Lucy Wagner Gets In Shape (A Romantic Comedy) Read Online Free PDF Page A

at full speed, towards me. He looks scared, almost panicked. Now I’m thinking I might freak out.
    “Oh, Lucy… oh shit,” Jen cries. I move my hand tentatively to my face, which I now realize is covered in dirt and blood. Will’s on his knees beside me, and then so is Jen, and now people have stopped to point and stare, and I just want to die.
    “C’mon, let’s get your face out of the dirt. Do you think you can sit up?” Will’s voice is as smooth as syrup, but his eyes are still wide with fright. I look away quickly, choosing to just listen for the time being.
    “Can’t…breathe…” I wheeze pitifully. “Why…can’t I…breathe?”
    “You just got the wind knocked out of you, hon.” Jen is rubbing my arm, and Will has gently lifted me to a quasi-sitting position, my shoulders and head tucked gently in the crook of his arm.
    “Where are you hurt?” Will asks urgently, skimming my arms and legs with his fingertips. I look at him again, but I’m too stunned to even call him a perv.
    “My nose…and my hand…” I lift my arm gingerly, and my eyes fill when I see my raw, bloody palm, full of dirt and gravel.
    “I’ve got a bottle of water in my car. I’ll be right back.” Jen’s running away quickly, already pulling her car keys out of the back pocket of her running shorts, even though the parking lot is still a good quarter-mile away. Will reaches down and gently pushes my hair back from my forehead.
    “Who put that tree in front of you?” he asks gently. “I never say it coming.” I try to smile, just to make him feel better, but my eyes are full of tears, and I’ve started to shake. Not being able to breathe is a seriously scary deal.
    “I’m sorry,” I squeak, but I can still feel my hot tears run slowly down my cheeks. Get a grip, Lucy.
    “Hey, hey…you’re okay. Don’t be scared. You’re okay.” He picks up the tail of his T-shirt, and very gently, wipes the tears and dirt from my cheeks. His shirt is warm and damp, and it’s so oddly comforting that I almost start full-on bawling.
    “Are people staring at me?” I whisper, suddenly aware of my surroundings.
    “God, Luce, conceited much? I’m pretty sure they’re staring at me. ” He bends down and places a kiss on the top of my head, then looks across the field towards the parking lot.
    “Well, I think Jen stopped for a beer or something. Let’s go find her.” He stands and lifts me in his arms, while I give a little grunt of protest.
    “Will, please put me down, I can walk.” Now I’m super-embarrassed, and I’m sure I look like a drama queen, being carried off like some kind of damsel in distress.
    “Luce, just relax, and lean your head back. Your nose is still bleeding. If we don’t stop it soon, you might lose it.” I look up at him quizzically, and he gives me a lopsided grin. It’s the first time the worry has left his eyes since I fell, so I’m feeling a little better.
    Jen meets us halfway to the car with a bottle of water, a towel, and a bag of ice she got from the concession stand at the park. Soon I’m ensconced in the back seat of Will’s Jeep, my head in Jen’s lap, and we are headed to the University infirmary. A quick examination reveals that my wrist is sprained, my nose is bruised but unbroken, and the palm of my hand needs six stitches where a particularly sharp rock has left a nasty flap of bloody skin.
    By the time we get back to my apartment, it’s after ten o’clock. I’m embarrassed, and sore, and depressed, and I just want to be by myself, but Jen and Will are hovering. In fact, they are talking about me as if I’m not even there.
    “Listen, you go on and teach your noon class, and I’ll stick around until you get back. But be back by two-thirty, because I’ve got a seminar at three.” Will is talking softly, in the kitchen, but I can hear him. I’m injured, not deaf.
    “Both of you, go to work. I’m fine.” When they ignore me and keep murmuring, I get pissed.