Page 416 of Once Upon a Fable

My shoulders relaxed, my muscles stopped bunching, and I pulled away, resting my forehead on hers. “Thank you,” I whispered.

“We’re together, Kas. Just because we’re no longer just the two of us, we’re still together. That hasn’t changed. That willneverchange.”

I nodded, breathing her in. “I love you.”

She blushed and pulled away. “And I love you.” Tucking my wild, smoke-laced hair behind my ear, she stood and returned to her chair.

Inhaling heavily, I let myself just chill the fuck out. After such a rush of noise, people, and sensory overload, the peace was just as mentally shattering as the rest of the mayhem of the night.

Time passed in silence as we both waited for whatever came next.

The clock on the wall ticked the seconds, showing twenty minutes passed while we just sat and digested what’d happened.

Eventually, Gemma cleared her throat, coughing a little from the smoke. “Do you need anything? I can see about getting us some food?”

My stomach gurgled at the mention of food but the thought of her leaving me to get it? No chance. I shook my head, coughing like she had, wincing a little at the pain in my lungs. “Stay. Please.”

“Okay.” She reached over and touched my hand. “We can eat later.”

I twisted to face her, catching a whiff of soot and acrid burning. Our skin was covered in it. We needed a shower and some sleep, preferably in that order. “What are we waiting for? Are we being held for something? Are we in trouble?”

Her eyes filled with sympathy. “We’re not in trouble.”

“Even for the fire?”

“That wasn’t our fault.”

“Blame is rarely fair.”

Memories of being punished just for sneezing came and went. A cane across my shoulders. The bite of leather against my ass. I glanced at the bed in the opposite corner of the room where Gem’s backpack had been placed.

How long would they keep us here?

How much longer would I be able to stay awake?

What would happen when I finally gave into exhaustion?

Would I have a nightmare?

Would I hurt Gem in my sleep?

Would I be caught hurting her?

Fuck, she’d be taken away from me.

I’d be locked up in a different type of prison.

I’d be hurt again, trapped again, used again. I—

Ah, fucking hell—

“Hey, Kas...” Gemma leaped from her chair and came to me. Sitting on my lap, she looped her arms around my shoulders and pressed her forehead to my cheek. Just having her in my arms soothed my racing heartbeat and shoved back the blinding white light just daring me to pass out. “Nothing bad is going to happen to you. I promise.”

I wrapped my arms around her, nuzzling into her neck.

She let me hold her for a while, her pulse calming me, her warmth making me drowsy. Blinking back tiredness, I pulled away and kissed her lips. “Whatisgoing to happen? Tell me what to expect and I’ll be able to handle it better.”

She licked her lips, giving me a kind smile. “Okay, sure. I can do that.” Threading her fingers through my knotty hair, she murmured, “I’m guessing a doctor will be by shortly. That’s how hospitals work. We have to wait to be seen as many places like these are very busy and understaffed. Once he or she has checked us out—probably listened to our lungs with a stethoscope, maybe arranged for a few X-rays to make sure there isn’t any smoke damage, then we’ll either be kept here for a night of observation or we’ll be able to go home.”