Page 76 of State of Suspense

“All done. You did great.”

She felt like a big, fat baby as Nick wiped away her tears with a tissue.

Her hands were shaking, and she felt like she might hyperventilate.

“Let’s sit her up,” Harry said.

He and Nick helped her up.

Harry rested a hand on her shoulder. “Take a deep breath, Sam. It’s all over.”

That might be true, but she still felt like she was going to be sick.

“Can you stand?” Nick asked.

“I can try.”

With one of them on each side of her, she tentatively got down from the exam table, waiting for the predictable blast of pain from her hip that didn’t materialize. “Oh, that feels better. Wow. Much better.” Other than the dull aches coming from her face and wrist, she felt no pain. “Thank you, Harry. That totally sucked, but it worked.”

“I’m glad it worked quickly for you.”

“Me, too. I have no time to be injured this week.”

“Let’s get your wrist wrapped properly and send you home.”

Twenty minutes later, Nick walked her slowly to the elevator that would take them to the second-floor residence. Her face stung from whatever Harry had put on it, and her throbbing wrist was immobilized in a bandage. “Sorry about all this. The last thing you needed this week was an injured wife.”

“As always, I’m thankful my wife is only injured when we both know it could be much worse.”

“I hope I never again have to have a shot to the hip. I almost passed out.”

“I almost passed out from watching it.”

“I’m going to have nightmares about that for the rest of my life.”

He ushered her into the elevator and pushed the button for the second floor. “Nah, you’ll forget all about it in a day or two.”

“If you say so.”

“I say so, and I’m the boss of the whole country.”

“Not letting it go to your head or anything, right?”

“Of course not.”

They emerged from the elevator to the sound of children laughing as they played chase in the hallway. Scotty was in hot pursuit of the twins, who were doing most of the laughing as they came barreling toward Sam and Nick.

He reached for them so they wouldn’t crash into Sam. “I’ve got them, Scotty. Now what should we do with them?”

“Tickle them until they puke?”

“No,” the twins said, shrieking.

“Anything but that,” Aubrey said.

She hated being tickled, while Alden loved it.

“How about some dinner?” Nick asked, kissing both little faces before he put them down to run off again.

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