The Things I Do for You
Page 66
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“I already told them I wouldn’t do that.”
Raina was suddenly really glad that she’d never agreed to allow them to be filmed. Not only would some of the most embarrassing moments of her life have been captured on film, but she’d then have to explain to the network that she was no longer speaking to her husband, so he wasn’t available to shoot any more scenes.
“They’re going to release the six episodes they already bought as a miniseries about the world of modeling. But if you want it to be a reality series with a full season, they need to follow you around.”
“I understand. All the reality shows on now are like that. I can’t understand why they’re so popular. Watching people acting trashy just doesn’t seem that entertaining to me. But clearly someone likes it.” Raina finished as much of the broth as possible and then took tiny bites of the toast until it was all gone. She still felt mildly queasy when she ate, but the medication the doctor had prescribed was helping and she was able to keep it all down.
Sam took her now-empty tray and set it on the coffee table. “Put your feet up,” he ordered. He waited until she obeyed and then retucked her throw blanket around her legs.
“I didn’t bring it up to stress you out. You aren’t supposed to be thinking about work, remember? Your only job is to take care of yourself and relax.”
Raina watched him leave and dropped her head back down on the cushions of the couch. Sam meant well but he didn’t have a clue.
How was she supposed to relax when she kept looking for the face that wasn’t there?
CHAPTER TWENTY
NICK REALLY DIDN’T feel like playing cards. He felt like drinking a fifth of scotch and then spending some quality time viewing the backs of his eyelids. The only thing keeping him from doing that was the knowledge that Raina could have a reversal in her condition at any moment. He’d made sure Ridley had his cell phone number so she could call him right away if anything changed.
Since oblivion wasn’t an option, he knew he needed to spend some time with his brothers. Otherwise they’d end up staging some kind of intervention and drag him out anyway.
“How are things going up in D.C.?” he asked Elliot. Maybe if he asked everyone else lots of questions, he could avoid thinking about the fact that Raina was only a street away.
“Good. We’re growing steadily. Thanks for that tax analysis you did for me, by the way.”
Nick grunted. He’d been more than happy to take on extra work lately. All the work he hadn’t had time for before was a welcome diversion now that he had nowhere to rush to each evening. He was completely caught up and looking for things to do now.
Ridley walked in from the kitchen carrying a tray of cold cuts, cheese, and fruit. Ever since they’d started having poker night at Jackson’s house, the quality of the food had gone up considerably. He thought of Raina and her deformed monster muffins. He’d never thought he could miss bad cooking so much.
He sighed. So much for not thinking about her.
“Would you like anything, Nick?”
He looked up from his cards to see Ridley offering him the platter. She’d been calling to give him daily progress reports, but it was always done in a terse voice. She also hung up on him as soon as she was done.
“I thought you were mad at me.”
“I am. But that doesn’t mean you need to starve,” Ridley replied.
The others looked up, surprised she’d mentioned it. They’d all been dancing around the topic all night. They’d asked him about work and talked about sports, but avoided all mention of his wife or his impending fatherhood. He should have counted on Ridley for getting right to the point.
Especially when she’d made no secret of the fact that she didn’t think staying away from Raina was a good idea.
“I’m not really mad at you, Nick. But I can’t pretend I’m not disappointed.”
Nick cringed. Her disappointment hurt more than if she’d yelled at him.
“How was she today?” Since they were already talking about it, he might as well get his daily update. The fact that his brothers were hanging on their every word didn’t even matter. There were no secrets in this family anyway.
It was annoying at times, the way they all knew each other’s business, but he was also glad for it. His parents had been calling and visiting Raina ever since she left the hospital and he’d even heard that Bennett had dropped by to bring her the DVD box set of some show they both enjoyed. It was reassuring to know that no matter what, his family considered her one of theirs.
He wanted that for her whether she forgave him or not.
“Well, she was able to keep her pill down. So that was a win. She’s pissed that Sam won’t give her back her cell phone. I told him to keep her away from electronics so she won’t work. But I’m also kind of paying her back for stealing my phone when I was in the hospital. She even had my cell phone number changed so Jackson couldn’t call me. Talk about overbearing.”
Nick smiled, remembering. “That’s my girl.”
“Is she your girl? Because you’re not acting like it.” Ridley put the platter down on the side table against the wall.
“She thinks I don’t love her. She thinks I was just using her. I’m not sure how to prove that love exists to someone who doesn’t believe in it. I tried that already and you saw what happened.”
He dropped his cards on the table. There was no point playing a game of chance when he knew from experience that Lady Luck was definitely not on his side.
Raina was suddenly really glad that she’d never agreed to allow them to be filmed. Not only would some of the most embarrassing moments of her life have been captured on film, but she’d then have to explain to the network that she was no longer speaking to her husband, so he wasn’t available to shoot any more scenes.
“They’re going to release the six episodes they already bought as a miniseries about the world of modeling. But if you want it to be a reality series with a full season, they need to follow you around.”
“I understand. All the reality shows on now are like that. I can’t understand why they’re so popular. Watching people acting trashy just doesn’t seem that entertaining to me. But clearly someone likes it.” Raina finished as much of the broth as possible and then took tiny bites of the toast until it was all gone. She still felt mildly queasy when she ate, but the medication the doctor had prescribed was helping and she was able to keep it all down.
Sam took her now-empty tray and set it on the coffee table. “Put your feet up,” he ordered. He waited until she obeyed and then retucked her throw blanket around her legs.
“I didn’t bring it up to stress you out. You aren’t supposed to be thinking about work, remember? Your only job is to take care of yourself and relax.”
Raina watched him leave and dropped her head back down on the cushions of the couch. Sam meant well but he didn’t have a clue.
How was she supposed to relax when she kept looking for the face that wasn’t there?
CHAPTER TWENTY
NICK REALLY DIDN’T feel like playing cards. He felt like drinking a fifth of scotch and then spending some quality time viewing the backs of his eyelids. The only thing keeping him from doing that was the knowledge that Raina could have a reversal in her condition at any moment. He’d made sure Ridley had his cell phone number so she could call him right away if anything changed.
Since oblivion wasn’t an option, he knew he needed to spend some time with his brothers. Otherwise they’d end up staging some kind of intervention and drag him out anyway.
“How are things going up in D.C.?” he asked Elliot. Maybe if he asked everyone else lots of questions, he could avoid thinking about the fact that Raina was only a street away.
“Good. We’re growing steadily. Thanks for that tax analysis you did for me, by the way.”
Nick grunted. He’d been more than happy to take on extra work lately. All the work he hadn’t had time for before was a welcome diversion now that he had nowhere to rush to each evening. He was completely caught up and looking for things to do now.
Ridley walked in from the kitchen carrying a tray of cold cuts, cheese, and fruit. Ever since they’d started having poker night at Jackson’s house, the quality of the food had gone up considerably. He thought of Raina and her deformed monster muffins. He’d never thought he could miss bad cooking so much.
He sighed. So much for not thinking about her.
“Would you like anything, Nick?”
He looked up from his cards to see Ridley offering him the platter. She’d been calling to give him daily progress reports, but it was always done in a terse voice. She also hung up on him as soon as she was done.
“I thought you were mad at me.”
“I am. But that doesn’t mean you need to starve,” Ridley replied.
The others looked up, surprised she’d mentioned it. They’d all been dancing around the topic all night. They’d asked him about work and talked about sports, but avoided all mention of his wife or his impending fatherhood. He should have counted on Ridley for getting right to the point.
Especially when she’d made no secret of the fact that she didn’t think staying away from Raina was a good idea.
“I’m not really mad at you, Nick. But I can’t pretend I’m not disappointed.”
Nick cringed. Her disappointment hurt more than if she’d yelled at him.
“How was she today?” Since they were already talking about it, he might as well get his daily update. The fact that his brothers were hanging on their every word didn’t even matter. There were no secrets in this family anyway.
It was annoying at times, the way they all knew each other’s business, but he was also glad for it. His parents had been calling and visiting Raina ever since she left the hospital and he’d even heard that Bennett had dropped by to bring her the DVD box set of some show they both enjoyed. It was reassuring to know that no matter what, his family considered her one of theirs.
He wanted that for her whether she forgave him or not.
“Well, she was able to keep her pill down. So that was a win. She’s pissed that Sam won’t give her back her cell phone. I told him to keep her away from electronics so she won’t work. But I’m also kind of paying her back for stealing my phone when I was in the hospital. She even had my cell phone number changed so Jackson couldn’t call me. Talk about overbearing.”
Nick smiled, remembering. “That’s my girl.”
“Is she your girl? Because you’re not acting like it.” Ridley put the platter down on the side table against the wall.
“She thinks I don’t love her. She thinks I was just using her. I’m not sure how to prove that love exists to someone who doesn’t believe in it. I tried that already and you saw what happened.”
He dropped his cards on the table. There was no point playing a game of chance when he knew from experience that Lady Luck was definitely not on his side.
