Chapter Twenty-Seven
Erica
I stirred in bed, rising involuntarily from the soft mattress, stirring Chase next to me. The churning of my stomach came in quicker doses and I moved as briskly as I could to the bathroom. I made it just in time to vomit into the toilet.
I had been sick for almost a week now, a stomach bug that Chase was sure I’d caught because I just had to laugh at him for getting the flu shot, but it was something that should have gone away by now. I heaved again into the porcelain bowl, bile the only thing arising from my mouth.
“I thought I heard you in here.”
I looked back at Chase standing in the doorway in just his boxers, worry planted on his face.
“It’s still not passed?”
I shook my head and my stomach churned again, this time wanting to take everything out of me. I had been throwing up at least three times a day, but nothing felt like it had today. It felt like a knife in my stomach and the pain riveted to my throat, filling it with whatever contents it could.
I opened my mouth to spill it out, but all that dripped from my lips was blood.
“Shit,” Chase exclaimed and rushed to me, taking my face in his hands and wiping the blood away with a cloth he grabbed from the sink beside us. “I’m taking you to the hospital.”
“It’s not a big deal,” I stammered, the words barely coming out of me.
“Now,” he said through gritted teeth and I let him carry me out of the house and to the car where he buckled me up and took me straight to the emergency room.
It was a blur as we pulled up and Chase carried me into the hospital, a nurse rushing to us, but I could barely hear what Chase was saying to her. I just knew one moment I was in his arms, then the next I was waking up in a small bed, hooked up to a monitor.
I looked around the room to find Chase sitting in the chair next to me, his head resting on the bed while one hand held mine. I squeezed it and he moved, lifting his head, gracing me with a smile.
“Peaches.”
“What happened?”
“You passed out.” Chase stood up and pressed a kiss to my forehead. “They ran some tests, but the doctor wanted to wait till you were awake to let me know anything.”
“I thought I heard voices.” A man walked into the room in blue scrubs with a white coat on. “I’m Doctor Malcom.”
“Hi.” I lifted my free hand, slightly waving at him.
“It’s good to see you awake.”
“It’s good to be awake.” I looked up at Chase, wondering what exactly was going through his head. I knew he must have been freaking out about all this. He didn’t like not being in the know, and neither did I.
“Can you tell us what’s going on?”
“I think that would be best, but I do want to solidify everything your husband has given us, just as far as your traveling and eating habits.”
“Sure.” I sat up a little more in the bed, trying to get myself comfortable.
“The last time you were out of town was about a month ago in Savannah?”
“Yes, for our honeymoon.”
“And eating habits, nothing changed or out of the ordinary?”
“I try to eat as healthy as possible, but can binge on the occasion. I just try to watch it when I do.”
“I like to hear that. A balanced healthy diet, but know indulgence isn’t a bad thing, as long as it is done in moderation.”
He pulled the clipboard up from the side of the bed and looked it over before meeting my gaze.
