Lips kissed the lobe of Chris's ear, and he had to fight back a whimper. "Like you," Manon whispered, his warm breath ghosting over the tiny hairs and making Chris shiver.
"Manon," he whispered. Screwing up his courage, Chris turned his head to look at the man. "Manon."
"I be right here, Chris," Manon whispered back. "And I be serious about taking care of you. Nothin' would give me greater pleasure than makin' certain you get well."
He couldn't stop the frown as he whispered, "How come you didn't tell me you're not straight?"
Manon chuckled. "How come you didn't tell me you're a man?"
"Huh? Oh, point taken." Chris could feel his mind begin to drift again. "So tired," he muttered.
"Sleep then," Manon replied. "I tell the doctor you woke so he don't worry. Then I have a couple calls to make, but I be back," Manon promised.
Chris could feel his eyelids slip closed. "No. Please, don't leave me."
He felt a soft kiss pressed against his forehead and thought he heard a murmured, "Okay, cher. I'll stay," right before he slipped into slumber.
Chris struggled to wake for the second time. At least, he thought it was the second time. Of course, his memories of the first time were a bit hazy, and how could they be true? Manon in his room with him? Accepting that he was a gay man? Ridiculous.
Except, when he managed to crack his eyelids, or rather, one eyelid, since the left one was swollen shut, he looked around, and spotted Manon sprawled in the chair by the bed. He had one hand resting on the bed near Chris's hand, his hair was disheveled and looked like he'd run his fingers through it repeatedly. His head was also cocked at an odd angle. Manon was asleep.
"Oh, that's not going to be comfortable," he murmured. It seemed to be enough. Manon's fingers twitched on the bed, and his eyes opened. He blinked, looked over at Chris, and smiled. Then he grunted. "Ah, zut," he hissed as he sat up straight and rubbed his neck.
Chris smiled slightly. "Yeah, that didn't look comfortable," he rasped.
"Yeah. Too bad the hospital doesn't have a bigger budget for furniture," Manon grunted.
After spending a moment massaging his neck, Manon turned to Chris and offered him some water. "How are you feeling, Chris?"
"I'm … I'm confused," he admitted. Shaking his head, he murmured, "Why are you here?"
"Chris, cher, do you remember our conversation earlier?"
Chris searched his memory. "You don't care that I'm a man?" He whispered the question and Manon smiled. Chris frowned. "Why?"
Manon leaned toward him, a gleam of affection making his dark eyes sparkle. "I be bisexual, cher," he assured. "I was attracted to you as a woman. The fact you have a dick just means I'll know how to please you easier." He winked. "No worrying about you faking it once I get you in my bed," he purred.
Okay, so the pain in Chris's head didn't stop the erection this time. Chris's dick thickened, and he whimpered.
The other man grinned. "You like the sound of that, hmm?"
"Yeah," Chris admitted. "I do." And he really, really hoped that Manon planned to do something about it, too. He thought he'd gotten his wish when the other man's nostrils flared and his gaze fixated on the tent in the sheet.
Just as Manon lifted a hand toward Chris's groin, a brisk knock sounded on his door and in strode a doctor. The man was short, maybe five foot six, thick glasses nearly hid his brown eyes, and he hardly seemed to have any neck. Chris stifled a groan. So much for getting my dick taken care of. The sight of this guy totally killed his erection.
"Hello, Mr. Peterson. I'm Dr. Lansey." The doctor's gaze dropped to Manon, and his lip curled. "Mr. Lemelle. I'm afraid I must ask you to leave while I speak with my patient."
"He can stay," Chris blurted out, surprising them both. He felt his face heat in a blush. "I mean, if he wants to," he whispered.
Manon gave him a warm smile. "I thank you, cher." He turned to Dr. Lansey and grinned, then lifted Chris's hand and pressed a kiss to the palm.
Chris had to suppress his shiver and his dick threatened to firm back up again.
"I stay right here," Manon stated.
"Very well," Dr. Lansey huffed before focusing on Chris.
Chris focused on the doctor and listened as he explained his injuries in a bland monotone that almost sent him back to sleep. He knew his wrist was broken since he'd broken bones before. It didn't surprise Chris to find out he had two cracked ribs and a concussion, too. He did feel relief that his jaw wasn't cracked, but damn was it sore!
"We're going to keep you for the night for observation," Dr. Lansey droned on. "In the morning, if the swelling in your arm has receded enough, we'll remove the splint and cast it."
"Okay. When can I go home?" Chris really just wanted to go home, take some pain killers, and sleep for a few days in his own bed.
"It'll be tomorrow afternoon, most likely," the doctor replied.
Chris didn't like the sound of that, but he nodded anyway. He watched the man approach his IV with a plunger and frowned. "I don't want that," Chris snapped. "No morphine, just ibuprofen."
He saw Manon lift a brow out of the corner of his eye, but Chris kept his gaze fixed on the doctor. The man paused and frowned, "I think-"
"I don't care what you think," Chris snapped, fighting tears as the pain in his face intensified. Doing his best not to move his jaw, he said, "I don't want it. As the patient, I know my rights. I refuse. You can't give it to me. Just get me some ibuprofen and I'll be fine."
He could tell Dr. Lansey didn't like his decision, but he didn't have any choice but to respect it. "Very well. I'll be back with that in a few minutes." The doctor left.
Chris let out a sigh, and let his eyes slide closed.
"Hey, dis be important to you? You okay?" Manon murmured, his warm breath ghosting the shell of his ear.
"Yeah," he whispered. Smiling he turned his head toward Manon. The movement rewarded him with the other man's lips on his in a soft kiss. This one was different than the others he'd received. Soft, and searching, and ever so gentle,Manon's tongue licked the inside of his mouth. Manon, mindful of his injuries, carefully twined their tongues and mapped him.
Fingers caressed his jaw and Chris smiled against the sexy man's mouth. When Manon finally pulled away, Chris managed to pry his eye open to stare at him. "Very nice," he murmured.
Manon smirked.
A throat clearing had them both turning to look at their unwanted guest. Chris smiled when he saw his friends, Eric and Daren. "Hey, guys," he greeted.
"Hey, Chris. You're looking a sight better." Eric grinned then and winked. "Although, now you're not the pretty one of the group."
Chris snorted at his friend's teasing, then grunted as the move put unnecessary strain on his jaw. He lifted his right hand and touched his tender face. "Ouch. Don't make me laugh," he whined.
He had a sobering thought and returned his gaze to his pals. "How's Remy?" he asked quietly. He felt like a complete heel for forgetting the whole reason he'd ended up in the hospital to begin with. Of course, the revelation that Manon still wanted Chris, even though he was a man, was an understandable distraction.
If he didn't know his friends so well, he might have missed the grimace that bracketed Daren's eyes for a split second. Eric wasn't quite so subtle, for he glared atthe floor and snarled, "Fucking homophobic bastards. If I find them, I'm going to … "
"Easy, Eric." It was Manon who interrupted his friend's tirade. "You leave that to me. I have friends on the force. We'll get these bastards." Manon turned to Chris, grabbed his free hand, and gave it a light squeeze. "You do plan to press charges, oui?"
"Hell, yeah. I'm not sure I can pick out all three in a line-up, but I sure as hell got up close and personal with a couple of them," he grumbled. "Remy better feel the same damn way," Chris snapped.
"He, um, he hasn't woken up yet," Daren admitted. "He was a lot worse off than you, so they're keeping him sedated until the swelling in his brain goes down."
"Oh, my God," Chris whispered. "That's terrible."
Manon sighed and pressed another kiss to Chris's cheek. "We'll find the men who did this," he assured.
Chris nodded, though he didn't feel nearly as confident as Manon sounded. "Okay."