Beauty Awakened

Now she was lying in a hospital bed, hooked to an IV and wearing a paper-thin gown.

“Your heartbeat has been regulated,” he informed her.

Don’t care. “Laila,” she said, trying to sit up.

Dr. Carter kindly pushed her back down. “You knocked your skull pretty hard when you landed. In fact, you have a concussion, and we’re going to keep you for the rest of the day and night.”

“Laila,” she repeated, her voice a mere croak.

His lips curved into a slow smile. “It’s the most amazing thing. Once we got her calmed down, we noticed her vitals were actually stronger than they’d been in weeks. We drew some blood, and the results astonished us. Her liver and kidneys are finally working properly, and her heartbeat is steady.”

“She … she …”

“Just might live,” he confirmed.

Just like that, undiluted joy burst through Nicola, as potent as any drug. Joy Koldo had sown into her. Laila was on the mend! Koldo had told the truth. He had—

Saved her twin for a little while, Nicola recalled. Only a little while. Ribbons of disappointment threaded through the joy. He’d said he could buy her sister time, nothing more.

Before, that had seemed so promising. Now? She wanted more.

Time. Time. The word echoed through her mind in tune with the ticking of a clock. How much time did her sister have? Koldo had said she wouldn’t live more than a few weeks, and when Nicola peeled back the top layer of those words and peeked inside, she realized Laila could drift away much sooner. In a matter of days.

Tomorrow, even.

An hour from now.

“I want to see her,” she rushed out.

Dr. Carter’s smile widened as he turned to the side and waved his arm toward the patient in the bed beside hers. “You can.”

Her gaze landed on the beautiful blonde buried under a mound of covers, and her joy returned full force. Tears flooded her eyes. Her beloved Laila was stretched out on her side, facing her, the color in her cheeks healthy for the first time in months. Her eyes were closed, her breathing even. Her chest rose and fell on its own, with no help from a machine. Her lips were curved in a grin. A soft, happy grin.

Nicola had worried for nothing, she realized. In fact, she had actually harmed herself. Had she remained calm and trusted Koldo, she could have enjoyed hearing the news of her sister’s recovery while on her feet.

She could have whooped and laughed and watched as Laila strengthened. I’ll never make that mistake again.

“It’s a miracle,” Dr. Carter said. “If she continues to recover at this rate, she should be able to go home in a few days.”

“Really?”

“Really. Right now she’s resting, and I suggest you do the same. We’ll be checking on you every few hours.” He reached out, squeezed her hand. “If you need anything, let us know.”

“I will. And thank you.”

He nodded and strode from the room.

Nicola stared over at her sister, marveling. How many nights had she and Laila lain awake in the same bed, snuggled up to each other, whispering and sharing secrets? Countless. And they would have that again.

Laila released a soft sigh and—

Oh, wow, wow, wow.

Nicola rubbed at her eyes, but … she could still see an ugly little monkey with tentacles instead of arms perched on the side of Laila’s bed. The creature was glaring at Nicola with hatred in his eyes as he stroked Laila’s arm, as though trying to capture her attention.

A hallucination? Surely. She was concussed, after all. But … but … it looked so real. Just like the monsters she’d seen as a child.

Koldo materialized at the side of Nicola’s bed, consuming her attention and overwhelming her thoughts. Any other time, surprise would have jacked up her heartbeat. Because really, she didn’t think she would ever get used to watching a man appear from thin air. But there were currently very strong drugs in her system, preventing any kind of adverse reaction.

“Do you see that?” she demanded.

“What?” he replied, looking around.

The monkey was gone, she realized. “Never mind.”

He peered down at her and frowned. “I was granted permission to return, to leave the thorn in my side for another hour, and check on you. Apparently, I’m a beast to be around. And I find you injured?” There was a thread of anger in his tone. “Why are you injured?”

“I hit my head when I passed out,” she admitted.

“And why did you pass out?” He leaned over and traced calloused fingertips across her forehead, exactly where she’d hit it during her fainting spell. A sharp lance of pain caused her to wince, and he drew back, a gleam of shame in his eyes.

A part of her mourned the loss of him, pain or not. He’d just given her a nonmedical-related touch, and it was the first she had received since Laila’s admission here. She’d liked it. A lot.

He was so warm. So vibrant.

So … necessary.

“Well, it’s kind of a funny story.” Suddenly nervous, she twisted the sheet on her bed—and maybe the drugs weren’t so strong, after all, because her heart skipped a beat. “You see, you had just given my sister that drop of liquid and disappeared, and she had just started screaming—”

“As I told you she would do.”

“Yes, but I wasn’t exactly prepared and …”

Understanding dawned, lightening those golden eyes to a bright, otherworldly amber. “You worried.”

“Well, yeah. Did I mention Laila was screaming?”

His lips pursed. With irritation? she wondered. Yeah. Definitely with irritation. He looked ready to murder her. It probably wouldn’t help his mood if she told him that he suddenly reminded her of a male model flashing Blue Steel. Or Magnum. And that he was really, really, really good-looking. Like, superbeautiful.

I have to watch less TV on the nights I can’t sleep.

“We’re not off to a good start,” he said.

“I’m sorry.”

The apology earned her a short, curt “Do better.”

“I will.”