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“I’m so sorry,” he choked out.
She stirred in her sleep.
“Ryan,” she murmured. Then tears slid from beneath her lids once more.
Ryan finally lost the battle to stay upright. He sagged and Adam and Ethan scrambled to catch him. They hauled him over to the bed and with the help of the nurse settled him in. She then proceeded to lug in the IV poles and reattach the lines.
She fussed over him for a good hour before finally leaving them alone.
“Promise me, you’ll wake me when she does,” Ryan said as he stared at Adam in exhaustion.
“I will,” Adam replied. “Now get some rest. You aren’t any good to her in your present condition. ”
Ryan nodded and closed his eyes. He was asleep before his head fully reclined against the pillow.
Adam turned and sank down onto the sofa while Ethan took the chair next to it.
“We came close to losing them,” he said quietly.
Ethan nodded. “Too close. ”
“Something has to be done about the bastard. ”
Again Ethan nodded.
Adam curled his fingers into fists then flexed them outward again. He repeated the action over and over. “I’ll kill the son of a bitch myself before I let him close to my family again. ”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Holly slowly opened her eyes and blinked a few times to clear the cobwebs. For a moment, she had no recollection of where she was or why she was in such an unfamiliar place. And when she did remember, pain the like she’d never felt crawled through her system.
Ryan.
She closed her eyes and tried to remember all that had transpired, but all she could conjure was the memory of Ryan falling, of her hand coming away from his chest covered in blood.
Hot tears filled her eyes and escaped from her lids. She felt the slow trickle as they trekked down her cheeks. A warm hand cupped her face and gently wiped at the moisture.
She opened her eyes to see Adam standing over her, a concerned look on his face. She blinked again to bring him into focus. She slowly became aware of the rest of her surroundings. She was in a hospital room. Her gaze darted to her other side where she saw Ethan slumped in a chair asleep.
Just the fact that Ryan was so conspicuously absent sent another slow crawl of agony through her heart. A sob welled in her throat—one that she tried to call back—it threatened to choke her with its intensity. She was finally forced to let it out.
It sounded harsh and ugly, even to her own ears. And once released, more surged forth until every breath brought another cry.
“Holly, listen to me, baby. You have to listen to me. Ryan is okay. He’s not dead. He’s here. ”
Adam cupped her chin, forcing her to look at him, piercing her with his green eyes.
“Do you understand what I’m saying?” he demanded.
Then she heard someone in the background.
“Let me up, damn it!”
“Ryan?” she whispered. It couldn’t be. She’d seen him fall. She’d heard the shot. Felt his blood.
She struggled to sit up and nearly blacked out as pain lanced through her chest. Adam swore above her and held her down with his hand.
“Easy, baby. Don’t hurt yourself. ”
Behind Adam, Ryan came into view, his face haggard, eyes bloodshot, his upper half wrapped in bandages. He blurred before her as her eyes swam with tears. She’d never seen such a beautiful sight in her life.
“Christ, Ryan, you shouldn’t be up,” Adam protested.
Ryan pushed Adam aside, and in the next moment, Holly felt herself enveloped by Ryan’s body. She pressed her cheek into his chest, the bulk of bandages shoving into her face. She didn’t care. Didn’t care how much it hurt for her to be in such an awkward position.
He pressed his lips to her forehead. “Thank God you’re all right,” he whispered.
He pulled away and Holly grabbed at his hand with hers. “Don’t go. ”
“I hate to break this up,” Adam began. “But both of you are in a lot of pain and neither of you should be doing anything but resting. Which means get your ass back in bed, Ryan. I want you both well so we can go home. ”
Holly heard the worry in his voice. She also saw the pain in Ryan’s eyes. Her own pain was fast taking over all else. But she had to say it first.
She reached out her hand to touch Ryan’s face. “I love you. I should have told you before. ”
Ryan caught her hand and pressed his lips into her palm. “I love you, too. ”
Adam wrapped an arm around Ryan and pulled him away. Ryan slumped against his brother. Holly looked up to where Ethan now stood beside her.
“Is he okay?” she asked in a low voice.
“He’s doing better than you are,” Ethan said dryly. He paused for a moment before touching her hair with his hand. “You scared us, doll. ”
She didn’t respond. How could she say that they couldn’t have been any more scared than she was? She’d never been so terrified in her entire life. She hadn’t wanted to die with so much regret. Things had become so clear in those horrible minutes in the snow when she was sure she would never see Adam, Ethan or Ryan again.
“I love you,” she said, allowing all the emotion to escape her in those three little words.
Ethan bent to press his forehead to hers. “I love you, too, doll. So much. I never want to come that close to losing you again. ”
She closed her eyes as he kissed her softly on the lips.
“I hurt,” she said in a low voice.
Ethan immediately stood upright. “I’ll call the nurse. ”
She smiled, wincing at the effort it took. She felt Adam’s hand smooth up her arm and over her shoulder. He tenderly pushed back the tendrils of her hair over her ear.
“Get some rest, baby. We’re all right here. We aren’t going anywhere. ”
Holly heard the nurse come in, felt her fiddle with the IV, and seconds later, Holly felt welcome oblivion seep into her system.
“L-love you,” she slurred, as Adam’s face weaved back and forth in her shaky vision.
“I love you, too, baby. Rest now. ”
* * *
