by T. M. Cromer
A startled laugh escaped. She could see he was being sincere, and she wondered if there ever was a more clueless man on the planet. Awkwardness and weird vibes were ricocheting off the walls all around them. The ridiculousness of the situation was enough to tickle her sense of the absurd. Enough to inject her backbone with a little more steel to stand proud and not beg him to give them a chance.
“Think nothing of it,” was her dry response.
His slight frown told her he’d picked up on her sarcasm. Shonda didn’t give him a chance to respond. She keyed in the alarm code, removed the security stick which had arrived the day before, and held open the door for his grand exit.
Suitcase in hand, Mason paused before her. They shared a long look. With his free hand, he tucked back a strand of hair that had escaped her haphazard bun. For an inordinate amount of time, he studied that single strand before focusing on her lips. His pale eyes flared with something she couldn’t name before he ruthlessly banked it. With a quick, hard kiss, and he was gone.
Shonda was left standing with her back against the door and tears streaming down her face. It was doubtful he would understand the havoc he’d wreaked in her world. The destruction of one’s love life required bedrest, and so she headed back to nest under the covers.
Hours passed. Two or twenty, she didn’t care. All she wanted was to wallow in her grief. Her self-pity session was cut short by the incessant ringing of her phone. It went off three times in less than five minutes. On the fourth try, Shonda answered.
“Ms. Grant? This is Stonebrooke Memorial Hospital.”
“This is Shonda Grant. How may I help you?”
“We have you on record as the person who would make medical decisions for Erica Sutton in the event of an emergency. Is this correct?”
Her heart dropped to somewhere around her big toe.
“Something’s happened to Erica?” Her voice was three octaves higher than normal, and her respiratory system would need an assist in about two minutes if she couldn’t calm down.
“Ma’am, I hate to have to inform you this way, but Ms. Sutton has been attacked and is being taken into surgery now. Do we have your verbal consent to treat her?”
“Of course! Yes! Do what you have to. Is she going to be okay?”
“Unfortunately, I cannot give any more information out by phone. We have papers we’ll need you to sign.”
“I live ten minutes away. I’ll be there soon.”
Erica attacked! In Stonebrooke! Nothing happened in Stonebrooke. Shonda couldn’t wrap her head around it. As she rushed to drag on clothes and find her keys, Shonda sent up a prayer that her bestie would pull through.
Finding a parking spot proved easy enough, and she hoped it was a sign from the universe things were going to start looking up. She ran for the entrance with nothing on her mind but to find out the current status of Erica’s condition.
“Shonda?”
She whirled and came face to face with a harried Mason.
“What… why…?”
He understood her questions without her needing to elaborate. “My brother’s girlfriend was admitted.”
Her mind was blown. She didn’t make the connection. Her mouth opened and closed. Somewhere in the smallest region of her brain, she recognized she wasn’t coming across as the brightest bulb in the pack to the man jogging up to stand beside Mason. She assumed it was Dane, youngest of the Sharp brothers. The resemblance was uncanny.
Suddenly, it all became too much. She needed to find what was happening with Erica or she’d have a meltdown on the spot. “I’ve got to go.”
“You’re looking for Erica, right? Come on. I know where she was taken,” Dane piped up.
How he knew was anyone’s guess, but if he could lead her to Erica, Shonda would blindly follow. “Thank you.”
The three of them tore through the corridors on their way to the O.R. waiting area.
Chapter Nine
“What happened to Erica? Is she all right?” Shonda asked, anxious and on the verge of tears as she stormed into the waiting room.
“I’m sorry. Who are you?” Zack asked, distracted and ragged looking.
“Shonda. Erica’s best friend. I—”
“How the hell did you even hear about this? Did the hospital call you?”
“Yes. I’m Erica’s emergency contact since her parents moved to Florida.”
Without warning she burst into tears. His hand shook as he raised it to comfort her. When he would have touched her shoulder, Mason shoved him away and drew her close.
“Don’t cry, love. She’s going to be fine. Promise.”
“How is it that you’re here? I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.”
He didn’t really have an answer. He fully intended they’d never see each other again.
The twin expressions of shock on his brothers’ faces annoyed him. For Pete’s sake! They acted as if he shunned the opposite sex and didn’t know how to be a gentleman. He also noticed their haste in backing away, as if they were about to catch some dreaded caring disease. Had that been a real thing, he’d have been sure to get inoculated years ago.
As he held her close, a feeling of wellbeing struck. Odd how old and depressed he felt when he’d gotten home. His intent to check in at the office had been blown to hell. He’d only wanted to sleep away his moodiness at leaving Shonda. He hadn’t cared to examine his feelings closely, so he took a much needed nap and blamed it on jet lag.
Her showing up here, looking so emotionally ravaged, did odd things to his heart. As soon as they knew if Erica was out of the woods, he intended to put as much distance between them as possible. Perhaps he needed to pull out his little black book and find another hookup. Because the thought of doing that while holding her made him ill at ease, he eased back and guided her to the nearest seat.
“Anyone need coffee? I was about to hit the kiosk in the lobby,” Zack offered.
“I’ll go with you,” offered Dane.
“We’ll take coffee. One black, one with two creams, no sugar,” Mason said.
“You know how she takes her coffee?” Dane blurted, taken aback. As a result, the question held little tact.
The dark look Mason shot them sent Zack scurrying back with a hand on Dane’s arm. Their exit from the room saved him from a verbal beat down. Mason returned his attention to Shonda. “Is there some other family member of hers we should call?”
Her mouth rounded in an “oh,” and she covered her eyes with her palms. He could tell she was dismayed she’d forgotten.
“Do you want me to do it?” he offered kindly.
“No, I can. Thank you for reminding me. I…” She swallowed down another wave of upset. “I need to.”
Again with her brave face. It always nailed him in the solar plexus. The woman’s ability to rebound amazed him. She refused to play the helpless maiden. An admirable quality.
Once he was alone in the waiting room, he thought about what all this meant. Funny how when he wanted to do things for her, she wanted to be independent. It proved again how women were contrary creatures and any relationships should be kept light. Hassle free. That was all he wanted. All he was willing to allow. And if the Shondas of the world couldn’t accept that, it was their issue, not his.
He pushed away any warm feelings holding her close provided. Yeah, it had felt exceptionally nice to cuddle, to wake with her in his arms—another strong reason for him to walk away before anyone got hurt. Soon enough, it would lead to heartbreak. Most likely on her part, as he was unable to give his whole heart.
Ten minutes later his brothers were back with coffee. They all sat in strained silence, everyone worried, with Zack and Shonda in their own private hell. It was another hour before Erica’s surgeon, Dr. Evans, appeared in the doorway of the waiting room. The doctor zeroed in on Zack as he popped out of his chair.
“How is she? When can I see her?” Mason frowned at Zack’s anxiousness. His brother had it bad. Poor bastard.
�
�Ms. Sutton was very lucky to find help so fast. The surgery went well. She’s in recovery for the next half hour, then they will be moving her to a private room. You’ll be able to see her after they get her settled.”
“How soon before she’s able to go home?” Shonda asked.
“I’d like to keep her for the next day or two. I want to be sure she doesn’t experience a fever or infection. If everything looks good in a few days, she’ll be discharged,” Dr. Evans explained. “She’s going to need to rest for the next ten days or so. We’ll go over everything when we discharge her, but I expect Ms. Sutton will make a full recovery.”
Overcome, Zack could only nod and pump the doctor’s hand in gratitude.
“She’s going to be fine, Mr. Sharp.”
“Thanks.”
“You all should try to eat something. The cafeteria food isn’t all that bad.”
“Are there donuts?” Zack asked.
“Excuse me?”
“Erica’s going to want donuts when she wakes. It’s her go-to food for stress.”
The doctor laughed and shook his head as he exited the room.
“I can make a donut run,” Dane offered. “Text me what everyone wants.”
“You guys don’t have to stay.”
“Three musketeers, remember?” was Mason’s low-voiced reply.
Zack studied him, and Mason was left to wonder at his thoughts.
“The three musketeers,” Zack finally concurred. “In that case, you can pick up a dozen. Four need to be the powdered lemon-filled, and the rest whatever you all want.”
“You know Erica’s favorite flavor?” Shonda asked. Amazement warred with glee on her pretty face. Delight lit her green eyes from within.
“It’s not like she’s kept her donut addiction a secret,” Zack hedged.
Mason smirked at his uncomfortable expression. Enjoyment over his brother’s predicament kept Mason quiet while Shonda unknowingly continued to verbally jab Zack.
“Uh, yeah, she normally does,” Shonda informed him.
“Right. The woman is all about the carbs—cake, pie, pizza. I hardly think that’s something she’s able to hide for long.”
“You don’t understand. Not even her last boyfriend knew what she liked. She’s actually a very private person,” Shonda explained. “She never even speaks up for herself.”
“Are we talking about the same Erica here? She swears like a sailor and grumbles every time she has to go to the gym. One morning she threatened my life because I couldn’t produce coffee fast enough.”
“She only gets cranky about coffee when she first wakes up… Oh!”
“Oh, what?” Mason could hear his brother getting testy with those two words.
“You’re sleeping together. It’s the only way you would know.”
“She’s been living in my house since hers burned down two weeks ago.”
“What? Her house… ohmygod!” Shonda plopped back into her seat. “She loved that house. How did it happen?”
“A screwball fire-starter who seems to have a hard-on for hurting Erica,” Zack said, anger heavy in his voice. “It’s why she’s here.”
“How—”
“Look, I’m sure she would have explained it if you’d bothered to return her calls. As it is, you’ll have to wait to talk to her. I don’t care to go into it.”
“Zack!” Mason barked, inexplicably enraged at his brother’s rude comment. “Don’t speak to her like that. She’s not done anything wrong.”
“No, nothing you didn’t do, right? You’ve avoided me for the last three days. If you’d have returned a damn text or call, this might have been prevented. I could have been with her today while you ran the office.”
The rage that had come upon Zack so suddenly, left just as abruptly. “I’m sorry. I…”
Mason felt like a complete shit. “No, man. You’re right. There’s no excuse to avoid responsibility. It won’t happen again.”
They all sat in silence after Dane had left to get burgers and pastries. Each lost in their own thoughts.
“Mr. Sharp?” Both men’s head shot up when the recovery room nurse spoke. She directed the next words toward Zack, since he rose to his feet and stepped forward. “Ms. Sutton is being wheeled to her room, two-twenty-three. You can head there now. We ask you to keep it to only two visitors at a time.”
“Thank you.” Zack turned to Shonda. “Do you mind if I see her alone first?”
Shonda’s agreement was a soft smile. Suddenly, Zack returned her smile with a broad one of his own and surged forward to give her a tight hug. Bending to speak directly in her ear, he said something only she could hear. The slight blush staining her cheeks put Mason’s back up. Zack followed his comment with a hard and fast kiss on the lips. His grin widened when Mason stood to object. With a wink to Shonda, Zack exited the room and took off at a run toward the elevators. Mason was left to stew in his own juices, full-on pissed at how friendly his brother had gotten with Shonda and how receptive she’d been to that friendliness.
When he could no longer remain silent, he demanded to know, “What the hell was that?”
“What?” Her confusion would have been adorable if he wasn’t so pissed.
“That!” He waved his hand in the air like a madman, gesturing wildly to the door.
“Mason, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
And maybe she didn’t since he’d been sitting there turning it over in his mind for a good fifteen minutes before he spoke up.
“The flirting with my brother,” he ground out.
“Are you insane?” Her incredulous glare sent all his little anger demons scattering. “My best friend, his new girlfriend from what I understand, is in recovery from surgery after being stabbed. Do you honestly think I would make a move on Zack in such a serious situation?”
Well, no, not when she put it that way. Christ, she was making him mental.
“Asshole!”
“I guess sniffing me is out of the question?” He smiled lamely.
She stormed from the room as if she couldn’t bear to look at him. He didn’t blame her. He was a total asshole.
Shonda found herself wandering the halls until she stumbled across Dr. Evans. In the back of her mind, she registered he was high on the yumminess scale. Erica would probably appreciate that when she was awake and lucid. Her bestie knew how to admire a hot man.
She thanked him for telling her where to locate Erica’s room and continued on to where he directed her. As she pushed through the doors, Zack was sitting on the bed and teasing Erica by waving the bag of donuts under her nose. The two of them were goofily grinning at each other.
Feeling left out and alone, she almost backed away. However, the need to talk to her friend right then, to make sure she was okay, propelled her farther into the room. “Erica?”
“Well, if it isn’t my long-lost friend. You don’t call. You don’t write,” Erica joked tearfully.
Of course whenever her bestie got teary-eyed, it set her off, too.
“Can I hug you?”
“Yes, if you’re careful of my right side.”
As the two women embraced, Zack made an excuse and left them to catch up. They spent the next thirty minutes on what was happening in Erica’s world. Then it was Shonda’s turn to pay the piper and answer her friend’s questions.
“So, where the hell have you been? I thought you were only going for a week?”
“Ten days,” Shonda corrected.
“Okay, ten days. It’s been fourteen. You couldn’t shoot me a text to say you were still alive?”
“I’m sorry, E. I met someone. He’s amazing.”
“I sense a ‘but’ coming on. What’s up?”
Leave it to Erica to be perceptive. Shonda half suspected it was the writer aspect of Erica’s personality. Her friend was a people watcher. Possibly it was because they’d known each other practically their entire lives.
“He’s a player. I’m crazy about him, and yet h
e stated clearly from the beginning, he wanted nothing more than a vacation fling.”
“So you are pining away for a guy you met in the islands? It should help you’re home now, right?”
“It should,” Shonda agreed glumly.
“But it doesn’t,” Erica stated rather than asked.
“He lives here in town.”
“You’re shitting me!”
“No. And did I mention he is the brother of your new boyfriend?”
“What? Which one?”
“Mason.”
“Ah.”
“What do you mean by that?” Shonda demanded hotly. She had jumped up to pace, and now she scowled at Erica from the foot of the bed.
“Don’t you remember him from school? He was actually the serious one of all the Sharp brothers. If I recall correctly, he had been dating Melanie Simms,” Erica explained.
“Melanie Simms?” She searched her memory trying to recall the teenager. “You mean the girl who died in the car accident up by Make-out Point? But I thought she was there with Tommy Travers.”
“Yep. Can you imagine discovering your one true love was cheating on you by having someone tell you that your girlfriend died in a wreck?” Erica asked. “Zack said since that moment, Mason developed a devil-may-care attitude. The only thing he doesn’t play at is business. Supposedly he is phenomenal at marketing.”
A sick feeling formed in the pit of her stomach. Erica reached for Shonda’s hand again and gripped it tightly. No words were needed between the two. They were as close as twins, each able to read the other’s mood without needing to discuss it. Both respecting when the other needed time to regroup.
“Are you planning to come stay with me now I’m back?” Shonda asked after clearing her throat.
Erica stared out the window to form her response, and Shonda knew, in that moment, her friend had fallen hard and fast in love with Zack. They were a pair.
“It’s like that, huh?” The amusement in her voice caught her bestie’s attention.