Page 78 of Theirs to Take

“Give me the gist,” the doctor ordered.

“Two guys beat him up,” Ranger offered. “That about sums it up.” Luke was in and out of consciousness which wasn’t that bad given that he was in so much pain. Every time the doctor touched his nose, he shouted in anguish and Ruby hated that he had to go through all of that. If she had stayed, would things have been different? She felt incredibly guilty that she left him so easily, and now, all she seemed capable of was standing in the corner, sobbing uselessly to herself.

“His nose is broken. I’m thinking that his jaw is just dislocated, but I’ll need to order some x-rays to be sure. We’ll have to set his jaw and nose, but I don’t think he’ll need any surgeries right now. Let’s get the x-rays back first so that I know exactly what I’m working with and then, we can come up with a game plan.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” Ranger said.

“We’ll have him back from x-ray in no time,” the nurse assured. She put the rails up on Luke’s hospital bed and started wheeling him to the door. Ranger held it open for her and she gave him a look that made Ruby almost want to giggle. Ranger seemed to really rub the woman the wrong way—just like he hadMillie. Poor guy wasn’t having any luck with women and Ruby was sure that he only had himself to blame.

“Thank you,” Ruby said from the corner of the room.

“Ruby,” Millie said, crossing the room to put an arm around her shoulder. “You should sit down and relax some. All of this crying and stress can’t be good for the baby. You’ve been through a lot today.”

“Millie’s right,” Ranger said. “You should get checked out too. You need to make sure that you and the baby are all right after what happened.”

“What happened?” the doctor said. He had been typing something on his computer and Ruby wasn’t sure if he was listening or not. Apparently, the doctor didn’t miss very much, even if he didn’t look like he was paying attention.

“The same men that beat up my friend held Ruby against her will,” Ranger said.

“Yeah, but they didn’t hurt me,” Ruby assured.

“Well, if that’s the case, you and your baby should both be checked out. Your friend is right. How far along are you?” the doctor asked.

“Um, I just started my second trimester,” she admitted. She looked between Ranger and Millie and smiled. “I got pregnant right away,” she admitted, “but, I didn’t know that I could even get pregnant. I didn’t plan it at all.”

“Well, how about we get you admitted, and I’ll send you up to the maternity ward to get checked up?” the doctor asked.

“Please, Ruby,” Millie said. “Just do as the doctor says and get checked out.”

Ruby rolled her eyes and nodded. “Fine,” she agreed. “I’ll get checked up, but only because I want to make sure that the baby is all right. Plus, it will give me something to do besides worry about Luke.”

“Leave worrying about Luke to me,” Ranger said. “Millie, would you mind sticking by Ruby’s side while she gets checked out?”

“Not at all,” Millie agreed. “Is that okay with you, Ruby?” she asked.

“I’d like that,” Ruby agreed. “Thank you—both of you,” she said, squeezing Millie’s hand into her own.

“Great,” the doctor said. “Come with me.” She followed him into the hallway and down to the nurse’s station, Millie by her side the whole time. The doctor pulled a wheelchair out and pointed to it. “Have a seat,” he ordered.

“Is that really necessary?” she asked.

“Yep,” the doctor said. “Sit,” he repeated.

“Fine,” Ruby grumbled, sitting in the wheelchair.

“Will you take Ms.—um, I didn’t get your name,” the doctor said.

“It’s Ruby Grace,” she said.

He nodded, “Take Ms. Grace up to maternity to have her and her baby checked out, please.” A perky little blond nurse appeared from behind the desk and smiled up at the doctor, causing Ruby to giggle.

“Thanks, Doctor,” Ruby said. “Will someone come to find me to fill me in when you have news about Luke?”

“Absolutely,” the doctor assured. “Just try to relax and I’ll see you back here in no time.” She nodded as the super eager to please nurse rolled her into the elevator, and Millie followed behind them.

“He’s awful cute,” Millie whispered to the nurse as if she hadn’t noticed.

“Yeah,” the nurse gushed, “he’s the hospital’s most eligible bachelor, but he doesn’t pay attention to any of us.”

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