Page 89 of Loving Bad

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Taylor

Fifteen minutes later, my brother returned. He scanned my features for any sign of how I was feeling, but I kept my emotions bottled up. I wanted and needed the time alone to be able to work through them and there was no way I was going to do that in the hospital with people constantly coming in and out my room.

"There are a few people who want to see you," Connor told me as he walked closer.

I wasn't sure I was ready to see anyone, but the look my brother gave made me bite my lip.

"They've all been waiting in the waiting room anxiously to see you since we got here yesterday."

It was hard to believe I'd been out of it for so long.

"Sin is here too."

That statement cut straight through me, down to my heart, and for a moment I was short of breath. I tried to disguise my shock, but my brother never missed a thing as my eyes shot to his.

"He came back as soon as he found out you were missing," he informed me. I dropped my eyes and refused to look at my brother as I dealt with that information.

My heart began to beat faster and my palms became clammy at the thought of seeing him again. I wasn't sure if I was ready to face him.

"Did anyone get the name of the guy who brought me to the hospital?" I asked, remembering how relieved I'd been when I'd realized he was a good guy. I owed him my life.

"Yeah, his name is Jeff. He works for Sin," he revealed and my mouth dropped open in shock.

"He works for Sin?" I echoed, a little shocked at the revelation.

"Yes," Connor confirmed. But how was that possible? Sin was a college student like me. What my brother was telling me didn't fit with the Sin I knew.

"I don't understand," I said, voicing my confusion.

"That isn't my story to tell. You'll have to ask him," he said, holding up his hands. "He isn't as bad as I thought he was."

I couldn't believe the difference in my brother's attitude toward Sin.  He'd been the one to do the background check to warn me about Sin and now he was admitting that he'd been wrong?

What the hell?

I felt like I was in an alternate reality to the one I had lived in. I arched an eyebrow at my brother, but he just shrugged in response.

"Sometimes there is more to a person than what’s written on paper," he tried to explain. I honestly didn't know how to respond it that. Never in a million years would I have expected this.

"The nurses said it was okay for you to have visitors," he told me, pulling me out of my stunned thoughts. I didn't want to see anyone.

"I'm not sure I'm up for visitors yet," I murmured, feeling bad that I was trying to put it off. It wasn't that I didn't want to see them, because I did, what I wasn't looking forward to were the looks of sympathy.

"I know you've been to hell and back, but those people waiting outside to see you have been so worried about you. They care about you and they need to see that you’re okay."

I swallowed down the emotion his words pulled from me.

"Okay. Send them in," I replied, feeling the nervous knot in my stomach.

"They can't all come in at once. Matthew is dying to see you so I'll send him and Jordan in," he said. "I think you and Sin will want to talk alone."

I gave him a brief nod. I plastered a weak smile onto my face as I watched my brother disappear out of my room. Minutes later, Jordan and Matthew walked in.

"Oh my God," Jordan gasped as she rushed over to me and engulfed me in a hug. I bit down on my lip to keep myself together. The pain from the cut in my lip throbbed and helped me from feeling overwhelmed. The sight of my messed-up face was going to shock a lot of people.