by Lea Hart
“I’m not going home today, so I guess I’ll wear pajamas.”
“Polka-dots, it is.”
The door swung open, and a nurse came in and smiled at them both. “I understand that our patient needs a shower, and I’m here to make that happen. Grab your stuff and let’s go down the hall. I’m going to take you to the one that has more room and will allow me to help you. This one in your room is too small for me to help you. The last thing I need is for you to fall over.”
Rachel gave her a big smile in response. “Thank you so much. I think this will make me feel a lot better.”
Chris stood next to the bed and held her hand. “Let me hold on to you and help you up.” He waited as Rachel slowly swung her legs over the side and rest for a moment. “Take your time. There’s no need to rush.”
“I’m fine, Chris.” She slid out of the bed and let her feet hit the ground. She was about to step away from him when a wave of dizziness washed over her. She felt him hold on and support her weight. “I’d better not hear an ‘I told you so.’” He helped her into the wheelchair and grinned at her.
He kissed her head and winked. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“Good answer. Now let’s get going. I need to wash my hair.”
“Quit dawdling, then,” Chris said. He pushed her wheelchair toward the door.
The nurse took her bag and held the door, and Chris rolled her out of the room. As the nurse watched the couple make their way down the hall, she knew that she was seeing true love in action. The way they looked at each other was like seeing something bright and true.
***
Chris leaned against the wall while he waited for Rachel to take her shower. He liked her sass and was happy when she was giving him a hard time about the shower. It was a welcome glimpse of the woman beneath the weight of their circumstances. He checked his phone for updates on where Dean and Mick were in the system. Robert had texted to let him know that they were getting close to Mick giving up the names of his accomplices. Chris wanted those men held responsible for Rachel’s injuries and subsequent miscarriage. He’d told Derick and Gracie what he was thinking when they stopped by last night with Rachel’s bag. Gracie didn’t want him to have false hopes and told him it was a long shot at best. But it was worth bringing up because it might allow the judge to apply a stiffer sentence.
He heard his name being called, glanced down the hall, and saw Birdie and Rory walking toward him with several flower arrangements. He took two large arrangements from their hands. “Thanks, Chris.” Birdie leaned in, kissed his cheek and patted his arm. “I’m sorry that I couldn’t get these to Rachel yesterday. I had to wait for one of my suppliers to work a little magic and find some peonies for me. I got them right after lunch and put these together for her as soon as I could.”
“Thanks, Birdie. I appreciate all of your effort. These are her favorite, and I wanted her to have a little bright spot in her room. It seems like they’re not going to let us out of here until day after tomorrow.”
Rory rubbed circles on his back in much the same manner she did with her children. “Your house has been cleaned according to my mother’s exacting standards. Which means that you can perform surgery on the floor, should you find the need. She has also put several pasta dishes in your freezer. I made sure that your fridge is fully stocked. So when you two get home, you can just concentrate on Rachel’s recovery. I also left a box of DVDs with all of the rom-coms from the nineties, as well as Doris Day’s complete collection. Those are my comfort movies, and I hope that they help Rachel pass the time while she’s getting better.”
Chris wasn’t often moved by human kindness, but in this moment, he was. What these women had done for Rachel was overwhelming. “Thank you doesn’t seem like enough.”
Birdie shook her head at him in disagreement. “There is no thank-you necessary. In some way, this helps us feel like we’re doing something for you both in a tragic situation. It’s as much for us as it is for you and Rachel. Now point us to her room, and let us put these flowers in there.”
“Follow me, angels of goodness and kindness. It’s right down here.”
Rory and Birdie followed him and gave each other a look. They couldn’t believe that Chris was making a small joke. Neither of them thought he was capable of it. Apparently, his relationship with Rachel allowed him to reveal other parts of his personality. Never satisfied to leave anything alone, Rory spoke up as they entered the room. “Chris, I always thought you were the most stoic person I’d ever met. But I now realize that under that hard shell beats the heart of a true romantic. No wonder Rachel has fallen in love with you. You’re just a big cuddly bear.”
“I’d appreciate if you kept that to yourself. I don’t really need that getting around the office.”
Birdie moved the flowers around until she was happy with the arrangement. “I think everyone already knows it. The same way they know it about Mark, Max, and Travis. You all are hard warriors…until you met the women who change you. I wonder who’s next?”
Rory and Chris stared at her. Birdie was more than a bossy matchmaker. She was a true romantic.
“Ooh…I forgot about Ed. Which I take full credit for, by the way. I understand that Amelia accepted his proposal last weekend. I should start working on my speech for the wedding, because I’m sure they’re going to ask me to speak.”
“I think you have some time,” Rory said. “We’re going to get out of here, and we will come see Rachel next week. If you need anything before then, call us.”
“Thanks, ladies. I really do appreciate everything you’ve done.”
They blew kisses to him as they made their way out the door. “We are the female contingency of the Team. No thanks are necessary,” Rory said.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Rachel walked into the house and looked around. The rooms were immaculate. Chris had told her what the women had done for them, and she couldn’t believe the results. “Can we hire whoever is responsible for this? I always thought that I was a clean person, but what’s been done here puts me to shame.”
“That’s actually a great idea. You’re not going to be able to do anything around the house for a long time, and I don’t want you to be unhappy with my efforts.”
“I would never do that. I thought we did a good job together over the last month, but this is on a new level. It’s a level that I could get accustomed to.”
“I’ll talk to Rory and get the information.”
Rachel noticed that her pink couch was in the alcove off the dining room, and there were boxes stacked against the wall. “Did you move everything over from my condo?”
“Yes. I had the guys bring everything over yesterday. I spoke with the landlord, and he has someone who wants to move in in December, so he’s going to let you out of your lease one month early.”
“Wow! That’s great. I guess it’s official then…you’re stuck with me.”
He leaned down and kissed her. “More importantly, you are stuck with me. Your couch is here, so it’s permanent.”
“All right. It’s permanent.” She looked up at him and gave him a small smile. She hoped that she would be enough for him. She had a feeling that there was a tsunami of emotion waiting out there, and it was just a matter of time before it came rolling over her. “Let me take the flowers to the bedroom.”
“I’ll do that, honey. Do you want to lie down on the couch or the bed?”
“I’m tired of lying down. I’ve been doing that for several days. Can we sit in the backyard for a while?”
“Sure. I’ll take this stuff to our room and then meet you on the patio.”
Rachel moved through the house toward the kitchen and noticed a lovely vase of flowers on the table and a big bowl of fruit on the counter. The women were so generous to do all of this for them. Maybe she could have them over for dinner to thank them. She glanced outside as a wave of dizziness washed over her. Pulling out a chair from the table, she sat down and rested her head on the tabl
e.
Chris came in, saw her slumped over the table, and came rushing toward her. “Rach…honey. Are you okay?”
She lifted her head and stared at him. “I’m fine. I’m just a little dizzy, so I sat down. It’s not a big deal.”
“It is a big deal. Let me carry you outside, because I don’t want you to fall.”
“I think you want to carry me so you can cop a feel.”
He looked at her, horrified. “I just want to take care of you.”
“I’m kidding. Where did your sense of humor go?”
“It went out the door when I came searching for you in the office the other day and I couldn’t find you. I’m hoping that it will return soon.”
“Well, you need to find it. We are both going to need one to get through this. I’m not glass. I didn’t break.”
“It was way too close for my comfort.” He lifted her up and kissed her cheek. “Now that you mention it…I think I will cop a feel. Nothing better than having your fine ass in my hands.”
She leaned her head against his shoulder. “See, I knew you were under there.”
Sliding the door open, he stepped outside. He set her down and held on to make sure that she had her feet under her. Then, he led her over to the chairs next to the pool and made sure that she was comfortable. “I’m going to get a blanket for you and make you a cup of tea.”
“That’s nice of you, Mr. Ellis. You are an excellent nurse. I was wondering about your willingness to give me a sponge bath later on?”
“I would be willing to sponge you wherever you felt was necessary.”
“Excellent news.”
He lightly kissed her mouth before he headed for the house. “Be back in a few. I’m going to take out one of the pasta dishes for dinner. How does that sound?”
“Lovely.” She turned in her chair, stared out over the pool, and enjoyed the late autumn sun on her face. Even in November, they had beautiful weather. She thought about the calendar and realized that Thanksgiving was coming up. Fall had sped past, and she hadn’t seemed to notice. Closing her eyes, she lifted her face to the sun and said a small prayer of thanks. She had somehow survived Dean and his brother. She shivered as she remembered the feeling of lying on that dirty, cold floor. She’d thought they’d broken her, but they hadn’t.
Before her thoughts grew too dark, Chris came out with a mug of tea for her and a blanket. “Thanks for the care, Nurse Nelly. If the whole saving-people’s-lives thing doesn’t work out, then perhaps you have a future in patient care.”
“I’m interested in only one patient. I think I’ll stick with my day job.”
“Why do you think that Mick had me abducted?”
Chris gave her a long look and stalled for a couple of minutes before he answered. “The limited information I’ve received from Robert suggests that he suffers from paranoid schizophrenia. He apparently thinks that you’re responsible for his brother’s problems. He wanted you out of the way so his brother could come home and participate in the fights they had coming up. He hasn’t realized his responsibility in all of this.”
“Do you think they will make him stand trial?”
“I think they’re going to make him go through the process. As of this morning, they were still waiting for him to give up the names of the men who took you off the street. He isn’t going to be let out on bail. He’s going to be kept in jail until he stands trial.”
“When I spoke with Dean in the gym, he seemed more lucid than I’ve seen him in a long time. He told me that he’d started taking his meds again and had stopped taking the steroids. He actually had a better grasp on reality than I’ve ever seen. Except he left me on the floor and he knew I was hurt. He walked out and was going to come up with a plan with his brother.”
“He’s as responsible for what happened to you as his brother and the two men that abducted you. He started the ball rolling when he wouldn’t leave you alone.”
“I’m ashamed to admit that I gave up hope when I was lying on the floor in the gym. I thought it had finally come to an end and I was going to die. In my mind, there was no other outcome. And then you came in and saved me. It’s finally over.”
Chris put his hand over hers and squeezed. “I was going to find you. There was no way that I wasn’t going to succeed.”
The light was fading, and the wind came up and blew the leaves across the patio. “I thought they won and had finally broken me.”
“I have a little experience with that, and I’ve found that the places where you break are the places that eventually get stronger. It doesn’t seem that way at first, but if you put the work in, then the cracks become the strongest place in you.”
“I don’t know what I’m going to feel like next week or next month after I begin to deal with what’s happened. But in this moment, I’m grateful for lasting this long, and I know it never would’ve happened without you.”
“The good news here is that we get to do it together,” Chris said.
“That is good news.”
Chris stood up and held out his hand. “Let’s go in and eat dinner. I want to get to the part of the evening that involves me sponging you off. I know that’s all I’m going to be able to do for a while, and I want to make the most of it. ”
“I want a real shower. I need to wash off the hospital smell. We can wrap my cast, and then you can get in with me and supervise.”
“I’m thinking a real hands-on approach is going to be the only solution here,” Chris replied.
“All right, I’m happy to have your hands on me,” Rachel said.
“Maybe we should start with the shower and come back to eating?” Chris asked.
“You’re the nurse and get to make the scheduling decisions.”
“Let’s go, Ms. Miller.” Chris held on to her hand as they walked into the house. He turned down the oven and led her into the bedroom.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Chris came into the room that they had set up as Rachel’s sewing room. “How are you doing, honey?”
Rachel looked up and smiled at him. She seemed to be relaxed and happy. She was bending over the table that he’d made her and measuring fabric for her latest project. “I’m working on curtains for the dining room. Are you off to work?”
“Yes. I thought you might want to go in this week.”
“I’m up-to-date with my projects. Rory sent some things over for me to work on, and I finished them last night.”
“Wouldn’t you like to get out of the house? What if you just go in for a half a day, and then I take you to lunch?”
“I’m good here. I want to work on these curtains and get them done. I’ll see you when you get home tonight.” She stepped over and kissed him and then went back to work on measuring the fabric.
“Don’t forget that we still need to figure out what we’re doing next week for Thanksgiving.”
She waved to him and continued to measure the fabric. She listened to him walking out of the room, collecting his stuff and heading out the door. Hearing the door close allowed her to release a breath. She knew she couldn’t hide for much longer without Chris figuring out what was going on. He probably already had, and he was being kind by giving her as much space and time as he could. The truth was that she hadn’t left the house since they had come home from the hospital, and she didn’t have any plans to in the near future. Everything that was good and right existed within the wall of the home that she’d made with Chris. Everything bad and scary happened outside of this house. She had no desire to go out there. She wasn’t sure when she would. Was it really bad to become a homebody?
Chris got in his truck and made his way down the street. He knew the truth of it. Rachel was going deep into her PTSD, and she was in complete denial. She hadn’t left the house since they returned home. She’d given him every excuse for staying home, and he’d accepted every single one of them. He’d been through it himself and had seen many men go through it. It was different for everyone. Rachel was choosing to
stay within the walls of the home that they’d created. It was her safe space, and she wasn’t going to do anything to change it. He would have to call the doctor he’d worked with years ago and ask for a recommendation. He realized he should have made the call when he first thought about it. If they didn’t start working on it soon, it was only going to get worse.
She had things that she needed to address by herself, but they both had lost a baby. They needed to work on that and not pretend like it never happened. If they were going to have a chance at a family, then they needed to deal with the loss that they’d experienced. Her birthday was coming up next month. Maybe he could take her somewhere, and they could relax and deal with what they’d been through.
Once he made it to work, he pulled out his phone and dialed the doctor who’d helped him overcome the worst of his demons when he was suffering from PTSD. “Hey, Doc, it’s Chris Ellis. I was wondering if you had some time. I need to get a recommendation from you. Sure. I can come over around one. Thanks. I’ll see you then.”
He got out of his truck, moved toward the elevator, and started to feel better. Taking action always gave him a feeling of control. Rachel had experienced a great deal in the last year, and he had a feeling that she’d never dealt with any it. She’d concentrated on surviving, which was smart. But now they needed to deal with what had happened to her. He’d spent too many years in battle to lose the love of his life at this point.
Once he’d made it to his office, he texted Rachel to let her know where he was. It had become a habit with him over the last two weeks, since she’d been home. She texted him back with a picture of the curtains that she was making. Her sewing machine had become her lifeline. Once she was able to move around freely, she’d unpacked the sewing machine and hadn’t left it. She was channeling everything she had into making their house a home. They had a fabric delivery every day, and she was sewing as fast as it came in. The house was starting to look great. She had him move things around, then added the stuff from her condo, and everything looked good together.