority to make medical decisions about his health. At least Blaine can contact his family and get permission for emergency issues.”
“I don’t believe he’s in that bad a shape,” Blaine assured her. “He’s drugged up, and been pretty much in and out of consciousness since I found him. He becomes dizzy easily. I think he’ll be fine after some rest. I wouldn’t suggest this if I didn’t have to get my car. I’m not comfortable leaving it in Finn’s neighborhood. And I’m not comfortable with the two of you driving in that part of town alone, after dark. We’ll make the trip quick and I’ll take over watching Eric as soon as I get back, Darla. I promise.”
She didn’t miss the concerned glance Blaine gave a slumbering Eric.
“He’ll probably doze the whole time anyway.”
“I’d rather pass on this responsibility. I’m betting he has a concussion. I read you’re not supposed to sleep with head wounds, and there isn’t anybody stopping him. The medical personnel seem scarce around here. Suppose something happens, and I can’t find anyone to help. What if he doesn’t wake up?”
“I don’t need no damn sitter,” Eric moaned from behind them. “You can all hit the road.”
“You should be so lucky.” Blaine grinned at Darla. “The drugs make him more agitated than normal.”
Eric wrestled to level his body and extended his arm to Blaine. “As a matter of fact, let’s all go. Take me home.”
Blaine turned to Eric. “After the doctor visits and gives you the okay to leave. Until then, you’re staying put.” He gave Eric a warning glance. “You’ll be safer here.”
“Safer?” Darla questioned. “Is he in danger?”
Eric ignored Darla. “I could care less about my safety at the moment.” His gaze speared into Blaine. “I’ll go anywhere, hell, sit me at the curb. I don’t wanna stay here.”
“You don’t have a say,” Blaine argued. “You need to lie down and sleep. I’ll come back soon and we’ll be on our way.” He twisted to Darla with a smile. “I hope you can overlook his bitchiness and not give him another knock on the other side of his head. Although, go ahead if he gets too bad.”
Darla almost grinned. She liked Blaine. Stephanie may found her a good one this time.
Steph clutched together her hands, held them out in front of her, and gave her a meaningful look. “Please, do this, Dar.” This short trip would take a lot longer than implied by the way her friend was acting. “I’ll never ask you to do anything else for me again.”
“Not true.”
“Okay, well, I won’t ask you to do anything else for me this week.”
“It’s Saturday, Steph. The end of the week. So your promise doesn’t work either way.”
“I can’t stay here.” Eric tried to get to his feet. He made it halfway, swayed, and fell back onto the narrow hospital bed. His weight drove it backward an inch as he landed with a loud grunt.
Darla waved an arm at him. “He can’t even stand without help.”
“Your concern is touching, but I wish you’d quit acting like I’m dying. I assure you I’m as healthy as I was last night and will be glad to prove it to you. Again.”
Darla whipped around. A sardonic smile slowly crept across Eric’s bloodied face. Her glare in return was hopefully sharp enough to cut through metal.
“Wait. Yeah, Darla.” Blaine snapped his fingers and bounced a look between Darla and Eric. “Have you two met before?”
Eric ducked his head, but Darla nodded.
“They ran into each other at the party,” Stephanie interjected with a giggle. “Darla spilled her drink on Eric, and he was accommodating. They’ve already become good friends. I see no harm in her staying with him. He’s not well from his tumble. Darla’s great at giving TLC. Besides, she ruined his shirt with her wine. She owes him.”
Darla spun to Stephanie and glowered. She mouthed a thank you as Stephanie relieved her of her car keys.
Blaine took a step closer to Darla. “Your eyes are beautiful. Dark.” He studied her for an extended moment and turned to Eric as a slow smile crawled across his face. “I’d even call them haunting. Wouldn’t you, Eric?”
Eric didn’t reply. Blaine chuckled as he glided to Stephanie. He took her hand and slanted his head to whisper something into her ear. Stephanie giggled again.
“Seeing as you two are old friends and all.” Blaine grinned. “I’m gonna take it you can work out whatever conflict’s going on between you. M’lady and I are heading over to get my vehicle.” He nodded at Eric. “I’ll check out our place before we go and bring you back some clean clothes.” He guided Stephanie outside, each saying, “Thanks, Darla, and take care, Eric,” as they disappeared into the hallway.
Hands on her hips Darla viewed the entire scene, as it played out, powerless to stop it. She stared at the closed door for several minutes before she pivoted to Eric, who’d propped himself up on a s
tack of pillows.
“I’m guessing this trip will take a while. They’re probably going to continue their date.”
“Of course they are. Blaine’s nothing but a horny son of a bitch.”
“What a nice thing to say. He’s your good friend, isn’t he?”
He flicked a sapphire gaze over her. “Call ’m as I see ’m, luv.”
She eyed him up and down. “So what happened to you? Did you call ’m as you see ’m one too many times and someone beat the crap out of you?”
Eric actually laughed, then flinched. With a sluggish move, he maneuvered his hand to reach into his pants pocket and removed his cigarettes. He strained into a sitting position and stretched an arm to her, offering her a blood-smeared hand.
“I need a smoke. Get me outside. I’ll tell you the whole sordid details.”
Darla maintained eye contact as she walked around the bed and snatched the pack away from him. She held them above her head. Then she smiled.
Eric stared at her as if waiting for her to move. “Are you gonna stand there or are you going to take me out?”
“Let’s get things straight, right now.” Darla crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a stern glare. “You’re hurt and as long as you’re in this condition, we’re playing by my rules. You can forget about puffing on anything. I’m not going to help you tar and nicotine up your lungs any more than they already are.” She waved the package in front of him and shook her head. “No smoking on my watch, buddy.”
Chapter 12
Eric stared longingly at the package woven through Darla’s fingers. He transferred his gaze to her face, which he could see clearly now. His vision had finally returned, plus the meds from earlier were beginning to wear off.
“Fine,” he snapped. “I won’t smoke.” He bowed his head and muttered, “Right now.”
“You’re pale. You need medical attention.” She dropped her arm and spun toward the exit. “I want to go talk to the nurse and find out when the doctor is coming.”
“Not necessary. I’m okay.”
“You certainly don’t look okay.” Darla stopped and turned back to him. She clutched the cigarettes between her hands and examined the package as if debating whether to believe him.
“Well, I am.” He leaned forward. With his good arm, he pressed against the mattress to sit straighter, but the whirling inside his head drove him back into the bed. “Soon as everything stops spinning, I’m going home.”
“How do you plan on getting there?”
“I’ll walk if I have to.”
“By yourself?” Darla smiled. “Can I watch?”
Eric raked an annoyed look over her, before he returned to her grinning face. “You’ve got a bit of an edge, don’t you? I never would’ve believed you to be such a smartass.” He released a sardonic chuckle. “The way you kissed me last night should’ve given me a clue you weren’t as innocent as you like to give off, eh?”
“Interesting.”
“What is?”
“You so intrigued about our kiss.”
He casually lifted a shoulder. “I’m not intrigued.”
“Except this is the second time you brought up the subject tonight. And you also referred to it on the beach earlier today.” She gave him an inquisitive look. “I wonder why?”
Eric touched his pocket before he remembered his cigarettes were sandwiched in between her palms. Still, he wished he had one, along with the nerve to light up. He ignored her question and asked one of his own.
“Why did you kiss me back?”
Nervously, she combed her fingers through her thick waves as if to consider her next words. “Because, I—” She sighed. “I can’t tell you. I don’t have an answer.”
“I think you do,” he retorted in a soft voice.
“The night was crazy. You, the murder, and the storm was a bad one.” Her mouth twisted. “Everything was—strange.”
He stared at her, giving his head a modest shake. “Yep, the night was a wild one. Even in my world.”
“You don’t think all those occurrences aren’t weird in mine? I doubt there are any set rules on how to behave in such a situation in anyone’s universe.”
“So you’re telling me the reason you kissed me was because the oddness of the evening.” His voice conveyed his doubt.
“I was flustered from everything. And seeing you on the beach just increased the tenseness.” Her tone raised an octave. “Why else would I do something so crazy?”
Eric waited a moment. “Because of what’s happening. Between us.” He intentionally let the words drop like dead weight and then sat back to view her reaction.
Darla’s jaw plummeted. The cigarettes she gripped glided through her fingers and fell to the floor. The package slid across the faded tiles coming to a stop after hitting a wall under a chair.
Even in his depleted position, he had to hold back a laugh. And despite the horrible events of the entire night, he liked her. If only for a few minutes. She was feisty. Prettier than he first thought. By her outer appearances, she was in good shape too. He admired the almost black cascade of curls flowing over her shoulders. He also enjoyed listening to her. She had a nice voice. He never gave much attention to the different accents in the states, but hers definitely had a cute southern twang.
“Don’t pretend you don’t feel it. We’ve a load of chemistry between us, luv.”
More unspoken thoughts hung in the air.
She hacked a dry cough. “Okay. I’ve noticed.”
“I’m sensing a ‘but.’”
“But I don’t know if I want to do anything about the situation. I just got out of a relationship. The romance didn’t end well, at least from my standpoint. Getting close to someone else so soon after doesn’t seem to be a smart idea.”
“You like to put your cards on the table.” He nodded. “I respect that. To be clear, I’m only talking about a good time. Nothing more.”
Darla’s eyebrows shot up. “What an enticing offer.” She folded her arms across her middle. “You sure can tempt a woman.”
“Sarcasm?”
“Oh, you got that.” She paused. “I shouldn’t be surprised a good time is all you want. Our romantic kiss should’ve given me a clue, eh?”
“What was wrong with the kiss?”
He’d never had any complaints about his kissing techniques before. On a normal plane, he enjoyed the process, although he found the act more of a necessity to get to the next physical level as opposed to anything romantic. Admittedly, his behavior toward her last night was unorthodox, though he didn’t find the moment unpleasant.
“Nothing. For a woman who appreciates a lip lock that stems from zero. Frankly, I don’t care for unfeeling kisses.” She lifted an eyebrow and gave him a slight grin. “My turn to call ’m as I see ’m.”
He stared at her. Damn. It happened again. He was doing fine holding his own and WHAM, she’d taken over, leaving him baffled on how to deal with this gutsy lady. And he certainly hadn’t hidden his feelings very well. Still, he wouldn’t go down without a fight.
“Fair enough. But you need to understand, I’m not the type of guy who plays games.”
“So you told me.”
“Glad you remembered. Let me be clearer. I don’t believe in this whole love, happily-ever-after crap. An attraction exists between us. I acted on that. My thinking is, once you return from your trip we’ll see things through and let them run their course. No reason to make any more of this than what it is.”
“You attitude is such a cynical one.” Darla unfolded her arms and gave her head a negative shake. “Someone sure did a number on you.”
“No one did any kind of number. I’ve been all over the world and met a lot of people. I have found most of them are either alone, unhappy in their relationships, or they’ve had their heart stomped on by a person they thought would be with them forever.” He pointed a forefinger in her direction. “You’re a prime example of what can happen when you give blind trust to som
eone.”
“Yes, but your outlook confuses me.” Her expression mirrored her words. She held her arms out to her sides and lifted her shoulders. “What about all those beautiful love songs you write?”
“Easy. I write what the people want and I get paid. Well.”
She dropped her arms and squatted, and then glided to her knees. “I’m totally disillusioned.”
“Just being practical, luv.”
“Good to know. I’d hoped your head injury was the cause of you spouting out this butt load of nonsense.”
Even though he hurt, Eric laughed. Darla placed her hands on the floor and crawled under the chair. He raised his head from the bed to get a better view. A grin stretched across his face as he watched her squirm in further, her ass swaying back and forth like a flag in the breeze.
She retrieved his smokes, then she inched backward. “What happened to you anyway?”
“I was shot.”
Darla rose and bumped her crown on the underside of the chair. “Shot?” She wriggled from under her hole. She sat on her knees and gaped at him. “In your head?”
“In my arm.” He pointed to his forehead. “I’m not exactly sure what happened here.”
“A bullet is lodged in you and you’re telling me you’re fine? Seriously, you need to let me go find a doctor.”
“The wound is clean. They’re gonna tell me to take two aspirin and call them in the morning. And I’m sure I’ll be expected to answer a lot of questions, and I’ve already told the police everything I remember.”
Darla studied him for a long moment before she bombarded him. “Who shot you? Where were you? Are you sure the slug is in you? Does it hurt?”
“I’m gonna have to answer a bunch of questions anyway, aren’t I?” he mumbled, and then sighed, “No clue who did the shooting. I was at Finn O’Conner’s place when the gunfire happened. The shooter got him too. The hole is in my upper arm. According to the paramedics, the pellet is still in me, and yeah, it hurts like hell.”