Текст книги "Throttled"

Автор книги: Elizabeth Lee

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“What do you mean the bike just seized up?” Hoyt asked when I called him from the hospital waiting room. I’d rode in the ambulance with Brett to the hospital and managed to get a few details from him before they drugged him with enough morphine that he couldn’t speak in full and coherent sentences. And, with good reason. The paramedics stabilized Brett’s knee and I could tell by his face that the damage was bad. Miss a season bad.

“He said that something went really wrong mid jump. It just shut off. No brakes, no throttle.” I paused, the memory of seeing my friend free falling was clear in my head. I couldn’t imagine that the image was going to be leaving anytime soon. “It just fell from the fucking sky, Hoyt. It was terrible. His knee is really fucked up.” I should have at least taken it for a couple laps to make sure everything was working correctly. “This is all my fault. I should have never let him ride my bike.”

“Reid, listen to me,” Hoyt said sternly. “This is not your fault,” Hoyt reiterated the same way Nora had when I was blaming myself for my best friend laying on the ground in pain as we waited for the rescue squad to show up. “You know it. I know it. And, I’m damn sure that Brett knows it.”

“I know.” Or at least I was trying to make myself believe that I did.

“It’s not like your bike is unreliable and Brett knows how to ride. Something’s up, dude, and I don’t like the sounds of it.”

“What are you talking about?” I said, sitting down in one of the waiting room chairs. Nora entered the waiting room with a bag full of clean clothes for me and a few things for Brett. She’d offered to meet us at the hospital so that I could go with him. I was grateful she was there because besides her, I didn’t have anyone else in Halstead to turn to. “You mean you think someone messed with the bike?”

Nora took a seat next to me and laced her fingers with mine. I took in a breath, feeling calmer with her by my side. She didn’t say a word as I continued my conversation, but I could see her concern for Brett as clearly as I could see the relief that it hadn’t been me under that helmet. Seeing her so upset hadn’t helped me keep my cool at all. I’d seen many of my friends—including Brett—get hurt on the track over the years, but this was worse than I had ever seen. I knew how long busted knee would take to heal, and Brett had to have surgery. He was looking at missing an entire season. A single season could be the difference between making it in the pros and being totally forgotten.

“Could be,” Hoyt suggested. “It’s not the first time someone in Halstead has fucked with your bike.”

“If he did,” I seethed, thinking about the possibility that Beau could be responsible for all of this. “I’ll kill that motherfucker, I swear to God.” Nora squeezed my hand and gave me a look to remind me that we were in a waiting room filled with people. “I’ll keep you updated,” I promised Hoyt before saying goodbye.

Before I said a word to Nora, I leaned over and kissed her cheek and pulled her into a hug. A hug I really needed. Call me a pussy, but feeling my girl in my arms was therapeutic. The way she fell into my arms and then smiled through tears when she looked up at me said she needed it just as much as I did.

“What did the doctors say?” she asked, wiping her eyes with the back of her hands when we released our hold on each other. I kept my arm around her shoulders as we sat side by side, needing to feel her touch.

“He’s in surgery now. It was pretty bad. I’m guessing a few pins and screws, but who knows. They said they wouldn’t really know until they got in there.”

“I feel so bad for him,” she said. “It looked like he was in a lot of pain.”

“He wasn’t feeling anything by the time we got here,” I said, hoping to ease her mind. “He’s in good hands now, babe. I’m sure the doctors will take good care of him.” It wasn’t the pain or surgery that I was worried about, though. It was the long road to recovery that would take him off the circuit that had me concerned. Brett could handle pain. He could make it through surgery. Not being on a track for a year... that was a different story. I knew how I would have felt if someone took riding away from me.

“Who were you talking to on the phone?”

“My brother,” I answered. “He seems to think that the bike wouldn’t have just shut down the way it did. Like maybe someone messed with it.”

“Do you think that?”

“That bike was grade-A.” I couldn’t even think about the shape Eileen was in at that moment. I’d have to get a new one, I was sure of it, but all I wanted was for my best friend to come out of this whole thing with a leg that still worked and be able to get back to riding as quickly as possible. “They don’t just quit working mid-ride.”

“You think it was Beau?”

I shrugged. Beau was the only person that I suspected, and as much as I wanted to start pointing the finger and figure out if I was right, I needed to wait until I knew my friend was all right.

“Well, you won’t have to worry about taking care of him if it was,” she said. “It was your bike, Reid,” she reminded me. “If he tampered with it and his intent was to hurt you...” she paused with an angry sigh. “I can’t even... I’ll take care of him myself.”

Was it wrong of me to be turned on right now? The fire in her eyes when she promised to take care of him for trying to hurt me might have been the sexiest thing I’d ever heard her say. My girl willing to fight for me. Willing to seek out those who did me wrong. Could she be any more perfect?

“Thanks, baby,” I said pressing my lips to hers. “But, don’t you worry. As soon as Brett is out of surgery and I know what’s going on with him, I’m going to find out exactly who messed with my bike. You won’t have to worry about getting those pretty little hands dirty.”

“But, I want to,” she defended. “I mean, I want to be there with you. I want to help you figure it all out.”

“Then that’s where you’ll be,” I promised.

* * *

Four hours after they’d taken Brett back for surgery, a doctor came out to talk to us.

“Are you here with Mr. Sallinger?” the petite female surgeon asked. I wondered how such a small woman—so short in stature—could operate on a big guy such as Brett, but the serious look on her face and the way she cut the small talk and got right down to business said she was a force to be reckoned with.

“Yes,” I said. “We are.” Nora and I both stood, meeting the doctor as she walked toward us.

“I’m Dr. Forlani,” she said, extending her hand. “I performed surgery on your friend’s knee.”

“Is he all right?” I asked, shaking her small hand. For being so small, she had a firm grip which made me a little bit more confident about her opening up my friend’s leg.

“He will be. Your friend really did a number on his knee. Not to mention, the previous damage and scar tissue from past riding injuries. I think that it will require another surgery, but I wanted to talk to him about it before I did anything drastic.”

“If you can get him back on a bike before the season starts, then I’m sure he will want drastic.”

“I’ll go over all the options with him, but I’m confident we can get him back on a bike.”

“That’s great, Doc,” I said, releasing the breath I’d been holding since she entered the room. I felt so relieved hearing her words.

“It might not be like it used to be and it’s going to take a while, but I think with physical therapy he’ll be back to at least ninety-percent function in a reasonable amount of time.”

“Ninety-percent?” Nora asked, taking the words right out of my mouth. Guys like Brett, guys like me, we needed to be at a hundred percent. All the time.

“He had some significant nerve damage. I can’t guarantee how he will heal from that. Sometimes it all goes away, sometimes it doesn’t,” she replied. “It’s different with every patient.”

“You think maybe we can leave that part out for now?” I said, earning a confused look from the doctor. “It’s going to be a lot for him to handle when he wakes up. I mean we can tell him about the nerve damage and all, but maybe leave out the ninety-percent.”

“It’s your call, Mr. Travers,” she said. “You were listed as his emergency contact, so I’m going to assume that you have Mr. Sallinger’s best interest at heart. I’m sure he will be able to feel exactly how much damage was done,” she pointed out. “But yes, I’ll leave off that particular statistic,” she agreed. “Until I know for sure what the best course is for your friend.”

“Thank you.” I said, reaching out to shake her hand. “When can we see him?”

“He should be awake in an hour or so. You can see him right after.”

“Thanks again,” I said, as she walked away.

“I’m so glad the surgery’s over,” Nora said, letting out a relieved sigh.

“Me too,” I agreed, grabbing her hand in mine.

“If you don’t mind, I think I’m going to run home real quick and grab a shower,” she said. “I’ll be back before he wakes up.”

“That’s fine,” I told her, noticing that she seemed a bit anxious to get out of the hospital. I couldn’t blame her, I didn’t really care to be spending my Saturday amongst the sick and injured either. She kissed me quickly and headed out the door. I would have much rather had her sit with me, but I knew she’d be back. Besides, there wasn’t much that we could do but sit and wait.

I’d held it in as long as I could. The tears and the scream that I wanted to release the second I saw Brett crash his bike echoed in my car as I drove out of the hospital parking lot. Don’t get me wrong, I was more than relieved that Reid was okay, but the entire thing had scared me. It wasn’t new to me that people got hurt racing motocross, but I hadn’t ever seen anything like I had that morning. I’d been lucky. I’d been spared the gory details of a career that could possibly result in serious injuries or paralysis, or even death.

Was I strong enough to be with a man that risked his life every time he got on a dirt bike? I knew that Reid was a talented rider, but so was Brett. There was always a possibility that he could get hurt, but the thought of not being with him hurt just as bad. If I wasn’t strong enough now, I would be. I’d make sure of it. It would never be easy, but it was a risk I had to take if I wanted to be with him. I’d support him in any way I could.

I wiped my tears as I drove, but before I came to the road that lead to my house I took a left and headed down Main Street. I needed to see someone before I went home. I needed to find out if Beau was responsible for Brett’s accident.

I walked into Gregurich Motor Sports like a woman on a mission. I didn’t greet either of the two salesmen or Samantha, the cashier. I headed straight down the hallway in the back of the store and into Beau’s office, purposely leaving the door open in case he decided to get all grabby like he had the last time we’d talked. There were three other people working there that day and I didn’t think he would try anything in front of his staff. Or at least I’d hoped he wouldn’t.

“Nora?” he said, a surprised look on his face. “What are—”

“Please, please tell me that you didn’t have anything to do with what happened to Reid’s bike today?” I hated to believe that another human being was capable of doing something that could have killed someone, but I knew better. I knew the world was full of all kinds of people, and I’d recently witnessed Beau’s mean and hateful side. I’d seen him act like a complete jackass and let his pride get the best of him.

“What are you talking about?” He appeared confused, but he refused to look me directly in the eye. He was hiding something.

I narrowed my eyes at him and tried to get him to look me in the eye as I spoke clearly. “Reid’s bike, Beau. It malfunctioned today,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest. “It’s a small town, I’m sure you heard.”

“Most accidents are operator error, Nora,” he said, matter-of-factly. “Maybe Ricochet needs to learn how to ride a bike.” He chuckled. He actually chuckled like this was a laughing matter.

“This is not funny,” I snapped. “And it wasn’t Reid who was riding it.”

“What do you mean?” The color drained from his face. It made me sick to think that he was okay with hurting the one person that I loved the most. I might have hurt his feelings ending our relationship the way I did, but that did not justify him doing something so malicious.

“It was Brett,” I informed him.

“Oh.” He tried to cover up his shock. “I did hear there was an accident today, but I...”

“You thought you hurt the other guy?” I walked toward the desk he was sitting behind and placed my hands on the front of it, staring down at him. I wanted to look him in the eye and let him know that I was on to him. “You thought you hurt the man I chose over you because you’re a sore loser and a complete asshole?”

“Maybe I am an asshole, Nora,” he said. “But you did this. You ended it, not me.”

“And I’ve told you that I feel terrible for that,” I countered. “But, that doesn’t give you the right to try and hurt Reid. It’s not going to fix what happened.”

“No, but it might just make me feel a little better about it.”

“Seriously?”

“Do you know what it’s like to have everything taken from you?” He asked. His jaw clenched as he spit his words through his teeth. “Travers is a fucking asshole and I don’t feel one bit sorry about anything that happens to him.”

“So you did do it?” I wanted him to confess. I wanted to hear exactly what he did so I could tell Reid. And, I wanted to slap him in the face because I knew no matter what he said that he was responsible.

“I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t have to. The second I heard Reid say he thought the bike had been tampered with, I knew that it was you.” I paused, feeling a bit sad for Beau. Not because I’d broken up with him, but because he was still holding so much hatred in his heart for Reid, and now me. “I’d wished that it wasn’t you, Beau. I wished that you weren’t a horrible person, that you weren’t capable of doing something so awful. I wished that you weren’t the asshole that everyone it this town seems to think you are, but I can tell by the look in your eyes that isn’t the case. I will never forgive you for this.”

“You can’t come in here and accuse me of something you have no idea about,” he said, standing up. “Just because you think I did something doesn’t mean shit.”

“You’re an ass,” I said, matching his stance. Our eyes locked in a standoff that had the tension in the room thick and heated.

“Yeah well, we can’t all be Reid Travers.” The disdain he had for Reid was clear, but the way he was looking at me like he couldn’t have cared less that we’d actually been in a relationship at one point or that I’d all but condemned him to hell moments earlier was sickening. My sister and Reid had been right about him all along.

“No you can’t.” I knew that he was never going to confess, but I was certain that he’d had something to do with it. Call it woman’s intuition. “Don’t think you’re going to get away with this,” I warned.

“Like I said,” he said with a smug smile. “You can’t prove anything.”

“She might not be able to,” I heard Reid’s voice coming from behind me and turned just as he walked through the door. “But, I sure as fuck can.” He walked over to stand beside me. “And, believe me if,” he paused, “no, when I find out that you touched that bike I will ruin you.”

“Are you threatening me?” Beau said.

“That is not a fucking threat, it’s a god damned promise,” Reid said sternly. “I have the best mechanics in the country already and lined up to look at the bike. And, I’ll get the entire thing fingerprinted before they tear into it. One way or another I will prove that you were behind this.”

“I... you can’t.”

“I can do whatever the fuck I want,” Reid seethed. “You fucked with my bike. You hurt my best friend. You’re lucky I don’t rip you out from behind that desk and settle this right here.”

“I wish you would,” Beau said, provoking Reid by stepping out from behind his desk. He stepped up to where we were standing. I had to give it to him. He had balls. I was scared of Reid’s words, not to mention he was standing there with his chest puffed out like he was getting ready to go into battle. Beau really was an arrogant son of a bitch.

“Oh believe me, I want to,” Reid said, slipping his hand into mine. “But I’ve got too much to lose to touch you. You’ll get what you’ve got coming.” He squeezed my hand as he turned to walk out the door. I followed, but not before Beau opened his mouth once more.

“Take your stupid bitch and get the hell out of my store,” he said.

Reid looked over at me, his hand loosening in mine. I wasn’t sure if he was giving me a warning with his eyes or asking for approval, but I knew there was no stopping what he was about to do. He turned, gently pushing me behind him as he connected his fist to Beau’s nose. The crack of bone and cartilage was followed by the sound of Beau’s yelping and a gush of blood. He dropped to his knees, his hands covering the damage.

“Go fuck yourself, Gregurich,” Reid said before he laced his fingers back through mine and led us out the door.

* * *

I could tell that Reid had a thousand questions for me—namely why he found me confronting my ex when I said I was going home—but we decided to head back to the hospital before the police showed up to arrest Reid for assault. He’d followed me in Georgia’s car back to the hospital, which meant I had a few questions for him also.

“I thought you were going home?” Reid asked once we were in the parking lot of Memorial Hospital.

“I thought you were waiting for Brett to wake up?” I said back. “And how did you get Georgia’s car?”

“You shouldn’t have gone there by yourself,” he argued. “Especially after what happened at the bar.”

“Probably not. But, you shouldn’t have been there either.”

“Your sister was working and stopped in to check on Brett, so I asked if I could borrow—”

“She did? I knew she liked Brett,” I said as we walked toward the entrance. I knew there was something going on between them. When I called her and told her what had happened at the track I could tell that she was upset, but I didn’t think she’d show up at the hospital.

“We both knew that was the case,” he replied. “She said she knew some of the nurses and wanted to help him with his recovery if I needed it. I’m thinking it had a little more to do with Brett than she was letting on,” he explained. “Now answer the question, Nora. Why did you go there without me?”

“I had to know the truth,” I confessed. “I wanted to look him the eye and ask him if he had anything to do with it.”

Reid sighed heavily and took my hand as he pulled me to a stop. “You’re going to be the death of me, Nora Bennett. You should have waited for me.” He closed his eyes and shook his head before looking me in the eye once more. “Do you know what I wanted to do to him when I found you in his office? When I saw him staring you down like he wanted to put his hands on you again?”

“Punch him in the nose?” I said coyly, hoping that he wasn’t angry with me. I know I shouldn’t have gone alone, but I was glad I was there when Reid showed up. I knew that he had a lot of self-control, but if things would have escalated, I would have been there to at least attempt to break it up.

“That was just the tip of the iceberg.” He wrapped his arms around me as we stood on the sidewalk. “I would have killed him if he’d laid a finger on you. I wouldn’t have been able to stop myself if he hurt you.” He leaned in and pressed his lips to mine. Grabbing on to his arms, I steadied myself. His kisses still made me feel weak in the knees and the events of the day hadn’t helped my stability at all. The firmness and urgency of his mouth against mine left no doubt in my mind that he loved and wanted to protect me. I felt the same way about him.

“I was trying to protect you,” I told him when our lips parted. He locked his arms around my waist, not letting me get too far away. “I can’t stand the thought of someone trying to hurt you either.” My eyes were starting to feel a little misty again. “I love you and standing up to him was the only way I felt like I could do anything. I can’t stop you from getting hurt at your job. I can’t stop accidents from happening, but I sure as hell can confront anyone responsible for causing one.”

“I get it,” he sighed as he kissed my forehead. “But, I want to be the man that protects you. That takes care of you. I want to be the guy that I couldn’t be seven years ago.”

“You are that guy.” I pressed up on my toes to rest my forehead against his. Holding my stare for a moment he sighed and let his eyes fall shut. “Reid, you’re exactly the guy I need you to be.” It was the first quiet moment that we’d shared all day, and I think that we both needed it. Reid’s phone chimed from his pocket breaking up our moment.

“I should check that,” he said with hesitation. “It might be about Brett.” We let go of each other so that he could check the text. “It’s Georgia. She said he’s waking up.”

“We should go in then.” I wiped the tears from my eyes and tucked my arm through his.

“I know that my job can be stressful, especially for spouses,” he said with pause. “I mean—” He’d just referred to me as a spouse, which was about as far into the future as we could have possibly talked. Not that I was opposed to that conversation, but we’d just gotten each other back. Everything still felt so new.

“I know what you meant,” I said, smiling.

“I’m not trying to jump the gun here or anything,” he chuckled. “But, I will marry you one day, Shutterbug.”

“Good to know,” I replied, feeling completely overcome with admiration for the man walking by my side. As much as I wanted to continue the conversation about the hypothetical marriage he was proposing, I knew that we had much more pressing issues. “So, what are we going to do about Beau? Should we call the police?” I asked as we boarded the elevator to head up to Brett’s room.

“You let me worry about that,” he said, leaning over to kiss me once more in the last private moment we would probably share that night. “I’ve got a pretty good feeling about karma biting him right in the ass.”