Page 54 of Embrace the Darkness

With a mischievous glint in his eye, he walked away to go greet Dr. Ben. Louie took Jamie’s spot next to me and threw an arm over my shoulders to offer comfort.

“Louie said someone fainted?” Dr. Ben inquired, looking between Stefan and Jamie.

“My daughter,” Stefan confirmed, gesturing to me. Dr. Ben gave me a dazzling smile.Oh, jeez. If I hadn't been completely consumed by everything that was Jamie, I might have blushed.

“Do you get fainting spells a lot?” he asked, kneeling in front of me. He sat down his duffel bag on the floor next to him and pulled out a blood pressure cuff along with a stethoscope.

“No,” I answered, lifting my arm for him to strap the cuff on.

He tapped his cheek. “When did this happen?” It took me a second to realize he was asking about the bruises on my face.

“Most doctors would ask how it happened.”

Dr. Ben’s eyes dropped from mine.

Anger bubbled in the pit of my stomach. “Have you worked for the family long?”

“Five years.”

“Seen many battered wives?”

“Maura,” Stefan said, tone full of warning. Dr. Ben’s golden face paled and he swallowed audibly.

“I got hit in the face two days ago. You’ll be happy to know this happened during a…I guess we’ll call it a sparring match and the other person lost,” I somewhat lied.“As for wanting to know if other women are being beaten in my family, I’ll let that go. For now.”

“And what do you plan on doing with that information, daughter?” Stefan questioned, not at all pleased. I just smiled at him.

Dr. Ben cleared his throat, regaining my attention. “Any medical history I should know about? Diabetes or high blood pressure?” he asked and began pumping air into the cuff. He was smart, beautiful, and cared for others. He almost seemed too perfect. There had to be a catch.

“No. I didn’t pass out because of an underlying condition. It’s because I haven’t eaten, but no one will listen to me. I’m about to take a bite out of Louie here if I don’t eat something soon.”

“When was the last time you ate?”

“Day before yesterday,” I mumbled sheepishly. The men in the room stilled and Dr. Ben released the air in the cuff.

Louie dropped his arm from around my shoulders. “What the fuck, babe? Are you anorexic or something?”

“Does my ass look like it’s anorexic?” I snapped.

“Do you normally go long periods without eating?” Dr. Ben asked as he took the cuff off my arm.

“No. Only when my emotions run high. At those times, the last thing I think about doing is eating. I think the only exception is when I’m on my period. I swear the amount of ice cream I consume should put me in a sugar induced coma.”

“Why were your emotions running high?” Dr. Ben inquired.

I glanced at Stefan, then Jamie. “Let’s skip the therapy session. I’m sure you have better things to do than listen to me drone on about my daddy issues or my love life. Just feed me a damn cheeseburger and I’ll be square.”

Jamie stormed out of the study. He was clearly pissed. I sighed and returned my attention back to Dr. Ben, ready for this to be over. “So, Doc, am I good here?”

He gave me a dazzling smile again. “I don’t think we have anything to worry about. I recommend you eat something right away and take it easy for the rest of the day.” He got to his feet and turned to Stefan. “She’s going to be fine. Sounds like her blood sugar dropped. It’s explains why she fainted,” he reassured him. They shook hands again and the beautiful doctor took his leave.

“I’m just going to say this out loud because I know we’re all thinking it. That man was so beautiful. I swear Fabio and Aphrodite bumped uglies and the result was him.”

“I’m sure his boyfriend thinks so, too,” Louie laughed.Ah, there it is, ladies. The catch.

“I need to speak to my daughter alone,” Stefan said to Louie. Obediently, Louie stood from the couch, squeezing my knee before leaving. Even he knew I was going to get my ass chewed.

“If you’re going to lecture me, just know I already feel like shit.”