The fall wasn’t a simple fall, however. The heel of one of her shoes seemed to wedge in a crack in the steps, and Gray could see her ankle twist, almost stopping her fall before her foot separated from the shoe, and she continued her tumble. Her saw her head bounce once as it slammed into the sidewalk at the foot of the stairs. Gray pushed his way through the teenagers and ran down the steps after her where a crowd of people was already gathered at the bottom. As he finally reached her, he turned her over and was alarmed at the pale pallor of her face and the obvious haze of pain in her eyes. There was blood running down the side of her face from a gash on her forehead. Gently pushing the hair back from her eyes, Gray yelled for someone to call 911. He took the corner of his shirt and dabbed the blood before it could pool in her eye.
Looking at him in alarm, Suzy said hoarsely, “No…Gray, please you take me, I’m scared of being alone.”
“Honey, I’m afraid to move you.”
“Gray, please, I’m hurting, please help me!” Suzy cried.
His heart in his chest, Gray leaned down and put his arms under her, lifting her as gently as he could. A couple that had stopped to help offered to carry her purse and insisted on getting his keys and bringing the car to the curb. At that moment, Gray would have trusted anyone as long as they would help him. He gladly handed the keys over along with a description of the car and asked them to hurry.
Whispering words of encouragement to Suzy, he tried to question her about her injuries. He was afraid her ankle was at least cracked if not broken, and he hoped that she didn’t have other broken bones as well. She was trying to be brave; he could see the resolve in the tight set of her chin. Silent tears trickled from the corners of her eyes, and Gray’s heart was breaking. God he adored this woman. He had from the moment he’d laid eyes on her, and nothing had or would ever change that.
At that moment, his car came to a screeching halt at the curb and Gray hurried towards it. The couple who had retrieved the car for him climbed out and opened the back door for him. Gray hesitated as he approached, now unsure of how he could take care of Suzy and drive the car.
“Sir, I know you don’t know us, but we want to help you. If you’d like to get into the back with your wife, my wife and I’ll drive you to the hospital and then catch a cab back for our car later.”
Gray almost wept with relief. At this point, he didn’t care if these people were axe murders as long as they got Suzy to a hospital along the way. He thanked the couple profusely and slid into the back as gently as he could with Suzy on his lap.
Her eyes flickering open, hazy with pain, Suzy quietly said, “You called me Suzy.”
With a tender smile, Gray caressed the curve of her cheek and whispered, “You have always been Suzy to me, baby. You’re right, it is who you are.”
Smiling at him one last time, Suzy grimaced in pain and seemed to drift off. Gray was alarmed until he felt the even pattern of her breathing. Maybe he should be trying to keep her awake in case of a concussion, but he hated to make her endure the pain if she could have some respite from it.
“Sir, how’s your wife doing?”
Gray cleared his throat not bothering to correct the assumption that Suzy was his wife. “She’s drifted off and seems to be resting peacefully. How much further to the hospital?”
“Should be just another couple of minutes. I’m Frank, by the way, and this is my wife Margie.”
“I’m Gray and this is Suzy. I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done for us; I don’t know what we would have done without you two.”
Finally, Gray saw them approaching a huge hospital, and soon they were pulling up to an emergency entrance. Frank offered to park the car and meet him in the emergency area with the keys. As far as Gray was concerned Frank could have the damn car, he just wanted to get Suzy inside.
Chapter Four
Gray rushed up to the receptionist and was relieved when she jumped into action. He was half afraid she’d start shoving forms at him. Gray was led through a set of double doors into the hub of the emergency room. The receptionist stopped for a moment to inquire about a room, and soon he was laying Suzy on a gurney in a small room with very little privacy. A nurse followed closely behind them and was already firing off a rapid series of questions before he even had Suzy settled.
Asking her name, the nurse started waking Suzy up. Finally, after her name was called loudly several times, Suzy blinked her eyes open in confusion and then Gray could see the pain literally taking her breath away. “Ms. Denton, can you tell me where you’re hurting?”
“My…my leg and back and hell just about everywhere,” gasped Suzy.
Gray was glad to see her make a small attempt at humor even though it was obvious that the effort had cost her. Reaching over, Suzy held her hand out to him, seeking his touch and comfort. Gray wrapped his fingers around hers, using his other hand to rub her arm gently in reassurance. “It’s going to be ok, baby, just hold on. Can she please have something for pain now?”
“I’m fixing to run an IV, sir, but we can’t give her any pain medication until we know the extent of her injuries.” Pulling Suzy’s arm to lie flat, the nurse felt for a vein and, apparently satisfied, smoothly slid the needle in and taped it in place.
A short dynamo burst into the room and immediately began asking questions and giving orders. Walking over to him, the lady he assumed was the doctor held her hand out to him.
“Mr. Denton?”
“Actually no, it’s Merimon, Grayson Merimon.”
“This is Suzanna Denton, correct?”
“Yes, I’m her fiancé,” Gray lied smoothly. Luckily, Suzy was too far out of it to dispute this fact, and Gray didn’t intend to be dispatched to the waiting room while she was here alone.
“Ok, Mr. Merimon, I’m Doctor Mills, can you tell me what happened to your fiancé?”
“She fell down a flight of stairs, and as she was beginning her fall, the heel of her shoe caught between an opening in the steps, so I’m afraid she may have injured her ankle before the fall even took place. Her head slammed into the sidewalk at the end of the steps causing the cut on her forehead.”
“Did she lose consciousness at any point?”
“She drifted in and out on the way to the hospital.”
Making a few more notes on her chart, Dr. Mills said, “I’m going to send her for a CAT scan first, Mr. Merimon, and then we will go from there. I don’t want to risk injuring her further by doing a physical exam until we know what, if anything is broken. You’re welcome to accompany her and stay in the waiting room there.”
Suzy looked at him in panic as they started to wheel her bed out into the hall. Gray walked quickly beside her so that he’d be in her line of sight. Soon they were taking her to X-ray, and he was left on his own waiting. He decided to give Jason and Claire a call knowing her friends would want to know what was happening and also because he wasn’t sure if she had family locally that would need to be contacted.
Jason answered the call on the first ring, and Gray filled him in on what was happening. Jason promised that he’d let Claire know, and that they would be at the hospital as soon as possible. Gray also called his brother Nick who was due to arrive in town at any moment. He’d made no secret of his feelings for Suzy to Nick, hell everyone knew how he felt about her but her. She knew of course that he was attracted to her, and she fought that attraction at every corner.
“Hey Nick,” Gray began as his brother’s voice came onto the line, “just wanted to let you know what was going on. Suzy had an accident, and we are at the hospital.”
“Oh shit, you didn’t get your chance to sleep with her finally and give her a heart attack or something did you?”
“Funny, smart ass, no she fell and is having tests right now.”
Gray heard Nick take a deep breath, and then all joking was gone from his voice. “Man, I’m sorry. Is she ok?”
“I don’t really know anything yet. She took a pretty ugly fall though.” Gray
gave Nick a brief rundown of what had happened, and even though he assured him that it wasn’t necessary, Nick insisted on getting the name of the hospital and told Gray he was only minutes out of town and would come there first. Gray was glad for all the support he could get at this point.
Finally, after what seemed like years, a different nurse came out and told him that Suzy was finished and was on her way back to her room. Gray rushed back, not wanting her to think he’d left her. When he entered the room, Suzy’s eyes locked on him, and she held her hand out.
Gray took her hand and pulled the seat up beside her. The nurse told him that they were just waiting for the results and that the doctor would be back in as soon as she had them. Gray leaned over the bed and brushed a kiss on Suzy’s forehead and asked, “How are you, baby?”
“Besides feeling like I’ve been beat with a baseball bat, I’m just great. You sure know how to show a girl a good time, cowboy.”
“Hey, I aim to please. I wanted to give you the most memorable night you have ever had, and I think I succeeded, right?”
“Oh yeah, I’m not likely to forget this. I want to make it known right now, though, that all my clingy behavior here is totally due to my accident so don’t get any ideas. We aren’t dating or anything.”
“Duly noted. As soon as you’re healed, I’ll sex you up, just as we planned.”
Suzy choked on a laugh, grabbing her ribs as if it hurt her. “Ugh, no jokes, laughing is torture right now.”
Just as Gray was getting ready to go find the nurse for pain medication, Dr. Mills walked in. “Got your results here, Ms. Denton, and as suspected you have broken your right ankle. We will get a soft cast on your ankle tonight and then have the hard cast put on within a few days. As for the pain you’re having in your ribs, there is no sign of any broken bones which is very good. I suspect that you have bruised your ribs which can be very painful as well. There was no indication of anything abnormal on the CT of your head and due to the level of your alertness, I will allow pain medication. I assume that your fiancé will be on hand to care for you?”
“You assume right, Dr. Mills. I’ll make sure that my fiancé is completely taken care of, rest assured. Will you be admitting her to the hospital?”
“Yes, she’ll be admitted tonight for observation due to the head injury and could possibly be released as early as tomorrow depending on how she’s doing. I’m going to start the process of having Ms. Denton admitted. How’s your pain level?”
Before Suzy could speak, Gray said, “She’s hurting, please give her something.”
“I’ll send the nurse right in with pain medication. Ms. Denton, I’ll see you in the morning when I make my rounds. Please have the nurse on duty page me if you have any concerns.”
Soon the nurse returned with the promised medication and Suzy was resting comfortably, her fingers curled tightly around his. A light knock sounded at the door and Claire stuck her head around it. “Oh, Gray, thank goodness, I just couldn’t wait another moment. I finally played the pregnancy card, and rolled out some tears so the nurse would agree to let me come back. “How is she?”
“She has a broken ankle, and is just really banged up. They have her pretty heavily medicated right now so she’s comfortable I believe. The doctor wants to keep her overnight for observation.”
Claire’s hand flew to her mouth and the tears this time were real. “Oh no! Poor Suz, she must have been so scared. I’m glad you were there with her. No matter how she protests, I know she cares about you. Her sister Beth is in the waiting room going crazy and your brother just got here as well.” Walking over, Claire silently leaned over and kissed Suzy on the cheek and Gray heard her whisper, “I love you, my friend.”
I’m going to walk back to the waiting room and let everyone know what is going on. Beth and I’ll go buy some personal items for Suzy, a gown and some toiletries that she might need. Can I get anything for you Gray?”
Looking at Claire with gratitude, Gray said, “If Jason or Nick could loan me a change of clothing I’d appreciate it. After sleeping in these all night, they won’t be too great in the morning.”
“Of course, don’t worry about a thing Gray; we will get you both everything you will need. As soon as they move her to a room, please give Jason a call so that at least Beth can come back for a brief visit.”
Claire walked over and gave his shoulder a quick squeeze, “She’ll be fine, there is no way she’d be caught in that horrid hospital gown for any longer than necessary, trust me,” Claire joked. Giving his shoulder one last squeeze, Claire went out the door and back to the waiting room.
Soon a nurse arrived and informed Gray that Suzy’s room was ready, and he walked alongside the gurney as she was transferred to another floor and a room with more privacy. As soon as she was settled and the nurse was gone, Gray called Nick and let him know what room number they were in.
Within moments, the door opened quietly and Nick and a woman he didn’t recognize came in. Gray assumed that this must be Suzy’s sister even though they didn’t resemble each other at first glance. Nick walked over to his side as her sister approached the hospital bed. Leaning down, she picked up Suzy’s other hand and said, “Suzy-Q is there nothing you won’t do for some attention?”
Gray was shocked at the comment and was opening his mouth to defend Suzy when her sister continued on in a voice obviously laced with affection and concern.
“I leave you on your own and look where you end up. You’re in a hospital surrounded by hunky doctors and also have a hunky man sitting vigil at your bed. The thing I hate the most, though, is that even after wiping up the pavement with your body, you still look like a million bucks. That’s so unfair, sister dear. I guess you’re too high on the good stuff to answer me, right?”
Finally, Gray found his voice and asked, “I take it you’re Beth, her sister?
Turning to face him as if she’d forgotten him for the moment, a shy smile settled on her lips, and she said, “Ye…Yes, I’m Beth.” Oh good grief, I’m stuck in this tiny room with two of the best-looking men I’ve ever seen in my life, and this outfit makes me look like a cow. Beth tried to discreetly smooth the dress down that she was wearing, terrified that it was riding up in the back and stuck to her butt.
Gray took a moment to study Suzy’s sister. Now that she was standing closer, he could see the resemblance. Suzy had red hair, and Beth had dark brown hair but their eyes were the same and the curve of their face very similar. Whereas Suzy was stop-traffic beautiful with her bold dressing and smoldering sexuality, Beth was more of a quiet beauty. Her dress was conservative, and unlike her sister, she obviously didn’t want or seek to be the center of attention. She was someone you would want to nurture and protect. Suzy was someone you would want to arm wrestle after a hot night of sex unless you took the time to know the woman behind the façade.
Gray released Suzy’s hand and walked over to Beth, “I’m Gray Merimon and it looks like you’ve met my brother Nick.” Beth shook the hand that he offered and turned back to her sister. “You must want some time alone with your sister. Nick and I will walk down for a cup of coffee so you can have some privacy. Can we bring you something back?”
“Oh, no, no thank you.” Giving him a grateful look, Beth slid into the seat he’d vacated, clearly relieved that they were leaving.
Chapter Five
“How’re you doing, bro?”
“Better, now that I know Suzy will be ok. Did you get me a new cell phone?”
“Oh yeah, got it right here.” Nick reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a sleek black cell phone. “How often are you going to change phones before you admit you have a problem?”
“I can handle it, Nick, just let it go.”
Nick gave him a disgusted look and said, “You haven’t thought this out, bro. You’re going to be here playing house with Suzy now and what happens when she finds out? You need to go ahead and tell her and then deal with it. Trying to ignore it hasn’t worked too we
ll.”