Imperfect Love (6 page)

“I get the picture, but what does this have to do with you helping someone?” Holly was genuinely curious.

Jake smirked. “I usually don’t bring girls in, other than the ones I’m dating.”

“Oh, I see. So you are basically scared that she would think I’m someone you’re dating.”

“I’m not scared of my mother.”

Holly tilted her head to one side and said but one word, “Henry.” Raising her eyes playfully at him, she added, “Sure you aren’t.”

This only made Jake chuckle.

A short silence followed this exchange, so Holly decided to say anything just to get rid of the zinging in her ear. “I take it you’re studying at the moment?” she asked.

He gave her a huge frown, which inevitably turned into a small grin. “Yes, I am. In fact, I’m going to be working here soon.”

“Oh, really. As what?”

“Who works at hospitals, Holly?”

“Well, lots of people do,” she huffed, but looking at him with narrowed eyes she asked, somewhat surprised, “You’re studying to be a doctor?”

“Is it so hard to believe? My entire family consists of doctors, so… yes. I’m just following in their footsteps.”

“Good for you,” she commented, making Jake laugh while simultaneously shaking his head.

Agneta returned with a huge, yellow envelope in her hands, as well as an unreadable face. Holly knew what the envelope held; her results from the scan.

“You guys sure are fast,” she commented, stating the obvious.

“Not really. They’re just scared that the boss’ son is going to spill on them,” Jake joked.

Agneta slapped him playfully. “We are quiet tonight but as is the case, I’m sure we will pick up around eleven o’clock when all the inebriated fools attempt to make their way home.”

“Thanks, Agneta. Such a pleasure meeting you.” Holly gave her a hug.

“Drive safely, Jake, and no more hitting guys, young lady,” she said in parting.

Holly grinned sheepishly. “She’s nice,” Holly remarked as they walked out into the corridor they’d come through.

“I’ve known her for a long time. She can be quite feisty when she wants to be. She used to yell a lot for some reason when I was younger.”

“I can’t imagine why, Jake.”

Jake chuckled, finding humor in her playful sarcasm.

Holly followed him into a small room, which was filled with boxes that were attached to the wall. He flipped a switch, bright lights illuminated every single one. Holly’s heart bounced inside her chest as he pulled the X-rays out from the envelope, and then slid them onto the uppermost part of the lit up box. She closed her eyes and began to pray.

Please, don’t let my hand be broken. I swear, I’ll never do this again
.

“So, do you want to hear the good news or the bad news first?”

“Is there any good news in these types of situations?”

His smile lit up his eyes, which made her knees wobble. She was suddenly thankful that she’d had the good sense to sit down.

“There is always good news.”

“Fine. You’re the soon-to-be doctor. Give me the bad news, then.”

“It’s going to hurt like hell for the next couple of days.”

“Guess I’ll have to live with that. And the good news?”

“Exactly what you’ve been hoping for. It’s not broken, only cracked. You see that little line there?” he asked.

Holly hopped from the stool that she’d tried to make herself comfortable in, and took a closer look at where he was pointing. “That’s a crack?”

“That’s a crack. Luck was on your side.”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she practically sang, which was followed by a small prayer to God.

“It will teach you that you either have to learn to throw a punch properly, or leave the beating for the guys.”

“He deserved it, though,” she mumbled.

Jake just shook his head. “Let’s go back to the doctor. Best we make certain you’re allowed to go back to work with that hand.”

The doctor sighted them immediately as they returned to the bustling emergency room. He met them at the bed where they had started.

“I saw the read from the radiologist,” the doctor started.

“Hairline Bar Room fracture in the fourth metacarpal?” Jake suggested.

The doctor’s expression showed he was impressed. On the other hand, Holly swooned at the sound of Jake’s medical jargon. It was so professional, and so damn hot.

“You were able to notice it? You’re getting good. I’m glad I’m not in radiology or you’d have me worried about my job.” The doctor gave a chuckle that sounded genuinely relieved.

“Are you right-handed?” the doctor asked Holly.

She nodded.

Without skipping a beat, he scribbled something on his prescription pad and passed it to Jake. Jake excused himself, saying that he would be back shortly.

“And you’re working next week?”

She nodded again and the doctor scrawled a quick note.

“You need to give this to your employer. That hand needs to rest for at least two days. On Monday, call this number and make an appointment at the orthopedics clinic for Tuesday; you need a checkup. Take it easy, Henry.”

Holly nearly choked on the laughter that bubbled to the surface. “I will, thank you.” She barely managed to get those words out.

Jake wasn’t gone long at all, and as she was done led her toward the exit.

“You guys don’t hand out pain killers in this place?”

“Already taken care of, they’re right here.” He showed her an orange tube he’d put into the pocket of his jacket.

“They just better work,” she mumbled.

“Okay, Medusa. You can relax those snakes now.”

She merely smiled.

Inside the SUV, Jake gave her two of the small, white tablets, which she immediately placed in her mouth and swallowed.

“Take one now, and another one when you wake up.”

“You couldn’t have told me that prior to handing them to me?”

Jake gave her an odd look. “You swallowed them both?”

She nodded, looking pitiful.

“Holly, those things are really strong,” he chuckled.

“My immune system is strong. Pain killers don’t usually…” she trailed off, feeling warm and content and sleepy, and suddenly slumped sideways in the passenger seat. And that was the end of their conversation.

WHEN SHE WOKE, IT WAS DEAD SILENT. Her head still spun, but the aching in her hand was the worst. She started to cry. After what could have only been minutes, she found Bernie crouching beside her airbed.

“You okay?”

“My hand is killing me!”

“Here, take one,” Bernie suggested, picking up the same orange tube Jake had given her before she blacked out.

Holly took the tablet from Bernie, swallowing it without any water.

“I don’t know how you can do that,” Bernie commented, shaking her head.

“What happened? The last thing I remember was driving back here from the hospital.”

“You passed out from taking two of these beauts. This shit is really potent, Holls.”

Holly emitted a loud snort. “Yeah, that sounds just like me.”

Bernie giggled. “How are you, really?”

“They booked me off for two days. Marabella is going to love this.”

“Marabella will understand, once you explain to her what you did.”

“I beg to differ.”

“You stood up for yourself, Holly. That woman is all for self-defense; karate, judo, you name it!”

Holly agreed. Marabella was that type of woman, one who believed that women had just as much of a say as men did. Perhaps Bernie was right, and she really would understand.

The tablet had begun to do its job. This was clearly evident when Holly fell back onto her pillow.

“Just yell if you need anything,” Bernie whispered in her ear, leaving her friend to rest.

Birds chirping woke Holly for the second time that day, and deciding to get up went after a quick shower. The water felt refreshing as the tiny droplets ran over her aching body, which was probably due to having slept so much and most likely in the same position. She slipped into her sweat pants and a tank top, rolling her hair into a messy bun. As she walked out of the public restroom, she looked up at the sky. It was around five o’clock, too early for anyone to be awake yet, but she knew Josie would be.

Having reached Josie’s campsite, she found George sitting on one of the camp chairs with a cup of coffee next to him on a small portable table, and his laptop opened and perched on his lap. George worked for an international company, so having meetings via Skype on a daily basis with people all over the world was the norm.

“Hey,” she greeted when she finally reached him.

He looked up and smiled, but it soon disappeared when he saw the bandage around her hand. “What happened?”

“I hit a stupid guy.”

He laughed, throwing his head back. “Did you at least break his nose?”

“Yes,” she giggled. She was actually very proud that she’d done what she had intended to do. And then the darn guilt rose up again when she thought about how it all could’ve all gone horrible wrong. What if it had shifted up and spiked into his brain? She’d heard about noses being broken that way, with the person ending up brain dead. It had been a stupid thing to do and she should’ve apologized to him.

“Holly, don’t overthink it. The guy deserved it, otherwise you wouldn’t have hit him in the first place.”

She smiled. They knew her so well.

Josie emerged from the tent, hair standing on end and pointing in every direction. “Hey you! You’re up early.” On noticing Holly’s hand, she freaked. “What happened?”

“I hit Steward. And I broke his nose.”

“Holly,” she said, a tinge of pity evident in her tone. “Did you go to the ER?”

An almost uncontrollable grin broke out on her face. “I did, and Jake took me.”

Josie laughed. “I told you he was a heart-throb. If I wasn’t married—”

“Okay, we get it. You would do things to him that I could only dream of.”

“That’s not true. I do them all with you, my big toothpick,” she teased, leaning over and kissing George loudly.

“Too much, people. Still angry over here,” Holly cautioned, pointing at herself.

“Still?” Josie asked with an incredulous ‘huh’ look on her face.

Holly just chuckled.

George got up and poured both Josie and Holly a cup of coffee.

“So, did you guys chat? What does he do?”

“He’s studying to become a doctor. Did you know that?”

“Seriously?”

Holly nodded.

“Could that man be any more perfect?”

“He’s not. His mom is apparently crazy when it comes to him.”

Josie’s expression dropped from the daydream smile that had been plastered on it, to the ‘surely you jest’ kind of look. “You’re kidding?” she finally managed to say.

“Nope. He put my name down as Henry on the hospital form, just so his mom wouldn’t find out that he’d taken a female there for treatment.”

“Henry?” Josie could not contain her laughter.

Holly went ahead and recounted the entire story of how they kept calling her Henry. She had to admit that Jake hadn’t known where to look or how to act, but she was really digging the guy and looked at him the way she had before she’d assumed that Sonic was his girlfriend.

At around nine o’clock, everyone began to wake up; it was coffees all around. Holly met a couple of Josie’s friends, whom she’d never met before even though she’d been with Brandon. Every single one congratulated her for leaving his ass, adding that someone better would come along.

An hour later, breakfast was on the grill. The smell was divine, but Holly knew she needed to head back to Bernie’s. However, Josie talked her into staying and having breakfast with them.

This went on until noon when a familiar ache told Holly that her pain medication had worn off. When she mentioned it to George, he said that he had something even better for her pain. He got a bottle of South African Mampoer, a name she couldn’t pronounce, which brought about bouts of laughter when George kept repeating it and she kept getting wrong. However, the contents of the bottle were no laughing matter. It was really strong and went straight to Holly’s head. She’d had about four shots and was feeling dizzy but not the bad dizzy Jake’s medicine had left her with, this was a good dizzy.

Everyone started to whistle when Josie began chatting about her fantasy.

Holly attempted to get a clear picture of how Josie perceived Jake, but it was hard.

“C’mon, Holls, you can do it.”

“Do what?” Holly shrieked.

“Kiss the living crap out of him. He doesn’t have a girlfriend.”

“No, that is your fantasy.”

“It’s yours, too! No fibbing.”

“Okay, fine, it’s mine, too. But I’m not going to admit it.”

They all cracked up again at Holly’s reply. She just rolled her eyes with a huge grin plastered on to her face.

“Do it, Holls, take one for the team.” The girls began to chant, “Do it, do it, do it!”

“Okay, I’ll do it.”

“Woohoo!” Josie clapped her hands excitedly and cheered.

A fifth round of Mampoer came around, and one by one the girls passed out. Josie stumbled to her bed and collapsed. Holly had to admit that her head spun faster and faster and she felt as if she needed some air, even though they were outside.

“Let’s get you back to Bernie’s,” George suggested, throwing Holly over his shoulder.

“I can walk,” she slurred.

“No, you can’t. You’ll pass out before you get there.”

It seemed like the trip back was taking ages, so Holly sang all the way in her precarious position hanging down George’s back. He chuckled at some of her words, singing along to some verses he knew.

“What the fuck?” Bernie shouted, when she saw them.

“Sorry, Bernie,” George apologized.

“She’s drunk.”

“I’m not drunk.” Holly lifted her body as best she could, turning her head in Bernie’s direction.

Bernie looked at her, not at all impressed. “You are drunk.”

Holly giggled.

“She had a good time, Bernie.”

“Your wife is a bad influence, George.”

“I know, that’s why I love her so much.”

Bernie shook her head, but couldn’t prevent grinning. “Put the alcoholic down.”

“I’m not sure if she can walk.”

Swatting George on his head, Holly slurred, “I can walk. Plus, I still need to do that favor for Josie.”

George’s shoulders vibrated with apparent laughter. “This, I’ve got to see.”

“What favor?” Bernie was doing the hands-on-hips, what-are-you-on-about stance.

When George finally placed Holly down gently, she inhaled deeply as her head still seemed to be spinning. He caught her as she started to sway backward.

“I… am… fine.” Holly managed to make those three words seem like a whole sentence, it took that long to say.

“Like hell you are,” muttered Bernie.

Holly ignored that comment and instead made her way toward Leonard and Jake on wobbly legs. But when she saw him sitting with a beer on the step of his RV, a picture of her leaping on him and falling off before she could kiss him played like a movie in her fuzzy head. She snorted—in a very unladylike manner—and walked back toward her friends, not even attempting to walk anything resembling a straight line.

“Nah, it’s not my fantasy.” She looked at George who was trying his damndest to cover his smile.

“Coward.”

“Whatever,” she mumbled while stumbling to her tent.

“One hour, Holly, and then I’m going to wake you up,” Bernie yelled.

Holly pulled a face, mimicking Bernie, and collapsed onto her air bed. The world spun and she felt like throwing up, but thankfully that didn’t happen. A couple of seconds later, followed by a few good spins, she fell asleep.

“Go away. You had her the entire day.” Bernie’s voice pierced Holly’s ears.

She opened her eyes, everything was still spinning. Closing them again, she breathed in deeply trying to settle herself. She could hear Bernie and Josie speaking softly, but couldn’t quite make out what they were saying. Hell, if she were honest right about then, she didn’t really care.

Out of nowhere, Josie gave her overpowering shrill laugh. “You coward!” she yelled into the tent.

Bernie would probably ask Josie what was going on, and Josie would tell her for sure. And that’s exactly what must have taken place, because a minute into their continued whispering, Bernie burst out laughing.