Embattled Home

Embattled Home Read Free Page B

Book: Embattled Home Read Free
Author: J.M. Madden
Tags: Romance, Contemporary, Military, romantic suspense
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hall, he talked to the nurse on duty. He was granted a little leeway with information when he flashed his investigator’s badge. Lora would be released the next day at 11 o’clock, as long as the doctor thought she was able. Chad promised to be back then and headed out the door.

Chapter Two

    A t ten-thirty the next morning, Chad waited outside Lora’s room. The smell of the antiseptic fumes had hit him as soon as he’d walked in the front door, making him pause as emotions tried to swamp him. It had taken serious effort to make his legs move and remind himself who he was here for. Not for one of his guys. Not for him. Lora.
    Nurses had been bustling in and out and he was sure one of them had told her he was there. He made it a point to smile congenially at everybody that went in, in spite of their leery looks. They knew what Lora had been admitted for, but they didn’t know what her ex looked like.
    Chad understood their hesitation. And appreciated it. There was no way to prove he wasn’t her ex unless they asked Lora outright.
    So he cooled his heels, waiting till he thought she would be getting ready to go. At quarter till, he knocked on her door and stepped in.
    Lora’s injuries didn’t look any better in the light of day. Her un-swollen eye narrowed in on him sharply. “Why are you here? I thought you understood I didn’t need your help.”
    Chad shrugged, trying not to be put off by her demeanor. Honestly, he couldn’t blame her for feeling bitchy. If he were in her position he would feel that way too. It wasn’t like she had oodles of help.
    “I do. I just thought I’d give you a ride home so we could talk about a few things.”
    Pushing to her feet, she grabbed the railing of the bed to steady herself. “I really don’t think we have anything to talk about.”
    Chad hated to be the bearer of bad news. “Derek bonded out this morning.”
    A frantic look passed through her eyes before she straightened her spine. “Good for him. I need to get home.”
    He stepped forward one step. “I know you do. My car is right in front.”
    The hesitation was obvious on her face. She wanted to get home to be with her daughter, but she wasn’t sure if she could trust him or not.
    “Have you called for a ride yet?”
    She pursed her lips, but winced when the split puckered. “No,” she admitted. “I thought the security guard could call me a cab.”
    Chad held out a plastic Wal-Mart bag. “I got you a pair of sweats. I didn’t think the squad grabbed anything for you on the way out the door.”
    For a long moment, Lora just stood and stared at the swinging gray bag in his hand as if it were a snake. “Lora, you don’t want to have to walk into the house in the bloody gown you left in.”
    She frowned. “I think they may have thrown the thing away in the emergency room. There wasn’t much left to it. One of the nurses was going to find me a pair of scrubs or something.”
    He set the bag on the end of the bed within her reach. “Now you don’t have to wear somebody else’s clothes.”
    She glanced at him from beneath her dark lashes. The purpling around her left eye was complete, although some of the swelling had receded, and Chad fought to keep the anger off his face. She’d been through so much and if he had only moved quicker, she wouldn’t be here at all.
    She reached out and took the bag. “I’ll pay you back when we get to the house.”
    Chad nodded once. If she wanted to pay her way, that was fine. “I’ll wait outside for you.”
    Within just a few minutes, a nurse arrived with her discharge paperwork. Then an orderly arrived and parked a wheelchair outside her room, knocking. Lora appeared in the pink sweats. Chad was impressed with himself. They fit her perfectly. She’d also put on the flimsy little tennis shoes he’d gotten her, but he could tell by the way she shuffled that they didn’t fit her correctly.
    She eyed the wheelchair belligerently. “I can walk.”
    The orderly smiled

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