Frustrated, I threw my head back on the pillow.
"Now, I need to ask you a few questions. Some of them might seem a bit personal or uncomfortable, but I need you to answer them honestly. Have you ever felt discouraged about your future?"
"What? No. I didn't do this. I didn't try to kill myself. And why would you plant that idea in Angela's head, anyway?"
"We're just trying to put together a picture of how this happened. So we can better treat you. Now if you say you didn't do this, then I'll have to believe you. But if you're lying, or if you're ashamed to admit something, then it could have serious consequences."
"I didn't do this. I'm not sure how this happened. Something hit me in the head."
"Are you saying someone did this to you?"
"No. I said something hit me in the head. And then the next thing I knew, Angela pulled me out of the garage. So now can I go?"
"You're not going anywhere. At least not for a while. We need to monitor your levels. If you're able to keep your oxygen levels up on your own, we can discuss letting you go home after a couple days."
"A couple days? I can't hang out here for a couple days."
The doctor just stared at her clipboard, scribbling down notes. She didn't even lift her eyes to acknowledge a word I said.
"Exercise, Mr. Sanders."
"What?"
"Exercise will help you flush out the rest of the carbon monoxide. Walk around a bit, as much as you can. You'll probably tire quickly at first. But as the carbon monoxide gets completely flushed out, your energy will pick up. You want to get out of here faster? Try exercise."
***
The drive back to the hospital seemed to take forever. My eyes darted back to the rearview mirror over and over again. I debated turning off the road and heading in closer to the inner city. If he was going to come after me, I didn't like the idea of leading him straight back to Tim.
"Oh my God, Tim didn't do this to himself," I said out loud as I realized what must have happened.
Then the world spun around.
Grams's station wagon lurched forward hard enough to topple my balance. I glanced back at the mirror. The BMW was speeding up to ram me again. I stepped on the gas and took off down the winding road.
The station wagon lurched again, sending my cell phone off the seat and onto the floor mat of the passenger side. I screamed and my eyes darted around the road in front of me. The fog made everything seem as though it were leaping out at me. Trees appeared seconds before I passed them.
My tires locked up and the back end of the station wagon started to skid. Instinct from my dad teaching me how to hit a puddle kicked in and I slammed on the gas and turned the steering wheel into the skid. I held my breath as the car came back under my control and I looked back into the mirror.
The BMW hit the same large puddle and skidded. I stomped on the gas as he fishtailed down the road behind me. His tail end swerved out one way and then the other. Finally, he swerved off the side of the road and stopped.
I wonder if I should stop and check? I thought. Maybe luck was finally on my side and he had at least knocked himself out.
All the way to the hospital, I kept one eye glued to the rearview mirror. The beamer never came back. By the time I reached the parking lot, I was breathing sighs of relief. I practically skipped into the hospital and over to Tim's room.
Empty.
"Excuse me?" I called over a nurse. "Can you tell me where Timothy Sanders is?"
The nurse checked a clipboard and then smiled back at me. "He's been admitted and moved to the fourth floor."
"Thanks," I said as I ran to find the elevators.
Tim's new room was private. I cracked the door open and peered in. His arms were crossed over his chest, the remote sticking out as he rolled his eyes. But the tubes were gone.
"Knock, knock," I whispered as I tapped on the door.
"Angela," he sat up straight. "Are you okay? That guy showed up and."
"Yea I know. He was at the house when I went to pick up Grams. But he's gone now."
"What do you mean he's gone? What does that mean?"
"I mean I lost him. He was chasing me and we hit a puddle. I pulled out of a skid, but he ended up donuting full speed into a tree."
Tim laughed and threw his head back into the pillow. "Hey listen," he said as he rubbed his throat. "About what that doctor said earlier--."
"It's fine. Don't worry about it."
"Because I didn't."
"I know. I mean, I wondered at first. It's not like we really know each other, you know? But once I got back to Grams's house and saw that car I figured out what happened. I'm just glad I found you in time."
He smirked and turned back to the television, stretching one arm up and propping it behind his head. "It seems weirdly perfect that Marti would find a psychopath to marry."
I laughed. "Right? I almost busted out laughing when he told me he was the groom. God, I wonder what she's going to say when she finds out about his car accident?"
Tim shook his head.
"So how long do you have to stay in here for?"
"I don't know. They are still monitoring to see if my body can flush out the rest of the carbon monoxide. They want me to walk around and stuff. They said the exercise would help."
"Exercise, huh? Looks like you would do just about anything to get out of doing any of that."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" he dropped the remote and chuckled between his words.
"Just that I find it funny that you would go to such lengths just to keep from being able to sleep with me for the rest of the weekend."
"Oh really. So this was all about you, huh?"
I giggled and sat down on the edge of the bed.
His skin still seemed pale compared to earlier in the weekend. And the skin around his eyes had a purple tint to them, probably from the exhaust fumes poisoning him. But his smile still seemed bright as ever.
I was beginning to realize how hard it was going to be to end everything after this weekend. But I was also determined to make sure it ended. I didn't want him to think that I was going back on my word. Or that I had become one of those girls who couldn't separate sex and lust from love.
There was no way I was falling in love with this man.
Right?
He grabbed my hand and pulled me down into a kiss. His tongue peeked into my mouth and danced with my tongue as he moaned. I sank deeper into his kiss. Adjusting my arm and fisting his hair. His other arm wrapped around my thigh and pulled my leg up over him.
His manhood grew hard and thick beneath me.
"Here?" I whispered. "Can we do this here?"
"If you hurry up before anyone comes in." He smiled and brushed his lips against the nape of my neck.
I sat up straight, pulling my tee shirt up over my head. I leaned forward again as he pulled the edge of my bra down and sealed his mouth over my nipple.
My hips rocked on instinct against his hard shaft. My breathing instantly grew heavier and I tangled my fingers in his hair as I reveled in his soft, moist tongue around my nipple.
I kicked off my sweat pants and panties and crawled under the blanket with him. I must have hit the button to call the nurse because all of a sudden a voice thundered over the speaker on the side of the bed.
"Yes, Mr. Sanders? Do you need something?"
"No," Tim said, trying not to laugh. "I'm fine I just hit the button by accident." He went back to working on my breasts as I edged my hips down closer to his.
"Okay, Mr. Sanders. Let me know if there's anything you need," the nurse interrupted us again.
Tim smiled and grabbed my waist to guide me down onto his cock. I sank down his thick shaft, taking him all in as I threw my head back and closed my eyes. I leaned down for another kiss. As our lips pressed against each other, my pussy flexed around his cock. I rocked my hips harder. Grinding. Thrusting. It was all I could do not to moan out loud.
He pulled me down closer to him.
My hard nipples grazed against his chest as he thrust his hips up to meet mine. He grabbed and squeezed my ass, guiding my hips to rock against him faster. Pulling me in deeper.
Harder.
Finally, I couldn't hold back. I thrust my face into this pillow as my body quaked. Seconds later, his hot cum flooded my pussy. Our bodies writhed and quaked together.
"Yes, Mr. Sanders. Do you need something?"
"Oh shit," I whispered and laughed into the pillow.
Every chuckle made my pussy tightened around his sensitive cock, which in turn made him jump.
He held me down against him and laughed. "No, sorry. I'm fine I just hit the button by mistake." He laughed again and rubbed my back while our bodies calmed down.
"Holy shit, you're amazing," he whispered.
"Whatever," I giggled and sat up. "Anything to help get you on your feet again and out of this hospital."
CHAPTER NINE
I was glad she hadn't gotten hung up on the words as they snuck out of my mouth. That was why I didn't like to talk during sex. Or immediately following. Too much shit comes out that people don't mean. They just spill random words while still under the influence of their own orgasm and they'll say just about anything.
Heat and embarrassment tingled on my cheeks after I said it. I was always so careful about talking, I couldn't believe it had slipped out.
Angela carried on as if nothing had happened though. She slipped on her sweat pants and tee shirt, grabbed a blanket, and settled down into the chair. Her eyes glued to the television. "What's on?" she asked.
I smiled and grabbed the remote and started shuffling back through the limited channels again. It seemed like an endless sea of talk shows, soap operas, and infomercials. But it didn't matter. Angela was asleep and snoring before I even put the remote down.
The nurse came in a few minutes later and smiled at Angela sleeping on the chair. "She your girlfriend?" he asked.
I shook my head. "No," I said. "She's my co-uh. Caring friend. She's a caring friend. Hey when can I get out of here?"
"You know the drill, Mr. Sanders. We've been over this."
"Yea, I know. But it's been a few hours already. We're working toward three in the afternoon now."
"You're looking at another night at least. That much I know. But other than that I'll have to check with the doctor to see what she plans to do. Any other questions?"
I sank my head back into my pillow and shook my head. "No," I said. "I can't think of anything."
"Okay. I know this sounds meaningless and trite, but try to make yourself comfortable."
"Kind of hard to do with all the garbage on TV."
He chuckled and walked out of the room.
A little while later, the door to my room squeaked. I cracked my eyes to see a blurry figure tiptoeing into the room. The shadows from the fluorescent lighting fell in such a way I couldn't tell who it was. I needed him to step closer.
But my stomach tightened anyway. Every muscle tensed up, as if trying to warn me.
I pretended to be asleep, watching him through one almost closed eyelid as he turned his back and loomed over Angela.
Cody.
I grabbed the portable IV stand next to the bed and waited. I had to be sure before I swung.
"Yes, Mr. Sanders. Do you need something?" The speaker on my bed went off.
The man whirled around and glared at me. He reached into a pocket inside his jacket and I swung the IV stand up over the bed. The walker clocked the side of his face, knocking him over the bed. I tried to swing again, but he was too close and I ended up hitting the foot of the bed.
Cody reached around and wrapped his hands around my throat. He started squeezing as I punched and slapped at his shoulders.
The water pitcher flew up and cracked Cody in the back of the head, forcing him to let go of me and turn around. Angela swung again. The water pitcher caught him in the jaw.
He grabbed her wrist and wrenched it up behind her until she screamed.
"Not one word," he said as he cupped his other hand over her mouth.
She glared at me.
"Uh-uh, don't move," he said.
"What the hell do you think you're going to do?" I taunted him. "You can't go anywhere. They've already called the police. There's no way they're going to let you just walk out of here with her. I can hit the button before you even get the door open."
His eyes glanced around the room. Still, his voice refused to shake and he seemed to have more control over his muscles than I had. I was shaking, and I knew he could see it. This made it impossible for me to tell whether or not my words made him nervous at all.
Angela took in a deep breath. Her eyes darted around the room.
Seconds later, he tried to turn and reach for the door. Angela kicked up off the wall, catching the edge of the white board before bringing her foot back into his shin. Cody yelled and threw her away from him.
Angela landed against the whiteboard hanging on the wall and grabbed a marker. I grabbed my IV bag and leaned over the side of the bed. Cody swung around to grab Angela again. She ducked and jabbed at his throat with the marker. The pressure and surprise of the marker catching his throat made him cough and fall backwards into the bed. I sat up and wrapped the IV wire around his throat and pulled until he stopped moving.
Tears streamed down Angela's face. "Are you okay?" she asked as she brushed the hair away from my face.
"I'm fine." My heart still pounded. I struggled to bring my breathing back under control. "You. Are you okay?"
She nodded and glanced over herself. "My arm is sore, but that's about it."
I crawled out of bed and started searching for my clothes.
"What are you doing?"
"We have to go before he wakes up. Who knows what he'll do."
"He can't possibly be stupid enough to try something else. Can he?"
I took in a deep breath and forced a fake smile. "Angela, there's no telling what he'll do."
"But they aren't going to let you go anywhere. And if you leave here in a hurry someone is bound to get suspicious."
Damn it. She was right. I sat back down on the bed and she cracked the door to glance out into the hallway.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"He can't wake up here, right? So we move him and he won't." She darted out into the hallway and came back a few seconds later with a doctor's coat, a hospital bed and some sheets.
"How did you--? Nevermind." I chuckled and helped her hoist Cody up onto the bed and covered him up with the sheets. I was glad he wasn't much bigger than she was. Then she glanced out the hallways again and once the coast was clear, she rolled him out of the room.
I straightened out the rest of the room and placed my IV stand back into place. Just as I finished crawling into the bed, Grams walked into the room.
"Timmy, are you okay?"
"Hi Grams," I said with a smile.
"Angela said you were hurt."
"Yea, but it's no big deal. I'll be fine. I just need to rest is all. They'll let me out soon. You'll see."
"Oh thank God," she said as she lunged over into a hug. She kissed my forehead and cheeks and checked my temperature with the back of her hand.
"I'm fine, Grams. Really. I'm okay."
"Grams!" said Angela. "I went back to the house, but you weren't there."
"Oh I know, dear, I'm sorry. Marti insisted on everyone getting their hair done for the wedding. I told them to just drop me off here and I could take you back to the house, dear. I just wanted to check on Timmy first. I brought your dress. So you can get ready here and then you and I can come back and check on Timmy after. Would you like that Timmy? We'll bring you some food or something okay? You'll get sick on all this hospital food."
"Grams, I'm fine, really."
Footsteps clopped down the hallway outside as my nurse came back in to check on me.
"Would you tell her I'm fine, please?"
He smiled. "He's fine."
"What's going on out there?" Angela asked.
"Oh, a patient disappeared. It's probably nothing. He probably just stepped out to go for a walk or use the bathroom or something. It happens all the time. But the interns get all freaked out whenever they can't find a patient they want to check on."
"Well, Angela and I need to get going. We'll be back later." Grams grabbed Angela's shoulder and ushered her out the door.
***
I wished I had time to tell Tim exactly what I had done with the beamer asshole. I tried to sneak a peek into the room where I left him with the chart I stole off someone else's bed, but the door was closed. There was no way for me to look in gracefully without being noticed. I was just glad that I was able to ditch the doctor coat before anyone caught me.
Now to get to Marti's wedding. This was going to be a disaster. Poor Marti would end up standing up at the arch, waiting for her groom to arrive, and he never would. Of course, it kept her from marrying a psychopath. But at the same time, if I took the psychopath part out of the equation, Marti was really just going to be getting stood up at the altar. I couldn't stop myself from smiling at that bit, either.
I just hoped I wouldn't get caught smiling while she was crying about it.
We pulled up to Grams's house and I ran into the house and up the stairs without bothering to look at anyone. If I could just get dressed and made up half way decent, then I could be ready on time for this thing and I'd have front row tickets to the chaos to follow.
In my room, I slipped into my dress and threw some pantyhose on. I grabbed my hair and whipped it up into a loose french braid, allowing a few curls to cascade down the side of my face and neck.
I decided to skip the makeup, electing instead to grab some lipgloss and glide it over. "It's not like we're going to have pictures or anything to memorialize this day," I told myself.
In record time, I was ready to go. I could hear the procession gathering downstairs. Marti bellowed for everyone to take their places. I ran down the stairs and slipped into line next to Aaron. Marti tossed a small bouquet at me and before I knew it, the music was playing and it was time to walk.
I wasn't sure how everything got thrown together so nicely, but close to 200 people sat and watched as we walked down the aisle toward the arch. I smiled my best smile, wondering exactly how I would react when Marti realized her groom wasn't coming.
Cousin - Improper (A Bad Boy Romance) Page 12