Rearview Mirror

by B L Clark

  Chapter Ten

  Close

  Nicole walked into the waiting room where she saw the others talking.

  “Nicole.” Jill noticed her first and rushed to her.

  “Hi.” Nicole waved at the group.

  “How’s Amber?” Zach asked.

  “How are you?” Heather asked.

  “Do you want a mocha?” Erik asked.

  “Guys, let the woman talk, or she’s going to go back into Amber’s room, and we aren’t going to get to visit Amber,” Jill said.

  “All right, to answer your questions…Amber is awake and alert. I’m doing okay, a bit annoyed that she brought up leaving when she had been awake for seven minutes. Yes, please, I definitely need a mocha! And I know you’re all wanting to see Amber, so once I get my mocha, we can go in.”

  “You guys go ahead. I’ll get Nicole’s mocha and meet you back there. What room is she in?” Erik said.

  “Room 829. Go through the doors and to the left, and it’ll be on the left most of the way down the hall,” Nicole said.

  “Great, I’ll be there soon. Anyone else need a coffee?” Erik asked, receiving a round of headshakes.

  “How does she look?” Zach asked as they walked down the hall.

  “She’s tired and pale, but if she didn’t look like that, I would be concerned.” Nicole smiled back at him.

  “Okay, now if you all are going in there, I need you to keep her in bed. She has gotten up twice since you left,” the annoyed nurse said as she exited Amber’s room.

  “I was only gone for five minutes,” a bewildered Nicole said.

  “I know. Just tell her that she needs to stay in the damn bed. I told her if I caught her up again, I was going to put her in restraints,” the nurse said sternly.

  “We’ll make sure of it, ma’am,” Zach said.

  “I’ll make sure she stays put, you have my word,” Nicole said.

  “Thank you.” The nurse gave them a curt nod before she walked away.

  “Can you guys give me a minute alone with Amber?” Zach asked.

  “Sure,” they agreed.

  “I just want to check on your…what are you doing up?” the nurse said.

  “I need to get something out of my coat,” Amber said.

  “Dear, your coat was covered in blood. The paramedics put it in a bag and gave it to one of your friends. Now get back in bed. Please.”

  Amber moved cautiously and got back in bed. The nurse left the room, and within a minute, Amber was up again. She was pacing next to the bed at least as far as the lines in the IV would allow.

  “Didn’t we just have this conversation? You need to stay in bed, or we’re going to have to restrain you.” The nurse entered again with a shot of antibiotics and pain medication.

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I’m up. I just couldn’t sit still,” Amber admitted.

  “Well, you need to remember that you just had surgery. You have stitches that you can’t be moving, stretching, and possibly pulling out. Not to mention that there are also tubes in your body that are going to drain the fluids and keep you from getting an infection.”

  “I’m really sorry. I’ll stay put this time.” Amber climbed back into bed.

  The nurse rolled her eyes and then walked over to Amber’s IV. “I get how hard it is to stay put. I was in for a couple of days after surgery, and I just wanted to be out or doing my job. Please, though, don’t keep getting up.” The nurse then injected the antibiotics into the IV and smiled at Amber.

  “I’m sorry. I really don’t want to cause more damage. I have to get back to New York for work.”

  “Well, you’re going to be in here for several days, and you aren’t going to be able to fly right away, either, so get used to it. If you don’t rest, you’re going to be stuck in our little neck of the woods for a lot longer. When were you supposed to go back? What do you do in New York?”

  “I was supposed to head back tomorrow. I guess I’ll be missing that flight.” Amber laughed uncomfortably. “I’m an artist, and I work at an art gallery.”

  “It sounds like you love what you do. You’re definitely going to be missing that flight, but you seem to have some good friends with you here.” The nurse smiled as she played around with the machines.

  “I do.” Amber smiled, too, thinking about Nicole.

  “If you don’t mind me asking, what happened?”

  “My brother has a violent side, and he shot me,” Amber said with no emotion.

  “Oh, wow. I’m sorry to hear that. You seem like a nice girl, except you won’t stay put and I have to babysit you.”

  “I promise if you leave, I’ll stay in bed and not risk my stitches and drain tube again.”

  “You better. I meant it when I said next time I’m going to put the straps on,” the nurse said in a teasing tone.

  Amber smiled at her, and the nurse left the room.

  Zach walked into Amber’s hospital room just after the nurse left with a look that told Amber he was not happy with her.

  “Hi,” Amber said sheepishly, trying to hide behind her hair.

  “Hey. So, where do I start?” he asked rhetorically.

  “How about with how much you love and adore me?” Amber answered, hoping to ease the tension in the room.

  “You already know the answers to those. Do I want to know why you’re getting up? And why you would feel the need to talk about leaving with Nicole after all that just happened? She thought she was going to lose you. Your blood was all over her hands.”

  “What do you mean my blood was all over her hands?” Amber asked, shocked and disturbed to learn this.

  “She was the first to get to you after you were shot. Nicole is the one who pulled you off Jeffrey.” Zach paused to let this information sink in. “Amber, she put pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding. You were slowly bleeding to death in her hands.”

  “I-I was? She did that?”

  “Yeah, she did that,” Zach said. “Now I’m going to go back outside the room, send her in, and you’re going to say you’re sorry for being an idiot. Got it?”

  “Yes, sir.” Amber looked away. She was ashamed for bringing the subject up, but she didn’t want to lead Nicole on, either.

  “I still love you, and I’m still glad you’re alive and doing well. I just don’t want you to blow anything. You two are so cute together.” Zach squeezed Amber’s hand quickly.

  “Thanks,” Amber said, still ashamed.

  Zach left the room and sent Nicole back in the room. He mentioned that Amber wanted to talk to her alone for a moment.

  “Hey.” Nicole walked into the room and quickly made her way to Amber’s side.

  “Hey.” Amber avoided eye contact.

  “Zach said you wanted to talk to me alone. Are you okay? Do you want me to go away? Did I do something wrong?”

  “I’m as fine as I can be under the circumstances. And no, I don’t want you to go away. I did something wrong, and I owe you an apology.”

  “What would you have to apologize for?” Nicole sat on the edge of Amber’s bed and took her hand.

  “I shouldn’t have brought up my leaving. I should have thanked you. Zach told me that you were the one that pulled me off Jeffrey and then put pressure on my wound. You had my blood all over your hands. I’m guessing you didn’t even think twice about what you were doing. Thank you!”

  “You don’t have to thank me. I knew you didn’t know about what happened after you were shot, let alone what I did. I’m just so glad that you’re okay.”

  “I still shouldn’t have done what I did. I love you, Nic, and I think I would be more freaked out if our positions were reversed.” Amber brought Nicole’s hand to her mouth and kissed her knuckles. “Sweetie, thank you for what you did for me.”

  “I love you, too. I know you’re going to leave, but I don’t want to think about it now. I want to concentrate on the time we do have together. The fact that we still love each other.”

  Amber used the
hand she was holding and pulled Nicole down and kissed her deeply. Nicole leaned into the kiss as Amber slipped her tongue into Nicole’s mouth. They both groaned at the surge of arousal that went through their bodies. They heard the steady beat of Amber’s heart monitor speed up, but they didn’t break the kiss. They were powerless over their need for each other.

  “Well, I guess that’s one way to keep her in that bed.” The nurse laughed, causing both women to laugh and break their kiss.

  “Sorry,” Nicole and Amber said in unison.

  “Don’t be. You two look cute together. Have you been together long?” the nurse asked as she silenced and reset the monitors.

  “Yes and no,” Amber said.

  “We were together for two years before she had to move away. Although, since we never broke up officially, you could say we’ve been together for twelve years,” Nicole said proudly as her fingers played with Amber’s.

  “Well, if you can keep her heart rate below 110, I have no problem with your method of keeping her in that bed. If you can’t, you’re going to have to stop,” the nurse said as she left laughing, and the others came in.

  “Well, she definitely left in a better mood than she came down that hall in,” Jill said as she and the others entered the room and saw Nicole and Amber still a bright shade of red.

  “So, what did she walk in on?” Heather waggled her eyebrows at the two. “Please, give explicit details, we can take it.”

  “Heather, I don’t know that I personally can handle explicit details,” Zach said, blushing.

  “Why not? You had the hots for Amber, I have the hots for Amber, we can both live vicariously through Nicole,” Heather said.

  “I think not,” Nicole said abruptly.

  “Well, Amber sure as hell isn’t going to let either of us kiss her enough to get a nurse to race in on us, is she?” Heather laughed. “And I know you two had to be kissing.”

  “You’re right,” Amber said. “You and Zach can either get over your crushes or you can just daydream about it, but you are not living vicariously through Nicole.”

  “Spoilsport.” Heather pouted and sat at the end of Amber’s bed. “I’m really glad you’re doing better. Please don’t ever scare us like that again. I thought we were going to lose you.”

  “We all agree with you there, Heather,” Erik said, entering with Nicole’s mocha.

  “Hey, where’s mine?” Amber asked with a pout.

  “You, missy, do not get one…yet,” Erik replied, handing Nicole her mocha. “I promise to bring you one when the doctor says you’re allowed.”

  “How’s your face?” Amber asked Heather, who was sitting by her feet.

  “It hurts some and is going to be bruised, but I’m fine.”

  The group sat around the bed. Jill explained to Amber that because everyone gave a statement and this was Jeffrey’s third strike, she wouldn’t have to testify or ever see him again. This was a relief to all. Mostly to Nicole and Amber, who knew there was no way Amber would be able to face Jeffrey again.

  “Thank you for everything, Jill. I don’t think I would survive having to relive any of my past and what a trial would put me through.”

  “Nobody wants you to have to go through that,” Zach said.

  “Um, Zach, weren’t you supposed to be on a flight back home today?” Amber asked.

  “Yeah, I was, but you see, my best friend got shot by her psycho brother, so my flight has been postponed,” he replied. “I also called Lucinda, told her some of what was going on, and got us both more time off. She’s going to hold your spot in the show.”

  “She is?”

  “Yeah, she is. She did ask that I bring the forms back with me or that you mail them to her. She needs them by the end of next week.”

  “Thank you,” Amber said, smiling at him.

  “So, Amber, do they know how long you’ll be in here?” Jill said.

  “The nurse said I’ll be here for about three or four days and then I can’t fly back to New York for another week, so I’ll be in town for another two weeks. And, Zach, you are not staying that long. I won’t have you missing that much work for me and what my dumbass brother has done.”

  “Not really your choice, now, is it?” Zach retorted. “Though, I will make you a deal and go back when you’re out of the hospital.”

  “You can stay at the hotel,” Heather piped in.

  “And I’ll pay for your room.” Amber gave him a look that said “don’t mess with me.”

  “I don’t think so. You and Amber weren’t paying for the rooms you were in anyway,” Heather said.

  “Why not?” Amber and Zach asked simultaneously.

  “Family doesn’t pay for rooms in my hotel.” A huge smile crossed Heather’s face.

  “Your hotel?” Amber and Zach asked in unison again, causing the others to give them funny looks.

  “Oh, did I forget to mention that I own that hotel and I’m not just the manager?”

  “Yeah, you forgot to mention that,” Amber said. “How? When?”

  “I used my portion of the insurance money from when Mom died to buy the place. I changed the name, updated it, and now it’s my baby.”

  “That’s amazing, Heather. I’m really proud of you.” Amber grinned.

  “Proud enough to give me a sampling of what Nicole was hoarding all those years ago?” Heather waggled her eyebrows at Nicole and Amber. “Or is it what she’s hoarding now?”

  “I may not look like much, but I will kick your ass, Woods, if you move those lips anywhere near Amber’s lips,” Nicole warned, showing Heather her resolve face.

  “Whoa, down, Nicole. I was just joking.” Heather giggled. “Sheesh.”

  “My lips,” Nicole said possessively as she leaned over and kissed Amber.

  Everyone laughed as they pulled apart. Amber grabbed the collar of Nicole’s shirt, looked Heather directly in the eyes, and let a mischievous smile cross her face as she said, “Yeah, her lips!” Amber then pulled Nicole into a deep kiss. When they heard the monitor start to beep faster, they broke apart and looked up to make sure they kept Amber’s heart rate below 110.

  “You know, you two are as mean now as you were when I was little, and you would kiss in front of me,” Heather said, pouting.

  “Well, back then, we didn’t know you had a crush on Amber,” Nicole said. “Now it’s just going to be our extreme fun to make you squirm.”

  Amber yawned, and the others knew she needed to get some rest. They shouldn’t have stayed so long, but everyone was so grateful that she was going to be okay.

  “We’ll let you get some rest and then we’ll come back tomorrow to visit,” Erik said as the others agreed.

  “That’d be great,” Amber said, yawning again.

  Erik came over, hugged Amber, told her he was glad she was going to be okay and that he loved her and how happy she made Nicole. Jill hugged Amber, told her that she loved her, and if she needed anything to call. Heather hugged Amber, told her that she loved her, and that if she couldn’t have her, she was glad it was Nicole she had chosen. She also told her she was going to have a chat with Sidney about discussing hotel guests outside of work. Amber asked her not to go too hard on her, Sidney didn’t know. Zach hugged her next, told her he loved her, and he’d be back the next morning, but if she had a nightmare to call him and he’d be back sooner.

  “Would you mind hanging around after everyone leaves?” Amber asked Nicole as she moved to give her a hug as the others had.

  “Of course,” Nicole said, smiling back at Amber.

  “Do you need a ride home, Nic?” Jill asked.

  “Nah, you go ahead. I’m going to stick around here for a bit.”

  “All right, we’ll see you guys tomorrow. Get some rest,” Jill said as the group left.

  “Thanks for staying,” Amber said as she took Nicole’s hand. “I wanted some time just us…”

  “I like ‘just us’ time.” Nicole smiled and brought Amber’s hand up to her mouth and ki
ssed the back of it.

  Chapter Eleven

  Discovering Amber

  “Zach, Heather, do you need a ride back to the hotel?” Jill asked.

  “That would be great as long as I get shotgun…and Heather has to ride in the back of the cruiser.” Zach looked over at Heather and smiled.

  “Okay, I like that idea,” Jill said with a little bounce in her step.

  “You’re as bad as Nicole and Amber, you know that?” Heather joked at Zach as he stuck his tongue out at her as they got in the car.

  “Well, I did learn a lot from Amber. You could say I learned from the best,” he said smugly.

  “He’s got a point, Heather. Amber was always the bigger brat when it came to those two picking on you,” Jill added.

  “She was?” Zach tried to imagine a different side to the Amber he knew.

  “Oh, yes. When did she become a blonde anyway?” Jill asked.

  “Um, you mean that isn’t natural?”

  “Oh, you poor delusional man. You need an Amber education before tomorrow…big-time! Heather, do you still have the albums at the hotel?” Jill looked at her in the rearview mirror.

  “Yeah, I have the important ones there. I’ll have Keyser make dinner for all of us and we can enlighten Zach.” Heather giggled, glancing at him.

  “I can’t wait.” Zach rubbed his hands together. “Although I have to ask, is this going to ruin my image of Amber?”

  “That depends, what is your image of Amber now?” Heather asked.

  “Well, Amber is a sweet, compassionate, caring woman who has a smart-ass streak as big if not larger than the caring side of her.”

  “Nope, what we’re going to tell you will just reinforce your image,” Jill said as she parked outside the hotel.

  Heather told them to go up to Zach and Amber’s suite and she would be up shortly. She was going to talk with Sidney and then get Keyser working on dinner.

  “So, you wanted me to stay,” Nicole said softly as she adjusted on the edge of the bed, so she could see Amber better.