Page 5 of Dark Tangled Truths
She shakes her head. “I’ve got nowhere else to be, and I want to make sure she’s okay.”
I get my phone out and text the group chat.
Me:
Fair warning
Evan’s mom is here
Hawk
The nurse comes in to irrigate the wounds another time and to check how Annie is doing. Glancing at Cam’s text message, I sit in the chair next to her bed, holding her other hand. Annie’s mom is here, but I’m not pretending I don’t give a shit about Annie. I’ve probably lost a few years off my life between her and Damon’s accidents.
I’m ready to wrap her in Bubble Wrap. Or better, tie her to my bed for the rest of our lives to protect her. It’s not rational, but fuck, I need to find a way to keep her safe. Damon tracks and records her, but I’m the one who ends up having to save her.
“Does it still burn?” The nurse doesn’t look up from what she’s doing.
“Not as much.” Annie’s voice is soft and a little hoarse. She watches the nurse intently like she can see what was in her wounds. It took time for the pain to become more manageable. Every minute was excruciating, watching her face contort with pain and not being able to do anything to help her.
The door opens, and everyone turns to see Annie’s mom in the doorway. Her face is pale and she seems braced for the worst possible news.
“Evan, are you okay?” Heather looks at the nurse and wrings her hands, like she’s afraid it’s something much worse. “Is she okay?”
“She’s fine.” The nurse finishes and wraps the wounds in bandages. They’re too close for Band-Aids, so they’re currently wrapped in gauze. “Some sort of irritant was on the thorns that cut her. We treated her for an allergic reaction and flushed the wounds.”
The nurse straightens on her stool. “She should be fine, but we can go over her discharge instructions again if you’d like.”
Heather turns and sees me. Her brow furrows when she focuses on me and my hand holding Annie’s.
The nurse stands and says, “I can print those out for you.”
Heather nods and checks over Annie before returning her gaze to her hand in mine and then her bandaged hand. Heather swallows slightly. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” Annie’s voice is shaky, but she makes sure to meet her mother’s gaze. Her face is pale and streaked from tears. She’s exhausted, and I just want to tuck her in my arms and never let anything bad happen to her again.
“I’ll be right back.” Heather examines Annie for another moment before she releases her breath and follows the woman.
Annie takes her hand from mine with a small smile and touches her bandages. “Mom doesn’t do well with hospitals ordoctors. We spent a lot of time in them during Dad’s illnesses because of the treatments.”
I bring her hand to my lips and press a kiss to her knuckles.
When she lifts her gaze to mine, I ask, “Is it better now? How do you feel?”
She blows out her breath. “Sore. Still burns a little, but nothing like when it happened. It felt like my hand was on fire, burning and melting from the inside out.”
I touch her hair, tucking it behind her ear. “Cam’s got someone looking into it, but we can also get the rose to the police.”
“The police?” Heather says, catching the tail end of our conversation when she returns. She looks me over again, noticing how I’m still holding Annie’s hand.
I don’t let go and I’m not going to. I’m done pretending Annie’s not mine.
Heather presses her lips together and narrows her eyes on me. “You’re one of Damon’s friends?”
Annie closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, like she doesn’t want to deal with this. I’m not going to make this a thing like Damon would, but I’m also not going to deny that I love this girl.
“Yes, Hawk Wilker,” I say, but I don’t move away from Annie. She may not be ready to say I’m her boyfriend, but I’m not about to pretend I don’t care about her. “I’m part of EvanAnn’s cast. I was there when it happened.”
Heather stands near the door. Her arms wrapped around her middle. She’s almost as pale as Annie. She focuses on Annie. “I still don’t understand. You picked up a rose and the thorns cut you, but they treated you for chemical burns and an allergic reaction? You aren’t allergic to anything.”
