Beautifully Shattered (The Beautifully Series Book 1) (4 page)

Like my brother, Jax
treats me as if I’m a porcelain doll as he maneuvers me in the car.
By the time he has the buckle in place I’m covered in goosebumps
and it’s not from the cold. Jax is so close, but still so many
miles away from me.

After making sure that
I’m comfortable in the back, Logan surprises me by manning the
wheel. He hardly drives since the accident. He utilizes his massive
amounts of money and has a full-time driver. I feel his fear
resembles mine in a way, even if he wasn’t there that dreadful
night.

I nearly groan when Jax
settles himself next to me and Connor slides into the passenger seat.
I was hoping that Connor would sit with me. It would be easier to
keep my distance from Jax. When we finally arrive at the hospital,
Connor rushes to snag a wheelchair for me while the rest of us wait
in the car.

Logan breaks the
silence. “You didn’t think to call us?”

I turn to face the
window. “No, I was a little preoccupied. Besides, I knew you three
would make a big deal out of this.” I wave my hand down my body.

Luckily, Connor returns
with the wheelchair before Logan or Jax can respond.

“All right, Addie,
you know the drill,” Connor says.

Jax picks me up like
I’m a child and sets me in the chair. I breathe my first breath of
fresh air since being in his arms. Being so close to him yet so far
away is torture.

I sigh dramatically for
his benefit. “Oh, well thank you, kind sir. I don’t know how I
would have made it the whole half a step to the wheelchair without
you.”

Someone clutches my
hand. I look up and smile at Connor. His tall frame bends slightly so
that he can continue to hold my hand while Logan steers me towards
the automatic doors. I watch Connor as we near the entrance. Not for
the first time, I wish that I felt something for him besides
friendship. It would be so much easier to be in love with the blond
stud squeezing my hand, but of course I consider him a brother. He
brushes his long hair behind his ears. It’s only then that I
realize his wrist is missing the pink hair-tie I gave him earlier.
Without saying anything, I give him the extra I keep on my wrist just
for him. He smiles appreciatively as he gathers his shoulder-length
hair into one of those manly ponytails at the bottom of his head.

My anxiety rises the
closer I’m wheeled to the hospital’s doors. Ever since the
accident, I avoid them. Well, I try to at least; me being
accident-prone doesn’t help with my fear since the guys always
insist on me seeing a doctor. Logan wheels me into the crowded
Emergency Room at New York Presbyterian Hospital, oblivious that I’m
dying inside.

Jax walks up to the
counter like he owns the place. Flashing the receptionist his
trademark smile he says, “I need to have someone look at my friend
Adalynn Maxwell. She hit her head pretty badly and we’re worried
she might have a concussion.”

He’s so charming it
should be illegal. The lady doesn’t shift her focus from the
computer screen; apparently there are women immune to Jax’s charm.
That’s just
too
bad. Really, my heart breaks for him.

“You’re going to
need to fill this out and wait in the waiting room like everyone
else.” She hands him a clipboard with the paperwork attached. When
Jax doesn’t make a move for it, Connor is forced to seize it.

“I didn’t introduce
myself earlier, my apologies. I’m Jaxon Chandler, as in the owner
of Trinity. Which happened to give the largest donation this year at
the pediatric fundraising event last week.”

He doesn’t even wait
for the light bulb to go off. I’m surprised how fast she recognizes
the name of their company. Understanding dawns on me when I glance
around. The new self-help posters have the Trinity logo in the lower
left corner. What doesn’t their company dabble in these days?

“I would like Miss
Maxwell in a private room and to be seen by the best neurologist.”

She’s already
standing and walking around the counter. She might be immune to Jax’s
charm, but she doesn’t want to piss off their biggest paycheck. I
doubt their CEO, who I know just went golfing with Logan, would be
happy to hear from a fuming Jax. I have to try extremely hard not to
laugh at her sudden willingness to help. It’s hilarious how
name-dropping can change people, even in a hospital, where it
shouldn’t matter.

“Of course, sir. I
can have someone show you to Miss Maxwell’s room right away.
Unfortunately you will have to see the on-call doctor, as our head of
neurology has the night off. I assure you Miss Maxwell will be in
good hands.”

Connor groans with me.
Jax ignores both of us. She couldn’t have just kept quiet, could
she? No, it’s not like she would have known that Jax isn’t a man
to be deterred. I tremble when he slams his strong hands on the
counter. He glares at her as if she just said the most outrageous
thing in the history of the world.

“That’s
unacceptable. I want the best. Make it happen or do I need to call
Don?” He reads her name tag. “Mrs. Adams?”

“My apologies, sir.
I’ll have someone take her for all the tests while you wait for the
doctor. It might take awhile longer since this is his only day off
this week.”

Mrs. Adams calls over a
nurse to manage the desk before snatching the wheelchair from Logan.
The guys are forced to hurry along after us to catch up. I have to
hand it to Mrs. Adams, she doesn’t just take it lying on her back.
Go her! I pick imaginary lint off my bright orange leggings as Mrs.
Adams silently pushes me. I stare straight ahead as we pass through
the doors that she has to use a keycard to access. The urge to break
the silence is overwhelming.

“I’m sorry about
him. He’s harmless, by the way,” I tell her as she wheels me into
a room.

“Yeah, he’s like a
rabid dog without teeth.” I turn just in time to see Jax slap the
back of Connor’s head. “Ow!”

I can tell from her
tight smile that Mrs. Adams wishes she were anywhere else right now.
Can’t say that I blame her. She starts to help me from the chair,
but Jax pushes her out of the way.

“I got her.”

My jaw drops. He needs
to stop acting this way in front of Logan. I force myself not to
react to his closeness as he lifts me up before gently laying me in
the bed.

“Your nurse will be
right in.” Mrs. Adams inches her way closer to the door.

“You’re not my
nurse?” I ask, surprised.

After a shake of her
head, she slips out the door.

“Jax, any doctor
would have been fine.” I let my annoyance show in my voice. “I’m
pretty sure they all went to medical school, but who knows, some
might have gone to clown school.”

Jax ignores me as he
makes a point of walking over to Logan, who’s leaning against the
far wall across from the bed. I’m still irritated that I’m here
when a male nurse knocks on the door. He couldn’t have come at a
better time. Being here is making my entire body tense. Pretty soon
I’m going to snap. Hopefully nobody is here to witness it.

Forty-five minutes
later I have my ankle re-wrapped. Just a bad sprain, thank goodness;
I just have to wait for the doctor to go over my CT scan. I survey
the room for Jax, but he’s missing. I want to ask where he’s
gone, but I don’t want to clue in Logan to my feelings for his best
friend. Talk about awkward.

“Don’t be so hard
on them, Addie,” Connor says, “You know they’re both just
worried.”

I frown at my best
friend, hating that he’s right. He’s known me my entire life, and
he’s usually the one who makes those two see reason when it comes
to me. He’s like another big brother. I love him even if he annoys
me 99 percent of the time.

I stare at Logan as he
types away on his phone, probably responding to the thousand of
emails he receives daily. As I inspect him closer I notice the
shadows under his eyes. Without asking, I know he didn’t sleep last
night. Most likely he was restless like me, remembering everything we
lost. But unlike me, he doesn’t have the gory, haunting memories I
do. I’m glad as my brother doesn’t deserve to suffer like me.
He’s innocent.

“I know, Connor. I’m
not mad at them. I just wish Jax didn’t make a big deal out of
this. Between the two of them, I don’t know who’s worse.”

His twin dimples are
prominent. “If you haven’t noticed, Jax likes to make a show out
of everything when it comes to you.” Before I can say anything, he
quickly changes the subject. “Have you picked your dress for the
Masquerade Ball yet or are you—” He breaks off when there’s a
soft knock on the door.

We all turn to see a
tall, muscular doctor with sandy blond hair that just can’t seem to
stay in the right place. Tonight is getting better and better.

“What are you doing
here?” I ask even though I know the answer.

He’s wearing a white
lab coat with his endearing smile. “I got called in for a possible
concussion.” He shrugs as if it’s no big deal. It is.

I stare wide-eyed at
Kohen. Then at my confused brother. Logan moves to my side. I know
overprotective brother syndrome is emerging, fast.

“Have you two met?”
he asks me but his focus is solely on Kohen.

I can tell Kohen
interprets Logan’s question as innocent. Logan knows everyone in my
life. I already know he is itching to place a call to his PI to
investigate Kohen. Being the gentleman that he’s shown me he is,
Kohen steps forward and extends his hand to Logan and then to Connor.

“Yes, we met earlier
this evening at the gym. I was the one who bandaged her up and
insisted that Adalynn seek medical attention. However, Adalynn is a
little stubborn and refused to go until her boyfriend came in and
rescued her.”

“Boyfriend?” Logan
asks, baffled, at the same time Connor says, “Don’t we know it.”

Luckily Kohen is
studying my CT scans so he’s not paying much attention to them. I
notice that his smile slips for a second. I can feel Logan’s gaze
on me, but I don’t acknowledge him. He shouldn’t have to ask
about the boyfriend comment; he knows I’m unattached.

“There’s no
swelling, or anything else to be concerned about, but I would still
like to check your balance, reflexes, coordination, vis—”

I interrupt him as I
know exactly what he has to do. “Vision, and any possible memory
loss.”

He doesn’t seem
surprised that I am familiar with the examination. Maybe he realizes
I’m accident-prone. That could be a new thing that shows up on CT
scans now.

He pulls out a silver
looking pen that I recognize as a flashlight. “Look to the left,
good. Now the right, good. Follow the light with your eyes please.”

“Well?” Logan ask
impatiently once Kohen finishes testing my reflexes.

Kohen turns to my
pacing brother. “I need to check her balance next and then I’ll
be done.”

“Is she going to be
okay?” Logan asks, ignoring the fact that the examine isn’t over.
“Yes, she has a slight concussion but she’ll be fine.” He
focuses on me again. “Stand up, please.”

I do everything he
asks, wishing with each command that we were alone so he wouldn’t
have to deal with the my brother. He’s already had to come in on
his day off. I want to make this as easy as possible for him, and him
receiving the third degree from my brother isn’t easy for anyone in
the room.

His back is to the door
when Jax swaggers in and Connor decides to make matters worse. I have
no idea how I’m even surprised by anything that he says. I should
be used to it by now, but not even a lifetime with this guy can
prepare me for what comes out of his mouth.

“Oh, look here’s
the boyfriend now.” He tilts his head toward Jax.

“I’ll hide your
body where nobody will ever find it,” I mutter only loud enough for
Connor to hear.

“Boyfriend? Ahh
Connor I’m touched, but baby you’re not my type.”

Kohen looks from Connor
to Jax, then finally to me. Connor and Logan aren’t even trying to
hide their grins now while Jax is momentarily surprised to see Kohen
again.

“Kohen, meet Jaxon
Chandler. He’s another childhood friend of my brother’s.” I try
to assure him that he isn’t my boyfriend.

Kohen nods in
understanding and visibly relaxes. “Well, Adalynn, you’re ready
to go home once the discharge nurse has you sign the release papers.
You’ll need someone to check on you a few times throughout the
night. Rest that ankle for at least two weeks before you take on any
treadmills again.”

“Great, thanks again,
Kohen. Sorry you were forced to come in so late.”

My brother steps
forward and shakes his hand. “Yes, thank you for everything.”

“You’re welcome.”
He moves towards the door. “The discharge nurse will be in
shortly.”

Once the door closes,
Jax asks, “Do I even want to know about the boyfriend comment?”

Logan shakes his head,
but of course Connor decides silence isn’t necessary. “The doc is
interested in Addie so I thought it would be funny to mess with him
and let him think that you’re her boyfriend.”

Jax’s jaw tightens.
It’s the only sign that he’s fighting to stay in control. Good.
Maybe now he will notice that I’m not that broken teenager I once
was and see me as an adult.

There’s a soft knock
on the door and a male nurse enters, carrying crutches. After another
minute or two, the crutches are in Connor’s hands, and the nurse is
telling Logan where the pharmacy is to pick up my medication. Jax
broods behind me, ready to wheel me out to the car. Connor wiggles
his eyebrows at me. I glare at him and silently beg him not to do
what I know he’s about to do.

He winks as he shouts,
“Wait up!” to my brother. He hurriedly runs to catch up with
Logan, leaving me in my wheelchair with a stone-faced Jax.

Awkward seconds turn
into minutes as Jax wheels me into the waiting room. He sits down
with the wheelchair in front of him. As I people-watch, I curse
Connor for leaving me here. He could have at least taken me with him.
That prick! Out of nowhere I’m spun around so I’m facing Jax. He
leans forward and rests his chin in his hands. We’re so close,
we’re breathing each other’s air. I don’t know how long we’re
sitting here like this when I hear Connor’s laugh bouncing off the
walls. He’s obnoxious, but I love him.