I flung my hand over my mouth and widened my eyes. That was all I needed to hear for me to take this situation very seriously.
“I’ll do it,” I announced and dropped my hand to my side.
The doctor and nurse looked at me. “I’m sorry, but that isn’t protocol—”
I ignored the doctor and moved over to Kane’s side. He was panicking and looked only seconds from jumping up out of the bed and doing God only knows what.
“Hey,” I murmured, my voice low. “Look at me, Kane.”
Kane’s eyes were wild as they locked on mine. “Not a needle. Please,” he begged.
I felt my eyes well up. “You trust me not to hurt you, don’t you?” I asked, keeping eye contact with him even as my tears fell.
Kane was hesitant. “Aideen... I can’t...”
“You trust me not to hurt you, don’t you?” I repeated.
Kane began to sweat but replied, “Yes, I know you won’t hurt me.”
I reached out and placed my palm on his cheek. “Then let me help you. Let me do this and get it out of the way. It’ll be over before you know it. I won’t ever hurt you, Kane. I promise.”
He held my gaze and I thought he would need more convincing, but just as I was about to open my mouth, he whispered, “Okay.”
He was agreeing?
Yes!
“Okay,” I breathed. “We’ve got this, okay? Me and you?”
“Me and you,” Kane repeated.
I kept looking at him and reached my right hand back.
“Give her the damn needle. He will only let her do it so give it to her,” I heard Nico growl in a low voice.
There was a bit of movement then I felt an object placed in my hand. “His stomach and arms are pretty toned, it will have to be in his thigh. A fatty area, like the inner thigh is best,” the doctor said, his voice low as not to freak out Kane.
I nodded my head and refocused on Kane. “Close your eyes for me.”
“Aideen, please... don’t stab me with it.”
Stab him with it?
Oh, God.
“It’s going to be one little prick in your inner thigh, that’s all,” I said, my lower lip trembling.
Kane held my gaze. “You promise?”
“I promise, sweetheart,” I replied, nodding my head.
He nodded his head back at me then closed his eyes.
He trusted me.
I looked down to his body and removed the blanket that covered him. I pushed the hospital gown up his leg, uncapped the needle the doctor handed me then reached inside to a part where I could grab a chunk of the fatty part of his inner thigh.
“Pinch the skin then insert the needle. Slowly inject the insulin, then hold for ten seconds so no insulin seeps out with any blood,” the doctor whispered.
I nodded and looked down to the needle in my hand. I held it correctly then pressed it into Kane’s thigh before I could think about what I was doing. I was scared if I thought about it then I would lose my nerve. I carefully pushed the insulin into his body, and then held it for ten seconds before I removed the needle.
I capped it, handed it back to the doctor then turned back to Kane. He still had his eyes closed, so I reached up and touched his face. “All done,” I whispered.
Kane blinked his eyes open. “I didn’t feel anything.”
I smiled. “Told you.”
Kane stared at me for a moment then reached out and pulled me into a hug. He said nothing, just held me tightly to his body.
“I’ll come back later to discuss a check-up appointment date for next week. I’ll also go through everything with him, and with you, about what to expect with his diabetes. We’ll keep him overnight again and if he is responding well to the injections he can go home tomorrow.”
I heard the brothers speak to the doctor then a door open and close.
“Are you okay?” I murmured.
Kane murmured, “Yes,” and then let me go. I pulled back and stared down at him, frowning. He closed his eyes and remained silent.
“What the hell was that? I’ve never seen him like that before,” Bronagh snapped at Nico.
Nico sighed. “It’s not my place to explain that, Bronagh. It’s up to Kane if he wants to tell you.”
“I don’t want to tell anything because we’re done speaking about that,” Kane said and opened his eyes. “And we’re done discussing injections of any type. I am not doing that shit again. No fucking way.”
I frowned.
He needed a daily insulin injection in order to balance his diabetes and stay well.
“It’s not up for discussion, Kane,” Branna started. “You will be taking the injections. I’ll do them for you—”
“No!” Kane shouted and cut Branna off. “Just... No.”
Ryder glared at Branna. “Stop pushing him.”
Branna glared right back at Ryder and snarled, “One of us has to. Otherwise he will get sick again. Is that what you want?”
Ryder shook his head and looked away from Branna’s burning gaze.
Shite.
Now, what was that about?
They looked at one another like they hated each other.
I shook my head clear and focused on what everyone else was saying.
“She’s right, Ryder,” Bronagh said. “He needs to take them. You can’t baby him.”
Alec butted in then. “We aren’t babying him, Bronagh! We’re being considerate. He doesn’t like needles. End of fucking story.”
“Hey!” Alannah snapped at Alec. “Don’t talk to her like that!”
“Don’t shout at him, Lana,” Keela sighed.
Alannah glared at Keela. “Tell him to back off Bronagh then.”
What the fuck was going on?
Everyone was turning on one another.
“It would help if you all stopped talking about me like I’m a fucking invalid. I can hear what you’re all saying, and I can make my own damn decisions when it comes to my body.”
Branna moved to the opposite side of the bed and stared down at Kane. “Do you want to die?” she bluntly asked. “Because that’s what will happen if you don’t take the insulin daily.”
“Branna, fucking stop!” Ryder shouted.
It frightened me to hear Ryder raise his voice at her.
“No!” Branna bellowed right back at him. “I love him, damn it! I don’t want him to get sick again!”
I rubbed my hand over my face.
This was bad.
I looked at Kane as everyone argued amongst themselves.
“Kane?” I mumbled.
He looked at me, his face passive. “I know what you’re going to say.”
“What?” I asked.
“Kane, you need to take the insulin. You’ll get sick if you don’t,” he said, mimicking my voice perfectly.
I snorted. “Yep, that was pretty much it.”
Kane frowned. “I don’t do needles, Aideen. I just don’t.”
Why?
I wanted to ask why so badly. It seemed much more than a simple phobia of needles, but I didn’t want to push him.
Ryder moved past Branna and leaned down to Kane. “What can we do to get you to take the insulin shots?”
“I. Don’t. Do. Needles,” Kane repeated through gritted teeth.
Oh, forget this.
“You don’t,” I said, “but I do.”
The room went silent.
“Wh-What?” Kane stuttered, as he looked back to me.
I blew out a breath. “I’ll give you your injections every day. You let me do it once; will you let me do it every other time, too?”
Kane stared at me with unblinking eyes. I felt everyone else stare at me too.
“Why would you want to help me?” he asked, his face falling.
Good question.
I shrugged my shoulders. “I enjoy arguin’ with you, and I need to keep you around for that so I guess I’m doin’ this for me own selfish needs. Sue me.”