“You are at Gulf Shores Regional Hospital. I am Doctor Stone, a heart specialist who happened to be on call when you were brought in. You passed out while running. The paramedics thought you were having a heart attack and brought you here. Do you remember going for a run or an ambulance ride? A couple of kids found you. Can you tell me what happened?” As he talked, he shined a small bright light into her eyes.
“I had just started running when all of a sudden, I couldn’t breathe and had a sharp pain in my chest. That is the last thing I remember.” She could hardly believe that she had been in an ambulance and didn’t remember anything about it.
The gorgeous doctor smiled and said, “Well, an ambulance brought you in a few minutes ago. You were out cold. You gave us all a real scare until we were able to hook you up to the heart monitor to see if it was a heart attack or not.”
“A heart attack?” Taylor croaked. This was all she needed. She was going to die in a little hospital in Alabama all alone.
Shaking his head and laughing lightly, the doctor replied, “No, you are not having a heart attack. Your EKG looks great. I think you might have gotten overheated or something. Is that possible? Did you get too hot while running?”
“No, I had just started running. I didn’t go more than a quarter of a mile before I started having trouble breathing and having this pain in my chest. I usually run at least four miles almost daily with no problem.”
Nodding, the doctor gave her a questioning look and asked, “Okay, any chance you could be pregnant?”
At that, Taylor all but snorted and said, “No chance. I am not pregnant. It’s not possible.”
The doctor responded by asking, “Are you sure? It won’t take but a minute to check.”
“Positive! No, I am not pregnant, and I wasn’t overheated. What else could be causing me to have chest pains and shortness of breath?”
“Well,” the doctor said, “it was probably just a panic attack. You are young and healthy. All of your vitals are good. The EKG was clean. Have you been under a lot of stress lately? Stress can cause them, and they can be very painful and make you think you are going into cardiac arrest.”
Taylor’s first thought was to say, “You have no idea.” But, what she said instead was, “Actually, yes, I am. Do you think that is what caused it? Too much stress?” She was trying to sound calm and relaxed when she felt anything but.
Well, that was just great. Bennett’s little affair turned out to be the gift that kept giving. First, it broke her heart and gave her a healthy dose of hurt and humiliation. Now, she was having painful panic attacks from all the stress. What is next?
On hearing she was not having a heart attack, Taylor was equal parts embarrassed and relieved. She certainly didn’t want to have a heart attack, but it was beyond embarrassing to have been brought to the ER for a panic attack. Bennett and Joules were going to have a fit; so much for her keeping a low profile and not attracting attention.
Trying to sound in control, Taylor said, “I don’t know what to say. I have never had a panic attack before. Is there anything I can do to keep it from happening again?”
Suddenly realizing she was not going to die, Taylor became very aware of her state of undress. Her breasts were displayed for all tosee. She tried to pull the bra back up as much as possible, but the wires still left gaping holes.
Seeing her discomfort with the wires, the handsome doctor walked over and began to undo them. None of which did anything to reduce Taylor’s stress level regarding her boobs hanging out. Having the hunky doctor’s hands all over her chest, she was worried she might have another panic attack at any moment. It had been a long time since any man put his hands on her breasts. Just because he was a doctor didn’t make it any less uncomfortable. The doctor was very professional; it was just Taylor’s sense of modesty kicking in and stressing her out.
Speaking in a smooth and easy manner, the doctor said, “If you have been under a lot of stress lately, that is probably what is causing it. I have some patients that I need to see about, but before I go, I will leave you some scripts for anxiety and pain should you have another one.“ He continued to remove the leads and wires and straighten her clothes. “You will probably be quite sore for a few days. That is normal. Just take it easy.”
Handing Taylor her T-shirt that had been removed earlier, he added, “Running is a great way to reduce stress. I think with the anti-anxiety meds, you will have yourself running again in no time. But, you might want to start by just walking at first, though, to see how you feel. If you are doing okay, I see no reason for you not to resume your normal running routine. I will get those prescriptions for you. If you have any questions, the nurse will be happy to answer them.”
“No, I am good. I think I got it,” said Taylor as she continued to struggle to get her modest C-cup boobs back into her suddenly very tiny sports bra.
“Good, the nurse will come back in and get some information from you since you didn’t have any ID when you arrived. Goodluck…um, I didn’t get your name earlier,” the doctor walked over to the door and stood.
Not wanting to use her real name, Taylor smiled and said, “TJ.” It wasn’t a lie. Tatum had always called her that, and so did Joules.
Nodding, the gorgeous doctor said, “Good luck, TJ, and let us know if you need anything else,” as he walked out the door.
Taylor quickly put the T-shirt back on. A nurse wearing a nametag that said Beth appeared almost instantly. The nurse explained that the doctor had been called away but that he had communicated all the necessary information to another doctor on staff who was currently writing her prescriptions.
The nurse gave Taylor several forms to complete. Not wanting this incident to be fodder for the press, either now or later, Taylor decided to use only her maiden name and not to give her insurance information. She would pay for everything herself. She kept a credit card in her maiden name for when she wanted to fly under the radar. She promised to come by the next day and pay the bill in full. Hopefully, that would keep the press from being able to find her if the story broke. Once all the necessary forms were completed, the nurse took them and went to get Taylor’s prescriptions. Within thirty minutes, Taylor was in the back of a taxi headed to the cottage.
Once she was home, she considered filling her prescriptions, but she decided to wait to see if she had another panic attack before doing so. She hated taking medicine of any kind. With that decision made, she fixed herself some dinner and spent the rest of the evening resting and watching reruns of seventy and eighties television shows.
She decided not to tell Bennett or Joules about her embarrassing adventure. It was bad enough to be rushed to the hospital with a panic attack, but she didn’t need those two freaking out about it. She was definitely not up to listening to Bennett acting all concernedwhen he was the one who had started this whole mess in the first place. So, instead, she just took care of herself. And it felt good to know she was capable of doing that.
Chapter 7
Carrington Office
Searcy, Arkansas
