I felt so fucking stupid. I hired this guy to come work on my house. After I fucked him, of course; even though I didn’t know it was the same guy. Now, he was taking me to some backwoods country doctor to get checked out because I busted my ass in the bathroom. What in the everloving hell did I do to deserve this moment of sheer embarrassment?

Flynn was basically a stranger, and I let him carry me down the stairs, out to his truck, and I was letting him drive off with me in it. For all I knew, he was some psycho, taking me out to the woods. Ok, I sort of knew that wasn’t the case, but the whole thing was still nothing short of a shit show. As my hip, ass, and back continued to throb, every pebble we drove over causing me to wince, Flynn reached over from the driver’s seat and took my hand in his.

“We’ll be there in a just a few minutes. I know it seems kind of bumpy; I’m sorry,” he said sweetly. I was in so much pain that I gladly took his hand, gripping it rather tightly.

“No, no. You’re fine. I just cannot believe that I did this.” I leaned my head back against the headrest and sighed.

“It was an accident. Shit happens, babe,” he said with a smile, as he squeezed my hand.

“Thank you,” I replied.

“Thank you for what? I did what any gentleman would do in my situation. I am taking a pretty girl to the doctor, so I get to carry her around and show her off like she’s mine. What more could a man ask for?” he teased me, soliciting a small smile.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you my name.” I did feel kind of bad for that, especially now that he was taking me to the doctor and all. I mean, shit, this is not a sexy moment at all, so the fantasy got blown right to hell once I realized it was him at the door.

“We can talk about that another time. Look, we’re here.” He squeezed my hand again as we pulled into what looked like a veterinarian’s office, more than any doctor’s office I’d ever been to.

Once we’d parked, Flynn ran over to my side of the truck, where I was already trying to get out.

“What are you doing?” he asked, stopping me.

“I’m getting out,” I replied, as if it were a dumb question; which, it was.

“I’m carrying you,” he said.

“Oh, the hell you are. You are not carrying me in public. I let you carry me back at the house as a matter of convenience and time. But there is no way you’re carrying me into that office.” I was putting my foot down on this one. That was way too embarrassing, and we weren’t a couple. I was not about to let him carry me into some rinky dink doctor’s office like a goddamn caveman that caught his woman. Oh, hell no.

“Are we really going to have this argument?” he asked.

“There’s no argument. Not happening, buddy. Now step back,” I demanded.

“At least let me help you get down.” He stepped forward.

“Eh! Back. It. Up.” I pointed a finger at him as I started to slide my way off the seat to the ground, which was significantly further away than I’d realized. My fucking pride, and my mouth, had gotten me in a jam once again, as my feet began to dangle and the concrete felt miles away.

“May I help you now?” Flynn asked with a chuckle, his arms crossed, watching me struggle.

“Ugh, yes. Please,” I replied begrudgingly. I had to give in. I needed help. I hated needing help more than anything in the world.

As he approached, I took notice of the tattoos on his arms. They were all black and white, or shades of gray, and extremely detailed. I’d only seen a peek of them when we first met, and I had tried not to stare at them when he was working the bar the night before. They must have some kind of meaning to him, and in that moment, I was curious what it was. He put his arm around my waist and scooped me up as if I weighed nothing. I wasn’t a tiny girl, but in his arms, I felt miniature.

“You know I’m going to carry you in now, right?” he laughed as we made our way to the door.

“Ugh, yes. I know.” I buried my face in his chest in angst, then caught a whiff of his cologne. He smelled like spice and pine; a heavenly mixture that caused me to inhale deeply.

We dramatically entered the building and were immediately greeted by an older woman, with gray hair in a conservative bun, who seemed to be expecting us.

“Ah, is this our patient?” She smiled and waved us to the back immediately. Maybe this small town doctor stuff is the way to go. Back home in the city, even if I went to the ER, I’d be hustled to the waiting room for who knows how long, unless I was missing a limb.

“Hi Doc, this is Jacinda Brennan. She had a nasty fall this morning, and I insisted that she come see you.”

“Hi Jacinda, I’m Dr. Helsing, but you can call me Doc. Everyone does.” As she turned her attention back to Flynn, she instructed him to take me to Exam Room One. Luckily for me, there was no one else waiting around, so it looked like she’d see me right away. I don’t know what exactly I’d been expecting - perhaps an old hillbilly man - but she was a pleasant surprise, and I felt immediately at ease around her.

“Thank you, Doc,” I called back to her as Flynn carried me to the exam room, then directed my attention to him. “You don’t have to stay. I’m sure you’ve got other clients and stuff to deal with today.”

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily,” he replied with a sexy smirk, as he set me down on the exam table. Well, I guess he was more of a gentleman than I thought, all the way around. “I’m going to wait outside for you. I have a few phone calls to make.”

“Thank you,” I whispered. Before he backed out of the room, he took a step toward me, closing the distance between us and planted a kiss on the top of my head.

“I’ll be outside,” he repeated, as he walked away.

I’ll be damned. Maybe he was a player, but fuck, if he wasn’t going the extra mile on this one. I was a mess. When the doctor came back, I explained everything that happened and after we both laughed about the shower incident, she laid me down to take an x-ray and do an exam. Most of the places where she applied pressure hurt like hell, but I didn’t feel like anything was out of place. In fact, all I wanted to do at that point was go back to bed. I think the stress of the whole morning had taken its toll.

In the fastest doctor’s visit of all time, thanks to digital x-ray and a small town, I was cleared to leave on my own accord. It appeared that I had bruised, but not broken, the bone. Turns out that a little meat on my ass saved it, literally. She provided me with a prescription for an anti-inflammatory, as well as a pain pill that I could take for the next three days. After that, I should start feeling better. I’d need to get the prescriptions filled, which was going to be another chore, but she did give me a pain pill in the office to get me through the afternoon, which was to be spent resting.

I hobbled my way back out to the lobby where Flynn was sitting, patiently waiting. “So, what’s the verdict? Are you going to live?” he teased as he stood up, ready to help me.

“As it turns out, I am.” I smiled a slow, goofy smile. The pill was already beginning to do its job; I was feeling loopy.

“You’ll need to get these prescriptions filled this afternoon if you can, and you can have the pain pills for three days. After that, you should feel well enough not to need them. No driving, though. These are no joke. Flynn, you’ll be watching over her, I assume? She really shouldn’t be left alone until at least tomorrow.”

“You have my word. She’s stuck with me,” he said. His voice seemed kind of foggy to me, as if he were far away. I thought he said I was stuck with him. Is that what he said?

“I don’t even know him,” I blurted out.

“Oh boy, it seems that the pain killer is already doing its job. You better get her home, Flynn.” I’m pretty sure the doctor laughed. Something was funny. If she was laughing, I should be laughing too, right? I started to laugh. I wasn’t really sure why. But something was funny.

“On it, Doc. Thanks again for taking us so quick,” he said, before scooping me up. I felt lighter than ever. I snuggled into his chest, inhaling that rugged scent that smelled like home in winter.

“You smell so good,” I said. I said it out loud. I didn’t just think it. I couldn’t stop myself from saying things. Why couldn’t I control my mouth?

“Thanks, baby,” he whispered, as we walked out into the warm sunshine.

I remember him putting me in the truck, and I’m pretty sure I tried to pet him. Seriously, I remember petting his arms, as if he were my kitten or something. Then I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I remembered was him putting a blanket over me, and I was back in my grandmother’s house.