by Tiffani Lynn
“I feel bad for those who died in there. One minute we were dancing and having fun and the next I was trying to keep my best friend from bleeding out all over that dance floor. Thank you for saving us.”
Thomas doesn’t say anything. Instead he leans in and kisses my head again. I lift my feet up and lean into him a little. It’s not the most comfortable position I’ve ever been in, but I’m soaking up his warmth for as long as he’s here, in any way I can.
It’s in the wee hours of the morning that a raspy voice pulls me from my uneasy sleep. “Simone.”
I jerk forward, slamming the footrest on the recliner down again, this time startling Thomas awake and to his feet.
“Simone,” she says again.
I scoot forward and grab Luci’s hand and tears rush to my eyes. “Luci, oh my God! You’re awake!”
“Thomas, go tell the nurse she’s awake,” I order as I smile at him through my tears, before turning back to Luci.
“My throat is so dry. I need a drink. What’s going on?”
“We need to see if you’re allowed to have a drink first. The nurse will be here in a minute. You don’t remember? You were shot at the Splish Splash gala.”
“Damn. I kind of ache all over. Yeah, it’s fuzzy, but I remember a little. Why is he here?”
“He saved us, Luci. He and his partner, they saved us. We were so lucky; if they hadn’t been there we would probably all be dead,” I croak as I fight back an onslaught of more tears, feeling overly emotional about everything. Especially the fact that my best friend in the whole world is finally awake and talking.
“Why is he here?”
“I don’t know. He came to check on us during the day. It’s the middle of the night right now. He wanted me to leave and get some rest but I wasn’t leaving you until your mom and Titus got here. I didn’t want you to wake up alone.”
Thomas comes back through the door with the night shift nurse, Jane, right behind him. “Well hello, Luciana. I’m going to have to turn on one of the lights behind your bed, so be ready for the brightness.” Her voice is sweet and melodic, unlike the day shift nurse who was on my nerves all day.
“Let me get your vitals real quick like,” she tells her as she presses some buttons on the machine next to the bed. The arm cuff inflates and the numbers go up and then back down.
“Well, your blood pressure is a little low but it’s better than it was earlier. Are you dizzy?”
Luci shakes her head. “No, just thirsty. My throat hurts. It’s so dry.”
“Okay, let me take your temperature and then we will start with ice chips. If you tolerate those without a problem, then we can get you some water after a while.” She pauses to look at the thermometer and smiles. “Looks good. Let me go get you some ice chips and I’ll let the doctor know you’re awake. I doubt he’ll be in until the morning since you’re doing well, but you never know.”
I swipe at the tears still dripping down my face and sniffle a little. Luci’s really going to be okay. “You don’t know how happy I am to see your eyes open.” I grab her hand and hold it firmly in mine.
“Me too.” She gives me a tired smile and then looks past me at Thomas, who is standing off to the side and out of the way. “Thank you. Simone says you saved our lives.”
“You’re welcome. Can I do anything for you? Do you need me to contact anyone else besides your mom and boyfriend? My brother is pretty good at ferreting out information since your cell phone is gone.”
“I need someone to call my boss.”
“He already knows. He came by not long after it happened. He saw it on the news. He’s how I was able to get the numbers for Titus and your mom. Our cell phones are with the police, I think,” I explain.
“Then, no, I don’t need you to call anyone. Thank you.” I squeeze her hand affectionately as the nurse breezes back into the room with a cup of ice and a plastic spoon. Jane raises the head of the bed slowly and Luci’s expression changes to a grimace. “I’m sore.”
“Gunshot wound, honey. That will do it every time.”
We feed her the ice and tell her everything that happened. She seems to remember more as we talk, but doesn’t remember anything from about the time Thomas was led out of the room at gunpoint. I think that’s when she must have been losing consciousness. Toward the end of the story, Luci’s tired again. As I’m adjusting her bed back down, she grabs my hand. “Please go with Thomas. You need to get some sleep. You can come back tomorrow at visiting hours. I’m okay. It’s gonna be fine now. Do it for me. Please?”
How can I argue with that? The thought of a nice hot shower and a comfortable bed to stretch out in are almost more than I can handle.
“Okay, the call button is right here if you need Jane. I’ll make sure they have a number to reach me at Thomas’s hotel. Please have them call for anything. I don’t…” I trail off, suddenly afraid to leave her alone. What if she starts to go downhill? Panic grips my heart.
Thomas wraps an arm around my shoulder, pulling me in close while simultaneously pushing out the madness.
“Call if you need anything. I’m going to get her some sleep,” he tells Luci.
“Thank you for everything, Thomas. I’ll be fine.” She yawns again so I lean in and kiss her cheek. Then I turn off the light and Thomas leads me out of there.
10
Thomas
Simone’s vulnerability is beautiful. I can’t believe I’m saying that about someone, but it exposes a sweet tenderness that I hadn’t seen from her until now. Gone are all of her rough edges, anger and frustration. The rude, uncaring woman from the steak house dinner is nowhere to be found. What remains is someone I can really care about. Couple that with the amazing physical chemistry we have and I can’t help but want to do more, give more, and be more for her.
Thoughts run nonstop through my head about how she can actually take care of herself, how she’s strong, intelligent and creative, and how she also has this hidden soft side that I’ll bet few people have seen. I saw it in a different form on the first night we spent together, but then thought it was a fluke after the horrible dinner we had. Although I hate what Luci had to go through for me to see this side of Simone, I’m still pleased as hell I got to see it. Simone is a kaleidoscope changing with every turn, exposing something different, something unique and colorful. Now I understand why Summer thought she would be perfect for me.
When we reach the hotel room, I use the key card and open the door. The room is cool, quiet, and dimly lit with the bedside lamp. “Why don’t you get through a shower and I’ll grab you one of my shirts to wear until we can pick up your things tomorrow from Luci’s place.”
She turns to me with tired eyes and a small half-smile. “You can drop me off at Luci’s tomorrow. I can handle myself from that point. I figured you were tired too so I didn’t want to make more work tonight by having you take me there and then have to come back here.”
“Simone…” I try to explain, but she cuts me off.
“Thomas, you’ll never know how thankful I am for you saving all of us and for coming tonight to help me. Sometimes I can’t save me from myself, but you aren’t responsible for me anymore and I’ll let you get back to life. I’m sure you’re ready to get back home to Tampa.”
I step in closer to her and place one hand on her hip and the other along her jaw. “It’s late and I don’t want to get into much, so I’m only going to touch lightly on this tonight, because it’s most important that you get some rest. I don’t plan on dumping you at Luci’s tomorrow and saying goodbye. I’ll be by your side until you’re comfortable enough to leave. Then I’m hoping to drive you back and spend the four hours talking and getting to know you. After that…well, we’ll have to take it day by day, I guess.” My thumb runs along the smooth skin of her cheek as I pause for her response.
“Wait, what’s happening here?”
“I don’t know, but I’d like to take my time figuring it out together.” I lift the hand at her hip and brush ha
ir away from her face, waiting for her reaction.
“We haven’t made it through a real date without drama. What makes you think there can be something to figure out?” She takes a step back while shaking her head. “You know what? Never mind. I’m in no state to discuss anything tonight, much less anything important. I’m gonna get through the shower.”
I let her retreat to the bathroom because like she said, she’s in no condition to discuss any of this.
After I pull a T-shirt out of my suitcase, I set it on the counter in the bathroom and wait for her to finish. Once she comes out, hair damp, all traces of old makeup gone, my giant T-shirt hanging to mid-thigh, I kiss her forehead without a word and take my turn in the shower.
When I return, she’s on the far side of the king-sized bed with her back to the room and the cover pulled up to her waist. I toss my dirty clothes next to my suitcase and slip in behind her wearing only my boxer briefs, curling my body against hers. She tenses up slightly and when I wrap my arm around her middle, she lets out a heavy exhale and settles in, relaxing against me. It doesn’t take her long to fall asleep.
The next morning I’m up long before her so I spend the time reading through my emails on my phone and texting with Summer and Mike. They’re back home in Crystal River with her on bed rest and him working close to home. Summer had about 50 questions for me about Simone. Once we got through the part about Simone and Luci being okay, she wanted to know what was going on with us and what changed my mind about her.
The room has been quiet so I’ve had plenty of time to process my thoughts about Simone and it all goes back to seeing the many different sides of her. Most of the women I’ve dated have been one-dimensional. Either bitchy or clingy or controlling or jealous or sweet or needy. None of them ever seemed to check more than one box in the personality department, so I either got irritated or tired of them. With Simone it’s been a different emotion every time I’ve been with her. Obviously, it wasn’t always good, but if I’m being honest with myself, I understand that no one is ever perfect all the time. I’d like to dig a little and see what else is underneath the tough, independent exterior.
Close to eight o’clock I set my phone down and slide back into bed beside her. She wanted to be back at the hospital by the time visiting hours start at 10:00, so I figure she’ll have to get up soon. I want to make sure she eats a good breakfast before we go.
About 15 minutes later, she stirs, and her whole body stiffens. She rolls back a little and looks at me with wide eyes. “I didn’t dream it?”
“Dream what?” I inquire.
“You bringing me here and staying with me?”
“Nope, you didn’t dream it.” I grin at her.
She closes her eyes tight, like she’s a little embarrassed. “Thank you,” she whispers.
“You’re more than welcome.”
“What time is it?” She turns her head as if she’s looking for the clock, but it’s on my side of the bed.
“About 8:20, I think. I was going to wake you up soon so you’d have time to eat before we go back to see Luci. You just looked too peaceful to disturb so I was holding off as long as possible.”
“Thanks.”
We lie there quietly for several minutes as she wakes up. Finally, I ask the one question that’s been plaguing me. “What happened at dinner that night?”
Her body tenses and then relaxes on a huff of air, like she doesn’t want to talk about it but she’s going to anyway. “I’m a hybrid author. Some books I write go to a publisher, which means once I’m done with edits, I send it in and don’t see it again until right before it releases, when I do a read through.
“The majority of my books are self-published though. That means I write it, I revise it, I go through the edits when they are done, I hire a proofreader and go through it again when that person is done. I format it and I upload it to the retail websites. Then I do all my own marketing too. It’s a lot to do. Too much sometimes, so I hired an assistant to help me with some of those things.
“The night of our date, the formatting wasn’t coming out right. Every little adjustment screwed up something else, which screwed up something else, and so on. Formatting is usually the easiest step, so that threw me for a loop. I passed it off to my assistant to let her do it and she was struggling. Once she was finally able to get past the formatting problem, she couldn’t get it uploaded. The main retailer kept giving an error code and neither of us could fix it.
“There’s a deadline when uploading and if you don’t complete it before time is up you lose presale privileges for a full year. Losing those privileges screws up your sales and your rankings. It’s a pain in the butt. However, I pride myself on a great product, being timely and professional with all things relating to my career.
“That night it was testing my limits and I was too pissed to explain it to you when I knew you were mad at me. I didn’t think it would make a difference to you anyway. No one ever seems to understand how seriously I take my writing career. My ex-husband certainly didn’t and we were married with a kid, so I figured there was no way you would get it or care.” Her shoulder shrugs and she averts her eyes to the ceiling.
“Damn, Simone. I wish you would’ve said something, or even called off the date. I understand taking your career seriously. Why do you think I’m a 40-year-old single man? Part of that is because women never understood my dedication to my job. It wasn’t just my work, it was my life. It was hard, but I loved it.
“What I didn’t understand and had a hard time with was wondering how you could go from being that warm sexy woman from the hotel to the bitchy, inconsiderate woman at dinner. It was like looking at Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde. Even now I’m wondering if that date was just a weird nightmare. It doesn’t match up to the woman I’ve encountered again since then. That’s why I want to spend more time getting to know you. I’d like to try a few more dates—on days that work best for you this time though.”
Her eyes slide to meet mine. “You get it?”
“Yeah, I get it.”
She stays quiet for a little bit and I figure that’s enough deep conversation for this morning. If she starts again, I’ll be glad to go down that road, but if not, I can let it go…for now.
I lean down and take her mouth in a slow, deliberate kiss. Her hand slides up my arm, over my shoulder and along my jaw. Damn this woman can kiss. I wish we could spend all day doing this, but I know there are more important things we need to attend to, so I break away and press my lips to her forehead before getting out of bed. When I turn back to her, she gives me a shy smile before climbing out of bed and heading for the bathroom.
11
Simone
The conversation with Thomas this morning blew my mind. I didn’t expect him to ask about the night of our blind date, nor did I think he’d react the way he did. It was so unexpected that it silenced me. I had no idea what to say to him after that. The fact that he actually understands how I feel about my writing just blew me away.
We had breakfast downstairs in the restaurant after we got cleaned up and then he drove me by Luci’s to change clothes and collect my stuff. The whole car ride he held my hand. I knew Luci’s mom would be staying there once she hit town. I love her but she’s high-strung and bossy on a good day. Under the stress of her daughter being shot, I can guarantee she’ll be more than a handful to deal with.
When we arrive at the hospital about 10:30, we find Titus sitting in the recliner talking to Luci, who thankfully looks even better today. Her eyes are brighter, her smile perkier, even if she’s still pale.
Titus stands when we enter and hugs me tight. “Thanks for calling me, Simonita,” he whispers in my ear, using the nickname he gave me when they first started dating.
“You’re welcome. How long have you been here?”
“For an hour and a half. The first hour was in the waiting room because they wouldn’t let me in until 10:00. Apparently they’re pretty structured here and didn’t feel like bending the
rules for me. How long until Mamá Rosa will be here?”
“Around lunchtime.”
He nods and offers me the chair. I take it and grab Luci’s hand. “You look so much better today!” I exclaim happily.
“You too, girl. You were pretty rough lookin’ yourself.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” I squeeze her hand, overjoyed that she’s back to joking with me.
“Titus is here and Mamá will be here soon. Why don’t you go home and get Gavin? You don’t see him enough as it is. I’m going to be fine. Today I get to start with soft foods and they’re moving me to a lower floor later. The doctor was pleased. He just wants me taking it easy for a little bit.”
“I don’t want to leave you like this,” I confess softly.
“I know, but you and I both know when Mamá arrives she’ll be bossing everyone around until they release me just to get rid of her. I promise I’ll be okay. Titus is getting me a phone after Mamá arrives. Text me when you get yours and we can chat. If anything changes, I promise they will call you.”
Unshed tears burn my eyes. I know she’s right, but I feel bad leaving her. I didn’t want to leave her last night, and the thought of leaving her here for days stresses me out. I also know deep down that if she’s okay I need to get back to Gavin. He’s my priority.
My shoulders slump and I sigh before I ask, “Promise you’ll text every day after I get a phone?”
“Yeah, I promise.” Her smile is small but sweet. She understands that it’s hard for me to leave her when things are like this. I’m kind of a control freak and although I can’t control the situation, at least being with her gave me the feeling that I had some control.
