Chapter 2
Remington tamped down the urge he had to sucker punch Roselli. Instead, he forcefully removed Tony's hands from his shirt. "Laura was in an accident this morning. Now if you wouldn't mind," Remington started only to be cut off.
"I can see that! What the hell happened?" Tony motioned toward Laura.
"Well, she was in a mine in Galmoy that nearly collapsed on her all while trying to collect evidence on a drug dealer and murderer. How was your day, Antony?" Remington said sarcastically as he walked away from Tony and toward Laura who was noticeably leaning on the banister.
"A mine… drug dealer… murderer? Steele, what the hell are you talking about?" Tony turned, confused.
"Rem, I think I need to go lay down," Laura said, her voice shaky.
"Laura? What's wrong?" Remington walked quickly to stand beside her.
"I'm not feeling very well, I need to go lay down," Laura admitted. "Tony, I don't know why you came here but you're not welcome here. Not now, not ever. I told you before…"
"And I told you I wasn't giving up on us," Tony said angrily.
"There is no us, there never was an us," Laura shook her head, but regretted it as soon as she did. The wave of nausea hit her hard, almost buckling her knees. Remington caught her before she fell, scooping her up into his arms.
"Lau-ra? Antony, see yourself out. I need to attend to my wife if you don't mind," Remington didn't even look at him as he spoke, all of his attention focused on Laura's face which had gone white. "Let's get you upstairs," he spoke softly as Laura leaned into his shoulder, eyes closed.
"This isn't over, Steele," Tony yelled but no one responded. Remington continued to walk up the steps carrying Laura, ignoring him. Tony slammed the door as he made his way outside. Laura winced at the bang.
Remington laid Laura on the bed gently. "I'm going to get that pain medicine the doctor sent along, love, then start a nice hot bath for you, eh," he said nervously. He had never seen Laura give in to pain like this before. It was making him very uncomfortable. Looking at Laura, a thought struck him, "Are you going to be sick? I can get… something…." he stopped talking when she put a hand up.
"No, the feeling passed. I think the stress from Tony showing up combined with everything else today was a little too much for me to handle," Laura admitted. "But I will take that pain pill. I hate to say it, but my head hurts. Not like a headache, just here." Laura motioned toward the gash.
"How about some ice then after we get you cleaned up?" Remington suggested as he moved to the table where he left the bag of medical supplies. Extracting one pain pill, he handed it to Laura before he realized she needed a drink too. "I'll be right back," he said as he ran down the stairs to get a glass of water for her. He returned just a few minutes later. "Let me get that bath started for you."
"Rem, if I haven't thanked you today… Thank you," Laura said softly.
"No worries, love. I have to say, I'm rather enjoying this new moniker," Remington smiled warmly as he moved toward the bathroom. Inside, Laura could hear the sound of the water filling the large tub.
"What moniker is that?" Laura sounded slightly confused.
Remington called from the bathroom, "What was that?"
"I said, what moniker is that?" Laura started to yell but softened her voice as he walked into the room.
Remington walked to the side of the bed. "Up you go," he said as he guided Laura into a sitting position. He helped her walk into the bathroom as she was still slightly unsteady on her feet. "I'll leave you for a few minutes. Call me when you're ready to get in the tub, eh," Remington left Laura, walking into the bedroom. Stripping down, he changed into just a pair of pajama pants, knowing he would probably end up wet regardless. He pulled out clean pajamas for Laura just as he heard her calling for him.
He found Laura in the bathroom, sitting on the edge of the tub, a towel loosely wrapped around her. "Careful, love, we can't have you falling in," he teased.
Laura just looked at him, her expression a toss up between annoyed and amused. Holding out her hand, she used his to balance as she climbed into the tub, dropping the towel on the floor. She sat down and sighed, appreciating the hot, steamy water. Remington picked up a washcloth and dipped it in the water.
"Laura, if you lean your head to the side, I can wash your hair for you and avoid the stitches," Remington explained. Laura did as he suggest, closing her eyes, enjoying the sensation of his fingers in her hair.
After a few minutes, he declared her hair debris free. He folded the washcloth and placed it against the side of the tub, guiding Laura to lean her neck against it. "Relax, I'll be back in a bit to help you out," he said, gently kissing her forehead.
Before he moved too far away, Laura reached up to touch his arm, "Rem, you didn't answer me. What moniker?" she asked still curious.
Remington smiled and said, "That one. I'll be back," as he walked away. In the bedroom he grabbed a T shirt and his robe, heading back to the kitchen to wash the dishes he left.
In the tub, Laura closed her eyes, trying to figure out what he meant. It didn't take long before her eyes snapped open and she said, "Rem?" Where did that come from? When did she start using Rem instead of Mr. Steele? "Rem," she said again. It rolled off her tongue so easily, so naturally. Rem. One syllable that now represented comfort and love instead of mystery and confusion. Rem. A new name for a new beginning? Smiling, she closed her eyes again, content. This is how Remington found her almost 20 minutes later.
"Laura? Ready to move back to bed? A little massage perhaps?" Remington asked, holding the towel for her.
"Mr. Steele, you keep pampering me like that I may get used to it," Laura teased. Standing slowly, she took the towel he offered, wrapped it around her body and carefully stepped out. The pain medicine was now working as her head wasn't hurting for the moment.
Together they walked to the bedroom, not as slowly as before. Sitting on the edge of the bed, Remington carefully covered the stitches again, wrapping gauze around her head to hold the square in place. Once he finished, Laura began to dress but after putting on just her underpants, Remington stopped her. "Lay on your stomach, Mrs. Steele," he instructed. Laura did as instructed, closing her eyes again as she put her head on the pillow he gave her.
Taking a bottle of lotion he had found in Laura's bag of toiletry items, Remington squeezed some in his hand, rubbing them together to warm it. He began with her neck and shoulders, gently rubbing tight muscles loose with long glides of his fingers. Laura relaxed, breathing deeply. Moving to her lower back, Remington sensed the instant she fell asleep. Her whole body relaxed, exposing more of the tensed muscles. He continued down her legs and moved to her upper arms, careful not to disturb her. Smiling, he looked lovingly at Laura, sleeping soundly. He pulled the comforter over her, kissing her gently. He took a quick shower before climbing into bed beside her, snuggling up against her.
