Chapter 11 – Hold the Line
Olivia reached for the phone, wondering who could be calling her at this ungodly hour. She was beginning to wonder, and not for the first time, whether or not the invention of the cell phone was really a good thing.
Rolling over, she managed to snag the device. Looking at the display, she was annoyed to see that it was Natalia. She almost didn't answer, but she knew that the tenacious woman would just call back on Ava's line, if she really wanted to talk to her. "Yeah."
"Don't hang up. It's about the Beacon."
Hearing Natalia's voice, combined with her uttering the name of Olivia's hotel, forced the sleepy woman into alertness. "What's wrong?"
"There was a small fire. It's under control. I just thought that you should know." Natalia rushed to get out as much information as could before her former boss hung up on her.
Pinching the bridge of her nose, she asked the obvious questions. "How did it start? What was damaged? And, may I ask, why in the hell are you calling me about this?"
"Electrical. One storage room. Greg and most of the rest of the staff are scared of you, so I made the call."
Throwing back the covers, Olivia stood up, phone in hand and, trying to keep calm said, "Let me get this straight. My hotel catches on fire and, instead of one of my 'highly' and, I'm using that term very loosely, trained, staff calling, they had you to relay the message?"
"Actually I was-- No, don't stack that over there! Put them in the pool storage room for now." No one could ever say that Natalia wasn't one of the best assistants around, that's for sure.
"Sorry. Where was I? Oh, yeah. Actually, I was driving by and I saw the fire trucks. Greg was pretty much on the sidewalk, trying not to faint. So, I stopped to see what was going on."
"Where's Gloria? Isn't she the manager on duty today?" Olivia was now cradling the phone between her left shoulder and chin, while flipping through her PDA.
"Yes, but she was in a minor car accident and will be out for at least a day or two."
Blowing out an exasperated breath, Olivia said, "That's it. Vacation's over. I'm on the next plane."
"No! Don't do that!"
Natalia could just imagine Olivia narrowing her eyes and slightly cocking her head before saying, "Excuse me?"
"Hold on a moment." Natalia walked through the glass doors leading out to the gardens for a little more privacy.
Taking a deep breath Natalia continued, "Look, Olivia, I'm not trying to tell you what to do, but you just got there last night and, if you think about it, by the time you got on a plane and got here, most of the day would be gone. Plus, I know how much this time with the girls means to you. So, why not let me help out around here for a while?"
"You want to work for me again?" Olivia asked.
"Only temporarily. I can be a part-time consultant or something, and still work for Blake, too. Right now, she's only concentrating on one book, and Ashlee is actually helping a lot with that. Olivia, I know how much this place means to you. It's your livelihood and the girl's legacy. Let me help."
"Well, we were planning on taking a boat trip today. And I'd hate to disappoint, Emma." Again, she thought, as a memory of her daughter scared and crying crossed her mind. Plus, she felt that she still needed some time away from Natalia to sort things out. "You sure it won't be too much... with the baby and everything? Uh... I heard that it was a girl."
"Yes, it's a girl, and everything is fine. Don't forget, I was 8 months pregnant with Rafe and still waitressing. So sometimes having to deal with guests who can't seem to understand that clothes hangers are not to be hung from the fire sprinklers isn't going to hurt me."
"Well... if you're sure..." Olivia began, "Then okay. I'll stay for the rest of my vacation."
"Good. It's settled. I'll call you tonight with an update. Have fun on the boat. Bye."
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It was getting to be a nightly thing. One or the other would think of an excuse, any excuse, to initiate a call to the other. This time, it was Natalia who called and asked when Emma's school started for the Fall. She could have easily looked it up on the net, called the school, or found out a number of different ways. But, why would she do that when it was the perfect reason to get to hear Olivia's voice. Nat was glad that, after they had discussed picking up the little girl, Olivia had continued to talk.
"I can't believe that they think that no one knows. I'm thinking about telling them that I know. " Natalia said, as she tucked the phone between her ear and shoulder and reached up in the cabinet to get a bowl. "I'm just not sure how to word it."
" Take a pointer from your son and be direct. Just say: Yo, Frankie, I know about you and Blake. Good job, dawg."
"Olivia!" Natalia snorted. "You do him so well. Ohhh... and the baby thinks so, too. She just kicked again. I think she knows your voice." The last part came out softly, almost like an afterthought.
"Really… you think so?" Olivia asked in wonder.
"Yes, you're the one person besides me whose voice the baby's heard the most. Think about it, we lived together for awhile, and then we saw each other every day until…." She took a deep breath before continuing, "I went away."
She hated to hear the pain in her voice. "Hey… let's not talk about that right now. Okay?" Shifting to get comfortable in the bed, she went on. "So, the little tyke knows who I am?"
"Yes, she does." Natalia answered, as she opened the refrigerator door and got out the milk for her morning cereal.
"So, you keep saying, she, I guess you and Frank haven't decided on a name?" See, she could do this. She could be a good friend.
"No, we haven't gotten that far. It needs to be the right fit, since she'll be both a Rivera and a Cooper…" And, Natalia mentally added, a Spencer, if I have anything to say about it.
All of a sudden, Olivia had the visual of a little tousled brown haired girl with the sweetest dimples. "It'll be a beautiful child."
"I know this sounds bad… but, I really hope she doesn't have Frank's big head."
"I was thinking the same thing!" Olivia laughed. "I guess we're still in sync that way..."
Natalia could tell that the woman she loved needed a bit of reassurance. "We'll always be in sync, Olivia. Some… things may change, but we'll always be a part of each other. At least, I hope so." She wanted to say more about her feelings for the slightly older woman, but she also knew that she couldn't push too hard. "I mean, as Emma would say, We're BFFs." Olivia had to laugh, at that since Natalia had captured her youngest daughter's voice and enthusiasm perfectly.
"Speaking of the little Jellybean, I think I hear her. Hold on."
Natalia could hear Olivia rising out of bed and opening the door. "Em, could you come here a minute?"
"But mommy I gotta get ready. Ava's gonna take me to the Wharf."
"Sweetie, I know; but there's someone who wants to talk to you." Taking a deep breath she said, "It's Natalia."
"Yay!" Well, it was obvious that the little girl held no ill will towards her other Mom, seeing as how she practically grabbed the phone out of her mother's hand.
"Natalia, you're back! Guess what? I saw seals! There were some baby seals, too. Oh, and I rode the Streetcar and I hung out the window when I did!"
Picturing her daughter bouncing up and down with joy brought a huge smile to Natalia's face. "Oh, sweetie, I'm so glad that you're having fun."
"I wish that you were here." Emma said seriously.
It tugged at Nat's heart to hear her say that. "Baby, I wish I was there, too. But, Em, I have a job, so I couldn't be there."
Sighing like her mother often did, she went on, "If you still worked with mommy, she would have let you come."
"Sweetie," Natalia began. How to make the nine year old understand?
"Emma, sweetie, that's not fair, okay?" Olivia sat on the bed and pulled her daughter on her lap. "You know Natalia loves you and would be here if she could." Saying the words out loud suddenly brought home to Olivia that, when Natalia left, it was because she had to, not because she wanted to. She would never intentionally hurt their daughter. It still hurt, but a bit less.
"Okay." Turning back to the phone, the little girl said, "Sorry, Natalia."
"It's okay; I miss you, too."
"When we get back, can we have a movie night?" Emma asked, glancing up at her mother as she spoke, trying to convey with eyes so like hers how much she wanted to spend time with her other mother. At her mother's nod, she happily relayed, "Mom says it's okay."
"Then movie night we'll have! Call me when you get back, and we'll decide which one, okay?"
"Okay. I love you! Here's mom." And with that, Emma handed off the phone before skipping out the door.
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Where are the girls?"
"They're at movie retrospect. Do you remember the Our Gang series?"
Natalia smiled before replying. "I remember seeing them in re-runs on TV. You know... some of us weren't born when they first came out."
Caught off guard, Olivia could only laugh at the obvious crack at her being older than Natalia. "Hey, Rivera, I'd watch that if I were you." She had to admit that it was nice to be able to banter with her again. "Besides, you're just jealous cause, like fine wine, I only get better with age."
"That's very true. And you know how I like my wine." I can't believe I said that.
"No, how?" Came the slight husky comment. Olivia couldn't believe that she was flirting right back, but god, did it feel good.
Natalia could imagine Olivia's eyes turning a darker shade of green, lips pursed, as she awaited her response.
"Well..." she paused as she thought of just the right response. "Full bodied comes to mind."
There is was, that deep throated chuckle that never ceased to cause her stomach to do summersaults. "Oh, ahem…I'll keep that in mind."
"Be sure you do. And, I hate to say it, but I have to go. I've got an early meeting with Blake."
"Sure, I understand." And she did, but she also hated that their conversation this morning was so brief. "Say, what are you doing late tomorrow afternoon?"
"I don't have anything in the afternoon. Rafe and I are having dinner, but that's not until 6:30. Why?"
"Em and I will be back by early afternoon and, I was wondering, did you want to stop by and see her?"
"I'd like nothing more. And I'm sure Rafe would like to see her, too."
"Good, I… we'll see you two tomorrow then."
As she hung up the phone, Natalia said a silent prayer that this meeting would be a new beginning for them.