Page 127 of The Billionaire's Virgin

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Reed

“Is it normal that she hasn’t woken up yet?” I asked the nurse who had just walked in.

“Yes, sir,” Nurse Arlene replied. “Her body needs time to heal. But don’t worry, we’re monitoring her closely.”

I sighed. I knew all the details about her surgery. The doctors had assured me it had gone well. She had lost a lot of blood, but the bullet had missed all major organs, so it hadn’t been fatal. She had needed two transfusions, but she had come out of surgery in much better shape. Not that it looked that way to me. Taylor was hooked up to wires and machines. There was a tube coming out of her mouth that had made Jenna cry when she had first seen it.

I just sat by Taylor’s bedside, holding her hand and feeling helpless… again. In the end, I hadn’t been the one to save my daughter. The police hadn’t managed it either. Taylor was the one. She was the real hero. She had risked everything to make sure that no harm would come to Jenna and she had succeeded. There was not a scratch on Jenna.

The door opened, and I looked up. It was Jennifer.

“Hi,” she said.

“Where’s Jenna?”

“Don’t worry,” Jennifer said quickly. “I left her with Megan.”

“Who?” I asked, frowning.

“Taylor’s friend and roommate, remember?” she reminded me. “She’s been here all day. She met her for the first time yesterday.”

“Oh… right.” I nodded.

“You remember?”

“Of course I remember,” I said. “I just… I’m not—”

“I know,” Jennifer said, putting an arm on my shoulder. “It’s okay.”

“You sure that Jenna’s okay?”

“She’s right outside,” Jennifer said. “And she’s surrounded by doctors and nurses.”

“Sorry… I’m just—”

“Paranoid.” Jennifer nodded. “No one blames you for that. Megan’s good at distracting her though. They seem to be getting along well.”

“That’s good.”

“Have you eaten anything?”

“I’m not hungry.”

“That’s what you said this morning and last night and last afternoon,” Jennifer pointed out. “You need to eat something, Reed. Starving yourself is not going to help Taylor.”

I squeezed Taylor’s hand, wondering if she could hear me… or feel me at least. I wanted her to know that I wasn’t going to leave her side. I wanted her to know that she had someone waiting for her. I wanted to give her some motivation for waking up.

“Reed?”

“What?” I asked distractedly.

“Why don’t you go and take a little break.”

“A break?” I asked frowning.

“Just a short walk or something,” Jennifer suggested. “Get some air; you’ve been in this room since they brought Taylor out from surgery.”