Page 18 of She's Got that Heat

Jonah looks at me sadly. “I’m just a medic. All I have here is over-the-counter stuff like she has herself, no migraine injections or the serious stuff. We could run her to the emergency room in West Stoneburg, but the drive would shake her up.”

“No cars.” Our heads snap to Allie, and I’m alarmed to see a deep shudder run through her. “Please. I just need two minutes. I’ll be fine… I just need to take a little nap.”

She seems to knock right out again.

“She needs a few hours, not a few minutes,” Jonah whispers. “When she first came in, I gave her some painkillers and they won’t kick in for another twenty minutes or so.”

“Poor little thing.” James shakes his head.

“How bad is it?” I ask.

“It’s hard to tell,” Jonah murmurs in the silent room. “People with chronic pain have a different rating scale than people who don’t. On a scale of one to ten, if she’s used to getting through theday on what she considers level seven pain, that would probably be a nine or ten to you or me.”

“I take it she’s a fighter?” James asks, shooting her a glance.

“Definitely.” I watch my precious angel as her foot twitches before she becomes freakishly still. “I keep asking what I can do, but she doesn’t seem to want help.”

“And the problem,” Jonah sighs, “is that what you can do to help is different for everyone.”

“Do you have some info I could read about this for next time?” I ask. “Kinds of drugs or gadgets or anything I could keep in my house and the truck in case she ever needs them?”

“Definitely. I’ll email you the latest research, plus the old wives’ tales, like soaking her feet in hot water when a headache starts.”

“Do you have a hot water bottle I can buy?”

“No – I sent my last one home with Mrs. Fergus last week.”

James jumps up. “I’ll go get one. What else do you need from the store?” Jonah and I gave him a list, and he jogs out the door.

Staring at Allie, my entire body crumples. “I just feel so fucking helpless,” I sigh.

Allie’s foot twitches again. She looks so uncomfortable, like she’s afraid to move an inch. That kind of tension in her body can’t be good for her. Looking around, I try to think. When have I seen her the most comfortable, outside of us being romantic?

Yes! She was completely relaxed when we were cuddling in my cool basement.

I notice that the air conditioner is in Jonah’s exam room, not here where we currently are in the room that serves as his waiting area. “Hey, can you crank the aircon? I have an idea.”

12

ALLIE

Deepest blackness. Everything aches. My head throbs, and my limbs feel brittle.

The cocoon of pain.

It’s something I know all too well, dammit.

My body is lifted. For a few seconds everything is rising, then falling again. Shit, did I pass out and fall? You know what, I don’t even care. It’s dark and relatively quiet here.

Through the murky haze of my spasming brain, I hear a low murmur. “Allie. I’m here, angel. I’ve got you. You’re going to be okay.”

Damon’s here? I thought he was gone…to…I forget. Something important. A slow wave of relief fills me. It feels good to be near Damon.

The air is chilly. Oh…so nice. My body instinctively burrows into the warmth under me. It reminds me of when Damon and I were cuddling.

Oh! I think it really is Damon. Mmm… He smells so good…

“That’s it, baby. Just relax and sleep. Let it all go.”

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