I reach out to shake his hand. One sideways glance at Darcy tells me he is listening due to the new tilt of his head, though his eyes remain sealed shut.
“My name is Dr. Karl, and I will be your husband’s doctor for the duration of his stay. We will need to run scans to check for kidney stones due to his history and the symptoms he is currently experiencing. My team is right outside the door ready to take excellent care of Mr. Marshall. This team has all signed nondisclosures, as have I. Do you have any questions?”
I shake my head, fully at ease. Doctor Karl has a certain energy that gives me peace.
“Thank you for your expertise,” I say dumbly. He only smiles and motions his team inside. Two young women and a man wheel Darcy out of the room.
He never opens his eyes.
Chapter Eighteen
Darcy
Fifteen years.
It’s been fifteen years since I last had kidney stones.
I groan, clutching at the invisible pain in my side. In an instant, Hayden is at my bedside offering to give me water and to page a nurse. I swat her away, but she only moves a few inches, gripping her phone in her hands, which are positioned in front of her chest. Like she’s hugging the device.
“Do you need to, um, use the restroom? I have the strainer right here.”
An ulcerated laugh escapes me at her stilted awkwardness.
“No,” I say through another groan, a wave of nausea washing over me. What caused this? My diet hasn’t changed. I’ve kept dairy and acidic food intake to a minimum. Another swell of throbbing, unbearable pain pulsates within my side and back. Nausea buildsand—“Give me the bucket!”
Something shatters on the floor, but I don’t have time to be concerned. I heave over my bedside, praying to God that Hayden made it in time with the bucket.
Through the torment, vomiting, and tears, my thoughts center around one thing: Hayden will never see me the same way, and all authority I thought I once held with her has run away screaming.
With the amount of blackmail material she has on me now, she’s the boss.
“Here, drink this.” Hayden’s soft voice caresses my chilled, sweaty skin like a gentle kiss. She holds a cup of water with a straw in front of my face. Closing my eyes, I part my lips and take the plastic straw between my teeth and relish in the cool taste of water.
“Ah, that’s good.” I sigh, letting my head fall back into the pillow.
“Maybe you should try to go to the restroom,” Hayden says, concern lacing her voice. “If you pass it, you’ll feel much better.”
“Page a nurse then.” The last thing I need is for Hayden to escort me to the bathroom. Walking is beyond complicated right now.
“It would look,” she swallows, “bad if someone other than me helped you get to the restroom.”
“They’ve signed nondisclosure agreements.”
Hayden huffs. “Just let me help you,husband.It’s our two-month wedding anniversary, after all.”
My stomach stirs again, and I’m reach for the bucket Hayden set beside the bed. Nothing comes out, though.
“Fine. But just help me get to the handrail inside the restroom.”
Hayden places one of her hands on my back while I clasp the other with my own hand. I take notice of her outfit at thatmoment—a thin number, but professional. Yellow, of course, but cute and fitting for her. Perfect for the sweltering, Texas weather we should be sweating in right now.
Not cold hospital room temperatures. She must be freezing.
With sheer willpower on my end and strength I didn’t realize Hayden had, I’m heaved out of the bed and onto my feet. The moment they touch the cool floor, my knees wobble and buckle. Hayden’s arms scoop and catch me under my armpits, and I’m horrifically aware she is carrying my full weight. Even though she is slightly taller than the average woman, I still tower over her slim frame.
With a tug, she lifts me back to my feet, and I manage to find some semblance of steadiness. “There you go,” she whispers, adjusting us so I have one arm around her shoulders while she holds me by my waist. Her thin clothes cling to her body, not in a revealing way, but in a cute way.
And that’s the second time I’ve thought of her as cute in the span of minutes. I really am sick. Hayden is beautiful; I will always acknowledge that. But cute? That’s a special term of endearment.
