Faking It

by Winters, Jade

  He dug his hand into his jacket and withdrew a memory stick.

  “Here,” he said handing it to her. “This is the real Danni. This is what she really wants to write about – and she’s bloody good at it. She isn’t a liar or a cheat or any of the other things you think she is. She’s a loyal, decent person and I’m proud to her call my friend.”

  He stood and pushed the chair in.

  “That’s all I’ve got to say.”

  Josh turned and walked back through the office.

  Brooke looked down at the memory stick in her hand.

  She didn’t doubt Josh’s sincerity. She believed every word he said. Maybe if things hadn’t happened with Megan she could have found forgiveness in her heart. But for now, it was all still too raw.

  Chapter Fifty

  Danni woke up with a start. She was surprised she had managed to fall asleep, such was her anxiety. Today was the first time she was going to attend an author’s launch event, but more importantly, Brooke would be there. Seeing her face-to-face, she was determined to make her listen. Make her understand.

  Danni glanced at the time on her phone. It was too early to wake Josh, besides whenever she was feeling nervous, she preferred to be alone. She needed to figure out what she wanted to say to Brooke without coming across as insincere or taking what she had done lightly.

  She remained in bed for another hour fretting and turning scenarios over in her mind, until finally she heard the running of the shower – Josh was up. It was time to get the show on the road. Throwing back the quilt, she leapt out of bed and selected her clothes before heading to the bathroom.

  Two hours later they sat in the back of a cab making their way to the launch. Danni dug her nails into her palms and suppressed a yelp. She hadn’t realised they had grown so long. Josh sat beside her in a smart grey suit.

  “Do I look nervous?” she asked him.

  “Hmm, let’s see,” he said taking her hands in his and turning them over, palm up. “Sweaty palms.” He pressed a finger to her wrist. “Fast pulse rate.” He eyed her forehead. “Film of perspiration. Yes, Danni. You look nervous.”

  She inhaled deeply and blew out a breath. “Crap. I thought I looked really poised and cool.”

  “Maybe the Danni in the parallel universe does but not you.”

  “Thanks, Josh. That’s just what I needed to hear. Not!”

  “Well, here we are,” Josh said moving to the edge of the seat. “Let’s go and knock Brooke dead. Not literally. You know what I mean.”

  The car pulled up at the publishing house. Roy was stood outside the building talking to a short man with a pink tie.

  “Hi, Danni, Josh. This is Roger. He just wanted to pop out for a cigarette before we get started,” Roy said as they got out of the cab.

  Roger threw his cigarette to the ground a shook Danni’s and then Josh’s hand enthusiastically.

  “Lovely to meet you both,” he said. “Shall we go in?”

  “Yes, of course,” Roy replied as he led them into the building and the open lift, pressing the button to the second floor. They walked behind him in a single file along the corridor and into an oblong shaped conference room, filled to capacity with members of staff. A quick scan of the brightly lit place told her what she feared – Brooke was not going to show her face. So that was that then. No point crying over split milk.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls,” Roy called out, drawing attention to himself at the head of the room. “Today it gives me great pleasure to tell you all Roger Holt’s book has gone storming into the charts and is already in the top fifty as we speak.”

  The room erupted in applause as Roger made his way to stand next to Roy.

  “That’s gonna be you soon Danni,” Josh whispered in her ear.

  “Speech, speech, speech,” the crowd called out.

  Roy held his hand up to quieten them.

  “Ahem, what can I say? First and foremost I would like to say a big thank you to Roy.”

  After ten minutes, he neared the end of his speech which consisted of numerous thanks and a funny anecdote about how his pet puppy got rather amorous with his laptop and he nearly lost the whole manuscript.

  “Lastly, I’d like to say a big heartfelt to thank you to Brooke,” he glanced around the room, searching for her, “For not only editing the book but for helping me express myself in a way I never thought possible.”

  “Brooke’s here,” someone yelled from the back of the room.

  Danni squinted as she looked in the direction of the voice and true enough, Brooke was standing at the back with a gorgeous willowy blonde. They looked very friendly indeed. Brooke waved at Roger, then after he finished speaking, turned her attention back to the blonde.

  Danni gulped back the warm white wine she held in a plastic cup. It looked like Brooke had moved on already. She watched them as they laughed easily with each other. They looked so comfortable, so relaxed, just how Brooke and herself had been not so long ago.

  As if sensing her stare, Brooke glanced over at her. Their exchange lasted all of a few seconds before Brooke said something to the woman, then they both looked at her with a smile. Danni’s inner voice told her that she must have totally misjudged Brooke. Was she sadistic? Why else would she be getting pleasure out of flirting with this woman right in front of Danni’s eyes? Was this her payback? She wanted to cry. But that she would never do. Never in a million years would she give Brooke the satisfaction of knowing that she’d hurt her. Broke her heart even.

  “What’s the matter Danni?” Josh said.

  Danni turned to him, blinking back the tears welling in her eyes. “Nothing. This was a bad idea, me coming here.” She shoved the drink in his hand. “I’m going home. Please make an excuse to your dad.”

  “Hey,” he said catching her by the arm. “I thought you were going to talk to Brooke.”

  “Yeah, so did I,” she said shrugging off his hand. As she turned in the direction of the exit, she noticed Brooke coming towards her with the woman in tow. Now she really was taking the piss. Was she actually going to introduce her? Brooke stopped in the middle of the room and waited until Danni had to pass her.

  “Danni–”

  Danni slowed down momentarily, just long enough to say, “Sorry Brooke. I can’t stop. I have to be somewhere in, like, ten minutes. Good to see you again.” The words came out at lightning speed. Without waiting another second, she brushed past her and exited the room. Now this was why she couldn’t be bothered with relationships. There was always way too much drama for her liking. Bypassing the lift she made her way down the seven flights of stairs and out onto the pavement. She would just have to accept the glorious night with Brooke for what it was – a one night stand. Though she knew she didn’t have any claims on Brooke, that she was a free agent, it still hurt. She inhaled deeply as she looked up at the building. Good luck to them. She just hoped her new partner was better than Megan.

  Tears blurred her vision as she stood on the edge of the pavement and caught sight of the familiar double-decker that would take her home. Her phone vibrated in her pocket. Withdrawing it, she looked down and took a life-changing step forward, the text was from Brooke. She never got a chance to read the message. The next few seconds seemed to happen in slow motion: the screeching of brakes. Josh shouting her name. The shocked face behind the windscreen of the Mini, his mouth forming a scream. There was going to be an unavoidable impact. Then there was. Danni somersaulted across the hood of the car, flew through the air and fell to the tarmac with a sickening thud.

  Her eyes still closed, she heard Josh’s frantic voice getting louder and louder until he was by her side, sobbing, calling her name repeatedly. Why is he crying? Danni wondered and then the world went black.

  Chapter Fifty-One

  St Thomas hospital was as busy as the London underground during rush hour. Doctors and nurses darted along corridors, clipboards in hand. Patients walked around aimlessly, searching for signs to their particular depa
rtment. Brooke sat with Josh in the Accident and Emergency waiting room, their faces bleached by the harsh florescent lights. Josh stared at the wall in front of him, both hands on his head, his voice so choked with tears and emotion Brooke had to strain to hear what he was saying.

  “Why didn’t she look where she was going? I tried to warn her.”

  Brooke laid her hand on his back and rubbed it. She was trying to hold it together for Josh’s sake, despite wanting to break down herself. She couldn’t believe this was happening. Barely an hour ago she was seconds away from talking to Danni and telling her that she understood why she had been less than truthful. That she realised there was no malice in her behaviour. But now Danni was lying in a hospital bed, her condition as yet unknown. This was something she could never have anticipated. Not to the woman she loved. Yes, she loved her. As much as she’d tried to quell her feelings and break free from Danni, she just couldn’t. She didn’t dare think about a life without her in it now.

  As if on cue, the door swung open and a stocky dark-haired doctor walked out with a stethoscope hung around his neck, his expression grim as he hurried into the waiting room. He shook his head as he neared, his eyes refusing to meet hers. Josh let out a wild animalistic scream and dropped to his knees. Brooke froze, she couldn’t move. She waited. She wanted to hear it from the doctor’s own mouth. She needed him to tell her that Danni was dead.

  The doctor stopped in front of her. “Is your friend okay?” he asked, gesturing to Josh.

  She looked at his name tag hanging from his grey shirt. Dr Patel. “Yes. He’ll be fine.”

  She felt relieved as the doctor glanced down at Josh again and walked on, stopping to talk to a young couple a few feet away before ushering them into a side room.

  “Josh, Josh!” Brooke whispered in a ragged breath, poking him in the ribs until he looked up at her.

  He whimpered. “Danni’s dead, she’s dead.”

  Brooke tried to pull him up by his arm. “Josh she isn’t. Listen to me. Look,” she said twisting his head toward the couple being led away by the doctor.

  Josh watched the closing door with a puzzled look on his tear stained face. “But ...”

  Brooke shook her head. “He wasn’t looking at us.”

  “Thank God,” he said wiping his eyes with the back of his hands before using the chair to help him to his feet. “Sorry about that,” he mumbled sheepishly.

  “Don’t worry about it. I had the exact thought when I saw him heading our way,” she reassured him.

  The doors to the unit swung open frequently as doctors, nurses, and visitors streamed through in endless cycles. But no-one came for Josh and Brooke. The waiting was endless. Brooke pushed up her sleeve and glanced at her watch. They’d been in the waiting room for over three agonising hours. She was just getting ready to make an enquiry when a small doctor with a pointy chin and a dainty button nose headed towards them, a faint smile on her face. “You’re Miss Gardener’s friends?”

  Brooke felt an immediate adrenaline rush. “Yes. How is she?”

  “Well considering. She has had a very lucky escape with just a few broken ribs, not to mention a very sore head. We’ll be keeping her in overnight for observation, just to be on the safe side, but she should be fine. You must be Brooke I take it,” she said smiling.

  “Uh. Yes.”

  “I’ve been speaking with Danni, just to make sure her memory is sound. She’s been talking about you non-stop.”

  Brooke’s face flushed. “Can we see her?”

  “Of course. She’s in the first cubicle down the hall on the right. We’ll be moving her onto a ward as soon as a bed becomes available. Try not to talk too much, she needs plenty of rest.”

  Brooke shook the doctor’s hand. “Thank you so much.”

  “No problem.” The doctor nodded as she walked on.

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  The cubicle was sparse, with a single metal bed and a green plastic chair. Danni lay beneath a thin blue blanket, trying not to move her head or any other part of her body for that matter. Pain oozed through every muscle and every joint. Bloody mini!

  She moved her eyes to the entrance of the cubical as Josh drew the curtain back and peeked his head through.

  “Can I come in?” he asked with a big grin.

  Danni wore a puzzled expression, her eyes glazed over. “Who are you?” She slurred. Seeing the terrified look on Josh’s face she quickly retorted, “I’m kidding, Josh!”

  He narrowed his eyes at her. “That’s really not funny.”

  “Sorry.”

  He moved closer to the bed, gently taking her hand in his. “How are you feeling?”

  She moved a little and let out a groan. “Oh ... just great. Bloody fantastic considering. Mind you, I have had a load of pain killers. I’m high as a kite!”

  “I thought you were a goner Danni,” Josh said, bowing his head as raw emotion caught in his throat.

  Danni lifted her hand and rubbed the top of his head. “No chance. It takes more than a Mini to get rid of me. A Mercedes perhaps – but not a Mini.”

  Josh laughed. “I’m so glad you’re all right. Now I called your mum and she’s on her way too. She knows you are ok. Your nan is knitting you a new scarf to make you feel better.”

  Danni grinned.

  “I’m going to get us some drinks. You have another visitor who wants to see you,” Josh said, getting up from the chair.

  Danni took a breath. “Oh God. Please don’t tell me it’s Mick, he’s probably heard about the drugs in this place. I’m feeling trippy enough as it is.”

  Josh smiled down at her and backed away. Danni closed her eyes.

  Maybe if I pretend I’m asleep he’ll go away.

  Seconds later, a pair of soft, warm hands covered her own and her heart lifted. They didn’t belong to Mick. She’d know those hands anywhere; they were Brooke’s.

  Danni opened her eyes and looked at Brooke, seeing only concern and sadness in her eyes.

  “We thought we’d lost you,” Brooke said softly.

  Danni closed her eyes as a single tear slid from them. “Why would you care about losing something you didn’t want?”

  Brooke gently rested her face against her chest. “Danni. I’ve wanted you from the moment I laid eyes on you. I haven’t stopped wanting you for a minute since.”

  Danni coughed, her mouth suddenly dry. “You could’ve fooled me. Let’s not mention the blonde bimbo you seemed to be glued to.”

  “Polly? She’s an old friend who really is straight and happily married to my cousin.”

  Danni snorted. “Yeah, right.”

  “Did you read my text?”

  “Er no, I don’t know if you noticed but I was too busy meeting a Mini! Besides, my phone no longer exists.”

  Brooke laughed. “You haven’t lost your sense of humour then. I was texting you to ask you to come back so we could talk. I’ll tell you what I wanted to say.” She took hold of Danni’s hand in her own. “I want to start again? A fresh start. No more lies, no more secrets.”

  Danni sensed her pulse quickening. Is that all it took these days to get forgiveness, three broken ribs? If she had realised that, she would have flung herself in front of a car weeks ago. “You do know I never set out to intentionally hurt you don’t you?”

  “Yes. I was too wrapped up with the crap I was going through with Megan to see clearly.”

  Danni shuddered at the mere mention of Megan’s name. “So what happened with her then?”

  “I’m happy to say she is well and truly out of my life, and my mind.”

  Danni grinned at the welcome news. “Good. I’m glad to hear it. So,” she went on, “Shall we seal our new beginning with a kiss?” Danni said.

  “It would be my pleasure,” Brooke said as she gently pressed her lips against Danni’s.

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  Four days had passed since Danni’s release from hospital. The effects of the morphine now long gone, the ache in her body w
as only kept at bay with the aid of very strong painkillers. She braced herself as she sneezed for the fifth time that day. The living room resembled a florist. There were beautiful blooms everywhere, from Roy, Brooke, her family, and even Mick who had popped over with a bunch of wilted leaves that looked suspiciously like “da herb”! Perhaps she should get knocked over more often.

  Josh stepped into the room with a big smile on his face. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

  “No thanks,” she said looking up at him. “You’ve been an absolute star, but I think I can manage turning the TV over now,” she joked. Though the doctor had said to take things easy, she wasn’t a total invalid. Josh had been running about catering to her every need for the past few days. It was time to give the poor man a break.

  A contented smile spread across her face as Brooke walked into the blossoming room, carrying a tray of delights. The smell of chicken soup filled the air. “Mmmm, that smells delicious,” Danni said as her stomach echoed her assessment of the delightful smell.

  “It is. It’s my mum’s special recipe,” Brooke said placing the tray on the coffee table. She knelt down beside her, kissing her on the mouth. “Have you missed me?”

  Danni tentatively reached her arm around her neck, gently pulling Brooke’s face close to her own. “Er … you’ve only been in the kitchen for an hour.”

  Josh cleared his throat loudly. “Hellooooo ladies, I’m still here if you hadn’t noticed.”

  The two women laughed, kissing once again to truly annoy him.

  “Have you told her the good news yet, Brooke?”

  “Good news about what?” Danni asked looking expectantly from one to the other.

  “I read your book,” Brooke said standing up and looking down at her proudly.

  Danni was confused. “Yes I know – you edited it. Maybe it’s you that’s got concussion.”