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“I called an Uber.”
Monk stared at me. “Come again?” he growled.
“I called an Uber to take me home. You don’t need to be watching over me. I’m fine.” I shoved my foot into my boot and stood. “Well, I actually texted for an Uber.”
I had been discharged ten minutes ago, and I was ready to get the hell out of here.
“I don’t give a fuck if you sent some fucking smoke signals to get an Uber, Mitzy. I wanna know what the fuck you need an Uber for.”
I picked at the stickiness left on my arm from the IV tape. “I need it to go home, Monk. As much as I enjoyed the gourmet cooking this morning, I think I’m gonna duck out of here.”
“Yeah, you’re going home, but it sure as fuck isn’t going to be in the back of an Uber.” He stood and stepped toward me. The toes of his boots bumped against mine.
I tipped my head back, and my eyes connected with his. “You mind telling me why you’re standing so close?”
“Trying to figure out where the hell you keep all of this attitude in your small body.”
I rolled my eyes and planted my hand on his chest. I pushed, but he didn’t move. “You think you can get out of my space?”
He stepped back but kept his eyes connected to mine. “You’re not going anywhere without me, Mitzy.”
“Well, I mean, if you want to take my Uber with me, you can, but how are you going to get your bike home?”
“You’re coming home with me, and you can cancel your Uber.”
I pursed my lips and tipped my chin up. “I’m gonna give you a little clue, Monk. I’m not into someone telling me what I’m going to do. Especially someone who doesn’t even know me.”
“I know you, Mitzy,” he countered.
He knew what I wanted him to know about me.
Rough, smart-mouthed, and a bitch. That was what he and everyone else knew. There was a fuck-ton more to me than that, but no one was ever going to get that part of me. I had shared it before, and it literally got shoved back in my face and beaten away.
“Oh, you’re still here.”
I turned and saw the nurse who had been taking care of me this morning.
“Not for long. I’m on my way out.” Just as soon as Monk got the hell out of my way.
“Uh, are you planning on leaving in an Uber?” she asked.
“No,” Monk thundered.
“Yes,” I said over him.
The nurse cringed. “Uh, well, I thought you had already left.”
I tipped my head to the side. “I’m still here,” I growled. I was standing right in front of her.
“The front desk called and told me someone was here to pick you up. I told them you were already gone.”
I dropped my chin to my chest. “Please tell me you didn’t send my Uber away.”
She tipped her head to the side and squinted at me. “I mean, yes.”
Son of a bitch.
“Good. That means you’re riding home with me.” Monk grabbed his cut off the back of his chair and shrugged it on.
“No,” I growled. “I can get another Uber.”
I pulled out my phone out from my pocket, and Monk snatched it out of my hand.
“Stop fucking fighting me on this, Mitzy. I’m giving you a ride home, and that’s the end of the fucking story.”
“I don’t need you to do anything for me, Monk. I’m fine.” I was. The doctor had said I was lucky, but I was fine. It could have been a lot worse, but it wasn’t.
“Someone out there tried to kill you, Mitzy. You are not fucking fine right now.”
The nurse cleared her throat. “I’ll just leave you two alone.” She closed the door behind her.
“No one tried to kill me, Monk. I took the wrong pills. It was my stupid mistake.” He had tried to tell me earlier that someone had tried to hurt me, but I had brushed it off. He obviously really believed that someone had drugged me.
“How can you say that? I literally breathed oxygen into your lungs and sat in the waiting room while they pumped your stomach. Then sat at your bedside all night making sure you kept breathing”
“And you didn’t need to do any of that. I was fine then and I’m fine now.” I tried to push past him, but he wrapped his fingers around my wrist.
“You’re far from fine, Mitzy. A fucking blind person could see you’re fucked up.”
I stepped toward him. “Let me go.”
He shook his head. “No. I’m not letting you go. You and I both know I would never in a million years hurt you, so you can drop the shit about being scared of me.”
“You’re gonna tell me how I feel now?” I snapped. I was not in the mood to go toe-to-toe with Monk. I wanted to get out of this dank hospital and back to my house. Monk was standing directly in my way of making that happen.
“Can you just stop acting like I’m your asshole of an ex and take a damn breath? I’m trying to fucking help you, and all you keep doing is throwing it back in my face.”
“If I’m being such a bitch, Monk, then maybe you should leave. That will solve the problem for you.” I held out my hand. “Give me my phone, and you can go back to your little clubhouse.” My house was only ten miles away. I would fucking hitchhike if I had to.
He shook his head. “You can try and push me away all you want, Mitzy. Ain’t gonna fucking work on me. I’m not going anywhere until we figure out what in the hell happened to you last night.”
“You’re not staying at my house, Monk. Your sense of duty is misplaced on me. I’m a big girl who can more than take care of myself, and the other night was a fluke.”
He growled deep. “I’m taking you home, and that’s that. I don’t plan on sleeping in your house.”
I eyed him warily. “Why are you doing this?” People only hung around and tried to help when they wanted something in return. I didn’t have anything Monk would want, so I didn’t understand his motives.
“Because you’re connected to the club, so that makes you my responsibility,” he stated flatly.
I scoffed. “So you’re telling me you would do this for any of the girls who work at the club? Even Constance, who cleans the club when we close?” If that were the case, and if the girls found out, Monk would have a flock of girls surrounding him in an instant.
Monk shook his head. “Not a fucking chance in hell. I’m only concerned with you. Now, grab your shit, and let’s go, Mitzy.”
And just why was he concerned about me? It was a mistake. Granted, it had some pretty crazy consequences, but it was still a mistake. I was still alive, and I would just have to be a little more careful of what pills I grabbed from the dressing room from now on.
All I had was the clothes on my back and my phone, which Monk still refused to return. I held out my hands in front of me. “I’m ready.”
Riding on the back of Monk’s bike was going to be the quickest way I could get home. Right now, I just wanted to get the hell out of this hospital.
“I don’t know what the hell made you change your mind. Let’s fucking ride, Mitz.” Monk threaded his fingers through mine and pulled me out of the room. He stalked down the hallway and right out the front doors of the hospital with me trailing behind him.
We made it to his bike, and he grabbed the helmet hanging from the handlebars. He dropped my hand, plopped the helmet on my head, snapped the strap under my chin, and frowned.
“What’s wrong now?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Nothing.” He threw his leg over the bike and motioned for me to get on behind him.
“Do you know where I live?” I asked.
He nodded. “Yeah.”
“How do you know where I live?”
He turned and leveled his gaze on me. “Because it’s my fucking business to know where you live, Mitzy, and I also sign your fucking checks. Your check stub has your fucking address on it.”
Well. I guess that made sense. Though why would he take note of that? I handed out all of the girl’s checks, and I couldn’t tell you where one of them lived.
He shook his head. “I don’t want to hear whatever shit you want to say, Mitzy. Get your ass on the bike.”
I glared at him but didn’t say anything. The quicker I got on the bike, the quicker I would be off it and in my house. Alone. “I’m only getting on because I just want to be home,” I clarified.
“Fair enough,” he grunted.
I slid on behind him and laid my hands on my thighs. He reached behind, grabbed my wrist, and pulled my hand on his waist. “Hold the hell on, Mitz.”
I rolled my eyes but placed my other hand on his waist.
He cranked up the bike, knocked up the kickstand, and peeled out of the hospital parking lot.
Ten minutes later, we turned and roared up my dirt driveway.
As soon as the bike stopped, I slipped off and unbuckled the helmet. I wasn’t anywhere near being able to think about the fact that it had felt nice to be on the back of Monk’s bike. I had been on the back of Barracuda’s bike before, and a few random times Rebel had given me a ride home, but none of those times had been like riding with Monk.
I thrust the helmet into his hands. “Thanks for the ride. See you around.” I jogged to the steps and skipped up them. After I scooped up the key from under the front mat, I shoved it into the lock and pushed open the door. It took everything in me to act like I wasn’t sore and achy from my little stint in the hospital.
A quick glance over my shoulder proved Monk was still on his bike, just watching me. I slammed the door and pressed my back against it. I was tired as hell. It had been a miracle I had been able to make it to the front door without stumbling.
I slid down the door and pulled my knees to my chest.
I had no idea what the hell had happened last night or what was going to happen from here on out. All I knew was I needed to sleep, and I would worry about everything else later.
My forehead dropped to my knees, and I promptly passed out.
*
