“I’m surprised you didn’t break anything after being thrown from the car,” I murmured, helping him into the shower.

  He rubbed his fingers up and down my arms, making me break out in chills. “It looks worse than it really is, I promise. The doctor said that not wearing my seatbelt might actually have saved me. Instead of being crushed by the car, I flew out.”

  Since I couldn’t wash his hair because of the bandages, I took the soap and washed his body. There was nothing sexual about the way I touched him. I liked being able to help and take care of him when I knew he really needed it. “Are you ready to watch the game?”

  “Yes and no.”

  “Luke’s going to come by and watch it with us. I thought you could use the cheering up.”

  Turning me around, he took the soap from me and washed my back before circling around to the front to my breasts. “Making love to you would cheer me up. As soon as I’m healed, you better be ready.”

  Biting my lip, I faced him and took the soap away. “Don’t worry, I will be. I can wait as long as I need to.” Once all the soap was rinsed off us both, I turned off the water and grabbed a towel off the rack. Evan reached for it, but I gently smacked his hand. “I got it. Just stand there and let me do the work.” I dried him off and then stood back so he could watch me rub the towel across my body, intentionally going slower around my breasts. He licked his lips, a growl of satisfaction rumbling in his chest. I would do anything to cheer him up. “All right, let’s get you dressed,” I laughed. I helped him into his boxers and shorts before lowering his Cougars jersey over his head.

  With a wide grin, he pulled me to him and kissed me, his hands on my ass as he held me against his body. “I love you,” he whispered low. “I don’t know of any woman who would’ve taken care of me the way you have.”

  “It’s because I love you, too.”

  I put my clothes back on and grabbed his dirty ones off the floor before opening the bathroom door, gasping when I realized we weren’t alone. The blood rushed to my face. I had never felt so embarrassed in my life. Luke was there, and so was Kate. “Hey, guys,” I announced.

  Evan opened the door wider and laughed. “Wow, a party. Not exactly the best timing.”

  Luke cleared his throat. “Tell us about it.” He winked at me and said in a girly voice, “Just stand there and let me do the work.” Kate smacked him on the arm and rolled her eyes.

  “Oh, shut up,” I exclaimed, throwing our dirty clothes at him.

  He dodged them and laughed. “We might be a little early, but I brought the chips and dip like I promised. I might have snuck in a few beers as well.”

  “He’s on pain meds, dumbass,” Kate griped.

  Luke chuckled. “Since when has that stopped anyone?” He reached into his bag and pulled out a beer for Evan and opened up one for himself. Only it wasn’t beer—it was root beer. He winked at Kate and she snorted. “I had you going there, didn’t I?” he teased.

  “You’re such a dumbass,” Kate said.

  “May I have one?” I asked. The only thing missing was some vanilla ice cream to make a root beer float. I hadn’t had one of those in years.

  Luke opened one up and handed it to me. “How about a toast?” he announced, lifting his can in the air. Evan did the same, and I followed suit. “I know we don’t have anything to celebrate, but I’m sure as hell thankful my best friend is alive and well.”

  We tapped our cans together and I took a sip. “I can drink to that. Do you think we’ll win tonight?” I asked.

  Evan and I sat down on the hospital bed while Kate relaxed on the recliner, rubbing her large belly. Luke guzzled down his root beer and opened another one before sitting on the floor with his chips and dip. After “The Star-Spangled Banner” was sung, there was a moment of silence where everyone hung their heads and stood there. It was beautiful. The cameras focused on our players and our cheerleaders. The accident had taken its toll on everyone; even Lindsey broke down and cried. I never knew she had a sensitive bone in her body.

  Evan put his arm around me and kissed my head. “I think we’ll win, sunshine. We have to.”

  Through all four quarters, none of us said a word as the Cougars tore up the field and dominated the game. The last time I’d seen them play that hard was when they won the Super Bowl. After all was said and done, the Cougars and their fans celebrated with shouts of victory, and by calling out the names of Evan, Derek, and Brianna. I couldn’t hold in my tears as a slide show of pictures of Brianna filled the screen. Evan held me tight and lowered his head to my shoulder.

  “How am I going to tell him?”

  Wiping away my tears, I sighed and leaned my cheek against him. “I don’t know, but I’ll be right there with you.”

  Chapter 25

  Evan

  The papers were signed and I was ready to go home. My parents had called to say they were still waiting on a flight, but I told them not to cut their vacation short. I was fine, and the last thing I wanted was for them to come all the way across the country for nothing. They were going to be back in two weeks anyway, so it didn’t matter.

  However, I couldn’t go home yet. There was no way I could leave without making sure Derek was okay. He had woken up a few times but passed out again shortly after. I was hoping to catch him in one of those moments so he’d know I was there.

  “You don’t have to sit with me,” I said to Summer. It was going on seven hours since I’d been released from the hospital. She hadn’t left my side, even though I knew she was exhausted.

  “I told you I would be here for you and I’m going to keep that promise. I do, however, think I should get us something to eat. I’m kind of starving. I don’t think it’s healthy to just eat chips and dip and pastries.”

  I chuckled. “I’d say not.”

  “Do you want anything from the cafeteria? I know it’s not the best food in the world, but I don’t want to leave the hospital without you.”

  “That’d be great. I’m not going anywhere.”

  Getting up from her seat, she handed me the remote control. “I’ll be right back.” She kissed my head and grabbed her purse before shutting the door lightly behind her.

  Instead of watching the TV, I turned it off and focused on Derek. His body was just as bruised as mine, but he had several broken ribs and a fractured wrist as well. “You like to be difficult, don’t you?” I teased. “We won the game last night. At least we know our boys can kick ass without us there.” I kept waiting for him to joke back, but he didn’t. “You know, the doctor says you’ll be back to playing football in a few weeks. I’m determined to get back to it as soon as I can. I’m sure Kate and Summer are going to have something to say about that, but I need normalcy again. Everything’s just so fucked up right now.”

  Closing my eyes, I laid my head on his bed and just listened to his breathing. Fortunately, he was doing it on his own. “Please wake the fuck up,” I murmured desperately.

  About fifteen minutes later, Summer walked through the room, bringing in the smell of bacon. I could eat anything and everything as long as it had bacon on it. My stomach growled so loudly that Summer laughed. “I guess if I ever want to wake you up, all I need to do is fry up some bacon?”

  “Or you could always wear it,” Derek replied in a low, hoarse voice. “He’ll eat you up in a heartbeat if you do that.”

  Summer gasped and I lifted my head to see Derek’s tired grin. “Well, holy shit, Sleeping Beauty’s finally awake.”

  “Please tell me you didn’t kiss me,” he joked.

  I grabbed his hand and held it tight. “I love you, brother, but not that much.”

  “Actually, he did kind of kiss you,” Summer replied sadly. “He saved your life when he gave you CPR.”

  Derek’s smile faded when he looked at her, and then to me. “What the hell happened, brother? All I remember is that fucker running us off the road and then blacking out.”

  The moment I dreaded had finally come. I glanced quickly over at Summer before settling on him, sighing. “We were in an accident. I’m probably the reason you have the broken ribs. I couldn’t give up on you.”

  He tried to take in a deep breath and winced. “Fuck, I feel it now. I can’t believe I slept through this shit. How’s Bri doing? Did the police catch the son of a bitch who ran us off the road?” Summer set the food down and put her hand on my shoulder. I needed her touch, but it did nothing to ease the ache in my chest. Derek could already tell something was wrong by my hesitance. “Spit it out, Townsend,” he growled.

  “No, they haven’t caught the guy or girl, or whoever it was who made us crash. It’s being investigated as we speak.”

  Derek’s jaw clenched. “And Brianna? How is she?” Summer squeezed my shoulder and I closed my eyes against the burn.

  When I opened them, a set of tears fell down my cheeks as the words left my lips. “She didn’t make it, Derek. I went to her first to save her, but I couldn’t.” I lowered my head. “I’m so fucking sorry, brother. I wanted to be the one to tell you.”

  I waited for him to blow up, but no words came. I could feel the tension and darkness creeping into the room, smothering me. I lifted my head to see Derek glaring at me with dark, murderous eyes. “She’s fucking dead? Is that what you’re telling me?”

  Summer moved closer to him and placed her hand on his, but he turned his head, jerking his hand away. “We’re so sorry, Derek. We’re going to find who did this and put them away. We all loved Brianna.”

  “Not as much as me,” he growled, meeting our stares. His face was blood red and the heart monitor skyrocketed out of control. The whole bed started to shake, but I grabbed his hands and leaned over him.

  “And we know that. You loved her and she loved you. I promise that when we find out who did this, we’ll make them pay.”

  The door burst open and two nurses barged in, rushing straight over to Derek. “What’s going on?” the dark-haired one in the pink scrubs asked.

  Derek jerked out of my grasp, and his breaths came out fast and hoarse as he faced her. “He said my girlfriend died in the crash. That can’t be true. Surely there’s been a mistake.”

  Eyes wide, the nurse fumbled with her words and looked to us for guidance. Derek was on the verge of losing control. Summer whispered something into the other nurse’s ear and she rushed out of the room. “Be prepared to hold him down. I don’t think he’s going to last much longer,” Summer whispered in my ear.

  Derek relentlessly glared at the nurse and she sighed, her expression torn. “I’m sorry, Mr. McLaughlin, but sadly, they’re telling you the truth. There was nothing anyone could do to save her.” Derek closed his eyes and his lips trembled. I could only imagine the pain he was going through. A lady in a white coat came through the door; her name tag said she was Dr. Angelica Scott. She and Summer conversed as if they knew each other.

  “How did she die?” Derek asked, his voice low and dark.

  I didn’t really know the exact answer to that, so I turned to the doctor, looking for guidance. She smiled sadly at me and then down to my heartbroken friend. “Derek, I’m Dr. Scott. Your body has been through so much. It might be best for you to rest for now.”

  “Fuck that,” he hissed. “I want answers. How did she fucking die? Was it painful? Did she suffer?”

  Dr. Scott closed her eyes for a second and then opened them back up. I could tell she was used to giving bad news. There was no way in hell I could handle doing that every single day. “No, she didn’t suffer,” she admitted truthfully. “From what we could tell from examining her body, she died almost instantly in the crash.” Derek broke down and covered his face as he let grief overtake him. His shoulders shook and tears ran down his fingers. The monitors started to blare and Dr. Scott pulled a syringe out of her jacket, discreetly injecting the liquid into his IV.

  Derek lowered his hands and they fell to his sides. “What the fuck did you do?”

  Sighing, she disposed of the syringe and wrote something down in his chart. “I gave you something to calm you down,” she murmured. “I know it’s not easy losing the ones you love, especially when she was—”

  “Stop!” Summer shouted. With furrowed brows, Dr. Scott jerked her head toward her and Summer whispered, “He doesn’t know about that yet. We haven’t told him.”

  “I see,” she said sadly. “If you want to tell him, I’ll step to the side.”

  “What more could you possibly tell me?” Derek grumbled. “My heart’s already ripped the fuck out.”

  I could see in his eyes that he wanted to fight his way out of that bed, but he couldn’t; he was helpless. I feared that once all was said and done, he would have a hard road ahead of him. Dr. Scott stepped outside, but I could see her lingering by the door. Summer had tears streaming down her cheeks and nodded for me to continue. If I knew there was a way not to tell him about the baby, I would’ve kept it a secret for the rest of my life and carried the burden. I would do anything to save him from the pain of what I was about to tell him.

  His tormented green gaze never swayed from mine as I sat there trying to find the words. The sedative was working fast and I could see him slowly slipping away into oblivion. “What are you not telling me?” he warned.

  Taking a deep breath, I kept my eyes on his. “Brianna was pregnant.” The whole room fell into a hushed silence.

  Derek froze, but then his eyes shut. For the longest time, we thought he’d passed out, but that wasn’t the case. When his eyes opened back up, the life that usually sparked inside them wasn’t there. In a low, dangerous voice he said, “I want you all to leave, now. Get the fuck out.”

  I shook my head. “I’m not going to let you shut us out, D. You need your friends and family right now.”

  Derek grabbed my hand and squeezed as hard as he could. I knew he was hurting, and I was willing to take that pain. “What I need just died along with my child. Get. The. Fuck. Out.”

  With a glum expression, Dr. Scott nodded toward the door. “I’m sorry, but you’ll have to go. I’m sure you understand.”

  Summer put her hand on my shoulder and I reluctantly backed away from Derek. I didn’t want to leave him alone, because I knew how volatile he could be. When he woke up from the haze, destruction was going to follow him. I just needed to make sure I was there to help, whether he wanted it or not.

  “We’re going,” Summer whispered to the doctor, pulling me behind her. Dr. Scott followed us outside while the nurse in the pink scrubs stayed inside and took Derek’s vitals. Once the door shut, he was cut off from me.

  “I know this isn’t what you want, but we all deal with grief in our own ways. I know you can relate to that,” Dr. Scott said to Summer.

  Summer nodded. “It just feels different when you watch someone else go through it.”

  “That it does, but there’s nothing you can do to help him,” the doctor said. “He’ll deal with it all when he’s ready. For now, I’ll take good care of him.”

  “Thanks, Angel. I’m glad you’re the one looking out for him.”

  Dr. Scott shook my hand and then hugged her. “It’s my pleasure. It’s good to see you again.”

  She went back into Derek’s room as Summer and I started down the hall. “I take it you know Dr. Scott?”

  Summer wiped her eyes and pressed the button for the elevator. “I do. She was one of the doctors I worked with when I was in nursing school.”

  We got into the elevator and rode it down to the hospital lobby. “What if Derek doesn’t come around? What if he shuts us out and hits rock bottom?”

  Summer stood in front of me, her gaze sad. “I know he’s going to hit rock bottom. I’ve been there, Evan. All you can do is give him the space he needs to cope, but also be there in the process. It took me two years after Austin died.”

  “I just don’t want him to go through it all alone.”

  She put her arms around my waist and I held her tight, breathing in her sweet scent. “He won’t be alone. He has the team…and you. We’ll get him back.”

  Chapter 26

  Summer

  The next day, Evan received so many phone calls he eventually had to turn his phone off. Apparently, Derek still didn’t want to see anyone—not even his own parents, who had flown all the way from Florida to see him. Evan spent most of the day on his back porch, looking out into the distance. He refused to take his pain meds, even though he’d spent most of the night in agony. I was tempted to slip one of the pills into his drink but decided against it.

  Opening the back door, I carried the tray with our tea and sandwiches over to the patio table. “I hope you’re hungry,” I said cheerfully.

  Evan grimaced in pain as he sat up. “Thanks, sunshine.”

  I sat down and handed him his glass of tea. “You’re welcome. I’m sure the team doesn’t want you withering away while you’re on leave.”

  “I’m not going to be out for long. Next week I’ll be back in the game.”

  Choking on my tea, I set it down. “You can’t be serious. Next week? Don’t you think that’s a little too soon?”

  “I don’t care. I need to do something besides sit here, festering. I have this anger inside me that I can’t quell. If I don’t get it out, I feel like I’m going to lose my fucking mind.”

  I completely understood. After Austin had died, I’d busied myself with the restaurant. Football was Evan’s release. “If you feel like you’re ready next week, I’ll fully support you. I just don’t want you to hurt yourself further. You still have to heal.”

  Evan set his glass down and reached for my hand. I took it and he pulled me over to his chair so I could sit on his lap. “I’ll be fine, Summer. I’m not going to do anything stupid. I want to be there for the team.”

  I kissed him gently. “I know you do, and you will be very soon. It’s not so bad hanging out with me, is it?”

  He chuckled. “No, but I know you have responsibilities other than babysitting me. The restaurant isn’t going to run itself.”