Luscious - Lexi Blake Page 0,18
IED and then fighting off insurgents with one leg. Watching Ronnie…no. He wasn’t going there. It was so much easier to think about how his ex-wife had screwed him over and taken everything.
The only good thing to happen to him in that last year was…
He forced his eyes open. “Ally? Ally was with me.” He gripped his brother’s arm. “Ally was in the bathroom.”
Sean Taggart shook his head. “No, she wasn’t.”
“Oh, god, what happened?” Ally couldn’t be dead. He’d told her where to go, how to protect herself. Memories came flooding back. He’d grabbed the flashlight right before the lights went out. And then everything had gone dark and he tripped over something with his stupid non-leg and he’d fallen. He’d bashed his head and right before he’d gone out he’d been happy that Ally was safe.
Ally hadn’t been safe?
His boss looked across the bed to grin at his brother. “Told you.” He glanced down toward Macon. “Ally disobeyed and you’re lucky she’s a brat. They found her covering your body with hers. She protected your head with her back and it was a good thing. When the tornado hit all the pots we had hanging overhead fell and they would have come right down on your noggin.”
“Or your hands.” Ian Taggart strode back into the room. There was a pink blanket wrapped over his massive chest. It was a weird fashion statement for a former Green Beret to make. “They could have crushed your hands. She’s a goddamn hero.”
Big Tag was fond of his lemon pie.
Ally had done what? His brain wasn’t quite functioning. He had to process the information. “Who found us? Where is Ally?”
“The crew was at a bar in Deep Ellum,” Sean explained. “When they heard where the tornado hit, they came running. They found you in the kitchen with Ally protecting your nasty ass.”
“She’s alive?”
Sean moved to his left and gestured toward the window. “She’s fine. She’s asleep. I convinced the nurses to bring in a cot and let her spend the night.”
He sat up despite the knife that threatened to split his brain in two. She was lying across a small cot, her body curled up and her back to the wall. Her arms were crossed over her chest and there was something about the way she slept that made him think she was protecting herself.
“She covered my body with hers?” He let his voice go low, not wanting to disturb her.
“Yeah and she’s got the bruises to prove it,” Sean said. “Her back took a couple of nice whacks, but would you like to know what she said when we tried to get her into the ER?”
“She wouldn’t go because she can’t afford it.” He knew what Ally’s first fear would be. She wouldn’t want to run up a bunch of bills she couldn’t afford. “She hasn’t been around long enough. Her insurance hasn’t kicked in.”
“Yep. I brought in a friend of mine. He checked her out. She’s fine. And she can sleep through anything,” Ian said as his pink blanket moved. The big guy looked down. “Root around all you like, baby girl. Nothing’s coming out of that. I need to take her to her momma. Kenzie should be finished by now. The girl eats like a Hoover. She makes Daddy proud.”
“Charlotte’s here?”
“Of course. Dude, you’re important to us. You make the pies.”
“What Ian is trying to say is you’re family,” Adam said, rolling his eyes. “Everyone’s out in the waiting room. Charlotte and Avery are having a breast in. Some dude was dumb enough to tell them to find somewhere private to feed the babies, so now they’re letting it all hang out in protest.”
The door opened and a tall man in a white coat walked in. “Good morning, Adam’s brother. I’m Will Daley. I’ll be making sure your brain is functioning today.”
“Ask him if he remembers how to make the pies, doc,” Ian said before heading off to find his wife.
“Sorry about my brother. He’s an idiot,” Sean said as Will took a look at his chart.
“He’s also more sarcastic than usual when he’s freaked out. He thought Sean was closing,” Adam explained. “He showed up a few minutes after the crew. He was the one who forced everyone to wait for the ambulance. Ally was going to try to get you into her car to take you to the hospital.”
“Ian acts like an ass most of the time, but he really does have a heart of gold,” Sean said.