“Shh, baby girl, don’t move,” I commanded, placing a bit of demand into my voice, but not enough to scare her. She was so tiny on a normal day, but at the moment, she looked even more fragile. I wiped a tear that leaked out of her right eye when she blinked rapidly.
“T…Taylor,” she rasped, trying to use the back of her hand to wipe at her bloody nose. I grabbed a tissue that someone had thrust in my face, gently wiping away the red stain from her soft skin.
“I’ve got you, Cora,” I told her, wiping one last spot on her cheek. “You’re safe and an ambulance is coming.”
“No, I’m fine,” she groaned, gritting her teeth. When she tried to sit up, I pushed gently on her shoulder to keep her on the ground.
“No,” I growled. “Stay put. You are going to the hospital and you will get checked out by a doctor.”
“Ow,” she moaned, throwing her hand over her eyes. I didn’t like how pale her skin looked and I sure as hell didn’t want to keep her on the cold concrete floor.
When I tucked my jacket around her body, I felt her flinch away from my touch and that shattered my heart more than I ever thought possible. I bowed my head in defeat. I’d obviously hurt this woman and it was killing me that she wouldn’t talk to me. Now, she was broken and bleeding on the floor and wouldn’t even accept the comforting touch I so desperately wanted to give her.
The paramedics arrived along with two officers before Cora could protest. Rita stepped out of the room with one of the police officers to give a statement and a description of Doug. I had to move away from Cora as the paramedics started questioning her as to what happened.
“I was coming off the stage,” she started, wincing when the paramedic stuck the needle in her arm to start an IV. “I was heading for the bathroom when I heard something coming from this room. I opened the door and found him distributing bags of weed into smaller ones. I confronted him and he pushed me, knocking the table over. The stuff went everywhere and he went crazy. He…he grabbed me and punched me in the side of the head. That’s all I remember.”
“Were you violated, ma’am?” the second paramedic asked, writing information down on a clipboard. My nostrils flared at his question. Rage boiled deep in my bones, and I clenched my hands at my sides, concentrating on keeping myself calm. Doug was a dead man. As soon as I knew she was okay, I would find the asshole myself. The police better hope they find him first. The only reason why I wasn’t losing my shit was because she was still fully clothed.
“I don’t think so,” she shivered, her eyes glancing my way. She quickly looked away and locked eyes with the guy prepping her for the ride to the hospital. “Like I said, I don’t remember much.”
“I need some information,” he began. “What is your full name?”
“Coraline Marie Maddox,” she replied.
“Height and weight?” he asked.
“Five-three,” she answered, but paused when the other man touched her ribs. “Ow, that fucking hurts!”
“Sorry, ma’am,” he said quickly. I had to bite my lip to keep from smiling. My girl was a tough one. I was surprised she didn’t punch the guy in the throat.
“Weight and age?” the guy with the clipboard continued.
“One-ten and I’m twenty-four,” she yawned.
“She may have a concussion,” he whispered, looking over at us as we stood out of the way, but close enough to be at her side in an instant.
They continued by strapping a neck brace on her and then put her on a backboard, before carefully moving her on to a stretcher. Kane and I immediately went to her side once they tightened the belt around her waist.
“Taylor and I will be right behind the ambulance,” Kane informed her, taking one of her tiny hands.
“No,” she protested, wincing when she squirmed on the stretcher. I wouldn’t be surprised if she had a cracked rib. The thought made me even more murderous. “Stay here. You have a meet and greet in two hours. You can’t miss that!”
“Shut up, Coraline,” Kane barked, leaning in closer to her face. “You are officially off duty. If I have to, I will fire your stubborn ass until you are better.”
“Kane,” she warned, glaring at him from her position strapped to the stretcher. Even tied up, Coraline Maddox couldn’t curb her tongue.
“No,” I interrupted, stepping up beside her as the paramedics wheeled her through the corridor and out to the ambulance. “You will not worry about this. Everything will work out.”
“Rita?” Cora called out. Rita hurried to her side next to Kane.
“What do you need me to do, Cora?” she asked, tears building in the corners of her eyes, but she didn’t let them fall. Rita was just as tough as Cora, but she was a little softer around the edges.
“The radio station will be here at six to set up,” she explained, spouting off orders like a drill sergeant. “Make sure the guys are in and out of there on time.”
“I’ve got this,” Rita promised, clasping Cora’s hand. “Go get checked out. I’ll take care of the guys.”
“Okay,” Cora sighed, heavily. I didn’t miss the wince of pain when the stretcher bumped over a rough patch in the parking lot. “Okay.”
The next twenty minutes were a blur of motion. We were whisked away in the SUV Eric had rented to get us to and from the radio station. Kane sat next to me in the backseat, on the phone, cursing when he couldn’t get an answer from whomever he was calling. I watched as the scenery passed by the windows in a blur. I was too worried to pay attention to where we were going. I trusted Eric to get us to the hospital and to Cora.
“Her fucking father is nowhere to be found,” he cursed…again. “My dad said that he’d try and get ahold of him, but I doubt we will hear from him.”
“So, what’s up with that?” I asked, raising a brow. Kane was steadily calling and calling her father, cursing when it went to voicemail. “Her dad out of the picture?”
“He’s a drunk,” Kane remarked, shaking his head at a bad memory. “After Cora’s mom died, he started drinking and would run off for days, leaving her home alone. I was older than her by seven years, and ended up staying at her place when her dad took off. I had to make sure she was fed and at school every morning. I’ve practically raised that girl.”
“What an asshole,” I growled. “She doesn’t need to worry about him. I…we can take care of her.” Kane didn’t comment on my slip of the tongue when referring to taking care of Coraline, but there was no mistaking the flare of his nostrils at what I’d said.
“You better not hurt her again,” Kane warned, clenching his fists. He narrowed his eyes in my direction, making his silent threat more menacing. I was sure that Kane Maddox would go to blows if anyone disrespected his cousin in any way.
“Again?” I asked, turning in my seat. I looked at him, confused. What the hell was he saying about me hurting her? I knew he wasn’t talking about physically, because I’d cut off my own arm before ever laying a hand on a woman, especially Cora.
“Yes, again,” he ground out, still glaring at me. He was obviously angry at me for not calling her. I shouldn’t be surprised that she’d talked to him about our time on the island. They were very close and obviously didn’t keep secrets from each other.
“She won’t talk to me…won’t tell me what the hell is going on, Kane,” I complained, completely frustrated.
“She hasn’t talked to you…since?” he asked, shock on his face. He frowned at his own thoughts, and I wanted to scream at him to tell me what the hell was going on with her.
“No,” I sighed. The last thing I wanted to do was to bring up what happened between us to her cousin, but fuck…I had to know what the hell was going on with her. “We hooked up on the island and she tried to call me, but I was…”
“Was what?” he demanded. “Were you with someone else?”
“No, not like that,” I said, preparing myself to spill the beans, but that never came, because Eric announced that we’d arrived at the emergency room.
“We will talk about this later,” Kane warned. “My only worry is Coraline right now.”
“She is my only concern, too,” I responded, nodding my agreement as I hurried to her bedside.
Chapter 7
Coraline
Sounds irritated my ears and the light shining in my face made my head hurt so much that I wanted to claw my eyes out with a dull fork. The paramedics helped the nurses move me off of the stretcher I’d been brought in on just a few minutes ago.
“Ms. Maddox?” a male voice said. Opening my eyes, I blinked rapidly, then groaned from the brain splitting pain to the backs of my peepers. “How much pain are you in?”
“That light needs to be doused, doc,” I cursed. “My head feels like it was used as a bowling ball.”
“I need to take a look in your eyes, ma’am,” he said, politely. “Then I’ll dim the lights for you, but we are going to have to run some tests. I think you may have a concussion.”
Yeah, no shit, Sherlock! “Okay, thank you,” I murmured, not even trying to smile.
That douche-canoe Doug was a fucking dead man if I ever got my hands on him. I’d been so careful to watch out for him, and the split second I let my guard down, he attacked me.
“Did they catch this Doug? The one that did this to you?” the doc questioned.
“Did I say that aloud?” Oops! My brain sometimes spills out shit that I’m thinking. I hoped I didn’t offend anyone.
“It’s okay, Ms. Maddox,” he smiled, once I opened my eyes and actually got a glimpse of the good doctor. He was older, closer to my father’s age. His hair was a dark brown and his eyes held mine as he continued. “My name is Dr. Baker. I will be running some tests on you to see what’s going on after your attack. The police are here to ask you a few questions after we are done. I need to know if you were sexually assaulted.”
“Hell, no,” I growled. “I would’ve killed the son of a bitch.”
“I wouldn’t have stopped you if he did,” the doc nodded. “Let’s get you looked at.”
For the next ten minutes, Dr. Baker checked all of my reflexes and looked over every inch of my body after I was put into a hospital gown that barely covered my modesty. Since I didn’t have much of that, it really didn’t matter to me what the hell they dressed me in, so long as I was able to get the hell out of here in the next hour.
“I’m really going to be okay,” I encouraged, hoping to hurry him along. “I just took a nasty bump on the head. I’ll be fine in a few days.”
“Your cousin is in the waiting room,” a nurse announced as she walked into the room.
“I need to get back to the stadium,” I demanded. “I have a job to do.”
“Your cousin also said to take care of you first, and to tell you that you were fired if you didn’t get checked out,” she smiled, a faint blush dusted the tops of her cheekbones. I rolled my eyes at the women getting flustered by my cousin and his bandmates. They were all very good looking and they were also very attached to women I loved and respected. I was in no mood to defend them against fans at the hospital.
“Arg,” I snarled, throwing my wrist over my face. Shielding my eyes, I listened to the doctor give orders for my care. When he pressed the knot on the side of my face, I gasped out in pain. The cursing I gave the doctor would’ve made a sailor blush, but damn it…that hurt.
I was wheeled back for x-rays, CT scans, and a host of other imaging to make sure my brain was functioning properly. They ended up giving me an internal exam to make sure I wasn’t raped. By the time it was all said and done, I was given the okay to be released, but was informed that I had a slight concussion. I was to be watched overnight for any weird changes.
Finally, I was told to dress back into the clothes I was wearing when I arrived at the hospital. A knock on the door had me straightening my shirt a little faster before telling whoever it was that I was decent.
My heart lurched in my throat when I looked up into the worried eyes of Taylor Vaughn. Kane was behind him, but he was on the phone with someone. My cousin glanced my way, then back over to Taylor, watching him as he walked toward me.
“Are you okay?” Taylor asked, moving in close to stand in front of me. When he took one of my hands, I closed my eyes from the warmth of his fingers, but quickly pulled away, dropping it as if his hand had burned me.
“I have a small concussion,” I said, honestly. “Doc wants me to be watched over the next twenty-four hours or so.”
“You will be staying on the bus with us,” Kane told me, pulling a chair over to the side of the bed. He turned it around so that he could straddle it and fold his arms across the back of the chair. He rested his chin on his arms and let out a harsh breath, “They haven’t found him.”
“Well, that’s just great,” I said angrily, throwing my hands in the air. “I really hope the fucker comes back.”
“No,” both men barked, causing my body to jerk back from the venom dripping off of their outburst. If looks could kill, the two men in front of me would’ve been arrested for murder.
“I won’t be caught off guard again,” I vowed.
“Because someone will be with you until we leave in the morning,” Taylor said, nudging me over so that he could sit next to me on the bed. I glanced at Kane, who wasn’t showing any protectiveness at Taylor invading my personal space. Maybe I did hit my head really hard and I was actually hallucinating?
“And someone will be around you for the rest of the tour,” Kane announced.
“We really need to go,” I hurried them along, ignoring Kane’s statement. “You guys need to get back.”
“The meet and greet can take place without us,” Kane said, rolling his hazel eyes. God, we looked so much alike when he did that.
“Do you know if I can go now?” I asked, looking around Kane to the door.
As if summoned, the nurse knocked quietly and pushed through the door. Her eyes landed on Taylor and no one could’ve missed the way she pushed her big breasts up higher as if she were offering them to an ancient god for a sacrifice.
“Ms. Maddox,” she greeted, once she noticed I had stood up from the bed. I had to do something with my hands or I would’ve punched the bitch harder than I’d done to Doug the other day.
“Yes?” I replied, not even looking at her as I grabbed Taylor’s coat he’d put over me when he’d found me laying on the cold hard ground.
“Here are your discharge papers,” she smiled, holding the papers out toward me, but her eyes were on Taylor. If she could’ve laid herself out on the bed and offered herself up for the taking, then I’m sure she would’ve done it with no second thought.
“Hey, nurse Nancy…I’m the patient. So, talk to me, would ya?” I interrupted, moving between her and Taylor. I heard him chuckle behind me, and I glanced over at my cousin who was now standing by the door looking like he was about to explode from the built up need to laugh his ass off.
“Um,” she blushed, knowing I’d caught her looking at the sexy guitarist. I didn’t blame her for flirting. Oh…well, who the hell was I kidding? I wanted to claw her eyes out so she’d never look at him again.
“Just give me the damn papers,” I groused, snatching them from her hand. I signed them quickly, shoving the forms back at her. “Can I go?”
“Oh…um, yeah,” she cleared her throat. “Yes…yes, you can leave.”
“Good,” I snarled, pushing past her as I made my way out of the room.
Eric was waiting by the exit with the SUV to take us back to the venue when I exited the glass doors to the emergency room. I didn’t say anything as I climbed in the backseat and sat between Kane and Taylor. I leaned my head on the back of the seat and closed my eyes.
Soft hands stroked my cheek and I burrowed down into the warmth that held me in its safe grasp. “Cora.”
God, that voice. Those hands, although rough, were warm yet tender. It felt as if I were in a cocoon where nothing could harm me. For a moment, I slipped deeper into the sleep my body had needed fo
r the past four months that I’d been on the road. It was heaven.
“Baby girl, wake up,” Taylor whispered, still holding my face.
I blinked a few times before his handsome face came into view. Why the hell did he have to be so gorgeous? He was an Adonis, perfectly made…chiseled from a one-of-a-kind stone that was priceless.
“Sorry,” I said, closing my eyes for a split second, trying to absorb his touch one last time before we had to go back to the real world. “I’m so tired.” That statement held two different meanings. I was tired physically. I was also tired of fighting him. I felt tears prick my eyes. All I wanted to do was to let them fall and beg Taylor to take over for me…just until I felt better.
“I know you are, Cora,” he said softly, reaching over to unbuckle my seatbelt. I hadn’t realized that I’d leaned over in my sleep and had used him for a pillow…a bed. “Come on, let me get you to the bunk.”
“No,” I moaned. “Work…”
“You are off for the night,” he informed me, opening the door. “You are going onto the bus with us and staying where Kane and I can watch you. Rita is taking care of everything else.”
“Is it okay not to argue with you?” I asked, feeling groggy.
Taylor chuckled and held out his hand to help me from the vehicle. I was too damn tired to argue with him about anything at the moment.
“I really wish you’d let me take care of you for once, Coraline,” he whispered. In fact, I was so groggy, I wasn’t sure I had heard him right. I smiled to myself when I tossed those words around in my head. I’d never given up my control to anyone, but a part of me wanted to just let go…just let him take some of that control away from me.
I opened my eyes and realized that he was still there, our noses so close they almost touched. He was worried. I could tell from the little crease in the corner of his right eye. His soft lips were pressed into a hard line that assured me that he was very stressed at what had happened to me.
Fatal Desires (Fatal Cross Live! Book 1) Page 5