“She had keys and all. She was a very beautiful girl actually.” She told me with a raised eyebrow in question.
I shook my head. “Mel. She’s going to be my physical therapist at least for a day and I put her on the list and gave her keys so I didn’t have to get the door.” I explained to her. I forgot for a minute about the whole situation with her. I put in all of her clearance yesterday since she would be around on a daily basis, and I didn’t want to have to deal with going through the motions for her.
“Are you sure that’s ok?” she asked.
I knew what she meant and I shrugged. “I’ve known Mel for a long time. I trust her to be able to come and go as she pleases she won’t do anything stupid or anything…” I reassured her. She was probably afraid she might turn out to be some crazy stalker groupie. On second thought… I frowned and Essie raised an eyebrow in question. I shrugged, “she might try to kill me in my sleep.” I confessed and she shook her head. Well I suppose that’s worse.
“Why have I never heard of her then? I know anyone that has clearance and you just gave it to her.”
I shrugged again. “She was history and just came back. There wasn’t a need to talk or think about her before but she’s like family I guess. She’s been Lucy’s best friend since we were in high school. You don’t have to worry about her.”
“Should I worry about you?” she asked.
I met her eyes. “Why do you ask?”
She shrugged. “This is highly unusual for you and you’re pretty assured. Was she only Lucy’s best friend?”
I sighed. “She was my last girlfriend and things didn’t really work out. But that was years ago and Phil hired her to help with my ankle. I know her well enough to know that she’s nothing for us to worry about as far as a threat or stealing and shit. But I’m not entirely comfortable with the whole situation.” She gave me a knowing look and I ignored her and continued eating.
“She waited for you for a while before she left. She had said something about having to get her daughter.” Essie told me.
“Yea, she’s married and shit so there’s nothing to worry about.” I told her. We finished our meal in silence and Essie cleaned up the table and washed the dishes. Normally I help her with that stuff but with the crutches it proved to be a challenge.
I went back up to my room and I still had half a bottle left. I downed that thinking about having to face Mel and passed out. Once again I woke up in the evening and she was already gone. Fine by me I don’t think I’m ready to suffer through her. The rest of the week carried on with the same routine and she was basically nonexistent. Essie stopped telling me about her after the third day when she scolded me and I warned her to drop it.
I was dead asleep when I felt someone shaking me. “Get up Nick.”
I swatted at the person and buried my head deeper into the pillow. “No leave me alone.” I slurred. I was waking and I had a massive headache. I was completely hung over and I needed to sleep this shit off. It must’ve worked because the hands disappeared and the room became quiet. I settled myself comfortably on the bed and was just falling back asleep when something extremely cold was thrown all over my face. I popped up in bed and spluttered out water. I ran a hand down my face that came back wet. I looked down at the bed and saw that everything was extremely wet. I looked up in shock and was met with a pissed off red head.
“WHAT THE FUCK MEL?” I screamed.
“I’m sick of this shit Nick. I’ve been being patient but I will not let you waste my time.” She said throwing her hands on her hips.
I scowled. “What the hell are you all pissy about? I’m the one that got soaked and you fucked my bed. What the shit got your panties in a bunch anyway?”
“Don’t talk to me like that Nick. I’ve been coming here for over a week and I sit down there with your housekeeper twiddling my thumbs. I’m here to do a job, and unfortunately you have to be present for me to do it.”
I rolled my eyes and threw back my very wet sheets. “One, you’re still getting paid aren’t you? So I don’t see what the hell you’re so uptight about. Two, you fucking try to drown me again I’m going to throw you across my knee and spank your fucking ass. Three, what the hell do you want from me?”
“I already told you that you will not spank me again Nick. That happened once!” she yelled and her face turned red. I felt my cock twitch at the reminder of that day. “And so what if I get paid this will impact my reputation. If you want to be a has been tell me now so I can drop this gig and not waste my time.”
“Again Mel, what do you want from me? If you want to quit, then quit. I don’t know what to tell you. I said that I’d give this a chance and if it doesn’t work out then by all means.” I told her.
She growled in frustration. “This is you giving it a shot? Sleeping through the fucking day?” she gestured to the empty bottles of liquor by my bed. “I guess I can see why, what are you getting pissed every night while on pain meds. Way to go you genius.” She said sarcastically.
“I’m not even taking the pain meds genius. Get your facts together before you start throwing stones.”
She sighed. “You know what I should’ve just walked out the door and never turned back after I saw you. I don’t know why I ever thought you would be the same person that gave a damn about their career. You used to love basketball and now look at you. You won’t even help yourself get it back. I shouldn’t be surprised though huh? You don’t ever want to try anything, I’m out of here. I’ll contact Phil to let him know you need someone else.”
I got pissed. I kind of wanted to get rid of her but at the same time she was getting under my skin. “Don’t fucking walk out of here while I’m talking to you Mel. How dare you question me about my dedication to basketball? You know how much I fucking love basketball.”
She walked over until she was standing directly in front of me. She bent down until she was in my face. “Prove it.” she whispered and stood up straight and left the room. I got up and made my way downstairs slowly with my crutches. I poured a huge mug of coffee and had a bagel.
“Melanie!” I screamed and she came into the kitchen with an arched brow. “You wanted me well here I am.”
“Ok.” She agreed with a nod. “The living room might work better for this. I want to test your mobility to decide the proper way to start your therapy. I need to see what we’re in for.” She explained and I nodded.
I grabbed my crutches and made my way into the living room. I sat down on the sofa and put my left foot up on the table. She took a seat on the far end of the couch. “Nick, leg over here.” she told me patting the seat. I changed my angle and put my leg up on the chair. She removed my brace and began poking at my ankle. They were feather light taps at first then she began adding pressure. She pushed into my ankle and I gritted my teeth in pain. My body tensed as I waited for the pain to dull down. She frowned and did it again and I had to fight the instinct to kick her. She met my eyes. “Ok Nick I know that hurt, you have to tell me when it does how else am I supposed to figure this out?”
I shrugged. “I didn’t know I was supposed to complain I have no idea what you’re doing.” I admitted.
She nodded. “Ok I’m going to need you to vocalize how your ankle is feeling. When it starts getting better I need to know, when you’re in pain you tell me. If there’s anything weird or uncomfortable happening…”
“I tell you. I get it, I get it.”
She wrapped her hand around my leg above my ankle and picked it up so that it was in the air. She placed her hand flat on the bottom of my foot and began to gently move my ankle around. “How does this feel?” she asked.
I shrugged. “A little weird but it’s not painful. You’re barely moving it though.” I told her.
She smiled and my heart skipped a beat. “Nick that’s awesome. Do you know how many people are on the verge of tears after a sprain from this minimal amount of movement? It seems like your body may have already begun healing on its own but we need to en
sure if heals correctly and strong.” She put my foot back down and rubbed her hands in thought. “I think that we should begin with your mobility for a couple of weeks. We’ll get your ankle moving and all so that it doesn’t begin healing in any weird angles and such. Then we will progress into exercises to strengthen your ankle. Do you have a gym here?” she asked and I nodded. “You have weights and a tread mill and such?” she asked and I nodded again. “Perfect. Once we get you up on your ankle we’re going to throw you on the treadmill and you’ll work your way from walking to running. From there we will start with running some plays etc. getting you back on the court. How does that sound?”
I shrugged. “You’re the pro here you tell me.”
She shook her head. “Thanks for the input. Since it’s up to me that’s the plan. Right now I’m going to work on just moving your foot and ankle around. Tell me whenever you feel anything.” She continued on messing with my ankle for the next five hours or so before she called it quits. I had dinner with Essie and retired to bed this night forgoing a drink. I was up and downstairs the next day before she got there. She looked surprised to see me sitting up but I ignored it. We followed the same routine for the next couple of weeks and my agitation slowly grew until I was pissed. It seemed like all we were doing was sitting around rolling my ankle this way and that but I wasn’t making any progress. How was I ever supposed to make it back on the court at this rate? Then to top it all off having to watch her leave every day to go home to that douche bag was getting to me even though I know it shouldn’t. By the time she arrived the next day I was fuming about everything.
“Good morning Nick.” She greeted me setting down her bags.
I grunted in response and her eyebrows flew up. “Can we do something else today? I don’t know maybe try the treadmill or something?” I asked.
She frowned. “You’re not ready for that yet. If we push it too hard too fast, we’ll only cause further complications that could be either irreversible or set your healing time back for a very long time. I think we’re doing great.”
I grunted again. “I want to play ball and I just don’t see how this is going to really help.”
She groaned. “Listen I know what I’m talking about, you need to trust me here.”
This time I laughed. “I’m trying to trust you but you’ve never really made that easy for me have you?”
She rolled her eyes. “Seriously Nick? This is my job and I know what I’m doing. Let’s just get to doing your stretches.” She said and began to walk past me.
I sighed in exasperation. “You know what how about you take off today and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She spun around and glared at me. “Seriously?” she asked and I nodded. She threw her hands up in defeat and grabbed her stuff and stormed out letting the door slam behind her. I went to the laptop and googled how to do some actual exercises and I saw that you can apply about five to ten pounds on your ankle to begin with. I decided to go with ten and made my way up to the gym. I grabbed a seat and began doing lifts on my ankle with the ten pound weights. I was dripping with sweat a couple of hours later when I was done and my ankle was blazing. I made my way upstairs – barely – and popped pain killers. I haven’t been taking them but damn if I didn’t need it. I felt great when I woke up knowing that I had a productive day. I rolled out of bed and grabbed my crutches. When I went to stand I cried out in pain as I put pressure onto my left foot. I hobbled over to the bathroom and it took a lot of time and effort to get washed up and I took some pain meds. I made my way downstairs slowly and was just grabbing a seat when Mel showed up.
She didn’t greet me or set her stuff down. She looked at me guarded and asked in a low voice, “are we going to work today or am I going back home?” she asked.
I waved a hand toward the living room. I decided to do her trainings during the day and when she leaves I’ll hit the gym. She went into the living room and I followed. I had to move very slow and I felt sweat start to drench my face and I barely went anywhere. She was giving me a weird look as I made my way to the couch. I sat down and gave her my leg. She removed my brace and gasped.
“Did you hit your foot or something?” she asked.
I shook my head. “Nah I’m fine.”
She frowned and stared at my ankle. “Your ankle is inflamed I can see it visibly throbbing Nick, this isn’t right. It was looking a lot better after the last stretch. The swelling had gone down remarkably and now it’s worse than I’ve ever seen it. You might’ve hit it or something in your sleep maybe?” she asked worriedly.
I shrugged. “Maybe” I said through gritted teeth. I didn’t want her to know that I was working out on my own.
She sighed. “We’re going to have to take it easy today. I don’t know what caused the swelling and I don’t know what kind of damage it could have possibly done. You have to tell me when it hurts it’s important.”
She began to work my ankle and my teeth were clenched so tight I thought they would break. I was in so much damn pain it was insane. She kept glancing up at my face I think to gauge my reactions so I tried my hardest to keep my face blank. She stopped more times than usual for rest breaks before she would start up again. When she left I dragged my ass upstairs to the gym and worked out. When I was done I literally dragged my foot back to my room and passed out from exertion. I followed this routine for the next three days and Mel looked more concerned each day. She asked me about it a few times and I could sense the suspicion coming off of her in waves but I didn’t cave.
Mel
Shakira and I had just got home and I was drained. Nick is up to something because his ankle is only getting worse by the day and he forgets I know him well. I know he’s in pain when we do our exercises but he won’t admit it. I guess because he knows he will be forced to spill whatever the hell is going on. That man is quick to call everyone else stubborn but boy does he have his moments.
“Mommy can we have cheeseburgers today?”
I nodded. “We sure can. Are we having French fries too?” I asked.
She jumped up and down. “We have to have French fries if we’re eating burgers mommy.”
I laughed. “I know Kira.”
She bounced into the house and threw her book bag down on the table. “Mommy school was so much fun. We made plants today and it’s going to grow into a big huge tree.” She took out her crayons and coloring book and began coloring. I started getting the food ready. It was about 30 minutes later and I was almost done with the food when we heard the front door open.
“Hey Roger.” Shakira greeted him.
“Hi Kira, how was school?” he asked ruffling her hair.
“It was fun and I don’t have homework today.” She said with a big grin.
“That’s awesome.” He told her and walked over to me. “What are you making?” he asked peering over my shoulder.
“Cheeseburgers and fries.” I told him.
His face scrunched up. “You couldn’t make an actual meal?”
I shifted to flip the burgers and so that he wouldn’t see my eye roll. “This is what Kira wanted.” He backed up and mumbled something under his breath before leaving the kitchen, I sighed in annoyance. I setup the plates on the table and we all sat down to eat.
We were eating in a comfortable silence when Shakira spoke up. “Mommy today in school Cliff said that I didn’t have a daddy because I was stupid.”
My hands froze in the air and Roger choked. “Sure you do.” Roger told her in reassurance.
She sighed. “Then why can’t I call you daddy?” she asked.
I dropped my head. I knew it was only a matter of time before this began coming up. “I’m the closest thing to a father that you have it doesn’t matter what those other kids think or say.”
She dropped her head and nodded. “Ok.”
I had suddenly lost my appetite and got up from the table and began cleaning. After dinner I got Kira in a bath and read her a book until she fell asleep. I went to our room and chan
ged for bed. Roger came in shortly after and turned on the TV. I picked up a book and began to read. “How was work?” he asked.
I sighed. “It was fine.”
“What’s been going on with you lately? You seem distracted.”
I bookmarked my page and turned to Roger. “I am a little but it’s nothing really.” I told him.
He frowned. “Does this have anything to do with Nick?” he asked and I could hear the bitterness in his voice. He almost lost his shit when I told him that I would be working with him and he’s been overly curious as of late.
“No, that’s just work.” I reassured him but that wasn’t entirely true. I was worried about him and what he was doing to his career with his choices. He searched my eyes for a beat before turning his attention back to the TV.
“Did you set a date yet? When we get married you know I want to give Shakira my last name.” he told me.
I sighed. I didn’t want to talk about getting married again. We’re still only engaged but I don’t know why I can’t just get around to getting it over with. I guess that’s one of the problems there. Who thinks of their upcoming nuptials as something to just get over? “No not yet, but soon.”
His eyes flitted to mine briefly before he gave his attention back to the TV. “Yes, you’ve been saying that for years Mel. I know what that means… you don’t know.”
I lay down and turned my back to him. I clicked off the light on my side and let sleep claim me. I was tired of having this conversation because honestly nothing he would say could change the way I felt right now.
My alarm went off and I got up to go to Nick’s house. I can’t lie and say that I don’t take a little extra time getting ready for work these days and I have no idea why. When I found myself fixing my hair for the third time I sighed. I grabbed a peach and headed out to my car. I drove to his house and let myself in. He’s been doing well the past few weeks and has been up before me waiting, but he wasn’t today. I went up the stairs and made my way to his room. When I knocked he answered and I frowned, I expected that if he were up here he would still be asleep. I opened the door slowly and he was propped up in bed watching TV.
Needing Her (The Lexington Series Book 3) Page 2
