Chapter 26 — Reed

Reed blinked a few times and opened his eyes. Slowly, he looked around his surroundings, confused as to where he was. Narrowing his eyes against the bright light, he heard the sound of a machine beeping next to him. His head felt woozy and as he slowly turned to the right, he noticed the tubes connected to his arm.

What the hell is going on?

Reed tried his best to focus. The last thing he remembered was sitting outside at the campfire with Preston. He squeezed his eyes shut, willing his memory to come back. All of sudden, like a speeding train, images filled his mind. Reed’s heart began to thump and he gasped.

Logan!

Reed remembered his beer tasting funny and the next thing he knew, he was lying down inside the tent. He recalled Preston was acting really weird and said some strange things… his memory was returning—he recalled Preston holding a knife… Logan bursting into the tent and them shouting at each other.

Reed’s eyes began to sting with unshed tears. He needed to get out of here and find out where Logan was!

Frantically, he started to pull out the tubes, wanting to get out of there and find Logan as soon as possible. The machines started to go crazy but all Reed could think about was getting to Logan.

What if Preston hurt him? What did Preston do with that knife?

A nurse burst into the room and her eyes widened in horror at seeing him flail around. She rushed across the room.

“Sir, please, you need to calm down.”

Reed looked up at her with wide eyes. "Where is Logan? Please take me to Logan. I need to see him now.”

She grabbed his hand to stop from pulling out the tape. "Mr. Luxe, stop, you’ll hurt yourself. Please, calm down.”

Reed began to cry. Big sobs escaped from his chest, until he found it hard to breathe. The nurse’s face softened.

"Please try and breathe, come on, big deep breaths.”

She demonstrated what she wanted him to do, breathing in and out at a steady pace, and Reed mimicked her. His pulse started to slow down a little, although he wasn't going to calm down until he laid eyes on Logan.

“Good, dear. That's better. Mr. Price is in surgery. He'll be out soon but he's okay.”

“In surgery?" Reed whispered the words, his eyes widened with fear.

The nurse nodded. “Yes, he suffered a stab wound to his thigh, but thankfully it only grazed his femoral artery. Still, it was a deep wound and it needed to be stitched up. He’s going to be okay, but he was a very lucky man tonight."

Reed’s heart thumped so loudly at the news, he thought it would explode out of his chest.

Logan was stabbed. The love of my life. And it was all because of me!

Reed roughly dried his eyes. “When's he out of surgery? I want to see him.”

“You won't be able to see him tonight. You also need to get some rest and let us get the Rohypnol out of your system."

Reed’s eyes snapped to her. “Wait, you said Rohypnol?

She nodded. “Yes, I’m afraid you consumed a drink which was spiked with it—by quite a bit, actually.”

Reed’s mouth dropped open in shock. Fucking Preston.

“And besides,” she continued as she went about reattaching his tubes, “Mr. Price will be in recovery for the rest of the night. You won't be able to see him either way.”

"Can I see him tomorrow? Please… he’s my boyfriend and I love him.”

She smiled sympathetically. “I’ll make sure you get a chance to see him as soon as you can.”

“Thank you.” Reed began to feel his thumping heart begin to calm down and the machine reflected the sound.

“My parents?”

“They’re outside, with your friend, Marie. I’ll let them know you’re awake and they can visit for a few minutes.”

Physically, Reed felt a lot better the next morning. His parents and Marie were very tearful and shocked about what happened to both him and Logan and the fact that Preston was now in police custody.

They also fit the missing pieces of the puzzle for him, feeling proud at how Misty and Buddy helped to save Logan's life. Apparently, Buddy had run off and led the cops to where they were as soon as they arrived on the property. Of course, by this time, everyone was also awake.

Reed was desperate to get to Logan, though, and barely picked at his breakfast. Thankfully the nurse from the night before, Joanna, was still on duty for another hour. She came into the room with a smile on her face but then frowned as she saw his uneaten breakfast.

"Mr. Luxe, you need to get your strength up. You need to eat some of this breakfast."

Reed shook his head stubbornly. "How am I supposed to eat when the love of my life is in here somewhere and I don't have the chance to see with my own eyes that he’s okay?"

He looked at her with pleading eyes. "Please, Joanna, take me to him, even for just a few minutes.”

Joanna looked at him and must have seen how desperate he was. She nodded her head. "Come on. Are you okay to walk or do you need a wheelchair?"

Reed swung his feet over the side of the bed and quickly found his equilibrium. "I'm fine. I’d run if I could."

Reed followed the nurse down the hall and then into the elevator to the next floor. They walked along the hall and then finally came to room where she stopped. “He’s in there. He’s woken up and despite being a little uncomfortable with the pain, his vitals are fine."

Impulsively, Reed bent down and kissed her cheek. “Thank you, Joanna.”

She smiled and backed away as Reed pushed open the door.

The first thing he saw was Logan lying on the bed, his right leg exposed and his thigh wrapped in bandages. Hooked up to the EKG machine, Reed was happy to hear that it was beating steadily.

Logan’s eyes fluttered open and fixed on Reed. A slow smile spread across his face.

Reed's heart filled with joy. “Logan.” He rushed across the room and stood on the left-hand side, carefully throwing his arm around Logan's neck.

Logan reached up with his arm and wrapped it around him. “Hey, stranger."

Reed was so relieved to see him that he started to sob. “Oh my God, I thought… I thought…” He couldn’t finish his sentence. He couldn't think about it.

Pulling away, he peppered Logan’s face and mouth with kisses, covering him with his tears.

“It’s okay, baby. I’m okay. How are you feeling?”

Reed pulled away, wiping his face. “I’m fine. I was just so worried about you.” His eyes filled with more tears. “I swear to God, if anything happened—”

He was silenced as Logan pulled his mouth to his and crushed his lips against him.

It was the most beautiful kiss of Reed’s life—nothing was held back between them as they poured every emotion into it.

When they finally pulled away, Logan’s eyes were also shining.

“I love you, Reed Luxe. I don’t plan on going anywhere, anytime soon.”

Reed grinned at him. “Amen to that.”

Logan shuffled over a little and looked at Reed mischievously. “Get your ass in here.” He pushed away the sheets.

“Really? Should I? What if the nurses find us?”

“Fuck the rules. I’ve lived with them all my life.”

Reed chuckled. “You’re such a rebel, Logan Price.” Still, he slipped off his hospital slippers and slid in beside him.

Logan lifted his arm and placed it around Reed, snuggling him against his chest.

In that moment, Reed knew that there was a reason he believed in fairytales.