Page 43 of Broken Vows

“I’m coming, I’m coming. Where? Shit, shit, I don’t know how far that is from here! Oh God, okay, okay… I need a cab and—”

I rip the phone from her ear and put it on speaker. “This is Dr. Astor. Who am I speaking with?”

After the urgent care triage nurse identifies herself, I ask her to tell me what’s happening while Lexie stands in front of me, wobbling, and squeezing and shaking her fingers. “We have a patient, Elaina Welch, fifty-five, brought in here after fainting at work and hitting her head—”

“Is she responsive?” I ask, grabbing my jacket and leading Lexi to the entrance.

“Yes. The doctor is doing a concussion evaluation now, we’ll be running labs and controlling the bleeding with sutures…” Lexie gasps and covers her mouth as the nurse continues to give me this information.

We hang up, I hand Lexie her phone, and she bolts out of the bakery, stuffing her arms into her jacket as she runs to flag a cab. “I have to go. Theo, this is my mom… she told me she wasn’t feeling good and said she was all lethargic and dizzy, and I should’ve fucking made her go in…”

“Breathe, okay?” I say, grabbing her arm. “I need you to stop right now and take a breath.”

“I can’t!” she says, her chest rising in quick shallow breaths, and between the wine, sugar, and panic, she’s in danger of passing out herself if she doesn’t calm down. “Where are the goddamn cabs?”

I cup her face and drag her eyes to mine. “I’ll drive you. I have my car.” Fuck, fuck her skin feels so good underneath my fingertips. I’ve wondered all these years how soft it would be, but I push away the sensation. Right now, Lexie not hyperventilating is more important than me absorbing the sensation of her skin.

Her eyes frantically flicker between mine. “I… no… that’s not a good idea. I need to go by myself, and…”

“You’ve been drinking. You need someone sober with you in case you need to make any decisions.”

It takes a moment, her forehead cutting with worry, when she nods. I grip her by the hand and drag her down the block to the parking garage.

Inside the garage, we run down several flights, with me right at her side as she grips the railing with one hand and me with the other. I open her door to my Audi A8, then hop in the driver’s seat and take off.

On the ride, I weave quick and sharp through traffic as she grips her phone to her chest. “They said she fell and hit her head. That’s bad, right? It’s so bad. Why does she keep falling?”

I pass a car and accelerate.

“What if it’s something terrible?” Her voice trembles as she speaks. “Or, or, what if this is it, or if she’s really sick and has cancer like my dad and—”

“Lexie.” I use my soothing, but firm, doctor tone. “There’s no point jumping to conclusions when we don’t have all the information. You said this has happened before?”

“Yes, at work. She got dizzy and passed out, and the doctor at the hotel where she works gave her an ice pack and said she might need to get on blood pressure medication.” She taps her finger on the back of the cell phone and stares out the window.

“For passing out?” Jesus Christ. “Did they check her blood sugar? EKG? Hydration levels?”

“I doubt it,” she says, her legs bouncing. “I told her to go in but with her shitty insurance, she knew she’d have to wait for months.”

Unreal. I grunt in response.

I roll to a stop at the light and look at her. Lexie looks so small and fragile sitting there that a fierce need to protect her overtakes me. “Tomorrow, call my office, and set up an appointment with me for your mom.”

For the first time since she got the call, she snaps from her trance, and her eyes bore into me, questioning. Does she think this is a game? Does she really think that I’d do something to jeopardize someone’s health, to what… get back at her for what she said to Justin that first day in her office? As far as she knows—which I intend to keep that way—I first met her when Anna and I stepped into her office. I wouldn’t exploit her mother’s health, or anyone’s for that matter, for something like this.

She bites her lip and exhales. “Thank you. But I’m almost positive that her insurance won’t cover the costs.”

“I don’t expect payment. Have her come to my office and I’ll take care of her, no charge, okay?” Her eyes turn soft at my words. “Reach out to my nurse Erica. She’ll take care of the arrangements.”

Tears spring to her eyes, but she quickly blinks them away. I should love this. This is what I want, right? To see little bits of her break?

But dammit. Not like this. A warm, almost tingling sensation swarms in my chest. I clear my throat and focus on the traffic. She’s making me feel things again. I’m fucking Theo Astor and I don’t feel anything for Lexie Welch. And yet, I want to hold her and kiss her forehead and tell her everything’s going to be okay. And I shouldn’t.

I really, really shouldn’t.

20 Lexie

When Theo pulls up to the Urgent Clinic connected to his office, I have my seatbelt off and bolt from the car before he even comes to a complete stop. He tells me he’ll park the car, consult with the doctor on duty, and be in as quick as he can, but his words barely register. The next few moments are a blur as I rush to the triage nurse, show ID, and someone escorts me to an exam room.