Page 34 of All For You
“Yes, ma’am.”
“When was your last tetanus shot? You may need to get one tomorrow.”
“I had a booster last year.”
“Oh, good. You should be covered then. Let’s not wrestle with barbed wire anymore, shall we?”
Chuckling, I leaned my upper body against Owen’s hip, my energy already drained.
“Get some sleep,” she said, and then I was abruptly lifted in the air and deposited on my couch. “Thank you for calling me, Owen,” I heard her tell her son.
“Well, I figured if anyone could stitch her up, it would be you.”
Even I felt the subtle dig, but Beverly replied gracefully, which surprised me. “Years of practice.” She leaned over me. “Make sure to get extra rest and be careful with that arm over the next few days. It will be sore.”
“Okay.” My response was garbled.
I felt the couch shift, then heard Owen’s deep voice off in the distance. He was likely saying goodbye to his mother. Opening my eyes, I examined the dressing on my wound, wondering how I could have done something so stupid. I’d been rewiring the fences since I learned to use the metal cutting sheers when I was ten. It was a stupid mistake I made, and now I was injured because of it.
Owen closed my front door and then sat beside me. The couch cushion dipped dramatically under his weight.
“Thank you, Owen.”
I leaned toward him, resting my head on his shoulder.
“You’re welcome, cricket. I was worried you’d go nuts once you realized I called my mom.”
“You did the right thing. I’m sure she appreciated it too.”
“Probably.”
We stared at the black screen of the television. The only sound in the living room came from the large clock on my wall that ticked quietly with each passing second.
“You know, you never told me why you were at my house in the first place.” I stifled a yawn, using the back of my good hand to cover my mouth.
“You’re exhausted. How about I help you get to bed, and we can talk about it tomorrow?”
Yawning again, I agreed.
He argued to carry me up the loft stairs, but I protested enough he let me go on my own. By the time I reached the landing, I was woozy again and even more tired than before. It took me twice as long to remove my clothes, since I had a numb hand and arm.
Owen called up to me twice to make sure I was okay.
“Yeah,” I mumbled as I finally released my bra and slid it down my arms. My sleepshirt rested around my neck as I tried to maneuver my arms through the holes. The first went through fine, but I struggled to get my injured arm through the opening. It took an extra minute, but thankfully I tugged the shirt down enough to cover my panties just as Owen climbed the stairs.
“Good. You’re dressed. Now, get into bed.” He brushed past me and tugged down the covers for me to slide in.
Once I was settled, he moved around the bed and sat down. I couldn’t see what he was doing, but then I heard two thumps. Shoes.
Then… he stretched his large body across the other side of my bed, on top of the covers.
“What are you doing?”
“Keeping an eye on you.”
“Owen, that’s ridiculous.”
“Sorry, Mom’s orders. Now get some sleep. If you need some pain meds during the night, wake me up. I’ll get them for you.”
