Wrecked Read Online Free PDF Page A

to stand up perfectly straight, the soreness in her abdomen even
keeping her awake at night. She had been given pain pills, but she’d seen too
many of her neighbors in the apartment complex addicted to drugs, so she wanted
to stay as far away as possible from anything that might get her hooked. Regina
had told her she was being overly worried, but Bess didn’t want to risk it, so
she was prepared to wait it out, knowing that eventually it would improve
slowly.
    As she laid down on the bed, curling her knees in slightly,
Bess took a deep breath and closed her eyes, just for a minute or two. It felt
good to be off her feet and the mattress was soft and cozy, molding to her body
and enveloping her in warmth.
    *****
    Ethan stood on the front porch of his house and had to think
before he just opened the door and walked in. Yes, it was his house, but
Bess was living there now. He had to be conscious of giving her privacy. So he
knocked and waited.
    After knocking for the third time, he opened the door and
let himself in. He would have to remind Bess to keep it locked. Port Lincoln
didn’t have much more than some petty juvenile crime, but still, she should be
safe.
    All was quiet. He ventured to the back of the house, to the
family room where he’d left her sound asleep a few hours earlier. She was no
longer on the loveseat. The last room he checked was his bedroom. Her bedroom.
The door was wide open as he peeked around the door frame. She was sound
asleep. Taking a couple of silent steps into the room, he stood at the foot of
the bed and watched her.
    He’d never once had any thoughts about a patient that were
not appropriate and professional. He’d never once taken an interest in a
patient, other than the physical symptoms that would lead him to a diagnosis,
or a wound that needed his immediate attention. Ethan wondered what it was
about this woman that had him acting so out of character.
    As she lay before him, he gazed at her long hair, once again
fanned behind her, framing her face. It was long and wavy and looked incredibly
soft. Of its own volition, his hand raised, as if to reach out and run his
fingers through her locks. He stopped himself and stayed put. Her face was oval
in shape and her nose was the perfect size and shape. Her lashes were long and
dark as they rested against her cheeks, and her lips were pink and full, just
begging to be kissed.
    With that thought, Ethan abruptly turned and marched to the
kitchen, the bag of takeout still in his hand. He turned the oven on low and
stashed the Chinese food, still in their cardboard containers, on the lowest
rack to keep warm.
    Should he wake her? Should he just leave? Should he make
himself comfortable and wait for her to wake on her own? He’d planned on eating
with her, but perhaps that was a foolish idea. He’d convinced her to live in
his house, telling her it would actually be a favor she was doing for him. He
didn’t like the idea of it just sitting empty and tempting a passing vagrant.
She was helping him out, not the other way round. But he probably shouldn’t
make a habit of showing up all the time, even if he did have food with him.
    Answering his dilemma, Ethan sat in the gathering room and
pulled out his phone. He would check his emails and if she was still asleep
when he was done, he’d leave her another note telling her that there was food
in the oven.
    He took his time reading each and every word of every email,
even the junk mail.
    And his plan worked.
    About fifteen minutes later, Bess sleepily walked out of the
bedroom, down the hall and through the foyer, and stopped when she saw Ethan,
focused on his phone.
    “Uh, hi,” she stammered.
    Ethan looked up with a killer grin, the kind that could stop
hearts and melt icebergs.
    “Good evening,” he smiled. “I brought dinner.”
    “Words near and dear to my heart,” Bess smiled brightly.
“Let’s eat!”
    She followed Ethan into the kitchen where he magically
produced several boxes of