Page 2 of Love in Bloom

“The blush. I have to finish the blush,” she murmured. Then she was on the move again.

Connor held her hand. His brow furrowed beneath his brown hair. “I’m here, Camille. Don’t worry.”

She tried to move her head but it wouldn’t turn.

“We’re at the hospital. I’ll stay with you.”

People poked and prodded her, shone lights in her eyes. She fought to focus on her surroundings and what was happening.

She lost the battle, and her eyelids closed.

♥ ♥ ♥

Camille blinked, forcing her eyelids up. In the dimly lit room, Connor slept in the chair next to her hospital bed. His clothes were rumpled. Her mouth felt dry. She reached for the water pitcher next to the bed. She felt a tug on her arm and looked down. The I.V. line was too short.

“Connor?” she croaked.

He bolted upright. “Camille! You’re awake. Let me tell the nurse.” He rose.

“Water,” she croaked.

“Right.” He pushed the call button and poured her a cup of water, and then held it to her lips.

Cold drops splashed onto her hospital gown, surprising her, and she choked.

Connor set the cup down and dabbed at her gown with some tissues.

She waved him off. “It’s fine. What happened to me?”

“You collapsed from dehydration and lack of food.” He rubbed his forehead. “You gave us quite a scare.”

“Us?”

“Well, I had to let Maddie, your mum, and Clara know. They’re at the house waiting for an update.” He pulled out his phone and tapped a message.

“Whatever for? Why are you making such a fuss? A little dizzy spell and you’ve gone off the deep end.”

The door opened, and a nurse and doctor walked in. The nurse gave a brief smile and then checked Camille’s vital signs.

“Ms. Slade, I’m Doctor Hastings. You gave all of us a busy night running tests.”

Camille vaguely remembered blood draws, and various scans. “What time is it?”

“It’s tomorrow, Camille,” Connor interjected. “You’ve been here all night,”

The heart monitor beeped faster. “I’ve got to get back to the lab.” She grabbed at the blankets to throw them off.

Dr. Hastings took her hands. “I’m afraid not, Ms. Slade.”

The nurse showed him the data, and then exited.

“But I’m in the middle of a project. I can’t stop now. I have to finish. Lakr, my makeup company, needs new products, and no one does research like I do. You don’t understand. My business is at stake. I can’t take time off because of a little episode.”

Doctor Hastings face looked properly stern. “A series of episodes like that and you won’t be alive to worry about your business.”

“Surely not. That’s ridiculous.”

“I assure you, I’m not joking.” He frowned beneath his white mustache. “Your test results are, for the most part, clear. Your cholesterol and blood pressure are far too high for twenty-nine. You will need to make some changes to your lifestyle if you want to stay around to run your company until retirement age.”

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