Wounded Love

Chapter 5


“….kisses are a better fate than wisdom.”

- e.e. Cummings

Catherine did not know what to do. She should have pulled away. She didn’t know this man at all. What was he doing kissing her? Why had she come to him? And the biggest question of all was why did she not want to pull away from him?

When he finally let go of her she felt like she was going to fall. Her knees felt like they would give way at any moment, and her head was swimming.

“Your welcome”. She managed to get out before his mouth was on hers again. This time she didn’t question it, she just let herself go. She parted her lips and let out a soft moan as his tongue slipped in. He deepened the kiss as his hands roamed over her back and through her hair. Oh good God the man knew how to kiss! His lips were soft and warm; his hands were strong and comforting. He moved his lips from hers and trailed kisses along her jaw finally capturing her ear, making her whimper in response. He was pulling her closer to him when all of the sudden a loud beeping came from her pocket. He jumped back, startled, as she dug into her bag for the source of the noise. Grumbling, she grabbed her cell phone and flipped it open.

“Hello?”

“Catherine, I’ve got an urgent question for you!” Chaz said frantically.

“What is it Chaz?” Catherine said already irritated

“Charlie and I are trying to decide between getting an all metal skillet or a Teflon one. What do you think?”

Catherine couldn’t believe he had called to her ask that. Actually if she wasn’t being thoroughly ravished by a longhaired stud she wouldn’t have minded, Chaz did this kind of thing all the time.

“I don’t know Chaz. Get the Teflon, it’s easier to clean”. She knew how Charlie and Chaz detested doing dishes.

She could hear Chaz tell Charlie to get the Teflon. “Thank you Cat” He said to her and hung up.

Putting her phone back in her pocket, she turned to see William staring into the bathroom.

“Why is the outhouse in there?” He asked gawking at the white porcelain toilet.

Catherine was taken aback by his question. Did he just call the toilet an outhouse? Maybe he was from a farm or ranch and hadn’t got caught up with society yet. But looking at him with his long, fine hair and proper stance, he didn’t seem the farm or ranch type.

“It’s a bathroom, not an outhouse” Catherine said, walking to the toilet. She flushed just to show William what a toilet was. How he didn’t know, she had no clue.

His eyes got huge as he watched the water swirl around and then disappear, only to be replaced by more water.

“Amazing”. He murmured.

She stared at him and said “Whatever, it’s just a toilet”.

Just then a corpsman came in followed by a man in maybe his late 40’s.

“Hello, I am Dr. Cavanaugh, I just came by to see how William is doing and to let you know” he was looking at William now, “that you are being released. We will have you back in about a week or so to remove the stitches and do a check-up. But other than that you should make a full recovery” the doctor said, a smile forming on his kind face.

Catherine gaped at him. Surely William had more serious injuries than an overnight stay? The blood that she had cleaned up yesterday proved that.

“Mr. Tavington, you are going to be put on bed rest for the first two days. Get lots of fluids and clean the wounds at least 3 times daily. If you see the wounds getting inflamed or red around the edges, you need to come back in.” Dr. Cavanaugh said handing William a piece of paper. “Here is your prescription for some Ibuprofen and antibiotics. Both need to be taken with plenty of food and water. You’ll need to take the antibiotics three times a week until you run out and you can take the Ibuprofen whenever you feel pain. Just hand this paper into the pharmacy and you’ll be on your way”.

With that the doctor and the corpsmen left.

William stared at the paper like it was the most foreign thing in the world to him.

Catherine couldn’t believe it.

“Well I guess you’re going home. Get better soon”. She said with a little bitterness as she started walking away.

“I don’t have a home”. He said, not looking at her.

Catherine stopped. He sounded serious and the expression on his face made her want to wrap her arms around him, assuring him that things would be alright. All she did however was remain silent.

“I don’t know how or why I ended up here, but I am very sure of the fact that I don’t have a place to stay”. He said dejection and despair dripping from every word.

She could tell that it took a lot for him to admit that aloud. He seemed to be very prideful.

Catherine didn’t know what to do. Should she go to him? Should she just walk away and leave him be? Neither option held very much appeal for her. If she went to him she feared that her knees would go weak again just looking into those piercing blue eyes. And if she left him knowing that he was, in short, homeless, then what kind of person would she be?

“Why don’t you stay with me until you can find a place to settle”. Oh good God where had that thought come from? She asked herself as her mouth dropped open. He looked at her as if not really believing what she had offered.

“I wouldn’t want to inconvenience you Miss. Wakefield”. William said, taking a step towards her.

Here’s your chance. Back out now! You can make an excuse. “It’s not any trouble. I insist”. I insist? What is wrong with me? I don’t even know this man!

William stared at her for a while before reaching out and taking her hand in his. Bringing it to his lips as he had done before, he whispered, “Thank you”.

There go my knees! She thought.

Well one thing was for certain. Her normal boring life was about to get a good swift kick in the ass!