Page 57 of Clap Back (Carter Brothers)

“Is there a chance you could be pregnant?” a nurse asked right before the X-ray tech was set to X-ray her face.

“No…”

“Yes!” Sheldon sped into the room, looking frantic. “Baby, are you okay?”

“Get out of my room!” Maven screeched. “We haven’t been together in months and months! I’ve had seven periods since you left, you fucking moron! And the one and only time we did it, we used a condom, I was on birth control, and you didn’t even come!”

I blinked.

I also fucking hated the way my chest felt so tight at the knowledge that she’d slept with Sheldon, no matter how far in the past it was.

“Baby,” Sheldon pleaded, looking lost.

“Please, please, get him out of here.” Maven closed her eyes as the tears once again started up. “There is no chance in hell that I’m pregnant, and just sayin’, but I can’t freakin’ stand you. Always kissing my brother’s ass.”

The revulsion in those words had me smiling despite the awkward situation.

“And how did you even know that I was hurt, anyway?” Maven suddenly asked.

That was a great question, because no one had asked Maven who to call, and since I was here…

Sheldon started backing out of the room.

I made eye contact with Quaid, letting him know without words to find out what Sheldon knew, and went back to listening to Maven’s words.

“…not pregnant. I have the heaviest periods in existence, that last for freakin’ ever, and debilitate me. So I think I would know if I was pregnant,” Maven was telling the X-ray technician. “I have PCOS among other things. Naturally, my periods come like clockwork. Mother Nature just wants to make sure I can experience that fresh hell as much as I can.”

That was news to me.

I hated that she experienced pain of any kind, nature intended or not.

She squeezed my hand, causing me to look at her face.

Her eyes were already directed on me when she said, “I don’t like, nor have I ever really liked, him. It was one time, and I was really, really drunk. And it was the worst mistake of my life. A mistake I don’t even remember making, to be quite honest. I broke up with him the next day. I won’t go into any more details because the corner of your eye is starting to twitch with my words, but I haven’t felt anything for Sheldon since he wouldn’t stand up to my father.”

I squeezed her hand.

“Sir, we’ll have to ask you to step out of…” the technician broke into our discussion. “It’ll be really quick.”

The end part of the explanation was when Maven started to freak out again.

“You could get him the apron,” Ellodie said from her perch right inside the room. “Let him wear that. He can stay.”

The woman looked at Ellodie and sneered.

I wondered if this was her ex-boss who had lost her management position when Ellodie had replaced her.

“Company policy…”

“States that a patient can have an attendant in the room if necessary,” Ellodie interrupted her.

The woman narrowed her eyes, but then acquiesced before walking out of the room.

“My former boss,” Ellodie confirmed my suspicions. “She sort of hates me. I’m sorry, Maven.”

Maven waved her off with her free hand.

A commotion sounded in the hallway, and I had a feeling that the chief had just arrived.

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