Lexi and Mason walked into the room together and Violet shot Emmy a look. Who knows if Em knew about the tension between us yet? Mase handed me a bottle of water, and I took it gratefully.
"You got here fast," Lexi said as she walked in and hugged Em.
"How many people are allowed in here? Are we going to get in trouble for this?" Mason asked from behind her.
Vi laughed and walked over to hug him. "Stephen's a freaking rock star around here; they’ll let us have as many people that will fit in this tiny room. The nurses love it when Gage and Scott come to visit."
I watched Emmy walk over to the side of Stephen’s bed and take his hand in hers.
“How are you holding up?” Mason asked me. “When’s the last time you ate?”
“I’m okay. And I’ve been eating.”
“It’s showing in everything you do, Taylor," he said sighing. "You need to get some rest.”
I shook my head. Nothing they said or did would make me leave Stephen’s side. There was no way I would risk him waking up and me not being here.
“Tay, you won't be worth a damn to him when he wakes up if you aren’t taking care of yourself.”
“I’m fine.”
He sighed and rubbed my back. We glanced over as Emmy whispered, “It's not supposed to be this way, Stephen. Wake up. Please.”
Mason crossed the room in two steps, pulling her into his arms as she broke down. My best friend was one of the strongest women I knew and it killed me to see her like this. Stephen needed to wake up. We all needed him; he was the glue that held us all together. As I watched Mason and Emmy, I realized just how much I missed having that with Stephen and if, when, he woke up, I wouldn't waste another second with him.
I gripped the steaming cup of coffee in my hands. As much as I wanted to meet his eyes, I couldn’t. Stephen was it for me and I knew that, but it didn’t make it any easier to hurt Rhys. He was a great guy, and he deserved better than what I was about to do. When he'd heard about Stephen's accident he had come back from Washington to check on me.
“Taylor, you don’t have to say anything.” He startled me, causing coffee to spill over onto my hand. My eyes shot to his and for once they weren’t guarded. “I get it. I never truly had a chance with you. Stephen needs you now more than ever. I just want to be your friend.”
The lump in my throat got even harder to swallow around. Rhys really was amazing. He was selflessly letting me off the hook from saying all the difficult things that needed to be said between us. If I wasn’t supposed to be with Stephen, I might pursue something with him.
“Rhys, if things were different,” I trailed off.
“No, even then you would always choose Stephen. You two were always meant to be together,” he said quietly. A sad smile crossed his face briefly. “I got that, but I didn't want to believe it. You will always be special. If things were different, I never would have had the opportunity to meet you. Even if you aren't more, you are a great friend. It’s frustrating because this is the second time I'm losing out on something amazing.”
I closed my eyes and his lips brushed against my temple. “Rhys, I hope you find someone wonderful. You deserve the best. I don’t deserve your kindness after everything. He's the love of my life.”
He leaned back in his chair and ran his hand down his face.
“I know Stephen and I weren’t friends, but keep me in the loop of how he’s doing, will you? He’s tough and he’ll make it through this.”
I nodded, praying he was right. “Of course. The reason you two didn’t get along was because you both were acting like assholes. Once this bullshit is over, I'll make you kiss and make up.”
He chuckled, and I felt a little better. We stood up and his arms wrapped around me one last time. This was different than every other time Rhys had hugged me though. It was our final goodbye.
Amanda and Gage came around the corner as we pulled back. She blanched as she looked between me and Rhys. Her hand gripped Gage's arm, her knuckles turning white. Gage and I shared a confused look at Amanda's reaction. I tried to introduce them, but before I could she spoke to him.
“Rhys,” she whispered. His grip on my arm tightened slightly. He let go of me and stepped towards her. She immediately took a step back out of his reach. "Don't touch me."
“Mandi.” He cleared his throat. “What are you doing here?”
“Leaving,” she snapped.
She left before we could say anything else. Rhys shot me a look, and I waived him away. He took off after her and I hoped he caught up with her. You didn’t have to be a genius to understand that there was something unfinished between them. When I thought back, they hadn't ever crossed paths when we were all together. This was an interesting development.
Gage stared at Rhys’ retreating back for a moment before turning. “Do you know what that was about?”
“No clue, but I bet it’s good.”
He grinned and wrapped his arm around my shoulder. Four days in this place and I was dead on my feet “How are you holding up, kid?”
“As well as can be expected. I just want him to wake up. It’s terrifying to think that my whole world can be ripped out from underneath me when we finally had it figured out. I'm not running this time though.”
“I’m proud of you, T.”
“My entire adult life I’ve felt restless, but Stephen grounds me. It took all this drama to make me realize the reason I ran was because I was scared to allow myself to love and be loved. Every person close to me has had their feelings thrown back in their face. Stephen won’t do that though.”
He tucked me under his shoulder and we continued in to the room. “That’s known as growing up. You'll be just fine when Stephen wakes up. I’ll even dance at your wedding and you know how much I despise dancing in front of people.”
“Don’t get all crazy on me. I never said anything about getting married,” I said laughing.
He eyed me, but said nothing. Apparently Gage had more hope for the future than I did.
Emmy was leaned back against the window with her eyes closed. She wasn’t asleep though. Something about her and Mason showing up together didn’t add up. They had been acting weird since yesterday. Every time they were in a room together it was uncomfortable, not just for them, but for everyone around them too.
I wanted to talk to my friend, but I wasn’t sure if she would listen or if she would bite my head off. Everything going on between her, Mason, and Adam had her on edge. She wasn’t acting like herself, but I didn’t know how I could help.
“Em?”
“What?”
Okay, not very receptive to talking to her bestie right now.
“Never mind.”
She sighed. “Just ask, Taylor.”
“I wanted to make sure you’re okay. We haven’t talked since Vegas about you and Mase and you’ve had a rough time lately with the divorce and deciding about the—”
“I don’t want to talk about that.”
I looked over at Stephen’s still form. “What do you want to talk about then? You see exactly what’s going on in my life. It’s falling apart right now and there’s nothing I can do to fix it.”
She was quiet for a long time. “I still love Mason. And I'm so confused.”
“You still love me?” Mason’s deep, husky voice filled the room. A tear slipped down Emmy’s face and I wanted to hug her tight.
“Go talk. I’m not going anywhere,” I said, reaching out to grasp Stephen’s hand in mine. “You know where to find me if you need me.”
She nodded. Mason rubbed my back as he handed me a bottle of water. Every time he came to see me, he brought me water or food. Somehow he understood I wasn’t eating or drinking much, and he was trying to help take care of me. I patted his hand and tried to give Emmy an encouraging smile. Maybe they could actually work things out.
She hugged me as she walked towards the door with Mason. I hoped they would figure it out, whatever it ended up being. They deserved to be happ
y.
I was drained. Not just tired, but exhausted to the point I didn’t know if I could move in a few hours when it was time to go home to shower and try to catch a nap. Jax practically dragged me from the room yesterday and it was about to happen again. Between Jax, Gage and Mason, I hadn’t been allowed to stay for over eight hours at a time. As much as I would rather have gone home, showered, and come right back, no one would let me do that.
Lexi was fighting the same battle I was with everyone. Our friends tried to make sure we were separated, but on those few times we'd been left alone, it hadn’t been pretty. I hoped that our friendship could be salvaged, but right now there was too much anger and resentment between us to even attempt getting along. She might be Stephen’s sister, but she was acting like a royal bitch.
Gage stood over me shaking me awake. I looked up drowsily, and he shook his head.
“When’s the last time you ate?”
I frowned. “I don’t remember. Not long ago.”
“Let’s go. You need to get some sleep in an actual bed.”
“Do we have to do this? You guys don’t need to babysit me. Plus, I don’t want Stephen here alone.”
“Emmy is on her way up now. She stopped downstairs to grab something.”
Fighting wouldn't change his mind. The tribe had spoken, and I had to leave. I leaned up and kissed Stephen’s forehead softly. Only five days ago the white bandages covering his head would have stood out starkly against the tan of his skin.
“I love you. I’ll be back soon,” I whispered to him.
Gage led me out of the room as Emmy was coming in. She wrapped me up in a hug and I tried not to cry again. My emotions were out of control. I never cried, but since the accident I cried more than I ever had in my life.
How in the hell did my life turn into this?
I needed to eat. I needed to sleep. And most of all I needed Stephen to wake up so I could see his whiskey-colored eyes again.
“Call me if anything changes?”
“I will,” she said softly, nodding her head.
Everyone was more on edge because the doctors told us that the swelling in his brain had gone down. Now it was a waiting game for him to come out of the coma. If I hadn’t been so exhausted I wouldn’t have left, no matter what anyone threatened.
“Come on, kid. Let’s go get some food.”
I looked over my shoulder one last time at Stephen. He needed to wake up. This was slowly killing me and I didn’t know how much more I could take without completely losing my mind.
I rushed to the hospital when Em called, breaking every speed limit possible. There was no way I was waiting for someone to take me like they had all begged. My heart pounded in my chest and all I could think about was how much I needed Stephen to wake up.
"Tell me exactly what happened,” I demanded as I ran in the room.
"I was talking to him and he squeezed my hand."
I went over to the bed and looked him over, softly running my fingers down his face. "What were you talking about?"
She paused, and I wondered what was going on in her head. We needed to catch up soon, but first I needed the love of my life to open his eyes so I could tell him how much I love him.
"Just stupid stuff, nothing important, but I think you should try talking to him. I think he can hear us." I hesitated, but she took my hand and placed it over Stephen's. "Just talk to him, Tay."
Tears filled my eyes.
"I wasted so much time being scared."
"Then tell him that. Talk to him."
She pushed me to sit down in the chair she stood up from. Emmy kissed my forehead and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. It took me a while to get up the courage, but I did what she said to do. I talked to Stephen about everything.
“Baby, I need you to wake up. I need to tell you how much I love you. We are going to be together and in order for that to happen you need to open those beautiful brown eyes and look at me.”
I sighed.
“I can’t do this for you Stephen. If you want us, I need you to come back to me. There are so many things I want to say to you. I’m not scared anymore, baby. The only thing I’m scared of is losing you.” I dropped my head down on his arm and tried to choke back the sob threatening to come out. “I’m so sorry I wasted so much time. You deserve better than me, but I’m going to be selfish as hell and be with you if you’ll keep me.”
“I want to keep you,” he whispered hoarsely. My head shot up and the tears I had been fighting streamed down my cheeks. He squeezed my hand, and I leapt out of the chair.
“You’re awake! Holy shit! Let me go get the nurse.”
He tried to shake his head, but winced. “Don't leave.”
“Please don’t talk or move, baby. Stay still. I’m not going anywhere other than to yell out in the hallway.”
I screamed out his door that he was awake. Stephen grabbed my hand as soon as I came back to the side of his bed. Within seconds two nurses were in the room. My favorite of the nursing staff was the one coming in to take his vitals.
“Mr. Davenport, I’m Lena.”
“Hi, Lena.”
“Can you tell me your full name?”
“Stephen Kellen Davenport.”
“Taylor, can you take a step back? I need to get closer to examine Mr. Davenport.”
Stephen gripped my hand tighter. “No,” he said forcefully.
I stifled a giggle. “Okay,” she said, drawing it out. I took a step to the head of his bed as far out of their way as possible.
"Did we forget to tell you he's stubborn as hell?" I asked grinning.
She tried to keep a stern expression on her face, but failed miserably.
"We're glad you're awake, Mr. Davenport. Taylor wouldn't leave your side unless her friends made her."
The doctor came in and examined Stephen. I took a step back to allow the doctor to have some room, but true to his word, Stephen wouldn’t let go of my hand. The longer he was awake, the stronger he got. After he drank water, his voice was less gravelly and strained. It was a beautiful sound to hear him talking again. After countless tests, the doctor and nurses finally left us alone together. I stared at Stephen, unsure of where to start.
He kissed the top of my hand and pulled me closer.
“I heard what you said. Every word.”
“You did?” I whispered.
“Yes, and I hope you meant it because I’m going to hold you to what you said.”
“I meant everything. Stephen, I love you so much. Although I'm not a fan of you scaring the hell out of me like this. I was afraid I would lose you forever.”
He pulled me even closer and patted the bed next to him. I cautiously climbed onto the bed and rested my head next to his on the pillow. His lips brushed my temple.
“I love you too, baby. As soon as I get to go home, you’re moving back in with me, just like we planned. I’m not taking no as an answer this time.”
I smiled. “Just try to stop me.”
Exactly one week after Stephen came home from the hospital, I sat at a table in our favorite little pizza shop with all my best girlfriends. The doctors had insisted on keeping Stephen for another four days after he woke up. Amazingly there had been no lasting damage from the accident. He was slowly getting back on his feet. Even though he could barely stay awake for more than five hours at a time because of the pain medicine, he was already talking about going back to work.
I looked around at all my friends; we were an eclectic bunch, the actresses, the doctor, the pregnant supermodel, the record label CEO, and me the writer. It was mind-boggling to think that we all got along so well, mostly, and we became friends. Sure the original four of us were from the same small town, but Amanda and Sophia had become an important part of our little group. The girls were talking and laughing as we waited for our salads. For the first time in too long, we had a lot to celebrate and smile about.
Amanda put her hand on my arm and I turned towards her. She lo
oked upset.
“When’s the last time you talked to Rhys?” she asked quietly.
“Um, last week.”
“Is he okay?”
I shot her a suspicious look. “Yeah, why?”
“I can’t get ahold of him.”
I narrowed my eyes. “You owe me some dirt on that situation, ma’am.”
She sighed. “I know I do. Drinks tomorrow? I’ll explain everything.”
I nodded, and we turned back towards the conversation going on around us. Lexi was explaining her plan to go back to New York, but she wanted to come back in a few months. Our friendship was still rocky. Things had been said after Stephen’s accident that couldn’t be taken back, but we were trying to move past them. It would take us a while to get back on track, but we were getting there.
“Thank you guys for being there for me during all this. It’s been a hard couple of months.”
Violet smiled at me. “I’m just glad you figured your shit out, little sister.”
“Me too.”
“I’ll be happy when I get to call you sister too,” Lexi chimed in, surprising me.
I turned to her. “I’ll like that too, Lex.”
We shared a small smile. Sophia wiped at her eyes and I tried not to laugh. Her emotions were all over the place lately.
“I’m sorry. I’m just happy that you two are making up.”
Emmy rubbed Sophia's back gently and winked at Vi. They were sharing a secret, and I wanted in.
"Guys, I need to tell you something. I have a degree in psychology from NYU. I took online courses while I was travelling."
"So you aren't the carefree spirit we all believed you were, huh?" Violet said. She didn't seem as surprised as I thought. "I saw your diploma when we helped you move into the beach house. I bitched to everyone about it."
Oops.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."
"It's fine. I was upset when I found it, but I'm over it. You've always been one to keep secrets, Taylor."
Restless (Relentless Series Book 2) Page 16
