Page 32

Chapter8

Thea

“Miss Howard, I need to get your vitals.”

Thea squirmed and immediately froze at the painful tug in her muscles. She squinted against the bright sunlight shining in the hospital room. Looking up at the young nurse, she blinked a few times.

“Good morning!” The nurse’s smile and high cheekbones accentuated her heart-shaped face. “I’m Shayna. I’ll be your nurse today.”

Every inch of Thea’s body radiated pain, and her cheek throbbed. A small grunt escaped as she tried to sit up.

Brett stood and made his way to her bedside. So, he hadn’t been a dream.

“Sorry to disturb you, but I need to get some numbers. I think you’ll be taking a stroll around the hallways today. On crutches, that is. Then the doctor might release you. You’ll have some follow-up appointments, but at least you’ll be out of here.”

Heat crept up Thea’s neck as she glanced between the pretty nurse and Brett. As if she needed a reminder that she looked like a train wreck, the nurse had to be a gorgeous runway model, and the one who got away had to be front and center first thing in the morning.

“Do you need anything?” Brett asked.

“Um, I don’t know,” Thea said, trying to wipe her eyes without upsetting the bruise on her cheek.

“Isn’t that the sweetest?” the nurse said. “I bet you’re getting the husband of the year award.”

“I wish,” Brett said.

“So, y’all are not married? Could’ve fooled me. How long have y’all been together?”

“I’ve loved her since we were seventeen,” he said without missing a beat.

The heat was spreading into her face now. “What?”

“That’s the sweetest!” The nurse’s pitch hit an all-time high as she clutched the front of her scrubs.

“But we’re not together.” Thea’s chest constricted as she said the words.

The smile on Brett’s face died. Why had she corrected the nurse? Brett used to be the romantic type. He was the kind who promised her the world in sweet words, but had he meant them?

No. He liked to say extravagant things to get a reaction out of people. He hadn’t loved her since they were seventeen. If that happened to be the truth, what she’d done to him was truly unforgivable.

Thea had done little dating since leaving Blackwater, but it hadn’t taken long to figure out that sweet words were a dime a dozen and men like that often had empty promises. The disappointments hadn’t crushed her, but she’d learned to guard her heart. They’d say anything to get what they wanted. Too bad she hadn’t learned that lesson before Brett came along. She might not have fallen so hard.

But she hadn’t gotten the smarmy vibe from Brett. Ever. In fact, the outrageous things he said were mostly true, or at least he believed them to be true. He felt things deeper than any man she’d ever met.

“Oh no! I’m so sorry. I just assumed.”

“It’s fine,” Brett said. “Thea moved away a long time ago, and this is the first time we’ve seen each other in almost five years.”

The nurse perked up. “That’s exciting.” She winked at Brett. “You’ll have to let me know if the old flame rekindles.”

Thea wouldn’t be rekindling any old flames. The magnitude of the last few days was settling in. She had a collapsed lung. It was one of the major, essential organs, and her worries over that were never far from her mind.

She also had a concussion that was making her emotional. To top it all off, she didn’t have health insurance. She hadn’t even talked to her boss. When would she be able to get back to Alabama? She’d expected to be gone a few days at the most, but how in the world was she supposed to get back to the other side of the country when the doctor said flying was out of the question due to the collapsed lung?

“Will do.” He turned to Thea with a soft smile. “How are you feeling?”

Her throat constricted as she tried to speak. Why had she opened her big mouth and pointed out that they weren’t together? She cleared her throat and tried again. “I’m okay.”

Okay was an overstatement. Everything hurt from her head to her toes.