Page 88 of A Lot Like Love
“No, it’s my first wish. Let’s get my things and go play us some poker.”
“I thought you didn’t play anymore?” Chase asked as they walked.
Chloe linked her arm through his. They wanted to play brotherly protectors to her, then so be it. She was going to enjoy being in the company of Ryder’s two gorgeous brothers until she could be back in his arms. Or at least in the same room as him to see what he had to say about her grand statement of love.
“Desperate time, desperate measures,” she told him.
“And just like that, we’re gonna see the pro play in Vegas.”
Hell yeah. If there was ever a time to play poker to take her mind off things, it was now.
“You and Nate play?” she asked.
“A little. We used to have boys’ poker nights at home.”
“Maybe you should start them up again, and invite me.”
“What? So you can fleece us all out of every penny on the table? We’d lose all our card-game buddies pretty damn quick.”
She thought about Ryder lying upstairs on the hospital bed as they walked farther away from the building, stopping beside the rental car that she’d traveled in with Nate earlier. Here she was joking, and Ryder was up there being poked and prodded by doctors.
“If Ryder lets me back in the house, I’ll host your poker nights. Give you boys some pointers.”
Chase jumped behind the wheel and started the engine at the same time she slipped into the back seat, leaving the front for Nate since there was more room.
“Sweetheart, either you have rocks in your head or we’ve been giving you the wrong impression.” He turned in his seat to face her, his left arm resting on the staring wheel. “If you didn’t mean a hell of a lot to Ryder, we wouldn’t be looking after you like you’re our long-lost sister already, okay? Of course he’s gonna let you back in the damn house.”
Chloe looked away, staring out the window and biting the inside of her mouth to stop from smiling. Maybe today wasn’t the worst day of her life after all.
* * *
Ryder’s head was pounding so badly he was struggling to sit up, desperate to succumb to sleep. But the doctor was still reviewing his charts and about to run through a series of tests again.
“Should I feel this tired?” Ryder asked.
“Like the worst fatigue of your life?”
He nodded at the doctor, then winced. Holding Chloe in his arms, concentrating on what she was saying, and trying to sound upbeat had taken it out of him. “Yeah.”
“Mr. King, you suffered a very serious concussion. I’m not going to pretend that you weren’t incredibly lucky to make it through a fall like that without suffering a brain bleed or worse.”
Ryder grunted and carefully lowered himself back down. He’d wanted to be given the facts straight, and now he was.
“At this stage, you’re looking at making a full recovery. But you take a knock to the head again? In rodeo or anything else? You’ll likely die or suffer a serious brain injury. That’s how serious this is. The fact that you didn’t have to go straight in for surgery is nothing short of a miracle.”
Ryder let the doctor prod him and check him over, smiling his thanks at the nurse as she passed him more pain meds and a glass of water in a paper cup.
“So I can go to sleep now?” He stopped short of asking if there was a chance he wouldn’t wake up if he did.
“Get as much sleep as you can, and keep doing that for the next month,” the doctor said. “And stay away from bulls and horses. That’s my advice.”
Ryder made himself comfortable and shut his eyes, willing sleep to find him fast but seeing Chloe behind his closed lids instead of blackness.Chloe.He could think about her all night. The feel of her soft, warm body against his; the smile in her eyes when she gazed up at him; the press of her lips against his.Damn.
And then the words that had tumbled from those pillowy lips as she’d turned to leave. He opened his eyes and groaned. She’d told him she loved him and all he’d done was stare at her. The truth was he’d never been loved by a woman before, and he’d never loved a woman himself. Until Chloe. He loved Chloe so much it hurt.
Ryder was tempted to dial Nate or Chase and check that they were looking after her, only he had no idea where his phone had ended up and there was no chance he could make it to the one across the room. They were probably getting a pizza somewhere, having an early night, or maybe toasting the fact that he was still alive. Either way he’d see her in the morning, which meant he had time to pull his shit together and figure out how the hell to tell her how he felt, before it was too late.
