She groaned.
“Have you all forgotten that I’m here? I could die waiting for you to stop flirting. I am an old man, you know.”
“Sorry, grandpa, she’s decent now,” Aleki said cheerfully.
“Put her on the bed, Wolfe,” Obian ordered.
When he set her down on the huge bed, she was finally able to catch a glimpse of the short, wrinkled man. Wow. He didn’t look far off a hundred and fifty. Then to her shock, he stepped up to Aleki and reaching up on tiptoes, gave him a smack around the head.
“Hey, what was that for!” Aleki rubbed his head.
“I am not your grandpa. Rude boy.” He walked towards her. Well, shuffled because he didn’t lift his feet properly. A wide, charming smile crossed his face as he bowed slightly.
“Hello, sweet flower. I am Obian. Palace physician and long-suffering acquaintance of Caleb, Aleki, and Wolfe.”
“Acquaintance? Ouch, that hurts, man,” Aleki complained as he rubbed his head.
Obian shot him a quelling look. “Hush. Now, my sweet flower, would you like these buffoons to leave while I examine you?”
“We’re not leaving,” Caleb said firmly. “We have the right to stay.”
“She has a right to privacy while I examine her, but if I must, I will order a screen to give her this. And you will not stop me.”
A battle of wills ensued and she cleared her throat. “It’s okay if they stay.”
“You are sure, sweet flower? I am not opposed to using my muscle to get rid of them.”
What muscle? But she refrained from asking and instead gave him a smile. “I’m sure.”
“I’ll go wash my hands, sweet flower. Get comfortable.”
She waited until he left to glance over at Caleb. “Why is he calling me sweet flower?”
“Who knows?” he said. “He’s a big flirt.”
“You need panties,” Wolfe stated, going to a drawer to find some. “Unless he wants to do a pelvic exam.”
“He’s not doing a pelvic exam,” she said firmly.
“How long since you had a pelvic exam?” Obian asked cheerfully as he walked back in.
“Six months.”
“All good?”
“Yes, everything was fine.”
“No need then.” He waved a hand.
“Good, then you can put panties on.” Wolfe knelt by her feet and held up a scrap of lace that hardly seemed to constitute panties.
“Obian, turn around,” Wolfe commanded.
“All of you can turn around,” she countered.
“Why?” Wolfe asked. “I’ve seen you naked.”
“Me too.” Aleki grinned.
“I haven’t,” Caleb said mournfully.
“Turn. All of you.” She stared at them until they all turned and she slipped the panties on under Aleki’s T-shirt, which was miles too big.
Thankfully, Obian didn’t take long examining her and his touch was sure and professional. After a minute, she was regretting letting the guys stay, though, as they glared at him every time he touched her.
After Wolfe growled for the third time, she gave them a firm look. “The next person who grunts, scowls, or growls is out of here.”
Obian chucked. “You tell them, sweet flower. So foolish, to be jealous of an old man. Not that I could not pop a pill and show you a good time.”
She turned her glare on the doctor as all three men grew tense, their faces filling with thunder. “Not helping, Obian.”
“How did you hurt your knee?” He carefully examined her red knee.
“She slipped trying to get out of the bath on her own,” Wolfe stated coldly.
She bit her lip. Uh-oh.
“Why was she getting out on her own? She has an injured foot and arm. She cannot get in and out of the bath alone.”
“She wasn’t supposed to,” Caleb said in a firm voice. “She was told to call for someone.”
“Ahh, someone is getting a hot bottom soon, then, huh?”
She gaped at Obian. Did he just say that? He didn’t, right?
Dream. It was a dream.
Aleki caught her hand before she could pinch herself and she scowled up at him.
“So she is well enough to be spanked?” Wolfe asked. “Because she is owed several other punishments as well.”
“I would wait another forty-eight hours at least,” Obian replied. “Let her rest and eat first. Nothing strenuous until then. No spanking. No hanky-panky.”
No hanky-panky? Did he just say that?
But all the men nodded. And Wolfe tapped on his phone. Did he just make a note of that?
“Anything else we need to know?” Wolfe asked. “I have a list of food from her doctor. Does it look right to you?” He showed his phone to Obian. “I took a photo of it so I wouldn’t lose it.”
“Yes. Yes, this looks good. Some treats are also allowed.” He winked at her. “A little flower cannot be without treats, especially when she is a good girl for the doctor.”
She blushed at his words. Little flower? Did he see something in her that told him she was a Little?
“What about her foot? She should keep off it?” Wolfe asked.
“Yes, stay off it until the swelling goes down. She has crutches?”
“Yeah, we’ve got some,” Caleb said.
They did? Then why had they been carrying her around all this time?
“But she doesn’t need them when she has us,” Caleb added.
Obian shook his head. “And what if she has to pee in the middle of the night?”
“Then she can wake one of us,” Aleki told him.
“And what if you don’t hear her?”
“One of us will be right beside her, Obian,” Caleb said. “Even Aleki will hear her.”
“I want the crutches,” she demanded.
“No,” Wolfe said.
“Damn it, Wolfe.”
“You could slip and hurt yourself further. Like you did in the bathtub.”
She entered into a glaring contest with him.
“Damn it,” she muttered. “Sometimes I should get to win.”
Caleb reached down and tucked her hair behind her head. “Your arm is still hurting you. We don’t want to aggravate it. And it takes a lot of energy to use crutches. Energy you need to heal. Let us help, okay? Otherwise, Aleki will sulk.”
“I will go now,” Obian said. “An elder will be here soon to check on you, sweet flower. Good luck to you.”
“Thanks,” she said.
“You will need it with this lot.”
Soon after Obian left, an elder arrived. To her surprise, it was an older woman with a gentle smile who wanted to check that she felt safe and not pressured into anything. It made her feel better about everything. The other woman even helped her put on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt they found in the drawers.
After she left, Vivi tried to hop to the door, which was open a crack. As she opened it, Caleb stood on the other side.
He sighed. “You’re such a brat. Why didn’t you wait for one of us to come get you?”
“I thought I might be able to hop out.” She leaned on the doorway, breathing heavily already. “Unfortunately, I’m not that great at hopping.”