Chapter Forty

Pain.

Pain is all I feel.

Pain courses throughout my body.

Pain in my stomach, my face, God, even my ass hurts. My head is throbbing and the ringing in my ears won't stop.

I hear voices, and even though I can't make out what is being said, the sound is familiar.

Come on, Sadie. Open your fucking eyes.

Suddenly, I feel my body beginning to wake up from this slumber that lasted for God knows how long. I feel the cool air brushing against my face. The uncomfortable feeling of something crammed up my nose.

What the hell is this?

There's something holding my hand. It's soothing. Someone is rubbing circles in my palm.

Let's give it a squeeze and see what happens.

Someone is holding my hand. The warm feeling sends a tingling sensation in my…what? What the hell?

Wake the fuck up, Sadie. Wake up!

"Doni." My throat is so dry and sore. Then I hear his voice.

I love the sound of his voice. It's passionate, sweet, and comforts me like a warm blanket.

"Hey." When I finally open my eyes, Doni appears before me, looking torn and broken.

What happened to you, Doni?

"You found me." I try to raise my hand to my throat. My voice is so raspy. I stare into the most vibrant blue eyes. He is my bright light guiding me

through the darkness. I heard his voice when I was floating in the depths of hell.

His voice is what kept me from going under permanently. I just knew I had to get to him, so I followed his voice.

"I will always find you." .

I reach for the scruff on his beautiful face. "You need to shave."

He laughs tenderly, leaning into my touch. A tear escapes and he shuts his eyes as I wipe it away.

Someone behind him jumps from the seat and squeals, "?Ay dios mio! She's awake. I'll go get the nurse." I'd recognize that voice anywhere.

My girl Tia.

My vision is a bit blurry, but I see a flash of movement from the corner of my eye flying through the door.

"God. I've missed you. Thank you for coming back to me." Doni's warm-hearted tone envelopes me like a security blanket.

"Thank you for leading me back to you," I whisper back in a strained voice.

"What do you mean?"

"I heard your voice. You were talking to me." His facial expression softens as he leans down and places a soft kiss on my lips.

No tongue, but it still feels good.

Tia returns with the nurse and doctor hot on her heels. The doctor explained in detail the extent of my injuries, including repairing my spleen. My vitals were stable, and my wounds were healing even though my stomach hurt like a son of a bitch.

For the past three days of being awake, my room was an open gateway of visitors. Josiah stayed by my side, and the guys, including Seb and the boys, and my girls visited me, and we played dominoes. One of our many favorite games to play growing up.

Mom was still in a coma, but her vitals were improving and the color in her face was returning to normal. Josiah explained that Dad had knocked him out before he went after Mom and me. To be honest, I can't remember what happened that night. I sat by Mom's bed on the fourth day of being awake, praying she gets out of this alive.

The doctor released me on the fifth day, and I was so happy to get the hell out of there. Doni, Ash, and Tia fussed over me, fighting over who would take me home. I didn't care who it was, as long as they had pain killers.

Doni insisted I stay with him, but I wanted to be in my own bed regardless of what happened. I'm sure to others it seems fucked up, but it's not like it's any different than before. It's not the first time Dad has attempted to kill us.

Josiah decided to move back in until Mom is able to come home. I was happy to have him back in his old room. But what I really wanted was to hold my baby girl in my arms.

When I walked into the house, the strong smell of bleach burned the inside of my nose. Tia said Doni's father hired a cleaning crew. They cleaned up the house by removing the carpet in the living room and replacing it with a plusher carpet. All the blood stains on the kitchen floor were removed. As if nothing horrible had happened that night.

"I ordered pizza." Tia lays my duffle bag on the desk chair.

"Sounds good." I lay down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling.

Tia lays down beside me. We lay there in silence. I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to think about it.

The doorbell rings and Tia jumps off the bed. "I got it!" she yells for Josiah to hear. My phone vibrates on my nightstand.

Doni: Hey.

Doni: Did you get settled?

Me: Yeah. We're about to eat pizza.

Doni: That's good.

After a few minutes, he sends another text.

Doni: When can I see you?

I keep thinking about our deal to stay away from each other to keep him safe, but Tia thinks I should back out of it. When I asked her why the change of heart, she said, "Because I see how much he cares about you, and how fucked up he was for the last two weeks. You need each other."

Doni: Please don't push me away.

So eager.

Me: I want to see you too.

Doni: Tonight?

Me: Tomorrow?

Doni: I can't wait that long. I'll come to you.

I wait a few minutes, contemplating before I respond, but he beats me to it.

Doni: You're going to make me beg, aren't you?

I chuckle. Yep.

Doni: Please?

After seeing Doni's condition when I woke up, my heart plummeted to my stomach. His face looked a bit thinner, dark circles underneath his eyes, his stubble grew into a beard, and his hair had grown a bit longer on the top. Ash told me that Doni never left my side, to the point he ended up sleeping in the bed with me.

Me: Ok.

After a night of pizza and a movie, I am ready to lay my head on the pillow and crash. Tia kisses me on the cheek and takes off. Josiah follows my lead and heads to his bedroom.

Once I'm in my room, I take a quick shower, careful not to get my bandage on my stomach wet and slip into my pjs. I decide a pair of flannel bottoms and a loose tank top will be more comfortable.

I check my phone for any missed messages. There's a group text from Wyatt, Ash, and Jag. Tia said they were at the hospital every day since the attack, wanting to be there for Doni, and I'm glad they were.

Another group text from Seb and the boys and the girls. My family keeps getting bigger and bigger.

No word from Doni. Maybe he forgot or something came up.

After Face Timing with my baby girl and swallowing two pain pills, the heaviness in my eyes drifts me away to sleep until I hear a faint tapping at from my window. After a few minutes, the sound doesn't return. I close my eyes once again until the tapping reappears. I swing my legs carefully over the bed and walk toward the window. I don't see anything until a figure jumps up in front of me and I scream.

Holding my hands to my chest, I go to open the window and wince in pain, but Doni raises a hand to stop me. He slides the window open and climbs into my bedroom.

A great sense of weariness sweeps over his handsome face.

"Hey."

"Hey."

He reaches out to me, picks me up, and lowers me on the bed. Climbing underneath the covers, Doni shuts the window and sits beside me, leaning his back against the headboard and his long thick legs cross over one another on top of the covers.

"Are you ok?" He asks.

"Yeah, just a little bit of pain."

"Did you take your pain pills?"

"Yeah, I did." I let out a yawn.

He nods in approval and reaches for my hand. He runs his thumb back and forth inside my wrist, and I swear my heart beats erratically.

"You scared the shit out of me." His words are full of pain. "I'm sorry he hurt you, Shorty."

"It's ok."

"No, it's not," he argues in a gentle tone.

"I don't want to talk about it."

"Shorty, I don't ever want to see you like that again." He swallows back a sob.

"And I don't ever want to see you broken again," I counter. "You look better with your hair cut and you shaved." I reach for his face and gently rub the back of my hand on his cheek.

"Yeah." He laughs.

We lay in the dark with only a dim glow of light coming from the lamp on my bedside table. We don't talk, just listen to each other breathing and appreciating this time of peace.

I look up to him staring at me.

"Can you please stay with me? Sleep here."

"Yeah, Shorty. I'll stay with you." He gets up from the bed, pulls off his dark gray hoodie and jeans, leaving him in a pair of black Under Armor boxer briefs. And don't get me started on his abs. All muscled, toned, and strong.

God. He's fucking sexy.

"You're staring." He's laughing at me.

"Shut up." I shove him back as he leans in, trying to get under the covers, forgetting the feeling of pain in my stomach. He continues to laugh as he wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me close to him with my back against his chest. He snuggles his nose in the crook of my neck.

Did he just sniff me?

"Are you smelling me?"

"Yep. Still smell like berries." He kisses my neck. "Is this ok? Am I hurting you?" His voice sounds full of concern.

"I'm good. Night, Doni."

"Good night, Shorty. Sweet dreams."