Page 35 of Don’t Fall for your Best Friend's Brother

She’s gazing up at him with her big eyes, and, in my opinion, she seems rather overfamiliar for someone he’s only met. I know the customer service over here makes England look like a Third World country, but still. A shooting pain flies up my arm, like I’m being punished for my thoughts. The receptionist hands Finn a clipboard and a pen, and he begins filling out the form.

A moment later, an older man in a white coat emerges from a side door and greets Finn with a handshake.

“Mr. Brecken,” he says. “Always a pleasure to see you, though I understand the circumstances are not too pleasant.”

Hang on a minute. Maybe I’ve got this all wrong.

While the doctor’s voice booms across the waiting area, Finn speaks far more softly, and thus, I have no idea what he’s saying. I assume he’s telling the doctor that the idiot he brought with him fell off a stepladder and may well have broken her wrist.

The doctor takes the clipboard from Finn, and then they both make their way over to me.

“Hello, Miss Bolton. I’m Dr. Jacobs. I hear you’ve had a slight mishap. Won’t you please follow me?” he says, gesturing toward the office he had emerged from only moments before.

“Do you want me to come with you?” Finn asks.

“Yes,” I say immediately as I stand from my seat. There’s no way I’m going through this process myself. I’m sure it won’t be much different from what it’s like at home, but I still want Finn by my side.

He smiles at me. It’s not like one of his usual smiles. I can’t really explain how I know, but it’s as though he’s pleased that I want his support. His protection.

Dr. Jacobs scans the form once we get into his office. He asks me a few details Finn obviously didn’t know, like my date of birth, and my next of kin, that sort of stuff. With that out of the way, he examines my wrist. I cry out when he twists it back and forth. If I wasn’t in so much pain, I might have more of a reaction to Finn taking hold of my other hand and gently squeezing it.

“All right. Well, I don’t think it’s broken, but we’re going to get an x-ray just to be certain,” Dr. Jacobs says. My wrist is now throbbing ten times as badly as it was before. He looks at me gently. “And maybe something for the pain. Are you allergic to anything?”

“Pain,” I quip back. “I’m pretty sure I’m allergic to pain.”

Finn and Dr. Jacobs both chuckle before the older man nods and leaves the room.

“I’m sorry I’m causing you all this trouble,” I say to Finn now that we are alone again.

“Emma, will you quit?” he says. There’s a smile in his voice, but I can’t see it, because I have my head hung down and my eyes closed. I’m trying to deal with the extreme discomfort of my wrist, and it’s like I can’t concentrate on anything else.

Dr. Jacobs returns swiftly with a needle and syringe.

“Oh, Lord,” Finn says with a tone of utter terror.

I can’t help but laugh a little, even through the pain. “Really? You’re afraid of needles?”

“Yes. I am. You know, the way you’re allergic to pain.”

A second later, Dr. Jacobs administers the painkiller. I don’t even ask what it is. About ten minutes later, I don’t care.

“Oh, wow,” I say dreamily. “This is some good stuff.”

Finn is now looking at me with an expression of utter amusement. We’re sitting outside another office that says X-ray on the door. So, I’m pretty sure, this is where I’m going to get my x-ray.

“This is the x-ray room,” I say. My words are light and slightly slurred, and I’m feeling higher than a bird in flight. As you might have guessed, I have never done drugs in my life.

“Uh-huh,” Finn says, clearly trying not to laugh at my delirious state. Is that the right word? Or maybe I’m just high.

I look at him then, and I reach my hand to his face to stroke the skin on his cheek. “You have such good bone structure, do you know that? Those high cheekbones and that chiseled jawline.”

I move my hand back and forth like I’m chiseling, then attempt to make a sound like I’m chiseling wood. To be fair, it probably sounds more like a steam train, but I don’t care.

Finn is shaking his head and laughing at me now. “Well, at least the pain is gone.”

“Yes,” I say dreamily. I haven’t taken my eyes off his face, and I’m examining it intensely. Finn’s laughter fades, and he’s looking at me with an expression I can’t decipher. Probably because I’m high. “You’re so beautiful,” I say.

The door to the x-ray room opens, and a woman steps out. “All right. We’re ready for you now.” She smiles. She has really good teeth.

I go to stand, but I stumble, and then Finn is there, right behind me, stopping me from falling backwards. “Come on. I’ll help you.”

I can’t really remember much after that. Well, there are two things I do remember. One, my wrist isn’t broken. And two, when it’s time to go, while Finn is still holding me up, I distinctly remember him getting out his credit card and paying the bill.

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