But he found Chad Pratt waiting for him in the tiny hospital room. Chad stood there in the black jacket his driver had given him, with part of his naked torso exposed, holding some kind of fake flower made out of felt. The fake flower stood up from a brown felt pot about a foot tall, with bright yellow petals, a vivid green stem, and a bold red center. Though Treston knew little about flowers, he figured it was a sunflower. Then Chad lifted the flower higher with both hands and pushed a button at the back of the brown felt pot. The moment the song You Are My Sunshine began to play the flower started to dance around in uneven circles.
Chad reached out with the flower in both hands and said, “I saw it in the gift shop while I was waiting for them to bring you back down. I figured you might like it. They didn’t have many choices. It was either this, a stuffed rabbit, or a Sudoku puzzle book.”
When Treston saw the helpless expression on Chad’s face—as the ridiculous felt flower danced around to a tinny music box version of You Are My Sunshine—Treston looked up at the ceiling and started to laugh. He’d never mentioned anything about this song to Chad, and he’d never seen anything as dumb and adorable at the same time as the dancing flower.
“I heard you’re going to be okay,” Chad said. “The docs told me nothing’s broken and you didn’t even need stitches. Lyon drove me over here because they wouldn’t let me ride in the ambulance. I’ve been here the whole time.”
“I suppose Lyon told you about what happened with the wedding,” Treston said. He glanced down at his lap and frowned.
“I’m sorry,” Chad said. “I know how much you wanted everything to work out.”
Treston flung him a look. “Are you really sorry?”
Chad hesitated for a moment. He turned off the music box and set the flower on a table beside the bed. Then he looked directly into Treston’s eyes and said, “I’m sorry you were hurt. I’m sorry my driver slammed into you. I’m sorry that asshole left you naked at Lake Mead. I’m sorry for all the bad things guys have done to you all your life. But to be honest, I’m not sorry the park ranger backed out. There was something about him I never trusted, something kinky and weird. The man was a perv. I knew he’d never make you happy and I’m glad you didn’t marry him. And if that makes me a horrible person, so be it.”
Treston shrugged. “I should have known he’d back out. I should have seen it coming. It’s my own fault and I have no one to blame but myself. He said my past didn’t bother him and I believed him. Now, that’s rich.”
A nurse entered and told Treston he had to get dressed. “Looks like you’re going home and we need the room.” Either she didn’t recognize Chad with a beard, or she wasn’t star struck.
Chad smiled and picked up the felt sunflower. As he crossed to leave so Treston could dress in private, he said, “I’ll be out in the waiting room. My car is outside.”
“I was going to call Lyon or Chickey,” Treston said.
“I already did. I told them you were fine and I would take care of you.”
Treston looked him in the eye. “I’m curious. Why were you even driving near the club today?”
Chad looked down at his shoes and shrugged. “I wanted to see if you’d really go through with it. I wasn’t going to do anything. I just wanted to watch from a distance.”
“So you wound up slamming into me instead,” Treston said.
“You can’t blame me for that,” Chad said. “How could we have known you’d barrel out of the parking lot without looking?”
“I know,” Treston said. “I just can’t believe you did it.”
Chad shrugged again. “I’ll wait outside for you.”
When Treston was dressed, he signed a few more forms and a nurse wheeled him out to the waiting room where he found Chad signing autographs. Treston thanked the nurse and stood up on his own. He felt sore and still a little shaky, but he knew he could walk on his own now.
The instant Chad saw him get up he stopped signing autographs and jogged over to help him to the door with the silly felt flower in his hands. He grabbed Treston’s elbow and said, “Are you sure you’re okay to walk? Maybe you should put your arm around me and lean on me.”
“I’m fine,” Treston said. “I don’t have a home, I don’t have a job, and I don’t have a future anymore. But I can still walk on my own.”
The same driver who had slammed into the van was standing next to the back door of another limo Chad owned. He asked Treston if he was okay and apologized for the accident. Treston thanked him and told him he was fine, and said he took full responsibility for the accident because he hadn’t been looking when he’d pulled out.
After that, they drove back to Chad’s house without saying a word. When the car pulled up to the front entrance, Chad didn’t wait for the driver to get out. He jumped out first, ran around the back of the car, and opened Treston’s door. Then he reached for Treston’s arm and guided him up the front steps and into the main hall.
The older man in the white jacket with the expressionless face was waiting for them at the door. Chad set his palm on the small of Treston’s back and said, “Is the room ready?”
The older man nodded and said, “Everything’s ready.”
Chad gave Treston a gentle push toward the grand staircase and said, “I put you in the guest room that overlooks the pool. It has the nicest view. And it’s as far away from my room as you can get.”
Treston smirked and said, “I see. That way you can bring in as many guys as you want and I won’t disturb you. But don’t worry. I won’t be here longer than one night. I’ll be out of here tomorrow morning. I’m getting out of this town for good.”
Chad stopped in the middle of the stairs. He sent the older man a look and said, “That will be all. I’d like some privacy now.” When the old man disappeared, he turned to Treston and said, “For your information, I put you in that room because I didn’t think you’d want to be in my room. I didn’t want to assume anything. I know how you feel about guys like me and I figured the last thing you’d want to do was sleep in my bed tonight after what you’ve been through.”
Treston noticed a hint of anger in his tone. “You were right. The last thing I would even consider is sleeping with you tonight, or ever again, for that matter.”