The Alpha's Saviour

Chapter 4

Hayley POV

The next morning, the nurse arrives just after breakfast and hands me two clear plastic bags. She raises the first one and holds it out for me to take.

“Your hoodie and runners from the scene of the accident, Ethan dropped them in last night, along with your keys and phone which were still in the pocket. And he drove your car back here from the park rather than leave it there overnight.” She holds up the other bag, “These … are the stinky, mucky, wet shorts and top you came in in. I’ll get you a pair of scrubs to put on instead, so you have something dry to wear home.”

“Thank you so much. Wait, he drove my car here!? I was just going to get a taxi” I stare at her in shock as I absorb that she just said, mindlessly reaching out to take the two bags from her.

“Perks of living in a small town. Hayley, I don’t think he minded helping out the gorgeous young lady who saved the life of his Al… best friend. It’s the least he could do. Men need to feel useful in these situations.” She winks at me before leaving the room chuckling to herself. A beep draws my attention to my new phone, and I fish it out of the bag. As I thought, I just have one message, and it’s from my boss Greg. He is the only person who I have shared my new number with, apart from some delivery drivers. That sad fact perfectly sums up the state of my social life for the last two months since arriving here. There is laying low, and then there is becoming a complete hermit which I seem to have managed to do. Greg has heard what happened and wants me to stay home on Monday to rest, which is fine by me. That news of my hospital stay has reached him in record time should surprise me, but I grew up in a small town just like Pine Ridge and I know that people would have been talking out of concern. Living in a place where everyone knows who you are and what you are up to can be good and bad. The bad being that you just have to accept people knowing your business, whether you want them too or not. But the good outweighs the bad in my opinion, the small gestures of kindness and friendliness I have experienced since arrived, despite being a blow-in to the area, show the strong sense of community that you just can’t get in a big city. This is what I’ve missed.

I change into the green scrubs the nurse brought me and throw on my dry hoodie and runners, keen to get home for a long soak in a warm bubble bath and a decent sleep. I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and I grimace, my lank hair needs a wash and I have dark circles under my eyes from lack of sleep. I tuck my bag of wet running gear under my arm, stopping at the nurse’s station to sign some forms, saying thank you to everyone who looked after me, and head downstairs to the reception area. I step out the front doors and suck in a deep lungful of fresh country air, instantly feeling my spirit’s lift. I did enjoy the city life for a while, but I know that deep down I am a country girl at heart. I laugh to myself as I spot my little red hatchback parked in the very first parking spot, as close to the front door as it is possible to get. How on earth did he manage that? I thought I would be wandering up and down the aisles of cars like an i***t, pressing my key fob until I spotted some flashing lights. This is a very pleasant surprise given how exhausted I feel, and I’m again touched by the sweet gesture. After throwing my stuff onto the passenger seat, I go to lower myself behind the wheel, with one foot already in the footwell of my car, when the sliding doors of the hospital open and I look over to see Ethan strolling out. His head snaps up immediately as though he sensed me there, and his smiles disappears the second he sees me, and the colour drains from his face.

“Hey Hayley” he calls out as he seems to remember his manners. He jogs over to me, glancing back over his shoulder a couple of times to the door, a tight smile on his face. It doesn’t quite reach his eyes and it looks forced, and his demeanour is anything but relaxed.

“You didn’t have to do this Ethan, it was above and beyond,” I say gesturing to my car as we stand talking over the car door, me half in and half out of the car, “but I appreciate it, thanks.”

“No problem at all, we have to look after the new town hero,” he jokes and he glances over his shoulder again nervously, and positions himself close in front of me, partially blocking my view of the hospital door as I try to peer around him to see what has his attention. That’s when I see a stunning, tall woman with long dark hair step outside pushing a man wheelchair.

“Listen, I have to go, but I’ll catch up with you later, okay?” He winks before leaning over to give me a quick peck on the cheek and darting away. He rushes to the woman’s side, and slips an arm casually around her shoulder, whispering something in her ear. She looks around frantically before locking eyes with me. Her face lights up in a massive grin even as Ethan takes control of both her and the wheelchair and hurries them away. Strange.