Page 8 of Holly's Valentine Vow

Smirking, I ask, “What’s off script?”

“Oh, you know, developing blood clots, an infection, or even a hematoma at the surgical sites,” she says, moving to the next bandaged area.

“I’ll do my best,” I promise. The last thing I want is to have one of those vac things attached to me sucking my soul from my body.

“That’s all we can ask for,” Tonya replies.

It takes another thirty minutes for her to clean each of the wounds and by the time she’s done, she’s upped my pain meds slightly after consulting with the doctor, which has me drowsy as fuck.

“Get some rest, Rebel,” Tonya says as she throws away the used medical supplies. “Holly, they’re bringing in a recliner that’ll be far more comfortable for you to sleep in. It’s not our normal procedure, but the doctors have made it clear that you’re okay to stay with him since he’s so heavily medicated. That way, if you notice something’s off, you can come and get one of us. Not that we won’t be watching the monitors from the desk, but I’m a firm believer that sometimes, family will see something wrong before the machines alert us. Right now, we only have one other patient up here, but that can change on a dime.”

“I’ll make sure he rests,” Holly promises, giving me her best motherly look that brokers no argument. My mind secretly likes this role play thing we’ve got going on but with the amount of pain I’m in, we’ll have to pick up those roles when I get home and can enjoy the moment.

“And of course, you’re welcome to use his bathroom since he’s got a catheter right now.” My nose wrinkles when she says that so nonchalantly. Can’t a man keep his pride intact without it being announced that I have a tube in my dick?

“Fuck,” I drawl out. At least that explains why my dick hurts so fucking bad! I still would’ve liked it if it hadn’t been revealed so casually to the woman I plan on spending the rest of my life with. Looks like me and nurse Tonya need to have a discussion about secrecy. Not that Holly wouldn’t have figured it out at some point, but sheesh, I’d rather it have been a discovery than for my dick to be the center of attention. At least like this, anyway. I mean, if we were at home in bed, I’d want him to be the main attraction. But right here and now? Not so much.

Holly snickers then says, “He’s probably a fall risk right now anyhow with two legs encased in bandages.”

That raises one question and I ask, “Why don’t I have casts?”

Tonya’s face turns serious as she replies, “It’s so we can keep an eye out for any swelling that might indicate blood clots are starting to form. The surgeons are putting you on heparin to hopefully avoid that happening, but we still use visual cues since your pain levels are so high.” At my quizzical look, she says, “When blood clots form, they’re typically very painful. Because you have so many fractures that had to be surgically repaired, as well as major road rash, you’re already in pain, which would make it next to impossible for you to differentiate whether or not it changes.”

“Okay, makes sense. Sweetheart, give me a kiss before I completely conk out.”

I can hear their laughter as the room begins to fade and I briefly wonder what they’re giving me for pain, because it’s fucking awesome.

I wake up and see Holly sleeping in the recliner. She looks so uncomfortable; I softly call out her name.

“Are you okay?” she asks, practically falling as she gets tangled up in the blanket they brought her.

“Babe, crawl in with me,” I say, patting the side of the bed where the injuries aren’t as bad. Fuck that, Ineedher next to me right now. She soothes something deep inside and if I have to, I’ll pull the wounded patient card.

“Rebel, I can’t, what if I hurt you worse?” she asks, her hands placed securely on her hips.

“You can’t hurt me any more than I’m already hurting, sweetheart,” I state. “Now, get in here so you get some real rest. Otherwise, I’ll insist you go home.”

She gives me an exasperated look before lowering the side bar, crawling in then pulling it back up. She then curls on her side so she’s able to look at me. “Is this okay?” she whispers, her hand on my chest.

“Perfect,” I murmur. “Now sleep, Holly.”

Chapter Five

Samuel

“God,I hate having to come here,” I grumble to myself as I pull into the driveway of my former home that I shared with my wretched ex-wife.

While I’m still on the deed for both the land and the house built on it and haveeveryright to be here, the last thing I want to do is run into Myra. The thought of such an encounter makes my skin crawl. She’s definitelynotthe woman I met and fell in love with all those years ago, and it breaks my heart to see how far she’s fallen. Because she managed to ruin our son, God rest his soul. Although… finding out how he was treating Holly and by proxy, my sweet granddaughters, has me realizing he wasn’t the man I thought I raised. He had no honor in his soul and his heart was blacker than tar.

I blow out a sigh of relief when I don’t see her car parked in the driveway. I just have the last of my tools in the garage to grab, then I never have to return since we’re going to be selling the house then splitting the proceeds. At least that’ll help me startmy new life. I honestly didn’t think I’d find myself single at my age, but better that than the alternative of being married to a vicious, mean-spirited shrew.

I hit the garage door opener and am momentarily stunned when I see a vehicle, covered by a tarp, sitting inside.

Mumbling to myself, I say, “That’s strange, we’ve never used a tarp before.”

Shaking my head, I back in and park my truck, shut it off, then head into the garage to grab my tools and several totes. I’m not sure what to do with the garage door opener since I won’t be needing it again after today, then figure that I’ll just give it to the realtor for the new owners.

It doesn’t take me long to get my stuff sorted and loaded into the truck so once I’m done, I decide to appease my curiosity and see what’s resting under the tarp. When I lift it, I see the car that Myra normally drives, only it’s got some major front-end damage. It looks almost as if she had a run in with a wild animal, but I haven’t seen any strays in the area recently.

---