by Jessie Cooke
Reece frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Well, I’ve been keeping an eye on the place, just like you asked me, but I’ve been seeing a couple there a few times. I’m sending you a picture right now. You can easily make out the guy’s face. The girl’s face isn’t so clear. I thought perhaps they were renters, but then I realized you wouldn’t have asked me to keep an eye on the place if you had renters.”
Reece’s phone vibrated, alerting him to receiving a multi-media message. “Hang on, Officer. I think it just came through.”
He opened the file and saw a broad shouldered guy with blonde hair and a toothy grin. There was something oddly familiar about him, but Reece couldn’t place him. Must just have one of those faces, Reece thought.
“I can’t say as I know the guy,” Reece said back into the phone. “And you say he’s with a girl most of the time?”
“Only time I see them is together. I’d say they’ve been there two times now.”
“Thanks, Jackson,” Reece began.
“Please. Call me Bear. It’s what how my friends refer to me.”
“Bear, I appreciate it. I’m sure your wife will too when she gets her next Victoria’s Secret gifts. That should keep your blood pumping for another few months.”
Bear thanked him. “With your permission, I’ll have the locks changed and up the surveillance.”
“That’d be great. I appreciate all you do,” Reece said, and he disconnected.
Putting his foot on the pedal, he was just pushing off and mounting to ride when—BANG! A car collided with his bicycle.
Then whoosh, he was sailing through the air and landed on the pavement with a bone crushing thud.
“I’m so glad you invited me to dinner,” Connie said as she and Bella swept through the doors of Chophouse Burger.
“Yeah. Sorry that lunch didn’t work out. But this will be better,” Bella said. “This way, work is done for the day, and we don’t have to rush. Besides, I’ve been in the mood for a great burger,” Bella admitted. “And this is one of my favorite spots.”
Connie took in the metal that surrounded her, not usually one for the industrial décor, but not feeling put off or cold by it this time around. She was hanging out with Bella Ryan! How much cooler could she be in this moment?
“Thanks for asking me,” she said as the hostess led them to a metallic booth. They each slid in to a side and received the menus presented, Bella’s mouth already salivating at the smell of the ground beef.
“I can’t remember when the last time was that I ate a hamburger—much less a burger from Chophouse.”
“I’ve never eaten a burger from Chophouse,” Connie said.
“Stop it! Seriously?! Girl, you’ve been missing out!”
They eyed the menus, and Connie began to panic at the prices. Not exorbitant but most definitely not in an intern’s budget.
“I just don’t eat out a lot,” Connie said.
Bella looked up, noted the quick scanning of the eyes, the look over the back of the menu where the kids’ menu was printed, and then she did a mental head-slap.
Of course! Bella thought. She can’t afford it. I should remember; it hasn’t been that long since I was trying to make ends meet.
She leaned across the table and tapped the menu, getting Connie’s attention. “Dinner’s on me,” Bella said.
“Really?”
“Just say ‘Balustrade’,” Bella instructed.
“Balustrade,” Connie complied.
“Now, we write it off as a working dinner. No worries,” she smiled.
“Must be nice to be the boss,” Connie smiled shyly.
“Well, I try not to let it go to my head.”
They ordered and waited for their drinks to accompany the water the waitress had brought them. Bella made small talk with Connie about her family, where she was from. Turns out, Connie had a lot in common with Bella. She, too, had grown up on a cotton farm in Medina County just outside Devine, Texas. She had always had a passion for decorating, and her parents were excited for her to receive a scholarship to San Antonio College.
“I wasn’t the first in my family to decide not to farm,” Connie smiled. “Both of my older sisters had declared themselves independent of the farm, leaving it mainly to my brother to be the one to continue the family business.”
“Is that what he does now?” Bella asked.
“Yeah. Josh farms with my dad and uncles. My sister Netta is an English professor and my other sister Denise is a lawyer.”
“Wait a minute. Denise Strayer? That’s your sister?”
Connie nodded her head proudly.
“She’s a big deal,” Bella continued. “I think her name’s in the news just about every time I turn it on.”
“She just made Assistant DA,” Connie said, and Bella could see the pride she wore as she spoke of her sister’s conquests.
“So, I can see how your confidence could suffer,” Bella said shoving a gloriously greasy fry into her mouth. “You have some big shoes walking ahead of you.”
Another quiet nod came from Connie before she whispered. “So, how did you do it? How did you make a name for yourself and build your confidence?”
65
Bella paused to consider the question. How had she done it? If she were honest with herself, Reece was a big part of that, but even before he came into the picture, Christo had been her champion, the one that had pushed her to move out of her comfort zone and do things that she had never imagined herself doing.
“The first thing you need to do is to find at least one good friend that is going to push you,” she said.
Connie blushed. “I’m kind of a loner, in case you hadn’t realized it. My mom calls me a ‘house cat’.”
Bella brightened. “That’s what my mom used to call me! Let me guess: your idea of a great Saturday night is to curl up with the latest New York Times Best Seller, a bubble-bath, and a bottle of wine.”
The young intern cast her eyes downward, embarrassed at the legendary Bella Ryan knowing her reclusiveness so well. “Take away the bottle of wine,” Connie confessed. “I’m not much of a drinker.”
“There’s nothing wrong with any of that, if I do say so myself,” Bella said. “I still find that those are some of my best weekends.”
“You?”
“Sure. Why not? But back to this loner idea. You do need to put yourself out there. Find someone in whom you can confide. Someone who will also challenge you to step away from the bathtub on a Saturday night.” Bella thought of Christo convincing her to let him paint her. “And even if that person has ideas that seem hair-brained and completely insane, sometimes, you need to go with them.”
Connie took a bite of her burger and then wiped the corners of her mouth properly with her napkin before returning it to her lap. “It sounds to me like you’re also saying that I should take some risks.”
Bella nodded her head exaggeratedly. “By all means. How do you know what you’re truly capable of if you never take a risk to see? The best way to build confidence in yourself is to put yourself in a situation where you are uncomfortable—within reason of course—and just see your way through it. Find out what you’re made of.”
“Be more like the heroines in the books I read rather than simply wishing I were more like them,” Connie finished.
“Exactly. Great way to put it.”
“So, where did you start? What was it that changed things for you? What did you do, exactly, to begin building your confidence?”
Bella blanched. She wasn’t sure that mentoring a young girl into body painting and sex with a masked stranger was the best idea. She sure as hell didn’t want to tell a young fragile girl to begin having sex with complete strangers. That was ludicrous! But all of that had played a part in building her confidence. Christo’s convincing her to be painted led to her having sex with Reece which led to his lining up jobs for her which led to more opportunities at work which also led to a relationship of sorts with Reece which�
��even though she was devastated when it happened—led to her leaving Dallas and taking a risk in Fort Worth which landed her right back here in Dallas stepping in for the boss. All the while, she was establishing more faith in herself . . . professionally at least.
“I allowed a friend to talk me into doing something and going somewhere that I had never been before which set into motion the dominoes that led me here,” Bella said generally. “I opened myself up to meeting new people and having new experiences. Let’s face it: Saturday nights with a novel are great, but you’re not going to meet the people you need to meet in this line of work staying at home and reading a book in the bathtub. You have to put yourself out there, even if it’s uncomfortable at first. And as you go, you’ll learn that you can trust yourself.”
Connie sighed. “You make it sound a lot easier than it really is. I know I need to do all of this; it’s just that when I think I’m ready to put myself out there, I chicken out. I’m worried about how they’ll receive me, I guess.”
Bella popped the last bite of her burger in her mouth and rolled her eyes heavenward. “I could eat six more of those just for the taste,” she said around a full mouth. “Amazing!”
Connie smiled a genuine smile at Bella, and Bella realized that half of what she’d been saying to Connie applied to her own relationship with Reece. Wasn’t all of this exactly what Christo had been telling her for weeks—months—about taking a risk with Reece?
“It’s easy to play it safe,” Bella said slowly, speaking to herself as much as she was speaking to Connie. “But then there’s the possibility that you’ll never find your true self or your true happiness. Sometimes being safe means being stagnant.” She paused and looked at Connie intensely. “And that’s just no way to live.”
Connie drained the last of her soda, the slurping sound from the straw punctuating the moment. “You’re right!” she said with definitiveness. “I’m going to work on this, Bella! You are so inspiring.”
Bella blushed. “Well, it isn’t like I don’t have a long way to go myself.”
“I am so glad you cancelled lunch. This was much better. It felt like we were getting to know each other—as friends, you know? Not just co-workers.” Connie shifted nervously and cast her eyes downward so that she wouldn’t have to see any judgment in Bella’s eyes for assuming they were friends.
“I’m really glad it worked out this way, too,” Bella agreed. “I like you, Connie. I see a lot of myself in you.” Bella caught herself. “That’s not why I like you, but . . . I guess I just can empathize with you. This business can be tough, especially for us housecats. We girls gotta stick together.”
Connie felt giddy with the new friendship. Her smile spread across her entire face, lighting her from within. “Housecats unite!” she giggled.
Bella smiled at Connie as she leaned across the table. “We should go dancing,” Bella suggested.
“Dancing?” Connie said, choking back a sudden fear.
“It could be your first risk,” Bella said. “I know a great place. It’s a gay bar—which is the best for us girls because a, you can build your confidence; gay guys tend to be the most complimentary in the world, and b, you don’t have to worry about the guys getting drunk and making you uncomfortable. The meat market is totally different.”
Connie was shaking her head slowly. “I don’t know. I’m not much of a dancer. I don’t even know what I’d wear. I’ve only been to a bar once or twice, and I’ve never been to a gay bar, for certain.”
“All of those reasons are exactly why we should go!” Bella said. “I can call my friend Christo. He’d show us a great time, and he is one man who loves a makeover, too. He’d most assuredly take a shine to you like flies on cider.”
Bella had watched Connie’s temperature rising as she turned fifty shades of red. “I . . . I just don’t know. Maybe a rain check,” Connie said.
“I’ll give you time to think about it. That’ll give me time to talk to Christo. We should do this, Connie. It’d be the first step in your finding faith in yourself.”
Bella’s phone rang deep within her purse. “You, my dear, just got saved by the phone.” She dug around to find it and slid her finger across to answer it though the number was unfamiliar.
“Ms. Ryan?” a voice came through.
“Yes,” Bella answered tentatively.
“I’m calling from Baylor Medical Emergency Room. You’ve been listed as the contact for Reece Hamilton?”
Bella’s heart dropped. “Reece?”
“Yes. He’s been in an accident.”
“A what?”
“He was riding his bike and was struck by a car. Threw him a few feet. He’s in surgery right now, but I’m sure it would help to have you here when he woke up.”
“Certainly,” Bella said. Connie could tell from the serious tone and the way Bella’s face had fallen that the news wasn’t good. “I’ll be heading there immediately. Thank you for calling.”
Bella disconnected, and Connie watched carefully as Bella blinked back tears.
“A, um, good friend just had an accident. I’m gonna have to get to the hospital.”
“I’m so sorry, Bella. This is horrible,” Connie said. “I could drive you if you wish.”
“That’s okay,” Bella said carefully. “I think I’ll be alright to drive.”
Connie swallowed hard. “Is there anything I can do?” she asked.
Bella wiped at a stray tear. She felt herself breaking, but she was trying hard to keep it all together. She would do be no good to Reece if she went to pieces, and what would her new friend/protégé think of her if she lost all control right now in the middle of Chophouse Burgers?
No, she had to maintain herself. And she did . . . until she actually laid eyes on Reece.
66
Bella gasped and then quickly covered her mouth when she saw Reece lying in the hospital bed. Underneath his left eye was a patch of black that had spread from his broken nose. His forehead above his left eye had stitches running across. The left side of his face was swollen and still held traces of dried blood. His left leg was in a plaster cast and was elevated slightly. All the white from the plaster, the bed sheets, and the light seemed to Bella to make Reece look even paler and sicklier . . . or maybe it was all the bruising.
The nurse that had followed Bella in checked his vitals and looked at the machines. There was something about the way he appeared on the bed with the tubes running into his nose and arms that made Bella want to lash out at her, rip the tubes from Reece, and tell him to get up and leave that place. She knew it was completely ridiculous at the moment, but she resented the nurse and the doctor who had demoralized this man and brought him to such a level. How dare they lower him to such a status?
“So, it’s probably shocking to see him like this,” the nurse said.
Bella could only nod.
“The doctor feels good about the surgery. She had to put in two screws to join the bone back together, and there also is a drip for the excess blood to flow out.”
Bella shuddered at the thought of it all; the images in her head she hoped were worse than what she would have to see in reality. “How long will he be here?” she finally asked.
“He’ll have to stay until the drip stops. They’ll take it out, and then he’ll go home, but he’ll still have a long way to go for recovery.”
“Will this affect his mobility?” Bella asked.
“Not in the long run—if he does everything correctly.” The nurse patted her on the arm. “But I’m sure you’ll make certain of that.”
“What about pain?” Bella asked. “Are you giving him enough for the pain?”
The nurse smiled. “He wouldn’t be sleeping so soundly if we weren’t,” she replied.
Bella finally took her large purse off her shoulder and lowered herself into a chair beside the hospital bed. Her eyes had barely moved from Reece’s form, and she was starting to feel the tears that she’d dammed up inside were about to spill over a
nd come rushing out in a torrential flood. The nurse must have seen the look on her face and realized what was about to happen.
“I’ll give you a few minutes and check back on you later,” she said before she swished out the door on her soft-sounding shoes.
No sooner had she left the room than Bella burst into sobs. She hadn’t truly prepared herself for what she would see when she got here. Reece seemed so helpless, so small—not at all like the Reece she knew and—
Oh my god! Bella thought. I almost thought it; the “L” word! She sniffed as she sat up straighter, looking around as if to see if anyone had been there to witness or hear her thoughts. Her mind was a tangle of thoughts and questions, emotions sneaking in to stir them up even more.
She closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. Then she let it out very slowly before she did it again. Her mind was racing, her heart was whirring, and her stomach was churning. She opened her eyes to the sight of Reece on the bed. His dark hair and the darkness across his face was such a contrast with the rest of his skin and the sheets. She stood, took the step over to him, and gently smoothed his locks back away from his right eye where a wave of hair had dipped down. She gingerly counted the stitches above his left eye: eight. She smoothed her finger oh so lightly across the purple, black, and bluish places on his face. She touched her fingers to her lips and kissed them before she transferred the kiss carefully to his lips.
Her anger at the doctor and the nurses was subsiding as her heart began to ask her about the alternative: what would have happened had they not done the surgery? What could have happened on the surgery table? What if the EMTs hadn’t arrived in time? There was a variety of reasons she should be thanking and praising these doctors, not feeling animosity towards them—which was something she knew rationally, but apparently her rationale was not functioning completely. Otherwise, she never would have almost confessed to loving Reece Hamilton.
Or would she?
