Chapter Nineteen
I opened my eyes, only to immediately close them again. The harsh light of day consumed everything. I heard voices all around me, so I cracked my eyes open again, forcing them to stay open this time. My leg, back, and head ached with a racking pain that brought tears to my eyes. I craved comfort. Lifting one hand slightly in the air, I tried to get someone's attention. Who was around that could help me?
"Ethan," I rasped, still waiting for his hand to capture mine. A silhouette appeared above my head, blocking out part of the bright sun shining on my face. I couldn't see the facial features, only a shadow. "Ethan?" I asked as he took my raised hand into his.
“No,” the silhouette said. “Anthony. You remember?” His face came closer and I was finally able to focus on him. Everything came back to me. Our stupid race, my crash, blacking out. I finally garnered enough energy to move my head. I realized we were at the bottom of the mountain now and I was strapped to a ski gurney attached to a snowmobile.
“Right,” I said. “Get me off of here.” I struggled against the seatbelt holding me down. “Hurry,” I demanded.
A man rushed over to us wearing an EMS uniform and pushing Anthony out of the way. “Settle down, now,” he said, placing his hands on my shoulders. “Relax, it’s okay. We’re going to take you to the hospital.”
“No,” I said forcefully. “Get me off of here!” Panic started to build inside of me. “I don’t consent to this. Anthony, help me!”
“Elena,” Anthony sounded alarmed. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”
“We think you might have broken your ankle,” the paramedic said.
“I don’t care,” I said, trying to calm down. “Please. Let me up.”
“Just let her up,” Anthony bumped the paramedic on the shoulder. He looked at Anthony like he was crazy and then shook his head. With obvious reluctance, he unbuckled the seatbelt holding me down.
I immediately shot up into a sitting position, my back aching with the effort. Stars danced in front of my vision for a moment as my head spun. Anthony stepped even closer, putting his arm around my shoulders. “Easy, Lewis,” he whispered.
“We need to call Mason,” I said.
“Okay,” Anthony said. “Where’s your phone?”
“I don’t know,” I said. I thought I’d probably left it with my bag in the locker at the ski lodge. “Where’s yours? I know his number.”
Anthony handed me his phone and I called Mason’s number. He had made me memorize his phone number in case I was ever in a situation where I needed help. Mason answered after the second ring.
“Mason, it’s me,” I said. “I’m hurt.”
“Elena?” He sounded panicked already. “Where are you now?”
“I’m at the ski lodge,” I said. “Can you come pick us up? And call Colton. Tell him to call me a doctor. I think I broke my ankle.”
Mason cursed under his breath. “Yeah,” he said. “I’ll be right there.”
We hung up and I just knew that he was going to beat himself up over this. Mason hated whenever I got hurt. He takes his job so seriously that whenever I did happen to get hurt, even if it’s something mild or not even his fault, he blamed himself.
Barely ten minutes later, Mason appeared barreling through the doors of the ski lodge with his scary bodyguard face. We had hobbled into the lounge area. I had been favoring my good leg and my head continued to throb. Anthony didn’t say much, though his brows were constantly furrowed in concern.
The paramedic didn’t leave my side either. You could clearly see that he was stressing out and frustrated with my decision to not be treated. Already, people nearby were stopping to stare at me. The last thing I needed was to end up on a tabloid or gossip TV show like TMZ. They could blow this completely out of proportion. So, I did my best not to look like anything was wrong. The façade had caused a sheen of sweat to appear above my brow.
Mason came to my side without saying anything. Between he and Anthony, they got me to my feet and escorted me to the black SUV waiting outside the lodge. By this time, there was definitely a crowd around us, some taking pictures, most just gawking. After painfully sliding into the back seat, Anthony disappeared back into the lodge to grab our things from our lockers. We finally took off back towards the cabin.
“Colton got in touch with a doctor. He’ll be at the cabin soon,” Mason was saying. “Might already be there by the time we get back.”
I looked over at Anthony, who sat stiffly next to me, his palms flat against his legs as if he didn't want to do anything in case he might need to grab or hold me suddenly. His chestnut eyes were dark with worry. "I'm sorry, guys," I said quietly. "I didn't see the log blocking the trail."
“Let’s not worry about that now,” Anthony said, softening his features into a relaxed smile. He tugged off his gloves and reached his hand over to interlace with mine. It felt slightly awkward like we were kids trying to hold hands with our parents in the front seat. I gave it a slight squeeze before dropping it to hold my injured leg again.
“We’ll need to call Melanie,” I said to Mason. He looked in the rearview mirror and nodded. I continued, “I can only imagine what she’s going to say. A lot of skiers had their phones out. We’ll need to get out ahead of this.”
“Colton said he would call Melanie,” Mason said. “Right now we need to get you treated by a doctor to see how bad the damage is. Hopefully, it’s not as bad as it seems and you’ll be okay by the time we go on location at the end of this month.”
Crap. I hadn’t even thought about that. This could really set us back if my leg was badly injured. It could potentially cost the studio lots of money if they had to delay. And if they didn’t think I was worth the cost, they could drop me off the film. I tried not to let myself panic.
When we arrived at the cabin, Mason didn’t even bother having Anthony help him.
Instead, Mason hooked his arms under me, lifting me into a cradled position and effortlessly carrying me into the house. He lay me down on the soft couch in the living room while avoiding touching my injured leg. Anthony followed helplessly behind him. Once I was settled, Mason turned mumbling about calling the doctor to see where he was.
I turned my eyes onto Anthony who sat nearby, facing me, still a look of helpless concern on his face. “Could you help me take some of the layers off?” I asked straightforwardly.
A strange look crossed his face before a wicked grin appeared. “Oh, yeah,” he said jokingly. “I would love to help you take your clothes off.”
I laughed, the sound causing me to wince, "Not all my clothes. Just my winter clothes."
Anthony shook his head and he reached forward to unbutton my winter coat. “Nope,” he said concentrating on the buttons, but a hint of mischief still twinkled in his eyes. “You were right the first time. We need to get these layers off of you.” His chestnut eyes crept up and looked into my eyes. “Doctor’s orders,” he said quietly. He winked and his eyes focused on my lips before returning to his fingers unbuttoning my coat.
Once my coat was unbuttoned, all pretense of flirting was abandoned as we prepared to take my coat off. The pain in my back was at its most extreme. The sweat that had cleared off my face once we got to the cabin reappeared as I fought the pain. Once my coat was off, we continued the process of discarding my layers with the layer of ski pants I had on over my workout leggings.
It was slightly more awkward sliding my pants off. I needed Anthony to hold my leg up by my thigh so I could put my weight on him instead of on my weak ankle. Once I slipped the pants onto my thighs, Anthony had to take them the rest of the way. He didn’t make any comment as his hands slid down my legs, tightly wrapped in my spandex workout leggings. Finally, I was in just my regular workout gear.
Mason reappeared, right as I was redoing my ponytail to keep my hair from getting on my sweaty face. Behind him was a man who was probably in his late forties most likely, his salt and pepper hair thick on his head. He had a polite smile on his face and wore jeans and a polo, carrying a black doctor’s bag with him. He came and stood next to Anthony, who got up so the doctor could take his place.
“Miss Lewis,” the doctor smiled, sitting down across from me. “I’m Doctor Hall. So tell me what happened.”
I told him briefly what happened and pointed out where the pain was radiating from. He started with my head, running his soft fingers across my scalp, a tough focus in his features. He gestured for me to lean up. I did so, which caused great pain. Holding my breath, I held my position as his hands ran up and down my back and around my sides. As his fingers crossed along the right side of my back, I inhaled at the sharp pain. He continued to press, looking me in the eyes, before slightly pushing me back to the elevated position I had been lying in.
Finally, he turned his attention to my ankle. He began to roll the tight leggings up my calf, causing tears to pinprick my eyes from the agony. Once he had it up far enough he could see, he inspected my ankle, holding and grabbing in different places. Once he had poked it what seemed like a hundred times, he finally sat back and looked me in the eyes.
“Well, I don’t think anything is broken,” he said. Relief washed over me. “Your head seems fine. I don’t think there’s any concussion. Probably just bonked it really hard. If you take some ibuprofen, that should take care of it.”
I nodded my head and urged him to continue. “Your back seems like you’ve just pulled a muscle. I recommend getting an ice pack and a heat pack, alternating them for twenty minutes at a time whenever you feel discomfort. It should fade over the next couple of days. And lastly, your ankle,” he said looking down at my swollen ankle. “It’s not broken. If it were broken, it wouldn’t be swelling the way it is. You’ve severely sprained your ankle, in my opinion. I can get you a walking boot and you should be fine in a couple weeks.”
“Oh my God, thank goodness,” I expressed. I turned towards Mason who was standing behind the doctor across the room. “It won’t affect work then.” Mason nodded, still looking rather grim.
The doctor continued to gather up his things. He left a prescription with Mason for some painkillers just in case and said he would have someone drop off a boot this afternoon. For now, he wanted me to rest. After he left, Mason went to town to get the painkillers, and Anthony came back to where he had been sitting before.
“Well,” he said. “Quite a first day together.”
“Right,” I said smiling, despite the pain. “Hey, do you think you could help me get upstairs? I think I’d rather rest in my bed.”
Anthony nodded. I began to lift myself into a sitting position, but Anthony stopped me. Slipping his one arm under my knees, and the other around my back, he lifted me into his arms. I could feel the tension in his arms as he carried me up the stairs. It was slightly awkward. I felt like maybe Anthony was trying to prove he was as strong as Mason was, which was an insane feat to try to accomplish.
Mason was a bodyguard. He lifted weights every day and protein shakes were practically ninety percent of his diet. Mason was the strongest guy I knew. When he lifted me, it was like I weighed a feather. When Anthony was carrying me, it was like I was a sack of flour. Yes, Anthony had muscles, but clearly they weren’t as impressive as they appeared. I knew it wasn’t fair for me to compare Anthony to Mason, or anybody else, but it doesn’t really help a girl’s self-esteem to see a man struggling to carry you up a flight of stairs.
Still, Anthony managed to get me up to my room, placing me delicately across my bed, despite his flushed face. He pretended not to be winded as I got settled. He sat down on the edge of my bed, looking down at me. “You going to get some rest now?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said, exhaustion already weighing down on me. My phone rang eliciting a loud groan from me. I didn’t want to talk to anybody.
Assuming it was Colton calling to scold me, I didn’t even check the screen before holding it up to my ear. “Yes?” I asked impatiently.
There was no answer. I looked down at the phone again and gave it a puzzled look. It was the restricted number again. “Hello?” I asked into the phone. No response again, so I hung up.
“Who was that?” Anthony asked, watching me place my phone on the end table.
“No idea,” I mumbled. I sank further into the pillows and blankets. “Happens every once and a while. I’m sorry, I’m just really tired.”
"I know," he said, reaching a hand out and running his fingers up and down my arm. The feeling tickled and it felt like goosebumps were about to appear across my body. "I think I might go back to the mountain while you sleep if that's okay?"
I nodded, “Actually, that’d be great. I feel bad I ruined our first day together. This isn’t exactly how I pictured you taking me to bed the first time.” I winked, toying with him a bit.
His eyes sharpened and that sexy smirk crossed his face, “Oh, so you’ve pictured me taking you to bed, huh?”
I smiled coyly while my eyelids began to droop. “Maybe,” I mumbled.
He chuckled and ran his hand across the top of my head. I closed my eyes and felt him lean towards me, placing a light kiss on my forehead. “Get some rest,” he whispered.
∞∞∞
Hours later, I awoke to a dark bedroom. The sun must have just set, casting shadows across the room. I sat up, already feeling a lot better after my nap. My head no longer ached and my back was just slightly sore. My leg still throbbed painfully though, the pain having been what woke me up. I moved to the edge of the bed and noticed the walking boot sitting next to my bed and my cell phone laying on the end table. I turned on the bedside lamp and began to strap on the boot. Once I was securely fastened, I stood up. It was a little uncomfortable, but much better.
I made my way downstairs where I heard laughter and noise coming from the living room. Walking in, I saw Anthony and Mason sitting on opposite couches watching a comedy show on the large TV. Anthony was wearing a pair of dark wash jeans now and a t-shirt, his tan biceps flexing against the material. He might not be as strong as Mason, but he could definitely fill out a shirt just fine.
When I stepped into the room, both guys turned their eyes to me. Anthony gave me a wink and Mason jumped up from where he was sitting. He walked over to me, placing his hand on my shoulder tentatively. "You okay, boss?" he asked, concern masking his features, erasing any laughter that had been there a moment before I entered.
“Yeah, yeah,” I said, shrugging his hand off my shoulder. “Thanks for getting the boot, Mason.” I smiled up at my friend. He nodded and walked back to the couch, looking more relaxed. I sat down on the opposite end of Anthony’s couch.
“I got you some pain meds, too,” Mason continued, his eyes on the TV. “They’re in your bathroom.”
“You’re the best,” I said. “So what’s the plan tonight?”
Anthony gave me a look, raising his eyebrows. “You should probably take it easy tonight, champ,” he said. “We can rally the rest of this week, but you’ve had a rough day.”
“Okay, fine,” I said. He wouldn’t get any arguments from me. “But what should we do?”
Mason shrugged, “Don’t look at me. If you’re not leaving the house, I’ll probably head back into town. Faye said she’d be working tonight…”
“Faye!” I said, a big smile crossing my face. “How do you know Faye is working?”
Mason shrugged again, “I might have got her number last night.”
“You dog!” I said laughing loudly. It had been too long since Mason was interested in a girl. In fact, in our many years working together, I’m not sure I had ever even heard him mention a girl. “Good for you, buddy!” He rolled his eyes.
“Who’s Faye?” Anthony asked, a smirk on his face.
“Nobody,” Mason said shortly. I gave Mason a disbelieving look before turning back to Anthony.
“Faye is this really cool girl that works at a bar in town here,” I said. I turned back to Mason. “She’s a cutie! Good taste, man.”
Mason nodded and stood up, “Yeah, I’m outta here.” He turned to leave acting like he was annoyed by me, but I could see the corners of his mouth twitching up.
When it was just Anthony and me, I looked over at him, staring quietly for a moment while he watched the TV. He always looked so calm and relaxed. He didn’t look like anything ever fazed him. His jaw was still unshaven, slight stubble crossing the lower half of his face, making him look a little rough around the edges. His brown hair was soft and short, slightly raised in the front off of his forehead. He was too beautiful.
He looked over at me, his eyebrow raised almost seductively. “What are you staring at?”
“Why are you way over there?” I asked, ignoring his question.
“I was sitting here first,” he said amused.
“Well, I’m currently disabled so you need to move your booty over here,” I said. “Keep me warm.”
Both of his eyebrows rose almost to his hairline. He smiled, his eyes shining. “Oh, that I can do,” he said, sliding down the couch until his hip was touching mine. He put his arm across the back of the couch, causing me to dip further into his side. His cologne engulfed me. It had to be cologne. No way they made shampoo smell that good. I can’t even describe it. It just smelled like a sexy man.
We spent the rest of the evening watching comedian acts. During commercials, we would ask each other questions about our lives. I learned he lived with his best friend who was a bit of a man-whore – his words, not mine. Anthony spent most of his free time with his roommate, going out to bars or going to the clubhouse to golf. He told me he could eat pizza every day of the week and never get sick of it. He also had a dog that he adored and was missing badly.
"So what about Izzy," I asked. "You had told me before she had a hard life. What did you mean by that?"
“Well,” he said, rubbing his hand in circles on my shoulder absentmindedly. “Izzy’s dad is a piece of shit. He walked out on my sister when she found out she was pregnant with Izzy. So my sister raised her by herself for the most part. She didn’t like to ask for much help from our parents or me.” He shook his head, lost in thought. “Then, my sister got sick a few years ago. She has cervical cancer. It’s pretty bad, too. It’s spread to her lymph nodes now, and she’s been doing chemo and radiation for a while. We’re really not sure how much longer she has left. It’s just spread so much.” He trailed off, his eyes clouded with pain.
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered. I felt bad for asking and bringing it up. I could never understand the pain and sorrow that went into such a fight. Cancer touches almost everyone’s life in one way or another. I’d had too many family members – aunts, uncles, and grandparents – that were lost to cancer. It was one of the reasons that I gave so much to cancer charities. “It’s good you’re there for Izzy.”
“Yeah,” Anthony said, staring at the TV screen but not really watching it. “She’s old enough that she knows what’s going on. I’m not sure if that makes it harder or easier. She was five when Bridget was diagnosed. Almost half her life she's watched her mom fight for her life."
He took a deep breath and turned his eyes to me. They were so filled with sorrow, but they cleared a little when he looked at me. "That's why it was such a gift for her to win that contest and get to go to New York. She doesn't have a lot in life to get her excited at the moment, and that was a good break from the hardships she has to face."
“Well,” I said, trying to brighten up the mood a bit. “We’ll just have to keep her spirits up then. I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
Anthony tugged me a bit closer to his side and looked down at me. We were so close, that everything seemed to almost fade away. We didn’t say anything, just looked into each other’s eyes. His deep chestnut eyes seemed to go on forever. His gaze flicked down to my lips and I almost held my breath wondering if he would finally kiss me again. With one hand still on my shoulder rubbing soft circles, he took his other hand up and traced the outline of the side of my face, ending at my chin, sending a shiver throughout my entire body. He slightly lifted my chin, and his lips found mine.
Our kiss began slow and cautious, as we savored the feeling, rushing sensations coursing through my body. Then, the pressure increased, either by him or me, I’m not sure. His hand on my shoulder pulled me tighter to him. I opened my mouth letting his tongue tangle with my own. He tasted minty and spicy at the same time and I fell even deeper into the kiss.
Without realizing, I had started to climb into his lap to straddle him, when I suddenly twisted my injured ankle. Breaking our kiss, I yelped in pain. His hands stilled, one on my waist, the other tangled in my hair. “Are you okay,” he asked, leaning back to look at me, his voice husky.
“Oh, yeah,” I said, blushing profusely as my heart raced. “I just … got carried away, I guess.”
"Me too," he said, allowing me to fall back into a seated position next to him like I was sitting before. His arm went back to rest on the back of the couch but continued to play with my hair, sending light shivers throughout my body as if I was having numerous cold chills. “I could kiss you forever,” he said, then stilled his hand, a look crossing his face almost like he was afraid he said something he shouldn’t.
"Me too," I said. "But I think I need those painkillers now." My throbbing ankle was very unhappy with me trying to climb into his lap. Stupid ankle.
“I’ll get them,” he said, standing up, the warmth of his body abandoning my side making me feel cold and lonely already. He quickly disappeared and returned a minute later with a prescription bottle of pills and glass of water. I washed a couple pills down before we settled back into the couch and continued to watch the comedy show on TV.
After spending so much time with Anthony this evening, it didn’t seem like we were rushing our relationship anymore, which was something I had been afraid of. Now, it felt like we were finally catching up to the infatuation that had captured us from the moment we first saw each other. I didn’t need to explain myself to anyone. I trusted Anthony. I liked spending time with him. I didn’t even care who saw us together anymore. I just wanted these feelings to grow and last.
I couldn’t get past this off feeling about us, though. Maybe I was holding back. Or maybe it wasn’t right. Pushing it to the back of my mind, I decided not to think about it – to simply let the chips fall where they may.