The Last Time I Cried Your Name novel Chapter 17

Outside, the last bits of snow were melting away. Petty didn’t wake up until the afternoon, which was a small miracle. It had been a year since she’d slept this long without the help of sleeping pills.

She sat up slowly, taking in the chaos around her. The room was a mess. Thinking about how Franco had gone absolutely wild the night before made her frown.

Her skin felt clean, not the slightest bit sticky, and she noticed she was wearing fresh pajamas. Someone had cleaned her up, even treated the cuts on her face with ointment. Her cheeks felt cool, no burning or pain left.

She knew exactly who had done all this, even without asking.

Still, she just stared blankly ahead, lost in thought. Then a sharp ache started pulsing in her ear. Her body felt hot, uncomfortably so. The doctor’s warning flashed through her mind.

If you feel stabbing pain in your ear and start running a fever, get to the hospital right away. A ruptured eardrum with an infection is nothing to mess with. If it gets worse, your hearing could be at risk. Take it seriously.

After she got attacked that night, the police had taken her to the hospital for an official exam. That’s when she found out her eardrum was ruptured. The doctor had said it was borderline and not infected, so she could go home and keep an eye on it. She’d hoped it would heal by itself, but now it was clear infection had set in.

She got out of bed, changed quickly, and headed downstairs.

“Petty, you’re awake! I was just about to get you something to eat… Wait, are you going out?” The housekeeper stopped in her tracks as she saw Petty coming down the stairs with her purse.

“I’m not eating at home. I have to head out,” Petty said, keeping her expression neutral.

The pain in her ear was getting worse, a constant ringing filling her head. There was no way she could drive like this.

At first, she thought about ordering a car so she wouldn’t have to ask a bodyguard and risk Franco finding out where she was going. But then she shook her head. As if Franco cared where she went. She could disappear and he wouldn’t even notice.

“Ask a bodyguard to drive me,” she told the housekeeper.

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