Desire Me

Christine swallowed. "How bad?" From the shuttered expression on Charlie's face, the pain she felt, her returning memories, and her presence in the hospital, she knew the attack had been brutal.

Eva brushed back a wisp of blonde hair which had escaped from her long ponytail, glanced at Charlie, and got his nod. "You have a concussion which scared us the most because you didn't want to wake up. Not that I blame you; I bet the pain is incredible. I'm sorry I can't give you anything until the doctor comes and checks you."

Christine wouldn't nod; she'd learned to stay still. "More?"

Eva nodded. "I like when people are straight with me and from what I can tell, so do you. You have a swollen right eye, as if you weren't already aware, badly bruised, a real shiner, like the one I wish I'd given my ex-boyfriend when I found him cheating on me with my best, ha, friend."

Christine wanted to smile. "You didn't?"

"Nah, I gave him a solid kick to the balls he so prized." Eva smiled and winked at Charlie. "Sorry if it makes you squirm in male sympathy, but the low down rat deserved it."

"No argument from me." Charlie raised Christine's hand to his lips. "Low down rats deserve to be kicked."

Eva leaned in to whisper, "This one seems good. He stayed by you and even shouted at the duty nurse who tried to make him leave. He's a keeper."

Yes. Charlie is a keeper.

"Okay, here's the rest. There's a nasty cut across your cheek, some swelling where it hit something hard." Eva's gaze filled with sympathy. "The six stitches will scar but nothing some Clinique can't minimize. Or maybe it's Mary Kay. I can't keep those high priced foundations straight. I'm always getting those make over invitations too. There's a party in a couple of weeks from another nurse here. We should go and score some free makeup."

She didn't behave like any nurse Christine had ever met. She wore scrubs, dark pants with a white top covered in yellow suns with quirky grins. The trade mark stethoscope and her name tag identification hung from her neck along with a silver chain strung with bright green gems.

"Split lip, but you've no broken teeth, thank the stars. Dental work hurts like a witch and costs the whole sky too." Eva grinned. Christine felt guilty for her first thought of smacking away the cheeriness. "Your cracked ribs will ache like bad teeth for the next few weeks, sorry for the dental puns. Your shoulder is dislocated and had to be fixed, but nothing is broken. You have great bones. You must drink a lot of milk."

"She drinks coffee flavored milk." Charlie kissed her hand again. "And she prefers mocha."

Eva sighed. "Coffee may be off your diet for a while. But I bet this fine hunk of man will sneak some in to you anyway. There's a Starbucks right downstairs, and they make the most incredible grande mocha cappuccino. Why don't you go get one and sneak it past me now, give me and Christine a few minutes?"

Why did they need a few minutes? Christine wondered. Eva had already listed all her injuries, unless there was more.

Charlie glanced at her then Eva and slowly nodded as his shoulders slumped. He kissed Christine's forehead trying to smile, but she saw the strain. "I'll be right back. Is there anything else you want?"

She stared up at him. I want you never to leave me. But he wore the same closed expression he wore in the Hawaii airport. Her heart picked up speed. Oh, God, no. Please not that.

"Look at her monitor from one little kiss." Eva shot her hands to her hips and shook her head. "Get out of here, handsome, before you get her so worked up I have my hands full explaining your sex appeal is what made her heart trip out and not some sort of impending trauma."

After he left, Eva sat gently on the bed beside Christine. "I see what you're thinking, and I thought it'd be better with him out of the room for us to talk about it."

Christine would have turned away if she could. No. Please, please, please no.

"You weren't raped," Eva said, quick and blunt. "But you have bruises on your thighs and chest. Can you tell me what happened?"

"He pinched my breasts hard and then he..." Eva grabbed the bed pan and held it while violent sickness wracked Christine's body. When the nausea passed, she lay against the pillows while weak tears slid down her face. "Sorry. I'm so sorry."

Eva set the pan aside, placed the cup and straw in Christine's hand, helped her sip and rinse her mouth. "You've nothing to be sorry about, hun. I understand you think the attack is somehow your fault, but it's not. He's a jerk, and I hope when the police get him they feed him to the nearest mongrel dogs. Of course then the poor dogs would be sick."

"Yes." Christine laid back miserable and yet relieved.

Eva went into the bathroom. Water splashed in the sink as she rinsed out the pan. "This is a violation even if you weren't actually raped. We have some great counselors for you to talk to when you feel up to it."

Christine wanted to just curl in a ball. "All right."

Elle Boon, C.C. Cartwright, Catherine Coles, Mia Epsilon, Samantha Holt, J.W. Hunter, Allyson Lindt, Kathryn Kelly, Tracey Smith's books