Ready or Not (32 page)

Mallory stared at her friends, mystified. “Why haven’t you helped with information like the blue top and heels before?”

Sam looked at Brooklyn and Hunter. “I got this one.” She turned to Mallory. “We find it’s best not to tell you what to do in the grand scheme of things. So we pick our moments. This happens to be one of them.” A pause. “So what are you waiting for? Go wash your face, put on some lip gloss, and locate the blue top.”

“Wait. Now? You want me to go down to Showplace now?” Mallory asked.

“Yes, now,” Brooklyn said, taking Mallory’s wineglass and pulling her up. “There’s no time like the present to go after what you want. Time to win over the girl you love, Mal. It’s kind of a big deal, so go put on the blue top.”

Mallory stared at them as fear thrummed away in her chest. “Are you guys sure about this? Maybe I should work up to some big declaration.”

“Are
you
sure?” Sam asked. “That’s the question.”

Mallory felt confidence bubble up in her chest with a kicker of excitement. She nodded. She could do this. She could
actually do this.

“Go for it,” Hunter said and gestured to the chocolaty goodness around them. “We got all this.”

Fueled by nerves and adrenaline, Mallory changed and ran a brush through her hair, tossing it just a bit so it had that shine. With a touch of marshmallow lip gloss, she was set. Her friends stood in her living room, waiting for her.

“That’s what I’m talking about,” Brooklyn said.

“You look gorgeous. No, beyond,” Samantha said. She took off her earrings and gave them to Mallory. “For luck.”

“Thanks, Sam.”

Hunter kissed Mallory’s cheek and met her eyes. “I’ve looked up to you and admired you for as long as I can remember. We’re all behind you one hundred percent.”

She took a deep breath and studied the faces of her best friends. “Guess I’m gonna do this. Thanks, you guys. Regardless of what happens, I’m glad you came over tonight and put me back together.”

And that’s actually how she felt suddenly, like she was herself again: Mallory Spencer, capable of taking on the world.

*

As Mallory approached Showplace, the music from the DJ booth inside bled onto the sidewalk as a group of girls opened the door and made their way inside. A glance in the window told her it was a typical Friday night, packed, which made this whole thing all the more daunting. Feeling her confidence waver a tad, she pushed open the door and forced a smile.

She passed her typical table, occupied tonight by a group of chatty coeds. The loud beat from the music seeped into the floor, and she felt its rhythmic pulse all around her. Not immediately seeing Hope at the bar, she scanned the room from the dance floor to the dartboards to the cocktail tables to no avail. She walked to the bar where Teddy and one of the waitresses juggled drink orders as a large group of patrons waited patiently. Teddy glanced up at Mallory and then down again before pulling a double take. “Mallory,” he said above the noise. “You’re here.”

“Yeah. Hey, Teddy! I was looking for Hope. Is she in her office?”

At the question, his forehead creased and he exchanged a glance with the waitress, who nodded at him. He turned back to Mallory. “No, actually. She’s not in tonight. Why don’t we talk for a second?” He came around from behind the bar and ushered her to Hope’s office, which was empty. A chill moved across her skin at how strange this all felt.

“What’s going on?” she asked. “Hope took tonight off?” Teddy hesitated a moment, which had Mallory’s blood pressure climbing second by second. The hair on the back of her neck stood up. “Teddy, what’s going on?”

“She didn’t want me to tell you.”

“Tell me what? Teddy, I like you a lot, but I swear I’m gonna come unglued if you don’t get the words out quicker.”

“She’s at Mount Sinai and pretty banged up.”

Her heart lodged in her chest. Her hand fluttered to the chair as she struggled to understand. “Wait. She’s in the hospital? What happened?”

“Something about a guy named Dominic thinking she was someone else. That’s about all the detail I got out of her. She’s been pretty weak but got out of the ICU as of today. She still has some recovery ahead of her.”

She heard his last few words distantly, as she was already in motion moving quickly. She hailed a cab expertly and arrived at Mount Sinai twenty minutes later, confused and terrified.

The beeps and whirs of the machines drifted to Hope distantly as she woke. She’d been asleep for at least a couple of hours, that much she knew. The doctor without the hair had mentioned something about keeping her on a low-level sedative so her ribs could heal. That was totally okay with her, as it felt like she was hit by a truck each and every time she inhaled.

Her headache was better though. That would make the doctor with hair happy when he stopped by later. She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, which held a different shape than she was expecting. That’s right. New room. They’d moved her down the hall, which meant her condition was improving. She turned and stared at the cup of water on the end table next to her. God, she was thirsty, but the prospect of reaching for the water was so not worth the pain it would inflict.

“Are you thirsty?” a calm voice to her right asked. She turned and blinked against the image, as she wasn’t sure it was real. She’d been hit on the head, after all, and had had a number of crazy dreams about Mallory since. But this wasn’t one of them, she realized, as no amount of blinking erased the picturesque visual in front of her. She was real and she was here, looking like an angel at her bedside. Mallory smiled down at her. She looked pale, and tears glistened in her eyes, but she was smiling. “Hey, there.”

“Hey. What are you doing here?” Hope managed to ask, glancing around the empty room as she noted that her own voice still sounded gravelly and unfamiliar.

“Not your brightest question,” Mallory said and moved the cup with the straw to Hope’s lips so she could drink. The water was cool and refreshing, and she managed three swallows. “Good?” Hope nodded and Mallory set down the cup.

“Where else would I be?”

“At your place, living your life.”

Mallory shook her head. “Not when you’re here.” She gently traced what Hope knew to be a large bruise around the side of her cheek. “Who did this to you?”

“Teddy shouldn’t have told you about this.”

“He said it was Dominic. They thought you were Kara?”

Hope nodded. “Listen, Mallory. It was nice of you to come, but I’m sure you have things you should be doing. You and I are—”

“At a hospital, while you’re getting better. And I’m here to help with that.”

Hope found her eyes. “I don’t need your help.”

“You seem to say that a lot. Problem is, I’m done listening. You need me and I need you.”

Her head was swimming again and she felt a distinct lack of energy to push back.

“I have people,” she managed to point out. “You can go. My mom stopped by earlier, and Teddy.”

“I’m glad. But you and I are different, and you know it. I’m not going anywhere.”

Those were the last words Hope heard as she drifted off again.

I’m not going anywhere
.

She dreamt of her and Mallory walking along a beach, picking up seashells every once in a while and letting the day guide them where it might. They kissed when the sun went down and stayed up late talking. When she opened her eyes again, the clock on the wall told her it was nearly five a.m. Mallory was asleep in a chair to her right and rested her head on Hope’s mattress alongside her. Hope couldn’t believe it.

I’m not going anywhere.
She heard the words again in her mind as she glanced down at the sleeping woman next to her.

Mallory looked angelic in the moonlit room. Hope lightly touched her hair, soft and silky. The sensation caused Mallory to stir and raise those big blue eyes to Hope. “You okay?” she asked in her sleepy Mallory voice. “Do you need anything?”

Hope shook her head as sleep claimed her once again. This time she dreamt of a lazy morning, in which she awoke with Mallory in her arms. They’d teased each other before tossing on some clothes and heading to breakfast hand in hand.

The room was much brighter when she woke the next time. She heard Matt Lauer’s voice from a television in the next room and wondered if Mrs. Warkowski was doing okay on her own. She glanced around her own room and realized that she, too, was alone, which left her feeling a little empty inside. Mallory must have snuck out sometime during the night, which was a good thing, even if it didn’t really feel that way.

“Morning, sunshine,” Mallory said, coming around the corner. She wore the same blue top from the night before but looked fresh and chipper carrying a cup of coffee and shopping bag from the gift shop. How was that even possible, the chipper thing?

“You’re still here,” Hope said as much to herself as to Mallory.

“Of course I’m still here. How’s your head?”

Hope checked in with herself and was surprised to find she didn’t have any sort of headache. That was a first in several days. “It feels great. My left side is still killing me though.”

Mallory smiled. “I’m glad that at least the headache’s gone. The ribs are gonna take a while. I did some Google research on the computer at the nurse’s station. I also got the skinny from your nurse, Janine, since you fell asleep before filling me in. She thinks I’m family, so go with that. A concussion, two cracked ribs and one broken, which is horrible, but you might be out of here as early as tonight depending on what the doctor says when he stops by.

“I also talked to my father, who’s already placed a call to the district attorney’s office. They owe him a number of favors and have promised to take a very close look at Dominic and company. Apparently, several other open cases are attributed to him, and this one serves him up on a platter. The DA is kind of thrilled, and my father thinks he’ll be picked up this morning.

“In better news, the police already have the two guys that did this to you in custody. A witness from the scene picked out their photos from a lineup. Open and shut. So it’s likely they’ll roll over on ol’ Dominic if they’re offered a deal. Though the police do have more questions for you when you’re up for it.”

Hope stared at Mallory nonplussed. “I don’t understand. You did all of that this morning?”

She nodded. “I can get a lot done when I’m motivated.”

“That’s an understatement. You scare me.” Hope shifted uncomfortably, her side still beyond painful. Each breath took its toll.

“Hey, maybe don’t move so much, okay?”

“Just frustrating being stuck in this bed.”

Mallory nodded sympathetically. “Your nurse, Janine, says that breakfast is on the way in five minutes, so why don’t we sit you up a bit?” Hope stared at Mallory, mystified. “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Hope shook her head. “I told you to go yesterday.”

“Right. And I ignored that. Ready to sit up?”

Hope nodded and, with Mallory’s assistance, managed to slide upward and rest against the pillows Mallory placed behind her. The world looked much better right side up. She found herself facing Mallory and took this opportunity to explain. “You and I, Mal. We’re tricky, so I think I told you to go because I didn’t want there to be any confusion about what was—”

“I didn’t ask you to marry me, superstar. You prefer a friend right now to a girlfriend? Fine. We can be buddies. But you need someone, and that someone can be me.”

Well, this was unexpected. She eyed Mallory skeptically. “So you’re my buddy now, huh? My pal? And that’s all right with you?”

“That’s me. Buddy Mallory. Speaking as your buddy, do you think the break-in at the bar and what happened to you are connected?”

Honestly, it wasn’t a crazy question and had been one she’d asked herself. “While I suppose it’s possible, they feel like separate events to me. Dominic wouldn’t sneak in and steal from me. He’s more of a taker.”

Mallory nodded. “Given what’s happened to you, I want to help with the rent. You can think of it one hundred percent as a loan. I know it goes against what you’re comfortable with, but sometimes when rough times hit, you have to do what you have to do. I can charge interest if that helps.”

Hope closed her eyes. She was already late in making the payment, and as she lay in that hospital bed, she’d been acutely aware of the seconds that passed and worried what each meant for her business. She could face eviction and lose the whole thing. So while she hated what she was about to say, honestly, in her present condition, she didn’t know another way. “Fine. But I will pay you back. I promise. Sixty days at the latest, and please, tack on interest.”

“It’s a plan. You can write up the details for me. Oh, and here’s your breakfast, right on cue. Hi, Janine.”

“Hey, Mallory. You were right about that spa discount. I booked a massage at Serenity for this weekend with that code you gave me.”

“Perfect,” Mallory said, beaming. “You’ll love it there. Ask for the water with the fruit in it when you’re all done.”

Mallory turned as Janine set a tray in front of Hope. “How do you feel about English muffins?”

Hope shrugged. “I’m not picky.”

“Better than most of my patients,” Janine said on her way out.

“How do you want to do this?” Mallory asked, gesturing to the English muffin. “You can eat it plain, or with butter, or jam. So many options. Just tell me which.”

“I can do it,” Hope said. Mallory raised an eyebrow and looked on as Hope raised her arm and winced at the stab of pain that shot through her. “Fine. Yes, please, to the butter. And can I say that this sucks? Because it does.”

“I know,” Mallory said, meeting her eyes. “But you’ll be back to yourself in no time. In the meantime, people are waiting on you hand and foot, which in any other circumstance would be awesome. Focus on that.”

“Trying.” She watched as Mallory went about preparing her food, and something twisted inside of her at the care she took with each action. Mallory had been there from the second she heard what had happened and hadn’t wavered. Hell, her own mother had only stopped by for ten minutes to check on her, but this woman in front of her, who she’d repeatedly pushed away and shut out, was going above and beyond.