by Elle Spencer
“Oh my god,” Lacey said with a laugh. “You realize you’re not even a little bit attractive right now. And last night you informed me that I’d be wiping your ass. Trust me when I say that the last thing you need to worry about is me jumping your bones or falling in love with your sorry ass.”
Quinn wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. While it was true that she didn’t want Lacey getting any romantic thoughts in her head, she by no means wanted her to be repelled by the thought of it. “Got it. Heart is in New York. Wouldn’t touch me with a ten-foot pole. Definitely NOT in any way attractive right now.” She absentmindedly ran her hand over her hair that was now clean, but probably looked like a rat’s nest. “And just how does having you on my show help me come out?”
Lacey’s excitement bubbled to the surface again. “Because you’ll already be in a relationship with me on the show. So when you fall in love with your co-star in real life, it won’t have to be such a big mental leap for people. You won’t have to announce it. It’ll just be a natural progression. And more importantly, we’re going to kill this thing on screen so people will be dying for us to be together. They’ll completely forget our characters aren’t real.” Lacey narrowed her eyes. “You know, just as soon as we do something about that hair. You can’t even brush it with your left hand, can you?”
“Do you mind?”
Lacey huffed as she stood up. “You don’t have to give me those sad, puppy dog eyes. Just ask.”
“Well, I tried that with the ass-wiping, but I got a lot of pushback.”
Lacey found a brush in the bathroom and sat back down on the edge of the bed. Quinn closed her eyes while Lacey carefully ran the brush through her hair. Finally, something felt good after days of agonizing pain. It was such a stupid accident and the timing couldn’t have been worse. Her face was a mess. Her body was a mess. How could she possibly get in front of the camera looking like this? Just thinking about it brought tears to her eyes. She squeezed them tight, hoping the tears wouldn’t fall.
Lacey pulled the brush back. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Quinn said with a quick shake of her head. “Just…you know…pent up stuff.”
“You’re not in pain, are you?” She handed Quinn a tissue.
“Like you said, I’m not exactly attractive right now. How am I supposed to…” She paused, trying to shake off her emotions.
“Oh my god. You’re fishing for a compliment, aren’t you?”
“What? No!” Quinn said with a firm shake of her head.
“No, I get it. You’re used to being the most beautiful woman in the room.” Lacey picked up the lip balm. “But your lips are chapped and your breath smells…and…”
Quinn batted Lacey’s hand away, causing the lip balm to go flying across the room. “There’s a reason for that, genius. I haven’t brushed my teeth yet. Now, help me get up.”
Lacey followed Quinn into the bathroom. “If it’s any consolation, you still have the best ass in the room. All that mountain biking has really paid off.”
Quinn unsuccessfully tried to pull the t-shirt down to cover her ass. She watched while Lacey put toothpaste on the toothbrush, trying not to smile. She awkwardly brushed her teeth with her left hand while Lacey tidied up the bathroom, picking up towels and wiping down the counter. The hand towel that she normally set her toothbrush on was missing. Just when she was about to go to the closet to find a replacement, a new towel was set down in front of her. “Thank you,” she whispered. Quinn didn’t know if she was thanking Lacey for the compliment or the towel. Probably both.
“I’ll run your idea by Jack,” Quinn said, looking at Lacey in the mirror. “I trust his instincts. If he likes it, I’ll pitch it to the producers. Maybe they’ll be thrilled we have a solution, especially if it involves me not missing a minute of work. Just be prepared that they might not be all that interested in story ideas from the talent.”
Lacey gave her an unconvincing nod. “Yeah, yeah. I got it.”
“Now, can you help me to the toilet, please?”
Lacey groaned in frustration. “God, this better be worth it.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Quinn? It’s Amy. Can I come in?”
“Come in, Amy!” Quinn yelled from the bathroom.
Lacey wrapped a towel around Quinn’s wet body. “Who’s Amy?” She grabbed another towel and ran it over her wet hair.
“My assistant. I need to get back in bed.” Quinn grabbed onto Lacey’s arm. “I feel like I’m going to fall over.”
“I’ve got you.” Lacey helped Quinn out of the bathroom and back to her bed.
Amy, a cute, petite girl with curly blonde hair, was setting up what looked to be a rather large selection of cold-pressed juices and health supplements on the dresser. “Don’t worry,” she said. “I got this, Quinn. We’ll have you back on the set in no time.” She looked up and saw Lacey. “Oh!” She looked at her a little closer and furrowed her brow. “Oh my god,” she whispered. “How did you get Dr. Sarah Covington?”
“Oh, for Christ’s sake,” Quinn said, looking rather annoyed.
Lacey thoroughly enjoyed the look on Quinn’s face. Quinn Kincaid wasn’t the only one who had fans. “Hi, Amy. I’m Lacey.” She walked over and shook Amy’s hand.
Amy slapped a hand over her mouth. “My god, it’s really you? We grew up together! I wanted to be you!”
Desperately needing to see Quinn’s reaction to her assistant being a BIG soap fan, Lacey turned around and was greeted with an eye roll and shake of the head. “Yes Amy, it’s really her,” Quinn said. “We’re all so grateful to have daytime’s most accomplished doctor here to help me get dressed – when she’s in between heart transplants, of course.”
Lacey smiled. “Ignore your pain-in-the-ass boss, Amy. Quinn and I are friends.”
Amy jumped up and down and grabbed Lacey, pulling her in for a hug. “I had no idea! And my sister’s going to DIE! And my mom will just completely flip out. She wanted to KILL your mother for hiding your identical twin sister all those years ago, but like mom said, it was a different time back then, and wealthy people could get away with just about anything.”
“AMY!” Quinn shouted.
Amy got a look of panic on her face. “Shoot,” she whispered. “We’ll talk later, okay?”
Lacey covered her mouth, trying to hold back a laugh as Amy walked over to the bed and sat on the edge. Quinn put a pillow under her arm, trying to get it in a comfortable position. “What are the rumblings?” she asked, looking pale and weak after her shower.
“Well, they’re freaking out a little bit,” Amy said. “The writers are trying to figure out how they can write you out of the first few episodes.”
“WHAT?” Quinn shouted. “That’s ridiculous! There’s no way. That’s a breach of contract. Get my agent on the phone. Or my lawyer. Or someone!”
“Boris is already on it. And don’t worry, there’s no way they’re writing you out. It’d be like writing Olivia Pope out of Scandal.” Amy looked over at Lacey. “Or when they wrote Dr. Sarah Covington out of Light of Day. The show hasn’t been the same since.”
“Thank you, Amy. That’s nice of you to say.” Lacey bit her lip to keep from laughing. She turned away from them, suddenly finding interest in the cold-pressed juices Amy had brought. She picked a bottle up and grimaced as she read the ingredients.
Amy tore her loving gaze from Lacey and focused on Quinn again. “I know how you are about your privacy, but don’t worry. I’m a certified nurse’s aide and I dabble in homeopathy.”
Lacey’s eyes widened in surprise. She whipped her head around. “You’re a CNA?”
Amy almost swooned at Lacey. “Yeah. I wanted to be a doctor like you, but…” she glanced at Quinn. “…life got in the way.”
Lacey moved closer, standing at the end of the bed. “Quinn, Amy’s a CNA. She could…”
Quinn put up her hand. “Amy, I appreciate your concern, but Lacey’s staying in the guesthouse, so…”
Quinn shot her a glare. “Heavy lifting?”
Amy gazed at Lacey with a look that said she’d died and gone to heaven. “You’re staying in the guesthouse? Here? At Quinn’s?”
Quinn sat up a little straighter in bed, grimacing in pain as she did so. “Okay, both of you just shut up and listen. Amy, no one is writing me off the show. I’ll be ready. Got it?”
Amy nodded. “Got it.”
“And I’ll let you know when I need something, but Lacey will be doing most of the ‘heavy lifting,’ as she puts it.” Quinn made a finger quote with her good hand. “Since she has so much experience being a nurse or a doctor or whatever.”
Lacey guffawed. “Yeah, and Quinn will defend me in court when I go insane and commit a heinous crime due to all the heavy lifting.”
“Or maybe I’ll just sue your ass for malpractice,” Quinn snapped back.
It took Amy a second but then she laughed. “Because Quinn plays a lawyer…I get it.” She stood up. “Okay, well I know you’re in very good hands, Quinn.” She turned to Lacey, getting that dreamy look on her face again. “I’ll leave my CNA kit if you want. Stethoscope, blood pressure cuff, thermometer, pretty much everything you’ll need.”
Lacey gave her a swift nod. “Absolutely. I’ll need all of that.”
Amy hugged Lacey again, gripping her shoulders as she pulled away. “I can’t wait to tell my mom I met you. And we’re all praying for you to come back to Light of Day. They didn’t kill you off, so there’s still hope.”
“Ha! Like that ever stopped them,” Quinn said. “You’re never really dead in the soap world, are you?”
Lacey smirked at Amy. “She’s suddenly an expert now?”
Amy gave her a knowing smirk back. “She doesn’t know what she’s missing. Maybe she and her mom would be closer if they watched Light of Day together.”
“I can hear you, Amy,” Quinn said. “I may look like the walking dead, but my ears work just fine.”
Amy bit her lip. “Okay, then! Call if you need me!” She winked at Lacey and went to the door.
After seeing Amy out, Lacey went back into Quinn’s room, pulled a chair up to the bed and sat down. Quinn opened her eyes and closed them again. “I don’t want to hear it.”
“You let me think you had no one to take care of you and here’s Amy, ready and willing. Not to mention the fact that your phone rings nonstop with your mom and everyone at work calling.”
Quinn turned away from her.
“What is it with you?” Lacey asked in frustration. “Why would you rather have a stranger take care of you?”
“That stranger’s a doctor. And a good one, I hear. Brain surgeon or something, but if that thermometer comes anywhere near my ass…”
Lacey sighed. She obviously wasn’t going to get a straight answer out of Quinn now or probably ever. “You’re obsessed with your own ass. You know that, right?” She sighed again. “Okay, it’s time for your meds. And you can drink that shit Amy brought or I can make you some real food.”
Quinn closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank god. Real food.”
CHAPTER NINE
Lacey sat cross-legged on Quinn’s bed, looking rather anxious as she sipped her coffee. Quinn took a final bite of the omelet and wiped her mouth with a napkin. “I feel like such a klutz eating left-handed.”
“That’s because you are a klutz.” Lacey tucked the towel she’d used to soak up spilled orange juice behind her. “When we find you a real girlfriend, she’ll have to like your money because ambidexterity sure isn’t a selling point.”
Quinn laughed and attempted to hit Lacey with her napkin. “Fuck you.”
“Never…” Lacey winked.
“Well, your next real girlfriend can love you for your cooking. That omelet was…”
“Stop messing with me. Just tell me,” Lacey interrupted.
Quinn tried to hide her amusement, her lips curling up at the corners. She knew Lacey was going all kinds of crazy, wondering if Jack had liked her idea. Getting on a prime-time show would change everything for her, even if it turned out to be a short-term gig. Quinn cleared her throat and pursed her lips together, trying to look serious. “He didn’t like your pitch.”
“He didn’t?” Lacey’s shoulders fell. “Dammit,” she whispered.
“No. He didn’t like it at all.”
“I thought for sure…”
Quinn held back a giggle. She wanted to keep up the charade but Lacey looked so downtrodden she just didn’t have the heart. “He didn’t like it, he loved it.”
Lacey’s eyes widened. “You are such an asshole!” she said, throwing the wet towel at Quinn.
Quinn burst out giggling. “Sorry. Your face, though.”
“Shut up. So, for real? And you like the idea too?”
“It’s the sixth season. We need to shake things up a bit, so this is kind of perfect.”
The idea wasn’t just growing on Quinn, she was fully embracing it. Lacey was right – Quinn wouldn’t have to make such a big deal of her coming out process, and that alone would lift a huge weight off her shoulders. If this worked, it would be seamless. No interviews, just a natural process that would slowly unfold in front of America’s eyes. It was brilliant.
“Can you make sure they give the part to me and not someone else?” Lacey asked.
Quinn sensed the fear and insecurity in Lacey’s voice, afraid that she’d somehow be left out of the equation. It was understandable, since it happened all the time in Hollywood. Actors were at the mercy of directors and producers and their little whims. One day, you’re their favorite and the next, you don’t have a job.
“Don’t worry about that,” Quinn said, trying to reassure her. “They’ll think they’re doing me a favor by casting you in a few episodes. After that, it’s up to us to get the audience invested in looks that linger a little too long and banter that seems just a bit too flirty.”
“So, you’re all in?” Lacey waited expectantly for an answer.
Quinn gave her a nod. “Yeah. All in.”
“YAY!” Lacey shouted as she threw herself back on the bed and kicked her legs in the air. She sat back up and jumped off the bed. “I’ll be right back.” She came back in the room a few seconds later holding a black marker in her hand.
“Um…” Quinn tilted her head. “What do you plan on doing with that?”
“I’m going to sign your cast. Who knows, my autograph might be worth something someday.”
“Uh, no.” Quinn covered her cast with her other arm. “I’ve seen how you sign your name. Your autograph sucks.”
Lacey sat on the bed and took the cap off the marker. “Come on, Quinn. I had a cast when I was eleven and all my friends signed it. If you have a signature-less cast, people might think you have no friends.”
“Oooor, maybe they’ll take an even bigger leap and assume that I’m an adult.” Lacey pouted, so Quinn reluctantly removed her arm. “Fine. But you’re the only one who signs my cast.”
Lacey leaned in and furrowed her brow as if she were really focusing hard on her task. “Laaaceeeey…. Matthewwws.” She sat back and gave an affirming nod. “Perfect. You now have one friend.”
Quinn smiled, wondering if Lacey really meant it.
***
The next few days went smoothly. They had the routine down by then. Breakfast first, so Quinn could take her pain meds. After that, Lacey would put the laptop in front of her so she could check her emails. Sometimes it took too long for her to reply with only one working hand, so Lacey would type while Quinn dictated.
After that, Quinn would rest and watch one of the cable news channels while Lacey did the household chores. Then, about an hour before lunch, Lacey would go back up to the bedroom and get Quinn showered and dressed in clean pajamas.
“Ready to shower?”
Quinn waved Lacey into her bedroom. “Please, I’m so
hot. And open a window. This room is stifling.”
“You are, actually…kind of hot…you know…for an…” Lacey pulled the curtains back and opened the sliding glass door, letting a cool breeze in.
“Were you going to say older woman? Because I’m only a few years older than you.” Quinn winced as she tried to stand up. “Okay, maybe several,” she mumbled under her breath.
“Helpless…middle aged…muscles are melting away with every passing second…woman.”
“My tits are still good, though, right?” Quinn pushed her chest out and immediately bent over in pain. “Damn.”
Lacey grabbed Quinn’s good arm. “What’s wrong?”
Quinn slowly straightened back up, pain racking her entire body. “I’m just so sore from all this lying around. My back is killing me. My neck is killing me. Everything hurts.”
“I know what you need.” Lacey went to the closet and came back out with a bathing suit hanging from one finger. “There’s a perfectly good hot tub out back.”
***
Quinn stood at the edge of the hot tub with her cast covered in plastic. “Are you sure? A shower is one thing, but this?”
Lacey took off her robe, revealing a little black bikini. She stepped in first and turned around, holding her hands out. “Jump to me, baby.”
Quinn stuck a toe in. “I’m not jumping.”
Lacey took a step back, feeling glad that she could make Quinn laugh through the pain. “Fine. Do it your way,” she said as she admired Quinn’s very toned body. Her eyes wandered up to Quinn’s bikini top, which wasn’t covering much. Soft, luscious cleavage was trying hard to burst out the top and a little bit was even showing underneath. Lacey folded her arms and waited. There was nothing wrong with looking, was there? And even though the woman aggravated her to no end, Lacey’s fake girlfriend/roommate/patient was still hot.
“Are you sure this plastic bag is going to hold?” Quinn hesitantly put one foot in the water.
Lacey offered her hand as Quinn took another step. “I used waterproof tape and wrapped it solid. Just trust me, okay?”