Ryker (Hope City #6) - Kris Michaels Page 0,27
someone for you if anything happens.”
Amber nodded toward the hall. When they turned the corner, Amber spun and hugged her. “Oh, my God, Brie, you told Fenton to whip out his dick!”
She chuffed a small laugh. “He's such an asshole to Ryker. I just... God, Amber, my father's going to kill me. Hell, Brody and Ryker are going to kill me, too.”
“Well, you can only get killed once, right? But the look on Brody's face when you went after Fenton, that was nothing but pride.”
“Yeah?” They strolled down the hall, finding a small room with vending machines.
“Oh, yeah. It will take him a couple minutes to digest all of that before he realizes you said you were in love with his captain.”
“God, I said that, didn't I?”
“Oh, yeah. Loudly.” Amber shoved a bill into the machine and punched a button for a soda. She popped the top and handed the can to her. “Drink. You need the sugar. It helps when you're freaking out.”
Brie took a sip and shook her head. “Why would anyone shoot at him?”
“Well, he's the commander of the JDET team. There are many people who have grudges against us. But you don't need to worry about that. We will find out who did this and why. I know you probably haven't thought about this, but is there someone that you should call for him? A family member?”
She stared at the top of the soda can. “He's not close to his family, but I know their phone numbers are on his cell. I saw them when I was scrolling through it one night.”
“Wow, it really must be love if he lets you scroll through his phone.”
Amber chuckled, and Brie’s face heated. They were lying in bed after a fabulous round of sex and he was showing her pictures on his phone. He'd gone to the kitchen to get them some water, and she'd snooped. “Do you have his cell? I can call them.”
“I don't, but we can find out where it is. In the meantime, I have orders to parade you around the hospital until called.” Amber linked their arms together and tugged her gently, moving them into the hall.
“Dad is so going to murder me.”
“Yeah, probably. And is it wrong to be happy that the family focus is finally off me?” Amber giggled when Brie groaned.
Ryker blinked his eyes and jolted, trying to orient himself. A soft hand landed on his arm and he jerked. A nurse?
“You're in recovery. You just came out of surgery. The doc will be here to talk to you soon. How's your pain level?”
He shook his head. “Fuzzy.”
“That's expected. You're lucky Doc Phillips was on call. He's the best orthopedic surgeon in the city. Is there someone in the waiting room you'd like me to get for you?”
“Brianna.” He croaked the word, swallowed, and then said her name again.
“I'll go get her. You rest.” The nurse patted his forearm again and dipped out of the curtain-partitioned area.
A rotund man as round as he was tall waddled into the room after she left. “Captain Terrell, I'm Dr. Phillips. How are you feeling?” He came and stood beside the bed and tented the material of the sling they’d placed Ryker’s arm in, taking a peek and nodding. He didn't wait for Ryker to speak but continued on. “The bullet shattered your shoulder socket. It definitely made a fine mess, but we performed a total shoulder arthroplasty.”
“A what?” He narrowed his eyes at his doctor and then craned his neck to see his shoulder.
“Basically, we removed the damaged portions of your shoulder joint and replaced the damaged sections with artificial implants.”
He wiggled the fingers of his injured arm before he asked, “Will I be able to stay on the force?”
“I don't see a reason why you couldn't. As a captain, you're primarily behind a desk, right?”
He nodded. For the most part, he was or could be. Fucking hell.
“How did this happen?” The doc opened a computer and focused on the screen.
“Drive-by shooting.”
The doctor stopped and turned to him. “You work the gang task force?”
“No sir.” He worked JDET, and why the fuck would someone do a drive-by of his house? Fuck, what if Brianna had been there? He screwed his eyes shut tightly. He needed to talk with Theron and King. There had to be something, some reason this happened. One he couldn't produce through the drug-induced haze.
“You'll be in the hospital for a day or two. Tomorrow, we'll take you to radiology and