Cake

by Nicole Reed

  His sigh of gratitude travels across the distance. “God, I’m starting to realize how much I lo...” his voice fades out as the line completely becomes static.

  Personally, I’m glad the phone died, because I may have told him to take his sisterly love and shove it where the sun doesn’t shine. What did I just get myself deeper into? I understand what Trent meant though. Dray has serious commitment issues including not letting anyone stay overnight. Most women who date him know it before getting involved with him, but every once in a while, it will amaze me when I hear of someone getting upset because Dray kicked them out immediately after sex. I mean really, you didn’t know it before? I call bullshit.

  So now, at this very moment, everyone is more than likely hearing that I’m not only dating Dray Savage, but we are engaged and I’m having his illegitimate child. And to make matters worse, I’m now going to move in with him and try to prove that the rumors are not true. I’m totally fucked.

  I need to take back control of my life. It’s done. I’ve made my promises and no turning back. Walking down to the nurses’ station, I see the one who first came into his room. “I need to run a few errands. When Dray wakes back up, will you please tell him I’ll be back shortly.”

  She smiles and nods back to me.

  Walking towards the elevator, I start dialing my friends and family to impart to them my good news. Dear Lord.

  Returning to the hospital later that evening, I feel slightly better as I park my car. Of course, my parents hadn’t heard the latest news once I reached them. Spending the better part of an hour, I explain the predicament that I found myself in earlier regarding Dray. My mother thought it is funny, my father not so much. He’s met Dray several times when I invited Trent to a family get together in the past, and for some odd reason, Dray tagged along. To aggravate me I’m sure. My dad actually likes him and especially loves having someone who he can talk football to, but my dad knows Dray’s reputation of being a ladies man. Everyone does.

  So, needless to say, he doesn’t like the thought of me spending anytime with Dray. I tried to assure him that I agree one hundred and ten percent; however, he makes a comment that eerily reminds me of what Mary Grace stated earlier. He said, “He’s never been able to take his eyes off of you.” Not having time to set the story straight with him, I just let it go. I’m sure the only time Dray’s eyes have been on me is preparing for verbal target practice.

  Stepping out of the car, my ringtone blares as I reach into my blue jeans pocket that I changed into at home. Paired with a light-weight pink cardigan and shell, I’m still rocking my casual attire. Looking down at the screen, I roll my eyes seeing that Mads is finally calling me back. She was working when I tried to reach her earlier.

  “Why in the hell does my phone have over twenty texts telling my best friend is not only secretly dating Satan, but also having Rosemary’s Baby?” Her sarcasm bleeds through the phone.

  Groaning, I brace myself for the verbal tirade coming to me as I lean against my car, which surprises me when I hear her peals of laughter instead.

  “How did this shit storm brew up, girl? Wait, wait. Listen to this text from Donnie Sanders’s girlfriend, “I JUST HEARD YOUR GIRL IS UP THE DUFF BY THE BIG BAD BUFF. She’s a fucking idiot.”

  “How bad is it?” I ask, really not wanting to know.

  “Oh, it’s bad. One of the football players says he witnessed your confession to Jason Silas about your elicit love affair with Dray and subsequent love child, which is why he is now claiming you must have been cheating when you were with him.”

  “I was never in a relationship with Jason, you know that. I thought he understood the term hook-up. And for the record, that is not how it went down. I needed to get back to make sure that Dray was okay. When I was standing in the waiting room, I overheard the doctor asking for Dray’s family, and I panicked thinking something was wrong.” My voice trails off when I realize how dumb the situation sounds.

  “Listen, I wouldn’t worry considering how much I, and pretty much everyone in our group, know how much you hate Dray the Dick. Honestly, I find the entire situation hilarious. Why the hell were you even there? I figured you’d be one of the first to wheel his invalid ass out the window while you had the chance.”

  Silence, as my mind goes back to the incident when I was rubbing his head this morning and the look in his eyes when he saw me in his hospital room. Silence is something Mads, nor I, have ever experienced whenever we talk on the phone.

  “Kylie. Leigh. Lord. Start talking now!” she shouts through the phone.

  “Trent called...”

  “I should have known. I swear I don’t know which one is the biggest asshole out of the two. The one that treats you like shit or the one that treats you like shit? Oh wait, they both do.” Letting out a shriek she asks, “Let me guess. Trent needed you to come take care of Dray because he can’t crawl out of his hole in the ground, and he knew you would do his bidding once again. Right? Trent says jump, and you don’t even ask how high, you just start bouncing.”

  “Mads,” I threaten, because I don’t need to hear this same argument again.

  “When are you going to wake up and realize that he uses you? You’re his bitch, and you don’t even get the privilege of his last name.”

  “I can’t do this right now, Mads. Can you please just try and quell the rumors. Please?”

  “What are you doing, Kylie?” she asks, lowering her voice. “Dray has always treated you horribly. You don’t owe Trent to help him out, and you sure as hell don’t owe Dray.”

  The day must finally be wearing me down because I’m tired of talking about this. Lowering my voice, I say, “I’ll call you later. Okay?” Not giving her anytime for a reply, I click the end button. I love Mads, but she will never understand how I feel about Trent.

  Pushing away from the car, I place my phone back on vibrate and throw it in my purse. Entering the busy hospital, I notice that much of the media has left and all of Dray’s wannabe hookers have also. I stop by the front to retrieve my pass to see Dray. After waiting for clearance, I finally receive my badge and head upstairs.

  Stepping off the elevator, I see that the only security now is in front of Dray’s door. Taking a deep breath, I force myself to walk that way and flash my pass towards the officer. As I walk in, I immediately notice that most of the machines have been removed and Dray is sitting up in bed looking out the window.

  Slowly, as he turns his head towards me, I note the wave of pain that mark his face just from that small movement. My heart pinches. God, he’s beautiful. Why haven’t I ever recognized that? He looks so much younger sitting there.

  “I thought I had dreamed you earlier.” A slight grin raises on each side of his wide mouth, but his eyes belie the pain that he is in.

  I start to step forward only to stop. Again, his peaceful demeanor almost demolishes me. I’ve become accustom to his hostile attitude. I’m afraid to trust this Dray, with his dark soulful eyes and soft lips. Damn, here I go again.

  “Did you come to check on me again, Kylie? Hoping that I was taking my last breath, I bet,” he says laughingly.

  Glancing into those eyes of his, I fall for a second, letting the honest answer that comes to me out, “No. Never.”

  I can tell my answer surprises him as much as it does me. I’ve wished him dead a million times to his face, but I never really knew that I didn’t mean it until this moment.

  “You can come closer. I promise not to bite.” His voice, hoarse from either the accident or pain, sounds sexy, plus there is a veritable quality to it that I’m not used to.

  Warning bells sound all through my mind. “I’m okay.” I grip the handles of my purse like a lifeline. “Did the doctor explain about needing care once you leave the hospital?”

  I see him suck in his cheekbones, a sure sign that he is pissed. I know him all too well. A small shake of his head causes him to let out a hiss of pain.

  “I’ll be fine by myself. I’m not let
ting some stranger stay in my apartment.”

  Walking several steps closer, I answer him in a whisper, “Dray, you can’t go home alone.”

  “I don’t give a damn what the doctor says. I’ll take my chances.”

  “And ruin your career or possibly go to sleep and never wake up?” I reach the foot of his bed, laying my bag down.

  His eyes turn to me once again, “Why are you really here?”

  I don’t know why, but at that moment I know what he expects me to say. He is waiting for me to admit that Trent sent me. Something within me also knows that isn’t what he wants to hear. Any other time, I would have loved to admit that I am not here for him, to cut him deeper, and let him know he means that little to me, but right now, at this moment in time, it’s not the truth.

  “Answer me, Kylie.”

  “You,” I breathily answer. “I am worried about you.”

  I watch his eyes go liquid brown and emotions play across his face. “Come here.” His voice is low, but commanding.

  This is the Dray that I know, but for once, it doesn’t feel like a battle between us. It feels like a warm caress reaching inside of me and any option of disobeying him is not a choice. I’m totally undone. Moving around to the side of his bed, I step forward. My eyes never leave his as I come to stand beside him. His sitting position actually makes us the same height, and our eyes seem to be at the same level. What am I doing? What am I doing? My heart pounds within my chest.

  He reaches toward me with one hand, letting his fingers caress the side of my face. The instant they connect against my skin, every fiber of my being awakens. The roughened pad of his fingertip traces my bottom lip, and my very breath is held prisoner within me. The fire shining from within him burns me to my core, so I close my eyes. This can’t be happening.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt, but we need to check his vital signs and give him his medicine,” the nurse says from the doorway.

  Jerking away from his touch, my eyes open to his, watching the flame stoke higher.

  He answers the nurse, never turning away from me, “Get out.” He commands attention even with a whisper.

  “Sorry, while you are in the hospital, you are on a schedule for mandatory patient check-ins. It should only take a few minutes.”

  Her words wake me from my stupor, and finally, my senses return. I look from her to him and only speak, when I see the familiar look on Dray’s face when he’s about to ream someone a new one. “No, that is fine. Maybe you can explain what I need to do to nurse him back once he goes home?” I don’t look at Dray when I ask her the question, but I can feel his eyes on me.

  “You’ll just need to check on him every couple of hours and make sure he gets plenty of rest,” she smiles and answers while dispensing medication into his I.V. and checking his blood-pressure. Finishing, she turns toward Dray and says before she exits, “You’ll get so much more rest when you get home, Mr. Savage.”

  Deciding that it is time for my exit, I walk to the end of his bed, picking up my purse, before turning to look back at him.

  “What did you mean by that, Kylie?”

  “You said you wouldn’t let anyone take care of you. Well, I’m not giving you a choice. I’ll be here to take you home, and I’ll stay for two weeks to make sure you make a full recovery. We’ve stayed at the lake house with Trent together and didn’t kill each other, so I’m sure we can get through this.”

  “So you have talked with Trent?” His voice is still quiet from the pain, but his tone is harsh. “Is that it then? He asked you to come and take care of me?”

  Not that I have never lied in my lifetime, but generally, I’m not someone who tells the untruth. I value honesty in all of its forms and seek that trait in others, but looking at Dray’s face, every sense I possess screams at me to not tell him about Trent. Something tells me that it’s not what he wants to hear, and something scares me that it’s not all true anymore for me.

  “Yes, he called me worried and wanted to know what I knew about your condition,” I answer watching his face fall, “but I’m here because I am scared about what happened to you. Seeing you like this kills me inside.” My words echo through the room.

  A small smile begins at the corners of his mouth.

  “I mean if anyone is going to get to kill you off, it’s going to be me.” I add, winking, needing to add some levity to the situation.

  Puckering his lips up, he nods gently, “Okay, I guess I can let you nurse me back to health.”

  Knowing that this is my time to escape, I nod and turn to walk out of the room.

  “Kylie?”

  Turning my head, I answer, “Yeah?”

  “Thanks. I... Thank you,” he says from his bed. A pain shoots through my heart as he looks like a lost little boy lying there.

  “I’ll be back in the morning.”

  Nodding, he never takes his eyes off me as I turn to leave. Walking down the hospital corridors, I can’t think about what is happening. I just have to get through the next couple of weeks without losing my sanity or worse, something I never thought was in danger when it came to Dray. My heart.

  Dray didn’t leave the hospital until two days later due to severe headaches. I spent the entire time getting everything in line with my business and dodging the media wanting to confirm mine and Dray’s non-existent relationship. Decadent Darling did more business in those few days than the past month. Leo believes everyone was trying to catch any tidbit of gossip they could find.

  An hour before I’m to meet him at the hospital, I receive a text message that his team is sending a car to deliver him home to his downtown loft. Minutes later, I answer my phone when I notice my aunt calling.

  “So am I buying pink or blue for the baby shower?”

  I’ve become accustom to these funny quips that people love to throw at me.

  “Make it green for the Martian baby I’m going to pop out.”

  “Baby girl, you have provided enough gossip for us old southern biddies to last a lifetime. You wouldn’t believe these chatter-bugs. Of course, most of them are green with envy, so let them be.”

  “I’m sorry that you have to listen to all of this.”

  “Child, I’ve told you for years that you need some excitement. Seems to me, Mr. Savage could definitely provide enough of that for you.”

  Groaning, I reply, “It’s not like that.” I mean that also. Whatever happened in the hospital was pure craziness, and I bet Dray doesn’t even remember it. I’m sure it was the pain meds for him, and I’ve had two nights of electrical loving, courtesy of B.O.B.

  “We shall see. Okay, I’ve got to check on my neighbor Mrs. Willis. Lately, she’s been higher than a Georgia pine and crazier than an old coot. Kisses, Kylie.”

  “Kisses, Aunt Leigh.”

  Clicking my phone off, I return to packing my overnight bag for Dray’s. Plenty of t-shirts, gym shorts, and yoga pants. Nothing lacy, silky, or see through allowed. Keeping it simple and not sexy. I can’t believe that this is something that I’m having to talk myself through in context with Dray. I’ve officially lost my mind.

  I lift my head when I hear my door open and Mads’s voice shouts, “Hey ho, I’m home.”

  Having not spoken to her since our phone conversation, I’m surprised to see her now. I did text her to give her my plans for staying with Dray, but never heard back, which wasn’t a surprise.

  “Back here,” I answer loudly over Jonsie’s barking

  “Listening to Psy makes me want to hump all Asian men,” she casually comments, sitting on my bed. Looking at my face, she replies, “Don’t ask. It’s that Gentleman song.”

  “What are you doing here, Madison?”

  “I’m sorry. Okay? I can’t help how I feel about Trent and Dray. They both drive me fucking insane when it comes to how they treat you.”

  I start to interrupt her when she holds her hands up for me to stop.

  “No, let me finish. You seem to forget that I’ve been right along with you thes
e past seven years, hanging with both of these guys, and I totally get being worried over Dray. I will never admit it to another living being, but there was a moment when I had a slight feeling of anxiousness over whether or not Dray was okay. I mean, without him, the Eagles have a slim chance of making it to the playoffs, and you know how much I love my football.”

  Grabbing her hands and squeezing them, I pull her to me and we both laugh as we hug.

  “Nothing to be sorry about. I just...I have to do this.”

  Shaking her head, she pulls away from me, “Trent is such a little bitch.”

  “Mads,” I say warningly.

  “Peace, love, and chicken grease,” she says, holding up her hand indicating a peace sign. “Call me when you need to hide the body because Dray is going to drive you to drink or to kill the mother-fucker.” Walking out of the room, she turns back one last time, “Love ya, Kylie.”