Page 18 of Rear View
Grabbing a penlight from his breast pocket, the doctor clicked it on. He raised his palm and cupped my cheek, his thumb skimming my temple before he held my eyelid in place. I flinched and tried to pull back, but his fingers gripped tight. “Hold still now.”
Xavier kicked off the wall, then clasped his hands before him as he took position at my side.
Dr. Vernon’s stare flicked up. His Adam’s apple dipped when he swallowed, and he released me before he brought the light into my line of sight. Moving it back and forth, he checked my pupil, then did the same on the other side.
I blinked hard when tracers tracked through my sight for several seconds until it cleared.
Pushing back a foot, Vernon asked, “Have you ever had a concussion before?”
Images flashed before me, a ticker tape of memories I begged to forget.
I screamed. The man swung. An explosion of pain. Everything went black.
The scar above my brow throbbed and I fought not to touch it. My gaze flicked to Xavier, whose own was already on me. Those eyes narrowed like he’d seen something. I turned away.
Nodding, I replied, “Yes. Once.”Don’t ask what happened. Don’t ask what happened.It wasn’t as if I’d tell the truth. I’d tried that before. But I was terrible at lying, hence my avoidance strategy.
“Was it severe?” he asked.
My lungs constricted. “I lost consciousness.”
He tapped something on his tablet. “And how about now? Any nausea? Dizziness? Headache? Light or sound sensitivity?”
“Nothing.”
“The notes say abdominal pain.” At the incline of my head, he patted the table beside us. “Lie down here.” He offered me his hand to help.
Xavier stepped between us none-too-subtly and took my elbow. His brows were furrowed when he gave me a look that said,This fuckin’ guy. A small smile stole across my lips, and his own tugged in response.
I climbed up and winced when I lay back.
His head cocked. “You alright, darlin’?”
Shifting until the pressure in my stomach eased, I uttered, “Yeah—”
“She’s in good hands,” Vernon said with an unseemly smile.
Xavier’s jaw ticked when he eyed him over his shoulder. He edged aside, but not far, as if he wasn’t keen on leaving me to Dr. Touchy-Feely’s devices.Thank God.
He stared down at Vernon, who looked decidedly small in Xavier’s looming shadow. But Xavier’s presence was…comforting. The concept of a guy I’d literally met on the side of the road making me feel anything but fear was bizarre. And oddly relieving.
Dr. Vernon set his hands on my abdomen, tapping each quadrant before he circled back. “Tell me if anything hurts.” He pressed, checking for whatever it was he needed to rule in or out. When he reached the upper right, a jolt of pressure-induced pain shot through me.
Flinching, I crushed my eyes closed before reopening them. “There,” I said through clenched teeth.
Vernon pressed again.
I groaned, tears blurring my vision. One leaked out and slithered into my hair.
Xavier cleared his throat, then shifted his weight as he rolled his shoulders.
Vernon dropped his arms and took a step backward. “Okay.” He adjusted his stethoscope. “I’m sending you to get a CT for the head and an abdominal MRI.” Taking up his tablet again, he aimed for the door and left without another word.
“Might wanna check your prescription for his number,” Xavier said.
I barked a laugh, all the awkward tension that’d settled in my gut dissipating in a blink.
That grin tugged his mouth again, highlighting the sharp angle of his jaw as he extended a hand to me. “Come on. Let’s get you back to the wheelchair.”
