Eight Days (Love Always #1.5)

by D. Nichole King

  Eight Days

  A Love Always Novella

  d. Nichole King

  Eight Days

  Copyright © 2014 by d. Nichole King. All rights reserved.

  First Print Edition: December 2014

  Limitless Publishing, LLC

  Kailua, HI 96734

  www.limitlesspublishing.com

  Formatting: Limitless Publishing

  ISBN-13: 978-1505577587

  ISBN-10: 1505577586

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.

  Dedication

  For all those who fell in love

  with Kate and Damian’s story.

  For all those who found

  a little piece of comfort through it.

  For all those who have shared your stories with me.

  For all those who asked for more of Damian.

  Readers, this is for you.

  Table of Contents

  Midnight

  Day 1

  Day 2

  Day 3

  Day 4

  Day 5

  Day 6

  Day 7

  Day 8

  After

  Midnight

  Damian

  I know hospital protocol, but I refuse to sit in a waiting room full of depressed people hoping a doctor will come out of the ER with good news. It’s never good. Not in a hospital.

  I don’t go home, though. I need to know as soon as I can what’s wrong with Kate.

  What’s this girl doing to me? I’m about to lose my goddamn mind.

  As soon as I’ve closed the door to Dad’s office, I go directly for his desk. I drop to my hands and knees and reach to the back of the bottom drawer. When I feel the hard plastic case, I rip it off and dump the key in my palm. Just hearing the click of the drawer’s lock soothes me a little.

  A picture of Mom stares up at me and makes me pause. Her eyes remind me of Kate’s—kind and compassionate. She’s laughing, blonde hair falling in her face. I know this picture. It’s the day she found out she was pregnant with my brother, Liam.

  I turn the frame over so she doesn’t see what I really want in Dad’s drawer. My fingers close around the silver flask. I lift it out and slam the drawer closed. Unscrewing the cap, I sit in the doc’s chair with my feet on the desk, the way he hates.

  I tip the flask back, letting the whiskey burn away the sting in my chest. It’s all too familiar, and I won’t let it consume me again. I drown the feeling out with another gulp. Then another until nothing is left.

  But my chest still hurts.

  Kate’s file is under my heels. I lower my legs and pick it up, opening the flimsy cover. The fucking thing is so thick a lump rises in my throat at the weight of it. Last time I’d only flipped through it to find out who she was; this time I’ll read every damn word.

  I start in the back of the file, when she’d gone in for what her doctors thought was mono. I don’t care that I don’t understand half the shit in here; it still hurts like hell to read everything she’s been through.

  The further into the file I venture, the more I realize that being with Kate is incredibly stupid. She’s sick, and I could lose her at any second. I know the deeper I go with her, the harder it will be to walk away. And I should walk away.

  I’m not good for her, and she’s not good for me.

  She needs someone other than me. Someone stronger, who won’t fall apart when shit gets real. That’s my MO. Even tonight, if the news is bad, I don’t think I can handle it. I’m a fucked-up mess.

  Halfway through, I shut the file and push it as far from me as possible. The thing almost falls off the desk.

  “I’m done. I can’t do this,” I mutter, digging my phone out of my back pocket. I need to cut ties with Kate before I’m too attached.

  I dial the number to the one girl who’s good at numbing my mind. She picks right up like she always does. Tonight, I need her as much as she usually needs me.

  “Hey!” Ellie says, chipper for this late. She’s been waiting for me to call; I hear it in her voice. “Want some company?”

  “Yeah, but I’m at the hospital. Meet me here?”

  “Why’re you at the hospital?”

  “I’m working late.”

  Ellie sighs. “Okay, whatever. I’ll be right over.”

  I hang up and head to the elevators. It’s a short trek from Drake University, and I need to meet her outside because we’ve never hooked up here before.

  Out in the parking lot, I make my way to my car and slide inside. I grab the package of cigarettes from the console. I don’t know what everyone else who works here does, but it’s my car and I’ll smoke in it if I damn well please.

  I light up and watch the cars turning into the parking lot. There’s not many at 3 a.m. I blow out the smoke. Damn, this shit is relaxing.

  When I see Ellie’s car, I open my door and toss the butt. I didn’t bring a jacket, and the chill bites. It’s not a big deal, though, and I walk to where she’s parking her ten year old Intrepid.

  “I thought you said you were working?” she says, eyeing me.

  I peer down at my shirt and jeans. “It’s the middle of the night, Elle. No uniforms needed.”

  She shrugs. “Whatevs. Are we going inside? It’s freezing out here.”

  “Yeah,” I say and take her hand, leading her toward the main entrance.

  I guide her into the elevator as fast as I can. The last thing I need is for Kate’s parents to see me with Ellie. Or maybe that’s the only thing I need. Letting go of Kate would be easier that way.

  I don’t know.

  “What’s going on, Damian?” Ellie asks as soon as the doors close. “You’re acting weird. I mean, we don’t have to—”

  “Nothing, Ellie. I’m fine,” I say calmly.

  I’m anything but fine.

  We step off on the third floor—the pediatric oncology floor—the one I know best. There’s a string of empty rooms on the other side of the nurses’ station, and no one enters them unless a patient occupies one.

  I pull Ellie behind me to the farthest room. Taking a quick glance around for hospital staff, I open the door when I confirm there’s no one around.

  “Come on,” I say.

  Ellie’s eyes narrow as she takes in the door. “Is there a lock?”

  “No,” I reply, shutting the door and sliding the curtain closed inside the room.

  “Uh, maybe we shouldn’t…”

  “Shhh.” I grip her hips and press them into me. Damn, I already ache to be inside her. “Don’t worry. Nobody comes in here.”

  I lower my head to suck on her neck. Over my shoulder, I feel her staring at the closed door, waiting for an interruption I know won’t come. She’s not usually like this, and it’s starting to piss me off. I need her, and I need her now. I decide to move things along, loosen her up a bit.

  I spin her around against the bed. “Face forward,” I tell her, and I lift her arms over her head. She tries to sneak a peek at me after I have her t-shirt off, but I gently push her head back where I want it.

  “Elle.” I breathe her name into her ear, and she relaxes a little. Unfortunately, it’s not enough. Her muscles are still too tense. “Come on, baby. Work with me, here.”r />
  “Damian, the door—”

  “I said don’t worry about it.” Somehow, I need to get her mind off that damn door.

  I don’t bother with her bra; I go straight for her jeans. Her palms settle on the backs of my hands as I unbutton and unzip them. Latching my thumbs into her panties too, I lower myself to the floor along with her bottoms. She steps out of them, and I toss them somewhere. On the cold tile, I position myself behind her. Between those long legs.

  “Oh!” she gasps, understanding my intentions to relax her. She leans forward over the edge of the bed. The fun is about to begin.

  I spread her lips apart and let my tongue work over her. She’s not wet, but it doesn’t take long before she’s rocking against me. I fucking love when she moves her hips on my face like this.

  Other than Ellie’s uneven breaths and low moans, the room is quiet. Too quiet, and from the hallway, I hear the hospital intercom: “Dr. Lowell to emergency, please. Dr. Lowell to emergency.”

  Kate. It has to be Kate.

  “Damian? Why did you stop?” Ellie whines, breathless. I hadn’t realized I’d quit licking her.

  No, I remind myself. I’m letting go before it’s too late.

  Pushing thoughts of Kate out of my head, I grin and run two fingers from Ellie’s front all the way to the back. She shudders.

  “I’m not,” I say. “Just warming up.”

  Jumping to my feet, I strip down quickly. I need to be inside this girl pronto. She smiles at me over her shoulder, no longer preoccupied with the unlocked door.

  “Nope,” I tell her when her gaze meets mine.

  It’s no longer about the door; it’s about something I can control. She bites her lip and obeys, turning her head around again. I glide both of my hands over her ass and up her back, pushing her chest forward onto the bed.

  She giggles in anticipation, whipping her long, blonde curls over one shoulder. It’s the sexiest thing she’s done so far tonight. I push up behind her, teasing her at first. Ellie pouts, letting out a little girly whimper. I can’t keep her waiting, so I oblige, entering her with a deep thrust.

  “Oh, yes!” she squeals, and I wish I could see her face, her mouth open in sheer pleasure.

  The door has been completely forgotten. All she feels is me.

  I pump into her, her fluids coating me with warmth. Unbidden, I think about sitting in front of the fireplace with Kate in the den. I’d gotten too involved that night, and now I need to reverse it.

  I have to move on, away from Kate. I’ve got to get her out of my mind.

  Ellie’s moans grow louder, and each time I pound into her, I repeat “move on” in my head.

  “I. Can’t. Hold. On,” Ellie pants before she buries her face in the blankets and screams out her satisfaction.

  I thrust into her a few more times, deeper and deeper until I shove myself in as far as I can and let out a deep groan. Ellie’s still breathing into the mattress when I pull out and fall on the bed beside her.

  Moving. On.

  ~*~

  I throw on my clothes with Ellie’s gaze hard on my back. Tossing my shirt over my head, I spin around to face her. “What?”

  She sits on the bed, her legs dangling over the edge. “You’re not working tonight,” she states, peering up at me through long lashes.

  I shrug. “So?”

  “Then why here?” Her voice cracks a little, and I wonder if she’s thinking of my brother and how, at my house, she feels closer to him even though she’s fucking me. Maybe that thought makes what we do easier for her.

  “Because this is where I was tonight,” I say, slipping into my shoes.

  “You hate being here.”

  I button up my shirt, ignoring her. I don’t appreciate her giving me the third degree.

  “Does this have to do with the girl you were with last night?” Ellie asks.

  I about piss myself. How the hell does she know about Kate?

  “What girl?”

  Ellie shifts nervously on the bed. “I, uh, ran into your dad and he said you were having dinner with some girl.”

  Some girl?

  I puff out a laugh. If that’s all she knows, it’s no big deal. Hell, I’m not sure why it’s a big deal if she knows anyway. “What, are you jealous or something?”

  She hesitates, her eyes wandering around the room, never landing on me. “Of course not. You’re free to…do whatever you want.”

  I have no idea where she’s going with this conversation.

  She slides off the bed. “Liam would have—”

  Oh, that’s what this is about.

  I yank back the curtain too hard. I hate when she compares the two of us, when anyone does. “I don’t want to discuss Liam, all right? He’s dead. He’s not coming back. Get over it.”

  Ellie grabs her purse, looking like she might cry. I was a little harsh, but damn, it’s been two years since he died.

  “Fine,” she rasps out. “I’ll see myself out.”

  “Call you later,” I say, but she doesn’t answer.

  ~*~

  I make my way back to Dad’s office. Kate has crept back into my mind, and I feel obligated to find out how she’s doing before I leave. It was my phone call that brought her here in the first place. A few hours ago, I’d been sitting by her side in her bedroom watching as she gasped for air. Scariest shit I’ve ever seen.

  Her file is still on the desk. As I walk past, I pick it up, rescuing it from falling to the floor. I dump it back in the middle and try to ignore it, but I can’t. It draws me in. Going back to where I left off, I begin to read again.

  I’m so engrossed that I don’t hear my dad come in.

  “Patient information is confidential,” he says, and I jerk my head up.

  “I’m not the one who left it out for the world to see,” I retort. “How is she?”

  Dad sinks down in a chair opposite me, where his patients usually sit. Kate and her parents have probably sat there many times.

  “She’s checked in to a room now.” He takes off his glasses and places them gently on the desk.

  “That’s not what I asked.”

  “You know I can’t discuss this with you, Damian. You’re not family. What’s going on between you two, anyway?”

  I stand up and shoot him a sly smile. “You know I can’t discuss this with you.” I walk past him, toward the door. “Confidential. You understand.”

  Asshole.

  I see Tammy at the nurses’ station. She kinda likes me, I think. Worth a shot.

  “What room is Kate Browdy in?” I ask, leaning against the counter.

  She looks up from the computer and a genuine smile spreads across her face. “It’s past visiting hours, Damian, and—”

  “My shift starts in five hours, Tammy. I’m gonna find out, so you may as well tell me now.” I’m being a dick. Sure, it annoys me that she’s dancing around the issue, but to have any shot at getting the three numbers out of her, I need to watch my tone. I grin, hoping the dimples Kate stares at all the time work on nurses too.

  Apparently they do.

  Tammy sighs. “310. Her parents are with her now.”

  “Perfect. Thanks, Tammy.”

  Room 310 is only a dozen steps away, the door cracked open. I knock softly and enter even though I haven’t been invited. Before bowing out of her life, I need to know she’ll be okay.

  Two sets of eyes swing in my direction, but I don’t see them. I only see her. IVs stick out of her hands, tubes poke into her, and cords hooked up to machines surround the bed. Her eyelids are closed, and some hose is doing the breathing for her.

  I stand frozen, unable to rip my gaze away. Something in my chest makes it hard to suck in air. She looks so fragile, like she could break at any second. Shatter into a million pieces.

  And all I want to do is hold her. Sweep her up in my arms and never let go.

  Guilt swells inside me, and my heart literally hurts. An hour ago I was screwing Ellie and trying to convince myself
that I needed to back out of Kate’s life. I’m a fucking asshole.

  “Damian.” Marcy stands up, wiping tears from her cheeks.

  “What’s going on? Is Kate okay?” I barely get the words out.

  “It’s viral,” Marcy croaks out, her voice breaking. “It, uh, has to run its course, but Kate…she, um, her immune system can’t fight it because she’s so weak from the chemo.”

  The medication that’s supposed to kill the cancer is making it so she can’t fight off normal viral shit?

  “So, what does that mean?” I ask, confused.

  Marcy swipes away another tear. If Marcy is crying, this thing is bad. Real bad. “Dr. Lowell—your dad—put her in a medicated coma.”

  What the fuck?

  “She has to fight through this. Putting her under means her body only has to concentrate on one thing: killing the virus,” Marcy explains.

  I don’t fully comprehend. What hits me, though, is that she might not pull through this. The virus could kill her, and I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to handle that.

  I nod toward Kate. “Can I?”

  Marcy offers a slight smile. “She’d want you to.”

  In slow motion, I walk around the foot of the bed, studying her. Her chest rises and falls, and I hold my breath for a second, waiting for the next rise. I can’t help but wonder how many more times I’ll see that happen.

  I lower myself into a chair opposite Mr. Browdy. He’s holding Kate’s hand to his lips like he won’t let go until she opens her eyes again. I get that because it’s how I feel at the moment too.

  He glances up at me as I take Kate’s other hand. I meet his gaze, but I can’t read it. Right now, I don’t really give a fuck if he doesn’t approve of me being here. Kate’s all that matters.

  I kiss her fingers. They feel so good against my lips, and I know Kate’s drawing me to her again. I don’t know how she does it.

  The thought that I’m already in too deep comes to me. There’s no walking away.