"Are you sure you want to go over this now? I don't want to upset you."

"I'm sure. I'm okay, really. Just stiff and sore. Nurse says I'll be worse tomorrow."

"A truck coming up the on-ramp decided that yield meant run over the nearest car, and he rammed you right in the middle on the passenger side. Sent you spinning into traffic where, thank God, you didn't hit any other cars. You came to a stop against the concrete dividers. Your airbag didn't deploy, and you hit your head on the steering wheel."

She tentatively reached to touch her shoulder, wincing at how tender it felt. "That would explain the shoulder too." She glanced back up at him. "You saw all this?"

"Connor and I were behind you when you got hit."

"Oh."

"They say whether they're keeping you yet?"

She shook her head. "I'm waiting on the doc to go over the results of the scan. X-rays were all negative, so that's good."

"Yeah, that's great. You scared me, honey."

She allowed the endearment to roll around, even testing it silently on her tongue. It sounded good coming from him, all soft and lovey sounding almost. Nothing like the affectionate "hon" she used when talking to Faith or Serena. Coming from him, it sounded damn sexy.

"I scared myself." Then reality hit her square in the chest. "My car," she said mournfully.

"What?"

"My car. She's totaled, I bet."

He looked confused by her emphasis on the car, and she couldn't blame him. She was lucky to be alive, but damn, she loved that car.

Tears brimmed in her eyes, which really pissed her off. The last thing she wanted was to turn into a weepy mess in front of Nathan, but her car. That vehicle represented an essential part of her freedom. It was an absolute celebration of herself, warts and all. She'd bought it the day after she'd gained back her weight and grew back her self-esteem.

"Aw honey, don't cry. I'm sure if the car is totaled, the insurance will pay for a new one."

She sniffed indelicately and wondered for the hundredth time why she couldn't cry like Faith. "It won't be the same. That car was special."

It was obvious he hadn't the first clue how to respond to her, but he still hated to see her cry, which was cute. He probably thought she did have a head injury and was even now plotting his immediate escape.

"I understand. I had a car like that. Well, it was a truck actually. A 1968 Ford short bed. Was the ugliest shade of green you'll ever see. I called it the Green Machine. I rebuilt it myself from a rusty old shell I got from a junkyard. Took me a year but I was driving it to school by my senior year. Man, I loved that truck."

"What happened to it?"

His lips twitched and turned down into a frown. "What usually happens to a man's pride and joy. A woman."

She laughed at the look of disgust on his face. "Girlfriend?"

"Sister. She went a round with one of the local bulls, and needless to say she and the truck came out the loser."

"A bull? Are you serious?"

"Yeah, got out of a downed fence. Ambled across the road about the time my sister rounded a corner. She was forever getting the gas and the brake mixed up when she got flustered. She hit the gas and hit the bull like a brick wall. She broke her collarbone and her wrist. Damn lucky she didn't kill herself. My truck was a complete and utter write-off. I had a funeral for it and everything."

She grinned, knowing just how he felt. "Maybe we can give my piece of scrap metal a proper send-off to the junkyard."

"It's a date," he said solemnly.

They were interrupted by the nurse's arrival. She walked to the head of the bed holding a capped syringe. "The good news is the doc gave me the go-ahead on the pain meds, which means you're just fine. He'll be in to make it official, but we had a trauma patient come in a few minutes ago, so he'll be there for a little bit. In the meantime I'll give you this to make you more comfortable."

Julie smiled up at her. "Thanks. I appreciate that."

"Slight burn when the medicine hits your bloodstream. It should go away about the time it hits your shoulder. Then you'll be feeling no pain."

"Sounds good," Julie said faintly as she felt the slight discomfort of the medicine. Then, as the nurse predicted, she traced the sensation to just below her shoulder and a warm hum settled in.

"Nice," she murmured.

The nurse chuckled. "That's what they all say. Get some rest. I'll be back to check on you in a few."

"Nathan?"

"Right here, honey."

"You can go, you know," she said, amused by how her words slurred. "You don't have to stay with me."

She thought he frowned at her but couldn't be sure. The ceiling and his face were doing this interesting sort of swirly thing.

"You're stuck with me, so deal with it."

She laughed. "You're cute when you get all grumpy."

"Is that why you try to drive me insane? Because you think I look cute?"

"I don't think," she said dreamily. "I know. A man shouldn't be that good-looking. Makes him too cocky."

"So now you're adding cocky to my lists of attributes."

There was a thread of amusement in his voice. Was he laughing at her?

"You have a nice cock too."

"Thank you ... I think. Maybe we should talk about something else."

"Did you like having sex with me?"

He took her hand and pressed his other hand gently to her mouth.

"Well?" she asked huffily.

"Yes," he said in a resigned voice. "I enjoyed it very much. Why the hell can't I get you to talk about this stuff when you're sober?"

Was he talking to her or to himself?

"Do you and Micah have sex together often?"

"Julie!" His voice came out in a strangled, hoarse whisper. "No, the hell we don't have sex together. We had sex with you. Not with each other. Jesus Christ, woman. You're a danger to society when you're under the influence."

"That's what I meant," she huffed. "Do you two fuck the same chick together very often?"

"Julie, honey, as much as it pains me to say this, we really need to talk about this another time. Preferably when you know what the hell you're saying. Ask me these questions when you're not three sheets to the wind and I'll gladly answer them for you complete with visual aids and an in-depth description."

"Nathan?"

He sighed. "Yes?"

"I'm gonna go to sleep now."

He leaned down and carefully pushed her hair away from her face. "That's a very good idea, honey."

She literally felt her eyeballs roll back into her head as the room went black around her.

Chapter 25

Julie next opened her eyes she had the sensation of having cotton balls stuffed underneath her lids. They positively scratched across her eyes. Her mouth hadn't been spared the cotton ball treatment either.

"Oh, you're awake."

"Serena?" she croaked, turning her head toward her friend's voice.

"Yes, sweetie, it's me. How are you? Oh my God, you had me so worried."

Serena sat in a chair pulled up next to the bed, her hand curled around Julie's arm. Luminous blue eyes shone with concern, and Serena's forehead was creased with worry.

"I'm okay. Promise. Just a little stiff."

"Is there anything I can get for you, Julie?"

Julie turned to see Damon standing to the side, his eyes also mirroring his concern. It was damn nice to have friends. Good friends. People who dropped things at a moments notice when one of their friends were in need.

Damn it, she wasn't going to get all weepy again. Must be the freaking medication.

"I'd love some water," she said around her scratchy throat.

Damon pulled one of the paper cups from a canister by the sink and poured it half full with water. He went around to the opposite side of where Serena sat and carefully slid his free hand underneath Julie.

"Let me help you. Don't try to do too much at once," he murmured.

Grateful for his strength, she leaned forward and sipped hungrily at the water. When she was done, he eased her back down.

"Better?"

"A lot. Thank you so much."

He smiled at her. "No problem, Julie. Serena and I came as soon as Nathan called us."

Her forehead crinkled. "Where is Nathan, anyway?"

"Pop and Connor brought his truck, and he went down to grab something to eat with them."

She frowned. "Have I been out that long?"

Serena smiled and squeezed her hand. "Yep, several hours. Doc was by, said you were doing just fine and you could go home when you came around as long as you were feeling up to it. Scans came back okay."

"Oh, that's nice. Bed." She sighed at the thought of curling up with a soft pillow.

"You're coming home with me and Damon," Serena said firmly.

"I am?"

"You are," Damon said with a smile. "Or so Serena assures me. She's informed me you have no choice in the matter, and truly, we have plenty of room. My staff will fuss over you and spoil you endlessly. Think of it as a holiday."

"I hope you weren't trying to talk me out of it with that speech," Julie said with a tired grin. "Sounds far too marvelous to pass up."

The nurse sailed in, a middle aged doctor on her heels. "Oh good, you're awake. Have a nice nap?"

Julie smiled crookedly. "That was some good shit you gave me. I could have slept through a hurricane."

"You ready to get out of here, Miss Stanford?" the doctor asked in a distracted voice as he scribbled on his clipboard.

"Yes, sir."

"Your tests all came back fine. You'll have some swelling and residual stiffness tomorrow. Bruising too, so don't let that alarm you. I've prescribed muscle relaxers and pain relievers. A few hot baths probably wouldn't hurt, and you can ice the shoulder afterward if it bothers you too much. Follow up with your family doctor in a few days, and if you have any nausea, dizziness or sudden pain, come back to the emergency room immediately."

Julie smiled and reached for the scrips. "Thanks, doc. I appreciate it."

He smiled back and patted her arm. "Take care and stay out of traffic awhile, eh?"

"So that's it?" Julie asked when the doctor stepped out. "I can leave now?"

"Yep," the nurse said. "I need to finish writing your discharge papers. If you want to get dressed, I'll be back in just a minute to give you your copies and you can be on your way."

Julie looked down at her hospital gown. "Oh boy," she murmured.

Serena reached down and picked up a duffel bag from the floor. She held it with one finger and grinned at Julie.

Julie's shoulders sagged in relief. "What would I do without you?"

"Die a fiery death, no doubt," Serena murmured.

Julie shook her head at Damon. "She has such an ego."

Damon grinned. "I'm afraid I'm not very good at tamping down that ego of hers. I encourage it way too much."

"Oooh, Serena!" Julie latched on to her friend's hand and tugged it upward into better light. A huge diamond solitaire sparkled on her ring finger. "It's gorgeous!"

Serena beamed almost as bright as the diamond. "I know. Damon has such wonderful taste."

"Of course he does. He chose you," Julie said loyally.

"You'll get no arguments there," Damon said.

"Not that I don't love you, Damon, but if you don't mind, could you step out so I don't flash you when I crawl out of bed to get dressed?"

Damon grinned. "Not that it wouldn't be worth it to stay, but I'll slide on out and leave you girls to it. Are you sure you don't need any help? I don't want you to fall."

"Serena can help me, and if I fall flat on my face, all I ask is that someone cover my bare ass before you call for the orderlies."

Damon chuckled as he walked to the door. "I'll be sure and do that. I'll be back in a bit. I'll get the car pulled around, and I have a few phone calls to make."

"You sure you're up for this?" Serena asked doubtfully.

"You know you could always spend the night in the hospital just in case."

"They just kicked me out, Serena," Julie said with a laugh. "This isn't like a hotel. You don't get to stay unless they tell you to. Besides, hello? Going to your house. That's better than a resort. All that's missing are the really cute cabana boys. Think Damon could hook me up?"

"Damon's done enough hooking up for a while," Serena said dryly.

Julie's smiled faded. "Oh yeah, Nathan's here. I should wait until he gets back. He was so sweet to me after the accident. I don't want to go while he's eating."

"Of course not. Just take your time getting dressed. Here, let me help you."

With Serena's assistance, she struggled out of bed and when her feet hit the floor, she wobbled and weaved like a drunken bobblehead.

"Damn, either I'm still riding the effects of those drugs or my head got hit harder than I thought."