Let's see what's in store for our dear B + E... (no, I know what you're thinking...no Mile High Club today. You'll just have to wait for the sexiness to slowly build in this story!)
Chapter 4
Bella was holding the ice to her temple and shrinking in embarrassment from the looks she was getting around her. It was bad enough to smack your noggin on the bathroom door, making a sound loud enough to garner the attention of the passengers in the back of the plane, and it was really bad to get faint out at the sight of a little blood, but it was mortifying to have to have the doctor called over the speakers of the plane. Immediately a dozen heads had turned in her direction, and she had shrunk into her seat, blocking out the strangers all staring at her.
She continued to keep her head down, working up the courage and the will to greet the kind doctor that was bound to show up, thank him for his time, but insist that no thank you, she was just fine. She didn't need to be coddled like a child! It was just a bump, and though it throbbed painfully, it's nothing that an ice pack and some pain killers wouldn't fix.
Bella heard the doctor approach, but sill kept her head lowered and her hair covering her face, trying to stay hidden for as long as possible. Interestingly enough, she could hear the flight attendants simper and giggle as she watched his tennis-shoed feet walk down the aisle, and she wondered what was making them all aflutter. She could sense him kneeling down beside her, and she gathered her courage, ready to deny medical attention. "I'm Edward," she heard his warm voice say, and noticed it was tinged with just the slightest drawl. "Ma'am, can I take a look?" he asked next, and she took a deep breath, looking up at the doctor in front of her, her eyes already welling with embarrassed tears as they always had since she was a child.
As soon as she locked eyes with his, she blinked in shock, and a small droplet fell onto her cheek. Way to go, Bella, she thought, now he knows how embarrassed you are! The kind doctor was smiling at her, and she felt a sudden urge to tell the handsome man what had happened, as if that would make it any less mortifying.
"I'm sorry," Bella began, "I shouldn't have been up when the seatbelt sign was on. I just had to go to the bathroom, and then the plane shook, and I hit my head, and there was blood, and then I think I passed out for a second, and—"
She stopped abruptly when she felt his warm hand rest on her arm, and she wondered if the rush to her head was from her injury or his touch. He smiled at her, and it lit up his beautiful hazel eyes. The doctor, Edward Cullen, if she remembered correctly, asked the flight attendants for a medical kit, and after they had bumbled around for a bit, clearly agape at the fine doctor's attractiveness, they gave him what he needed and he dismissed them with a kind thank you. The flight attendants hustled off to attend to their other passengers, and that's when Bella realized it was just the two of them in the back of the plane.
As Edward crouched next to the injured passenger, he slowly realized his hand was still on her arm. He removed it reluctantly and set to work gathering the tools he needed. After quickly asserting that her wound was no longer bleeding, and figuring he could get to that later, he went ahead with his vitals exam. He clicked on the pen light and went to shine into her eyes to check her response, but as he was about to begin, another passenger walked up beside him, clearly intending to get to the bathroom on the other side. Edward stood up quickly and allowed him to get through, which put him in very close proximity to the slight patient, and he looked down awkwardly at her as the man moved past him. He cleared his throat and realized that it would be easier if he could sit down to conduct his exam.
"Do you mind if I sit down?" Edward asked. "I think we'll have a bit more space that way." The patient nodded quickly and scooted backward so that her back was against the window and Edward had space to sit in the aisle seat. Their bodies were angled toward each other and their knees were a hair's breadth from touching, which he immediately noticed as he sat down.
Edward clicked on the pen light and proceeded to shine it into her eyes, watching for the correct responses and dilations. He needed to get her talking, to see if the injury had affected her cognitive functioning as well. And maybe then you'll find out a little more about her, he mused, but then shook the improper thought out of his mind. She was his patient, he realized, and he can't be trying to get to know his patients personally, no matter how attractive they are.
"So," he started as he moved the light around her pupils, "I know what happened, but I don't know to whom. What's your name?" He listened intently as he set down the light and took her hand, turning it over to expose the wrist. He was prepared to take her pulse, which he could feel fluttering wildly under his two fingers.
"Uh, Bella," she whispered, "Bella Swan." He nodded and counted the pulses in his head, checking his watch at the same time.
"It's nice to meet you Bella. Can you tell me what day it is, and why you're headed to Nashville?" He asked, making a mental note of her quick pulse in his head. Medical response? Nerves?
"Nice to meet you too," she chuckled quietly, clearly not loving the circumstances which brought them to meet. "It's Monday morning, and I'm headed to Nashville for a songwriter's convention."
Edward's eyebrows shot up in surprise, and he forgot to let go of her wrist, which he still held in his warm hand. "You're a songwriter? That's quite the unique career. Any songs I would know?" He asked with interest. She looked like such a suit, he was surprised at her creative profession. All the songwriters he had met growing up were constantly in comfortable jeans and cowboy boots; he'd never seen one of them wearing a suit.
When he probed about her career, he cheeks immediately flamed red. "No, no songs you would know. No songs at all really." She clearly noticed his confused look, and elaborated. "I'm not technically a 'songwriter' by trade. More like an overworked Assistant Editor in Seattle who spends her free time writing down her thoughts into a silly journal. Some musician friends caught wind and started pushing me to explore it further. Thus, here I am, ready to observe and learn, but trust me, I have nothing to contribute."
He frowned at the tone she used when referring to herself, recognizing the self-critical attitude that he often heard Emmett use when he was younger when he still thought he wasn't worthy of the love and care that Esme and Carlisle gave to him. She sure doesn't believe in herself very much, does she? he thought to himself.
"Well," he began as he pulled out the stethoscope that was provided in the kit. "I'm sure you'll learn a lot in Nashville. There are thousands of amazing artists that will teach you tons. It's a very special town," he said with some pride as he warmed the cold metal disk in his hands. "I'm going to place this here on your chest," he said, as he pointed to a place high on his own breast bone. She nodded nervously, and he reached toward her, slightly moving her white collared shirt aside to place the disk right inside her shirt. He was a doctor, for goodness sake, but he still felt his own pulse jump at the close contact to such a beautiful woman. Get ahold of yourself! he admonished himself. Some doctor you are.
In the meantime, Bella breathed in and out when he instructed, but her mind was far from heart rates and breathing. She was inspecting her doctor, who by this time was leaning toward her, taking her vitals. She was pretty much backed into the row, and though he was not large by any means, he was definitely big enough to block the view to the aisle in front of her. It is just me and him back here, she thought. Oddly enough, she didn't feel threatened or uncomfortable in any way. His presence was comforting and warm, and his smell enveloped her in the nicest way. Every time he moved the scope and told her to breath in, she took in another deep whiff of his masculine, spicy scent.
Her eyes closed as she breathed in the last time, and Edward quickly asked her if she was feeling alright, clearly concerned that she was closing her eyes from exhaustion or pain, instead of to better relish his manly scent. She blushed, as per usual, and opened her eyes. "No, I'm fine, I promise."
Finally, Edward gently took the hand holding the ice against her temple, and moved it into her lap. "Let's take a look at this bump," he said quietly, and began inspecting the wound. It wasn't big or deep by any means. Slightly swollen, and a little pink, though more likely from the cold compress than the injury. There was a small cut where she had hit the hardest, right near her hairline, and he rifled through the first-aid kit, looking for something to mend it with. Aha! he thought with relief, this will be perfect. Edward held up a small tube toward Bella, smiling at her. "Liquid bandage," he explained. "It will close the wound cleanly and easily; you'll barely see it."
Bella smiled in relief and allowed him to clean the cut with peroxide, before dabbing on the liquid. Her hair was getting in the way a bit, and without thinking Edward tucked it behind her ear to clear the workspace. The motion was subtle, but intimate in its own way, and he immediately pulled back his hand like he'd been burned. She felt her cheeks burn, but not with embarrassment this time, and she wished that he would do it again.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a yawn, and she felt her eyelashes flutter tiredly. Edward looked at her, and then back at his seat. "I can tell you're tired, and it's actually perfectly alright for someone with a head injury to go to sleep. Why don't I go grab my book and I'll sit here, and I'll wake you periodically to make sure you're doing alright?"
Bella smiled gratefully at her savior, and she nodded for him to go retrieve his book. By the time he returned, she was curled up against the window, out like a light. He watched her for a moment, taking in her gentle beauty and peaceful expression, before looking back to his book, trying with all his might to focus on the words and not on the girl next to him.
Thanks for reading!
