"Wow. You really sold the house?"
"It was easier than I thought it would be. The house is gorgeous. I had to sell my pancreas on the black market to afford the down payment and I’m selling each of my organs until the mortgage is completely paid."
"Please tell me you’re kidding."
"Yes, I’m kidding."
"Layla, if you’re having money problems..."
"Don’t worry about it, Nick. My father bought the house for me. He said it was his way of investing in his grandson’s future. That and a birthday gift to last about, oh, twenty five more birthdays."
"Well in any event if you ever need money, you know you can ask me."
"And you know I would never do that. Besides, I‘m a trust fund kid, remember?"
"I know."
"So what’ll it be?"
"Well if it wouldn’t be too much trouble for you to have me around..."
"Not at all. You know, it’s almost been six weeks. You would have been here in two weeks anyway..."
"Yeah..."
"We have some things to discuss, as planned."
"About our future?"
"Mm hmm. So if it’s okay to give you the answer two weeks early..."
"No, of course. Tell you what. I’ll see if I can get my flight ticket changed, okay? And when I’m in the States I’ll let you know what time my plane is landing at LAX. Sound good?"
"Sounds double good. Do you want me to bring you anything? Some food or cough medicine or anything?"
"No. But thanks."
"Sure. Call me when your first plane lands, okay? I’ll be on my cell."
"You got it. Bye Lay."
"Bye Nick. Have a safe flight."
"Come on baby, we have to hurry. Daddy’s plane is landing!" I picked up Tyler, who was sleeping in his car seat and locked the car in the parking structure. I was running late, mostly due to the fact that Tyler got hungry on the drive to LAX and I had to stop and feed him. But hopefully I wasn’t too late to greet Nick at the wonderful world of baggage claim.
It’s scary how well I know my way around LAX. A brisk walk through the concrete parking structure and then a lovely stroll through a bridge straddling the goings-on of the LAX traffic below, I entered the terminal, made my way down the escalators and found the right baggage carousel.
And that’s when I spotted him. Dressed poorly in cheap khaki pants and a black polo shirt and the ever-present zoom lens camera. Damn paparazzi. Why do they follow me around? And especially at one in the morning? But I was prepared. I dug out a scarf and sunglasses from my bag and secured them over my head and on my face.
"I hope your camera breaks," I muttered as the photographer maneuvered around the outside of the terminal. "Are you ready to see Daddy?" I asked Tyler as I repositioned him in my arms. He was fussy given the late hour. But I wanted to surprise Nick by bringing his son to see him.
A few minutes later I spotted Nick descending the escalators from the secured portion of the terminal, leading out to the gates. He looked absolutely exhausted. His jeans and jersey were rumpled like he had fallen asleep in them. I watched as he scrubbed his face with his hands then looked up and spotted me. And then he smiled and it was as if he was glowing. He stepped off the escalator and the smile got bigger as he made his way over to me and Tyler.
"I didn’t know you were bringing Tyler with you!"
"Well he insisted on coming with me."
"Hey there little fella," Nick cooed as he placed a hand on Tyler’s head. Tyler’s eyes fluttered open and he looked up at Nick. "What’s going on? You’re getting bigger and bigger every time I see you." He leaned in and kissed Tyler’s cheek, then looked up at me. "Thanks for bringing him. I can’t tell you how nice it is to see my son after flying halfway across the world."
"Of course. We brought you a present too, didn’t we Ty?"
"A present for me?" he cooed.
"Tyler, do you want to give Daddy his present? It’s in your pocket, sweetie." Tyler’s tiny hands pulled out a folded sheet of paper. I took it from him and unfolded it with my free hand.
"Here, let me take him. You look tired."
"Thanks." I leaned into Nick and set the baby in his arms. Nick grabbed him and hugged him against his chest.
I held up the paper. "I helped him draw it. He may be the smartest child ever born but he hasn’t quite grasped the concept of writing yet. Maybe in a few years," I laughed.
"Let’s see." Nick looked at the drawing. "’Welcome home, Daddy. We missed you and love you,’" he read. He looked up at me and smiled. "That’s beautiful. Thanks Tyler. Can you give your Daddy a hug?" Tyler laid into Nick and wrapped an arm across Nick’s chest. My heart skipped a beat. It was a perfect moment.
"I’ll go get a skycap for your luggage. He’s really tired and fussy so just rub his back a little if he starts to cry. That always calms him down."
"Okay."
"I’ll be right back."
After I retrieved the skycap and was making my way back to Nick I stopped. For a moment I just stared at them. Nick hugging Tyler was the most precious thing I had ever seen. I made my way back over.
"Here, why don’t you take him and I’ll go get my luggage." Nick handed him over to me again and took the skycap. "I’ll be back. Oh, and I have a present for you, too." He set down his backpack on the ground and wheeled the skycap over to the luggage carousel. The room was quickly filling up with people; families greeting each other and lovers embracing. A few men in slightly rumpled suits spoke briskly on cell phones. It was a life I remembered all too well. A part of me missed the excitement of traveling. A part of me did not.
Nick made his way over a few minutes later, the skycap full of luggage. "Ready?" he asked me.
"Yes. Do you mind if I place his diaper bag on there? It’s getting kind of heavy on my shoulder."
"Here, give it to me." I laughed but handed the bag to Nick and watched it as he swung it over his free shoulder. "How do I look?" he laughed.
I found myself staring into his eyes. For a moment I couldn’t find the words. But when I did they came out as a soft whisper. "You look like a dad." I took my eyes off him as I tightened my grip on my son. "You ready to go handsome? Let’s take Daddy home. Oh, Nick just as a warning, there’s a supremely annoying man with a camera following me around. He’s been snapping pictures like crazy out there." I motioned outside and despite the amount of people harboring outside waiting for cabs and busses, the photographer could clearly be seen peeking in at us.
"Well then let’s get going." He put a hand on my back as we made our way through the crowd out into the cold night. By the time we made it out to my car the photographer was nowhere to be seen. Thank the Lord. I unlocked the trunk and Nick put his luggage in as I tucked Tyler into his car seat in the backseat. Nick ditched the skycap and climbed into the passenger seat as I slid in behind the wheel.
"When did you get a Range Rover?" he asked as he looked around the inside of the vehicle.
"A few months ago. I have to turn tricks to fill it up with gas but overall I really like it."
"It’s nice. Never pictured you in a car like this though."
"This is the family car. I still have my Lexus. I couldn’t part with it." I pulled out of the parking space and made my way out of the parking structure, out into the road and onto the freeway. "Did you get much sleep on the plane?"
"I slept the whole time. I just conked out as soon as the seatbelt went on."
"I thought you might be hungry so I packed some food for you. It’s in the cooler behind your seat."
"Aw thanks." He reached behind him and retrieved the cooler, opening it up and examining what was inside.
"Honey roasted ham on a croissant with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese and of course, Miracle Whip. There’s also some homemade cookies, an apple, a banana, some Diet Pepsi and, if you look hard enough, truffles."
"Truffles?"
"I had a craving. Honestly I must have eaten two bags worth recently. They went strai
ght to my hips but it was worth the five pounds I gained."
"You’re a god-send."
"Well airplane food isn’t quite fine dining and I figured you’d be hungry. Besides I’m supposed to be taking care of you, remember?"
"Speaking of which I have a prescription to drop off at the pharmacy tomorrow."
"Okay. I can run out and fill it for you in the morning."
"So how are things going with you?" he asked as he unwrapped the sandwich and took a bite.
"Things are stressful. I’ve never liked moving. I hired a moving company to come in and pack up the house and move everything over to the new house. There was no way I could do it all myself." I heard Tyler fussing in the backseat and looked at him through the rear-view mirror. "You okay, sweetie?" He moaned a bit and I knew he was having trouble falling asleep. "I’ll put on your music, okay?" One push of a button on the dashboard and the soothing sound of Steve Perry's voice was filling our ears. Tyler would drift off to sleep in no time.
Nick looked over at me and placed his left hand on my right hand. "Thanks for picking me up."
"Anytime. So I figured you’ll probably want to sleep in. Molly will come over in the morning to watch Tyler as I run some errands."
"Who is Molly?"
"Babysitter. She’s a lovely girl. She’s a fashion design student. Actually she had a class project making a purse and she gave it to me. I swear it’s better than any other purse I own."
"Coming from you that’s a huge compliment."
"I really like her. We’re going to keep in touch after the move. I made her promise me that when she starts her first collection she’ll give me first dibs on everything," I laughed. "She’s so talented."
"That’s cool. She gets along with Tyler?"
"Oh yeah they’re best friends. It’s so cute, I think Ty has a crush on her."
"That’s cute."
"Yeah well he gets that from his dad. He’s a little charmer."
Nick laughed as he took the last bite of the croissant. "This was delicious. Thank you. So, you’ve made a decision? About us?"
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I have."
"Do you want to talk about it now?"
"No, there’s no hurry. After you’ve had a good night’s sleep and are feeling better we can talk about it. I’m taking care of you now. So until you’re one hundred percent healthy you’re not doing anything but resting."
"But you have made your final decision, right?"
"Yes."
"Layla I’ve been waiting for your answer for six weeks. And while I’d wait another six weeks, if that’s what it took, if you already have your decision then..."
"Let’s just get home first. Then if you’re feeling up to it we can talk."
"Okay sure. And again, thanks for everything."
We arrived back at the house more than an hour later. By the time the luggage was brought in and I had put Tyler down to bed I was exhausted. I changed into a tee shirt and sweat pants and went into the living room to help Nick with his luggage.
"I’m assuming most of this is laundry?"
"You assume correctly."
"All right let’s put it in the laundry room and I’ll get started on it tomorrow. Why don’t you change. The guestroom is filled with boxes so you can sleep with me."
Nick stood up straight and looked at me, shock on his tired face. "Are you sure?"
"Unless you want to sleep on the couch?"
"Whatever works for you, Lay."
"No it’s fine. I just put fresh sheets on my bed so it’s nice and comfy in there. I’m just going to check on Tyler and I’ll be in."
"Okay."
Tyler was sound asleep in his crib. I turned the radio to the classical station, dimmed the lights and closed the door slightly. Before heading to my bedroom I grabbed a bag from the kitchen, turned off all the lights, checked the front door and headed into my room.
Nick had changed into a tank top and sweat pants and was unzipping a ginormous suitcase. I'd recognize those monograms anywhere. "Is that what I think it is?"
"Yep. Enough Louis Vuitton to start your own retail store."
"Wow!" I gasped as I stood beside Nick, staring into the open suitcase. "This is really all for me?"
"Down to each monogram."
"It’s like Christmas!"
"Yeah I guess it is," he laughed.
"Oh wow!" I exclaimed. "I’m definitely going to name my next child after Marc Jacobs."
Nick gave a side glance at me. "Will there be a second child?"
I sighed softly and zipped the suitcase back up, placing it down on the ground. "We can go through this later." I pulled back the covers on the bed and climbed inside. Nick slid in next to me and laid on his back. "Layla..."
I switched off the lights and turned on my side so I could look at him. "Yeah?"
"I really missed you."
"Nick...."
He turned over to his side so he was facing me. "What is it?"
"Will you keep your promise? That things will be different this time? No cheating? No fighting?"
"On everything I am. I promise you."
I moved in closer and he moved to his back. I placed my head on his shoulder and took his hands in mine. "Then I promise too."
"So we’re going to start over? You’re going to give me another chance?"
I closed my eyes and breathed him in. "Will you give me another chance?"
"What do you mean? I’m the one that royally screwed up."
"But I didn’t hold up my end of the bargain."
"You did the best you could."
"No, I could have done much better."
"Well it’s in the past, right?"
"Right. So my answer is yes. I want to start over with you. But let’s just let things take a natural course. We’ll just see where our lives take us."
"So I have my best friend back?"
"As long as I have my best friend back."
"Thank you, Layla."
"Don’t thank me, Nick."
"So, you want to be my girlfriend?"
We both cracked up at that. Nick looked down at me. "You‘re too much sometimes.."
We stared at each other for a moment. There was a contentment in the air. A resolution. We had come so far and though the way had been turbulent, to say the least, it was as if it all lead up to this moment. I fell asleep in Nick’s arms and felt more at home than I had in a very long time.
Chapter Forty-One
The next day I returned home from my errands just after noon. I spotted Molly in the living room playing with Tyler.
"Hey, I’m home!"
"Hi Miss Garrett!"
"How’s my baby doing?"
"He’s great! I just fed him and I suspect the little tyke will need to be changed fairly soon."
"Have you seen Nick around?"
"Uh uh."
"I should go check on him. I’ll be right back." I headed into the bedroom and was surprised to find Nick still asleep in bed, wrapped up in the down comforter despite the warmness in the room. But he didn’t look so good. His head was hanging off the bed and he looked very pale. I kneeled down at the side of the bed and put a hand on his face. He was burning up. "Nick?" I gently nudged him.
His eyes fluttered open. "Lay?" His voice was hoarse.
"It’s me. Are you okay?"
"I don’t feel so good."
"I think you have a fever. I’m going to get the thermometer, okay? I’ll be right back." I went into the bathroom to retrieve it but was struck with the smell of vomit. It was all over the floor and toilet. I grabbed the thermometer and went back to Nick.
"I’m going to stick this in your ear." He didn’t respond but I inserted the device into his ear nonetheless. "102. Nick how long have you been throwing up?"
"I don’t know. I feel so nauseated. Can you please shoot me?"
"Somehow I don’t think that will make you feel better. Do you want me to take you to the hospital?"
"No. It hurts to move."
"Have you eaten anything since last night?"
He shook his head.
"Okay well we have to break your fever. Wrapping yourself in a down comforter won’t make you any better." I took a hold of the blanket and stripped it from Nick’s body. His tank top was covered in vomit.
"No I’m cold!" he protested.
"I know you are. Come on, we need to get you cleaned up. Can you stand up?" I took his arms and tried to help him up.
"That makes it worse!"
"I know baby but we need to get you cleaned up. Come on." With my help he sat up in the bed and slowly stood up. I took his arm and put it over my shoulder so I could support his weight. We slowly made our way into the guest bathroom and I helped Nick sit down on top of the closed toilet. I turned on the cold water in the sink and got a fresh towel, placing it under the faucet. I turned to find Nick leaning over. "Can you take your shirt off?" He shook his head. I grabbed his top by the hems and pulled it off his torso. I threw it into the bath tub. I then retrieved the wet towel and turned off the water. I ran it across Nick’s face and neck, mopping up the sick as best as I could.
Nick looked up at me, his cheeks puffing out. "I’m gonna hurl." He got up from his sitting position and opened the lid to the toilet just in time to vomit. I smoothed the wet towel across his back and tried not to listen to the sounds of him throwing up. When he was done he slowly fell to the floor, letting out a soft moan.
"Are you okay?"
"I hate throwing up," he grumbled.
"I know, sweetie. I’m going to get you something to eat. Um, can you just stay here for a minute?" He let out another moan. Okay then. I headed back into the living room. Molly was changing Tyler’s diaper. "Molly could you do me a huge favor?"
"Sure."
"Could you maybe take Tyler out to the park or something? Nick is throwing up and has a fever and..."
"Oh my goodness!"
"Yeah. I don’t want Tyler to be exposed to any germs or anything and I have to clean up two bathrooms. I just want to sanitize everything so that Tyler doesn’t catch anything."
"Of course! Oh I hope he feels better."
"Thanks. Um, the diaper bag is..."
The Romance of Nick and Layla (Parts 1-3) Page 22