Chapter 34
Carla
One month later…
I check my emails, opening the first one that needs answering. I’m about to start typing when Robyn walks through the door with a smile on her face.
She just stands there at my desk, looking at me.
“Do you need me for something?” I ask.
She’s in scrubs.
“I haven’t heard from you yet.” She lifts her brows, still looking at me.
“Heard from me about what?” I ask.
“You’re normally on top of it.”
“What did I forget? I’m busy with your emails as we speak and—”
“It isn’t work-related.” She puts her hands in her pockets. “You’re due your contraceptive injection,” she says. “You normally remind me that you’re due. It just popped up on my calendar, so I thought I would check.”
I nod. “Oh yeah, I saw that. I’m swamped. Besides, I feel a little bad asking you to do it every time. It’s wrong of me. I was going to call the clinic and make an appointment like everyone else.”
She stares at me like I just grew a second head. “You’re not everyone else. Your doctor is your best friend. It’s one of the perks of putting up with me as a boss, as well. Besides, I’ve been giving you this injection for nearly two years.”
“I know, and I’ve been taking terrible advantage of you. It isn’t fair.” I gesture toward the door. “Go. I’ll get an appointment at the clinic. Don’t worry about it.”
She does not go. She leans against the doorframe. “I have time right now. It will take five minutes.”
“I have work to do.”
“It’s five minutes, Carla. Your work will still be here in five minutes, I promise you. I should know. Come on, let’s do this already.”
I pull up a new form. “And I told you, Robyn, I’m taking advantage of you. I’ll call the clinic.”
“The clinic is booked at least two weeks out.” She tips her head. “Minimum. What are you going to do in the meantime? What if you meet a cute guy and get knocked up?”
“I’m not seeing anyone.” I shake my head. “I’m not planning on sleeping with anyone either. Two weeks is fine.” I wave a hand.
She sighs like she’s dealing with someone very dense. “Carla, I insist. Now get your ass into my office, stat. It’s an order.”
“Fine.” I get up from my desk. “I’ll take the shot.”
“Good.” She straightens up, satisfied. “Come on, then.”
I follow her down the corridor to her office, where she grabs my file, which is already waiting on her desk. Then we go through to a small examination room up the hall.
“Sit up here.” She pats the table.
I hoist myself up, and she snaps on a pair of gloves and gets the blood pressure cuff from the hook on the wall. She wraps it around my upper arm, inflates it, and watches the gauge.
“Perfect,” she says, noting it down. “Good.” She sets the cuff aside. “Hop on the scale for me.”
I do. She notes the number without comment, and I get back on the table.
“Any changes to your medications since we last did this?”
“No.”
“New prescriptions from anyone else? Supplements, anything like that?”
“I started taking vitamin D. The pharmacy kind, nothing fancy.”
She notes it. “That’s fine. Any irregular bleeding or spotting since your last injection?”
“No. I still don’t menstruate anymore at all, which is fabulous.”
“Headaches? Migraines?”
“Nope.”
“Mood changes? Low mood, depression?”
“I’m seeing Dr. Philips,” I say. “I’m all good.”
It isn’t quite true. I’m still feeling down, but that has nothing to do with my contraceptive injection, so it isn’t pertinent.
She nods and types. “Any nausea? Bloating?”
“No.”
She puts the tablet down on her desk and turns to face me fully, and I already know what the next question is before she opens her mouth.
“Have you had unprotected sex since your last injection?”
Yes!
I had sex a good couple of times with Magma, and it was all bareback.
Robyn frowns. “Um…Carla? Answer the question.”
“Sorry.” I blink a few times. “I zoned out for a second. What did you say?”
She doesn’t look entirely convinced, but she repeats it. “Have you had unprotected sex in the last two months?”
“No,” I say immediately. Perhaps a little too quickly.
She narrows her eyes. “You didn’t have sex with Flint, did you? Before Mistveil or after you got back? It’s completely okay if you did. You need to tell me, especially if it was unprotected.”
I cannot tell her. I won’t!
“I didn’t sleep with Flint.” I stick to the truth.
“You’re sure?”
“Positive. I would know if I had sex with him.” I hold her gaze. “We went on one date, and that was the end of it. There was no sex. We had sex months and months ago after the Fang and Claw. That was the first and the last time it happened. I swear to god.”
She holds my gaze for a second more, then nods. She lets it go, turning back to her desk.
I release a breath.
She picks up the syringe she’s already prepared. “Awesome. Then we’re good to go. You know the drill. Bend and show me your ass.”
I laugh as I stand. Then I lean on the bed. I pull my pants down to about halfway down my left butt cheek.
Robyn cleans the site with an alcohol swab, lets it dry, then administers the injection. There’s a quick sting followed by three seconds of pressure.
“Done.” She peels her gloves off. “How are your therapy sessions going?”
“Really well.” And that part is completely true. “It was a good call, Robyn. Dr. Philips is exactly what I needed. It’s helped a lot.”
“Good.” She smiles. “I’m glad.”
“My therapist agrees that taking a step back from relationships for a while is the right call.”
“Not that you’ve ever had a relationship.”
“I had a steady boyfriend in high school. We dated for about a year. Then I dated a guy for about six months in my early twenties. I’ve had relationships.”
“Oh! You never told me.”
“I’ve been having fun the last few years, but I do feel like I might just dive into something serious if I find the right guy.” I think about Magma, and it irritates me.
“You will.”
“I’m not in any rush. I’m only going on thirty. I mean, look at you. You’re proof that you can be old and still find love.” I start laughing, sticking my tongue out at her.
She laughs as well. “You’re lucky I gave you your shot already. You little shit!” She laughs some more. “I have news.” She begins to tidy away the syringe and swab.
“Tell me.”
“I’m going to officially meet Ridge’s dragon for the first time this weekend. He finally got his permit. It’s safe for him to shift without assistance.” She tries to say it casually and completely fails. The smile is fighting to get out from the moment she starts the sentence.
“That’s huge,” I say. “Are you nervous?”
“Terrified.” She grins. “But I cannot wait. I know I’m going to love that side of him. I only hope his dragon will love me back.”
“He will.”
She’s lit up from the inside. She has been like this since she and Ridge moved in together. What am I saying? It’s been like this since right from the start. Even before she would admit to her feelings for him.
I’m happy for her.
“That’s great, my friend. I’m so happy for you.”
She gathers her file, tucking it under her arm, and gives me a soft look. “Are you sure you’re doing okay? Really?”
“Really.” I get down from the table. “I’m good.”
She nods, then squeezes my arm once. “I’m here if you need me.”
“I know.”
I walk back down the corridor to my office and sit down at my desk and look at the email still waiting for me on the screen.
I’m a little better than I was when I came back from Mistveil. Next month I’ll be better than I am now. I just need to keep putting one foot in front of the other.