Page 15 of Hell & Back

She clearly was.

“Come here, baby.” Having her sit on his uninjured side made it easier for him to pull her head down to his chest and kiss the top of her head. Her fingers clutched his gown like she was never letting him go and her shoulders started to silently shake. Fuck. She was getting really worked up now.

Darren’s jaw clenched at Tuck’s tormented expression. It was clear Kylie’s tears gutted him, too. He rubbed at the ache growing in his chest. He hated feeling helpless and unable to take away her pain.

Tuck closed his eyes and whispered to the top of her head, “Fuck, I’m so sorry, baby.”

Giving Kylie the time she needed to reassure herself that Tuck was fine and was going to be okay, he pulled up a chair and took a seat. He watched the two of them together as Tuck tried to comfort her, stroking her back and cupping her cheek. He held her head to his chest, over his heart and whispered in her ear. Whatever he was saying was working because her tears were slowing. Anybody else might feel awkward or like they were intruding on a private moment, but Darren didn’t. The more he watched Tuck with Kylie, the less his own chest ached. It made him happy that between the two of them, they’d always be everything she needed.

After a few minutes,Tuck chuckled and tried to tease her. “You’re going to drown us both if you don’t stop crying. You’re soaking my sexy gown.”

Kylie snorted and sat up, swiping roughly at her cheeks. “I’m sorry. It’s these stupid hormones. Everything makes me want to cry.”

“Hey, man.” Darren finally got a chance to greet Tuck. “It’s good to see you awake.” He leaned forward and grasped his hand, giving it a quick squeeze before leaning back in his seat.

Although Tuck smiled, the lines around his mouth and his heavy-lidded gaze highlighted just how much he’d been through. Between the head injury, gunshot wounds and blood loss, Darren was impressed the man was able to carry on a conversation. “Yeah, it’s good to be awake. The doctor filled me in on my injuries. Says I have you to thank for keeping me from bleeding out until the ambulance got there.”

Darren felt his face heat up. He didn’t want his friend’s thanks. If he’d been more alert, or faster getting outside to warn him, he might have been able to keep him from getting shot in the first place. Tuck must have sensed Darren’s unease at his thanks because he turned a smile on Kylie and asked if she would go see if the nurses would let him have some morepudding and juice. She gave him a quick kiss and said she’d be back.

He waited until the door closed behind her before he asked, “Now tell me how she’s really doing. After getting kidnapped by those fuckers herself not that long ago and you getting stabbed by them, how is she holding up?”

Darren leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “When she first got the news, she scared the shit out of me. I was afraid her blood pressure was going to spike and she might end up in the hospital, too.”

“Shit.”

“I know. We were all worried. You’d lost a lot of blood and we weren’t sure if you’d been shot in the head or not yet, so obviously she was torturing herself with those images. Luckily, the doctor came out and said you hadn’t been and you’d only bounced your head off the pavement. I know I said ‘only bounced your head,’ but things could have been so much worse.” He paused while they both listed those worse things in their heads. “It wasn’t until I saw you get shot and saw all the blood you were losing that I started to get it. Then when Kylie fell apart in my arms and somewhere in the back of my mind I thought ‘Oh shit. What if hewasshot in the head and he doesn’t make it?’ that I really got it.”

“Got what?” Tuck frowned.

“How scary it would be to be left all alone to take care of Kylie. How I might not be enough to keep her safe and happy for the rest of her life by myself. It was overwhelming and I understand why you wanted me to be a part of Kylie’s life as a partner and not just a friend.”

Tuck rolled his lips in and nodded, seeing Darrendidget it now. “Fuck. I hate that she’s been so scared because of me.”

“It’s not your fault. Although we should’ve guessed those asshole Phantoms would step things up, how could we haveknown they’d take things this far so soon?” At Tuck’s continued silence, he asked, “How areyoufeeling? Honestly.”

“My head feels like someone’s banging on it with a sledge hammer and my gunshot wounds hurt like a son of a bitch.” He dropped his head back on the pillow and stared at the ceiling. “Since I’ve been awake, I keep replaying what happened in my mind. I can feel the bullets hitting me and then falling to the ground. I remember how scared I was that they might go after Kylie and I wouldn’t be able to protect her.” He swallowed hard and rubbed his eyes with his thumb and finger. “I kept thinking, goddamn it. I’m not going to get to see Kylie or my baby if I die.” He cleared his throat and Darren knew his friend was struggling with his emotions.

The sound of the door opening alerted them that Kylie was back. Tuck rubbed furiously at his eyes, not wanting her to see evidence of how scared he’d been. She looked between the two of them and sensed that maybe she’d walked in on something big. Darren saw the moment she decided not to push it and ask what they’d been talking about. She placed the pudding and juice on the rolling table with a plastic spoon and a straw, then scooted it so Tuck could reach it.

Darren had his friend’s back. “I was just asking Tuck if the doctor had said anything about when he might get to come home.”

“Oh yeah. What did he say?”

Darren reached out and pulled her down onto his lap at the same time Tuck answered, “He was telling me that if I have another good night, I might get to come home tomorrow.”

Kylie’s eyes rounded. “Really? Isn’t that kind of soon?”

Darren chuckled. “Babe, they do laparoscopic heart surgery now and I saw on TV that a guy had a kidney transplant and went home the next day.”

“That’s crazy.” She leaned back to rest her head on his shoulder, settling her hand over his where it lay on her stomach.

“Honey, the doctor wouldn’t send him home if he had any concerns. Besides, I’m sure Tuck would much rather recover at home.”

“Hell, yeah, I’d rather recover at home. And we can get you a sexy nurse’s uniform for when you give me a sponge bath. And this area,” he motioned to his lap, “needs special attention.”

Kylie laughed and shook her head. “Seriously? Even injured and in pain?”

“Honey, as long as I’m not dead, I’ll always want you.” Witnessing Kylie’s sharp inhale, he added, “Too soon?”

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