My other hand reaches for her hair, tucking her walnut-colored locks behind her ear and out of her face. Taking her features in closely for the first time, I notice just how breathtaking she truly is. And broken too, if the discolored bruise marring her face is any indication as to what she deals with. Her skin’s pale for her tanned complexion. She’s mixed heritage, but I have no idea what exactly. Trailing my fingers through her hair, I whisper, “What happened to you?” Stupid question, but my curiosity has my mind spinning. I should text the brothers and let them know I didn’t get far from the compound, but I can’t bring myself to stop holding and caring for her. She needs me, and I’m not ready to let her go just yet.
“I’m Casey, or Spin. You can call me whatever you want, so long as you shake out of this and show me your pretty eyes. The baby’s fine. I felt it move, so you just concentrate on waking up and not stressing too much. You don’t have to worry about a thing. I got you. Just ask my younger sister, Mercy Mae. I won’t let anything bad happen, especially to a woman. I’m not cool with that.”
She’s not responding at all, and who knows if she can hear me. If there’s a chance, I want to put her mind at ease. Checking my watch again, it says six minutes have passed. A short amount of time under normal circumstances, but it feels like an hour in this case. It’s crazy how time can either slow down or speed up when you’re worried about something important.
It’s silent out here in the middle of nowhere between the clubhouse and the next town, aside from me talking aloud and a few random birds making noises. Although there aren’t as many birds as usual because it’s winter. Just thinking of that word makes me shiver with the miserable chill. I wasn’t made for the cold, that’s for damn sure. “I’m not typically much of a talker. It’s usually the other way around. I tattoo people and they talk my fucking ears off. Oops, sorry for cussing. I’m sure the baby doesn’t need to hear it. Anyway, as I was saying, it’s people jabbering on and on or asking me a million questions. They’re paying me, so I can’t exactly tell them Google’s their friend and to use it, you know?”
Sighing, I shake my head and place my palm on her forehead. I have no idea what I’m doing, but I feel like it may be appropriate. She’s cool to the touch. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or a bad thing, and this ambulance is taking forever to get here. The baby kicks my hand again, reassuring me they’re both hanging on. Flicking my gaze up to the cloudy, gloomy sky, I murmur a quick thank-you that the baby is still responding to me.
“You hold on, Little Momma. Help is on the way, and I’m not leaving you in the meantime. Snuggle up to me and get warm. My big body should be good for blocking out some of the cold. You’re not from around here, are you?” I’d recognize her face in a heartbeat if she was, and so would my brothers. She’s the type of beauty you see and never forget. The kind of woman you’d move mountains for. So what in the fuck is she doing with a mark on her face?
My watch says it’s been eight minutes. I should’ve called one of the brothers to come get us. I could’ve loaded her up and had them take my bike while I hauled ass to the emergency room. Why didn’t I think of that when I found her? There’s no way I’d make it there before they arrive now, but still, hurry the hell up already. I inhale deeply, then exhale my silent panic and collect myself. There’s no use in both of us being out of it. One of us has to have their shit together, and it’s definitely not her right now.
Finally, the faint sound of sirens fills the air, and I have a bit more hope. “See, they’re almost here. They’ll take good care of you. You’ll get better, pop out a healthy baby, then stop by my shop sometime so I can lay eyes on you both. I’ll even tattoo a sweet little footprint or handprint on you somewhere with the baby’s name.” She’d probably take one look at me and turn in the opposite direction. Too bad because she’s someone I’d certainly like to see more of. There’s no ring on her finger or any significant jewelry I can find, so who knows? She may be single. If she wasn’t before, hopefully she is now after the injury on her face.
I’ll never understand how a man can hit a woman. I don’t care how angry you are—you protect them, not hurt them. It’s been ten minutes, and I can’t stop staring at her. I feel like I know her, yet she hasn’t said one word. Ten minutes on the side of the road, holding someone while simultaneously praying they’ll be okay, is both the longest and shortest time you have with them. She may not have said anything to me, but it’s long enough for me to meet her baby and to notice all the tiny freckles she has in random spots. There’s even one near the top corner of her lip. It’s ridiculously sexy, but I’m not trying to go there right now.
The sirens become louder, the ambulance is finally close enough for me to see it and watch as it speeds down the road toward us. The baby starts shifting around again, and I lightly rub. “Don’t worry. They’re here to help your momma. It’ll be noisy for a while, but then it’ll calm down again, and you can rest.” I’d stand to greet the EMTs, but I don’t want to jostle the woman or make her lose any of the heat I’ve been able to give her.
Both guys quickly jump out, waving. I know them both, one better than the other, from when my brothers have been hurt. Usually, 2 Piece fixes us all up, but on occasion, we have to call an ambulance or go straight to the local clinic for help.
“Spin, what’s up, man?” the medic greets, and I nod. He grabs his bag and comes toward us while putting on his latex gloves. The other guy roots around in the back of the vehicle, getting the stretcher ready.
“Hey, thanks for coming.”
“Does she have a latex allergy?” he begins as soon as he’s close enough not to yell and continues to pepper questions. “Was she with you? Did she pass out riding?”
Shaking my head, I bite down on my lip, uneasy about the fact that I don’t know how she ended up out here or how long she’s been like this. “Nah, I found her. She was lying in the middle of the road, unconscious. I pulled her to the side and wrapped her in my blanket to try and warm her up.”
“Do you know anything about her? Name, age, where she lives?”
“Nothing. I’ve never seen her before,” I reply bluntly, wishing I did know something about her to share.
“Nothing? You have a penchant for saving women, huh?”
The last woman I helped, I thought she was “the one,” but she wasn’t. Saved her from a shitty situation, but I was too late. She ended up needing to be admitted to a psych ward for an evaluation and never came back out. Life fucked her world up pretty damn good.
“Look, man, the only thing I know is it took you guys ten minutes to get here, and they were probably the longest ten minutes of my fucking life.” I grumble, then wince. Shit. “Sorry for cussing, little baby.” I rub her pregnant belly again, catching a quizzical look from the medic.
Shrugging, I rationalize. “The baby doesn’t need to hear the cussing.”
He lifts his brows in surprise, but then nods, going about checking the woman over. “This your baby?”
“No, I don’t know her,” I repeat, thinking he’s starting to test me. He must not believe this was all a chance encounter.