Nicolette walked into the living room. Ryan was sitting on the couch. The television was on but she could tell he wasn’t watching it. He stood up, his eyes full of concern. Without saying a word, he walked over to her and hugged her. Nicolette smiled for the first time that evening. She hugged her son back as best she could.
“Oh, God,” Ryan said, stepping back suddenly, having remembered her injury. “I’m sorry, Mom. I didn’t think—are you hurt bad?”
Nicolette shook her head. “Not bad enough for them to make me stay.”
“Blood would have to be gushing, and you’d have to be unconscious for that. That’s not exactly much of a measure,” Ryan said, sounding very parental. Jerith leaned against the doorway to the living room, grinning at Ryan’s words.
A little while later, Nicolette lay with her head on the arm of the couch, her legs stretched out. Jerith sat at the other end, and Ryan was on the floor. They watched TV for a while.
At one point Jerith looked over and said, “Shouldn’t you be trying to get some sleep or something?”
Nicolette looked back at him with a raised eyebrow. “Can you sleep after a concert?”
Jerith considered the question, then shook his head. “No.”
“Same here,” she said, and looked back at the television.
Ryan stretched. “I’m going to bed.” He leaned over and kissed his mother on the cheek. “I’m sorry about this afternoon.”
“Me too.”
Ryan stood. Jerith held up his hand, and Ryan grasped it for a moment, looking him in the eyes. Jerith nodded, as if in approval of Ryan’s behavior. Ryan grinned lopsidedly and nodded back. He went off to bed.
An hour later, Jerith could see that Nicolette was falling asleep. “Hey,” he said gently. “Come on, you need to go to bed.”
Nicolette nodded tiredly. Jerith took the remote and turned off the television. He stood and extended his hand to her. She took it, and he pulled her up gently from the couch. He guided her to the bedroom, his hand at the small of her back. She walked over to the bed, dropping the bathrobe, and climbed in. She resembled a very tired child. Jerith watched her, seeing her flinch in pain when she moved the wrong way.
“Did they at least give you something for the pain?”
She nodded, but made no move to either get it or tell him where it was.
When Jerith gave her a pointed look, she shook her head. “I don’t like taking that stuff. It’s usually too strong for me.”
“Take half then. Where is it?”
Nicolette hesitated, then sighed. “It’s in my jacket pocket.”
Jerith retrieved the bottle of Vicodin and some water. He gave her the water, then took one of the pills from the bottle and broke it in half. He handed her one half and put the other back in the bottle.
“Thanks, Daddy,” she said, feeling like a kid.
Jerith grinned. “Just take it.”
She did as she was told, then handed him the glass and leaned back against the pillows. Jerith put the water on the nightstand and moved to sit on the edge of the bed, facing her. He reached out a gentle hand, touching her bruise lightly. Nicolette jumped a little in response.
Jerith narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you sure they released you?”
“Yes, I’m sure. I had to fight them, but they released me. I have two or three hairline fractures of my ribs and a slight concussion, but I’m otherwise in good condition, considering.”
“Considering what?” Jerith reached over to turn off the lamp. The light from the bathroom was enough to see her face easily.
“Considering that the guy had a thirty-eight and I was about two feet from him when he shot hit me.”
“That’s bad, huh?”
“It’s not good.”
Jerith blew his breath out in a frustrated sigh, but said nothing. He sat with her for a while. Seeing her start to drift into sleep, he stood up, assuming she’d expect him to go back to the hotel. Her hand on his hand stopped him.
“Stay here tonight,” she said quietly.
“You got it,” he said, happy she’d asked. He’d been loath to leave, but he didn’t want to be pushy.
Kicking off his tennis shoes, he lay down carefully next to her on the bed, turning on his side to face her. She was lying on her back, looking up at him.
“Go to sleep,” he said, touching the bruise on her cheek gently. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”
Nicolette nodded, closing her eyes. After a few minutes he knew she was asleep. He lay next to her, stroking her stomach gently. He reflected on the night’s events, on what could have happened, and the thought pulled at him. If she’d actually died, he wasn’t sure what he would have done. This beautiful, fiery-haired lady had wound her way around his heart so quickly, and he hadn’t really realized it until that evening, when Ryan got the call. Jerith spent the next couple of hours just watching Nicolette sleep. He thought about all the things he wanted to do for her, places he’d like to take her, things he’d like to buy her. Eventually he fell asleep, his hand still resting protectively on her abdomen.
Jerith woke before Nicolette, but he lay just taking in the moment, thinking about how different this morning could have been. Nicolette woke a few minutes later.
“Good morning,” she said softly, looking sleepy.
“Hi.” He leaned down to kiss her. He touched her cheek gently as their lips met. Then he moved back, looking down at her, but his hand remained lightly on her cheek. “Do you have to go to work today?” he asked, his tone indicating what he thought of the department if she did.
“I’m on admin leave for a while,” she said. Seeing the look of confusion in his blue eyes, she explained. “When an officer is involved in a shooting they are automatically put on what’s called administrative leave. They are paid, but they can’t work until the shoot is cleared.”
“Cleared by who?”
“The shooting review board and internal affairs.”
“Sounds serious.”
Nicolette shrugged, but didn’t look at him. “It’s no big deal. My shoot was clean—the bad guy shot first.”
“Nicky,” he said hesitantly.
“Yes?” she replied, her voice almost a whisper.
“Would you be willing to let me take you somewhere?”
Nicolette looked at him for a long moment. “Somewhere?”
“Away from here, just for a little while,” he said, watching her eyes. He knew he was pushing a little bit, but he wanted to be alone with her, with no distractions or trouble. Jerith figured she could use the time away as well. He saw the look on her face change, and he wondered what she was thinking.
“I don’t know, Jerith,” she said, shaking her head.
“Nick,” he said, his tone reasoning. “You need some time off. ’Cause I know you never take time out for yourself—you told me that. Please, just let me do this for you, okay?”
Nicolette looked at him, her eyes showing her concern over allowing him to be too generous to her.
“What are you afraid of?” he said, frustrated by her hesitation with him. “Do you think I’m trying to buy you or something? ’Cause I’ve already made love to you—isn’t that what women always figure men are trying to buy?”
“Usually, yes.”
“So what are you afraid of? Nicky, all I want to do is take a vacation, okay, and I want to take you with me. Is that better? You’re like a traveling companion. Is that noncommittal enough for you?”
His impatience was obvious, and Nicolette took note of it. She carefully turned on her side, wincing as she moved. Her body was very stiff from the abuse it had taken the night before. Her eyes, however, remained on him as she reached up to touch his cheek gently. “I’m sorry, Jerith. I know my caution is driving you crazy. It’s not that I don’t trust you. I do—you wouldn’t be here if I didn’t. I guess I just don’t want to get too used to you being around. Sometimes having a lot of great memories is worse than having none at all, you know?” Her tone begged
him to understand.
Jerith narrowed his eyes at her, not in anger but in disbelief. “Nicky, do you realize you’re pushing me away so fast that you haven’t even given yourself a chance to be happy?”
“I don’t want to be happy,” she said, almost angrily. She shook her head in exasperation as Jerith gave her a perplexed look. “You don’t understand. It would be really easy for me to enjoy the hell out of my time with you. In fact I do, but I know and you know that in less than a month you’re going back to LA and I’m going back to my life. I just don’t want it to hurt too much.” She looked down as she finished her statement.
“LA is a different city, Nicky, not a different planet.” Jerith understood what she was saying, but wasn’t sure why she thought they couldn’t see each other when he went back to Los Angeles.
“I know that, Jerith, but I don’t do long-distance relationships. If I did, I would have stayed with John when he decided to take a job down there and leave us.”
“He didn’t give you a choice, did he?” Jerith said, angry now. “I’m giving you one. This isn’t just a fling for me, Nicolette,” he said, using her full name for the first time. “I care about you. And I want to be with you, if you’ll just stop pushing me away.” His tone was soft, but his eyes were intense.
“Damn it, Jerith, you don’t understand. It’s not just me here, it’s Ryan too. I don’t want him to come to depend on you like he did John. You can’t believe how it hurt him when John walked out.”
“John’s his father. It was a reasonable expectation that the man would live with the two of you,” Jerith snapped. “Don’t compare me to him—I’m not him. I’m not going to promise you anything I can’t deliver.”
Nicolette watched him as he spoke, and she didn’t even flinch when he grew angry. “Okay,” she said, sounding tired. She’d already said more than she’d wanted to.
“Look.” Jerith reached out to touch her lips, as if trying to still her concerns. “A vacation, okay? Not a lifetime commitment, no rings, no church, not even a little dog and a white picket fence. A vacation, maybe a week, or two, then you come back and kick me out of your life if you want to, okay?”
Nicolette was grinning by the time he’d finished his litany. “I’m being dumb, right?”
“Yeah,” he said, smiling down at her. “But you’re so beautiful, it’s hard to stay mad at you. Even with your really mean-looking bruises, you still turn me on.”
“Do I now?” She grinned. “Too bad you can’t do anything about that.”
“I can wait. Bruises go away eventually.”
“And how long do you think that will take?”
“Can’t say really, but it’s worth the wait, I know.”
“Uh-huh. But what if I can’t wait?”
“Well… that’s a different story,” Jerith said, staring into her eyes.
“I can’t.” She reached up carefully to kiss him. His hand stopped just short of touching her side; he was afraid it would hurt her. He moved to touch her hip instead. But after a few minutes of kissing, it was obvious she was too sore to do anything. He gently laid her on her back, leaning over her to kiss her gently on the lips, then kissing the bruise on her cheek. He continued to kiss her face, her throat, spurred on by the feeling of her hands as they entwined in his hair. He caressed her gently, careful to avoid her bruised ribs. Eventually he brought her to the release her body craved, telling her afterward that he’d wait till she was better to do so properly. Nicolette found that she respected him more for his unselfish act. Even if it was just sex, she knew it was more important to men than it was to women, and for him to do such a thing was valiant.
They ended up spending the day at the house. Jerith was very attentive. He ran a hot bath for Nicolette so she could soak her sore muscles. He left her alone while she was in the tub, although he checked on her often. When she was ready to get out, he helped her up gently, wrapping a towel around her as one would a small child. The kiss she gave him in appreciation, however, was not that of a child.
After she was dressed in a long T-shirt, she sat on the couch with him on the other side, and they watched TV. She got an opportunity to see a few more of Billy and the Kid’s videos as well as some promo shots of Jerith. There was one photo they flashed of him wearing only faded blue jeans, and even those were unbuttoned at the top. In the picture, his head was lowered just slightly, and his eyes looked up through a veil of blond hair. He looked incredible. Nicolette glanced over at him; he just rolled his eyes, clearly embarrassed.
“I’d like a copy of that one,” she said, noting that he looked even more embarrassed then. She smiled. “Don’t tell me. You gave the last copy to your mom?”
Jerith looked up at the ceiling, still red-faced. “I thought she’d have a heart attack when she saw that picture. I almost didn’t do it because of it, and they wanted it more risqué than that!”
“No jeans?” she said, her eyes sparkling with subdued humor.
“You better watch yourself, young lady.”
“Or else?” She looked like she didn’t care much about the consequences.
“Yeah, or else.”
“You come over here and show me or else,” she said, trying to sound tough.
“If I have to come all the way over there, I’ll do more than that,” he said, his expression mockingly carnal.
Nicolette grinned at him, shaking her head.
Jerith did move closer to her, but just leaned over to kiss her. “I’ll finish that thought later, when you’re better.”
♪ Eight ♪
When Billy hung up on him, Skyler’s stomach was in a knot. He wanted to call her, but he didn’t want to make her think that her being high again was okay with him. It irritated him that she had tried to blame her slip on him. Theresa had given him the message when he’d gotten out of the shower, but dinner had been ready. He’d eaten quickly and then gone into his bedroom to call her.
After the argument, he walked back out looking very irritated. Theresa commented on it, and he just shook his head and went to the refrigerator to grab a beer. After about four more, he was calm enough to sit on the couch and talk to Theresa. Chelsea had gone off to her room to watch a movie.
“That bad, huh?” Theresa said.
Skyler looked over at her, then nodded.
“Theatrical types can be that way, Skyler. They like to be the center of attention,” she said sympathetically.
Skyler didn’t reply. He looked at the bottle in his hand and then tipped it up, finishing the last third of it. He went into the kitchen to get another one. When he came back, Theresa watched him. He was dressed in white cotton sweatpants and a navy blue shirt he hadn’t tucked in, nor done up past the bottom three buttons.
“You know,” Theresa said, giving him an admiring look, “you do look awfully good now.”
Skyler took a swig of beer. “I do, huh? Since when?”
Theresa smiled. “I haven’t seen you much lately. I’m not sure when it happened.”
“Uh-huh.”
“What?”
“I’m doin’ your car—what else do you want?” he said, his smile wide.
Theresa’s eyes widened in surprise. “You think I’m buttering you up?”
“Sounds like it, yes,” Skyler said, taking another sip as he watched her with his light green eyes.
Theresa stood up and walked over to sit down next to him. Skyler looked at her. He seemed to see her for the first time in a long time. Her blond hair was still worn just to her shoulders, and she looked up at him with her brown eyes.
“I promise,” she said, holding up her right hand. “I’m not trying to get anything else out of you.”
“Nothing?” Skyler said, his voice a mixture of humor and disappointment.
“Well, unless you want to give me something else,” she said, smiling, her look pointed.
Skyler was in the middle of a drink when he caught the meaning of her words. He started to cough and laugh at the same time. He f
ell over on his side.
“What?” Theresa said, starting to laugh too. “Skyler James Kristiani! Don’t you laugh at me. What is so goddamned funny?” She hit him on the arm, still smiling.
Skyler controlled his laughter long enough to look up at her from his prone position. “Did you mean what I thought you meant, or is it the beer?”
“I guess you’re just going to have to figure that one out for yourself,” she said, a little more serious now. She started to stand, but Skyler’s hand on her arm stopped her.
“Now, just wait one minute,” he said, sitting up. Since he’d changed his position on the couch, he was now a lot closer to her. It was obvious he was well on his way to being drunk, but she could see he wasn’t totally there yet. “You were married to me for what, eleven years? And we’ve been divorced for…” He looked like he was trying to calculate the time. Finally he shrugged. “A long fucking time. And now you’re trying to tell me you actually want me again?”
“I’m not telling you anything,” Theresa said, enjoying the game.
Skyler moved an inch closer to her. “You aren’t telling me anything?”
“No,” she said quietly, watching his lips.
“So you don’t want me again?” he said evenly as he moved a little closer.
“I… no… I mean…”
“Oh, you don’t. Okay,” Skyler said, starting to move back.
“Wait,” she said before she could stop herself.
“What?” He moved closer again.
“I didn’t mean…” she started to say, trailing off as she tried to regain her composure.
“Didn’t mean what—that you don’t want me?” His light green eyes delved directly into hers. “Do you, Terry?”
“I don’t know what I want,” Theresa said, deeply affected by his closeness, more so than she was ready to admit to herself.
“I think you do,” Skyler said, moving another inch closer. His lips were just another inch away from hers. “Tell me what you want, Terry.”
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