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Daisy didn’t immediately respond, and it drove me wild, wondering what she was thinking. Only after far too much time for my liking had passed did she speak and make me feel like I’d won the lottery. “If you still want it, I’d be happy to give it to you.”
I fought against the full-blown grin threatening to make an appearance. “I’d be honored to have it.”
Much to her dismay, I carried Daisy inside once we arrived at the clinic. She kept insisting her foot wasn’t that bad and she could walk with a little bit of assistance. I refused to take any chances until the doctor gave her a clean bill of health.
Surprisingly, it seemed that no sooner had we sat down in the waiting room, Daisy was called back. I went with her, carrying her there, but once we got to the room, a wheelchair was brought in, so she could be taken to get an X-ray. “I’ll wait here for you.”
She nodded and was off.
While she was gone, I took a moment to lean into the gratitude and relief I felt. As I’d already said to her, I hated that she’d injured herself and was experiencing any pain, but I was beyond relieved to know she had been looking forward to spending time with me today at least as much as I’d been looking forward to spending it with her.
And though I didn’t like seeing her so distressed about her injury and how it had impacted our plans, I had to admit I wasn’t so upset about the disruption. I’d come on this trip to get some time away from work to relax and recharge. I didn’t have to snowboard every day, and I’d be just as content to have the time to get to know her a bit better. As I sat there waiting for her, I wondered if she’d be up for it.
It wasn’t too long before Daisy was wheeled back into the room. Once the technician left and closed the door behind him, I asked, “Did everything go okay?”
“So far, so good. I don’t know what we’re going to hear from the doctor, but I’m cautiously optimistic.”
“That’s good. Better to look on the bright side.”
“Yeah, I guess. It’s hard not to be bummed either way, though. I was really looking forward to spending the day together and getting back on my board this morning,” she noted.
I smiled at her, liking the way it felt to hear her say she’d been looking forward to spending time with me. “Though I can’t do anything to change the snowboarding situation right now, at least we’re still spending the day together.”
“Until we get back,” she mumbled.
“What do you mean?”
Daisy looked at me like I had three heads, as though my question made no sense to her. “Well, you’re going to go ride after we leave here, aren’t you?”
I shook my head. “Not unless by some miracle the doctor says you’re clear to do the same.”
She cocked an eyebrow but said nothing in response.
My lips twitched. “I know you didn’t forget what I said to you when I was carrying you to my truck earlier. I’m just as happy to sit in a room in a clinic with you while we wait for the results of your X-ray as I would be snowboarding. And when we leave here, I’ll be just as happy to spend time with you doing something that won’t require the use of your foot.”
The minute the words were out of my mouth, I watched as a shiver ran over her body. I hadn’t intended for her to take what I’d said the way it seemed she did, but I wasn’t upset about it, either. “I don’t want you to regret missing out on your vacation.”
Not liking how she’d gotten so quiet, I reached out and curled my fingers over the top of her forearm. After giving her a gentle squeeze, I stroked my thumb along the skin on her arm and promised, “There’s not a single thing about spending time with you that I’m going to regret, Daisy.”
She licked her lips, my eyes dropping to them. It was an exercise in self-control not to lift my hand to them, so I could drag my thumb along her bottom lip. It was even harder not to lean forward and kiss her.
Fortunately, before I did something stupid to screw whatever this was up, there was a knock at the door. I sat back and released my hold on her arm as she called out, “Yes. Come in.”
The door opened a moment later, and the doctor walked in.
This had to be the fastest clinic in history. I had expected Daisy and I would be left alone in this room for hours before anyone returned.
“What’s the verdict, Doc?” Daisy asked.
“It looks like you lucked out with no broken bones and just a very gnarly sprain instead,” he answered.
“See? I knew it.”
I rolled my eyes as the doctor slid his eyes to me. “I thought it was important for her to get it checked out,” I shared, feeling the need to defend myself.
“Smart man. I’d do the same thing for my girlfriend.” Not thinking twice about what he’d just said, he turned his attention to Daisy. My mind was still stuck on the notion of Daisy being my girlfriend when the doctor went on to explain, “The best thing you can do now is rest, ice, compress, and elevate. We just want to give your foot some time to heal and allow the swelling to go down, so if you follow those rules, you should be good.”
“How long until I can start walking on it again?” she asked.
