Page 72 of Love Among the Ruins
CHAPTERTWENTY
ELENI
Eleni paced around her room, her nerves jangling as she waited for Dominic. He’d emailed her yesterday just before she left work, to tell her she would have to accompany him again to another meeting.
Sure enough, at seven on the dot, he called her.
“On my way.” She sprang into action, shoving her feet into her flat sandals, not bothering to pull the thin strap up around the back of her ankles.
She grabbed her bag, phone and keycard, and rushed out of the door, flying down the stairs at breakneck speed, conscious of his OCD about punctuality.
Her heart racing, she was nervous because there was the not so small problem of sitting beside him in a car having seenthatbody.
His naked torso flashed into her head and … she went flying down the stairs, missing a step and tripping over herself. She cried out in pain as she landed awkwardly, and in a heap, on the floor, sprawled on her butt with one leg folded to the side and the other akimbo. Pain shot upwards from her foot.
A hotel assistant came running to her side. She gasped, as the pain came in waves, intense and fast.
“Thank you,” she managed to say on a whisper, when he gave her his arm and tried to help her to standing. She winced, not wanting to make a scene, or be fussed over, but thankful that she could stand.
Then her phone rang again, and she saw it lying face up, her bag and keycard scattered around. Along with one of her sandals.
Dominic was calling her.
She tried to stretch and reach it, but her left foot hurt, and when she stared down, her ankle was purple and growing larger.
“You shouldn’t move,” the assistant told her as her phone continued to ring. There was no point in answering it.
Shecouldn’tmove. “Could you please go outside and let the man in the black Mercedes know that I’ve fallen? Please hurry. He has a temper.”
“Let me help you to sit down at least.” The man helped her to the stairs, and eased her onto one of the steps. As he ran out, she scanned her body, quickly checking the damage. There was no blood. That had to be good. There was no pain anywhere else apart from her left foot. She examined her injury, hoping she hadn’t broken any bones.
Surely, she’d be howling in pain if that was the case?
Dominic would be furious.
“What happened?” He rushed to her side, staring down at her, his face ashen. His eyes trailed to her ankle and he crouched down.
“I tripped.”
He touched her foot, and she would have flinched, wanting to move it away but it hurt too much. “How?”
“What do you mean how?” she cried. “My broomstick hit the wall. How do you think?”
“How bad is the pain?” his fingers trailed gingerly over her ankle which was turning darker fast.
He wasn’t angry with her?
“Bad, but I’ll live.”
“It doesn’t look fatal. You can’t sue me.”
“Is that all you care about?”
He grinned. “I care that you’re hurt.”
“I don’t think I’ve broken anything, but I can’t go with you,” she said, trying to gauge his mood. “I’m sorry.”
“No need. At least you didn’t break your neck.”
