need to be there. I’m going with you. What’s the location?”
It didn’t sound like he was asking, and he did need to meet some of the people he had inherited when he had said “I do”.
“My cousin overdosed, and he’s at St. Thomas Memorial. Doctors aren’t sure he is going to make it through the night.”
I wasn’t as close to my two male cousins as I was to Desiree, but it didn’t mean I didn’t care about what happened to them. I prayed Rayland would survive long enough for me to curse his ass out for being so damned stupid.
I dialed Desiree.
“I received a call from his girlfriend and was about to call you,” she said as soon as she picked up the phone. “I’m on my way to the hospital,” she continued, speaking through her sobs.
Arjen leaned up when I clicked off, his movement dispelling his savory scent.
“Ross, take us to St. Thomas Memorial.”
“Yes, sir,” the driver answered, unconcerned about where he had been ordered to take us.
The hospital was in the heart of the hood, but my new husband didn’t seem to care. Did he know the hospital we were about to visit was known for having shoot outs inside of it?
As soon as the car drove up to the emergency room entrance, I reached for the door but was stopped when Arjen reached across me and placed his hand atop mine on the door handle. His closeness caused a wild stirring inside that I found weirdly enticing.
“We are not a traditional husband and wife, Mecca, but it doesn’t mean I’m going to stop being a gentleman. I have manners, love.”
Love?
He said nothing else, simply got out, walked around, and opened my door. The men in my life treated me like I was one of the guys, so I wasn’t used to men being chivalrous. Point for my new husband for being different. The idea caused me to smile, despite the pending situation with my cousin.
Was this Arjen’s way of attempting to impress me?
Eyes landed on us from every direction as we walked through the emergency room. The antiseptic scent attacked before the stench of body odor and lingering death punched me in the face. Medical professionals were rendering care to patients in the crowded space, right where they sat.
We threaded through the crowd, turned past the emergency help desk, and nearly stepped on the legs of one person from a group of four who were sitting on the floor. One was stretched out parallel to the wall and asleep.
“Spare a few dollars please.” The woman lifted up from a sleep lean and asked, not caring that I had almost stepped on her. I was sure Arjen had never seen anything like this based on the way he gawked.
I peeled off a ten from the small stash of cash I had in my clutch and handed it over. We proceeded to our destination, stepping across a man that sat motionless and staring, his eyes unfocused, high on something.
Despite some people being there to seek medical attention, others were there for a place to sleep or to seek out their next fix. People continued to stop and stare as we made our way to the elevators. I had forgotten we were dressed in our wedding attire. Like me, Arjen ignored the scanning eyes and concentrated on what was in front of us.
Once we stepped onto the stuffy elevator that had what appeared to be remnants of a blood splatter mark on the back wall, I hit the fourth-floor button before allowing my eyes to fall close.
“Are you okay?” Arjen asked, closing the space between us. He stood close enough for his warmth to wrap around me, but he didn’t touch.
“I’m good. Sometimes seeing this gives me a crisis of conscience, knowing the job that I do is a direct cause of some of it.”
His head shook in the negative. “None of this is your fault. You didn’t ask for this life. You were born into it same as I was. And although it doesn’t make it right, I know about some of the things you do to level the playing field while others in your position could care less.”
“What do you think you know about me? Did you sneak a peek into my business?”
His smile grew wide as his lips flashed a cute crooked bend.
“I did. I know about the charities you contribute to, the scholarships you support, the orphanage, and a host of others saintly-like tasks others in