All I need to do is talk to Evie and Toby. If we can talk… The other Goddesses look to us because we are so level-headed. I just need to talk to them. They'll help me think this through. Sarah swiped her I.D. card and headed for her car. She focused on navigating her way along the familiar roads to her dear friend's house. Seconds… Minutes… Time didn't seem to register. Suddenly she was parked in front of Evelyn's house. Sarah jumped out of the car and ran to the door. Knocking quickly, it was opened by the tousle-headed blond sub that her friend had been training lately. He spoke quietly. "Welcome. Are you okay?"
"No. Is Evelyn here?"
"They are waiting for you." He held the door open wide and stepped aside. As she passed by, he placed one large hand on her shoulder, closed the door, and guided her into the living room.
"SARAH!" Both women shot to their feet and raced to her side. Everything they said seemed to be rapid-fire. "You look exhausted." "You were working tonight." "Dear God, you had one of them." "Please say you didn't have Trista." "Oh, I hope you didn't have to work on that heinous bitch." "Are you okay, hon?" "What do you need?" "You don't have to say anything if you don't want to." "You came to the right place." "We are here for you, sweetie." The women finally collapsed in a heap on the sofa, still murmuring words of comfort to each other.
Sarah was finally able to speak, to confide in her friends the thoughts that had been burning in her mind. "I knew… I knew it was her. God help me, we were fighting for her life and I wondered why. That bitch could ruin so much for so many people and we were trying to save her." Tears streamed down Sarah's face as she spoke to her friends. "I mean, when I think about what she had put Dean through, the pain she caused you… Then… As harsh as I had been with Dr. Reigns, he kept me focused. If he hadn't been there, I'm not sure that I would have been able to…"
Evelyn stroked Sarah's hair as she comforted her friend. "He was there and he knows your work as a nurse anesthetist. As cocky as you say your doctor is, if you weren't on top of your game he would have kicked you from the O.R., no matter how much he wants you. His reputation isn't worth the hit if you were distracted."
Toby rubbed her shoulder. "I saw the man for myself, Sare. His ego doesn't fit through normal doorways so I know there's not much room in an O.R. for him, his ego, and anyone else, especially if they aren't up to snuff. He'd have kicked you to the curb without blinking if you'd have breathed out of sync. No more second thoughts."
Sarah nodded. "I knew coming to you two was the right thing to do."
Evelyn drew a deep breath. "Any news on Trista?"
Before Sarah could answer, Toby asked "Do you hear noise?" All three women looked at the front window. This time they could definitely hear sounds of a scuffle taking place in the yard.
"Oh my God!" Sarah shrieked as she smacked her open palm against the window and then hollered, "Stop! Stop it this instant!"
Evelyn flung open her front door and bellowed, "Here! Now!" Both men seemed to crawl along the yard to the sidewalk, still giving one another fierce shoves. "Dean! What is the meaning of this?"
"I found this man creeping across the yard and peeking in the window. He followed your friend down the street." Dean answered quietly while kneeling in the correct sub position at Evelyn's feet.
"I wasn't creeping or peeking in windows and I sure as hell wasn't following anyone down the street!" Roman argued.
Sarah's leaned over the shoulders of her friends. "If you didn't follow me, then how did you get here?"
Roman began sputtering as he backtracked over his words. "Well I… What I meant was… I actually… I guess technically…"
"Silence!" Evelyn roared. "Inside!" Dean continued on his hands and knees.
Roman pushed himself to his feet only to find himself slammed back on his ass by the white-haired woman he'd met before. She leaned over him and growled, "You will enter this house like the subservient male you are or you will leave. Capisce?" Not waiting for his response, she turned and sashayed through the doorway. Roman blinked rapidly and shook his head. This was not the way he envisioned the evening progressing. Getting onto his hands and knees, he crawled into the house and closed the door.
Not sure what else to do, Roman imitate the position the other man had taken. He knelt at Sarah's feet and prayed that he was doing the right thing. She asked, "Why are you here?"
"I wanted to make sure you were okay after that surgery. It was rough on you." Sarah looked at her friends. Toby raised one eyebrow skeptically.
Sarah crossed her arms and tapped one foot. "You've already seen me. You are crossing a lot of lines, Dr. Reigns. Both professional and…"
He cut her off. "I promised you I'd look in on your friend, on Trista. I did. Then I saw you leaving. I followed you because I wanted to talk to you, to tell you that she's strong, a fighter. She's gotten through the surgery and has a really good chance. The toxicity is going to be rough. They've got her on the correct I.V. antibiotics. I'll keep checking her chart to make sure her readings remain strong. She's got a long road ahead of her, Sarah."
Toby screeched, "How dare you address a Goddess by her given name?!"
While Toby was ranting, Sarah held up her hand. "Dr. Reigns will have his violations and punishments explained in detail later. At this time I want to hear about Trista's condition." She looked down at the man kneeling at her feet. "Speak."
He looked up at her with large pain-filled grey eyes. "Her small intestine was severed in multiple places. The ureter was bisected and had to be reconnected. The distending colon was disjoined…" He stopped speaking when Sarah covered her mouth with her hand. She motioned for him to continue. He shook his head as he spoke. "As I said, you know each of these organs is toxic when perforated independently. For all three to have released fluids simultaneously is problematic. She is on the correct antibiotics to fight infection. The abdomen was suctioned, rinsed and suctioned as much as could be done during surgery safely. You know she had the second best surgeon we've got. She was in good hands."
"Why didn't she have the best?" Toby asked. "Never mind. You were busy." She snorted in derision.
Sarah looked down at Roman as she spoke to her friend. "We don't get to choose our patients. We were assigned to… her. I am glad for it because I couldn't have worked on Trista. What we had to do was difficult enough."
Roman cleared his throat. "You haven't asked about our patient."
"This is one time that I don't care. These ladies helped me realize that I did all that I could. I have no reason to second guess myself."
Roman began to rise before sitting back on his feet. "That's what I was afraid would happen. You can't doubt yourself. You did everything you could for her. You administered her drugs to keep her pain-free, her bags of blood and plasma were there, you monitored her vitals… There wasn't anything else you could do. You are not responsible for her, whether she lives or dies. You are the best at what you do and no one can say otherwise. That's why I want you as my nurse anesthetist when I am on duty."
Toby rolled her eyes. "If the great Dr. Reigns says that, you know you are pretty damn good."
Roman turned towards the other woman. As he opened his mouth, Dean interrupted. "Goddess, may I take our guest into the other room for a moment? I believe he needs a moment to recover from our… incident in the yard." Evelyn looked down at the man at her feet. He continued in a whisper. "The Goddesses might also like some time to talk together about their friend."
Evelyn caressed his shoulder. "It might do you well to chat with our new guest. He needs to understand a few things."
Dean tilted his head for Roman to follow and led him to the kitchen. Roman immediately stood and snarled, "I don't know who the hell you think you are…"
Dean leaned into the richer man's face. "I am the man that's going to save your ass. Shut the fuck up and listen. If you intend on being with one of the women in that room there are a few things you'd better understand and understand quick. Number one – never, ever call ANY of them by their first name. Number two – unless you are asked to, you don't make the decisions. SHE is in charge and she likes it that way. Number three – and this is very, VERY important, do what you are told when you are told to do it. There are great rewards for following directions. There are equally not so wonderful punishments for screwing up. Just so you know, you have screwed the pooch mightily tonight. I'm new to this but I have a collar. I know that my woman wants me. She's going to punish me for my violations after you leave and she will reward me for keeping her and her friends safe. It's going to be worth it." The smile on Dean's face almost made Roman jealous. "I knew when I spoke out of turn that I was going to get punished but I knew it was worth it to make her friend feel safe. It was worth the punishment. Leaving the house without permission because I saw you slinking around was worth the punishment because it was keeping them safe. It was my conscious decision. She will respect that. That's the relationship between a dom and a sub. Trust. You have to build that with yours. The question is, can you? Or are you going to feel like it is below your station in life?"
Dean stepped away from the other man and walked over to the sink. With the water running he could barely hear Roman's statement. "She's worth anything. I just need to figure out how to change me…" It was obvious that Roman was feeling confused by his feelings and needed help.
Dean cleared his throat gruffly. "It's not about changing who you are. It's about finding who you really are with her, together. If this life is for you, it is already inside of you, waiting to get out. If you trust her, she'll help you find it."
"I couldn't have explained it better." Sarah said softly.
"Neither could I." Pride was written on Evelyn's face.
"Time to go." Toby said, heading for the door. Sarah motioned for Roman to follow her.
"If I have questions…"
"Ask your Goddess." Dean answered.
