A Girl by Any Other Name (76 page)

eyes flutter awake. He was hovering above me, bloodshot eyes and a few days’ worth of stubble on

his face. The relieved, hopeful smile he gave me broke my heart. “Baby, don’t try to talk. Mandy, get

the nurse.” I saw long auburn spirals and heard the click of heels as she ran out of the room. She was

grown up.

He stared at me, a tear forming at the corner of his eye. I wanted to wipe it away, but he clutched

one of my hands and the other wouldn’t move.

Then darkness came.

I woke up, more alert this time. It was dark in the room, except for the dim lighting coming from

the hallway. I searched for him until I saw his sleeping form on the chair beside me. I blinked my eyes

until he came into focus. His strong jaw, covered in stubble, and wrinkled shirt did nothing to detract

from his striking good looks. His sandy blond hair, longer than I remembered, flopped seductively

against the chiseled planes of his face. He was an incredibly handsome man. I wouldn’t think twice of

describing him as beautiful, although his masculine conscious wouldn’t have appreciated that

description. He shifted uncomfortably in the chair, where his legs stretched out so far that I feared he

might fall. The seating definitely wasn’t the right fit for his tall frame.

He must have sensed I was awake because he opened his eyes. They looked blue tonight, but

bloodshot and tired. He let out a long relieved sigh that quickly turned into a happy grin. “Hi,

gorgeous girl, how was your nap?”

“Are you all right?” I didn’t even recognize my own voice. It sounded strained and harsh, like

I’d smoked a million cigarettes.

He chuckled, but there was an ache in it like it reverberated from his gut. “You would ask me

that before I could ask you. I’m just fine. How are you feeling, sweetheart?”

I thought about it for a moment. My body felt stiff, like lifting a limb would require major effort,

and my face felt tight for some reason, but other than that, I felt good. “I think I’m good.” I tried to

shift, but my body wouldn’t let me move. “What…what’s happened?”

“Don’t try to move. You’ve been in a coma. It was from head trauma.” He winced, grasping my

hand as if the explanation was difficult for him. “He hit you in the head really hard and knocked you

into an iron table. I couldn’t stop it.”

“How long?”

“Almost two weeks.” Two weeks? How was that possible? “I’m going to get you some water.”

He held a cup with a straw out to me. I took a sip, but it burned a little going down. “They had a tube

in your throat. It’s going to hurt for a little while.” He set the cup down, stroking my hair.

The last thing I remembered was Joe being shot. I gasped, “Joe?”

“He’s okay. He had to have surgery, but he recuperated just fine. It turns out Eddie’s aim wasn’t

as accurate as he proclaimed after all.”

I took a deep breath, relieved that Joe was alive. “Where is he?”

“He had to go back to work, but I called him earlier to tell him you were awake.”

“Did he say anything?”

Cal smirked. “Yeah, he said if I fuck this up with you, he’ll be waiting.” My mouth dropped

open, but Cal put me at ease by brushing his fingers against my cheek. “It’s okay, baby. We have an

understanding. I shook his hand before he left. I’ll always be indebted to him.”

“Why?”

“Because he took care of you when I couldn’t.”

I tried to wrap my head around the idea of Cal and Joe being friends or even friendly, but it was

difficult to grasp. “What I had with him was different than what I feel for you.”

“I know that. You don’t have to justify it to me. I never thought I’d say this, but in the end, I’m

glad you had both of us.”

Then a cold dread filled me. “Eddie?”

“He’s dead. Joe says all indications are that you’re safe.”

It felt like a heavy weight had finally been lifted off my chest. I didn’t have to worry anymore

about myself or Cal. It was the most amazing gift I could have received. “How did he die?”

“I shot him.”

I stared up at the ceiling, feeling the weight of his words against the freedom of their meaning.

“Tell me what you’re thinking, sweetheart. I need to know.”

“I’m relieved that he’s dead.”

“My only regret is that I didn’t do it ten years ago.”

“No regrets, Cal. Just relief. We don’t have to hide anymore.”

He took my hand and kissed it. “No, we don’t. I can’t wait to scream how much I love you to

anyone who’ll listen.”

I laughed, but it came out a choked raspy sound. “Don’t do it too much, Tex. They’ll think you’re

crazy.”

I saw the guilt in his eyes, but I had no idea how to take it away, so I asked another question.

“Are Mandy and your mom here? I thought I heard them.”

“Yes, I called them. I figured since there was no danger, they could know. I hope that’s okay. I

really needed their support.”

“Of course it is. I want to see them. Are they here?”

“No, they’re at my place. It’s very late and visiting hours are over, but they’ll be back in the

morning.”

“Then why are you here?”

He was thoughtful for a moment. I reached out and tousled his sandy blond hair and trailed my

fingers down the stubble on his cheek, grateful my muscles were finally working. He leaned into my

hand as if it was a great source of comfort. “Your nurse happens to be a friend of mine, and she

convinced the staff to look the other way. I’ve been staying here.”

“The whole time?”

“Pretty much. Momma said I should go home and clean up for you, but I couldn’t stand the

thought of you waking up all alone.”

Just then, a pretty, blonde woman appeared next to me. I hadn’t seen her come in.

“Good, our patient is awake,” she said cheerfully.

“Sylvie, this is Molly,” Cal introduced.

Molly? This was awkward and definitely not the impression I wanted to make with Cal’s ex.

She smiled at me sweetly, though, and it put me at ease. “I’m so sorry for what you’ve been through.

You’re a very lucky girl.”

I didn’t think she was just talking about me being alive, but I had no response to that so I just

nodded. She took my blood pressure and got me some water. Cal took it from her, holding the straw

to my mouth. I drew the liquid quickly, not realizing how thirsty I was. Then I choked on it. He rubbed

my back in slow circles. “Take it easy.”

“I have to go to the bathroom.”

Molly helped me up. She made quick work of unhooking me from the tubes and machinery

connected to my body. He took one of my arms while she took the other. My legs felt like stiff lead

weights. Finally, Cal just lifted me and carried me in there, but I managed to shoo him away before I

performed the act. He was already seeing me at my worst. I really didn’t want him in the audience

while I peed. Molly helped me, which wasn’t much better, but she was very professional about it.

“Are y’all done in there?” Cal asked as soon as the toilet flushed.

“Yes,” Molly answered. She helped me to the sink as Cal rushed in. He sat on the small vanity,

practically washing my hands for me then drying them.

Before I could protest, he swept me up again, carrying me out. I thought it was a bit odd, but

right now, I wasn’t about to complain.

Molly straightened the sheets around me. “Your doctor and the plastic surgeon will be in

tomorrow.”

“Plastic surgeon?” I asked.

She looked between Cal and me. Cal shook his head at her in frustration. Her expression became

contrite. “I’m sorry, I thought she knew.”

“Can you bring a mirror, Molly?”

She walked out quickly.

“Baby, just relax. It looks worse than it is. This plastic surgeon is brilliant from what I hear, and

he thinks he can make it so you only have a minor scar.”

I suddenly got why he’d been so vigilant with the bathroom. He was covering the mirror so I

wouldn’t see myself. It must be really bad.

Molly came back with a handheld mirror. “I’m going to go now. I’ll be in a little later to check

on you, Sylvie. I’m so glad you’re okay…and that he found you.”

After she left, I turned to Cal. “This is weird. Your ex-girlfriend is my nurse?”

“Yeah, I know. I told her who you were. Once she found out you weren’t some girl I had just

met, she apologized to me. She’s taking really good care of you. I’ve been watching.”

“Will you lie down beside me?”

He looked unsure. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You won’t,” I insisted, trying to shift so he could come onto the bed. Parts of me seemed to

work just fine, but other areas like my hips would not cooperate.

“Stop,” he said gently.

“Tex, I want you next to me.”

He stood up and placed his muscular arms under my body. “I’m going to lift and move you over,

but you have to tell me if it hurts.”

I nodded, grateful he wasn’t arguing. He shifted me over easily and climbed into the bed next to

me. He placed his arms around me carefully. I snuggled into him, grateful to feel his heartbeat again.

It was in his arms that I felt the safest and the strongest too.

He moved his mouth against my ear and at first I only felt the heated breath against my skin,

making it tingle, until he started whispering in that pained, tormented voice that made my heart melt.

“I was so afraid of losing you again. It would have been all my fault. I put you in danger not once but

twice. I knew Eddie. He used me to get to you.”

This sounded familiar to me because Eddie had said as much when he’d taken me from that hotel

room. I looked up at him—this man who loved me so much he was willing to sacrifice everything. I

smiled reassuringly, and placed my hand over his heart.

He covered my hand with his. “I almost killed you. I will never forgive myself.”

“Cal, you didn’t almost kill me. You saved me in every way a person can be saved. You gave

me courage and strength when I needed it the most. You were a friend when I had no one. You

became my family and made me yours the day you slept on my floor when I was twelve and I have

loved you since that day. You weren’t my reason for almost dying. You are my reason for living.”

He buried his head into my neck and I knew he didn’t want me to see the tears there. I let him

release his pent-up emotion. I loved him so much and his pain was mine to bear so I started crying

too, which made him stop. He wiped my tears. “I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t do this, Tex. We’ve lived with regret for so long.”

“You’re absolutely right. I never thought of us as lucky, but that’s exactly what we are. We found

each other not once, but twice. I love you so much.”

“I love you too. Now, tell me about my face.”

He looked up with a surprised expression.

“Did you think I forgot?”

“I was hoping.” His expression was grim as he took the mirror from the nightstand where he’d

placed it. “Let me just preface this by saying that I think you are beautiful either way. And on the

bright side, you’re gonna have one badass scar.”

Cal had a strange sense of humor, but I appreciated it. He was always able to get me to laugh,

even in my present state. “No one is going to mess with you after this. Are you ready?”

I nodded and he held up the mirror to me.

I wasn’t a vain person, but I swear if he wasn’t holding the mirror, I would have thrown it

across the room. I remember the pain when Eddie had cut my face open. He’d stuck his finger inside

the wound, widening it, making comments about how he needed me to bleed to make up for my sins. I

forced my eyes to stay open, but it was difficult to stare at the strange reflection that greeted me. The

side of my face was stitched neatly, but it was a very long line that covered the area below my eye

down to my chin. My face was pale, sunken in and lifeless. My eyes were droopy with black circles

underneath them. I couldn’t imagine that Cal thought I was beautiful, but I knew he was speaking the

truth when he said it.

“Put it down, please.”

He moved the mirror away immediately, placing it back on the nightstand. “Baby, like I said, it

doesn’t detract from your beauty.”

“I look like Frankenstein.”

“No, you don’t have any bolts in your ears.”

I buried my face in his chest. He stroked my hair. “I’m sorry. I’m so grateful you’re here with me

that it’s hard for me to come up with the right words to comfort you about this.”

“Plastic surgery sounds expensive. I don’t have any insurance.”

“I’m taking care of it.”

“Cal, I can’t let you do that. Can you even afford it?” I was surprised to hear myself yelling. It

was such a drastic change from the quiet tones we were speaking in.

He smiled. “Not really, but my Citibank and Amex card can. Plus Momma’s going to help and

the hospital is reducing the cost.”

“Cal—”

“Listen, Sylvie, I don’t care either way. I think you’re perfection no matter what. But I don’t

want you to be reminded of him every time you look in the mirror. I don’t want to discuss it any

further.”

“’Kay.”

He held me closer, kissing my head, whispering reassurances.

“Thank you.”

“I’m your Huckleberry.”

“Yes, you are.”