There's Fire: A Friends to Lovers Romance (Where There's Smoak Book 5)

by Nadine Hudson

  “His parents are probably listed as his emergency contacts. The hospital may have already reached out to them. They might have more information for us.”

  “You’re right!” I say with hope in my voice for the first time in hours. I scroll through my contacts until I find her name.

  Debra Smoak.

  I tap the name and listen for the rings to start. She must’ve had her phone in her hand waiting for updates because she answers after only half of a ring.

  “Brooke! Sweetheart! How is he? Are you there with him?”

  “Hi Deb. Umm, no. They took him in an ambulance. Gabe rode down with him and Bobby and I are on our way now. We should be there in about twenty minutes. Did the hospital call you guys?”

  “We just got the call that he was admitted but the receptionist didn’t have any more information for us,” Deb said. Her voice is shaky and low. I can tell she’s been crying.

  “You should’ve let me talk to her. I would’ve gotten some damn answers! They don’t make any Goddamn sense to me…” I hear Teddy, Conner’s dad, in the background. His ranting makes me smile. Conner and I used to mock him when we were younger. His dad would get angry and go on rants where he would holler and curse about little things like forgetting to put his windows up in his truck or losing his car keys. I think about how Conner would be laughing and making a mockingly angry face right now if he were here to hear his dad.

  “Ohh, stop it, Ted. Just settle down,” she tells him before talking to me again. “We’re on our way now but you know it’s going to take us a few hours to get there. Will you please keep us updated, honey?”

  “Of course! I will let you know as soon as I hear something.”

  “Thank you, Brooke! We’ll see you soon and you and Bobby drive safe, okay?”

  “Okay,” I agree. Then hang up.

  Deb is one of the sweetest, most soft-spoken women I have ever met. How she ended up with Teddy has always been a mystery to me. He is very loud and very rough around the edges but still a good man. They’ve just always seemed like complete opposites. Maybe they balance each other out well. I look down at my phone again just to make sure I didn’t miss a call from Gabe. Nothing.

  “Five more minutes, Brooke. Just relax. It’s going to be alright,” Bobby says as he pulls off the highway. I glance over at him and he’s smiling lightly but I can tell it’s just to make me feel better. His eyes look as scared as I am. I let out a deep breath as we get closer to the hospital. My heart starts beating like it’s in hyperdrive. Part of me wants to burst through the ER doors and demand answers. While another part of me doesn’t want to get out of the car and wants to stay blissfully unaware that anything terrible may have happened to Conner.

  I feel a lump forming in my chest as I try to prepare myself for whatever news we’re about to get as Bobby pulls into a spot in the parking garage. I try to imagine why Gabe hasn’t called back. It’s not like him to be this unresponsive. What if he’s that consumed with grief that he can’t bring himself to answer his phone? He can’t call me back because he doesn’t want to be the one to tell me that I’ve lost Conner. I feel the tears begin to build in my eyes as my whole body tenses at the thought. I feel a shiver run up my spine.

  No, Brooke. Don’t. Stay positive. Conner needs you to be strong right now. I let out another breath before following Bobby to the garage elevators then through the large sliding glass doors of the hospital entrance. An older woman with short brown curly hair sits behind the reception desk. She looks down her nose through her glasses at her computer screen as we approach. Without looking up at us she says, “Name?”

  “Conner Smoak.” My voice cracks as I answer.

  We watch silently and I hold my breath as she types something into her computer then asks, “Is he a current patient here?” I feel a pang of annoyance spread throughout my body and my eyes narrow at her. She’s being so calm. How can she not see that this is urgent?

  “He would have just been brought in via ambulance no more than an hour ago.”

  She nods her head but doesn’t say anything else. Her eyes roll over her computer screen and I can hear the clicking of her mouse. My body is practically shaking. I’m ready to dive over the desk and take a hold of this woman.

  “So where do we go? Where can we find him?” I finally snap at her. With one blink her eyes move from her screen to me and she gives me a disapproving glare.

  “Ma’am, I’m gonna need you to be patient,” she says holding her hand up at me. I have to fight the urge to slap her hand out of my face. “If he was just admitted he may not be updated in our system yet.”

  “Ugh,” I groan, rolling my eyes at her. I feel my patience wearing thin and I start to raise my voice. “Listen I need you to check again! Okay, he’s here! I just need you to tell me where to go.”

  “Ma’am please calm down. Okay, I’m doing the best that I can.” I feel my face turn hot.

  “Don’t you tell me to calm down!” I scream at her and immediately feel Bobby’s hand around my arm pulling me back from her desk.

  “Brooke, come on. Just let her do her job.”

  “Brooke! Bobby!” I hear from the hallway to our left. I turn around to see Gabe walking quickly toward us. I turn back to the receptionist and shoot her a “fuck you” glare then run to Gabe.

  “Gabe! Where is he? How is he? What’s going on?”

  “Breath, Brooke. Okay? Just breath,” he says, holding onto my shoulders. “He’s alive. He’s stable but he’s still unconscious. The doctors say that he is responsive but he’s in and out. They are running tests and scans to make sure there’s no swelling in his brain and no internal bleeding or injuries.”

  I let out another breath but this time it’s a sigh of relief. He’s alive. Tears of joy start to form in my eyes. My bottom lip begins to quiver. “I thought I’d lost him, Gabe,” I say, taking a step back from everyone to give myself some space. Gabe steps closer to me and pulls me into a hug. I clutch his shirt and sob against his shoulder.

  “He’s alright, Brooke. He’s going to be just fine.” Gabe says softly to me as he rubs the back of my head. “C’mon I’ll take you guys back to the waiting room. The doctor says she’ll let me know when he’s awake.” I wipe my eyes and nod my head in agreement.

  “I need to call his parents and let them know.”

  “I already did,” Gabe answers. “Go wait for our boy to wake up.” I smile at him. I never realized how much I appreciated Gabe and everything he has done for all of us.

  When we reach the waiting room, there’s a doctor already waiting. She looks

  around at each of us then asks, “Are you all here for Conner?”

  We all nod together.

  She looks a little nervous as she flips through the folder she’s holding. She finally looks back up at us. “Are any of you Conner’s parents or a Brooke Tyson?”

  My eyes grow wide. Me? I give a small wave and let her know I am Brooke. She smiles softly at me then says, “Hi Ms. Tyson. I’m Dr. Reynolds. I am the physician overseeing Conner’s care. He has you listed here as one of his emergency contacts when his parents are not available. Is that correct?”

  I’m completely thrown by her words. I had no idea Conner listed me as an emergency contact after his parents. I mean it makes sense that he would do that because of how far away his parents live but I’m still caught completely off guard.

  “Uh, yeah. Yes. Mhm. Yes, that’s correct,” I answer, clearing my throat and trying my best to make it seem like the news isn’t a total surprise. I fail miserably. Why did I just give her four different versions of a “yes” answer?

  “Well, Ms. Tyson, let me start off by saying Conner is going to be alright. He is awake and you can go see him in a minute. Now he has suffered a severe concussion or what we would call a Grade 3 concussion based on the amount of time he was unconscious for. The good news is that he is awake now. Typically the longer he is unconscious the more severe the symptoms and the longer the recovery period but sinc
e he has been awake other than some slight nausea his symptoms don’t seem to be too bad. He is very lucky.”

  Dr. Reynolds continues to explain Conner’s condition and tests that were done but I stop listening after “Conner is going to be alright.” All I can think about now is getting back to him. Being next to him. Seeing with my own eyes that what she says is true. “I’m sorry,” I say, shaking my head and interrupting her. “Did you say he’s awake now and we can go back and see him?”

  “Yes,” she answers and looks at Gabe and Bobby. “Well, for now only one guest at a time. He is going to need some rest. We will monitor his condition overnight just to be sure his symptoms don’t spike but as long as his symptoms are still mild come tomorrow we can discharge him.” She waves her arm toward another set of doors showing me the way. She swipes her badge along the wall and the doors open up for us. I walk quickly through them and she moves right behind me almost at a jog to keep up. “He’s room 303,” she says loudly from behind me.

  My eyes scan the walls for room numbers and arrows pointing me in Conner’s direction. I stop when I’m finally outside his room. I pull in a deep breath and try to prepare myself for what will be behind the door. I knock softly but open the door as I do.

  I hear his deep, raspy voice from behind a blue curtain and my heart skips a beat.

  “Brooke… Come here, please.”

  ****

  Conner

  The sweet scent of her flowery perfume wafts through the room as the door opens. She’s here. A smile grows across my face. But she doesn’t come rushing into the room and leaping into my arms like I hoped she would. Instead she stands timidly in the doorway behind the curtain. Maybe she’s scared. I call for her softly. And she steps further into the room so I can finally see her.

  She’s looking down at her fingers. Her golden hair falls around her face creating a wavy curtain of curls. She looks tired but still as beautiful as ever. I look at her as her deep green eyes peek up at me through long dark lashes. Without saying a word I open my arms to her and wait. Without hesitation she throws herself into them.

  “I’m so glad you’re alright, Conner.” I hear her sobbing against my chest. “I don’t know what I would do if…”

  “Sshhh…” I say cutting her off and squeezing her tighter. “I’m fine. Okay? I’m alright. What about you? Are you okay?” I ask pulling her away from me so I can examine her better.

  She laughs. “I’m fine. I’m not the one who was taken away in an ambulance and was unconscious for over an hour. What the hell happened, Conner?”

  I leave out a sigh of relief and smile back at her. She’s okay. I rub my hand through my hair as I try to think back to the fire. Brooke sits on the edge of my bed, waiting patiently. It’s only now that I realize how much my head hurts but I hide my grimacing. I don’t want her worrying about me more than she already has.

  “Uh, well, I remember being trapped in the office at Micky’s but the next thing I can remember is a loud noise. Something falling down on me. But then nothing. Just black. There were moments here and there where I could hear people talking but they sounded so far away and I couldn’t really hear what they were saying. It was mostly just darkness.” I watch as Brooke stares down at her hands then shivers at my words.

  I wrap my arms around her again and pull her onto the bed beside me. “I’m okay, Brooke. I’m right here with you.” She rolls over so her body is facing mine and she snuggles herself closer into my arms.

  “I was so scared, Conner. I didn’t know what to do.”

  “I know.” I kiss her hair then inhale a deep breath of her flowery scent. There’s a hint of smoke mixed in as well and I’m not sure if it’s coming from her or me. I doubt she showered before coming here. She probably rushed here after the ambulance. I know she’s going to want to shower and get changed but the thought of her leaving and being out of my sight for even a minute scares the hell out of me.

  “I want you to stay here tonight,” I finally say to her. She leans back a little to look up at me. For a second I think she might fight me about it. Instead she puts a hand on the side of my face and nods her head in agreement. I feel her fingers run through the scruff on my face. Her expression looks like she was thinking the same thing. She doesn’t want to leave me anymore than I want to leave her. A warm feeling washes over me.

  I fight the urge to kiss her hard. Her lips are only inches from mine and I want to taste them desperately but I still don’t know exactly where we stand. I’m not really sure this is the right time to talk about it either. I can’t wait for the day that I don’t have to hold anything back anymore.

  “Mhm…” I hear a throat clearing from the doorway and in an instant Brooke jumps up to a sitting position. I can’t contain my smile. I watch her cheeks glow red under the nurse’s disapproving gaze. I reach over to her and rub my hand across her back. She quickly swats it away and I laugh.

  “Well, it looks like you really are feeling better,” the nurse says as she looks through my chart and checks the monitors around me. “I’m gonna have you sit up so I can get a listen to your heart and lungs.” She looks to Brooke, “Miss you’re gonna have to get off of the bed.”

  “Ohh! Right. I’m… I’m so sorry. Let me just… get out of your way.” Brooke stumbles over her words still flustered by the nurse walking in on us snuggled up together. I smile brightly back at her. She is completely adorable when she’s embarrassed. She shakes her head at me knowing how much I’m enjoying this.

  After a few minutes the nurse leaves the room and we’re alone again. I smile playfully at Brooke and hold my arms out for her to come to me again.

  “No! No way. I’m sitting over here,” she says as she takes a seat in the chair beside my bed.

  I laugh. But my heart sinks a little. Looks like the walls have gone back up.

  “If I’m staying here tonight I’m gonna need a change of clothes. I can ask Bobby to take me to my house. Then I can grab a bag and I’ll just bring your truck back down. I’m sure he won’t mind.”

  The thought of her leaving my sight is unsettling. I feel my heart begin to race. I watch her eyes flash to the monitor when it picks up on my increase in heart rate.

  “Brooke, that was Ian who started the fire at Micky’s. Ian was on our radio channel. He’s the one who said someone was still in the building. He tried to kill us both. We don’t know what else he’s capable of.”

  “I know. But Bobby will be with me and…”

  I cut her off, “And nothing. We don’t know who he’s working with. It could be anyone. Whoever this other person is had the balls to come to my house and throw a brick through my window. Whoever it is has to be familiar with the area and have some relationship to Ian. Until we know who that is I’m not letting you out of my sight.” I reach out and take her hand. Please don’t fight me and just let me keep you safe. She nods her head in agreement again. Good girl. I pull her hand to my lips and kiss it softly. “It’s gonna be alright.”

  She offers me a small smile. “I’ll see if Bobby or Gabe can work something out with my change of clothes and get us home if you’re discharged tomorrow.”

  “You’re being discharged tomorrow?” A small voice comes from behind the curtain. I really wish they would just open it so I can see when someone is coming into the room. The curtain flies open and my mom steps in, rushing to my bedside and hugging me tightly.

  “Oh honey! We were so worried about you. How are you feeling?” Her eyes are red. She’s clearly been crying. My dad follows slowly behind her but doesn’t say anything. He’s never been good with difficult emotions like worry or sadness. He’s always been more of the strong-silent type. He’s better at expressing joy and anger. He nods his head at me and I nod back.

  “Uh, I’m feeling okay Mom. Really.”

  “Okay? You’re feeling okay? The doctors told us you have a Grade 3 concussion. That’s the worst kind of concussion isn’t it?” Her speech is rapid. She has always known how to worry and did so
often. As if she needed to compensate for the worry my dad didn’t know how to express. She moves closer and sits down on the edge of my bed. She reaches up and messes with my hair then pats my cheek. Next she takes my hand and squeezes it tightly.

  “Mom, relax,” I say, taking her gently by the shoulders. “I’m okay… Yes, they labeled it as a Grade 3 concussion but that is only because of how long I was unconscious for. I don’t have the severity of symptoms that are typically seen in a Grade 3 concussion. They said it’s not something that happens very often but I am very lucky.”

  She doesn’t seem to be completely satisfied with my explanation but it keeps her from fidgeting around. Brooke steps closer and puts a hand on her shoulder.

  “Don’t worry, Deb. I’m gonna stay with him tonight. I’ll keep a close eye on him.” Mom pats Brooke’s hand where it rests on her arm.

  “Thank you, dear. You have always been such a good friend to our Conner. He’s lucky to have you here.”

  I think for a moment about telling my parents that Brooke and I are more than friends but I decide against it. Wait…are we dating? What are we exactly? I’m not really sure. I guess I wouldn’t know what to tell them anyway. Now really isn’t the time to figure it out but my mind keeps circling back to the topic. I need to remember to talk to Brooke about it next time we’re alone.

  “Dad and I are gonna be staying in a hotel nearby tonight in case you need anything.”

  “Okay, Mom. Thanks.” I smile back at her.

  “Otherwise, honey, how are you doing? Are you getting enough to eat? You’re looking a little skinny. Doesn’t he look skinny, Ted?”

  My mom has always been overbearing. As a teenager I hated it. She was always following behind me fixing my hair or trying to tuck my shirt in for me. It was annoying as hell back then. Now that I’m an adult I appreciate having her but right now I’m exhausted and I can feel myself drifting off as she’s talking to me.

  Three