Quincy

Wave offered to take Bianca down to the pool with her, giving me a little time to decompress after work. It was a long day of studying every Society member’s files. Tomorrow, I’ll be going over the ones for their family members. I don’t need to memorize them all, but it’s good to be familiar with the medical histories of all your potential patients.

After a long, hot shower, I slide on some comfy lounge pants and a soft t-shirt before making my way downstairs. I hear the splashing and laughter once I open the glass doors, and can’t help but smile at the sight before me.

Cohen is doing a handstand on the deck as the kids dance around him. When they get a little too rowdy, he flips to his feet. “Alright you little mermaids and mermen, let’s hit the showers.”

The kids groan, but do as they’re told and make their way to the outdoor showers ringing the pool. I’m walking toward Bianca when it happens. Cohen catches his foot on someone’s flipflop, the shoe slides forward and he hits the deck hard. It all happens in seconds, the crack of his head hitting concrete loud enough to have me running.

“Daddy!” I hear a little boy yell. I barely register Knox swooping him up as I reach Cohen.

Head wounds bleed more than anything else, and I know it looks bad. Hopefully, it’s not nearly as bad as it looks. He’s out cold as I gingerly feel around his head. Waverly’s at my side with towels, and a full medical kit less than a minute later.

“The cut isn’t large. I’ll need to give him a few stitches, but that’s not what I’m worried about.”

“I know,” she tells me, handing me some gloves, and one of the small medical scanners Ken taught me to use yesterday. Right now, I’m thankful more than ever for the technology Matt and Reina pay for.

“Damn it,” I say on an exhale, noting the concussion and how the tissue around his brain has swelled.

“Another concussion?”

I take out the small razor, and careful shave and sterilize the area around his cut while I fill her in. “Yes. After I stitch him up, we need to get him in a bed where he can be monitored. He’ll wake up in a few hours, because it’s not that bad, but I’d still feel better if we kept an eye on him.”

“Any bed in any apartment here has that capability,” she tells me as I direct her to turn his head slightly while I glove up again after opening one of the suture kits.

“A hospital would be better.”

“Not for Shane. He’s freaking out right now, and seeing Cohen in a hospital bed will only make it worse. Coh would lose his mind if he finds out his son had to suffer more than necessary.”

I take out the threaded needle, and get to work. “I didn’t know he had a son. Can his mother come, and get him?”

“She’s in jail, so no.”

“Oh.”

“It’s a story for another time. I can stay with him overnight.”

“No. You should stay with his son. I’ll keep watch over Cohen.”

“You sure?’

“Yes.”

I talk with the security guards who’ve assembled, helping them get Cohen onto the stretcher. My top is covered in Cohen’s blood, and I’ll need another shower, but I can finally blow out a breath of relief that it’s not as bad as it could’ve been.

A tug on my pants has me looking down. The little boy with tears in his eyes is a miniature Cohen, right down to the hairstyle he’s sporting. I drop to my knees in front of him.

“Is daddy okay?”

“Yes. When people get a cut on their head it bleeds a lot. I know that’s scary, but I promise it’ll be okay. His hair might look funny in back, but I stitched him up.”

“He no wake up.”

“Not yet, but he will.”

“Promise?”

Because I can, I do. “Yes. I’m going to stay with him until he wakes up.”

“Thanks you. I’m Shane,” he tells me, holding out his hand.

I shake it with a smile. “You’re welcome. You can call me Q.”

“Like the letter?”

“Yep.”

“Cool.”

We hold hands all the way up to their apartment. I’m not surprised when I see it look like the ocean inside, but Bianca is beside herself.

“Are we staying here tonight, Mommy? I love it!”

“If you don’t mind hanging out on one of the couches, then yes, you can stay here tonight.”

“I’ll keep an eye on Coh while you shower and grab your stuff. We can swap when you get back,” Waverly tells me.

“I’ve got the kids,” Knox adds. “Grilled cheese for everyone!”

“Thanks. I won’t be long.”

True to my word, I’m back in the apartment in less than half an hour. Knox hands me a plate of sandwiches, and I settle in with my Kindle onto Cohen’s bed. It’s huge, and there’s plenty of room, so why not let myself be comfortable?

* * *

Cohen

I wake up with a raging headache and a sexy doctor in my bed. Sadly, she’s fully clothed and I’m pretty sure I’ve been injured.

“This isn’t how I hoped to get you into my bed, Quince.”

“I’m only sitting here because it looked more comfortable than the chair over there.”

“What happened to me?”

“A wayward flipflop, and a hard and wet deck.”

“It’s not fair for you to say ‘hard’ and ‘wet’ together in a sentence when I don’t think I can even sit up right now.”

“You asked.”

“Are you flirting with me?” It feels like she is, and she didn’t correct me when I called her by my nickname for her.

“I shouldn’t be.”

“But you are.”

“Stop smirking.”

I start to laugh, but wince as a wave of pain hits me. Quincy glides off the bed to stand on the other side of me. She has a little device in her hand and she moves it over my head.

“What’s the verdict?”

“The swelling is going down already. I had some pain meds sent up,” she tells me, handing me the pills along with a bottle of water.

“Will these make me sleep again?”

“Yes.”

“Will you be here when I wake up?”

“I will.”

“I make a good pillow if you need one.”

“I have to stay awake, and our kids are here.”

Shit. How did I not think of that? “Shane saw? Of course he saw. Where is he?”

I try to get out of bed, only to have her catch me when I stumble. “He’s asleep. Knox and Wave are in camping out in his room, and Bianca’s on the couch. I told him you’d be okay, and he believes me.”

“Thanks. He’s too little to have to deal with this.”

“Kids are resilient.”

“I guess.”

“I know.”

“Okay.”

“He’s a mini you, and it’s just adorable.”

“Are you calling me adorable, Quince.”

“Quincy, and no—Shane is adorable. You, well you’re too good-looking.”

“Is that a thing?”

“When a man plays on his looks, it definitely is.”

“I’m humble about other things.”

“You’ll have to show me.”

“All it took was a new concussion to get you to give me a chance?”

“I was going to give you a chance before I saw you in the hall yesterday. I already told you that.”

“Shit. I told you I was stressed about the scan, and thinking I’d never have a chance with you. She offered, but nothing more than what you saw happened.”

“I’m not a casual hook-up kind of woman. I don’t think I could share a man. Actually, I know I couldn’t.”

“How long has it been since you split up from Bianca’s dad?”

“The first time, or the last?”

“Wave made it seem like there’s a story there.”

“There is. Take your meds, and when you wake up, we’ll swap stories.”

“I’d like that.”

I’ve never opened up to a woman who wasn’t my mom—or Waverly. With Quincy, it doesn’t feel weird. I don’t know why, but it just doesn’t. Maybe I’m making a mistake. Maybe I’m not. Only time will tell.