Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 53807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53807 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
She peeked through the curtains and opened the door a crack when Rexy returned. The dog was a third of the way inside when he backed up and took off.
“Rexy! Come back here!” Aspen yelled. She watched him turn the corner to go to the side of the house. Snatching her nightshirt off the chair, she ran toward the front door. She was about three feet from her target when the door opened.
“Come on in, Zale, I’ll get that scope.” Jerico stopped talking when he saw Aspen. “Baby, what happened?”
Horrified, Aspen tried to get her nightshirt on to cover her nakedness, but it got tangled on her arms and head. “Close your eyes, Zale,” she begged.
“That’s a severe allergic reaction. We need to get you to the hospital, Aspen,” Zale pronounced immediately, ignoring her request as he walked in with Rexy following close behind.
The traitor.
Giving up on getting the shirt on, she held it up to her body, shielding herself. “I’m not going to the hospital. I’m fine. Just itchy.”
“This is more than itchy, Aspen,” Jerico said firmly. “Let’s get your shirt and shoes. Our next stop is the emergency department.”
“I’m not going!” Aspen yelled at him, aggravated by the red patches and embarrassed that Zale had seen her practically naked. She swallowed hard. Why did her lips feel funny? She put a hand up to run her fingers over her mouth.
“Her lips are swelling. I can give her a shot to help.” Zale dropped his bag on the table and tore it open. In seconds, he was at her side, dodging Rexy, who hovered around her as if he knew something was amiss.
“Rexy, go to your bed,” Jerico ordered as he walked forward quickly.
Rexy followed his stern direction immediately.
Traitor.
Aspen danced away. “I don’t like shots.”
“Too bad, little girl,” Jerico said firmly and grabbed her, pinning her arms to her sides. “This is serious.”
“Ouch!”
“All done. Jerico, we need to get her to the emergency department as soon as possible,” Zale decreed.
“I’ll get shoes,” Jerico said.
“Can’t we just see if the shot works? What’s the rush? I started itching yesterday,” Aspen protested.
Zale shook his head and looked at Jerico. “We can give it five minutes. Then we need to go.”
When Jerico nodded, Zale looked back at Aspen assessing her condition. “What did you get into?”
“Something spilled on the loading dock. We all were involved in cleaning it up. Everyone changed clothes afterward.”
“And it didn’t affect anyone else?” Zale asked, wrapping his fingers around her wrist to assess her pulse.
“I don’t know?” Aspen answered.
“Have you looked at your phone this morning?” Jerico asked.
“No. It’s on the charger still.”
Jerico loped back to their bedroom and returned with her phone. “There are three messages from the guy I guess is your supervisor.”
“Gary?”
“Yes. Two people ended up at the hospital for treatment. Gary is having the material in the barrels quarantined and tested,” Jerico reported.
“Hey, the itching’s getting better,” Aspen reported. “Could you both look away so I can put on my shirt?”
“No,” Zale answered. “Until these hives go away, it will just irritate your skin.”
He turned back to Jerico. “Is your nursery fully equipped? I need to check Aspen’s temperature.”
“It is,” Jerico assured him.
“Daddy, I feel so tired,” Aspen said, feeling herself swaying.
“I got you, baby girl.” Jerico scooped her up into his arms.
“It’s the medicine. It will cause drowsiness. Let’s check her temperature and blood pressure before we make any decisions,” Zale recommended.
Aspen laid her head on Jerico’s broad shoulder. Between not sleeping and the medicine, she was almost out. With every minute that went by, she felt better. “Thanks, Zale. That was awful.”
“Don’t thank me yet, Aspen,” Zale warned, making Aspen shrug her shoulders.
There wasn’t anything he could do to change her mind. She wasn’t even upset that he’d seen her nude now. “Thank goodness you’re a medic.”
“Thank goodness,” Jerico echoed as he laid her on the infamous changing pad.
“Let’s roll her on her side, facing the wall. I’ll need lubricant and a thermometer.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Aspen saw Zale open his medical bag once again. Jerico turned her over and she couldn’t see the medic. There was no mistaking the snap of exam gloves. Some of the fogginess cleared from her brain and Aspen struggled to get free.
“Aspen, your hives won’t allow me to spank you for being naughty. I have other ways to punish you if you won’t cooperate,” Jerico told her in that stern voice she knew meant business.
“No!” she wailed.
Zale stepped closer. “We can take you to the hospital for them to assess you if you’d rather. This reaction is serious. When your lips swell, that’s a sign that your airway could be in jeopardy. You are very lucky that the reaction was delayed until we got here. Had your throat closed last night when you were alone, you wouldn’t be talking to us now.”