Lord, please don’t let anyone else operate on me. I know I’m asking a lot of her, but I want a chance to heal from this, and she’s the best. Please, God. Help me. Help her.
“I’ll see what I can do. Don’t worry about anything right now.”
He frowned. “The girls?”
“Piper and Nevaeh have them. The guys are following behind the ambulance. Don’t worry.”
She was adorable in protector mode. “I’m sorry.”
“For what? You have nothing to be sorry for.”
“I ruined our vacation,” he groused.
“Shh. It’s okay.” She placed a kiss on his forehead.
His entire being heated. He’d seen a forehead kiss in movies, but the man had always been the one to place it on the woman’s head. There was something to be said about receiving one. Chris wished he was in the right frame of mind to turn the kiss into one of promise. The ambulance hit a pothole, and a groan tore from his throat.
He barely felt Erykah’s touch against his forehead, but he heard her prayer. His body immediately stilled as if his being knew the importance of this moment.
“God, please bring Chris comfort. Please help relieve the pain. Please give him the best surgeon for the best recovery. Um, amen.”
“You prayed.” He tried to lick his lips, but his mouth had completely dried out from the last wave of pain. Did that mean he was going into shock or just that everything hurt?
“I should’ve said something earlier, but I-I believe. Though I’m not sure I would call that a prayer. I’m not eloquent like you are.”
“It ... was perfect.” He swallowed down the acid. “Going to be sick.”
A plastic bag was thrust under his mouth just in time.
This had to be the most humiliatingandagonizing experience of his life. To vomit in front of the woman he loved.
Love?
His heart stopped, then received a jolt. When had his more-than-friendly feelings turned to love? Hadn’t he just thought it was romantic interest being tortured by a friend zone he couldn’t escape from? Only the stabbing pain in his leg kept distracting him from his thoughts.
The ambulance stopped.
“We’re here,” Erykah murmured. “They’re going to move you. It’ll hurt, but I’m here. I won’t leave your side.”
“Operate ... please.”
She bit her lip. “That’s not allowed when you know the person.”
“Please.”
Tears filled her eyes, and his gut clenched. As much as he wanted the best doctor, he nevereverwanted to make her cry.
“I’m sorry. Forget it,” he gritted.
Doctors swarmed around him, and Erykah went into her element. The tears that had been there a moment before dried as she began speaking in a jargon that sounded like something straight out ofERorGrey’s Anatomy.He’d never been prouder. All Chris could do was watch in awe as the other doctors responded to her authority.
After getting images, they wheeled him down to the surgery prep floor. He talked to the anesthesiologist and another orthopedic surgeon. Erykah walked into the room, hair in a scrub cap and scrubs on her body. He blinked, afraid to hope.
“Are you...?”
She shook her head. “I can’t. But they did agree to let me in the room to make sure everything goes according to my satisfaction.”
Relief filled him. He wouldn’t be alone. She would protect him.
