Page 45 of Hunted

His eyes widen in surprise before he practically pushes Reece from his chair and takes a seat on the side of the bed and gently leans down and hugs me. When his mouth is near my ear, he whispers, “You play dirty, Tink. But I can never say no to you.”

I hug him tightly, silently thanking him for always being my light in the darkness. When he pulls back, he gestures to behind where he was standing. “What do you think?”

Along the side wall are dozens of potted plants, many with bright flowers blooming out of them. “They’re so pretty! Where’d they come from?”

“I got them for you, I thought it would help ease you out of jungle life and back into civilization.”

I thank him with a quick kiss before looking back at the plants. I’d never given any thought to acclimatizing. Especially since I never planned to leave the island. But I guess the fact that drinking that ice water was difficult and uncomfortable says there might be more unexpected things that will be hard at first.

What if I cross a street without looking and get hit by a car?

“What? Where did that thought come from?” Bower asks.

“Did I say that out loud?” I ask in confusion, and he nods.

“Oh, I was just wondering what other things, like the ice water, will be difficult. What if I do something wrong?”

My heart starts beating fast in fear, I can hear the beeping of the monitor pick up speed as I try to hold back my tears.

“Well, I guess it’s a good thing you have us, isn’t it?”

I lick my lips nervously as I watch him for any sign of worry. But he just holds my hand in his and waits patiently for me to respond.

Before I can, Kingsley enters carrying a large pitcher of water. He pours me a cup and hands it to me.

“Thank you.” I take a small sip, and when I don’t feel that harsh coolness, I take another. It definitely tastes better than what I've been drinking.

“Take it easy, or you’ll be sick,” he warns, setting the jug down and pulling up another chair to sit beside Weston.

“How are you feeling? Are you in any pain?” he asks, and I take a moment to try and assess myself.

“My side is sore. My head is a little fuzzy and I feel really tired.”

He nods his head. “That’s all to be expected as the drugs are coming out of your system. But if the pain starts to hurt too much, we will have the doctor give you some more meds.”

“Don’t try to be brave about it,” Weston tells me. “If it hurts, you tell us straight away. We don’t want you in pain.”

“Okay, I promise I'll tell you." Glancing around I notice the open door to the… “Is that a bathroom?” I ask in excitement.

“It sure is,” Bower says with a smile. “But you can’t use it for another day.”

“What do you mean? Am I supposed to pee the bed or something?” I ask in confusion.

“You have a catheter in,” Reece states.

“A what?” I ask, looking overat him.

“It’s a small tube they stick up inside you to your bladder, so you don’t need to get out of bed. It’ll come out tomorrow afternoon. It’s after midnight, so technically, that’s today.”

With wide eyes, I turn to look between my legs, slowly lifting the sheet and noticing the small tube running down the bed and off to the side. I lean towards Weston and Kingsley and see a large bag on the floor, full of a yellow liquid.

“Oh my God! Is that my urine?!”

I drop the sheet and cover my face with my hands in embarrassment. “Sweetheart, don’t be embarrassed. It’s better than wetting the bed, don’t you think?”

I pull my hands down my face to look at him. He seems genuine in his explanation, so I just nod, deciding to change the subject.

“So, when can I get out of here?”