Page 37 of Forbidden Passion
Everyone froze, including the doctor. He gave her the patronizing smile that she’d grown to hate as a child. “Your Highness, I know that you’re distraught. I’m sure your arm hurts a great deal. But if you’d just let me take a look, I can make it all better.”
She heard one of her bodyguards muttering into his microphone, but ignored him, too focused on getting away from this buffoon.
Ciara’s confusion was clearing quickly and she stood up, shaking her head. “I’d rather bleed to death than to let you touchme. You can’t know the harm that you caused me as a child by dismissing the wounds you constantly had to treat. But you’re not going to continue the damage now by telling everyone here that I’m just an overly emotional little girl. Never again! I will never let another man dismiss my emotions or concerns. So leave. Now.” Her last command was low and violently soft.
Ramit frowned in confusion, but Falk immediately stood up and, with a flick of his hand, silently ordered the doctor to be taken from the room by his bodyguards. “Make sure that he never works in medicine again!” he ordered grimly.
When the man continued to argue, Falk turned to Ramit. “Doctor Harroby had to treat your sister’s wounds after her nanny beat her too badly. He assumed the wounds were because she was clumsy.”
Ramit gritted his teeth as the doctor was physically lifted off his feet and hauled from the room. A woman wearing scrubs and carrying a medical bag stepped into the room.
“Your Highness, with your permission, I could treat your bullet wound.” She didn’t step forward, waiting for Ciara’s consent.
“Are you a doctor?” Ciara asked.
“I’m a nurse practitioner,” the woman explained. “I help the palace staff with various wounds and minor issues. I know what to do.”
Ciara hesitated, then nodded. “Fine. Thank you,” she finally replied.
The nurse rushed over to Ciara’s side and started tending to the wound. “It’s just a graze. The wound isn’t deep. I don’t think you’ll need stitches, but a doctor should make that determination.” She was moving quickly, cleaning off the bloodso that she could better examine the wound. “I can give you a shot for the pain. It will numb the area, but the Novocain won’t knock you out.”
Ciara was deeply grateful for her explanation. She nodded, giving consent.
The woman pulled out a needle, filling it with something. Ciara heard a thud and looked around. One of the guards had crumpled to the floor. Apparently, the man didn’t like needles. There were a few quiet chuckles as the other guards rushed over to help the prostrate man, but the nurse didn’t take her attention away from Ciara’s arm.
The pain in her arm immediately eased. Ciara looked up at Falk, who was pacing back and forth, and smiled, trying to calm him.
“Don’t!” he snapped, pointing towards her. “You were shot at, Ciara. Don’t try to calm me down.”
The nurse had finished cleaning the wound and put some sort of ointment over the spot, then started to wrap her arm. Ciara chuckled at his exasperation. “I think you’re cute when you’re upset,” she admitted.
He turned to frown at her, his hands fisted on his hips. “You…!’ he started, only to turn away and start pacing again. Then he turned back and said, “You’re going to…!” Again, he didn’t finish his threat.
Finally, the nurse finished and stood up. “I’m going to send some antibiotics to your room, Your Highness. And I still think you should see a surgeon about possible stitches. It doesn’t look bad, but I’d feel better if you had a doctor look at it.”
“Thank you for your help,” Ciara said, shaking her hand. “You’ve been wonderful.”
“You’ll go to the hospital,” Falk announced. Ramit was nodding his agreement.
“Nope,” she replied, then tapped her arm. “I’m fine. No pain.”
“You’ll feel it in the morning once the anesthetic has worn off,” Falk warned.
She smiled and moved closer to him, sliding her hands up his chest. “Then I’ll deal with it tomorrow. But until then, I’m very tired and I’d like to retire.” She took Falk’s hand and led him towards the doorway.
“Ciara?” Ramit choked out.
She turned, looking at her brother. But she could only chuckle when her brother’s eyes moved from her face to her hand in Falk’s.
“Oh, stop it!” she snapped. “Don’t be a hypocrite. You’re going to take Maggie back to your place and do the exact same thing!” And she continued to the doorway.
However, she nearly choked with laughter when she heard her brother mutter, “Probably notexactlythe same thing.”
However, she continued out to the hallway, desperate to be alone. Immediately, her guards and Falk’s surrounded them, one man muttering into his hidden microphone to ensure the hallways to Ciara’s suite were cleared of everyone, including servants.
When she entered her room, smiling her gratitude to the guards who had been stationed inside her suite after the attack, she turned and looked up at Falk.
“Are you still going to marry me?”