All of You Read online

  Kat: Adorable, sweet, adolescent caveman. I’ll text you later.

  Danny: I love you so much, Kat. You are the best thing that ever happened to me.

  Her throat tightened as she texted back: Ditto. Now go arrest someone before you get fired for not meeting your quota. Or before Nathan throws your phone out the window.

  Danny: Do you have to be fucking hot, brilliant, AND snarky? Jesus, Kat, how much is a man supposed to take?

  Laughing, Kat texted: I guess you just got lucky.

  Danny: “Lucky” doesn’t begin to cover it. Love you, bye.

  Kat: Love you, bye.

  Kat set her cell on the table, peeled off her lab coat, and draped it over her arm. One hand braced on the edge of the table, she set her feet on the floor and tried to stand…

  But the muscles in her left leg did not hold up their ends of the bargain as they gave out completely, lurching Kat forward. She instinctively put her hands out to break the fall, but the side of her head made contact first – slamming into the corner of a cabinet before the rest of her body crumpled to the floor.

  Kat lay there for a few moments, dazed and seeing stars thanks to a momentary lack of communication between her occipital lobe and retinas. She slowly lifted her hand to her head, felt wetness, and then bothered to look at it, despite already knowing which bodily fluid it was.

  “Ugh.” Kat wiped her fingers on the lab coat, which had landed right beside her on the floor.

  She planted her palms on the ground and pushed up, but when she tried to get her left leg to play along, it refused.

  “Shit…”

  Kat could get it to bend at the knee and it was even willing to curl up beneath her, but it simply would not bear enough weight to allow her to stand.

  Her head throbbing, her ears ringing, and her vision still full of bright flashes, Kat managed to reach up and grab the edge of the counter with her left hand.

  She heard the door to the lab swish open and Kat experienced an odd rush of fear.

  Well, you are alone, bleeding, and helpless on the floor.

  “Kat? You in here?”

  Her body flooded with relief at the sound of Ben’s voice.

  “Yeah, Ben, over here,” Kat called back. “Well, down here, actually.”

  A few seconds later, Ben rounded a lab table to find Kat in her awkward half-on-the-floor/half-pulling-herself-up position.

  “Shit, Kat, are you okay? What happened?” He walked over, hand already extended out to help her.

  “I tried to stand and my left leg gave out completely. And I fell. Obviously.”

  Kat reached for Ben with her right hand and he took it. He pulled, trying to help her up, but her position and the dead weight of her leg made it impossible.

  Kat huffed in frustration. “Here…” She took back her hand and clumsily – and with great difficulty – shifted her body weight to the left. She managed to slide her right foot in front and place it flat on the ground. “See if you can get me from here, now,” she said, giving Ben back her hand.

  “Let me brace my hip against the counter first,” Ben replied, already leaning his right hip into it. He flashed Kat a wry grin. “Don’t have the best lower body traction, you know?”

  “Well, be careful with all that machinery, Ben, because I do not want you busting that prosthetic on my account.”

  Ben exhaled a laugh as he reached for both of Kat’s hands. “Yeah, we’re quite a pair, aren’t we? Not a good left leg between us.”

  He easily pulled Kat to her feet, allowing her to bear all of her weight on her right leg. Kat tried to put a tiny bit of pressure on her left, but it wouldn’t hold it at all.

  “Still no good?” Ben asked. When Kat shook her head, Ben’s gaze lifted from her bum leg to her eyes, wincing. “You okay with me carrying you over to the stool?”

  Kat should have immediately said “no problem,” allowed Ben to wrap his arms around her, and not thought a thing about letting him carry her over to the nearest lab stool.

  After all, they were, for all intents and purposes, already holding hands. What the hell difference would a couple of arms and some upper body closeness make?

  Apparently, a lot. Because, as stupid and illogical as it might have been, Kat felt like it would have been wrong to let another man hold her that way – even in the name of transportation.

  Suddenly, her every thought centered on Danny…

  About how she should call him.

  About how angry he’d be when he found out she hadn’t called him.

  About what this sudden deterioration might mean.

  About what negative impacts the deterioration would have on Danny’s life.

  About how Danny would flip his ever-loving lid to know Ben’s hands had been all over her – necessity, be damned.

  Ben registered Kat’s hesitation with a slow nod, a half-grin tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Yeah, I figured. And I’m with you. ‘Cause I’m not particularly looking to brawl with that crazy-ass man of yours anytime soon.” He gently tugged on her hands. “Well, we’ll have to hop you over there, then.”

  With Ben’s support, Kat managed a hop toward the stool.

  “Speaking of your crazy-ass man, should you be calling him?” Ben asked.

  “No. I don’t want him to worry. He’s working right now and I’m sure this is nothing to get all nuts about.” She gave Ben a weak smile. “You’ve met him. He can be somewhat…”

  “Aggressive? Territorial? Combative?”

  Kat exhaled a soft laugh. “I was going to say ‘reactive,’ but all those other things are true, too.” Her smile faded. “I just don’t want him freaking out over nothing.”

  Kat managed another hop.

  But then things got much, much worse. Very quickly.

  Kat’s head started spinning, her vision doubled, and her right leg began to give out.

  She tightened her grip on Ben’s hands, bracing herself. “Ben!”

  He managed to slide his arms beneath hers in time to keep her from crumpling to the floor again as her knees gave out. Kat gripped his biceps as Ben pulled her up against his chest.

  Ben pulled back enough to meet her eyes. “Talk to me, Kat,” he said evenly – his gaze direct and very steady. “Tell me what’s going on, so we know exactly what we’re dealing with.”

  Kat blinked against the doubled image of Ben’s face floating in front of her, willing herself to calm down, but failing miserably. “I…my vision…it’s double…”

  Ben nodded slowly. “Okay. You’re okay, Kat. You’re going to be just fine.” His head tilted slightly, eyes grazing the side of her head before coming back to meet hers. “But that head wound is bleeding again and the acuteness of what just happened with your vision means we need to get you to the hospital as soon as possible.”

  “I’m dizzy, too…” Kat squeezed her eyes shut, fighting to gain some equilibrium and balance. She swallowed down whatever was trying to push its way up her throat. “And nauseous.”

  “Yep.” Ben exhaled a soft grunt when he had to hitch Kat’s nearly dead weight against his chest. “As soon as I get you in the chair, I’ll call the ambulance.”

  With a shift of his weight to his right leg and another grunt of exertion, Ben hitched Kat up, hard, finally getting her fully up into his arms. Kat wound her arms around his neck and held on tightly as he positioned his hands around her waist and carried her over to the lab stool.

  He set her down and Kat felt around until she found the counter edge to grip.

  “Can you drive me, Ben?” she asked, watching two of him pull a cell phone out of his khakis. “My sister works at St. Mary’s, so I’d rather go there, but I think an ambulance will insist on taking me to Holy Cross because it’s closer. Obviously you don’t have to stay with me once we get there. My sister is working tonight, so you can just drop me off.”

  Even through her double vision, Kat caught his quirked brow and wry smile. “Oh, good, ‘cause that’s what I was planning to do
– just drop you off and peel out of there like a bat out of hell.”

  Kat exhaled a shaky laugh. “I never knew you were such a smart-ass, Ben.”

  He grinned, dropping his hands on his hips and looking around. “Anything you have to do in here before we go?”

  Kat tried shaking her head, but quickly halted when it increased her dizziness and nausea. “No. I already shut everything down. We just need to kill the lights and lock the door.”

  “Easy enough. Where is your stuff, Kat? Jacket, purse?”

  “In the back. On the break table.”

  Ben nodded. “Okay,” he said, already heading back there. “I’ll grab this, go next door and lock up, and we’ll head out, okay?”

  Kat dropped her spinning head onto a forearm she’d just laid on the table and nodded, even though Ben couldn’t see her. A few seconds later, she felt his hand on her shoulder.

  “Can you lift your arms so I can slip your jacket on?”

  Kat slowly lifted her head and an arm. Ben slid one sleeve on, Kat lifted the other arm, and he slid a sleeve over that one. He then slid the strap of her purse up over her shoulder. “I need one minute to run next door. I’ll prop our doors open…just call out if you need anything, okay?”

  Kat nodded and, with one more pat on the shoulder, Ben made his way out of the lab and into the hallway. True to engineering time estimates, he was walking back through Kat’s door approximately one minute later, jacket on and keys in hand.

  Ben gave her a heartening smile. “You ready?”

  Kat nodded and he walked over. He leaned down and in, allowing Kat to put her arms back around his neck as he slipped his arm beneath her knees.

  Ben met her eyes. “No pain? I can just lift?” When Kat nodded, he did just that: pulling her up and against him in one quick, fluid motion.

  Just like Danny had done a dozen times.

  As Ben walked them out of the lab, flipped off the lights, and locked up behind them, Kat’s thoughts were squarely with Danny.

  Fickle Bitch Brain said: You should have called him. You should call him as soon as you get into the car. This is gearing up to be something serious and he would want to know. Excluding him like this seriously will hurt him.

  But then Better Judgment countered with: Good. It was ridiculous to think, for one moment, that you could hold onto him forever. Ridiculous, selfish, and malicious to keep prolonging what you know you need to do…what you’ve known all along you needed to do…especially now…

  “You hanging in there, Kat?” Ben asked as he strode past the half-blind security guard without so much as a wave or word of explanation. He pressed his right hip into the door and pushed it open.

  Kat nodded, pushing, “Yep. Fine,” past the huge knot in her throat.

  The frigid wind burned her cheeks as they made their way to Ben’s truck, but Kat refused to turn her face against his shoulder. It would have been too intimate a position and way too close to what she did every time Danny carried her this way.

  A few minutes later, Kat was buckled into Ben’s passenger seat, the heat was blaring, and Ben was trying very hard to make light, distracting conversation as they drove east toward St. Mary’s.

  “Should we let your sister know we’re coming?” Ben asked.

  Kat nodded, unzipping her purse to dig out her phone. “Definitely. Especially this particular sister.”

  Kat’s heart dropped at all the missed calls and texts from Danny that had popped up on her screen.

  She’d forgotten she was supposed to text him when she got home and he was obviously very worried.

  “Ben, I need you to do me a favor. I was supposed to text Danny when I got home, which should have been a while ago. I can’t text, because my vision is all messed up and I don’t want to call him, because if he hears my voice, he’ll know something is wrong.”

  Ben glanced over. “Okay…”

  Kat winced. “Can you text him from my phone at the next stoplight?”

  Ben’s brows shot up. “You want me to text Mr. Sane and Secure from your phone and lie to him for you?”

  “You wouldn’t really be the one lying; I would. I just need your hands to do it.”

  “I don’t know…I don’t feel right lying to the guy. If you were my girl and some dude texted from your phone, lying to me…” He shook his head. “I’m with Neanderthal man on this one, Kat. Just call him and tell him the truth. He’d want to know.”

  Kat pictured the scene she knew was coming at the hospital…the scene she’d known was coming for seven years…

  I can’t bear to see his face when they tell me my life is over.

  Because it will kill him.

  And that will destroy me.

  Which will only hurt him more.

  Kat shook her head, tears welling and her chest aching unbearably. She rubbed at her sternum. “I just can’t. Please, Ben. I have my reasons. Please…”

  Ben shot her a shrewd look and reached for her phone. “Yeah, okay. But when you see me on the six o’clock news missing yet another limb, I hope you’ll have the decency to feel bad.”

  Ben slowed to a stop at the next light, fingers poised on Kat’s touch screen. “Okay. Go.”

  “Tell him, ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you. Traffic was bad and I stopped on the way home to grab dinner.’” Kat thought for a moment. “‘Home safe and sound now. I’ll text you later.’”

  “I love you?”

  Kat flushed. “No.”

  Ben hit send and handed the phone back to Kat.

  “Thanks. I’ll give my sister a call now.”

  “Which sister is it? The one works at the hospital?”

  “Stella.” She hit call and held the phone up to her ear. “The craziest one. And with the gene pool we’re referring to, that’s really saying something.”

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  ‡

  “Hey, babe,” Stella answered on the third ring.

  “Hi, so glad you answered. Quiet night?”

  Stella groaned. “Kat, don’t ever say ‘quiet night’ to a nurse!” She huffed. “Now I have to go inform my co-workers you’ve jinxed us. Thanks a lot.”

  Kat smiled, despite her physical and emotional goings-on. “Sorry. And I’ll be able to apologize to your co-workers in person, because I’m heading over to St. Mary’s right now.” Before Stella could ask, Kat added, “I fell at work and hit my head.”

  “Oh, my God, Kat, are you okay? Did you call an ambulance? Or are Nathan and Danny bringing you?” Stella paused. “Nathan didn’t call; did this just happen? Did you call Danny yet? But you said you were on your way…you’re not driving yourself, are you?”

  “Jesus, Stella, take a breath and let me answer.” Kat inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. “I did not call Danny. I don’t want him worrying when all of this is most likely nothing.”

  Liar. You aren’t calling him because you know damn well its something and you’re shutting him out.

  Kat shook her head, trying to shut Fickle Bitch Brain up. “Thankfully Ben, the guy who works next door, was nice enough to drive me.”

  Stella paused. “I’m going to keep this lecture short and sweet because you’re hurt and I’ll have plenty of time to elaborate on it later, but you need to call Danny. Now.”

  “No. And you can’t tell Nathan, either. Not till I know what’s going on.” When Stella didn’t respond, Kat’s agitation increased. “You need to promise me right now, Stella. Please. ‘Sisters before misters,’ right? Isn’t that the stupid phrase you and Gigi used to always go around saying when we were teenagers?”

  Kat’s stomach muscles clenched tighter further when Stella didn’t laugh.

  “Why are you doing this, Kat? Knowing it’s going to upset him?” Stella paused, again. “And when he finds out Ben drove you…”

  Kat huffed. “This is not the time for one of your bone-deep psychological analyses, Stella! I fell, cut the side of my head open, my vision is screwed up, and my goddamn legs aren’t working! Ei
ther of them! So can you please promise to keep your mouth shut – just this once – until I can get to the hospital and talk to you in person? Is that really so much to ask?”

  Kat felt Ben’s eyes on her, so she turned. The obvious surprise and amusement on his face prompted Kat to curl a lip.

  Ben immediately turned back to face the windshield, a half-smile still on his face.

  Kat huffed, again. “Stella, say it. Promise me you will not call Nathan until you and I have had a chance to talk.”

  “Yeah, okay, fine. But we will talk about it, Kat. Soon.”

  Kat rolled her eyes. “I don’t doubt it.” She glanced out the passenger side window and saw the red Emergency Room sign lettering. “We’re just pulling in. See you in a few seconds.”

  “Okay. I’ll meet you at the doors with a wheelchair. Have Ben pull right up to the curb outside the ER.”

  Kat’s first instinct was to protest, because wheelchairs were her least favorite mode of transportation on earth. Unfortunately, the only other alternative was allowing Ben or some stranger hospital worker to haul her around.

  “Yeah, okay. Thanks. Bye.” Kat ended the call. “My sister said to pull right up to the curb,” Kat said, shoving her phone back into her purse. “She’s going to meet us. And then you can leave, Ben. Seriously. There’s no need for you to stick around.”

  “I’m going to stay at least until they get you settled. I know your sister is here, but she’s working and I don’t like the idea of you sitting alone in the room, not able to see a damn thing and all banged up.” Ben glanced over at Kat. “And since you’re hell-bent on leaving your crazy-ass man out of it, for reasons I’m pretty sure I know and understand, at least let me be here for you. As a friend.”

  Kat nodded slowly. “Okay.” She forced a small smile. “Thanks.”

  Ben pulled his truck along the ER curb, put it into park, and got out his side as the automatic doors swished open and Stella walked out pushing a wheelchair. Ben walked around, opened Kat’s door, and then turned to greet Stella.

  “Hi, I’m Ben Forster.” He extended a hand Stella accepted and shook.