I pulled my hand away quickly, covered Lee’s small body with the blanket, before I rushed out of her room. It was too much, and too fucking little.
Lee thought I’d stayed away when she was in the hospital. She’d all but begged me to keep away, said that she needed space, and I’d given her what she thought she needed.
But I wasn’t that selfless.
Every single night I’d sat by her side in that hospital room, while she slept.
Whether she needed me or not, was debatable. But I needed her, irrevocably. And I always would.
CHAPTER TWO
Lee
I woke up in the same long, baggy t-shirt I’d worn leaving the hospital yesterday, with a nauseated pain in my stomach, and a crazy urge to pee.
Throwing off the unfamiliar blanket, I jumped out of bed and rushed across the hall to the bathroom.
I needed to pee too badly, to worry about where that blanket came from.
I reached the door of the bathroom and my hand froze on the door knob. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t go there.
My stomach rolled at the thought of going back into that room.
I turned around and hurled down the stairs towards Cam and Derek’s bathroom. I didn’t bother to knock, I just ploughed in there.
Thankfully, it was empty and I mastered the skill of peeing and puking at the same time.
“Lee, are you alive in there?” I heard Derek’s say, and the door opened slightly.
“Oh my god, Derek, don’t you dare come in here,” I half screamed, as I cleaned myself up quickly.
I heard a nervous chuckle from outside the door, then the sound of his footsteps retreating.
I paused in front of the mirror and cringed.
I looked awful.
My gray eyes were red rimmed; my skin was pale, lips cracked. Tugging the scrunchie out of my untamed curls, I retied my hair in a messy ponytail. I washed my hands and splashed some water on my face, before heading towards the kitchen, not bothering to go back upstairs and change.
My days of modesty were over, and even though the shirt I had on didn’t completely conceal the scars my father had left on my thighs, I didn’t feel the need to cover them up as much as before.
I grudgingly conceded that Kyle was the one I had to thank for that. All those nights he’d spent scattering kisses over every mark, welt and blemish on my body, had healed the insecurities that used to batter my confidence.
Cam and Derek were huddled over the table, deep in conversation, when I got to the kitchen.
I cleared my throat before walking inside. My presence triggered the end of their discussion.
“Coffee?” Derek asked me, rising quickly, not making eye contact.
“No thanks, Derek.”
I couldn’t drink coffee anymore and it sucked. Dr. Ashcroft said the odd cup wouldn’t hurt, but all those pregnancies magazines I’d read while in hospital red flagged it.
“Where’s Bruno?” I asked, sliding into the chair opposite Cam.
“Out for his morning stroll with Kyle,” Derek replied without his usual punchy sarcasm. “You want some coffee Cam?” he asked.
Cam shook her head, keeping her eyes trained on her cup. I tried to catch her eye, but she seemed preoccupied, stirring the contents of her cup almost violently.
Oh boy…
“Hey Cam,” I said quietly.
Her blonde head swung up, and her eyes met mine. “Hey Judas,” she retorted.
Yep, she was mad at me.
“I guess you’re mad about Mike collecting me, right?” I muttered, struggling to keep eye content with my angry best friend.
Even when she was angry and snarling, Cam was stunning. Her poker straight blonde hair fell artfully down her back. She had an all-round tan, perfect skin and every feature on her face was enviable.
“Mike? Oh no, how could I possibly be angry with you about Mike, collecting you from the hospital? When I was the one who sat with you and held your hand, every damn day for six weeks?” Cam said in a dramatic tone of voice. “No, I have absolutely no problem with that, at all.”
Okay, she was angrier than I thought.
It was always obvious when Cam was mad because she had that ‘look,’ on her face and used heavy sarcasm.
The narrow eyed scowl she was directing at me and her sharp words, proved I was receiving both.
“Cam, lay off her, she’s just home,” Derek said quietly.
My head jerked towards where Derek was leaning against one of the oak countertops. His shaved head was turned in Cam’s direction; his green eyes narrowed, and focused on his girlfriend.
This was a first.
I had never, in all the time I’d known Derek, heard him say anything to Cam, or against her. I didn’t want them to argue over me.
“Mike is not responsible for her, Derek. She shouldn’t be relying on him for anything,” Cam shot back, glaring at Derek.