She studies me for a long moment. I have about a foot in height on her, but she still casts a large shadow.
“I will.” She glances around the room, a small smile playing about her mouth. “This town always did love her.”
“We all do,” I say. Her gaze cuts back to me and I nod.
Her expression softens just a bit before she turns away and thumps over to the desk.
“Junie, let me in.”
Ms. Junie does her bidding. Of course, she does, but I don’t think it has to do with money. People would jump to do things for Estella Howard because she is scary.
I drop into my seat once more and sigh. At least now I know I will be allowed back there soon. I have to hold out hope that she will let me back in and we can work all this out.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Nancy
I’m over being in the ER. Like totally over it. I’ve been here forever and a day, and all I want to do is go home and sleep. Worse, I don’t have my phone with me, so I feel as if I’ve been cut off from everything and everyone.
Dr. Stills, the father of one of my classmates, had been very thorough. I hope that he treats everyone the way he did me, but I have a feeling he’s afraid of my family. First was the exam, then the X-rays. I apparently hurt my wrist and he was worried. I told him it was just a bad sprain.
“Hey, there, Ms. Howard,” he says, coming in my room. Inwardly, I scoff. Ms. Howard? He used to chaperone dances and he never called me Ms. Howard then.
“Yes.”
“Well, you were correct, it was just a bad sprain.”
“Now can I go?”
“We need to get your paperwork done and then we can release you to a family member.”
“What the actual…heck?”
“This was a traumatizing experience. I wouldn’t feel right releasing you to just anyone.”
He slips out of the room and leaves me alone. A few minutes later, there is another knock at the door, but this time it’s Josh, who assures me that Howard has been booked. The fact that he had cell phone jammers to keep help from arriving leaves me chilled to the bone. And apparently this wasn’t the first time for that either.
I wait another few minutes after he leaves for Dr. Stills to come back in. “Now, I am happy to say that you are ready to be released. We just need a family member.”
“I know Travis is out there. He’s my emergency contact.”
“We need a family member,” he insists. “You don’t want to be alone if you start having side effects from your experience.”
“I would suggest you help me avoid all of my family if you don’t want me to be traumatized all over again.”
“That’s enough of that,” I hear my grandmother say. Dammit.
Could I have just one thing go right today? I suffered enough. I know I have my issues. I’m bitchy and can be a bit self-centered, but I don’t think I deserve this shit. No one does except serial killers.
She strides into the room, her can stomping against the floor. She tosses her ‘Estella rules the world’ glare and Dr. scurries out of the room, his tail firmly between his legs.
Once we are alone, silence fills the space, as it does so much of the time.
“What are you doing here?”
For a second, she looks hurt, but I had to be wrong about that. The dragon doesn’t have feelings.
“I came because Sydney called me. At least someone did.”
“Why did my ex-best friend call you?” I am only kidding about the ex part. Mostly.
She sighs and settles in the chair by my bed. “She thought I might want to know you were okay. She also thought I might be able to move things along.” She takes note of my bandaged wrist. “Not broken?”
I shake my head. “Just sprained.”
She nods. “Your young man is really upset.”
“Travis?”
“Yes. Unless you have other young men around.”
I shake my head. “We had a fight.”
“What about?”
I sigh and look down at my hands. “I let you get in my head. I accused him of sleeping with me to get me back on the show.”
“That was stupid.”
My gaze shoots up to hers. “What? You’re the one who said it.”
“Yes, but I’m a mean old woman.”
A laugh bursts out of me, but then it turns into a sob. She rises out of the chair, and for the first time in a long time, she wraps her arms around me. I hate showing weakness and I never cry in front of other people. Falling apart in front of my grandmother is unacceptable. Of course, that makes me cry even harder as the day’s events hit me. The stress of the last few weeks seem to hit me all at once and I can’t stop the tears flowing down my face.
“Shhh. Everything is going to be okay.” Her actions and those words bring back the memories of my first night at the mansion alone with her. How a big storm hit the town, and she held me as I cried.
I pull back. “What are you really doing here?”
She brushes the tears off my cheeks. “Sydney called me.”
“Yes, but you could have sent someone else.”
She sighs. “You’re very special to me, Nancy.”
I snort. “Okay.”
“You don’t believe me?”
“You have an odd way of showing it.”
She sighs as she sits on the bed beside me. “I’m not good at displays of affection. It comes from the way I was raised. You know your great-grandfather was a monster, really. He believed children should be seen and not heard. If he heard one of us, we usually got the back of his hand.”
“What?”
“It was a different time, still, he was a cruel man and I didn’t cry a tear when he died. So, when I had your father and his siblings, I went a little overboard. Very…let’s just say they knew they could get away with anything. And see what I have now? Two sons who might work, but they are horrible fathers and husbands. My daughter is a lesbian.”
“Aunt Monica did not become a lesbian because of her upbringing.”
“She’s also an idiot.”
“That has nothing to do with her being a lesbian though.”
“All three of them are screw ups. The only reason they succeed is because of the family money.” She looks me in the eye. “And all of their children are the same. They hate to work; they barely try to do anything. But you and Jon, well…you both make me so proud. Jon had his mother, who was smart enough to divorce your uncle before he was three and to take him far away from his father’s influence.”
“And you made sure she could, right? That’s why she ended up in Dallas and didn’t have to worry about money.”
My grandmother nods. “But I couldn’t say the same for your mother. That woman…well, she’s an imbecile. When you came to live with me, I needed to make sure that you didn’t end up like your father and his siblings. I might have gone too far.”
“Might have?”
Her shoulders droop. “I did. I don’t think you’ll ever forgive me, and I don’t have a right to ask. Just, when Sydney called and told me what happened…”
For the first time in my life, I watch tears fill my grandmother’s eyes and a lump rises in my throat. “I don’t think I could bear to lose you, Nancy.”
The whispered confession hits me square in the chest. “Oh, Grandma, you won’t lose me.” I scoot forward and wrap my arms around her. “I promise.”
She nods and we stay like that for a few moments, but she stirs and moves away from me. She wipes at her face. “I would like you to come stay with me.” I open my mouth to argue, but she holds up her hand. “No. I know. Besides, Travis Fillmore would probably throw a fit. He was ready to lose it out in the waiting room.”
I try not to get too hopeful.
“You could both come stay with me.”
For a moment, the words don’t register. Then a rush of warm happiness hits me. I know we might still have issues, but I want this. Estella is a pain, but she is my grandmother.
Other than Jon, she’s the one family member I can sometimes stand.
“I don’t think Travis would like that. We have some things to work out.”
“I still suggest you get out of the public eye. The moment this hits the tabloids, there will be no controlling the situation.”
Ugh. “I hadn’t even thought of that.”
“Find some place with security. The type where they shoot first.”
I smile. “I might know of a few places like that.”
She stands. “I will sign you out, but Travis will be back here in a moment, I’m sure.”
“Thank you.”
“For what?” She asks.
“Everything.”
Her eyes fill up again, but in true Estella fashion, she holds them at bay. “You make me so very proud, Nancy Howard.”
Then she slips out of the room. I wipe away my tears and decide to go ahead and get dressed. I’m tugging down my shirt when Travis comes busting into my room. He rushes over to me and scoops me up off my feet and into his arms.
“God, that took forever.”
I laugh, snuggling up against him. He pulls back and looks down at me, warmth fills my tummy at his tender look.
“You’re okay? You and Estella?”
I nod as he sets me down and then urges me up onto the bed again. He picks up my shoes and helps me put them on. It isn’t that easy with the brace they have me wearing for my wrist.
“Yeah. She wanted me to come stay with her.”
“No.”
Just that. No explanation.
“Maybe I want to.”
His frown turns darker. “I will take care of you.”
“You were invited too.”
His expression clears. “Still, that doesn’t sound like fun.”
“Yeah, but she had a good point. We do need to make sure that we get away from the public. This is going to be a mess for a while.”
“Hmm, I had not thought of that. Hey, we could go stay with Grady. He has that little guest house and Syd was already asking us to go there in the first place.”
“First, she invited me, not you.”
“Well, she better just get used to the idea that where you go, I follow.”
“Is that a fact?”
He nods. “And it might take us a little while to get out of here.”
He leads me out into the waiting room where a party has sort of started. I was the only patient in the ER, so I guess they are okay with this many people being here. Everly and Becca are hanging out with Everly’s brothers, Ms. Peterson is sharing her double chocolate chip cookies with everyone, and there seems to be a game of dominos being played in the corner.
“The only thing missing is Victoria the Goat,” I murmur. It’s then that everyone notices us. Syd comes flying towards me. Jesus, she looks like day old shit. Grady and Carter follow her.
“You’re safe!”
“Ow,” I say, not joking at all. I have a few bruises on my body left over from the altercation.
“I’m sorry.” But she only loosens her hold a little. Everyone gathers around us and when she finally lets me go, I’m passed around for gentle hugs from everyone.
“This is great,” Travis says after a little bit, “but Nancy needs some rest. We need to get out of here before the press gets hold of the news.”
“Yes,” Syd says, ushering us all out of the ER waiting room. We get back to my house, Syd, Grady and Carter following us in Grady’s SUV. Travis goes to pack us up, and I look at Syd.
“You are staying with us.”
I nod. “Estella wanted us to stay with her.”
“The cranky old lady?” Carter asks. “Pass. Stay with us.”
“You don’t live with us,” Grady says.
“I could and you would never know it.”
Grady looks at Syd and she shakes her head. “He’s just messing with you.” Then she turns to look at me. “Stay as long as you like.”
I nod, but in the back of my mind, I worry about the fight and just what is going to become of our show. Just thinking about it makes my head hurt, so I push it to the back of my mind and go back to my room to pack a few things. Tomorrow I can worry about my future. Tonight, I just want to get to San Antonio and go to sleep.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Travis
“I think you should stay in the main house,” Syd says as Grady shows Nancy and me to the guest house.
“Sydney, they’re going to be right out back, and they both need some rest. As do we.” Grady’s tone tells me he’s had enough of all of us.
She frowns at him. “I want Nancy near me.”
Yeah, so, she’s more worried about her best friend than her baby brother. She’s also a walking, talking cock blocker.
“Travis and I will do better out here,” Nancy says, her voice patient but exhaustion threads every word. Grady opens the door and steps aside to let my sister and Nancy in.
“We had it aired out last week just in case. Sydney’s been worried,” he says.
I nod and go to walk by him, but he stops me. “Hey, you doing okay?”
“Yeah, just exhausted.” The sun will be up in just a few hours and we have yet to get to any sleep.
“Let us know if there is anything you need. There are essentials, but we didn’t put any perishables in the fridge. Text us when you guys are up and we’ll bring some things out.”
“Thanks, Grady.” I hesitate. “What we talked about is still on, right?”
“If she comes back, she gets what you want her to.”
“Thanks.”
“Just get her back. You two are meant to be together, on screen and off.”
Grady isn’t one for talking about feelings, so I take that comment to heart. I step into the guest house. I’ve been out at the pool Grady has in his backyard, but I never stepped foot in this little house. It’s light and airy, with an open floor concept, and a small kitchen overlooking a living area. There is no dining area, just a bar in the kitchen, but it’s perfect for the size. There are two doors and I watch as Syd and Nancy go into one of them, I assume is the bedroom.
“If you want me to talk with Nancy, you have to get my sister out of this house.”
“Easier said than done,” he says sardonically. “Sydney, we need to get to bed.”
“Suck it, Hawthorne,” she calls out from the bedroom.
I expect him to get mad, but he just smiles.
“What am I missing here?”
“She wouldn’t be so sassy if she wasn’t calm. Your sister was falling apart until we got to the ER. Don’t tell her I told you though. She doesn’t want you to know just how much she was worried about both of you.”
“I really want to take a shower, Syd,” Nancy says as I approach the bedroom door.
“Are you sure? I still think you should come to the main house so you can call out if you need me.”
I roll my eyes at that statement. Nancy sees me and smiles.
“Yeah, I’m sure. Travis will take care of me.”
Syd glances over her shoulder, then looks back at Nancy. “Text me on the hour.”
“No.”
“What?”
“No. I want to sleep. You need to sleep. We all need to sleep. I’ll text you when I wake up.”
“Fine,” Syd says in a tone that says she’s not fine at all. She gives Nancy another hug, then comes for me. I expect her to give me orders on how to care for Nancy, but instead, she looks up at me, looking unlike the older sister who was more of a parental influence than a sister. “Take care of her. And yourself.”
She wraps her arms around me, and I hug her. I look over at Grady, who has a smug smile. I have to accept now that my boss and hers knows Syd better than I do, but I guess that’s the way of life.
“I will.”
She leans back. “And if you don’t, I will kick your ass.”
There’s the Syd I know and love. “Of course.”
“Come along, Sydney,” Grady says, grabbing he
r hand and tugging her out of the room. I follow them and then lock the door behind them. The security at Grady’s place is stellar, but I need that extra lock. I have a feeling both Nancy and I do. Also, I wouldn’t put it past my sister to come barging in here if it isn’t locked.
I walk back into the bedroom, grabbing Nancy’s bag on the way. She’s sitting on the bed, kind of spacing out from the looks of it. She’s exhausted, and the stress of the evening has worn her down.
“Come on,” I say, setting the bag down next to her. I pull out a shirt and a pair of panties. She hasn’t moved.
“Nancy?”
She blinks and looks up at me. “What?”
“You need a shower, then you can sleep.”
She nods and takes my hand. I take her into the bathroom.
I smile as I set her clothes on the vanity. “Let’s unwrap your wrist.”
She nods as I step in front of her. She keeps her head down as I undo the Ace bandage around her wrist.
“How does it feel?”
She shrugs. “Eh, it’s okay. A little sore. Doc said I could leave that off if I wanted to.”
I nod. “You need anything else from me?”
She says something I miss. It’s odd because the woman is so damned loud most of the time. Her head is down, and she’s mumbling. That is so not like the woman I love.
“What?”
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
She looks up at me and my heart breaks. Tears fill her eyes. Just that look makes me want to drive back to Juniper and beat the shit out of Garrett Howard.
“I’m sorry about the fight.”
I swallow around the lump in my throat. Of course, she’s thinking of me. She always thinks of me first, but I am changing that, at least with the show. That can wait though. Right now, it is about Nancy and making her feel better.
“I am too. We’ll talk about it when you’re finished with the shower.”
She opens her mouth, but I stop her by kissing the breath out of her. I pull back and rest my forehead on hers. My hands are on her hips, and I want nothing more than to take that shower with her, but I know she needs this. “You need a little down time, then we can talk.”
Love to Hate You: An Enemies to Lovers, Best Friend's Brother Romantic Comedy (The Fillmores Book 2) Page 25
