Page 41 of Her Intense Protector

She looked at him hesitantly, then lowered her hand away from her chest into his waiting palms. He had to turn back the red sleeve of her dress to really get a good look at the damage, and when he did, he ground his teeth together. He could clearly see where a man had gripped her wrist; the bruising was clear. Her wrist was already red and swollen.

“Ah, Sam, we need to get you to a hospital for an x-ray.”

“Wait, watch, I can move it just fine.” She moved it side to side and up and down. “See?”

He saw, but he also saw the lines of strain around her eyes and mouth.

“I’m calling Cullen.” Ezio pulled out his phone. Cullen answered on the second ring.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Yeah. I’m here with Samantha Brooks, Eden’s friend. She had a mishap tonight. Somebody really yanked on her wrist. I need to ask Carys a medical question, is she around?”

“Yep.”

Ezio waited.

“Some man hurt Sam?” Carys sounded angry.

“Right now, we’re working on putting them in jail,” Ezio said in a soothing manner.

“Okay then. That’s good.” Carys seemed mollified. “Put me on speaker.” Ezio wasn’t surprised. He’d met her a couple of times. She was a total caretaker, but she was a ferocious lion when it came to protecting anyone who had been abused. He set down his phone on the couch between him and Samantha.

“Sam, this is Carys. She’s a doctor. She’s worked in Africa and is now working at a hospital in Virginia Beach.”

“Hi, Samantha, I hear that your wrist is hurt pretty bad. Can you tell me the pain level on a scale of one to ten, and be honest now.”

Sam looked at Ezio from underneath her eyelashes. He could tell she was considering her words.

“She said to be honest,” he urged her.

“Probably a seven.” She looked up at Ezio. “But I’ve had worse injuries playing volleyball,” she rushed to assure them.

“Fine. How swollen is it? How much can you move your wrist?”

Ezio watched as she moved it side to side, then up and down. When she twirled it around, she gasped with pain. “I have full mobility, but when I rotate it, it really hurts.”

“When did you injure it?”

“Three hours ago.”

“Then I’d say it’s not broken. Your body would have it swollen like a sausage to keep the bones in place. It’s nature’s way of making a cast for your bone to keep it from moving. If you have that much mobility three hours after your injury it probably isn’t broken. I would ice it tonight, take some ibuprofen. If it gets worse tomorrow, go to an Urgent Care for an x-ray, or call me. I’m not on duty tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Carys,” Ezio smiled. “Are you okay with this, Samantha?”

“Absolutely, I thought an x-ray tonight was overkill. It was nice meeting you, Carys.”

“You, too. Ezio, make sure whoever did this to her, pays.”

“Yes ma’am.”

She hung up and Ezio found himself looking at Samantha, just looking into her light-blue eyes. Once again he thought they looked like the brightest winter skies. They were gorgeous. Hell, she was gorgeous, inside and out.

“Ice. I need to get you ice.”

“Don’t rush,” she laughed. “I want to savor your sister’s hot chocolate recipe. If it tastes as good as it smells, I won’t need ibuprofen.”

“Ice and ibuprofen. I’ll be right back.”