Laws of Motion – Book 1
Written by: Ms Maggs / Edited by: KJT
Chapter 38
September 4, 2005
Sunrise Medical Center
10:21 a.m.
Sitting alone in a small conference room while Officer Salinas stood outside the closed door talking on his radio, Wendy pulled out her cell phone and tried Paul once more. Much as she suspected, it went straight to voicemail, indicating he was still in flight. Desperate for an ally, she smacked the phone on the table in frustration.
Unfortunately for Wendy, being alone and distrusted was not a foreign concept to her. Aside from worrying about the present, it also took her back to the past.
"Mom…you have to believe me!" Wendy pressed while her mother continued baking her deceased sister's favorite baked treats. "Mike isn't who you think he is. He told me himself…he pushed her off…"
"Don't say another word!" the distressed mother screamed. "Losing your sister this week has been horrific enough. I won't let you defile her memory by insinuating her relationship with Michael was built on a lie. The poor boy can barely speak, he's so devastated. He and Samantha were planning to marry after college…they dreamed of a future together…of children. It's all gone now and that young man is fraught with guilt because he wasn't able to catch Samantha as she slipped over the edge of the cliff." Her eyes narrowing to a lethal gaze she spoke in a vicious tone, "Your sister is dead and you're still so jealous of her that you're willing to tarnish her reputation and cut my heart out in the process. I don't think I've ever been more disgusted by you and I think we both know that's saying a lot after what you did this year. Wendy…your sister was a straight A student while you bring home Cs. Why on Earth would I believe that you could figure out something she couldn't?"
"Because Samantha was book smart, Mother! When it came to guys she was always dense!" The smack of her mother's slap knocked Wendy off balance.
"And if she were alive to defend herself Samantha would say when it comes to guys you can't toss your clothes fast enough! You even had to take them off for that filthy calendar!"
Determined to make her mother see the truth Wendy pushed on, "That picture has nothing to do with…"
But Mrs. Hatcher raged louder, "If your sister were here, she'd say…that's right, all the guys want you, Wendy…except one, Mike, and that makes you so jealous of me you can't stand it!"
"Mother! Listen to me!"
Her disgust maximized, Mrs. Hatcher wiped her hands on a dust rag, turned her back and walked away. "Your jealousy has always been ridiculous... an upstanding young man like Michael would never want to be with a whore like you."
Her blood reaching its boiling point Wendy blasted back, "Your precious Michael didn't seem to have a problem being with me when he was raping me the night before he murdered Samantha!"
"You have fifteen minutes to pack your things and get out of this house!"
"Mrs. Blake!" the Officer called a second time when the woman didn't snap out of her daze.
"Yes?" Wendy quickly returned to the present.
"I'm afraid there's a problem…"
"Sean!" She jumped to her feet.
"Sean's fine." The officer held out his hands to stop her from running. "It's Ryan…it seems he got agitated during the Advocate's interview and he took off…a nurse saw him run out of the hospital and we don't know where he is at the moment."
"Excuse me!" Wendy flashed from intimidated to outraged before the officer's eyes. "Did you just tell me that you lost my son while he was in the protective custody of the County?"
"I'm afraid so, ma'am." The officer shifted uncomfortably and cleared his throat. "We have everyone looking for him, and I'm sure he'll be found ASAP."
Deciding Ryan was probably safely hiding somewhere secure, Wendy walked past the embarrassed officer. "I hope you don't have a problem with me guarding my remaining son…and if you do, tough."
Nick and Carrie's Apartment
10:29 a.m.
While they waited for Detective Packer to finish comparing notes with Karen Harnett, Jim and Grissom in the kitchen, Nick walked Carrie into the living room. "Don't sit on the couch, Sweetheart," he warned. "Because of the evidence."
"Right." Moving the small bag of ice off her brow, she glanced down at the rumpled sheets. "I feel so awful for yelling at him about my underwear now that I know he was on edge from…you know."
Nick took a seat in the overstuffed brown leather armchair and gently eased Carrie onto his lap. "Don't be too hard on yourself. I'm sure Wendy would have reacted the same way if she caught Sean pulling on her panties." Once she was situated, Nick took the ice pack from Carrie's hand and inspected her laceration. "I don't think it needs stitches. Your eyebrow hides most of the cut, but if you're worried about a scar we could…"
"No, I want the scar," she stated while the stress of the morning thrust her into a fit of jittery laughter. "Who wouldn't want a permanent reminder of such a glorious day? I mean it's not every day a woman gets accused of incest with her teenage nephews, right?" A distinct edge creeping into her voice Carrie posited, "I wonder if Hallmark makes a card for this kind of thing? What do you think, Nicky?"
"Uh …"
"Ooh! I bet Mike Rodgers would know, because he's their biggest customer. Maybe he'll send me a 'doesn't it suck to get unjustly accused' card when word of this humiliation gets out…because you know it will. I've only lived here six months but, I've come down hard on several screw-up cops…they'll be salivating over this…yeah…speaking of cards…I need to buy one for Celeste today…something along the lines of 'sorry my political diatribe led to the final downfall of your insta-marriage' because really if you think about it, Nicky…it all started with that asinine Pat Robertson question when I blasted Hodges for being a child-hating, Christmas bashing, Republican enigma." Her rate of speech notching upwards at an alarming rate Carrie rambled, "I'm sure Pat Robertson would say all of this is karmic punishment for our wicked ways…you being wicked for years, and me being new to the practice. Maybe the joke's on us after all…maybe we are cursed like the detective said…I'm really starting to think we are…my first clues were getting mugged in the park on Sunday and almost dying, and then you almost dying in a different incident on Monday." Staring at her fiancé she pondered aloud, "I wonder how much an exorcism costs? We would need to make sure the priest has never been accused of a sex crime."
"Sweetheart…" Nick was suddenly very concerned she was in the last leg of a full mental snap or her head injury was much worse than he thought.
"Ooh! I have a theory." With the demeanor of an energetic mental patient she relayed, "You and I were both accidental pregnancies…you were conceived after your father had a vasectomy and I was conceived after my mother was told she was sterile."
"Honey, please…you're scaring me."
"Don't you see!"
"I'm seeing plenty, Sweetheart." Nick tenderly placed his palm on her cheek. "How about taking a few deep breaths for me?"
"We weren't meant to be born, so there was no predetermined plan for us. We're extras! Consequently, the gods just use us for their amusement. They set us up with happy childhoods and then bam…throw a little sex abuse our way. Down the road weird crap keeps on happening to us…a death threat for me, a stalker for you, etc…etc…etc…then they decide it would really be fun if you and I hooked up." Her tone taking an angsty turn, she continued, "Our independent curses have combined into one enormous mega-curse destined to plague us until one or both of us loses our god damn minds, which is exactly what I think I'm doing right now!" Gripping her head Carrie screamed, "I can't believe I'm sitting in my apartment waiting to see if I'll be hauled into the station for molesting my nephews!" Jumping off Nick's lap she screamed toward the kitchen, "This is insanity! You get your asses out here right now! What could you possibly have to discuss! I'm innocent! How could you think for a minute that I'm not! I was at the hospital when those boys were born. I rocked them to sleep in my arms! How dare you accuse me of…" The sudden grip of Nick's arms around her from behind momentarily stopped her breath.
"I've got you," Nick assured his tormented soul mate as she trembled in his embrace. "Just let it out, Sweetheart." When she turned and burrowed her face in his chest sobbing, Nick clutched her tight and realized that although he had heard her cry many types of tears…but not once had her tears been fueled by the raw anguish he was hearing right now. "As soon as this is over…and it's gonna be soon, Sweetheart…we're going to the hospital to check on the boys and once we come back home, we'll lock the door, turn off the phones, and not leave the apartment for days, okay?"
Hearing the kitchen door open, Nick glanced over and connected with Grissom's eyes. "Please tell us this bullshit is over."
"It's over."
Cupping Carrie's soaked cheeks Nick smiled, "Did you hear that? It's over."
Her breathing out of control Carrie could only nod in acknowledgement.
Upon seeing the woman's distress the detective cautiously approached. "On behalf of my officers, I'd like to offer an apology. While the circumstances were suspicious, my men were over zealous in their approach, and O'Hara should not have tossed such a damaging accusation at you…for that I'm sorry."
Nick answered on Carrie's behalf, "She'd reply, but she's too busy trying to recover from being mortified, and Packer…if this becomes a locker room joke, you know I'll hear about it. Do us all a favor…tell your boys not to push their luck."
"Ditto," Brass interjected. "And while we're at it…" The ring of the house phone cut him off.
Not wanting to leave Carrie, Nick asked, "Gris…could you answer that for me, please?"
"Sure."
In silence, Packer and Harnett left the apartment, shutting the door behind them.
"Carrie…I know you're a little overwhelmed at the moment but…" Grissom crossed the room with the cordless phone. "It's Ryan...he's desperate to speak with you."
"Are you okay, Sweetie? We're finally finished answering questions here, so Nick and I will go to the hospital and see you in a few minutes." Trying to mask her distress, she asked, "How is your brother?"
"He was running at the mouth, Aunt Carrie! Telling the Advocate lady about the porn we watched last night. So I did the only thing I could think of to get them to stop asking questions…I ran away."
"You what!"
The Sanders Home
11:09 a.m.
"They're home already?" Scott said in surprise when he heard the garage door opening. Rising from his desk chair, he hurried out of the room to make sure everything was alright.
As soon as he stepped into the hall he saw Bev hurrying out of the sitting room. "I'm sure everything's fine," he assured his tense wife.
"Mom! Dad!" Greg's voice boomed from the kitchen.
"Something's wrong!" Bev knew by the tone in her son's voice. "What is it!" she pressed when she saw Greg holding Tawny's hand.
"We have something to tell you." Exchanging brilliant smiles with Tawny, Greg winked, signaling it was time to make their move.
With Bev and Scott standing and waiting, the gleeful couple slapped their left hands down on the island.
"Last night we took the limo to Vegas and got hitched," Greg boasted, and just as he imagined, his mother was devastated.
"You what!" Bev grabbed her son's hand and studied the band. Much to her disappointment, the ring was real. "You know how much I was looking forward to the wedding." Raising her gaze from the ring to Greg's eyes, she sadly said, "Why didn't you want us there?"
Scott placed his arm around Bev's shoulders. "Although I didn't think you needed a huge wedding, I have to agree with your mother…I'm really disappointed you didn't include us."
Chuckling, Tawny and Greg moved into phase two of the plan. In unison they tugged off the bands and placed them on the counter. "Just kidding!" Greg boomed. "But before you throw a dish at my head, Mother…hear me out." He could see the irritation building in their eyes. "Tawny and I decided we don't want the big fancy wedding after all…we want an intimate one…and we don't want to wait seven weeks, because Tawny will feel uncomfortable being so obviously pregnant." Taking his fiancée's hand, Greg pressed a kiss on to its back. "We want to get married this Saturday. Although you won't be planning a fancy wedding, you'll still get to see us get married. I hope you're less disappointed now."
Bev shot her son a look and groaned, "Yes, Gregory…your strategy to scare me first so I'd be grateful later, worked." She knew that he learned the tactic from her.
"Excellent!" Greg stepped around the counter to hug her.
"I think it's a wise choice," Scott told Tawny. "And here's what I'm going to do…whatever the budgetary difference is, I'm going to take the leftover money and start a house fund for you. I'll have my investor work with it and when there's enough for a decent downpayment, and I feel comfortable that you're both ready to accept the responsibility of home ownership…I'll turn it over."
Now it was Tawny's turn to bestow a hug. "Thank you!"
"Thanks, Dad." Then Greg pointed to his watch. "Tawny has an appointment at Bridal Elegance. Mom…I was hoping you'd want to go with her." When he saw Bev lunge for her keys and grab her future daughter-in-law's hand, he knew the answer was yes. "Have fun!"
Pet Palace
11:14 a.m.
Sitting in the puppy play area, Ryan felt his spirits lifting. He couldn't imagine a better hiding spot than the cheery pet shop, and when the owner had said he could sit and play with two Labradoodle puppies while he waited for his aunt and uncle, his smile finally returned.
"Ryan!" Carrie shouted when she saw her nephew.
While being assaulted with licks, Ryan answered, "I told you I was fine on the phone, Aunt Carrie. You can stop panicking now. How's Sean?"
"He's doing great, Sweetie." Carrie kissed the top of Ryan's head as she gently hugged him and the puppy. "Your mom is with him. Since his CT scan didn't show any damage they're going to release him any minute now."
In her ear Ryan whispered, "What about the other stuff? The questions the lady was asking?"
"That's over too, Honey. The lady and the cops are worried about their butts now since they lost you while you were in their protective custody." With an approving smile she said, "You did good…Sean didn't say another word once you yelled at him and left."
"Finally, the idiot listened to me!" Ryan snuggled the puppy closer. "What happened to your head?" He asked upon seeing the big band-aid over his aunt's brow.
"I ran into the door."
"Uh…that's like the fourth time you've done that."
She nodded, remembering the other times over the years. "Yeah…I'm thinking it's part of the curse."
"Huh?" Deciding his aunt looked very stressed, Ryan handed over the puppy. "Hug her for a while. It helps."
The pet shop owner walked over smiling, "Your nephew has been a good assistant. He was straightening my shelves so I rewarded him with a little puppy play time."
After ending his cell phone call to Wendy to report Ryan was with them, Nick tossed a grateful nod and a smile at the shop owner. "Thanks for lettin' him stay until we got here, ma'am. We really appreciate it."
"Nicky, look…" Carrie cuddled the puppy as it licked her face. "Isn't she the sweetest thing?"
Watching Carrie's tension melt before his eyes, Nick recalled one of their marathon phone conversations when she was still living in Seattle.
"What about pets? Did you have any when you were growing up?" Nick asked as he reclined on the couch wishing Carrie was answering the inquiry in his arms.
"Sure did," she cheerily replied. "Only a couple of weeks into counseling, the therapist told my parents that the affection of a pet can do wonders helping someone recover from trauma. The next day they took me to the pet store and told me I could pick anything I wanted."
A smile flooded his face. "Let me guess…"
"Okay."
"Toad."
"No!"
"Just kiddin'…it had to be a puppy."
"Yep! I named her Glinda…after the good witch in the Wizard of Oz because it was on TV the night before and fresh in my head. She was the cutest little apricot poodle."
"Oh!" Nick's palm slapped his forehead. "No! Not a foofy poodle with a girly name! You're killin' me, Blake."
"You got something against poodle people, Stokes? See…yeah…I knew this was too good to be true. A deal breaker had to be coming. Well…it's been nice knowing you."
"Hey, now!" he laughingly protested. "I'll admit I always pictured a retriever in our future, because growing up I had this fantastic Yellow Labrador Retriever named Buck... but I'm willin' to compromise if you are. Surely we can meet half way."
"So…" she chuckled sweetly. "Exactly how often do you sit around dreaming of our retriever-containing future?"
"Way more than I'm willing to admit," he chuckled back. "Since I've only known you twelve days, and ten of those have been over the phone…I'm afraid you'll think I'm a stalker if I confess I've tried to picture what our children will look like. Shoot…did I just say that out loud?"
"Brown eyes are a given."
Shaking his head he couldn't believe how far gone he was. "You've thought about it too?"
"Guilty as charged."
"Nicky…" Waving the puppy's paw Carrie said, "She's a Labradoodle, half Yellow Lab, half Poodle. How's that for meeting half way? When the time comes…could one of these will work?"
Studying Carrie's eyes Nick said, "Why wait? I'm home bound and that puppy isn't too big for me to lift while recovering. You're on sabbatical from work. It would be a perfect time to train it, and then it will be trained before we move to a new house."
The shop owner's ears perked when she realized a sale was at stake. "She's a steal at eleven hundred dollars and I'll throw in a ten pound bag of puppy food. I'll grab her papers so you can take a look at her pedigree."
"Really, Nicky!" Carrie bubbled with excitement as he approached grinning. "We can keep her!"
Ryan laughed at his aunt. "You so reminded me of McKenna just then."
Slipping one arm around Carrie while he scratched the puppy's head, Nick whispered, "I think this is just what we need, Sweetheart. A little more non-traditional therapy."
"I love you." Much to her nephew's chagrin, Carrie amorously kissed her fiancé.
"Blech…it's so gross watching oldies kiss," Ryan teased while picking up the remaining puppy. "Only teenagers should make out."
"Yeah?" Nick shot the boy a look. "How old were those people in the movie you were watching on the sly last night?"
"Oh…uh…I thought maybe you'd forget about that with all the other trauma going on."
"Not a chance." Nick moved toward the boy and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Your mother's orders were to bring you home for a family meeting. Your dad is on the way back from the airport too." Smiling he informed the busted boy, "Your late night porn sneaks are over, pal. When you asked me if you could order a movie don't tell me you thought I'd approve. And your poor brother…of course he exploded in his shorts after watching that stuff all night."
"Here are the puppy's papers." The shop owner handed over the small file. "She comes from a very reputable…"
"That's okay…I don't care about her pedigree." Nick pointed at Carrie giggling from puppy licks. "The only thing I needed to see was the grin on my fiancée's face."
The Sanders Home
11:45 a.m.
Taking a seat on the couch while his father popped in the video tape of the proposal, Greg chomped on his bottom lip. "How humiliating is it?"
"Just focus on the smile on Tawny's face and you won't care." Grabbing the remote, Scott plopped on the couch and chuckled, "Don't forget...Tawny and your mom made sure your friends back home got to see this last night."
"Yeah…I picked up the harassing voicemails this morning." Greg shuddered as he saw the video begin. "I can't even imagine the torture they're planning on my behalf."
The Fitness Zone
12:09 p.m.
If it weren't for a reminder call from Irving, Gil would have missed his personal training session and after hearing his next exercise activity, he really wished he hadn't answered the phone earlier. "You want me to lie on the floor holding your ankles while you loom above me?"
"You say that like it's an unpleasant thought." Irving clapped his hands and assumed his position. "Let's go, Bugman."
After dropping to the floor on his knees, Gil flopped over on his back. "What are you going to do to me when I'm holding onto your ankles?"
With a healthy dose of enthusiasm, Irving answered, "You're going to keep your lower back pressed into the floor while lifting your legs up towards me and when you do, I'm going to forcefully push them down, but you're going to use your abdominal strength to stop your legs right before they hit the floor. Then you'll do it all over again…and you'll keep doing it until you're spent."
Estimating if he could get up and run out the door before Irving caught him, Gil remarked, "Just what I was hoping you'd say."
"Do I have to get Sofia out here to piss you off and motivate you?"
"No…please…I'll comply." He did as asked and hated every second of it.
"Think washboard abs, Gil! Your wife will love running her fingers over yours." The health nut patted the perfect six-pack hidden under his t-shirt. "Most women do."
"Sara's not like most women…that's why I fell for her in the first place."
"I feel the same way about Sof." Irving sweetly remarked while pounding Gil's feet into the floor. "You can do better than that, Gil! Let's see some determination. Pretend a bug's life is on the line."
"Here's what will motivate me…if I do twenty of these you have to let me put one of my hissing cockroaches in your palm and let it crawl up your arm."
Shivering at the mention of the disgusting creature, but determined to get his client working hard, Irving nodded. "Forty and you've got yourself a deal. But if you lose…you and Sara are taking Sofia and me out to dinner."
"Deal…now would you please put the air conditioning on?" Gil asked after completing six of the tortuous exercises.
"It's blasting. That's called sweat…it's a good thing." Clapping he encouraged the fading man, "C'mon! I want to see you drenched!"
The Blakes
12:20 p.m.
With Ashley napping, and Sean on the living room couch being nursed by McKenna, Paul and Wendy went into the kitchen to finish their discussion which they recognized was becoming heated.
Opposed to his wife's thinking, Paul snapped, "There's not a chance in hell that I'm saying something to my sister about not watching the kids closely enough. What happened to Sean was an accident. Carrie wasn't irresponsible. Irresponsible is when you're a sixteen year old boy put in charge of your eight year old sister, but instead of watching her at swim lessons you leave her alone so you can make out with your girlfriend in the park down the street while the swim coach, unbeknownst you, seizes the opportunity to make time with your sister."
"You can't let your guilt-filled baggage influence your thinking, Paul!"
"It's not. It's providing honest perspective."
"She got drunk while she was babysitting our kids. She couldn't even drive McKenna home last night when she wanted to leave because a grown man stripped down to his underwear and freaked her out…" Clutching her throbbing head Wendy huffed, "…that's a whole other can of worms. We never had to worry about who Carrie had around before because she didn't have any friends, so I never thought to worry about that."
"Wendy…" Paul placed his hands on his wife's slumping shoulders. "After the week she had, Carrie needed a drink, not babysitting responsibilities. What were you thinking when you let the kids go over there with Nick just home from the hospital on pain pills and my sister barely holding it together? Did you bother to ask who else would be there? If there would be alcohol served? If there would be guests there you've never met? Be honest…didn't you just want a night off from dealing with them so you sent them packing when the opportunity presented itself?"
Her tears forming Wendy weakly replied, "Ryan and McKenna begged her and…you're right…I didn't think it though, I jumped at the opportunity when I know that Carrie can't say no to the kids…ugh...I'm guilty as charged." Wiping her tears, she collapsed into a kitchen chair. "I was exhausted from you being away all week…and cooking all day for the church banquet. Grabbing a napkin from the table she confessed, "I didn't want to deal with the boys or the conversation with Sean about sneaking late night soft core. I'm sorry…I was exhausted, and I took advantage of the situation."
Feeling guilty, he quietly replied, "I'm sorry for yelling, Honey." Paul pulled up a chair, sitting across from her. "Things will get better now that I won't be traveling. You won't have to rely on Carrie and Nick to help you…I'll be here seven days a week." Taking her hands he gave them a squeeze. "And you're not the only one who's been gratefully taking advantage of them…Nick's been pinch hitting for me as a dad for months now. Not that I would have enjoyed telling my boys about BJs but I should have been the one having that talk."
"We stink as parents," Wendy cried.
"Are you kidding?" Pulling her onto his lap Paul whispered, "I think we're above average, but we've got plenty of room to grow."
"It's all this puberty stuff…little kids with boo-boos and art projects I'm great at…sex talks with my sons…" She lowered her head. "Not so much."
"Mommy! Daddy!" McKenna burst into the kitchen. "Come see what Aunt Carrie has! Come see!" Then she darted away without further explanation.
In the living room, sitting on the edge of the sofa, Carrie was cuddling her new puppy as Sean, still dazed from the events of the morning, scratched behind its ears and remained silent.
"What's its name!" McKenna wondered while jumping up on the back of the couch to see better.
"Binda," Carrie answered through a smile.
Ryan was quick to provide an explanation to his siblings and his parents who just entered the room. "Uncle Nick's childhood pet was a Yellow Lab named Buck…"
"I can take it from there." Seeing his troubled sister happily cuddling her new puppy, Paul was reminded of the same scene twenty-two years ago and the relief he felt when he saw Carrie smile after thinking she'd never smile again. "Your aunt had a poodle named Glinda. The name is a blend of Buck and Glinda."
"So is the dog…" Carrie cheerily informed him. "It's a Labradoodle…half Yellow Lab, half Poodle. It's as though our childhood dogs produced a baby. That's why I named her after them. Isn't that the sweetest idea?"
Giving his whipped future brother-in-law a friendly slap on the back Paul teased, "Yeah…are you gonna tell the guys at work that cute little story, Nicky?"
"Not if I can help it," Nick groaned in a whisper while loving every minute of Carrie's giddiness. "In the car on the way over Ryan told me he heard on some kids sports show that Alfredo Binda was a famous Italian cyclist…Carrie's half Italian…I figure I'll lie and say he was associated with her family and the dog is named in honor of him."
"Good cover." Paul chuckled loudly. "Nick Stokes…proud owner of a Labradoodle. Yeah…they'll still be able to give you plenty of crap."
"Nah…I don't have to worry." Nick laughed in Carrie's direction. "Greg's Clay Aiken impression will be the talk of the lab after I play the video for everyone there."
Carrie joked back, "Yep, that will be a Lab-radoozy, Honey."
"Aunt Carrie…" Ryan looked at her with sympathy. "That's like the lamest joke ever…don't repeat it." Then, out of the blue, something dawned on him. "Hey!" he blurted while pointing to his brother's stitched head. "I just realized the coolest thing about your head wound, Bro!"
The group quieted to hear the answer they couldn't imagine.
"You're gonna look just like Harry Potter!" With his index finger he drew a lightning bolt on his own forehead. "Chicks will love that!"
The Willows/Brown Household
12:37 p.m.
Knocking on her mother's bedroom door, Lindsay said, "Are you dressed?"
Catherine answered by opening the door and modeling her outfit.
Upon seeing her mother, Lindsay continued, "I was thinking…"
"Uh oh." When her daughter's eyes rolled Catherine smiled. "Sorry…I meant to say…great! What about!"
"I thought it would be nice if we made something to bring over to Sean and his family because he got hurt."
"Oh…that really is a great idea." Catherine was pleased that her daughter's thoughts towards the geeky boy were turning kinder. "You make the card and I'll sign my name."
"Mom…I meant like food…comfort food…like brownies or something."
Glancing at her daughter in disbelief Catherine replied, "You want me to bake something and bring it to Betty Crocker's house? That would be like bringing my ant farm over to Grissom's for comparison."
Now it was Lindsay's turn to be stunned. "You have an ant farm?"
"Yes, I alternate between tending to it and my paper clip collection. Of course not!."
"Hilarious." Rolling her eyes at her domestically challenged mother Lindsay grumbled, "You never cook anything with me anymore. We didn't even make Christmas cookies together the past few years."
"Hello? I was working a triple homicide from Christmas Eve until Christmas Day because Santa brought a pissed off teenage boy a rifle and he decided to try it out on his family. Perspective, Linds…I got you eighty dollar jeans for Christmas, and you didn't strangle me with them. See…we have it good."
"I can't wait to tell Dr. Myers that tidbit."
Bridal Elegance
12:49 p.m.
Standing in the three-way mirror wearing her wedding dress while a seamstress worked quickly to measure her, Tawny reached out for her ringing cell phone that Bev was handing her. "Ooh! It's Dr, Myers returning my message." Excited to share her good news, Tawny clicked the green button and said, "Guess who's wearing the most gorgeous diamond ring in the world on her finger!"
"Jennifer Aniston?" Dr. Myers answered. "At least that's what I thought I read on the front cover of a tabloid when I was waiting to pay at the grocery store this morning."
"Well, I don't know about that but, the headline in San Marino today is 'local boy knocks girl off feet with spectacular wedding proposal'." Watching her joyous expression in the mirror Tawny explained, "It was more than I ever dreamed of and the ring is amazing too…just like Greg."
"Congratulations, Tawny. I'm very happy for both of you."
"I'm also calling because we're getting married at the Bellagio chapel this weekend and we'd love for you to attend since you helped make it all possible. I don't have the exact time yet because we're waiting for our best man and maid of honor to return our message."
The Blakes
1:17 p.m.
Nick and Carrie took a seat at the kitchen table with Wendy, Paul, Sean and Ryan. "Do you think Binda will be okay in the living room with McKenna watching her?" They had told McKenna they would pay her two dollars to baby-sit the sleeping puppy.
"New moms," Wendy teased before smiling at her sister-in-law. "I gave the babysitter a walkie-talkie." She held up the matching one. "I'm sure she'll alert us if there's a problem."
Nudging Nick, Ryan whispered, "I thought you bought her the dog so she'd chill out…looks to me like it's just another thing for her to worry about."
"Thanks for pointing that out now, genius." Nick gave the boy a gentle shove when he realized he was right.
"Okay…" Paul called the informal family meeting to order. "I've asked all of you here so we could get a few things out on the table. I believe you owe your aunt and Nick an apology, boys. You took advantage of their generosity last night when you ordered a movie you knew wasn't appropriate for your age. Let's hear it."
"Sorry," they said in perfect unison. Feeling guilty, Ryan added, "Sean did tell me that when Uncle Nick said I could order anything I wanted, it was implied that he meant not greater than PG-13…but I ignored him."
"But I didn't do anything to stop him," Sean confessed. "And then I watched it too. I'm just as guilty."
Nick quickly put them out of their misery. "Apology accepted."
"That goes for me too," Carrie assured her nephews. "But now that you have watched some of those movies, I hope you realize those scenarios…knowing someone for three minutes before ripping your clothes off and giving your body to a stranger, is the stuff sleazy movies are made of, and isn't fulfilling like the intimacy experienced in a loving relationship. I wouldn't have given Nicky the time of day if tried to bed me in the first ten minutes of meeting me."
Placing his hand on top of Carrie's Nick attempted to add some levity. "That would have been a little awkward on the steps of the courthouse, but seriously, boys…it was the furthest thing in my mind because I respected her and wanted to get to know her before taking such a serious step…as someone who did things the opposite way for a long time, I assure you it's much better when you know the person and love them."
Wendy glanced over at Paul. "They're a hell of a lot better at this than me."
"Because they're not the parents," he replied chuckling. "You just wait until they have kids…they'll freeze up."
Clearing his throat, Sean shyly asked, "Are we going to discuss the biology of it all next?"
Carrie quickly stood. "I think I've been away from my puppy long enough." Then she turned to her sister-in-law. "Maybe this is a good time to look for that puppy care book you thought you had."
Ryan pointed out, "But Aunt Carrie, you bought every book they had in the pet store."
"Do you really want your mom and I to stay when you're talking about…you know?"
The boy quickly changed his tune. "I bet my mom's book is the best. See ya!"
Once the room was estrogen-free, Nick got up from the table and headed for the fridge to grab some of the organic root beer Wendy always had on hand. "So, there I am thirteen years old and sound asleep in my room having this fantastic dream about Charlie's Angels…"
"Even Sabrina?" Paul quizzed, thrilled that Nick was taking the lead.
"Hell, yeah…she had a very sexy mind." He returned with four bottles of root beer and took a seat.
"Uncle Nick…" Having done the math Sean said, "Drew Barrymore was a child twenty-three years ago."
"Not those Angels…the original ones." Nick popped the top off his root beer and took a swig. "Anyway, who I was dreaming about isn't the point…the story has two purposes…one, to show you what happened to you today was totally normal, Sean…and it's happened to your Dad, brother and me…and it's bound to happen when you're thirteen and stay up all night watching naked chicks on TV and fall asleep at full mast."
"What's the other point of your story?" Ryan prodded, "Because I already knew that one."
Busting out laughing Nick said, "My second point is that you can recover from horrible embarrassment. So, there I am having this fantastic dream about Charlie's Angels…I hear them calling my name like sirens…they're all screaming 'Nicky! Nicky! Right now!' I hear Kelly specifically yell, 'Get up, Nicky' and in my dream I look down and verify that I've indeed followed her instructions."
"Oh, no…" Paul saw where the story was going and cringed in advance.
"Yeah." Clutching his root beer bottle Nick cut to the end of the tale. "I hear Kelly's voice whisper in my ear, "'Nicky…I've been waiting for you'…it's so real…I can feel her hot breath on my neck, right?" Shaking his head he shuddered at the memory. "I'm sound asleep getting it on with Kelly one minute and the next thing I know my sister Kendra is screaming because she had tossed the blankets off me to get my lazy ass out of bed for church. Let's just say her timing couldn't have been worse…little Nicky was peeking through the crack in my boxers and she witnessed it all."
The guys all lurched back in horror.
"Yeah…and when I woke up and figured out my sister just saw my plumbing in action, that wasn't even the worst part…the worst part was realizing it was my sister's voice I was hearing and her hot breath on my neck…not Kelly's."
"OH!" Paul and Ryan screamed while Sean's eyelids flapped open to an extreme.
Nick patted his chest. "As you can see, Sean…I'm still alive and believe it or not I managed to look my sister in the eyes…it took years but…" he laughed. "And I never watched Charlie's Angels again after that. To this day if I see a repeat I cringe." He clinked his bottle against Sean's. "Feel better?"
"Yes." A faint smile finally appeared on his face.
"I thought you might." Nick winked. "Now, I'll let your dad take it from here, 'cause I've got a puppy to raise with my future wife." Slapping Paul on the back before leaving, he said, "And you wondered why I wasn't too embarrassed about having a Labradoodle. Humiliation is relative, my brother."
"Relative!" Sean got the joke and cracked up. "I never thought I'd laugh again. Thanks, Uncle Nick."
In the doorway he opened his arms. "As my better half put it this morning…I exist solely to amuse others. And you know what? In times like these…I'm okay with that." Stepping into the living room he laughed at himself, "C'mon, Darlin'…let's take our little Labradoodle home! I can't wait to start living as a family." Then he realized she was on the phone. "Sorry."
In the receiver Tawny said, "Did Nick just say Labradoodle?"
"Nicky bought me a puppy!" Carrie gushed. "We named her Binda after Nicky's childhood dog Buck and my poodle Glinda."
"Yep…" Nick grabbed the phone and said, "As soon as Greg laughs his ass off about that, do me a favor and tell him I said at least I didn't have an ass named Mr. Peebles for a child comfort item."
"Mr. Peebles is coming to Vegas!" Tawny shrieked. "You'll get to meet him! He's really kinda cute…especially because Greg used to sleep with its ear in his mouth and it's worn down from all the drool…uh oh…he swore me to secrecy about that."
"Oops!" Nick rejoiced by making a fist with his left hand and pulling it toward him. "Yes! I'll definitely be using that in my best man's toast."
"That's why I called! We want to get married this Saturday. Will you be up to it?"
"You want to get married this Saturday!" Nick looked to Carrie. "How am I going to pull a bachelor party together that fast when I'm recovering from surgery and training a puppy?"
"Greg said this exactly…" Tawny cleared her throat and mocked his voice, "Tell him I don't need a wild bachelor party since the best dancer in the world thrills me nightly and if he was thinking about hooking me up with someone for one last thrill tell him my ex-fantasy girl already drugged me and had her way with me this week, so consider it handled."
"Okay, then." When he saw Carrie nodding like a maniac Nick responded, "Looks like we'll be heading to the chapel on Saturday." Tawny's shriek of joy nearly deafening him he yelled into the phone, "Tell Greg to call me later!"
Wildfire Country Club
2:35 p.m.
Dressed in the conservative khakis and the hunter green polo Tawny had bought for the occasion, Greg selected a driver and took position in their reserved slot on the driving range. "Remember…I haven't picked up a club since I left Stanford."
"I didn't know you golfed when you were at Stanford."
"Becca golfed so I took a bunch of lessons and…"
"Ah…say no more." Scott rejoiced for the hundredth time that his son was no longer under her spell.
"Okay…here goes nothing…and that's literal."
When Greg severely sliced the ball the anxious father bit his tongue not to offer advice. The last thing he wanted to do was start the afternoon off with his son getting pissed for trying to tell him how to improve. Instead, he opted for encouragement. "I'm sure the next one will be better."
It wasn't.
"Dad…" Greg turned and huffed out a sigh of disappointment. "I don't want to embarrass you out there, so how about you find someone else to..."
"No." Scott joined his frustrated son on the grass. "I don't know how you remember it but…all those fights we had over golf had nothing to do with me being embarrassed over your playing at the club. What happened every time was you would get upset because you couldn't play great, and I would get pissed because you wanted to quit because you weren't good. All I ever wanted was for you to do your best…even if that meant me yelling 'fore' on every hole. But you couldn't do that because you only liked doing things you excelled at easily…and you wouldn't let me show you because you couldn't stand everyone seeing that you needed help."
"I know…it's on my 'To Do' list of issues." Grabbing another ball from the bucket Greg remarked, "Kind of ironic that I left my easy job in the DNA lab to work in the field where I'm hardly a superstar." Placing the ball on the grass he said, "Dr. Myers asked me if I thought part of the reason it was important to me to do that was to prove something to you."
"What was your answer?" Scott didn't let on that he had considered a possible connection several times since learning of the decision.
After hitting another perfectly horrible slice Greg replied, "I said the same thing I say every time you come up…let's deal with my mommy-issues first."
"Why do you always say that?"
Facing his father Greg doled out a little honesty. "Because I suspected that a lot of my daddy-issues were because of my mommy…and after these past five days I know my suspicions were right. But Dad…I don't want to get into the details here…or on this trip. I need you to come to Vegas and see Dr. Myers with me…but I really don't want mom to know that's why you're coming to Vegas to see me. I know I'm asking you to lie to your wife but trust me…she's not always told you the truth when it comes to me so…I feel comfortable doing it this way and I hope you do too." He swallowed hard and waited impatiently for an answer.
After pondering the information for a couple of minutes Scott stepped forward. "You will have all that IKEA furniture to put together…and your mother can't get time off from school right after it begins this week. How would it look if your mother and I flew out for the wedding this weekend and I stayed on for the week to help you put that stuff together and coach you on your budget and so forth?"
"I think that sounds very believable. I'm sure mom will be thrilled to hear we'll be bonding some more." Of course he knew once she learned about his therapist-led confession, she'd be livid.
"Then that's what I'll say."
The two men stood eyeing each other cautiously until Greg assumed his golfing stance. "Enough about that…how about you show me what I'm doing wrong so I can work on getting better at this ridiculously frustrating game?"
"Really?" Scott said in shock since the area was full of people Greg knew.
"Really." Greg's heart raced as he waited for his father to approach.
"Uh…I think the major source of the problem is your grip." Coming behind his son Scott reached forward and gently maneuvered Greg's hands into a better position. "Try that and see what happens…then we'll talk about your stance and your swing."
After a deep breath, Greg took a shot. It was very short, but the slice was gone.
"Much better."
"I'll back up the course schedule if I hit them that short all day."
"We're playing with Robbie and Joyce…if you're feeling self-conscious about holding up the next group, you know your friends won't mind if you start driving from the tee but playing from my shot…a modified scramble."
"Okay, cool." Greg dropped another ball. "Now tell me what's wrong with my stance."
"Well…"
The Mandalay Bay
2:49 p.m.
Standing in the middle of the bedroom in shock Sara repeated her husband's words. "You thought it would be fun for us to have dinner with Irving and Sofia?"
"Yes." Gil collapsed on the bed and stared at the ceiling. "I definitely need a nap. Although…I'm afraid if I fall asleep I'll stiffen so severely I won't be able to get out of bed."
Still fixated on the dinner invite Sara glared at her husband. "You were scared of what Irving would do to you at your next session if you turned down his suggestion."
To quote Ryan Blake, 'Duh'." Gil quickly reminder her, "Your birthday is coming up in less than two weeks and I won't be able to make it very exciting if I'm in traction so…I'm doing this for you. We have bats to watch in Tahoe."
"And Scrabble to win!" Sara gloated in advance. The ring of her cell phone ended her boasting. "It's Tawny." Still grinning at Gil she answered the phone. "What's up?"
"My time as a single girl! Please say that you and Gil…my bridesmaid and stand-in father of the bride, are available on Saturday at four for my wedding."
"You and Greg decided to get married this Saturday?" Sara saw her husband bolt up. "Mr. and Ms. Manic couldn't wait, huh…as Jim would say…shocking! Did you check with Nick and Carrie already? Is Nick going to be up to it?"
"Yep! He said he could manage everything except, if Greg faints on the altar, someone else would have to scrap his pansy ass off the floor because he can't lift more than his Labradoodle puppy for another few weeks."
"Back up…did you say Nick has a Labradoodle puppy?"
"Uh huh…and wait until you hear what they named it and why…"
When she hung up the phone five minutes later, Sara stood at the edge of the bed, looming over her husband. "I want a dog for my birthday...not a puppy...a grown dog...from the pound."
"What?" Gil bolted up. "We've discussed this. We're bug people, Sara...not dog people."
Very calmly Sara patted her belly and informed her stunned husband, "Times...they are a changin'."
Nick and Carrie's Apartment
2:52 p.m.
"Binda!" Carrie sat on the floor of the living room teaching the puppy its name.
"Try this." Nick handed her a few of the savory meat-smelling treats the pet shop owner had sold them along with enough stuff to fill the hatch of the Xterra and run up his Visa bill.
Waving the snack Carrie tried again. "Binda!"
The puppy came bounding over tripping on its big sloppy feet.
"Good girl." Carrie scooped her up and fed her the snack.
"That reminds me." Nick patted his belly. "I'm starving.
Holding up a dog treat Carrie sweetly said, "Nicky."
"I'll come running any time you call me, Darlin'. You don't need the liver bite to bribe me." Easing himself onto the floor he snuggled with his family. "You still feeling cursed?"
"Yeah…" Glancing up she whispered, "But if being with you is a curse…then being damned never felt better."
"That's the same way I feel about you, Sweetheart." Brushing his lips over Carrie's, Nick jokingly asked, "Do you think it's wrong to smooch in front of the pooch?"
"She needs to know that mommy and daddy are happy."
"That we are." Slipping his hand behind Carrie's head Nick initiated a slow, drugging kiss.
And while her cursed 'mom and dad' were enjoying their smooch, the pooch jumped off Carrie's lap and blessed the living room rug.
The foul aroma filling the air finally reached Carrie's nose. "Oh!"
They tracked the stench to a steamy pile a foot away.
Pulling himself up Nick laughed, "Yeah…here's where the fun really begins…."
The Blakes
4:10 p.m.
When Wendy answered the door she was surprised to see Lindsay on the steps holding a plate of brownies.
"Hi, Mrs. Blake." Suddenly Lindsay's pulsed raced and her mouth and brain failed to connect. "I…um…well…actually…my Mom and I…and Warrick…we felt bad that Sean got hurt so…I…we…made him some brownies…which I'm sure won't be as good as yours but…"
"Come in, Sweetie." She waved her through the door. "Sean's on the couch reading. I'm sure he'll be thrilled about the brownies…and your visit."
"Really?" Recognizing that she sounded too excited, Lindsay quickly downplayed her enthusiasm. "It's not a big deal, I made the brownies from a box."
"Sean…" Wendy saw her son was cowering behind a magazine. "You have a special visitor bearing yummy treats."
Lindsay rolled her eyes at Betty Crocker's cheesy words. "My mom made me bring these over," she coolly informed him.
Unfortunately Lindsay's meddling mother appeared in the open doorway and much to her horror said, "Sorry I'm late…did you give him the brownies you insisted on making him, Linds?" Looking over at Wendy she went on, "She was looking recipes up on the Internet for an hour to find a good one and then we had to go to two stores to find the right ingredients."
In that moment, while Sean stared at her like a Dork in love, Lindsay was certain she'd be the first child of a CSI to commit murder. "Enjoy the brownies, Geek." She tossed the plate on the coffee table and bolted. "I hope your face doesn't heal too freaky."
With her daughter's dust trail was still fresh and Sean's grin goofier than ever, Catherine sighed, "Yep…it's official...it only gets worse from here…they're crazy about each other."
Author's Notes:
I hope you enjoyed the chapter and the move from the tense beginning to the lighter ending.
Thanks for the reviews, I've used the auto reply function to respond. :-)
Next Chapter Posting: Monday
Important Note: The next chapter (39) will be the last chapter of Book 1. It is Sunday in the story, and Book 2 will pick up on 'Wednesday' with some changes at the Lab. the gang getting ready for GT's wedding and more. During Book 2 there will be some jumps in time, it won't go day by day like Book 1 did. There will be a break until December 26th for the hectic holiday season (Among other things I'm coordinating a huge children's charity project – very B-PAC! LOL Nick and Sara would approve) and KJT and I need to gain at least a 3 chapter lead again. I hope you'll continue the journey with Book 2!
Thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts!
Maggs