Road Doc
Chapter 31
“Howie?” Theresa said over the phone.
“No. This is Nick.”
“Oh. I guess I dialed the wrong room number.”
“Okay. Umm....talk to you later then.” Nick said quietly.
“Nick? You okay?” Theresa asked, sensing something was wrong.
“Yeah....well....no. I don’t know. I just feel like shit.”
“What’s wrong, do you need me to come see you?” Theresa asked.
“No. I’m fine. I just still hurt like hell. My ribs aren’t ever going to stop hurting I don’t think” Nick said.
“Pain meds aren’t helping?”
Nick didn’t answer.
“Nick?”
Still no answer.
“Hello??”
“I....uh....I lost them again” Nick finally said.
“Nick, you have to be more careful with those” Theresa said, frustrated.
“I have been....I mean, I kept them in the same pocket of my bag and made sure that I didn’t leave them laying around anywhere.” Nick said, being totally honest with her.
Theresa thought for a moment, her mind immediately suspecting Kevin.
“Okay, I’m going to get one more bottle for you, but this time when you need one you come to me. I’ll keep them so they don’t get lost, okay?”
Nick agreed and they both hung up.
Theresa dialed Howie’s room number again.
“Hello?” a sleepy voice answered.
“Howie?”
“Who’s calling?”
“It’s me, Theresa”
“Oh, hi!” Howie replied, suddenly sounding very awake.
“Did I wake you?” Theresa asked.
“No. Not at all. I was just....well....I was just taking a nap” Howie said, laughing.
“It’s good to hear you laugh” she said.
“It’s good to hear your voice” he replied.
“Listen, this is out last night in Vegas and I was thinking....”
“After the show? Will you meet me?” Howie said, interrupting Theresa.
Theresa laughed.
“Sure. Name the place and I’ll be there” she said, smiling.
“I’ll let you know during the show, okay?” Howie said, glad that she had made the first move at trying again.
“Sounds good, Howie”
Theresa hung up the phone and laid back on her bed. She knew that what had happened between them in the oasis suite had been an aftershock of AJ raping her, that it truly had nothing to do with Howie. Howie had simply been an unwilling participant in the effects of her trauma. She couldn’t tell him exactly why she had fled from him that night, although she was certain that he knew full well what was going on.
She looked at the clock and decided she had plenty of time to take a nap herself. She was going to need her rest as she planned to confront Kevin about stealing Nick’s pain medication as soon as she saw him at the venue that night. As she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep she could have sworn she heard raised voices beyond the walls of her room. It sounded as if a couple were fighting. She put it out of her mind, content in knowing that what she had with Howie, or rather what she hoped she would have with him was going to be incredible.
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