Once out in the dimly lit back corridor, she and Viliame only had to go a short way to get Danny to the back door. When Vili pulled it open, she saw why he’d been gone so long—a rugged dark green Land Cruiser sat by the back door. Right, of course. Vili was based in the region, must’ve driven tonight.

“No Ferrari?” she huffed out, aware of his love for that sleek bullet of a car.

“This rig is Romeo’s,” he said, naming another teammate. “I’m the designated driver for a bunch of us—but don’t worry, boys’ll be in the club for hours yet.”

The two of them managed to get Danny into the back seat. “I’ll get in with him,” Catie said, suiting action to words. “Just in case he throws up or has another reaction.”

“Hospital?” Vili glanced in the rearview mirror. “I don’t like how he’s looking.”

“Yes, head for the emergency department.” Catie had managed to belt Danny in, and he was now lying with his head on her shoulder. “I wish we could protect him from the media, but his health comes first.” For whatever reason—whether his rugby royalty family, his natural charm, or his gorgeous face and body—the entertainment media had decided that Danny Esera was their current “It” boy.

When she’d needled him about it, he’d given her a wry half-smile. “You know they build people up to tear them down, right? They’ll be on me like a pack of hyenas if I so much as stumble.”

That was the thing with Danny; he could be weirdly wise.

“Yeah,” Viliame murmured as he pulled out. “I mean, the doctors take oaths to keep things confidential, but there’s going to be a bunch of the public in ED.” Pulling to a stop at a red light, he added, “His team doctor is still in the city and is a good man, but I don’t know if he’d feel obligated to report this to the higher-ups. Especially with Danny having been selected for the national squad.”

Catie’s mind flashed. “Wait,” she said, digging out her phone from the small purse of glittery gold that she wore slung across her body. “I know a doctor here. Maybe she can help. Hopefully she hasn’t put her phone on silent and gone to bed.”

Dr. Priya Chauhal was thirty years Catie’s senior and a woman Catie had first met during her major surgeries as a child. They’d stayed in touch through the years, even after the doctor moved cities, and tonight she answered the call at once.

The noise in the background told Catie that Dr. Chauhal was on shift at the hospital. When Catie explained the situation, the doctor told her to bring Danny around to a back entrance of the hospital.