Page 65 of Dark Island: Rescue
Would he move on to one of the other ladies?
Probably. Tony wasn't the type of man who could beon his own for long. He needed a woman in his life, or he felt incomplete.
"I love you." Tony turned to face her and leaned to kiss her forehead, then her lips, gentle and sweet. "Everything is going to be okay. You'll see."
It wouldn't be, but she couldn't tell him that.
Nothing about this was okay.
23
EDGAR
The first sign that Angelica was waking up was the change in her breathing pattern. Edgar had been sitting beside the hospital bed for hours, watching her chest rise and fall with regularity, but now the rhythm was shifting, becoming faster.
Her eyelids fluttered.
Edgar leaned forward, his heart hammering against his ribs. He'd rehearsed the conversation he needed to have with Angelica a hundred times in his head during the long hours he'd been sitting beside her, but now that the moment was here, every practiced word had fled his mind.
"Angel?" He touched her hand. "Can you hear me?"
Her eyes opened—those enormous blue eyes that had captivated him from the first moment he'd seen her across the café at the keep. That and her laughter.
Right now, they were unfocused, confused, trying to make sense of unfamiliar surroundings.
"Edgar?" Her voice was hoarse. "Where am I? What happened?"
"You're in a clinic." He squeezed her hand. "I brought you here. How do you feel?"
"Like I got hit by a truck." She tried to sit up, winced, and fell back against the pillows. "Why does everything hurt? And why am I wearing a hospital gown?" Her eyes widened in horror. "Did I get into an accident? Oh my God, is my car okay?"
Only Angelica would worry about her seven-year-old BMW before her own health.
"Your car is fine. You didn't have an accident." Edgar took a deep breath. "You had a fever. A high one. I brought you here because I was worried."
"A fever?" She frowned, confusion wrinkling her forehead. "I don't get sick. Like, ever. My immune system is ridiculous. I haven't had so much as a cold in years."
"I know." This was it. The moment when he had to tell her the truth and hope she didn't hate him for keeping it from her for so long. "There's a lot I need to tell you, but first, the doctor should see you. You've been out for over twenty-four hours."
He was postponing the inevitable, but it was true that Julian should see her first, check her vitals, and whatever else he needed to do. Measure her, perhaps. Some Dormants gained height during their transition, but not enough time had passed for Angelica to grow in any significant way.
Her eyes narrowed. "Where is this clinic? And why did you bring me here and not to an emergency room?"
She was too smart for her own good.
"My cousin, who is a doctor, works here." That wasn't a lie. Julian was his many times removed cousin.
There was a knock on the door, and a moment later Julian entered as if summoned by Edgar's thoughts of him. It was more likely that he'd seen that Angelica was awake through the camera mounted near the ceiling, or by the change in her vitals, which he was monitoring from his office.
"Good morning, Angelica. How are you feeling?"
"Like I was hit by a bus, but Edgar says that he brought me here because I had a fever. I never get sick, doc. This is beyond weird."
Julian gave Edgar a questioning look. "You still haven't told her anything?"
Edgar grimaced. "I was about to, but I thought you should examine her first. You know, see that everything is working fine and check whether she got taller."
"Taller?" Angelica screeched. "What the hell are you talking about? Edgar, you are scaring me."
