The Good Luck Charm(75)

“I’m fine.” I brush away the hands of my colleagues, embarrassed. I’ve never fainted in my life.

“You hit your head pretty hard,” Emery says.

“Let me do a quick assessment, Lilah.” Dr. Lovely isn’t asking—he’s telling.

I acquiesce because there’s no way I’m getting out of an exam to check for a concussion at the very least. “Okay. Fine.”

I ignore his offered hand and manage to get to my feet on my own, but I’m a little off balance. Still, when a wheelchair appears, I balk. “I can walk to an exam room.”

“You will take the chair, and you will be a gracious patient, Delilah,” Dr. Lovely replies evenly.

I purse my lips, give him a glare that would wilt a lesser man, and drop into the chair.

“Lilah?” Emery’s soft voice brings my attention back to her. She looks so confused and maybe a little scared.

I give her a small smile. “I’m fine. It’s okay if you have to go. I know how to get in touch with you.”

She bites her lip and rushes over, throwing her arms around my neck in an awkward hug. “I hope you really are my sister, because that would be the best ever.” She lets me go and steps back, using the sleeve of her shirt to wipe at her eyes. I feel my own pricking with an echo of her emotions.

I don’t look at the man responsible for providing half of my DNA as they wheel me away.

Despite assuring everyone I’m physically fine, a thorough assessment is done before I’m given the all clear. The whole thing takes an hour.

“I’d like you to call your sister and have her pick you up,” Dr. Lovely says when he’s finally satisfied I don’t have a concussion, just a bump on the back of my head.

For a moment I’m confused, and he must read it on my face, because he adds, “Carmen. Is she available to take you home?”

“I’m fine. I don’t have a concussion, and I have three hours left in my shift.”

He crosses his arms over his chest. “You’re not finishing your shift with a head injury, Delilah.”

“Stop calling me Delilah, and I fainted—it’s not a head injury.”

“You fainted and hit your head on a cement floor. That’s a minor head injury, and while you may not have a concussion, I’d prefer not to take any chances with you, or with any of my other patients. You also have the next two days off.”

“For a bruise?”

“I think your headspace might not be the best right now.”

When I begin to argue, he gives me a look. “Lilah, that man out there said he was your father, and he hasn’t seen you since you were six. You’ve been treating your half sister for weeks because of a shattered ankle. Now, I’m just guessing here, but I think you may need a couple of days to get your head around that.”

“I thought you were a physician, not a psychiatrist.”

His cheek tics with a suppressed grin. “Call Carmen, please.”

I slide my phone out of my pocket with an irritated sigh. “You know, you might think you have a great bedside manner, but really it’s just your face that allows you to get away with ordering people around like this.”

He smiles. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Carmen answers on the third ring. “Are you busy?” I ask.

She snorts. “That’s your greeting?”

“Hi, Carmen. How’s your day going? Are you busy?”

“Tell your sister hello for me,” Dr. Lovely says as he removes his gloves and tosses them in the trash.

I give him my WTF face but do as he says. Otherwise I’m sure he’ll take the phone out of my hand because that’s the kind of mood he seems to be in. “Dr. Lovely says hello.”

“Noah Lovely?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, uh, I guess tell him I said hello back? Why’re you calling me?”

I address Dr. Lovely. “She says hi back. This feels very eighth grade, by the way.”

All he does is grin. What the hell? I shake my head, which is starting to ache, and return to my conversation with my sister. “I fainted and hit my head and Dr. Lovely would like you to pick me up because he feels I’m unfit to drive.”

“Are you okay? Why did you faint? Is something wrong? Did something happen? Is Martin okay? What about Ethan?” Her voice continues to rise as she peppers me with questions.

“I need you to calm down, or I’ll have to call someone else for a ride. I’m fine and so are Martin and Ethan, as far as I know. I’ll explain everything when you get here, if you’re available to pick me up, that is.”

“I can be there in half an hour. Is that okay?”

“Half an hour is perfect. I’m sure there’s some workplace accident report I need to fill out in the meantime.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

I end the call and sigh. As if I need any more complications in my life. The Ethan situation is more than enough all on its own. Now I find out I might have another sister. Not might, I do have another sister. And I like her. Except right now I feel nothing but jealousy. My father left us all to start a new family. From Emery’s accounts, he’s a fantastic dad and completely head over heels in love with her mother.

I rub my temples and hop down off the hospital bed. “I need some air.”