Blinking her eyes open, Ivy clutched the callused hand in hers. Her gaze searched her surroundings as her heart rate skyrocketed in alarm. Light filtered in through the window, alerting her that the dreadful night had passed. She seemed to be in a hospital.
“Whoa, Little girl. Don’t panic. You’re okay now,” an equally rough voice matched the hand she held as if it were her lifeline.
A name burst from her lips without conscious thought. “Steele!”
“That’s me—I’m Steele. Do you remember what your name is?”
“Sir, if you’ll move back from the patient, I need to assess her. Her heart rate just alerted me.” The firm, no-nonsense voice made them look at the arriving nurse.
“No,” Ivy refused, hating the shakiness she heard in her voice.
The nurse stared at her patient lying on the white sheets. “No?”
“I can’t let go. He saved me,” Ivy explained.
“I see.” The nurse looked quickly at the machinery, probably noting that all indicators had settled once again into the safe zones. “I think I can check everything from this side.”
Focusing on her patient, her demeanor softened. “I’m Annie. You’re at Shadowridge Hospital. Can you tell me what your name is?”
“Ivy? My head’s all messed up. I know he’s Steele. He saved me,” Ivy answered, pressing a hand to her throbbing head. “It hurts. Could I have some medicine?”
“I bet it does. You have an enormous bruise on your temple.” The nurse checked her blood pressure and listened to her heart. “Everything sounds good. I’d like to get you up to walk. They cleaned you up the best they could in the emergency department, but I think you’d feel a million times better if you took a shower.”
She nodded eagerly and then held her head. The motion made her head hurt worse and her stomach did flip-flops. “Maybe not.”
“I’ll get you some help and a shower chair. But before everything, let’s get you some painkillers that might take the edge off,” she suggested.
Ivy would have agreed to anything if it helped with the throbbing, but she wasn’t going to nod ever again. “Thank you.”
When the nurse bustled out of the room, Ivy turned her head slowly to look at Steele. “You saved me,” she repeated.
“You saved yourself. That was smart to make noise so I could find you.”
“You’re just saying that to make me feel better. It won’t work. There was nothing I could do,” she admitted with tears instantly coursing down her face as the helplessness she’d felt overwhelmed her.
Without a word, Steele stood to scoop her up in his arms. Mindful of all the wires and tubing attached to her, he settled onto the bed with Ivy on his lap. She could feel the rough fabric of his jeans under her bare bottom where the gown’s edges had parted. He rocked her slightly and placed a slightly damp teddy bear into her arms.
“The bear’s going to need a better bath, too,” he commented, as if her tears didn’t bother him at all. “I tried to clean him up with paper towels at the sink.”
Wrapped in his brawny arms, Ivy didn’t feel at all vulnerable. Who would mess with this man? She laid her aching head on his chest and never wanted to move.
“Can I stay with you for a while? You know, when I get out of here?” When he stopped rocking, she added quickly, “Just for a while. I won’t be any trouble.”
“Do you think they’re coming back?” he questioned.
“They told me I was working for them now.”
“How?”
“I work at a bank. They wanted me to help them into the bank after hours. I couldn’t do it.”
He was silent for what seemed like forever. Finally, he said, “I don’t like this, Little girl. They came back to check the dumpster after the bar closed and everyone cleared out. Talon said they searched the dumpster for a while and made a gigantic mess, tossing things out as they looked for you.”
“They weren’t going to let me get crunched?”
“It appears that they wanted to scare the crap out of you,” Steele suggested.
“They did that.”
“They endangered you and tortured you. That doesn’t happen in Shadowridge. Talon called the cops, but they didn’t get there until after the three fled. The cameras in the back of The Hangout might help identify them.”
Suddenly, her mind went foggy. She couldn’t process anything else. “Steele, I’m having trouble thinking.”
“Close your eyes, Ivy. I’ll protect you.”
“Sir, you’re not supposed to be on the bed,” the nurse blustered as she returned with two tablets.
“She’s scared. I’m here.”
The nurse scanned his face and body, taking in the leather cut with the Shadowridge Guardians MC’s logo, his tattoos, and take-no-prisoners expression. “You’d be a good person to have on my side if I were in trouble.”
“He saved me,” Ivy mumbled to the nurse for the third time.
“Here, Ivy. Can you take these for me?” The nurse helped her get them into her mouth and drink some ice water to wash them down.
“I’m glad… Steele was there to help you,” Annie commented, reading his name from his cut.
“Save… Not help,” Ivy corrected her stubbornly as she closed her eyes to block out the light.
“Got it. Saved,” the nurse agreed quietly before returning to her usual brisk tone. “Now, we’ll let that medicine take the edge off. With a head injury, the doctor won’t give you anything narcotic. I’ll get an aide to help you get clean and rustle up a shower chair.”
When the room fell quiet again, Ivy whispered, “Is she gone?”
“Just us two chickens here, Little girl.”
“You’ve never been chicken,” she answered firmly.
“I don’t know. I think I lost a year off my life when I cut open that sack to find you.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Never be sorry for the evil that others do, Ivy.” His tone was firm and brooked no argument.
She patted his thick bicep to both reassure herself and acknowledge the truth of his statement. Ivy could feel his heart beat under her cheek. Time passed as she lay protected in his arms. Ivy was almost asleep when someone new entered the room.
“Ms. Jenkins, I’m Dr. Edwards.”
Ivy peeked up at the man in the white coat and knew instantly he’d seen just about everything. The sight of the huge biker holding her in his arms didn’t faze him. “Hi.”
“I’d like to go over the results of the tests we ran when you came into the emergency department last night. Is it okay to speak freely in front of your companion?”
“Yes. This is Steele. He saved me,” Ivy informed him.
“I see. A good man to know,” Dr. Edwards acknowledged before referring to the electronic pad in front of him.
“All the tests point to a serious concussion, Ms. Jenkins.”
“Call me Ivy,” she requested, closing her eyes to block out the light as she attempted to pull her thoughts together to listen closely.
“You’re going to have to give her all this in writing, Doc. She’s a bit scrambled,” Steele recommended.
“Definitely. I’ll send her home with thorough directions,” the physician agreed before continuing. “All your symptoms should resolve over time, but I can’t tell you what that timetable will be. Your brain is going to heal itself, but on its own schedule. Are you safe at home?”
“She’s coming to stay with me,” Steele answered for Ivy.
“Perfect. I’d like to do an exam to make sure you’re okay to go home. If I don’t see any extreme reactions, I’ll get you out of here today. You’ll rest better away from the hospital.”
Ivy nodded again and made herself sick. “I’ve got to stop doing that,” she mumbled.
“Does moving your head make you nauseous?” the doctor asked, making a note.
“Badly.”
“Unfortunately, that’s a normal reaction,” he explained before looking at Steele. “Could you set her on the edge of the bed?”
When Steele followed his instructions, Ivy squeezed the bear to her chest and grabbed a handful of his vest before he could move away. Steele shrugged out of his vest and laid it on the bed. “I won’t leave without this.”
Pulling it onto her lap, Ivy felt the heat from his body covering her bare thighs. With it in place, she followed the doctor’s directions to touch his fingers and her nose in a series of tasks. When he asked her to stand, Ivy carefully placed her bear and the cut on the far side of the bed, away from Steele’s grasp. Ivy didn’t need to worry. He was right at her side, ready to catch her as she wobbled.
“Okay. You can sit back down. If you can have someone with you for the next forty-eight hours, even when you sleep, I’ll okay your release from the hospital. No work for a week and then part-time for the week after that. You need to rest and relax. Is that doable?” the doctor asked, carefully watching Ivy and Steele.
“Got it, Doc. She’ll be with me.”
“I want to see you in two weeks—earlier, if you have any additional symptoms,” he warned.
“I’ll make sure she gets in to see you,” Steele confirmed.
“It will take several hours to get everything organized for your release. Order breakfast and lunch. Rest while you’re waiting,” the physician recommended. “I know the police have been wanting to talk to you. I’ll lift the ban on them interviewing you. Hopefully, they’ll find whoever put you in this situation.”
When the doctor left to update her chart and sign the release forms, Ivy tugged his vest over her lap to trace the large patch on the back. “You don’t have to stay with me,” she told him, looking at the frayed material. “I’ll be fine.”
Reluctantly, she lifted the heavy material to return it to him. “Thanks for saving me.”
“I’m sorry you needed saving, Little girl.” He shrugged into his cut before surprising her as he lifted her from her perch on the edge of the bed and sat down in the comfy recliner nearby with her in his lap. “Go to sleep. I’m not going anywhere.”
Tangling her hand back into the material, she clung to the heavy vest. Exhausted, Ivy rested her head on his broad chest and tumbled into oblivion. Reassured by his closeness, the chatter in her brain quieted.