I was groggy from the morphine drip. I wasn’t sure what day it was. The accident happened on a Saturday. I knew that much. I remember marinating the swordfish and taking the platter out by the pool. That’s when I noticed that Greg hadn’t started the grill. Irritated I set the platter on the condiment shelf and turned the knob in the front. It was tight and difficult to twist. It squeaked loudly. I squatted down to see if there was a twig or something stuck behind the casing that kept it from moving. There was a loud boom and a blinding flash. Two days later I woke up in Blue Falls Memorial. Greg was sitting by the bed.

“Thank God, you’re awake,” he said. “Can you see anything?”

“What happened?” I asked.

“The grill blew up,” he said. “Your face and head were burned. The blast knocked you out. The doctor says you’ll be here a couple of weeks. Are you in pain? Can you see me?”

“I can’t see anything,” I said. “Am I blind?”

“They have to keep salve in your eyes,” he said. “When the tank exploded, it blew charcoal dust in your eyes and caused some retina damage.”

“Is it permanent?” I asked.

“The doctor says you’ll be fine. He was more concerned about your pain. Your face was burned pretty badly.”

I didn’t feel any pain. I reached up to touch my face but all I felt was a thick layer of cotton.

“Ms. Nolan, I’m Doctor Mullins,” a deep voice said.

I could make out two forms by the bed, but I couldn’t tell one from the other.

“I’m in charge of your case. We’re going to take good care of you and get you back to normal as quickly as possible. Are you feeling any pain?” he asked.

“Not really,” I said. “I don’t know. I feel weird and groggy. I keep drifting off.”

“That’s the morphine,” he said. “Now that you’re conscious, even if it’s just for brief periods of time, I’m going to order the nurse to increase your drip. We want to try to keep you comfortable. Of course, you’re going to experience some pain, but we’ll try to keep it under control.”

I nodded off while he was talking.

“Hi, Tamara,” another voice said. “I’m Adam. I’ll be your nurse tonight.”

I moaned and heard the shuffle of his feet and the rustle of bags and metal.

“Are you uncomfortable?” he asked.

He had a soothing tenor voice.

“My head is pounding and my face hurts,” I said.

“On a scale of one to ten,” he said, “how would you describe the pain?”

“Between nine and ten,” I said.

“Okay, Tamara – are you called Tamara or Tammy or should I call you Ms. Nolan?” he asked

“Tamara.”

I heard the beep of a bar coder.

“Okay, Tamara,” Adam said. “You’ll feel better in a few minutes. I gave you an extra dosage. You’ll probably go back to sleep, but if you wake up and need something, press the remote and I’ll be right here. I’m just down the hall at the nurse’s station.”

He placed a fat pencil-like device in my hand. It felt cold and smooth. With my thumb I felt the button on top.

Within seconds, or so it seemed, I was back in la la land. I had lost all sense of time and order. I was able to tell night from day, but that was about it. At least the hospital was quiet, especially at night. It was a strange sensation to have my head wrapped up like a mummy and thick Vaseline like film in my eyes. Before I went back to sleep, I imagined I was suspended and safe in a secret cocoon. It was peaceful.

Something awakened me – some kind of pressure on my leg. Then I felt a warm calloused hand on the top of my thigh.

“Greg?” I whispered. “Is that you?”

The hand remained on my leg for a few seconds and someone gently tucked the bed covers around me. Again, I felt the sweet sensation of being cared for and protected. The hospital door closed with a soft thud. Whoever had been there was gone.

“Ms. Nolan, it’s good to see you coming around. So far, so good.”

I recognized Dr. Mullins’ voice.

“What day is it?” I asked.

“It’s Friday. You’ve been here almost a week. We’ve replaced your bandages a few times, but you were pretty out of it. You’re already beginning to heal.”

“What about my eyes?” I asked. “Will my vision return?”

“Yes. We thought the retina was more damaged, but it’s only a surface wound. We need to keep the salve in for a few more days. But pretty soon you’ll be seeing like you used to.”

I was relieved.

“Next week, we’ll talk about your convalescence and decide on the best way to proceed. From what I can tell so far, you’re going to need at least two grafts.”

I shuddered at the prospect. “Scars?” I asked.

He assured me I’d be good as new. Then he went into a long dialogue about the burn facilities at Blue Hills and how they were one of the leaders in the state.

The timbre and rhythm of his voice put me under again.

I could tell it was night when I woke. It was so quiet.

“It must be very late,” I thought.

I heard the click of a door lock. The first thing I wondered was why there’d be a lock on my door. I didn’t see anyone, but I thought I felt the presence of someone in the room.

Again, I felt the dry calloused palm resting on my thigh. The mysterious stranger had returned. I was glad. Every time I’d been conscious, I’d daydream about the way his hand felt on the part of my body that was smooth and undamaged. I felt the sides of my sheets rustle and another hand on my other leg. I remained still and quiet. I thought I should probably resist or say something, but I didn’t want to. He must have sensed my desire because he started to softly massage the tops of my thighs. His fingers were confident and soothing.

He lifted the sheet from the bottom of the bed so that my pussy and legs were fully exposed. He was so tender. He cupped his hand on my pussy.

I moaned. It was so great to moan with pleasure and not pain.

I could feel heat coming from his hand. I desperately wanted him to touch me more. I arched my back a little to let him know how receptive I was.

He took the cue. He spread my pussy lips apart and placed two fingers on my clit. He dipped a third finger into my wet hole to get some juice so he could rub me harder. He was an expert at masturbating a woman. This was plainly obvious. He started with a light touch circular motion and alternated this with a more vigorous up and down motion. He started going faster. I was wet and slippery like a fish and his fingers kept sliding off the head of my swollen clit. He used his other hand to firmly hold my lips apart and then focused the motion of his other hand. His fingers were like tentacles fastened to my clit. He was now fingering me with a steady pressure and rhythm. He let go of my pussy and placed three fingers inside my throbbing hole, but he didn’t miss a beat with his other hand. I had never been so perfectly masturbated, not even by myself.

I came with a long deep sigh of release and pleasure. It almost felt like an ache. I trembled with desire. He rested his hands on the flat of my tummy. They were wet from my fountain of cum. I could hear his hard deep breathing. It contrasted with my short shallow breaths, the way I always breathe after an orgasm. I held onto the bars of the hospital bed.

Who was this angel of mercy? I wondered.

Before I had silently begun to imagine what the answer might be, I felt his hot breath and tongue between my legs. He covered my pussy with his wide-open mouth. I felt his warm muscular tongue going in and out of my dewy hole. His tongue felt smooth and rough at the same time like sandpaper soaked in olive oil. He fucked me into delirium before finishing me off by giving my clit a tongue massage. My orgasm was so intense I nearly pulled the I.V. out of my arm when I bucked up from the bed. He lapped up every drop of my pussy juice. I could feel the wetness of the sheets with my ass. Then, just like the previous night, he gathered and smoothed the sheets and tenderly tucked me in like a child.

I heard the click of a lock and he was gone. I lay motionless in a state of blissful shock. I could see it was beginning to get light. I would only be here for a few more days. I wondered if Adam was my angel, but he sounded gay when he talked and his hands were smooth.

“Ms. Nolan?” I heard a man’s voice in the room. “I’m Dr. Richard Lessing. I’m the night time radiologist for Blue Hills.”

He extended his hand. I was frozen. It was him – my angel, my lover supreme. I managed a shaky greeting.

“I looked at your films last night. There doesn’t appear to be any deep tissue damage. I thought you’d be relieved.”

“I am,” I said not really knowing what deep tissue meant.

All I could think about was the way his tongue felt inside me.

“Dr. Mullins says you’re going home in a few days,” he said. “So, I wanted to stop in and give you my card. If there’s anything you need or any questions I can answer, don’t hesitate to call. I wrote my pager number on the back.”

“Thank you,” I said.

I couldn’t see him clearly but I could tell he was tall and had dark hair. I sensed an amazing heat coming from him. It lodged between my legs like a hot rock. He touched my arm and said goodbye.

I stretched hard to reach my purse from the bed table and slipped the card beneath the bottom flap -- where I always put important things and/or things I didn’t want Greg to find. I would definitely be calling Dr. Lessing.