A Wish Upon a Star

by Jeannie Levig

  “Not bother,” Leslie said, remembering the clench of arousal in her abdomen every time she looked up to find Erica’s gaze on her. “It was a little distracting, but I enjoyed the challenge.”

  “I’ve never seen this side of you.” Erica’s thigh brushed Leslie’s as they moved in time with the music.

  Leslie’s pulse jumped. She tried to put a half inch or so between them. “Which side is that?”

  “I’ve seen you at home as a friend and neighbor and how thoughtful and considerate you are in that role.”

  Friend and neighbor? Was that all?

  “And I’ve seen the playful as well as the more serious side of you in your relationship with Siena and how connected to her you are,” Erica went on. “And last weekend, I got to see—and experience—your passion and what an amazing lover you are.” She paused and smiled. “And tonight I’ve enjoyed watching your professional and socially conscious persona moving through the crowd, shaking hands, and making a difference. It’s all quite the package.” Affection shone in Erica’s eyes.

  Was this going where Leslie thought it was, where she was hoping it was? Was she hoping for that, for something more? Was that the piece that had been nagging at her all day? “Thank you,” she said, wanting more time to sort it out. “Does this mean you’re going to take me to some swanky college professor shindig, so I can see you in your professional hat?” she asked teasingly.

  Erica laughed.

  Leslie loved the sound.

  “I’m not sure college professors ever get this swanky.” Erica nodded to their surroundings. “But there are times I can use a date by my side. Now that Kathleen’s gone…”

  Kathleen again. Friends with benefits. Suddenly it hit Leslie full on—that wasn’t what she wanted to be. She did want more. She wanted it all. She wanted Erica in her arms like this every day, in her bed every night. She wanted Erica to come home to her after good days and bad. She wanted her as a friend, a lover, a wife. She wanted Siena and Gus flopped on the blue couch and all of them to be together, to plan birthdays and Christmases and vacations. Friends with benefits could never be enough.

  “Erica…” She shouldn’t say it now, not here. She should wait, at least until they got home, where Erica could leave if it made her uncomfortable, if she didn’t feel the same. Did she? Could she? She’d just said Leslie was quite the package. Had that only been flirting, part of the seduction of their friends-with-benefits evening? But the words were coming, fast and frantic, up her throat, like a diver out of air, desperate to break the surface of the water. She couldn’t stop them. “I don’t want to be your—”

  “I’m sorry to interrupt,” Paula said from beside them, “but, Erica, your phone keeps vibrating. I thought it might be something important.” She held the clutch purse Erica had left at their seats.

  Erica pulled from Leslie’s arms, her expression alarmed. “Thank you.” She snatched the bag and retrieved her phone. “It’s Rachel,” she said, sweeping the screen. She put the phone to her ear as she left the dance floor, Leslie and Paula in tow. “Rachel, what’s wrong?” she said after a moment.

  In the pause, Leslie could hear Rachel talking in rapid-fire but couldn’t distinguish any words over the noise of the gathering. She waited, anxiety tightening every muscle in her body.

  Erica went pale. “What hospital?”

  Leslie’s stomach plummeted.

  “I’m leaving now.” Erica ended the call. “I have to go.” She looked around her, clearly panicked.

  “What happened?” Leslie asked, her own hysteria just below the surface.

  “It’s Siena. I have to go.” Erica’s voice rose. “I need your car.”

  “I’ll take you,” Leslie said, shifting into emergency mode. Erica wouldn’t be in any shape to drive, even if she’d had a car.

  “No. You have to stay…” Erica waved her hand around the room. “Just give me your keys.”

  Leslie was stunned. Did Erica really think… “Erica, I’m not staying. I’ll drive you. Let’s go.” She slipped her arm around Erica and ushered her out the door.

  What the hell happened?

  Chapter Seventeen

  Erica sat in the passenger’s seat, pushing her right foot into the floorboard, willing the car to go faster. How long had they been driving? It seemed an eternity since she’d spoken to Rachel. They’d hit every red light, gotten stuck behind every slow moving vehicle. It was Saturday night; the traffic was heavy. She gritted her teeth as they came to yet another stop. Leslie was saying something. “What?”

  “I was wondering if you could tell me what Rachel said.” Leslie glanced at her, taking her eyes off the cars in front of them for only a second. “I mean, if you’re not too—”

  “Of course. I’m sorry.” Erica tried to drag her thoughts back to the phone call. It’d been only five minutes—maybe ten at the most—but it felt like so much longer. “Um…she said…” Her voice trembled. “Siena fell down the stairs.” Erica drew in a steadying breath. She had to keep herself together. “She was unconscious, and Rachel called 9-1-1. An ambulance took her to the hospital.” A sob threatened to break loose on the final word. Absently, she felt Leslie’s fingers cover her fist that clenched her cell phone in her lap.

  “We’re almost there,” Leslie said.

  The reassurance in her voice did little to calm Erica. Her heart pounded. Her thoughts raced. Has the ambulance arrived yet? Is Siena there? She lifted her phone to call and find out.

  It vibrated in her hand, and Providence St. Joseph’s Medical Center appeared on the screen.

  “Hello. This is Erica Cooper,” Erica said in a rush. “You have my daughter, Siena, there?”

  “Yes, Ms. Cooper. My name’s Karen.” The woman spoke with equal rapidity. “Your daughter arrived about fifteen minutes ago, and she’s regained consciousness. She’s become hysterical—”

  “She has ASD.” Erica sickened at the thought of how scared Siena must be. “She’s autistic.”

  “Yes, the EMTs informed us of that. The doctor needs your consent to sedate her so we can treat her and so she doesn’t injure herself more seriously.”

  “If you hug her tightly or apply—”

  “We can’t apply deep touch pressure without knowing the extent of her injuries.” Karen’s tone was patient but firm. “Her arm is broken, and if she has any fractured ribs or internal bleeding, that kind of pressure could do more damage. We need to sedate her to get x-rays and run tests. Do we have your consent, Ms. Cooper?”

  The woman obviously knew what she was talking about, but it didn’t help. Erica gripped her phone more tightly and clenched her eyes shut. God, how she wished she were there. “Yes.” She snapped back to the question. “You have my consent. And I’ll be there soon.”

  “Does your daughter have any allergies to medications?” Karen asked.

  “No.” Erica bit her lower lip to hold back tears.

  “Okay, thank you. Tell one of the intake nurses when you arrive, and they’ll bring you to us.”

  “Thank you,” Erica said, but the line was already dead.

  “I’m going to drop you off at the ER entrance before I find a parking space,” Leslie said as she maneuvered the car into a driveway. “I’ll be right in.”

  Erica could only nod. She climbed out and hurried inside.

  “Erica!” Rachel jumped up from her chair across the room and rushed toward her. “Siena’s with the doctors. They wouldn’t let me ride in the ambulance, so I got here after they did. They wouldn’t tell me anything.”

  Erica scanned the large, crowded waiting area. She spotted three intake windows along the wall. She moved toward the long line feeding all of them, coaxing Rachel along with her, and stepped in behind the last person. “It’s okay.” She squeezed Rachel’s shoulders. “I talked with a nurse on the way here. Siena regained consciousness but then went into a meltdown. They sedated her.” Erica’s heartbeat quickened as it all became more real.

  Rachel covered her mouth
with her hand. “Oh, no.”

  Erica was only half aware of Rachel’s reaction. She watched as the woman and two children at the far window walked toward the seating area. How long is this going to take? Her anxiety rose, then a gentle touch on the small of her back soothed her. Leslie.

  “Everything going okay?” Leslie asked.

  Erica turned with an exasperated sigh. “I can’t just stand here and wait. Siena’s already back there. I need to be with her.”

  Leslie continued a soft caress of Erica’s back. She looked past her. “How are you doing, Rachel? Are you okay?”

  Rachel frowned. “I’ll be better when I know Siena’s okay.”

  Leslie nodded distractedly. “Excuse me a minute. Stay here and hold our place.” She moved away and approached a security guard.

  Erica instantly felt Leslie’s absence. She pressed her palms to her face and sucked in a deep breath. She held it, counting to ten, then blew it out. She had to calm down. She lowered her hands. “Rachel, what happened?”

  “I’m not sure,” Rachel said.

  “What do you mean, you’re not sure?” Erica’s tone was sharp. “You were there, weren’t you?” So much for calming down. “I’m sorry.”

  Rachel appeared unaffected—no more or less upset than she’d been when Erica had arrived. She seemed to understand. After all, she dealt with this kind of thing all the time. Well, maybe not this exact kind of thing, but with parents of children with ASD, who had cause for being what some might call overprotective.

  Erica bowed her head and massaged her temples, trying to ward off a headache. “I didn’t mean that.”

  “I know, dear.” Rachel patted Erica’s arm. She shook her head. “The evening went fine. We ate dinner. I gave Siena her bath and put her to bed. Then later, I was in the family room reading, and I caught sight of something out of the corner of my eye. I looked up and saw Siena about halfway down the stairs, and before I could even say anything, she was falling. I don’t know if she tripped, or if she was sleepwalking…I just don’t know. Gus started barking and licking her face, but she was unconscious.” Her voice quavered.

  The security guard Leslie had been talking to disappeared through the door from which nurses had been calling people, and Leslie returned.

  Erica shot her a questioning glance.

  “He’s going to see what he can do,” Leslie said quietly.

  Erica sighed with relief, then returned her attention to Rachel. She took Rachel’s hand and gripped it between both of hers. “It’s okay. She’s going to be okay.” She managed not to let her fear creep into her voice for Rachel’s sake—and for her own. She has to be okay.

  “Ms. Cooper?” A blond woman wearing maroon scrubs stood in the doorway beside the guard. “Siena Cooper’s mother?”

  “Right here,” Erica called. She started toward her.

  “Come with me,” the blonde said, holding the door open for her.

  Erica froze, realizing she couldn’t face this without Leslie. She turned back to her. The awareness made her uneasy—she handled things on her own—but she couldn’t stop the words that were already leaving her mouth. “Will you come, too?”

  Leslie’s expression shifted from complaisant to surprised. “Uh, yeah, sure.” She caught up to Erica.

  “Rachel, one of us will be out with an update as soon as we can.” Erica was familiar enough with Rachel to know she wouldn’t go anywhere until she knew Siena’s condition.

  Rachel gave her a shaky smile. “Thank you.”

  The second Erica stepped through the doorway, she gasped in anguish, and her gait faltered. The bright lights, the cacophony of clashing noises, all the strangers rushing around, the chaos. Any one of those things could send Siena into a meltdown—but all of them combined? Every cell in her body ached for Siena, for the sensory overload and panic she must have felt when she woke—never mind the pain she must have been in. Erica’s heart broke.

  “I’m Karen,” the nurse said. “I spoke with you on the phone.”

  “Yes,” was all Erica could choke out. She felt Leslie’s strong arm slip around her waist and was grateful for the support.

  They moved through the bedlam, evading medical personnel and sidestepping gurneys and equipment until they came to a curtain. Karen pulled it aside and ushered them into a small room.

  Siena lay still and pale on a bed, a man in navy scrubs beside her, writing in a chart.

  “This is Dr. Weston,” Karen said. “He’s been with Siena since she got here.”

  He turned and smiled.

  Erica extended her hand, but she couldn’t tear her gaze from Siena. “Erica Cooper,” she said. She felt his grip, then heard Leslie’s voice. She moved to Siena’s side and stroked her forehead. “I’m here, sweetie.” Finally being with her, able to see and touch her, eased some of Erica’s anxiety. She turned to the doctor. “What…” She couldn’t find the right words.

  Weston took charge. “What we know so far is that her left arm has a severe break, possibly two, and she did lose consciousness from her fall. The good news is that she did wake up right after she arrived. She’s only out now because of the sedation. Her pupils are reactive. We’ll know more after a CT. I’ve paged our orthopedic surgeon for a consult on her arm. X-ray’s backed up tonight, so we’re waiting.”

  “Thank you, Doctor,” Leslie said.

  “Yes,” Erica said through the fog of concern and relief swirling around her. “Thank you.”

  “I’ll be back to check on things, and a technician will be by with a portable machine for x-rays as soon as possible.” Dr. Weston pulled back the curtain to leave.

  “Can I go with her?” Erica asked quickly.

  Weston gave her a soft smile. “Of course.”

  She nodded her gratitude.

  “And if you fill out these forms while we’re waiting, I can get them and your insurance card up to intake, so you’ll be all set.” Karen set a clipboard on the bedside table as she looked from Erica to Leslie.

  “We’ll take care of it,” Leslie said.

  When they were alone, Leslie stepped behind Erica and ran her hands up her arms. “How are you doing?” she asked gently.

  Erica drew in a deep breath and leaned against her. She tipped her head back and closed her eyes. “I’ve been better.”

  Leslie kissed her temple and began an easy massage of her neck and shoulders. “I’m sure.”

  Erica relaxed under Leslie’s tender kneading as she gazed down at Siena. “She always looks so little when she’s asleep.” She took Siena’s hand. It was cold. She pressed it between her palms to warm the skin and became acutely aware of the connection from Siena to her to Leslie. They were linked somehow, cosmically bonded together. But that was ridiculous. There was no such thing, not for her. She did things on her own and was quite capable. Leslie had brought her to the hospital because they’d been together when she’d gotten the call. She’d come in here with her for support, like Becky would. Erica couldn’t get sucked into this. She released Siena’s hand and straightened. “I should get this paperwork taken care of.” She picked up the clipboard.

  “Sure,” Leslie said, stepping away.

  But when Erica gripped the attached pen and tried to write Siena’s name on the first line, she trembled.

  Leslie closed her hand over Erica’s, stilling it. “You want me to do it?”

  Erica sighed and nodded. She could let her help like Becky would.

  Leslie took the clipboard from her and began filling in the lines she knew—name, address, phone, emergency contact—while Erica returned her attention to Siena. The noise from the ER was loud and constant, but inside their little curtained room, the only sound and movement was the tapping of the pen tip against the metal clipboard. It grated on Erica’s nerves.

  Finally, Leslie flipped a page. “I need your insurance card, baby.”

  Baby. The word in Leslie’s warm alto tone eased Erica’s tension. Had Leslie meant to say it? She didn’t seem to be aware s
he had. Erica opened her purse and pulled out the small packet of cards.

  “Oh, I need that, too.” Leslie pointed to Erica’s driver’s license on top.

  Erica handed over the requested IDs.

  “There are a couple of places you need to sign,” Leslie said when she’d finished. “And some medical history I don’t know. Do you want to tell me the answers and I’ll fill them in?”

  Erica studied Leslie, the sincerity in her eyes, the caring in her expression. It tugged at her heart, tempted her to step into Leslie’s arms and let her hold her, give her comfort, keep her and Siena safe. She needed some time to herself to regain her equilibrium. “You know what you could do for me that I’d really appreciate?”

  “What’s that?”

  “Run home and bring me back a change of clothes.” Erica watched closely for Leslie’s reaction. She didn’t want to exclude her. Leslie cared too much about Siena to be able to sit at home and wait and wonder. She had to have some space, though, just a little. And she did want out of that dress. “This outfit looks great, but it isn’t very comfortable.”

  Leslie looked wary.

  “The truth is,” Erica said quickly, “I didn’t intend to be in it this long tonight.”

  Leslie gave her a knowing smile. “I can do that,” she said, clearly shifting gears. “Anything in particular you want?”

  “Something comfortable.” Erica entwined her fingers with Leslie’s. “Thank you.”

  Leslie tightened her grip on Erica’s hand. “It’ll give me a chance to check on Gus. God knows what he’s going through at home all alone.”

  “Rachel said he was barking and licking Siena’s face after the fall.” Erica pictured how frenzied he’d probably been.

  “Did she say where she left him?” Leslie asked. “If she put him outside or locked him in one of the houses?”

  Erica shook her head.

  “All right,” Leslie said, leaning in to kiss Erica’s cheek. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  “If they move us, I’ll text you.” There was so much more Erica wanted to say, so much more she should say, but her mind was too jumbled. The conflict between wanting Leslie’s arms wrapped around her, holding her tight, and feeling so afraid to let Leslie that close, to make herself that vulnerable was too confusing. All she could do was let her go, for now.