Her head lifts.
Eyes again.Damn.
There’s something there that shouldn’t matter. That I don’t want to name. Something that makes the space between us feel too quiet, too charged. I let go fast.
I shouldn’t want to stay in this room, but for one preposterous second, I do.
“I’ll be back when we’ve got your results,” I say, already backing out.
I don’t wait for her to respond.
Outside the curtain, I exhale sharply. My heart’s still ticking a little too fast, which is absurd. She’s a patient.One of the many people who blip into—and then right back out of—my life on any given day.
There’s no reason for Lucy Calder to affect me more than anyone else I’ve seen.
I must be more tired than I thought.
Talia smirks as she passes by. “See?” she whispers knowingly. “Cute.”
CHAPTER FOUR
Lucy
“Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God.”
I drop my head into my hands. This is officially the worst day of my life. Top five, at the very least. I’ve heard horror stories about the cost of ambulance rides, and now there are tests, an ER visit, and the very real possibility that I might have just wrecked my career before it even started.
My head pounds. My anklethrobs. My stomach twists every time I glance at the swelling, which doesn’t help the constant churning nausea. It looks like I’m smuggling a tennis ball under my skin.
My heart slams against my ribs. My breath catches, hitches. Lips tingling. Eyes watering.
What am I going to do?
Like, for real…
What am I going to do?
The curtain scrapes open, and my nurse—Talia, I think she said her name was—steps in. She pauses when she sees me, brow furrowing in concern.
“Hey…” Her voice is low and kind, and she places a warm hand on my arm. Her long braids fall forward as she leans in to meet my eyes. “Talk to me. What’s happening?”
“I can’t breathe. I just…” I open my mouth to finish the sentence, but the words won’t come.
What is this?Whois this? Lucy Calder isn’t a panic in public kind of person.
“Okay. I want you to purse your lips and breathe out hard, like you’re blowing out a candle. Can you do that for me?”
I nod, shaky.
“Deep breath in… now out.”
We do it together. Once. Twice. Three times.
The tightness in my chest starts to ease. The walls stop closing in. Air finally feels like air again.
“Better?” she asks.
I nod weakly.
