Doreen got up from the table and lovingly stroked Bailey’s hair as she passed. “I’m happy for you, child,” she said quietly.
Piper held her tightly until she cried herself out; several minutes after everyone had left them alone in the room. Finally, she pulled back and looked at her with such open and honest emotion that she felt the breath leave her body.
“I love you, Piper,” she whispered hoarsely.
“I know,” Piper said with a smile. “Come to bed, you must be tired. We can talk in the morning.”
Bailey nodded and accepted the offered hand that was extended to help her out of her chair. She reached for her cane upon standing and was led slowly through a suspiciously abandoned house and carefully up the stairs. Piper found Bailey’s bag already sitting on the bed and quickly walked over to set it on the floor so she could sit down.
As soon as she was seated, she pulled the necklace from under her shirt and slipped it gently over Bailey’s head. “This is yours,” Piper said with a kiss on her lips. “It broke my heart to see it off of you.”
“I’m sorry,” Bailey rasped. “I’m so sorry.”
“I love you, Bailey,” Piper said with another kiss taking a seat beside her on the bed.
“I love you, too.”
Piper sat quietly, absorbing the emotion coming off of her with a smile.
“Would you help me with my shoes, please?” Bailey asked quietly after a moment.
“Of course,” Piper said as she knelt before her and undid the laces on her boots. “How did you get them on?” she asked curiously.
“I had to have Josh help me,” Bailey admitted with a scowl.
“Poor baby,” Piper said, smiling at the image that produced as she pulled the shoes off.
“Want me to help you with your pants?”
“Turn the light off first,” Bailey said uncomfortably.
“I’ve seen you naked before,” Piper said with a puzzled look as Bailey cast her eyes down. “What’s wrong?”
“I…I have scars,” she said softly.
“Oh baby, that doesn’t mean anything to me,” Piper said sympathetically.
“Please, just turn off the light,” she said sadly.
“Alright, love,” Piper said with a nod and got up to turn off the light. She returned in the dark and slowly helped her out of her clothes, noticing a quiet hiss of pain as she pulled the shirt over her head.
“Did I hurt you?” Piper asked worriedly.
“No,” Bailey said with an effort.
“Liar,” Piper said, taking off her own clothes and crawling into the opposite side of the bed. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” Bailey said. “Let me hold you.”
Piper quickly snuggled into the waiting arms and Bailey felt the tears on her chest.
“I’m so glad to have you back,” Piper said hoarsely in the dark. “I thought I was going to die it hurt so bad.”
“I’m so sorry to have put you through that,” Bailey said gravely.
Piper just squeezed her as tightly as she dared.
V
It’s been so long since I’ve been home,
I’ve been gone, I’ve been gone for way too long.
—K. Rock
Piper opened her eyes in the morning with alarm, and upon feeling the soft skin held tightly in her arms, let out a long sigh of relief.
“Thank you, God,” she whispered with a sniffle.
She spent over an hour thoughtfully playing with the mass of unruly ebony hair that was spread out over a full quarter of the bed before she slipped out from under the covers to shrug into a pair of sweats and a T-shirt. Once dressed, she stood for a long time staring down at the sleeping form that had a hand curled between her breasts and an angry red area on her left shoulder the size of a baseball. She bent and placed a light kiss on the wounded shoulder and planted another gently on her forehead, tenderly sweeping the hair out of her face.
“I love you so much,” she whispered and placed another kiss to her forehead on her way out the room.
She made short work out of her trip to a freezing bathroom and happily bounced down the stairs on her way to the kitchen, where she found her mother and Doreen gossiping.
“Good morning,” Piper said cheerily, getting a chuckle out of both women.
“I see you found exactly what you needed,” Liz said with a grin.
“Yeah,” Piper admitted with a nod.
“You made her very happy last night, dear,” Doreen said. “Is she awake?”
“No, she’s still sleeping,” Piper admitted with a slight blush.
“What’s the blush for?” Liz asked helpfully.
“I can’t believe I did that in front of everyone,” Piper admitted, blushing darker.
“Don’t be embarrassed, the look on her face was worth every minute,” Doreen said happily.
“Yeah, it was,” Piper said wistfully.
“I think I’m going to look in on her,” Doreen announced, standing up from the table where she had been sitting.
“She’d like that,” Piper said with a smile and getting a smile in return as Doreen made her way out of the kitchen.
“How is she?” Liz asked after a moment. “She leans pretty hard on that cane.”
“She seems okay,” Piper said thinking. “She hasn’t talked about it.”
“Josh was in here earlier,” Liz said carefully. “He picked her up at the hospital and spoke to her doctor.”
“Is something wrong?” Piper asked worriedly.
“She’s okay now, sweetie,” Liz said quickly, “but she should still be in bed. She left the hospital over her doctor’s objections. You should make sure she takes it really easy the next few weeks. According to Josh, she had a pretty rough time of it.”
“What do you mean?” Piper asked agitated.
“He said they had to revive her on the operating table three different times and she was in a coma for almost a week,” Liz said slowly.
“My God,” Piper said, starting to cry.
“She’s fine now, honey,” Liz said enveloping her in a hug. “She’s one tough chick.”
Piper snickered into her mother’s shoulder. “Yeah, she is,” she agreed.
“Right now, she just needs people to care for her and to accept her.”
“She wouldn’t let me see her naked last night,” Piper said with a little blush. “She says she has scars.”
“I’m sure she does, Piper,” Liz said gently. “When you see them, you just act like they’re not there.”
“I will,” Piper said. “I’m just so glad to have her back.”
“I know you are, dear,” Liz said, releasing her embrace. “She fought very hard to come back to you.”
Piper sniffled. “I know, I feel bad I ever doubted her.”
“Hush,” Liz chided. “I’m in a good mood, I’ll fix you breakfast.”
“Wow, thanks,” Piper said sarcastically, “but I’ll wait for Bailey.”
“Why don’t I fix something and you can take it up to her when Doreen comes back,” Liz suggested.
“Sounds like a plan.” Piper smiled.
———
Doreen entered the bedroom quietly and noticed her daughter lying on her side with her back to the door; her hair billowed out on the mattress behind her leaving her naked back exposed. She stepped lightly over to the bed and sat down gingerly, letting her eyes take in the beauty of her sleeping child. Her face turned to a sad scowl as she noticed the faint scars on the exposed back and the inflamed skin of the wound to her shoulder.
“Oh, baby,” she whispered, reaching out and tenderly running a finger over the scars.
“Mum?” Bailey said sleepily not turning around.
“Yes, dear.”
“I’m sorry,” Bailey said quietly.
“For what, child?”
“For everything.”
“You’ve nothing to be sorry for,” Doreen chided.
“I’m sorry I didn’t turn o
ut to be a better daughter,” Bailey whispered.
“Child, I don’t have the words to tell you how proud I am of you,” Doreen said sincerely.
“Do you mean that?” Bailey asked uncertainly.
“Of course I do,” Doreen said. “I can’t imagine how you’ve led the life you have without going mad or becoming a monster. I look at you and I see an exquisitely beautiful woman that is so sweet it makes my heart swell with pride,” she felt the back under her hand hitch. “It’s alright to cry, sweetheart. I get the feeling it’s something you haven’t let yourself do until very recently.”
Bailey’s hand came up to wipe at her eyes. “Do you love me?” she asked with difficulty.
Doreen bit back a sob. “Always have, always will.”
“I love you, too,” Bailey managed before she broke.
Doreen gathered her wayward daughter in her arms, savoring the sensation of holding her child and marveling at the complexity of the woman in her embrace. As fragile as a house of cards yet capable of destruction on a grand scale, seemingly immune to physical pain yet terribly vulnerable to matters of the heart. Shaking her head, she held her gently and hummed comfortingly until the tears subsided.
“You’ve a lot of people here that care about you,” Doreen whispered after a moment, stroking Bailey’s hair. “Liz was beside herself when Piper told her what happened. She loves you like you were one of her own.”
“Really?” Bailey asked softly.
“Yes, honey,” Doreen said, frowning at the insecurity her daughter exhibited. “You seem to be the only one who doesn’t care for you.”
“I know what I’ve done,” Bailey whispered.
“There should be no guilt in surviving, child,” Doreen admonished. “There’s a little redhead downstairs so happy to have you back, she’s ready to wet herself. She doesn’t give a rat’s ass what you’ve done, she sees who you are and she loves you for it. As do I.”
“I love her, too.”
“I know you do,” Doreen said with a smile. “She was devastated until you showed up yesterday. She had a very hard time. I don’t think she would’ve ever gotten over it.”
“I’m so sorry,” Bailey said regretfully. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“I know, so does she,” Doreen said her smile growing. “She was very difficult early on, I had to whack her a couple of times to get her on the straight and narrow.”
Bailey chuckled. “Is that where she learned that?” she asked, bringing a hand up to rub her cheek.
“Probably,” Doreen said with a chuckle of her own. “Can I see the ring she gave you yesterday?”
Bailey brought the sheet up to cover herself and rolled over on to her back, sitting up to present her mother with the ring.
“It’s beautiful,” Doreen said, holding Bailey’s hand, not missing the gentle smile or the happy spark in her daughter’s eyes. “Do you have one for her?”
“Not yet,” Bailey said sorrowfully. “I wish I did.”
“Maybe I can help you with that,” Doreen said and grinning slyly she dug in the pocket of her sweater to produce a ring that she placed into Bailey’s palm.
“Where did you get this?” Bailey said her eyes widening.
“It was your grandmother’s,” Doreen said. “I think she would’ve wanted my daughter to have it.”
“Really?” Bailey whispered.
“Your grandfather saved for over three years to buy that for her.”
“It’s lovely,” Bailey said, examining the ring clustered with diamonds. “Are you sure, Mum?”
“Very,” Doreen said with a happy nod. “I always wanted another daughter.”
“Thanks,” Bailey said shyly.
“My pleasure, child,” Doreen said, leaning forward and placing a kiss on her forehead. “That Piper is a handful, you’d better keep her happy.”
“I’ll do my best,” Bailey said with an amused smile.
“Why don’t you get up and around, Piper was talking the other day about having to go back to Atlanta soon,” Doreen said. “We need to make some plans.”
“Okay,” Bailey said. “We’ll talk about it in a bit, if that’s alright?”
“Of course it is,” Doreen said, standing from the bed. “I’ll see you shortly then,” she added on her way to the door.
“Mum?” Bailey said before she left.
“Yes?” Doreen said turning in the doorway.
“Thanks,” Bailey said quietly. “For everything,” she added studying the sheet around her chest.
“I love you, Bailey,” Doreen said with a smile and shut the door behind her.
———
Piper arrived with breakfast a few moments later and happily set the tray in Bailey’s lap, who was still sitting up in bed.
“Hey there,” Piper said cheerfully.
“Hey,” Bailey said with a grin.
“How ya feeling?” Piper asked, handing her some silverware.
“Okay,” Bailey said, digging into the omelet before her.
“Don’t take this personally,” Piper warned with a grin, “but you stink.”
“Gee, thanks,” Bailey said dryly.
“You need a shower,” Piper announced.
“I get the hint already,” Bailey said with narrowed eyes. “Can I eat first?”
“If you must,” Piper said airily.
“I must.”
“Bailey,” Piper said suddenly serious, “what do you want to do now?”
“Whatever makes you happy,” Bailey said sincerely.
“I mean about the business and your family,” Piper said.
“It’s up to you,” Bailey said. “I have everything I need in life sitting in this room.”
“You’re such a mushball,” Piper said smiling brightly.
“We can do whatever you want, Piper,” Bailey said, smiling back at her. “We can go back to Atlanta, we can sell the company, or we can hire a replacement for you. It’s up to you.”
“What about everyone else?” Piper asked.
“As far as my family is concerned, now that they can, they’re free to do as they wish. As for me, I’ll do anything or go anywhere you want.”
“Would you want to live here?” Piper asked curiously.
“I want what you want, Piper.”
“Gosh, you’re easy to get along with,” She smiled.
“I don’t think anyone has ever accused me of that before.”
“I asked Martin to come to work for C-Corp,” Piper said.
“Good choice,” Bailey nodded.
“Can I think about this for a bit?” Piper asked.
“Sure.”
“Would you like to live here and maybe buy or build a house with me?” Piper asked shyly.
“I want to be with you forever, Piper,” Bailey said seriously, polishing off the last of her omelet.
“I want that, too,” Piper said with a smile. “You must have been hungry, you gonna take that shower now?”
“Uhm…” Bailey started uncertainly. “I can’t stand in the shower without help or my cane. I’ll need to take a bath I think.”
“That’s fine,” Piper said worriedly. “Would you like help?”
Bailey studied the empty plate on her lap.
“What’s wrong?” Piper asked gently.
“I don’t want you to see me,” Bailey admitted in a whisper.
“That’s ridiculous,” Piper admonished tenderly. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?”
Bailey fidgeted with her fork. “That may have been true before,” she said so quietly that Piper had trouble hearing her.
“It’s still true, love,” Piper said honestly, taking the tray off Bailey’s lap. “Let me help you,” she added, rising from the bed and digging a robe out of her closet for Bailey to wear.
“Here put this on,” Piper said collecting the tray and putting it on the dresser so she had a moment to cover herself. She turned in time to see her tying the sash around her waist and sitting on th
e end of the bed.
“Let me go start some water for you, I’ll be back in a minute,” Piper said walking over to peck her on the cheek.
“Okay,” Bailey said quietly and waited worriedly until she returned a few minutes later.
“Ready?” Piper asked, entering the room and extending a hand to help her to her feet.
She grabbed her cane and let her lead her to the bathroom where upon entering, Piper went over to sit on the edge of the tub, testing the temperature of the water and swirling her hand around in the bubbles until it stopped filling.
“Piper…” Bailey began uncertainly.
“Hush,” Piper interrupted. “You’re being silly. I would love you if you lost your arms and legs,” she said, taking off her own clothes in an attempt to put Bailey more at ease.
“Ready?” Piper asked. “I’ll help you get in.”
“Piper…” Bailey started again worriedly but Piper closed the distance between them and silenced her with a kiss.
“Come on, sweetie, you have nothing to worry about,” she said softly and Bailey finally brought a hand up to undo the sash of her robe; shrugging her shoulders one at a time until the robe fell to the floor, happy that her hair covered her front.
“Could you…uhm…” Bailey said uncomfortably.
Piper giggled. “Did Josh help with that part too?”
“No!” Bailey said horrified and scowled when Piper started to laugh.
Piper chuckled again and knelt to help her out of her underpants, feeling her heart skip a beat upon sighting the livid red crease just above and to the side of her right knee.
“How did you get dressed then?” Piper asked curiously.
“Very carefully,” Bailey said, scowling at the humor still evident in Piper’s voice. “I was so exhausted by the time I was finally done, I had to ask Josh to come in and help me with my shoes and socks.”
“Ahhh,” Piper said trying to hide her smile and taking Bailey’s hand gingerly. “This old tub is huge, both of us can fit in here quite comfortably,” she added, leading her over and taking her weight as she lifted a leg over the side and into the water. “Okay?” she asked in concern as she stepped over the side herself, holding her upright.
“Yeah,” Bailey said uncomfortably and grimaced a little as she bent to sit in the water between Piper’s legs.
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