“I’m letting that slide because you’re blitzed, but her name is Darby Kendrick.” Pierce’s face pops on the screen.
“Zip-it, Piercy-Wiercy. I have my own badass to control and he’s boozzyyy.”
“Was that bossy or boozy?” Dante teases.
“Both, you alien. Why do you have three faces?”
“Time to wrap it up. Poppy needs to sleep.” Evin’s familiar voice cuts into my haze.
I reach for him and my arms fall.
“Let me get everyone out of here and I’ll be right back.” His warm hand covers mine.
“Hurray! Don’t let my butt show.”
“Jesus.” His lips sweep across my nose. Or maybe it was my mouth?
Vaguely, I hear Darby say goodbye and feel Maya sliding away. “Don’t worry, Aunt Poppy. Uncle Evin had Dad research your doctor. He’s totally legit and going to fix your knee.”
It’s a struggle, but my eyes open slightly, and I try to smile. “Yes, my knee.”
She does not know the damage. We decided Pierce and Darby will share when she gets home.
“We’ll be back in the morning.” Annie comes into view.
“I need you to favor me.”
“What’s the favor?”
“Make Evin shower. I can’t be sassy and he smells like hospital.”
“I can do that, Poppy.”
I reach for her, this time using claw hands. “Let me pinch your cuteness.”
“You don’t call me cute. You call me classic.”
“Yeah, classic.” I breathe out, “Like me… I’m going to be a classic. One day, people will remember me as a dancer.”
A drop of wet hits my elbow and my eyes close, welcoming the darkness.
When I wake, the scent of Evin surrounds me. His chest rises and falls under my cheek and his arm is folded around my side protectively. How long was I out this time? Slowly, my head clears and for the first time since the fall, I can think without people hovering.
The events of the day roll through my mind. As soon as my last test finished, the nurse allowed me to shower. Evin arguing with Annie about who would help and Evin winning. Ryanne blow-drying my hair while I sat in the wheelchair. Lynda, Maya, Annie, and Jill all gabbing.
The endless phone calls from Charleston, Charlotte, and Atlanta—all of my new family wanting to talk.
After the men got lunch, Dante announcing we had more visitors. That’s when my Cirque family filed in. No one asked about my injury, likely because Dante had already spread the word.
It may have been the drugs, but I held it together with Evin by my side.
Now, I’m unsure how to feel.
“Baby, you awake?”
“Yes.”
“Are you in pain?”
“Not right this second, but I haven’t moved yet.”
“Do you need to move?”
“Yeah.”
“Would you like me to carry you or get your crutches?”
I want him to carry me because I hate the significance of those crutches. But it’s time to suck it up. I waver too long and he curls us up. “Carrying you.”
“No, I need to get used to them. Plus, I’m going to the bathroom.”
His finger moves to my chin and urges my face up. “I don’t care where you’re going. I’ll carry you through Hell if you’ll let me.”
“Be careful what you wish for. I think Hell’s coming soon.”
His eyes fill with sympathy and he hugs me to him. Without a word, he slips off the bed, delicately lifting me.
“Call me when you’re done.”
Humiliation flames on my face when he sets me on the toilet.
“Baby, let it go,” he says kindly.
“Can you roll the chair close? I want to brush my teeth and wash my face again.”
“Call me and I’ll get you in it.”
“I practiced this afternoon with Maya. It should be fine.”
“Okay, call me and I’ll watch to make sure you don’t stumble. You’ve been on some heavy drugs.” He shuts me in.
When I’m done, I use my good foot to hook the wheelchair seat and roll it forward. It makes a dragging noise and there’s a knock on the door.
“Poppy, you ready?”
“Fucking chair and linoleum floors,” I mutter under my breath. “Yes.”
He comes back in, eyes the chair, and shakes his head. “Okay, badass, let’s see.” His arms cross his chest, but I know he’s ready to lunge if I wobble.
Slowly, I balance and swing into the seat, landing with a thud.
“Good job, maybe next time you’ll remember to lock it so it doesn’t roll backward.”
“Smartass.”
He spins me to the sink and peers at me through the mirror, his lips curving upward. “Glad to know your sass is back.”
“Did I lose it?”
“Not to me.”
My eyes go back to my reflection. “I hate this hospital gown. It’s gross, frumpy, and the thought it's been worn by others freaks me out.”
He bends out of the doorway, and his arm disappears, bringing back one of his t-shirts. “We’ll change you.”
“Not allowed.”
“Anyone who says something, I’ll handle it. But my guess is the nurses don’t give a shit tonight.”
It takes less than two seconds for me to untie and whip the scratchy material off, rip the shirt out of his hand, and slip it over my head.
Instantly, some tension leaves my shoulders. His eyes go soft and he kisses the top of my head.
“Evin, you may need to put on a shirt, too.” I admire his naked chest.
“Unnecessary, these nurses have already come in.”
“No wonder they won’t reprimand me for breaking the rules. One look at you would stupefy even Nurse Ratchet.”
He chuckles, leaving me alone.
While I go through my routine the best I can, I notice the bathroom is now filled with both our things. His favorite soap is next to my body wash, his toothbrush in the cup, a shaving kit stuffed on the back shelf. My perfect, beautiful, unshakable husband is here for the long haul, and the urge to cry hits again.
I suck in a few deep breaths and tie my hair back before maneuvering the chair back to the side of the bed. Evin’s arranging the pillows, his back to me, but when he turns, I can’t help the squawk that escapes. My rings are hanging around his neck on a thin chain.
He has me in his arms and back in the bed, this time with me across him and my braced leg propped on the railing. “You tired, or up for talking?”
“Talking.” My voice is raspy as my fingers go to my rings.
“Where is your head, baby?”
“Everywhere. I’m confident in Dr. Rexwell’s team; Dante researched him, too. My leg is screwed up.”
“That’s the shit you spew to your friends.”
I stare deep into his eyes, pouring out the undeniable truth. “I’m petrified more than ever in my life. My career on stage is over, Evin. This team of doctors can reconstruct my tendons, but they will always be compromised. My liability is too great to ever fly in someone’s arms and land again without fear,” I choke out, tears coming hard. “Not one professional dancer with my injuries has come back full force. This is it. My swan song. I went out sooner than I expected and it terrifies me.”