Chapter Sixteen

Grace stood in the shower, not moving. After Jessie called, Eli had jumped off the bed, threw on some clothes and left. Grace wanted to give him some time before she went to the hospital. A shower had seemed like a good idea but, as she washed the last traces of Eli away, she felt numb.

Grace - "I feel so helpless..."

Rick had been in a bad car accident and was in surgery. The entire family was at the hospital, waiting to see how serious his injuries were. Jessie had tried calling both Eli and Grace's cell phones, but they had both left them in the Jeep. That's when Jessie decided to try Grace's home number. She was frantic as she described the wreckage.

Finally, Grace got out of the shower and dried off. She quickly changed into a denim skirt and button down blouse. Her hair was a mess from her time spent with Eli, so she pulled a brush through it. It would have to do. She grabbed her car keys and briskly left.

When she reached the waiting room, her Mom stood up and hugged her, crying into her shoulder. Grace just stood, holding up her mother and stroking her hair. She looked around and saw Jessie crying and Katie comforting her. Zoe sat, playing with Drew. Karen and Henry sat together. And in the corner, Eli was standing with his arms crossed and his eyes blood shot. He didn't even look up when she came in to the room.

"Is he still in surgery?" she asked her Mom.

"Yes. They've had some... complications. He has needed a blood transfusion and the doctors just had me sign a form because they may need to perform an amputation on his leg," her mother began sobbing again. Grace just held her, letting her mother weep, and trying to make sense of this all. Grace slowly pulled them towards the empty love seat in the waiting room and made her mother sit down.

"Is there anything I can get you, Mom? Coffee or some food?" she asked. Her mother just shook her head.

Drew's head popped up and said, "I'm hungry, Gracie!" Drew had no idea the extent of the injuries that had happened to his daddy, just that he needed surgery to fix his body. Grace nodded and stood up, clutching the little boy's hand.

"Does anyone else need anything from the cafeteria? Jessie? Eli?" she asked. Finally, Eli's head snapped up and he looked at her, scowling. He curtly shook his head, then lowered his eyes to the floor again.

"Could you get me a water, Grace?" Jessie asked.

Grace bought Drew chicken fingers and applesauce. She sat quietly, watching her baby brother eat his meal, unaware of what was happening around him. Meanwhile, Grace's mind was racing on Rick, her Mom, Jessie, and especially Eli.

She couldn't relate to the pain he was feeling, but she also couldn't shake the feeling that Eli was upset with her. The scowl that he had shot her way was not one you ordinarily give to your lover. It's one you give to your annoying sister. Grace furrowed her eyebrows, hoping that Eli was going to be fine.

Once Drew was finished, they returned to the waiting room. While Grace handed Jessie a bottle of water, she noticed that someone was missing. "Where is Eli?" she asked.

"He said he needed a walk," Jessie responded. "I wish he had someone here to help him..." she said, looking into Katie's eyes.

Grace swallowed and said, "I'll try and find him to see if he needs to talk."

Exploring the hospital, the first place she checked was the smoking area. Maybe Eli had reverted back to his old ways in times of stress? She was very thankful when she realized he wasn't there. He also wasn't in the gift shop, the coffee shop, or in the cafeteria.

Finally, she wondered into the chapel where she found Eli, sitting alone in the front pew, crying. She moved down the pew and sat beside him, bringing her arms around him. Eli clutched Grace, holding her in his arms. She pulled her hand through his hair, and waited for him.

Eli calmed down and looked into her eyes. "Grace, I feel so helpless. And guilty. We were doing that while my Dad was hurting." Eli pulled away.

"Eli, we did not cause this on your father. It isn't your fault. It isn't my fault. You can't blame yourself or me," she responded, quietly.

Eli leaned in and looked into her eyes. "I know. I'm sorry, Grace. I just don't know what to do."

Grace threw her arms around him, clutching him into her chest. Eli looked up and kissed her. It was a soft, tender kiss, but it melted her heart. He stopped shaking and calmed down.

"Thank you, Grace. You mean everything to me..." he said, softly.

She grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. "Come on, let's go back and see what they found out."

Before they stood up, Eli whispered softly, "It's going to hide us to them but I think it's what's best right now."

Grace nodded. "I agree. We will let them know when the time is right. For now, we have to be there for our family."

Eli, staring at the camera without any emotion - "Our family."

When they returned to the waiting room, the mood had changed. Lily threw her arms around Grace and Jessie hugged Eli saying, "He's fine! They didn't have to amputate his leg. He lost some blood and they are worried that there may be some internal bleeding, but he's doing better than they expected. We're going to be able to visit him in 30 minutes!"

They spent the next thirty minutes talking as a group. The somber mood had gone away and everyone seemed hopeful. Before Lily, Eli, and Jessie left to visit Rick, Grace offered to take Drew back home. Lily was thankful because she didn't want the little boy to see his father in that condition right now. Zoe asked if she could go home, too. Lily promised if anything happened, she would call.

Grace got to her childhood home and unlocked the door. Not much had changed since she had moved out except, for once, it didn't feel overly crowded. Zoe bounced up to her bedroom immediately, but Drew just stood at the stairs, looking around.

"Is Daddy going to come home?" he asked her with big, sad eyes. The same eyes as Eli.

Grace bent down and hugged her brother. "Yes, the doctors think he's going to be fine."

Drew nodded, easily accepting her response. Grace helped him take a bath and tucked him into bed. This had been a long day for the little boy and he looked exhausted.

Grace went downstairs and sat on the sofa. She flipped through the television channels but couldn't keep her mind on anything. At last, she turned the TV off and decided to go out to the garage.

The room still smelled like Eli. She sat down at the empty bed and looked around. Gone were the band posters and pin-ups of models. Instead, Eli had hung his college diploma and some motivational posters. On his dresser were framed pictures and Grace was surprised when one of her and him was front and center, sitting an inch farther out than the others. She smiled, thinking that's the picture Eli used to fall asleep to. Back when he didn't think anything would ever happen between them.

Finally, she stood up and returned to the big house. She put on some water and waited at the breakfast bar for it to boil. The back door opened and in walked Eli, Jessie, and Katie. Grace stood up and before she could do anything, Eli was embracing her. She held him before letting go and looking at him.

"She knows," was his response, pointing to Jessie.

Jessie smiled and hugged her step-sister. She didn't look upset. No, she actually had a big smile on her face. "I knew something was different when you went off to find him. You two have only been roommates for two days so I knew that wasn't the reason." She took the kettle off the stove and winked at Grace before saying, "Thanks, I could use some tea."

Grace was speechless. After saying that now wasn't a good time to mention their new relationship with anyone, Eli had spilled the beans to Jessie and Katie. But, they were acting like it was no big deal. Like they were... happy for Grace and Eli.

Jessie turned and looked at Grace, reading her face. "He told me awhile ago how he felt about you and I always listened. I am happy for you guys." She looked deeply into Grace's eyes before she hugged her again. "Seriously!"

Grace sat down and watched Eli and Katie raid the refrigerator. "How is Rick?" she finally asked.

"He looks awful," Jessie responded, nonchalantly. "But he's going to be fine. He's just really bruised, swollen, and scraped up. His leg is broken, but it should mend. He's going to be fine. Your mom is going to spend the night at the hospital with him, though."

Grace looked up at the ceiling. "I should stay here and watch Drew."

Jessie shook her head, holding Katie's hand. "We're going to. You and Eli go home." She winked at her brother. "I think you could use some... private time!" she giggled.

Before they left, Eli and Grace hugged Jessie and Katie again. Grace followed Eli's Jeep back downtown, her heart hammering.

Grace - "What do we do now?"

Finally, they pulled in to the garage. Eli was opening her door before she had the chance to.

"I guess we didn't get to finish off our date," he said, smiling at her. He handed her the cell phone she had left in his Jeep earlier.

Grace grabbed his hand as they took the elevator up to the third floor. "What date we did have, I enjoyed." She smiled back at him.

Eli unlocked the apartment and turned on the lights. Grace checked her cell messages and found that Jessie had called her six times, frantically. Eli had excused himself and Grace could hear the water running in the shower.

Grace, sits up in her chair, giving a smirk - "I have an idea..."

She peeled out of her clothes and quietly opened the bathroom door. Eli hadn't suspected her because he didn't react at all. Until she climbed into the shower and put her hands behind his waist, her breasts pushing into his back.

Eli spun around and looked at her. "I was hoping you would do this," he grinned before he started kissing her and caressing her body.

They stayed in the shower, kissing until Grace pulled away and got down on her knees. She looked directly into Eli's eyes before she started sucking on his long, hard shaft. Eli's entire body shuddered as he braced himself on the shower walls. "Oh Grace..."

She continues her steady rhythm until he shuddered violently and whispered, "Grace... I'm going to..." Instead of pulling her mouth away, she continued her rhythm until her mouth filled with the warm, salty liquid. She swallowed and then looked up at Eli, who looked tired and worn out.

"The water's getting cold. I think it's time for bed," he said.

They climbed out of the shower and dried off with towels. They stood beside each other as they brushed their teeth. Grace quickly towel dried her hair as Eli watched her ample breasts bouncing during the entire act.

"Stop staring, E!" she giggled.

Then finally, Grace left him in the bathroom and went into her bedroom where she crawled under the covers without getting dressed.

She heard the exhaust fan from the bathroom turn off and was suddenly lying in the darkness as Eli turned off all of the lights in the apartment. Then, she heard the soft pads of his feet as he came into her bedroom and crawled into bed beside her. His warm body pressed up against hers.

"Good night, Grace," he whispered as he gave her a tender kiss.

"Goodnight, Eli," she whispered in return.

Except neither fell asleep because Eli's hand began touching Grace's bare skin. She felt herself getting wet with excitement and Eli took that opportunity to slip his fingers inside. His fingers circled around, touching and exploring. Grace began to breathe harder and harder until finally, she reached her orgasm, moaning, "Eli... Eli..." softly.

They kissed one last time before they fell asleep in each other's arms.