job and make sure it was done right. Perfection in the O.R. was his life and he’d settle for no less with Callie.
“She’s in here.” Rich nodded toward the closed door. “I’m going to check to see if that scan is back yet. I’ll be back as soon as I learn anything.”
“Thanks, Rich.”
Noah steeled himself for what he’d see on the other side of the door and privacy curtain. He told himself that as a doctor he’d seen it all, but the thought of Callie wrapped and damaged scared him on a level he didn’t think still existed after he’d faced the hell he’d gone through in the past two years.
He wasn’t going to lie, wasn’t even going to try to deny the fear that coursed through him and nearly had a choke hold on him.
Too many times he’d seen Malinda at her worst. But he’d never seen Callie as anything but bright, smiling and joyful.
He knew he needed to be strong for Callie so he took a deep breath, eased open the door and stepped in. When he pulled aside the thick curtain, his knees nearly buckled. Her whole face, save for her eyes and mouth, was wrapped in white gauze, her hair puffed out in a matted mess around it. Her arm was in a sling to protect her broken collarbone. She looked so frail, so lifeless lying there.
He had to mentally distance himself from this or he’d never be strong enough to help her. Damn it, he had to be a friend first, not a doctor, not a boss and certainly not a wannabe lover.
As he eased closer to the bed, her eyes shifted to lock onto his.
“Hell of a way to get out of the photo shoot,” he said, trying to lighten the moment.
“God, Noah,” she whispered. “I’m sorry. So sorry. I was on my way to the shoot and a truck came out of nowhere… . I don’t remember anything between seeing a semi and waking up here.”
She started to weep and Noah’s heart constricted. Other than the happy tears in his office, he’d never seen her cry, had never seen anything from her but smiles and happiness—which was why he’d considered her the color yellow. Cheerful and sweet.
He wondered if she’d seen her face or if Rich had told her how bad the injuries were.
The doctor in Noah wanted to demand to see her chart so he could review it, but she needed to be consoled, needed to know everything would be all right. Because no matter what care she needed, he’d see to it himself. And he didn’t mean hire a nurse. He’d literally see to her every need personally. Even if he had to refer his clients for the next few weeks to a colleague, he would do everything in his power to make her comfortable and secure.
“Callie.” He moved over to the edge of the bed, taking her good hand in his. “There’s absolutely nothing to apologize about. Nothing.”
“I’m sorry to have to bother you, but I didn’t know who else to call when my neighbor wasn’t home,” she told him, trying to turn her head away.
“I wouldn’t be anywhere else.” He squeezed her hand. “What can I do for you?”
She tried to shake her head, wincing at the obvious pain.
“Just try to relax.” He stroked the back of her hand with his thumb. “I’m not going anywhere, Callie.”
“I’ll be fine,” she assured him, but her voice cracked as tears filled her eyes again. “I know they’re keeping me tonight, but I’ll have my neighbor take me home when I get released tomorrow. You don’t have to stay.”
“I’ll leave if you really want me to, but when you’re dismissed, I’m taking you home with me.”
She slid her hand from his and tried to roll over, only to gasp when she realized she’d rolled onto her bad side.
“Easy, Callie. Don’t be so stubborn. You’re going to need help, and since I’m a doctor, I think the best place for you is with me.”
She didn’t respond. Silence filled the room and Noah knew she didn’t want his help. Too bad. He wasn’t going to leave her like this.
“Do you want me to try your neighbor again?” he asked. “You can give me the number.”
“No,” Callie said softly. “I don’t need a babysitter. I know I need someone, but…God, Noah, I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to need someone.”
Before he could say anything further, Rich stepped into the room and slid back the curtain.
“CT scan looks good,” he said. “But I’m going to go ahead and get a room ready for you just for overnight observation. You were unconscious when you were brought in and I’d feel more comfortable monitoring you for a bit. You should be able to go home in the morning. Have you thought about who can help you there?”
“I’ll manage,” she told him, still keeping her face turned to the far wall.
“Miss Matthews, I can’t let you go without knowing you’ll be taken care of.”
Noah shot Rich a look and whispered, “I’ll take her.”
Rich merely nodded and left the room.
“I’m not going to stay with you,” Callie said. “I’ll be fine at home.”
“Then I can stay with you,” he told her, trying not to get angry over her stubbornness.
“I know I should have someone to help, but I’ll call my neighbor or you if I absolutely have to. I want to be alone.”
Noah refused to back down. “Well, that’s too bad. I’m going to help you, Callie, whether you want it or not. So you can decide right now if you want to be difficult or if you want to cooperate. The end result will be the same.”
Slowly, she turned to face him. “End result? And what is the end result, Noah? That I’ll never be able to start filming this movie? That my dream was just pulled out from under me? They won’t wait on me to heal, if I ever do heal. I’ll never be the same.”
God, he hadn’t wanted her to do the film, but he’d certainly never wished for anything bad to happen to her. And if he hadn’t insisted she model for him, she wouldn’t be in this damn bed wrapped up and broken.
Sobs tore through the room and Callie pounded the bed with her left fist. “Don’t you see, Noah? The end result is that my life and everything I’ve ever worked for were just taken away.”
Noah took her hand once more and laced his fingers with hers. “I’ll make this right, Callie. No matter what I have to do, I’ll make you whole again.”
Four
And how the hell could he ever come through with a promise like that?
He wasn’t God. He was a surgeon.
Unless scars were covered by skin grafts, they were permanent. The odds were in his favor that he could minimize the appearance, but what were the odds she’d be happy with even a minor scar? True, he’d been able to nearly rid her of the one on her chin with microdermabrasion, but it had been
