by Solveig Yrsa
“I swear to god if there is someone in my place with her,” Spencer growled as the elevator dinged on his floor. He used his key to open the door, and instantly flew in a fit of rage. There on his couch was Rachel and another man, completely nude. Rachel started screaming bloody murder as Spencer went after the man. He got one punch in before the man took off running. Spencer then turned his attention back to the now sobbing Rachel, who was begging him to calm down.
Spencer threw her out and told her to never call him again. He had spent the next week destroying both his apartment and his liver. He thought he would be happy that they broke up, but he wasn’t. She had another boyfriend and was yelling at him because he hadn’t got her an engagement ring. She told him she was going to make Layla out to be a home wrecker, all those things, and she was screwing someone else. He felt cheated and used and honestly, he just wanted to be alone. Jensen and his mom were the only two who knew what had happened, and he told them not to breathe a word. He walked by the broken mirror and looked at himself. His hair was a mess, he hadn’t shaved in a week, his gray shirt was stained, and his green eyes were bloodshot. He jumped when he heard his phone.
He walked over to where it was lying on the counter and saw it was his mother. Crap, I don’t want another pep talk. He groaned but answered it. “Hello,” he said in a gruff voice.
“S…Spencer?”
His eyes widened. “Layla? Why do you have my mom’s phone?” He heard Layla let out a sob.
“Spencer, get to the hospital, I…I don’t know what to do, she fell and hit her head.”
Spencer’s heart sank; he grabbed his keys and ran out the door. “Listen to me, you stay with her until I get there. I don’t care what they tell you, do not leave her alone, and do not let them give her morphine, she’s allergic.”
Layla started shaking, she was so nervous. “Sh…She’s allergic to morphine, don’t give her any please,” she told the paramedic in a small voice, before hanging up with Spencer. Tears continued to run down her cheeks as she held Catherine’s hand tightly.
Spencer whipped into the hospital and threw his keys at the valet before running in. He ran to the desk, and the check-in clerk recognized him. “She’s around back, Mr. Williams. Go through the doors trauma 3.”
He ran into the back of the ER and looked for the trauma rooms. It didn’t take him long before he found them, thanks to Layla’s loud voice.
“And I said I’m not leaving her until Spencer arrives, now get off of me!”
Spencer watched as an orderly had his arms around Layla while trying to remove her from the room. “Hey!” Spencer yelled. “Let her go.”
“Sir, who are you?”
He walked up and looked at the orderly and the doctor. “I’m Catherine’s son. Now let her go.”
“Well, as I explained to this young lady,” the doctor sighed while walking out of the room, obviously frustrated. “Only family is permitted back here.”
“And what’s your point? She’s my wife, that’s her mother-in-law.” Layla squeaked when Spencer said that.
“Well, had Mrs. Williams simply stated that, there wouldn’t have been a problem.”
“Enough,” Spencer snapped. “I want to know what’s going on with my mother.”
The doctor cleared his throat. “We are running some tests, we believe she had a fainting spell, and when she fell, she hit her head on her vanity table, at least that is what your wife thinks. She is asleep right now, she was up temporarily, there doesn’t appear to be any damage other than her needing a few stitches. We are giving her some pain meds…”
“Not morphine,” Layla muttered as she continued to glare at the doctor.
The doctor sighed, “Yesss… not morphine. You made it very clear that she was allergic to morphine. Anyway, we will want to keep her a couple days just for observation and to ensure that her levels come back fine. She’ll be getting moved upstairs as soon as her bed is ready. If you need anything else…” he paused and looked at Layla for a minute before looking back at Spencer. “Please call a nurse, with the call button. Not dragging me out of a room and shoving me back in here.”
Spencer couldn’t help but smile as the doctor turned and left. He looked down at Layla, who huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Well, you should’ve been in here taking care of the most important patient you have!” She turned to look at Spencer. “Spencer, can you believe—” She was cut off by Spencer wrapping his arms around her tightly and pulling her into a hug. She blushed as she felt her heart rate speed up.
“Thank you for taking care of her,” Spencer whispered into her hair.
She felt her knees go weak as she felt his hot breath on her neck. She had to stop this. Placing her hands on his chest, she pushed him back gently. It was then that she really looked at him. “Spencer, what happened to you?”
He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I guess I sort of look like a hobo, don’t I? Oh sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you.”
She shrugged. “It’s fine, you look pretty grungy.”
Spencer looked at her. She had on blue sneakers, jeans, and white polo top. He looked at how her top was covered in blood.
She looked down at what Spencer was looking at. “Yeah, I was trying to stop the bleeding while waiting for the paramedics and trying to remember the numbers to dial. It’s been a stressful couple of hours,” she laughed softly.
“You knew who to call?”
She nodded as they walked into Catherine's room. “Yeah, my tutor, Ms. Baker, I told her I wanted to know what I needed to so I could help Catherine if something happened. It seemed like learning that stuff would be the best to learn first.”
He smiled; he couldn’t believe how caring she was. “Why don’t you go home to rest and change, I’ll call John to come get you.”
She put her hand on top of Spencer’s, stopping him. “I’m staying here, I want to make sure she’s okay, and I want to make sure you’re okay too.”
Spencer laughed softly, and then looked up as a nurse came in. “Alright, I’m here to move you guys to your private room upstairs.” They followed the nurse that wheeled Catherine’s bed to the elevator and to her room. Once situated and the nurse had Catherine hooked back up, she took her leave.
Sighing, Spencer walked over to sit on the couch in the room, Layla sat next to him. “So, are you okay?” she asked, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.
“Honestly? I don’t know,” he said while resting his head on the couch. “Rachel was with another man in my apartment.” He looked over at Layla and shook his head. “They were having sex.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh no, so what… are you guys…?”
“I dumped her and kicked her out,” he interrupted. “But like, I don’t know, I wasn’t in love with Rachel, I thought I was for a long time, but once we actually got together, I just…” He rubbed his face while trying to come up with the right words.
“You were in love with the idea of her, not her.”
He looked at Layla and raised a brow. “Yeah, how did you know?”
She shrugged. “I’ve become very worldly since you left. I can identify my ABC’s, read most three-letter words, and Sam has been living there, and apparently it’s extremely important to her that we watch every single romantic comedy there is.”
Spencer busted out laughing. “Yes, apparently you have grown quite a bit in this short week.”
“I’m eating food too.” She smiled.
“Wow! So now I get to take you out for actual food, huh?”
She laughed. “Yeah right, after I learn to read the menus.”
Spencer went to respond, but his mother groaned as she stirred. They both went to her bedside as she opened her eyes. She looked at the two. “What’s going on?” she asked in a weak voice.
Spencer smiled. “You’re in the hospital, in your room, how are you feeling?”
Catherine gave her son a small smile. “I’m okay, just exhausted.”
She looked over at Layla, grabbing her hand and squeezed it. “Thank you, Layla, for saving me,” she mumbled before closing her eyes again.
Once she fell asleep, Layla removed her hand and looked at Spencer. “You know, I think I’m going to go back to the house to change, and I could grab you a change of clothes while I’m there.”
Spencer nodded. “Okay. I’ll call John, but if you get there and decide you’d rather stay home, it’s fine.”
She shook her head as they headed to the elevator to wait outside for her driver. “No, I’ll go get you some clothes. Are you hungry? Do you want some food?”
He chuckled as he reached in his pocket and pulled out his wallet, handing it to her. “Sure, go get whatever you want.”
She raised a brow at the wallet. “Well, John will help me, I guess,” she mumbled as they headed to the entrance.
Shortly after going outside, a black range rover pulled up, and out came John. John Bradshaw was his name, he was a retired military special ops; he was about five-foot-eleven and bulky, with a shaved head that was typically covered by his hat. John was a man of few words, but there were few people that Spencer trusted more than him. He was in his fifties and had been with the family since before Spencer could remember. He was their driver now, but had been Catherine’s closest bodyguard before she fell ill.
John opened the door to the Rover and waited for Layla to climb in. “She’s going to grab some stuff and then she’ll need a ride back here,” Spencer said while patting John’s shoulder.
“Yes, sir.” John nodded before closing the door and getting back in the driver's seat.
Once Layla got home, she went to her room and picked out some clothes before heading to the shower. She stepped in once the water warmed up, and sighed. Spencer looked so rough he was almost unrecognizable. She was angry at how badly Rachel hurt him, but she couldn’t help but be a little happy that they’d broken up. Her fingers subconsciously ran over her necklace before she shook her head. What was she thinking? Spencer just broke up with his girlfriend, and she had no idea how to be with someone. What if she messed it up? If they broke up, what would happen?
***
Spencer scrolled through his phone at all the missed calls and texts he had from Rachel. He rolled his eyes and deleted the text thread. There was nothing to discuss. He was tired of wasting his time on her. He looked over at his mother, who apparently had woken up and was quietly staring at him.
“You know I get creeped out when you do that,” he said, and she smiled.
“You looked so serious, I didn’t want to interrupt you,” she replied softly as she sat up.
As he sat his phone down, he shrugged. “Just deleting Rachel’s hundreds of texts.” There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. “What do you think about Layla?”
Catherine raised a brow. “What do you mean?”
He ran his hand through his messier than usual hair; he needed to go get his hair cut after his mom was better. “Uhm, you know, do you think she’s a good fit?”
Catherine gave him a soft smile. “Spencer my darling, I adore Layla. I think she is very caring, she’s funny, and her heart is too big for her own good. But do I think you should run off and ask her to go out with you? No, I think that would be a mistake.”
Spencer’s eyes widened. He honestly hadn’t expected his mother to not approve. “She’s too good for me, isn’t she?” he mumbled as he glared at the floor, he felt as though she was, but he didn’t want to admit it.
“Spencer, you are my son, I would never say that, but even if you weren’t, I would not say that she is too good for you. You are far too hard on yourself, you are a wonderful man, but you both need time to figure your lives out. You’ve spent nearly four years trying to get Rachel, and had you spent any of that time actually getting to know the real her, I think you would’ve stopped very quickly. And Layla is going through so much right now, I think what you both need is someone that you can rely on no matter what, so if it were me, I wouldn’t pursue her romantically right now. Just be her friend and, when life settles down, then you two can decide what you want to be.”
He rubbed his hands as he listened to his mother. She of course made sense, but that didn’t mean he wanted to listen to it. What if he didn’t act and someone else did?
***
Layla sighed in frustration as she tried to put her wet hair up in a bun, it turned into a mess. “Screw it, it’s the best I can do,” she muttered as she looked at herself in the mirror. She wore a pair of blue skinny jeans; a black v cut camisole, and a red and black plaid shirt. “I think this looks okay.” She nodded.
At that moment, she saw a figure walk by her bedroom door. “Landon?” she called out.
Seconds later, he appeared in her doorframe. “You called, my sweet?” he smirked as he looked her up and down.
“Does this outfit look okay?” she asked, turning to face him.
He walked over to her and looked her over. “Tuck the black shirt in.” He went to her closet and looked around, before handing her a pair of black heels and a thick brown belt. “Put on this belt, and these shoes.”
Layla wrinkled her nose, “I’m going to the hospital with Catherine, and I don’t think heels are a good idea.” He nodded and handed her a pair of black ballet flats.
“Now, what are you doing with your hair?”
She groaned. “This is the best I can do.”
Chuckling, he grabbed a brush and sat her in her desk chair. “Just so you know, if you tell anyone that I did this, I’ll never forgive you.” She couldn’t help laughing as he brushed her hair out and pulled it into a sleek bun.
“Thanks Landon, I appreciate it. Now I’ve got to get Spencer some clothes and get going.”
His face fell. “Oh, you’re there with Spencer.”
She raised a brow at his tone. “Yes, it is his mom. I was covered in blood from her hitting her head so I came back to change and shower, and I told Spencer I would bring him clothes and food.”
Landon nodded and smiled. “Well, I won’t keep you then, but there is something I wanted to ask you. Would you go out with me?”
Layla stopped walking to the door and looked back at him. “I just said I had to go to the hospital.”
He chuckled. “No, my dear, would you like to go out on a date with me sometime, other than today?”
Blushing, she looked down. “Oh…” she said in a small voice. “Well, I…”
“Don’t answer now,” he interrupted. “Just think about it, it would be a night that you would never forget, I promise.” He leaned in and kissed her cheek softly before walking away. She stood in the doorway for another moment in shock before running to grab Spencer’s clothes.
***
Spencer growled as he looked at the clock on the wall while pacing his mother’s room. John texted him saying they were getting food an hour ago, and he had heard nothing since.
“This is unacceptable,” he muttered while hitting the video call button by John’s name. It rang twice before John’s face appeared.
“Yes, Sir?”
“John, where in the hell are you two? It’s been over an hour,” Spencer barked, dodging a pillow that his mother threw at him.
“Don’t you talk to John that way,” she hissed.
“Yes, Sir, I apologize, there has been an… unscheduled stop and I can’t seem to get Miss Layla back into the car. Should I bring her by force?”
Spencer raised a brow. “Where are you? You look like you’re on a street? What is she doing?” John switched the camera view, and Spencer saw Layla laughing and sitting with a couple of women that appeared to be homeless. She was handing them bags of fast-food and laughing at something one of them said.
“Oh hell,” Spencer muttered.
“Yes, Sir, she saw them after we went to get you dinner and she insisted that we go back around. I of course tried to tell her no, but she tried to get out of the moving vehicle, I thought it best to let her give them the food, fi
guring it would be a quick thing, but then she sat down and started eating with them, so I am standing here watching, Sir.”
Spencer looked at his now cackling mother; he didn’t understand what was so funny. Layla’s obsession with helping homeless people, while sweet, was going to get her hurt one day. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “John, take the phone to Layla, please.” He looked as Layla stared into the phone and smiled and waved.
“Hi Spencer! Wow, I didn’t know phones did this! How cool!”
He sighed and rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, technology is great, now, can you please… please… get into the car with John and come to the hospital.”
She blinked. “Oh my god, I have your clothes and food! I’m sorry you’re probably hungry! I lost track of time talking to these lovely people.” Spencer waved awkwardly as Layla showed him the two older women. “Okay, I’ll head to you now!” She gave the phone back to John and said her goodbyes to the women.
“Sorry again, Sir,” John muttered as he disconnected the call.
Spencer laid his phone down and looked over at the chuckling woman. “I’m glad you find this amusing.”
Catherine grinned. “Darling, if you are going to want any relationship with her, you’re going to have to be more open to the things she is passionate about.”
“So what, be passionate about homeless people?”
Catherine rolled her eyes. “Layla enjoys helping people less fortunate than her because she knows their struggles. It makes her feel good. So, maybe instead of telling her how dangerous it is and trying to make her feel bad for what she did, let her be happy and be proud of her for doing something so generous. Remember when you gave her food when she was on the street? Remember how much you said she appreciated it? Or the stuffed animal you got her when she was in the hospital. She has that cat squished to her chest every night. She knows how important it is when someone shows just the smallest bit of kindness.”
“The difference is, I’m a two-hundred pound man, she’s like ninety pounds and I’m being generous. She could get seriously hurt, she has gotten seriously hurt.”