Taylor could sense herself waking up, but she had no desire to open her eyes. Instead, she snuggled back into Flack’s arms, and willed herself back to sleep. As if knowing what she was thinking, Flack reached behind them, grabbed at the covers and pulled them up around their naked forms, wrapping his arm around her.
Sleep wouldn’t come, and Taylor opened her eyes, watching a glimmer of sun make its way through the curtains and play with the ruby in her engagement ring. She teased rainbows off it before finally pulling it up to her to admire it.
"About time."
Taylor jumped and then glared at her faux blonde friend. "I swear to God, when we finally redecorate this room, I will be putting salt in the wallpaper paste, and the paint – and that’s after I’ve put up a fake wall and lined the middle with salt."
"Nicely diverted," Maddy grinned. "And you wouldn’t do that. You love me too much."
"Not when my fiancé isn’t wearing clothes, I don’t. Perve," she muttered under her breath. Taylor inhaled deeply and then gave Maddy a smile. "Alright, my dear Madeline. What can I do for you?"
Maddy looked completely confused. "Who are you, and what have you done with Taylor?"
Taylor shrugged. "Did you see me yesterday? I was a superhero. I took on the Irish Mob, and won! If I can do that, I can do anything!"
"I’ll ask you that again tomorrow," Maddy told her. "See if you still feel the same then."
"Try it," Taylor continued to grin. "Because I am a rockstar."
"You’re a doofas," Maddy corrected her.
"Why are you here again?" Taylor asked.
"Can’t a girl visit her BFF?"
"What the hell is a BFF?" Taylor asked, frowning.
Maddy laughed. "When did you get old? Spend some time with Riley." And then she disappeared.
"Best friend forever," Flack yawned.
Taylor rolled over and stared at him in amazement.
"What?" he asked her, bringing his arm up under the pillow.
"I don’t know what surprises me more?" Taylor admitted. "The fact you know what BFF is, or that you knew Maddy was there?"
"I’m getting good at knowing when ghosts are around," Flack told her. He yawned again. "How are your feet?"
Before they had left the precinct the day before, Flack had insisted that the paramedics check Taylor’s feet over. There were a couple of cuts and scrapes, but aside from a twisted ankle, there was no major damage.
"It’s a little sore, but it’s nothing…" she trailed off as her cell phone started ringing. She gave Flack an apologetic smile and reached over for her phone. It wasn’t a number she recognized, and she gave an excited squeal as she realized who it was. "Dad?"
"Hello Taylor. How are you?"
"I’m great," Taylor told him. Suddenly she frowned. Her dad calling the day after she helped stop the Irish Mob steal back an insane amount of drugs from within a crime lab? Hardly a coincidence. "For the record, I didn’t intentionally go into that building with the intention of getting involved. I was already there-"
"What are you talking about?"
Taylor frowned. "You’re not calling about the incident in the crime lab?"
"Incident?" he repeated.
"Hi Dad, how are you?" Taylor quickly asked.
"Well, I was doing fine until thirty seconds ago," he told her. "However, I am not going to press this over the phone, and you can tell me the story in person. I’m back on home soil for Fleet Week."
Taylor let out another excited squeal, and then gave Flack an apologetic look as he winced. "But Fleet Week is in the fall."
"Not in LA," Captain Turner corrected her. "I want you and Don to fly out here. I haven’t really had the chance to vet your fiancé properly."
Taylor rolled onto her back and closed her eyes. "Dad, it’s not just me and Don. There’s Riley too."
She could hear her father take a deep breath down the phone. "Taylor, when I left you, you had just awoken from that coma, and there was no mention of you being pregnant. Now, I’m fairly certain things haven’t changed since I’ve been at sea-"
"Dad!" Taylor cut him off before he could actually say something she never wanted to hear come out of either parent’s mouth. "We’re fostering. Riley is a foster child. She’s nearly sixteen. And then there’s Chase."
"Do I want to know?" her father asked warily.
"He’s one of Riley’s friends," Taylor explained. "And when I have my way, I will also be fostering him too."
There was a long pause. "Bring them both with you."
"We can’t afford it," Taylor admitted after doing the math in her head. "I don’t think I could afford to just fly myself out there."
"Tay?" Flack whispered.
Taylor hurriedly covered the mouthpiece. "Don, four of us flying to the other side of the country? That’s two grand in air fare alone. I’ve been studying our accounts and trust me, it’s not going to happen."
"Taylor?"
“Sorry Dad," Taylor muttered, bringing the phone back to her ear.
Captain Turner released another weary sigh. There was no doubt in his mind that his daughter was one of the main reasons he had gone grey prematurely. "Taylor, I will arrange for four tickets to be at JFK for you to pick up tomorrow. I will send you a text message with the details later. See you tomorrow."
Taylor said her goodbyes and hung up.
"Well?" Flack asked her.
"You know how last night you said that blowing up the crime lab did you a favour and you were looking forward to a nice long weekend?"
"Yes," he said, drawing out the word.
Taylor smiled at him.
Sleep wouldn’t come, and Taylor opened her eyes, watching a glimmer of sun make its way through the curtains and play with the ruby in her engagement ring. She teased rainbows off it before finally pulling it up to her to admire it.
"About time."
Taylor jumped and then glared at her faux blonde friend. "I swear to God, when we finally redecorate this room, I will be putting salt in the wallpaper paste, and the paint – and that’s after I’ve put up a fake wall and lined the middle with salt."
"Nicely diverted," Maddy grinned. "And you wouldn’t do that. You love me too much."
"Not when my fiancé isn’t wearing clothes, I don’t. Perve," she muttered under her breath. Taylor inhaled deeply and then gave Maddy a smile. "Alright, my dear Madeline. What can I do for you?"
Maddy looked completely confused. "Who are you, and what have you done with Taylor?"
Taylor shrugged. "Did you see me yesterday? I was a superhero. I took on the Irish Mob, and won! If I can do that, I can do anything!"
"I’ll ask you that again tomorrow," Maddy told her. "See if you still feel the same then."
"Try it," Taylor continued to grin. "Because I am a rockstar."
"You’re a doofas," Maddy corrected her.
"Why are you here again?" Taylor asked.
"Can’t a girl visit her BFF?"
"What the hell is a BFF?" Taylor asked, frowning.
Maddy laughed. "When did you get old? Spend some time with Riley." And then she disappeared.
"Best friend forever," Flack yawned.
Taylor rolled over and stared at him in amazement.
"What?" he asked her, bringing his arm up under the pillow.
"I don’t know what surprises me more?" Taylor admitted. "The fact you know what BFF is, or that you knew Maddy was there?"
"I’m getting good at knowing when ghosts are around," Flack told her. He yawned again. "How are your feet?"
Before they had left the precinct the day before, Flack had insisted that the paramedics check Taylor’s feet over. There were a couple of cuts and scrapes, but aside from a twisted ankle, there was no major damage.
"It’s a little sore, but it’s nothing…" she trailed off as her cell phone started ringing. She gave Flack an apologetic smile and reached over for her phone. It wasn’t a number she recognized, and she gave an excited squeal as she realized who it was. "Dad?"
"Hello Taylor. How are you?"
"I’m great," Taylor told him. Suddenly she frowned. Her dad calling the day after she helped stop the Irish Mob steal back an insane amount of drugs from within a crime lab? Hardly a coincidence. "For the record, I didn’t intentionally go into that building with the intention of getting involved. I was already there-"
"What are you talking about?"
Taylor frowned. "You’re not calling about the incident in the crime lab?"
"Incident?" he repeated.
"Hi Dad, how are you?" Taylor quickly asked.
"Well, I was doing fine until thirty seconds ago," he told her. "However, I am not going to press this over the phone, and you can tell me the story in person. I’m back on home soil for Fleet Week."
Taylor let out another excited squeal, and then gave Flack an apologetic look as he winced. "But Fleet Week is in the fall."
"Not in LA," Captain Turner corrected her. "I want you and Don to fly out here. I haven’t really had the chance to vet your fiancé properly."
Taylor rolled onto her back and closed her eyes. "Dad, it’s not just me and Don. There’s Riley too."
She could hear her father take a deep breath down the phone. "Taylor, when I left you, you had just awoken from that coma, and there was no mention of you being pregnant. Now, I’m fairly certain things haven’t changed since I’ve been at sea-"
"Dad!" Taylor cut him off before he could actually say something she never wanted to hear come out of either parent’s mouth. "We’re fostering. Riley is a foster child. She’s nearly sixteen. And then there’s Chase."
"Do I want to know?" her father asked warily.
"He’s one of Riley’s friends," Taylor explained. "And when I have my way, I will also be fostering him too."
There was a long pause. "Bring them both with you."
"We can’t afford it," Taylor admitted after doing the math in her head. "I don’t think I could afford to just fly myself out there."
"Tay?" Flack whispered.
Taylor hurriedly covered the mouthpiece. "Don, four of us flying to the other side of the country? That’s two grand in air fare alone. I’ve been studying our accounts and trust me, it’s not going to happen."
"Taylor?"
“Sorry Dad," Taylor muttered, bringing the phone back to her ear.
Captain Turner released another weary sigh. There was no doubt in his mind that his daughter was one of the main reasons he had gone grey prematurely. "Taylor, I will arrange for four tickets to be at JFK for you to pick up tomorrow. I will send you a text message with the details later. See you tomorrow."
Taylor said her goodbyes and hung up.
"Well?" Flack asked her.
"You know how last night you said that blowing up the crime lab did you a favour and you were looking forward to a nice long weekend?"
"Yes," he said, drawing out the word.
Taylor smiled at him.
* * *
Riley was sat on the sofa, watching Taylor pace up and down in front of the fire place. "You’re going to wear your carpet out."
Taylor barely heard her, treading the familiar path back and forth. She had wanted to go with Flack to the motel Chase lived at, but had reluctantly agreed that it might not be the best of ideas. Instead, she was stuck at home, waiting for Flack to plead their case. It was only a weekend. Surely he could come for a few days? It wasn’t like he was paying.
Finally, after what seemed like hours later, Taylor could hear the keys in the door. By this time, Riley, who had yet to be told anything was curious as to who was walking through it. "What’s going on?" she asked as she saw Chase, grinning like an idiot.
"Oh, thank God," Taylor mumbled, sitting down heavily in the chair. Her heart had been beating a million miles a minute at the thought of Flack retuning without the teen, and then knowing he would be left on the other side of the country where they couldn’t help if they needed to. As the relief flooded her, Taylor knew for certain that when they got back from LA, she was going to do everything in her power to get that boy living in the house with them.
"We’re going to Los Angeles," Flack told them when he realized Taylor wasn’t going to.
Riley’s mouth hit the floor as Chase leapt over at her, hugging her excitedly.
"The flights are early," Flack continued. “So we’re going to expect you in bed by the time we get back from the hospital."
“Separate beds," Taylor added.
"Ew!" Riley exclaimed, as Chase pulled a face.
"Chase, you’re in Cordelia’s room."
After making sure that the two teenagers were occupied with a DVD and threats of “you’d best be in bed when we get back or you’re not getting on that plane with us”, Taylor and Flack headed out the door for the subway.
They arrived at the hospital just in time for visiting hours and made their way upstairs. “Surprise," Taylor called softly, knocking at Adam’s door.
He was lying in the bed, all bandaged up, watching a shark documentary on the television, but he managed a smile when he saw his visitors. "Taylor? Flack?"
"Hey little lab rat," Flack greeted him. "How ya doin”?"
"I’ve been better," he admitted.
"How’s your hand?" Taylor asked. Flack had filled her in on what had happened in the warehouse.
"Better than Danny’s. I don’t see how he missed out on a night in hospital," Adam grumbled.
"Danny didn’t have cracked ribs," Flack told him.
"You don’t look like you’re staying here long anyway," Taylor pointed out. He wasn’t wearing one of the hospital night gowns, but was instead, lying on the covers wearing a pair of jeans and his I think, therefore iMac t-shirt.
"I’m being released," Adam told her.
"Have you got somewhere to stay?" Taylor asked him. "You shouldn’t be alone. You can come back with us," she offered, without thinking about it.
"I’m good," Adam replied. "Thanks though." He frowned and turned the television off. "I heard I have to thank you for a week off work anyway."
Taylor frowned. "A week? You should be off for longer with cracked ribs. And how am I responsible?"
Flack laughed. "I think he means how you kinda helped blow up the lab?"
Adam nodded. "I know a few guys who will happily buy you a drink or two for that."
"What? Not you?" Taylor pouted.
"I actually like working there," Adam admitted, looking a little sheepish.
“So what are you going to do to occupy yourself?" Flack asked.
"Babysit," Stella announced from the doorway, Liam sleeping in a baby carrier in her hands.
"You’re staying with Stella?" Taylor blurted out.
Stella quirked an eyebrow at her. "Gee, sound appalled."
Taylor’s mouth dropped open. "No!" she exclaimed. "I didn’t mean it like that."
"The doctor wouldn’t release me unless I had someone to stay with," Adam muttered.
“So he called me," Stella told them, beaming. She turned to Flack and cocked her head. "Are you really going to let the new mother stand in the doorway all night?"
Flack was on his feet in a shot, offering his chair to her, and Stella sank into it, settling Liam on the floor next to her.
"Now," said Stella, settling back into the chair. "Before we leave this hospital, I want to hear how you managed to blow the crime lab up."
Chapter 238 | Contents | Chapter 240 |
Originally Posted: 17/01/2011