Davina knew she would never hear the end of it when her father gets here. Boris had been worried sick when she called him, sounding gloom. He had instantly guessed why his daughter had called and Davina could not lie. She had admitted that her ankle had gotten worse. And now she sat there, on the lounge chair, waiting for her father to come give her a scolding and then take her home. Knowing the man, he would probably take her to a hospital instead. Though, she hated to admit it but she knew a doctor was who she needed right now.

Ouch! The leg hurt so bad, she could barely move it. It throbbed and stung. She moved a trembling hand there and allowed her fingers to graze lightly at the spot that suddenly looked swollen. She hissed, eyes squeezing shut, as pain erupted from there and spread to every part of her body. Cursing under her breath, she heaved a sigh. She had never regretted her actions as much as she regret it today. Who asked her to come here? She should have stayed at home and watched television. But no. Oh no. She just had to come here looking for something against that scumbag! She should have known he had the mayor on his side. Dammit! Antonio had been right about Vulcan Alvaro after all. The man always had his way. However, she was not going to allow him have his way this time. She would fight him with everything she had.

The sudden vibration beside her, drew her attention to the phone that was lying next to her on the lounge chair. Davina quickly picked it up. Looking at the caller ID, her heart skipped a beat even as she pressed the answer button. “Dad,” she whispered slowly.

“Honey, I am going to be a little late.” Davina heard the harsh breathing of her father and asked.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, dear I am. However I can’t say the same for the other guy who swerved his car off the road to avoid colliding with me.”

A gasp tore out of a shocked Davina. Her palm covered her mouth as her pupils dilated. “You… you… Are you alright?” She stuttered, heart beating rapidly in her chest. That was when she heard the sirens in the background.

“I am going to the hospital with him.” Bruce explained. “Sorry princess. I am going to be late. But I promise to come for you as soon as I hear how he is doing. Okay?”

Davina nodded and then the call disconnected. Her hand dropped from her mouth to her chest, where her heart threatened to burst out of its cage. The shock of hearing that her father was in an accident paralysed her. Although, he was fine she was still shaken by the news. A tear glistened in her right eye and fell down on her cheek. She moved a hand to wipe it away and then quickly stuffed her phone inside her purse. Bracing her hands on the lounge chair, she cautiously moved her injured leg and winced at the sharp pangs that shot through her. Ouch! That hurt! She bit down on her lower lip while she stood up, so as not to scream out in pain. Even with that, a shrill still managed to get passed her mouth. Davina never thought she could ever find, standing up, a herculean task until today. She broke into a cold sweat by the time she found herself on her feet. Her hands gripped the rails tightly, her injured suspended in the air and most of her weight falling on her good leg. Gosh, this was just standing up and already her thighs were shaking. Then what would happened if she tries to walk?

“Where is Vulcan when I need him?” The words rolled off her tongue before she could think them through. The moment it got out, she quickly shook her head. What? Of course, she did not need that scrupulous man. No! She has never needed any help from any man beside her father, and she was not going to start needing it now. Slowly lowered her injured leg to the floor, she…

“Miss King?” Her gaze snapped up instantly at the mention of her name. Davina’s brows knotted in annoyance as she saw Derek standing there.

“What do you want?” Her displeasure was not missed. Vulcan Alvaro no doubt sent his assistant to piss her off as payback for the things she said to him. Damn, the man was sinister! He discovered that she could not stand his assistant more, so he…

“Mr Alvaro asked me to come take you home.”

Davina looked stunned for a second. What? She had not known she said it aloud until he started to repeat himself.

“Mr Alvaro asked me to…”

“Yeah, I heard you.” She cut him short, unable to believe it! Vulcan Alvaro did that for her? Even after all she said? Davina felt bile rise in her throat and she swallowed the bitter taste. A sick feeling erupted in her stomach and she groaned. No, she could not possibly be feeling guilty about the words she spoke to him right? No! She had meant every word of it. But what was this guilty feeling now? Perhaps had she been wrong about him? No! She shook her head. She had never been wrong about anyone before.

“Shall we?” Derek asked.

“You are going to have to help me get out of here.” She responded.

“No problem.”

He came to her and she threw an arm over his shoulder, while his, went around her waist. As they started to move; Derek taking a step and then she limping beside him, Davina tried to fight the nauseating feeling that was overtaking her. She did not like having a man arms around her. No! Not since that unfortunate incident. A chill rushed down her spine as the memory flashed through her mind. His filthy hands restraining her, her struggle, her screams. Davina shook her head to clear the images. Her breathing turned harsh and her skin crawled in disgust. If she had not been in this situation, she would have pushed Derek away from her. Because the sensations he erupted in her, wreaked havoc to her senses in the worse way. After what felt like hours, she found herself sighing in relief when she got into the passenger seat of Derek’s pickup truck.

As Derek started the engine, she pulled out her phone and called her father. On the second ring, he answered. “Dad are you still at the hospital?” She asked.

“We just got to the town’s hospital.” He replied. “I gotta go sweetheart. Call you soon.” Then the call disconnected.

“Please drop me off at the town hospital.” Davina told Derek, who was pulling out of the mayor’s exquisite mansion. The man nodded, while Davina turned to look out the window. Suddenly, she was deep in thought. The conversation about her father’s near-death experience, filling her thoughts. Her heart pounded as she thought what she would have done if she had lost her father tonight. Gosh, she could not picture herself surviving without him. Her father was her rock, her saviour, her knight in shining armour. He was everything to her. If that other driver had not swerved his car off the road, her father would have perished. A lump formed in her throat at the thought. Her heart suddenly going out to whoever saved her father’s life. She hoped he was not in a critical condition.

 
At the hospital, Bruce just finished speaking with the nurse who attended to the man and felt some kind of relief wash over him. He let out a breath he did not know he was holding and then went to see the man behind the curtain. Bruce was glad to see that his head wound had been cleaned and bandaged. It had not been a pretty sight when he had walked over to the man’s car after his vehicle run into a tree and saw him bleeding from the side of his head. Bruce had been terrified and thought the man had joined his ancestors. Pulling a chair close to the bed, he sat there and watched him sleep.

“Thank you.” He said, patting the man’s hand. His eyes swept over the sleeping man. Bruce knew instantly, he was not from this town. And judging by his expensive suit, he was no ordinary man. He began to wonder why he had been driving crazily on the road. Not to mention, driving in the wrong lane on such top speed. Imagine how shocked Bruce had been when he had turned into the road and saw this crazy driver speeding towards him. His heart had leaped into his throat and he slammed his hand and leg on the brake and horn simultaneously. He thanked his stars that had caught the man’s attention and he had quickly maneuverer his car away. He could not even begin to think what would have happened it their cars had collided. Bruce’s life had flashed before his eyes and all the images were of his precious daughter. Davina was his life. He would not have forgiven himself if he had died tonight.

Heaving a sigh of relief, the man rose to his feet. Time to go get that little one. He thought, pulling his phone out of his pocket. Immediately, a call from Davina was coming through. “Speak of the devil.” He smiled while answering the call. “I am coming darling.” He exited the curtain and made his way out of the ER.

“I am in the hospital.” Came Davina’s reply.

“Oh. Okay that’s great. I am heading towards the…” Bruce did not finish his sentence when he saw Davina being pushed in a wheelchair by a nurse, into the ER. He quickly hung up and watched the nurse push her to the bed next to the one the man involved in the accident laid. The nurse helped her onto the bed and pulled a chair to sit down.

Davina watched her father and almost pouted when she saw the disappointed look on his face. Yes, she knew she fucked up. She should have listened to him when he asked her not to go. But she had wanted to meet the mayor so bad. Uh, if only she had known Vulcan Alvaro was conniving with the mayor she would have saved herself and her ankle, the trip. Now look at her! She had nothing on the businessman, her ankle was broken and her dignity…lost. Moreover, she had just earned the wrath of her father.

“Ouch!” She gasped suddenly when the nurse touched her swollen ankle. Her gaze shifted to the leg and then flicked to meet the nurse’s.

“Sorry.” She apologized at Davina’s glare. “Since when was it like this?” The nurse’s gaze moved to the leg.

“I sprained the ankle a week ago.” Davina replied, as the nurse’s gaze flicked to hers.

“Lemme guess.” The nurse started. “And you refused to stay in bed.” At Davina’s silence, the nurse pinned her with a disappointing look. “You know,” she started to pull on gloves. “There’s a reason why you were asked to stay in bed until you heal completely.” She poked the swollen leg and earned a groan in response. “Piece of advice. Next time listen to the doctor and don’t put an injured leg in heels.” The nurse added and got down to working on the leg.

Davina broke into a cold sweat by the time the nurse was done with her. Her breathing was uneven, her heart was pounding fast and a lump was inside her throat. She trembled all over and if not for the fact that she was holding her father’s hand, she was sure she would have broken down crying. Once the nurse informed her she would be admitted, she left but not before telling Bruce, he had five minutes to see his daughter.

“Darling.” Bruce withdrew a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped Davina’s sweat.

“Uh,” she breathed, face morphing in pain as she tried to lay down. Bruce helped her get comfortable and then took the seat the nurse had been in. “I’m sorry.” Tears slipped from the corners of her eyes.

“I know you are.” Bruce knew he did not have to tell her off again after seeing her looking so regretful. Lifting her hand to his lips, he planted a kiss there. “How did you get here?” The man had wanted to know that since he saw her in that wheelchair.

“Someone dropped me off.” She replied with a snuffle, still unable to meet her father’s gaze. Bruce nodded, but made a mental note to drill her for the full story later. He needed to know if this someone was the same mystery man who had dropped her off at home that day of her injury. He needed to know because he wanted to be sure that his child had truly moved on from that unfortunate incident with that boy! He knew it would be difficult for her to do that, but he wished Davina would just forget about what happened and find someone. Not every man was a monster as she thought. Just because one man hurt her, did not make every other man bad.

“Dad?” He met her gaze at once. “How’s he?”

Bruce nodded. “He is fine according to the nurse. He did not sustain any serious injuries. However they want to keep under observation for another day.”

Davina looked around the wide room, her gaze flickering from one bed to the next. There were many patients in the ER and she wanted to know which one saved her father’s life. She wanted to thank them personally. In fact, she wanted to show her gratitude to the man who risked his life to save her father’s.

“Where is he?” She asked. Bruce pointed to the bed beside hers and she finally noticed it. She wondered why she had not noticed it before but then realized she had been focused on her throbbing leg.

“He is behind the curtain.” Bruce stood up, seeing that his time was up.

“Can you open it for me to see his face?” Davina asked, curiosity suddenly getting the best of her.

Bruce chuckled. “Curious, aren’t we?” He teased. That same moment, the nurse came back to inform him it was time to leave. “That’s my cue to leave, darling.” He bent over to kiss her temple and then winked. “You will see him when the nurses decide to open that curtain. Sleep well dear.”

“I doubt I will.” Davina grumbled. They both knew just how much she hated hospitals.

“And whose fault is it that you got hospitalized?” He raised a brow at her and she pouted, withdrawing into the mattress. At her silence, he smiled. “That’s what I thought.” He gave her hand a little squeeze and then with his parting words, he left. “See you tomorrow.”

Davina laid on her side and watched her father walk out of the ER. Her gaze remained at the door long after he left. All she could think about was the man in her life… Bruce King. After the demise of her mother, when she was a teenager, it had been just daddy and her. Both of them had struggled and overcome that dark moment. And then when that unfortunate incident happened with that person, he had been by her side. Her father was her rock, her life, her world. She could not imagine life without him. Which made the near death experience tonight a lot more scarier. Davina felt indebted to whomever it was that had saved her father’s life. She owed him her life.

Finally averting her gaze to the curtain beside her bed, she wondered when the nurses would finally open it up. She was dying to see the face of her father’s saviour.

Almost instantly, a nurse came to the bed and started pulling the curtain away. Davina held her breath, ready to see him.

As the bed came into view, her eyes popped when she saw Vulcan Alvaro.