The Impostor, A Love Story (41 page)

“She would go peacefully. Who knows if she is
in any pain right now?” the doctor continued.

“I will not kill her. She is going to
survive.”

The doctor left the room. The nurse, Vera,
stayed for a few extra minutes, walking over to Bradley. “Do you
pray, my son?” She put her hand on his shoulder.

“Excuse me?”

“Do you pray?” Vera had a strong accent he
couldn’t quite place.

“Why?”

“Because you need to be praying, son.” She
nodded at him. “You need to be praying for a miracle. I have seen
them in my day; they do happen. Keep praying and don’t give up
hope.” She put some medicine in Nicole’s IV. “You haven’t left the
hospital in a week. I’m sure your fiancé will be fine. Why don’t
you go home and get some sleep? That chair can’t be too
comfortable.”

“I was supposed to protect her. I let her
down.”

“She’s not going to wake up in the next few
hours. Go home and get some rest.”

She walked out the door.

Bradley talked to Nicole as if she could hear
him. “What are they crazy? They want me to be the one to pull the
plug and starve you to death so your body can be a supermarket for
other people to stay alive. They are crazy. You haven’t even died
yet, and they are already auctioning off your parts.” He paced the
floor.

“I hope you forgive me when you wake up. I
had to tell them I was your fiancé, or they wouldn’t let me stay in
here.” He walked back and forth as if that would give him
answers.

“I don’t know what to do, Nikki. I don’t have
your parents’ number. I don’t have Emily’s number or any way to get
in touch with Dylan. Pete gave me the numbers on your application,
but they are all disconnected. I sent a letter to the address on
your application, hoping someone will call. We never got your
address book, so I don’t know where to start.

“They would want to know where you are and
that you are alive, especially Jessica—that sweet little girl of
yours. It’s going to be Christmas in a few days, and she’s going to
think you abandoned her.” He continued to pace the floor.

“I don’t know what to do, Nicole. You can’t
die. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

He finally walked over to the bed and sat
beside her. He brushed his fingers through her hair. Her body lay
still.

“Sleeping Beauty,” he whispered. The numbers
on the machine that flashed beside her were the only sign of life.
He took her hand, leaning over her.

“You have to somehow pull through this,
Nicole. I know you will pull through this.”

Dylan entered the hospital wondering,
Is
she okay? What happened?
His stride was quick and
deliberate.

A nurse walked up to him seeing him in
distress. “Excuse me, sir, may I help you?”

“Yes, I heard that possibly Nicole Carlisle
is here.”

“Oh, yes sir, she’s in ICU. Room number
223.”

“Thank you.”

ICU? Pete didn’t say you were in ICU. What
the hell was the nurse talking about? ICU? How did this happen? How
did she get here?
He shook his head in bewilderment
. How did
she end up in the hospital?

“She can only have one visitor at a time.
Right now, she is with her fiancé.”

“Excuse me? Her fiancé?” His eyebrow
rose.

“Yes, her fiancé. He hasn’t left her side.
You can go to the room and see if he will allow you to spend some
time with her. The two of you cannot be in there together.”

Color entered Dylan’s face. His stride
hastened.
Fiancé? Who the hell is this fiancé? Who is this
impostor? Who is this person trying to steal everything that
matters to me? I’m gonna kill him. I will kill him
. His breath
became accentuated
.
Where the hell is Brad, and how could
he let this happened to her? My Nicole. My baby. I should never
have left her alone
.

Someone was with his girl. Someone was posing
as her lover. He grew angrier as he got closer to her room. When
Dylan arrived at Nicole’s hospital room, he stood in the doorway in
shock.

There was the impostor sitting next to the
bed, holding Nicole’s hand in his. The veins in Dylan’s neck pumped
with blood. He watched in disbelief.

“Nicole, you can’t die. You have to wake up.
I need you. I need you Nicole,” the impostor pleaded, unaware that
Dylan was in the doorway.

Dylan clenched his fist as the figure leaned
over and kissed her lifeless lips—kissing her tenderly.

“I love you, Nicole. I love you.” The
Impostor’s eyes filled with tears. “Please don’t leave me.”

A mixture of hurt, anger, of betrayal
overwhelmed Dylan as he questioned in disbelief, “Bradley?”

Get the next book in the series
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I want to thank all my fans…every time I get
an email, a letter, a picture, a video from you—it truly warms my
heart. You have been such a blessing! I thank each one of you who
bought this book and for joining me on this journey as I take this
new twist in my life’s story! Less than a year ago I had forgotten
what a big part of my life writing was. I didn’t even know I had a
novel inside of me. Because of your feedback, I am finding a part
of me I had let die many years ago. You have no idea how much your
words have meant. I know I can’t do this without you! Thank you for
getting the word out and making this thing happen! You all are the
best! Follow your dreams! Find your bliss! And…Set the world on
fire!

-TiffanyCarmouché

Contact me! I would love to hear from
you!

[email protected]

To Julie Kelly-my crazy friend who left
everything to begin a new life with me in Alaska. I will never
forget the little Christmas tree we made out of paper. We taped it
against the wall in our apartment because we were too broke to buy
a real Christmas tree. And I will never forget the suitcase full of
Ramen Noodles. Somehow, we did it, and it was an adventure! I still
love escaping in phone conversations with you for hours. I am so
proud of you for going after the new opportunity in your life! You
are an amazing woman! Keep striving for your dreams! You deserve
the best! Do not let anyone tell you otherwise!

I want to thank all my Beta Readers, you
don’t know how much it means that you took the time to read my
manuscript and give me feedback. I couldn’t have done this without
you!

Thank you so much:

Amy Barnhouse

Holly Berardi

Lolita C

Julianna Padget

Stephanie Newland

India Willson

Rocky Guzman

Aleta O’brien—I have to say your twenty-four
hour feedback time is a record!

Thank you, Blog Reviewers and Book Bloggers,
you are an amazing bunch! I am fascinated by the love and support
you give authors. Keep reading!

Dann Barba. When you told me that
The
Impostor
was one of your favorite books and that you loved
Dylan, but it was truly Nicole you fell in love with, a tear truly
developed in my eye. It is such an honor that you started a fan
club…and that amazing video…wow! You are such a talented young
woman. I know you will be successful in all you do!

To Nicki Wilson—You constantly surprise me
with all of your amazing graphics and everything you do for The
Impostor! You are truly talented and make everyday feel like
Christmas! It has been a blessing to have such a devoted fan!

My Cover Artist—Earthly Charms. Su, you
capture the soul of a book. Your artwork is pure poetry. Thank you
for hearing my vision and making it come alive! You are truly
gifted!

My Editor—Sandra Udall I love your editing
style. You never tried to change my voice. You allowed me to make
an occasional fragmented sentence just because I wanted to! It has
been a pleasure working with you. (I didn’t need all the chocolate
and wine I was expecting I would when I was accepting your edits
lol)

My Interior Design—Benjamin Carrancho, Thank
you the speed at which you put it all together! I love the fact you
listen to my ideas. The paperback books are so beautiful! They are
truly amazing!

Janette Rallison—Janette, my fifth grade best
friend. We did all the fun things elementary school kids do, but
there was something more. I had a passion for writing and I was
blessed at such a young age to have a fellow young writer in my
life—I guess in a way you were my first writing group. I remember
walking to school and talking about all our ideas. It was fun
disappearing in the world of imagination! And what a blessing it
has been reconnecting with you years later to see you are living
your dream. You are truly inspiring and I thank you for your
amazing referrals in editors and cover artists. Keep writing!
Seventeen Books! Wow!

Mr. Kuykendall—My fifth grade teacher who
took the time to encourage me and Janette. Thank you for the empty
journal you gave me to fill. That was my first novel! You helped
nurture my spark in writing by believing in me.

Thank you…

Michael—for your wit and charm.

April—for your compassion and laughter.

Deanna—for your sincerity and talent.

Nathaniel—for your sharp mind and survival
skills.

Jese—for your humor and amazing magic
tricks.

Burkley—for your brilliance and ‘mad fire
skills’.

You all are such a blessing to me! Remember
you are in charge of your destiny!

My New Orleans homes away from home: Thank
you Aunt Toni Callen, Aunt Dot Autin and Liz and Sal DiMaggio, for
your love, hospitality and making it possible for us to have a few
second homes in Louisiana so we could get my fix in southern
hugs.

I want to give a special hug to all my New
Orleans family and the few of you who have ventured to other places
around the country. I send lots of love to the Callens and the
Carmouches, and all of their offspring. (There are too many of you
who have been a blessing in my life to mention all of you!)

To my ex husband. Although many years were
hard, you were my first love. You gave me my daughters—which are my
life. I just wanted to say… I forgive you…I thank you…because if
you never left and I hadn’t had to survive on my own …maybe I never
would have found myself again.

Alex, we share the same sense of adventure!
It has been amazing to see how much you have lived! You are truly
one of the most compassionate people I know and with the most
potential! You have a brilliant mind and a thirst for life. From
your tracking cougars and black bears to protect the population, to
listening to the song of the Orca…you, my friend, have seen things
most of us only dream to! Keep writing. You have an amazing story
that only you can tell. Keep living life to the fullest and always
know you were destined for great things! I love you!

Dashiel—You fought Goliath. I will never
forget the night: You were in elementary school and my six-foot
boyfriend was hitting me. You came out of nowhere and fought him.
He tossed you into the wall and made a hole in the drywall, but you
got back up. You wouldn’t let anyone treat your sister like that no
matter how big they were. Thank you. I can’t wait to see your art
and writing featured, you have an incredible style that is sure to
make its mark on the world! I love you!

Holly—my sweet sister. Photographer. Artist.
Author. It has been beautiful to see you sharing your amazing
talent with the world. Whether it is the beauty in a photograph or
the poetry in your words, you have touched so many people. It has
been a blessing to have you as a sister, as a friend. Our children
really have grown up as one big family. It is so beautiful how
close they are. Never doubt the genius inside of you. I love you!
Continue to shine!

Mom…my sweet mom. I remember one night, I was
crying about something and you came over and hugged me and all my
sadness went away. Even as an adult, my mommy’s hugs are the best!
You were a pioneer in Special Ed when no one was talking about it.
You were such a strong woman. Brilliant. Talented. Courageous.
Radiant. You set an example and you loved me unconditionally. …. I
love you so much, Mom.

Dad…my papa. I wish you were here, Daddy. I
can see your sparkling blue eyes and that infectious smile. You
taught me to follow my passion and you and Mom gave me wings to
discover the world. You were an example of compassion and love. You
inspired a love for the written word. And I am hoping you can see
from heaven that I followed in your footsteps. I love you, Daddy. I
miss you.

To my Paps in heaven—You always made me feel
special with your brilliant conversations, and your belief in me. I
know you are looking down from heaven. You and Nana were such an
example of true love. I aspire to find someone who loves me like
you loved my grandmother.