Chapter Twenty-Four

The following morning, Frankie lay in a small ward in St. Nektarios Hospital. She’d been a little sick and her head ached like hell, now that the anaesthetic she’d received before her wounds were cleaned and stitched had worn off. Ali had gone to find a nurse to get her some painkillers. Apparently, she’d got a concussion and her face was also badly bruised. Still, the head scan she’d been given hadn’t shown any bleeding in her brain. She also had a friction burn on her neck where the seat belt had grazed her. All in all, she’d got off lightly.

Perhaps her lucky escape was a sign, a wakeup call to tell her she shouldn’t be a porcupine any longer. All through the terrifying experience in the car, it had been Nik who’d been in the forefront of her mind, almost as though he was there with her…only he wasn’t. But could she change that? She’d turned him away, and he might not want to come back. But she had to try to get him back, let him know just how much she loved him. If only she could talk to him right now…

She caught sight of a tall figure approaching her bed. Her heart leapt, and she instinctively held out her hand. He’d come; he was here!

Nik grasped her fingers, warming her with his firm touch. “How are you feeling, pet hi mou?” he enquired softly. “You gave me quite a shock when I saw your car lying centimetres from a thousand-foot drop, and when I looked inside, you were lying bleeding and tangled in your seat belt.”

“Oh, I was just hanging about.” She gave him a sheepish grin, and then winced because moving her face hurt. “How is Crysanthe? I hear she is in this hospital too.”

“Yes, after we’d rescued you, Kostas and the men cleared the road and got up to his house, and they found she’d fallen and broken her hip. But she is in good spirits, and they think she will make a fast recovery.”

“I’m glad. Are Theo and Kostas okay?”

“Both are good. It seems when Crysanthe fell, Theo panicked. Instead of going up to Skalos for help, he and Até walked for over an hour down the road to Agia Kalamaros to find Kostas at the klimakia. The storm blew up and they ended up at KATS, and…well, you know the rest. Kostas was worried about who would look after Theo while his mother is incapacitated. But Alison has stepped in and offered to do it. Theo is pleased because he loves her cakes and looking after the animals at the shelter. Até will accompany Kostas on the fire engine.” Nik sat down in the chair next to her bed and surveyed her. “You have a couple of black eyes. But they have done a neat job of stitching you up.”

“The doctor explained that I had a flap of skin hanging down from my forehead. I don’t remember much after I hit my head. How did you get me out of the car?”

“With difficulty. The central locking system had jammed. But Kostas and his team did a great job of breaking the windscreen and passenger window and setting off the alarm, and then I was able to crawl in and get you out. But I had to go carefully. One false move and I could have sent us both over the edge of the cliff.”

She peered at him through her swollen lids. “You got me out?”

“Yes, oraiotatos. You were semi-conscious and moving. Once I had checked you over, I knew no bones were broken. I was able to free you, and the rest of the team helped me pass you out through the windscreen.”

“Thank you,” she breathed, awed that he had risked his own safety to save her.

“There was no way we could get an ambulance up there, so I brought you here in my car. By that time you were fully unconscious and bleeding profusely from your head wound—”

“Oh no, did I mess up your posh upholstery?”

He laughed. “What’s a little bit of blood between friends?”

She frowned and winced again. “Just friends?”

“Not just friends, but lovers. And in time…” He paused and drew her hand towards him to kiss her palm. “Husband and wife, I hope.”

Her eyes widened. “What?”

“I love you. Will you marry me?”

She leaned her head gingerly back against the pillow and shut her eyes. “My concussion must be worse than I knew. I thought I just heard you ask me to marry you.”

“Your hearing is not affected by your accident. I cannot risk losing you again. I will not lose you again. I want you to be my wife.”