Crossing Lines (Cops and Docs #2) (28 page)

When she was halfway down the hall, she heard her name being called.

“Dr. Whitmore!”

Nora paused and tried to choke down her irritation before she turned.

“Yes, Dr. Crowder?” Nora wasn’t able to hide the aggravation in her voice.

Dr. Crowder went quiet and peered at Nora for a few seconds. “Are you okay?”

Silently, Nora counted to ten. “Shouldn’t that be my question? You were calling me.”

“Oh…uh. I was going to ask for some advice, actually.”

Nora blinked and wondered when she had become 
that
 person. Residents used to fear her. Now, they asked for her advice. It was a small price to pay, because they seemed to respect her more than ever.

“Okay.” Her emotions settled momentarily.

Dr. Crowder smiled, but it faltered quickly. “I’m assisting in my first neurosurgery next week. I’m a little nerv—”

“Don’t be. You are more than competent, and your attention to detail is phenomenal. They are lucky to have you.”

Dr. Crowder’s mouth dropped open in response. “Are you dying?”

Death. Maybe that word was accurate. The previous version of her was long gone, and this new person had never felt more alive. The irony of the resident’s words struck a chord and stirred up an array of feelings within her. She heard a loud laugh, and it took a second before Nora realized that the sound came from her. It was an odd response to the situation, but there was no taking it back now. She shook her head. “I’ve no plans to die in the immediate future, no. Why do you ask?”

“You’re usually not that…generous with your assessment of my skills. In fact, you’ve never said anything like that to me before.”

“Ah, well, then it’s long overdue.”

Dr. Crowder stepped back. “Are you leaving the hospital?”

“No. No dying or leaving. If we’re finished? I’m in a hurry.”

Instead of offering more pleasantries. Nora made her way to the nurses’ station.

She was only there a few seconds before one of the nurses addressed her. “I’m printing Gerald Travis Jr.’s discharge paperwork right now. Nora nodded and headed toward her next destination.

Upon hearing voices, Nora stopped and lingered outside the doorway.

“It’s a shame. All the time I spent in this place… I didn’t end up with a doctor wrapped around my finger,” Travis said.

“It was that shitty-ass beard. It looked like a patchwork quilt. It made an impression even after I shaved it…there was no coming back from that.” Kelli sounded amused.

“Ohh damn that one had to sting.” Sean chuckled.

Williams snorted. “You got it all wrong, kid. It’s the other way around.”

“What do you mean?” Travis asked.

“Kelli’s the one who’s whipped. Let it stay that way. She’s been smiling so much, even the lieutenant is getting scared.”

Laughter ensued.

Nora’s breath caught. Everybody else was able to see it. Nora didn’t understand why it took her so long to figure things out.

“Jealousy does not look good on any of you!” Kelli said.

The fact that the detective didn’t deny it brought a flush to Nora’s face. Her heartbeat tripled.

“Hey! I get my fair shar—” Travis said.

Kelli pointed at him. “Sponge baths don’t count. Go ahead. Try to deny it.”

There was a pause.

“She has a point,” Sean said in agreement.

“I’m gonna be in your old room right?” Travis asked.

“Yeah, why?” Sean answered.

“I’ve gotten really good at this bedpan thing, but accidents are bound to happen.” Travis’s tone was very gleeful.

“Man, that’s…eww. You did not just go there.”

Nora could only wonder at the look on Sean’s face. Kelli laughed loudly.

“Yes, goddammit I did. Use what you know, right? If I can’t laugh at myself…”

“That’s taking it to a whole new level,” Kelli said.

“I know, right?” Travis said.

“You sound proud, kid.”

“I am. It’s the little things nowadays. Nurses in tight scrubs, contraband fries, and pissing in Sean’s bed. Gotta be thankful for everything.”

“Travis, you’re my hero.” Kelli laughed, and everybody else did too.

Nora felt a surge of warmth, and it pulled her forward. She entered the doorway and watched as Williams and Sean helped Travis into a wheelchair.

Travis was the first one to spot her. “Hey, Nora! We were just talking about you…kinda sorta.”

Nora couldn’t help herself. She grinned.

“Aaand… You heard the whole thing didn’t you?”

“In its entirety.” Her gaze zeroed in on Kelli.

“We’re not usually like this—” Travis said.

“Bullshit, we’re worse.” Kelli jumped in. She smirked in Nora’s direction and heaved a large duffle bag over her shoulder.

“Well, you started it.” Travis glared at Kelli.

“No, I didn’t.”

Travis looked up at Sean and Williams. “Did you, or did you not, hear her crack about my beard?”

“Nope, I’m stuck on you peeing in my bed,” Sean answered. “Don’t recall anything else.”

“I’m old,” Williams said. “I don’t remember much these days.”

The husky sound of Kelli’s laughter drew Nora’s gaze. The three men who obviously adored her looked at Kelli fondly, and Nora found that she couldn’t tear herself away. For them, Kelli inspired loyalty. She invoked comradery. For Nora, it was those traits and so much more. Falling in love with her had been inevitable. Nora’s heart stuttered, and a staggering heat encased her whole body. The feeling left her skin buzzing, as if she had encountered an electric current. It was nearly impossible to contain.

Kelli looked back with an expression that was soft, open, but there was also a question in her eyes. “You okay?”

Yes, she was very okay. Nora grinned and nodded. The moment was broken when the nurse entered, but it was far from lost.

“Okay, discharge papers are printed. Dr. Whitmore, do you want to do the honors?”

“No, go ahead. I’m sure everything’s in order. I’ll sign off on them when you’re done,” Nora said.

“Okay.” The nurse looked at Travis. “I’m assuming you’re ready to get out of here?”

“Yes!” Travis sounded very eager.

* * *

Kelli trailed behind the rest of the entourage, hoping to get a few moments with Nora. As they walked side by side, their shoulders brushed. A pleasant ache filled her chest. Kelli
knew
 something was going on with Nora, but she also knew it was all good.

“You all always sound like you’re having so much fun together. I hated to impose, even though it was necessary.” Nora was flushed and fidgeting, but her gaze was steady and more intense than Kelli had ever seen it.

“We are, but c’mon, you’re not imposing. You’ve been a part of our craziness before, and you fit right in.” Kelli couldn’t believe they were engaging in small talk, but fuck, in for a penny…

Nora smiled. “Should I take that as a compliment?”

“Damn straight.” Kelli slowed as they neared the elevator. She shoved her hands in the pockets of her pants and found herself staring. Nora was everything she wanted, everything she needed, and everything she deserved.

Nora stepped closer. “Kelli.”

It was as if Nora shoved a truckload of emotion into that one word. The air between them crackled and thickened with all the things Kelli wanted to say but couldn’t at the moment. Instead, she pressed her lips against Nora’s forehead and lingered. Kelli expected catcalls or groans from her family, but they were silent. It was damn near impossible to move away, especially after she heard the hitch in Nora’s breathing. But she did. Only because she had to. “Later?”

Nora nodded. “Yes, later.”

* * *

Kelli found it difficult to stop thinking about Nora, so she stopped trying. The warmth that came with thoughts of Nora felt way too good. Still, she was able to listen to her brother and Travis talk shit while she put away her partner’s clothes. She had to at least try to be present for Travis too.

“She never put my stuff away,” Sean said.

“That sounds like a personal problem to me,” Travis teased.

Kelli rolled her eyes.

“You should take a picture. Send it to Williams.”

“I’m not wasting my data unless it’s something good.” Sean sounded a little disgusted.

Kelli glanced over her shoulder. “I can hear you…you know.”

“Wasn’t holding back,” Travis said.

Kelli glared.

Travis smiled. “It’s a shame.”

“What is?” Sean asked.

“I thought I was gonna get some kind of metal thing to help me in and out of bed. I’m a little upset. It was my only chance in life to be a transformer.”

Sean chuckled. “Well, you got a whole new bed. Mine will be safe and dry.”

“That’s a shame too.”

Kelli laughed. “Don’t get too comfortable here.” A significant look passsed between them, and that was all it took.

Travis smiled. “Six months.”

Kelli nodded. “Six months.”

Kelli’s phone vibrated. She pulled it out of her pocket, expecting to see a text from Nora, but it wasn’t. It was a message about Tony. She read it again, but the fucking words were still the same. That one sentence cut her deeply and hurt like a son of a bitch. Unfortunately, that pain was something she was going to have to get used to.

“That was a contact of mine in the DA’s office. Antony is being sentenced next Wednesday.”

Sean sat in the chair next to Travis’s bed. “Damn.” His face went pale.

“Yeah,” Kelli said. She had been flying so high. It was inevitable that something would pull her down, but Kelli realized that she didn’t fall as far as she thought she would. She had a life now. There was more than work, more than family, and she was intent on experiencing it.

“I still can’t believe this is happening,” Sean said.

“Better or worse. It’s his choice, and it’s probably a good one. He’s alive. That’s what counts, right?” Travis asked.

“Yeah, but not all cops are crooked. We could’ve protected him.”

“No,” Kelli cut Sean off. “It is his choice. It’s shitty, but there’s nothing we can do about it.” Saying it out loud settled her. It didn’t mean she stopped caring. Maybe Antony needed to hear that.

“But—”

“Accepting it doesn’t mean you’ve given up.”

“Kel’s right,” Travis said.

Sean rubbed a hand through his hair. “I’m trying.”

“Yeah, me too.” Within seconds, she made a decision. “Go talk to Mom.”

Sean looked solemn. “She’s gonna freak.”

“No. She won’t. She’s stronger now.”

“Maybe. What are you gonna do?” Her brother asked.

“There’s something I need to take care of. I’ll tell you about it later.”

“What about Travis? And what do you mean there’s some—”

“What about me? It’s not like I’m going anywhere. Besides, the home health nurse should be here soon, so don’t worry about me,” Travis said.

Sean stood. He stared at his sister for several seconds. Then, he picked up the cordless phone from the nightstand and gave it to Travis. “Call if you need anything.”

“I will,” Travis said.

They both watched Sean leave.

Kelli felt Travis’s gaze on her. She glanced at him.

“You’re going to see Antony, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, I am.”

“Kelli.” His tone was filled with concern.

“It’s not what you think. I just need to make my peace with it, I guess.”

Travis nodded in understanding. “Yes, you do.”

As Kelli left, she texted Nora.

Got update about Antony. Found out his sentencing date. Gonna go see him and deal with the fam after. I don’t know what time I’ll be home.

Kelli stood on her mother’s porch and waited for a reply. After a couple of minutes, she knew that she wasn’t getting one. Kelli swallowed the tiny stab of disappointment. In the larger scheme of things, it didn’t matter. Nora would be waiting. Kelli knew that for damn sure.

* * *

On her way to Monroe Correctional Complex, Kelli got another text. Cole had gotten to another snitch somehow. The forty-five minute drive gave her time to think. Maybe Tony knew this was going to happen, and this was his way of protecting himself and his family. God, she hoped so. If that’s the case, Tony may not be as out of reach as she feared.

* * *

Kelli sat, and the hard plastic chair creaked under her weight. She was one in a line of many here to connect with their loved ones behind a pane of glass. Some people cried and others laughed. The room itself was drab as hell. Everything was uniform, down to the beige of the walls and the off-white color of the chairs.

Antony was escorted to the chair in front of her. She could feel his anger at her through the glass. Tony glared, but she didn’t look away. Kelli needed to show him that she was here, no matter what.

He was a mess. His shaggy brown hair just about covered his eyes and ears, and his beard looked like a patchwork quilt, thicker in some places and almost bald in others. He was very pale and sweaty. The front of his orange jumpsuit was damn near soaked, and his hands were shaking. It hurt to see him like this, but he was safe, relatively speaking.

Antony looked away when Kelli picked up the phone. She tapped the glass when he refused to move. Stubborn ass. He came by that trait honestly though. “Please?”

He turned and stared at her for a few seconds. Finally, he picked up his receiver. Kelli knew he wasn’t going to speak much, if at all, but he could listen. He could have refused to see her, but he didn’t. That had to mean something.

“Everybody’s okay. Mom’s doing better, but she needs to hear from you,” Kelli said.

Kelli saw the relief shining in his eyes before his expression went blank. Instead of talking, he nodded.

“Travis was discharged from the hospital today. It’s good to know that all of you…all of my family…is in one piece.”

Antony blinked, and he clenched his jaw.

“You look like shit.” Kelli smirked a little. “I say that with love.”

He glared again, but Kelli swore she saw a glint of something before it disappeared.

“I don’t want this for you, but I know you’re not gonna give. So, no more lectures. I’m done begging. I’ve made plenty of mistakes with you. You’ve done your share of shit too. Blame me. Hate me. Do whatever you need to. Nothing’s gonna stop me from caring.”