Page 5 of One Whopper of a Love Story

He’d hit the arm of the chair on the way down, and that worried me.

After waiting less than a second for a response, I tried something different. If a kiss worked in fairy tales, it was worth a try. For the second time in less than an hour, I kissed the handsome stranger.

He made a noise, then his hand wrapped around the back of my neck. He’d be fine. And he was fine. Like a tall glass of lemonade on a hot day kind of fine. So, I continued kissing him.

“I need you, Miss Mermaid, on the bed, and you, Deputy Lip Locked, stay on the floor. Do not even sit up. Y’all can do more of that later when you aren’t in the ER.”

I ran my fingers through his hair where I guessed he’d gotten whapped. “I need to follow orders. You okay?”

“Better now.” He started to pick up his head.

“No. Weren’t you listening?” I pulled my hand back, then waved it at the nurse. “He’s bleeding.”

“That’s why I need you out of my way.” She seemed greatly displeased.

I climbed back up onto the bed but leaned over the side.

The nurse pointed at me as she knelt beside Nico. “Be careful. I don’t need two head injuries.”

“I’m okay.” Nico waved her away.

“Deputy Gomez, you’re bleeding on my floor. That’s not okay.” She pressed a stack of gauze to the side of his head. “If you can’t handle needles, why were you in here?”

“The mermaid.” He shot me a glance and grinned.

I might have to write a thank you note to the frat boys. Or to the person who dropped the board in the road. It probably had a nail in it.

Once the bleeding stopped, which didn’t take long, the nurse helped Nico into a chair. “Donotget up.”

“Ever?” Nico was clearly more interested in my reaction to his attempt at humor.

I laughed.

The nurse rolled her eyes. “The doctor will be in to check on you in a minute, deputy. Mermaid, I’m going to need you out of the fish tail so I can give you that shot.

Nico pushed on the arms of the chair but dropped back down when he made eye contact with the nurse. “I’ll just sit here with my eyes closed.”

“Good idea.” She rolled her shoulders. “And keep them closed until I tell you to open them.”

I stifled a giggle. Nico looked so cute with his eyes squeezed closed.

Mom had always said to make sure that I wore nice undies in case I was in an accident. Every time she’d given me the advice, I’d laughed and ignored it. It had been years since she’d reminded me of that advice, but that advice was what popped in my head. My choice of undergarments had been influenced by theme. Lobster-clad underwear graced my backside. It didn’t grace much of it either because I didn’t expect anyone to see it.

“Are your eyes closed?” I peeked around the nurse.

Nico nodded and slapped a hand across his face.

I unzipped the costume, then wriggled out of it. Once I had the sheet over me, I reached out and touched the tail to his hand.

He took hold of it without opening his eyes. “I might need a distraction while you give her the shot. Should I—”

The nurse had to be someone’s mom, or maybe she had a natural talent for reading minds.

“You should keep your eyes closed. Because if you do that, you won’t know anything about the shot.” She picked up the syringe and pulled back the sheet.

I stayed super quiet and didn’t squeal or moan or even gasp. I should be commended for that because the shot hurt. The nurse adjusted the sheet and covered me just as the doctor walked back in.

“You need to check his head. He passed out because of a fear of needles. Deputy, you can open your eyes now.”

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