Sam frowned. “What’s bothering you, honey? Why did you come to the diner looking for me this morning?”
He never heard her answer, only her blood-curdling scream when an oncoming delivery truck suddenly swerved into their lane and slammed into them head-on.
Chapter Twenty
Willa refused to openher eyes. She’d spent the last hour being poked and prodded, and she couldn’t remember ever hurting so much. Even her hair hurt. “Hey, sweet thing. Open your eyes for me.”
The voice was smooth and cajoling and belonged to the person who’d done most of the prodding since she’d arrived at the hospital. Willa slowly opened her eyes to glare at him and blinked against the brightness of the room.
His blurred silhouette moved over her, putting her eyes in shadow. “Chinablue—beautiful. I’ve always had a thing for blue eyes. I know you’re disoriented and would probably like to tell me to go jump off a pier, but we’re done messing with you for now, I promise. Let’s recap, shall we?” he said, his smile bright. “I’m Dr. Zeus, and you’re in my ER atBerryBayHospital . Can you tell me your name?”
It came rushing back to her in a vivid flash. The truck coming toward them, the deafening sound of impact, the airbag exploding in her face. Then the jolt sideways, another equally violent stop, her arm exploding in pain, her screams lost in the sounds of screeching metal and shattering glass. She was also pretty sure she remembered telling at least three people her name, including Mr. Happy Face here. “S-Sam,” she said, her throat feeling as if it was on fire.
“Sorry, wrong gender. Try again,” he said. “Can you tell me your name?”
Willa strained to swallow. “Sam! S-Sam !”
“I believe one of the men brought in is named Sam,” a female voice said to her right. “Malcolm is with him.”
“I’ll make a deal with you, Blue Eyes. I’ll have Mary go check on your boyfriend if you tell me your name.”
“Willa.”
“Okay, Willa. Do you know why you’re in my ER?”
“Car crash.”
“We’re on a roll. You don’t look like you’re actually focusing on me, though. What color are my eyes?”
“Green.”
His smile widened. “You don’t happen to have a thing for green eyes, do you? Wait, I’ll turn down these lights,” he said, suddenly disappearing.
The pain in her forehead eased when the bright lights dimmed.
“You were involved in what should have been an unsurvivable crash, according to what the EMTs said when they brought you in,” he explained, his voice moving back toward her. “They suspect what saved you was the size of your vehicle and its extensive airbag system.”
Willa concentrated on making him come into focus. “Sam?”
“Mary’s checking. Ready to hear a list of your booboos?”
“Water.”
“Definitely doable. Here, this should help your throat.”
A bent straw touched her lips, and Willa took a sip, carefully swallowing several times.
“Speaking of which,” he continued, “your throat hurts because your seat belt gave you quite a bruise. The belt also bruised your left breast and hip. You have a slight concussion, but it’s not as worrisome as it could have been. God bless those side-impact bags.
“Your right side, most specifically your wrist, took a bad hit when a tree decided your truck had gone far enough. That’s going to require a little visit to the OR, which is where you’re heading in about half an hour. We’re waiting for the surgeon to arrive.” His smile flipped upside down. “They don’t let me play with the really sharp knives; I only get to stick you with pointy things.”
“My legs hurt,” she said, the water having soothed her throat enough for a complete sentence.
“I’m getting there, Willa. Your knees and especially your ankles took a beating, which is typical in head-on collisions, because you automatically brace for the impact. But you were wearing some rather heavy-duty work boots for a babe, so nothing down there is broken. You probably won’t be jogging for a while, though.
“As for your insides, everything’s right where it should be. You’ve got a couple of cracked ribs that are going to hurt like the dickens for a while, but your spleen, kidneys, liver, and other important parts all appear to be happy and healthy.” He touched her hair, and his smile returned, crooked this time. “Don’t scream when you look in the mirror tomorrow, okay? You’re going to have one hell of a shiner, and there are cuts and other small bruises, all minor.”
He straightened and took hold of her left hand, being careful of the IV in the back of it. “There is one thing that I’m a bit concerned about, so I’ve called in someone to have a look-see. Are you aware that you’re pregnant, Willa?”
She blinked at him.
“Just barely, though. About two or three weeks, near as I can tell,” he continued. “But I’m not an expert on female plumbing, so I’ve called in an OB-GYN to check you out before you head up to the OR.”
She couldn’t have spoken if her life depended on it.
“If that handsome hunk of a man next door is yours,” a female voice said, walking up to the bed on Willa’s right side, “I don’t blame you for calling out for him. If he were mine, I’d be shouting his name every day and twice on Sundays. I’m Mary, and I’ll be your in-flight attendant until we hand you over to the OR jocks.” She touched Willa’s shoulder. “Sam’s well enough that they’re threatening to strap him down if he doesn’t quit trying to come find you. I assured him you’re doing just fine, but I don’t think he believed me.” She looked over at the doctor. “Could we let them see each other? It’ll make our girl here feel better, and I know it will make Sam a whole lot easier to deal with.”
“I’ll go talk to Malcolm,” he said, heading out of the room.
“Dr. Seuss?” Willa called out.
He stopped and turned, letting out a heavy sigh. “It’s Zeus , as in the handsome, powerful god.”
“Sorry,” Willa said, darting a glance at Mary, then back at him. “Um, what you told me about…about my condition. Can we keep that just between ourselves?”
He placed his hand over his heart. “Don’t worry, it’ll be our little secret.”
Mary lightly patted her shoulder. “Sorry, but I’m one of the players here, too. I ran your pregnancy test.” She brushed Willa’s hair back. “Try not to worry, honey. I’m sure your baby is just fine. I know it’s no fun being in an accident, but now you’ll be able to remember this day as when you found out you were pregnant. Congratulations!”
Willa closed her eyes. “Thank you,” she muttered.
Sam remained sitting on the gurney, refusing to lie down. He was so scared he was shaking and so angry he was one second away from punching Malcolm in the face. “You let me see her for a few minutes,” he ground out, “and then I’ll go to X-ray. I have to be with her, to calm her down. She doesn’t like hospitals.”
“If she was any calmer, she’d be in a coma,” a man said, walking into the exam room. He came up to Sam and gave him a quick visual assessment. “Sam, I presume? I don’t know why you’ve got all the women in a dither. You look like hell.”
“Who the hell are you?”
“Dr. Zeus. I’m tending your lady friend.”
“Tell this bastard to let me go see her.”
Dr. Zeus looked at Malcolm. “Is there a reason you haven’t stuck him with something to knock him out?”
“I did. He’s overriding it.”
Dr. Zeus looked back at Sam. “You are exactly why I always call first dibs on the women. I tell you what, Sam. You give me your word to cooperate with Malcolm when we get back, and I’ll take you to her.”
“I want to sit with her for a while.”
“She’s going up to the OR in half an hour. I’ll give you until then.”
“She needs an operation ?”
“Her wrist is broken. We’re waiting for the surgeon to arrive.” He went to the corner of the room, got a wheelchair, and brought it back. “Your word, Sam.”