Complete Me (Book Three of The Kirkland Family)

Complete Me: Chapter 28

Chapter 28

The doctor leaned over Rose, gently probing the flesh around her wound. "You have some considerable bruising and swelling already," he murmured. "And you feel dizzy? Trouble focusing?"

Rose nodded...then wished she hadn't. Her head exploded.

"We're going to stitch you up and order a CT scan. How did you say this happened?"

Rose darted a look at her mother, who sat in a chair on the other side of the bed, holding her hand. "I...uh...fell out of bed and bumped it on the window sill."

The doctor glanced at her dubiously. "Were you alone?"

"No...I, um, was with my, um, neighbor..."

Her mother snorted. "She was with her boyfriend," she said to the doctor.

"I see," he said. "Do you feel safe with your partner?"

Rose stared at him. "If you're implying that he did this on purpose..."

Her mother patted her hand. "Rose, sweetie, bedroom injuries happen more than you think, and not all of them are accidental."

"I know," said Rose, "but Cole would never hurt me. We just weren't paying that much attention to our surroundings at the time."

The doctor smiled softly. "I apologize for any insult to you and your partner. It's important to screen all injuries."

Rose sighed. "And I apologize for my outburst."

He straightened and withdrew a pad from his coat pocket. "The CT scan will tell us more, but that bruising is enough to cause some caution. I'd like to keep you here for a few hours, but luckily, we aren't that busy tonight, so we won't have to move you to a room and charge you for an overnight stay. We're going to give you something for the pain, but you shouldn't try to fall asleep right away."

"Thank you," Rose whispered, though closing her eyes and sleeping away this nightmare sounded like a great idea.

He left the curtained area surrounding her bed, and Rose tried to look everywhere but at her mother. This was so embarrassing!

Her mother breathed out slowly and grinned. "Well...seems like you and Cole are getting along great—"

Rose burst into tears and covered her face.

"Honey...what's wrong? Do you hurt that much?"

"Oh, Momma! It was awful!"

"What was, dear?"

"Tonight! With Cole!"

Her mother squeezed her hand. "Shhh...calm down, sweetie. Tell me what happened. I won't judge you. Cole is so sweet; surely, the sex couldn't have been that bad—"

"We never got that far," Rose wailed.

Silence followed, and then... "Oh...okay."

Rose wiped her eyes. "He kissed me, and it was wonderful, and...and...and then... Oh, Momma...I don't even know what happened! It was just a bunch of clumsy blundering and bumping into things. And we both fall off the bed, and...and this happens!"

Her mother studied the curtain softly waving from the air conditioning vents, her mouth pursed thoughtfully. "Sounds like...well, it sounds..." A small giggle slipped out. "Oh, Rose, it does sound awful." Her mother laughed behind clenched lips. "I'm sorry, sweetie."

Rose stared at her. Then, her lips twitched, and she giggled, and her needles stabbed the back of her eyes, and she moaned, but another laugh followed. "Ow...can't laugh...hurts..."