Page 87 of Sweet Spot
“Keira,” I call out.
Curtains are pulled, giving privacy to patients. There are a handful of nurses and doctors who have stopped what they were doing to stare at me, so I stop in front of them, asking, “Keira Brooks?”
My heart is pounding so hard I might need to lie down in one of these beds. But only after I find her.
A big dude in a security uniform approaches before anyone answers. “Sir. I’m gonna have to ask you to leave.”
“Keira,” I shout a little louder, desperation and panic clear in my tone.
This time, she responds. “Lincoln?”
I run toward her voice and find a doctor giving me a disapproving look as he holds the curtain open. Keira’s in the bed behind him, and Coach Potter in the chair beside her. I bypass the doctor and his dirty looks, ignore fucking Potter’s existence altogether, and go to her side.
“Oh my God.” I lean down and lightly run my hand across the top of her head, breathing her in.
“Sir.” The security guard stands outside the curtain.
“I’m not leaving.”
“Sir, we—”
“It’s okay. He’s okay,” Keira speaks up. Her voice sounds small and weak, but the security guard reluctantly retreats.
“What happened? Are you okay?” She’s hooked up to an IV, and her face is flushed red, but otherwise, she looks okay.
“I got overheated and dehydrated. I’m fine.”
The doctor clears his throat. “Fine might be a stretch. Your potassium was dangerously low. Fortunately, everything else looks okay. We’re going to move you up to a room so we can monitor you a little longer. If everything looks stable later tonight, we can get you discharged.”
“No.” She moves to sit up, but I can tell it pains her. “I have to get back to the course before I’m disqualified.”
“Uh, actually, I just got word that there’s a weather delay. So, everyone who was slotted for this afternoon will tee off first thing in the morning.” Potter reads from his phone.
The doctor looks to Keira and speaks sternly. “You need time to recoup. We’re giving you fluids, but you were severely dehydrated.” He shakes his head. “Even for someone young and active, you aren’t going to feel one hundred percent for a few days. Don’t push too hard or you’ll end up right back here.”
“But shecouldplay tomorrow?” Potter asks. “We have a chance to win.”
“We?” I ask, not hiding my disdain.
He glares at me but doesn’t answer, so I focus my attention back to Keira.
She lets me hold her hand for the next few hours while they pump her with fluids. She dozes on and off, but it feels like every time she gets comfortable someone wakes her up to check this or that.
It’s after seven before the doctor releases her. A nurse makes her sit in a wheelchair so she can wheel Keira out to the parking lot, and Potter and I flank her on either side.
“I’ll bring the SUV around.”
She stands, and I lead her to a bench to wait while I get the car. Rain comes down in a steady pour and it doesn’t look like it’s going to break anytime soon.
“I already called a cab to take us back to the hotel,” Potter says.
Keira looks between us. Even on my worst day, I’m a hell of a better option than Potter.
“You can’t stay at the hotel. Come with me. You’ll be more comfortable at my place, and I can keep an eye on you.”
She stares at me blankly.
“Nonsense. I’m staying at the hotel too and I can keep an eye on her.”
