No Attachments

chapter 10: A night in the hospital

Nathan

I would have been amused by Ashton's expression when she entered my not so-private room if not for the fact that I felt like a complete bonehead. A bonehead with lips the size of watermelon slices and cheeks that felt numb from the rapid swelling they had endured. I felt the pain was justified for being a complete ass. First, by not checking my salad more thoroughly, and second, for forgetting to throw a spare EpiPen in the glove compartment.

"Your lungs sound clear, which is a good sign. Don't worry about the swelling. It will dissipate soon. You will have to spend the night with us so we can pump fluids into you," the doctor said, pointing to my IV.

"Do you really think that's necessary?" I rasped out.

"It's not even debatable," he said on his way out. "A nurse should be in here shortly so we can take you to your room," he threw over his shoulder.

"How are you doing?" Ashton asked, approaching hesitantly.

"Truth or macho guy answer?" I asked.

"Why don't we go with the truth since truthfully you look like shit," she said, sliding the only chair in the small cubicle toward my bed.

"Don't try to spare my feelings," I tried to joke through a harsh cough.

"Wouldn't dream of it, but seriously, if you didn't want to go on a bike ride, all you had to do was just say so," she teased, lacing her fingers through mine.

"Well, I did promise it would be a ride you wouldn't easily forget," I replied ruefully.

"Well, you pulled that off."

"Told you," I said, bringing her hand up to my lips so I could place a kiss on her knuckles. "You don't need to wait around here. You can take my car home and I can catch a cab in the morning when they release me."

"Don't be silly. I have nowhere to go. I'll keep you company until they move you to a room, and I'll be here in the morning to pick you up. Don't even think of arguing," she said before I could speak again.

"I wouldn't dream of it," I said, holding up my hands in surrender.

"So, are there any other allergies I need to be aware of?" she asked, raising her eyebrow at me.

"Don't think so. Truthfully, I don't give the cashew one much thought. It's not like it's a common ingredient in anything. It was just rotten luck that the restaurant decided to use cashews for a topping. I usually carry a spare EpiPen, but I haven't had a reaction in years. You know, I could blame you," I teased.

"Me?" she asked, sounding shocked by my accusation.

"Hell yeah. If you weren't seducing me in the middle of the restaurant, I would have paid more attention to what I was putting in my mouth."

"Surely someone of your experience would know what to put in your mouth," she said saucily.

Her not-so-subtle innuendo rekindled my arousal from earlier. I had to adjust the blanket across my lap to hide the evidence. "Honey, normally it's not a problem," I said, only to choke slightly on my vocal chords that still weren't cooperating.

She laughed while I stuttered over a cough. "I think you'll have to save your flirting for another day, hot stuff," she said, gently pushing my shoulders until I was lying back against the hospital bed that was slightly inclined. Still coughing, I nodded my head in defeat. Tonight, I was barely any talk with definitely no action. I would have been highly disappointed at the way the night had gone if I didn't have the mental picture of the appetizer at her house to fall back on.

Ashton stayed with me during the few hours it took to get me into a room. We continued to skirt away from the tougher subjects and instead talked about the things we loved. It didn't surprise me in the slightest that Ashton was bright and intuitive on most subjects. Her insights into pop culture were a nice change from the boring conversations I was used to. It was refreshing to talk about our taste in music, books and movies. As luck would have it though, the medicine they were pumping through me began to take effect and my eyelids grew heavy. I only meant to close them for a second, but it was like they'd been super-glued down. I felt Ashton pulling the covers over me and I would have thanked her, but the meds and a sudden headache pulled me under. I thought I felt her hand graze the planes of my chest, then trickle down my stomach. Maybe it was just the meds, or I could have been dreaming, but either way, I liked it. One thing was clear: Ashton was nothing like I expected. How was I going to get her out of my system when everything about her seemed to pull me in?