Page 59 of The Virgin's Dance
Squinting in the sunshine to see a little clearer, she missed the pavement, caught her heel on the curb and toppled to the ground.
Donna lay flat on the ground looking up at the blue sky, pulses of pain shooting up her leg to her back. She heard the sound of the car door open and footsteps running towards her.
A woman with rosebud lips and perfect cheekbones peered down at her.
“Oh, mierda! Are you okay?” the stranger asked, her concern evident even with her thick Spanish accent.
“Fine, I’m fine.”
“Can you move?”
“Yes, I think so. I just need to stay down here for a minute. Who are you?” she asked, her curiosity outweighing any issue she might’ve had with sounding rude with her blunt question.
Another face appeared now—José’s.
“Donna, oh my goodness! Are you okay? Donna, this is my fiancée, Maria.”
“Your fiancée?” she almost shouted.
“Yes, my fiancée.” He reached his hand out for Maria’s and then placed a little intimate peck on her lips.
Donna was glad she was on the ground, and figured she’d just stay there until it decided to swallow her whole. The tinnitus in her head got a little louder and she let out a wail of something like agony.
“Don’t worry, Maria is a trained nurse. She will look after you—you are in the best possible hands.”
“Oh, good,” she mumbled.
Donna closed her eyes for a few minutes, grateful for the pain in her ankle as she breathed in and out, letting the pain and disappointment mingle and wash over her.
“Did you bump your head?” Maria asked.
“No, I think I’m all right,” she repeated and tried to get up, only to find that her body was shaking involuntarily.
“You don’t look that good. Let me take your pulse.” Maria reached forward, trying to get at Donna’s wrist.
“Well, I don’t look as good as you, but you look like a goddess,” Donna said, wincing as she realized that she’d said her thoughts out loud.
“You are right, José. She is very funny!” Maria laughed before getting back to business. “Hmm … your heart rate is normal. Try moving your toes.”
“They’re wiggling just fine,” José reported diligently.
“Let’s get her up. José, help me get her up.”
With José on one side and Maria on the other, Donna was lifted until she could stand. She felt dwarfed by the two of them, both of them towering above her.
She felt like a plump little goblin between these two, with their tall, tanned good looks. They looked like movie stars.
Looking down, she saw that her new white dress was torn now and that there was blood dripping down her arms and knees.
Her makeup, which she’d spent so much time carefully applying before getting off the plane, was smudged. She made an attempt at dignity, pulling down the little cotton dress and wiping her hair out of her face.
“I’m all right, I’m all right. I think I was just tired from the flight.” She fixed a pained smile on her face, and with her shoes in her hands, was escorted into the back seat of the little yellow car.
Chapter 2
“Are you okay, Donna? You seem a bit … strange?” José asked, genuine concern in his voice.
“I’m fine,” she replied, pasting on a smile and hoping he’d believe her.
