It Started With A House: Lizzie. Book 1 (The Westport Mysteries) (15 page)

“Anything new
happening at the office?” I asked, not wanting to be too direct. “Any new
gossip?”

“Really, you
just can’t let that one go, can you?” I could feel the tension in Scott start
to return.

“I was only
interested. It’s a bit lonely out in the suburbs.” I smiled to trying to get
him to relax again.

“Nobody new is
sleeping with each other, the last I heard. Not that I actually listen to that
rubbish.”

“It’s not
rubbish, Scott. Office affairs actually do happen.” I looked at him to see if
there was any indication of guilt. None. I must have been imagining it. My
imagination had been really busy lately.

“You know,
Elizabeth, there are a few things we need to talk about.”

Uh-oh. That
didn’t sound promising. I turned to face him, preparing myself for the worst. What
I didn’t prepare myself for though, was to be pushed to the ground. I’d noticed
a young guy in a hoodie walking behind us for the last few minutes, but as this
is the city, I didn’t think too much of it. However, I thought a lot more of it
when he grabbed my bag from my shoulder, pushed me and ran in the opposite
direction as fast as he could. Trying to keep hold of my bag meant I didn’t get
my hands out in front of me as fast as I should and fell head first to the hard
concrete, banging my head as I landed. I could hear Scott yelling for someone
to stop the bag thief but he didn’t heroically chase the baddie down and save
my bag. Shit, shit and double shit.

Do you have any
idea how inconvenient it is to lose your bag? I did. This wasn’t the first time
I’d lost a bag. Admittedly, the last time it wasn’t actually lost. I had just
misplaced it but only found out after I had cancelled every debit and credit
card I owned, replaced my license and had the huge expense of a new bag, wallet
and phone. Doing a quick check, I realized I wasn’t bleeding, so taking Scott’s
offer to help me up, I got back on my feet.

“Well, that was
a good way to ruin a perfectly good afternoon,” said Scott, not bothering to
check if I was okay. I had actually gathered a bit of a crowd, which I will
admit was a bit embarrassing as I had worn a skirt. It had flipped its way up
to my waist, showing all and sundry my underwear when I fell. Quickly tugging
it back into place, I looked up to see Riley standing in front of me. Of course
he was. It seemed that whenever fate had an opportunity for me to embarrass
myself, it made sure Riley was there to see it.

With him was
another man who, I assumed must be his brother. Groaning inwardly, I smoothed
my skirt down and prayed he had actually missed the sight of my backside in the
air.

“What happened?
Are you okay?” Riley asked, concern flashing in his eyes.

“Someone just
snatched her bag!” said Scott with a frustrated sigh.

What the hell
was he frustrated about? I was the one kissing the concrete. I looked at Riley
and gave a half smile, trying to cover my embarrassment.

“Someone ran up
behind me and grabbed my bag. No biggie,” I said. I was feeling a bit sick in
the stomach and, for a brief second, thought I was going to throw up but
managed to take a few deep breaths and steady myself. “What are you doing
here?” I asked Riley.

“We just had
some lunch on the other side of the park and were walking back to the station,”
said Riley, looking at me concerned. Remembering the man next to him, he
turned. “Lizzie, this is my brother Jared. Jared, this is Lizzie.” Jared held
out his hand to me. “And this is Scott. Her boyfriend,” Riley added, almost as
an afterthought.

Without looking
at Scott, Jared took my hand and held it for a second longer than necessary. I
think he was assessing me. I had already taken in every bit of him and must say,
these Thomas boys come from exceedingly good stock. Jared was slightly shorter
than Riley but not by much. He also had blond hair and a toned body but his
lovely blue eyes were just a shade or two less brilliant. All-in-all he was
gorgeous, just not as gorgeous as Riley.

“You should
come down to the station with us and report what just happened,” he offered.

“Yes, that
sounds like a good idea to me,” said Scott.

“Why?” I asked.
“There’s nothing they’ll do about it.” I swayed on the spot. Riley reached out
and grabbed me around the waist and helped me to a nearby bench.

“Why is the
ground moving?” I whispered. Anything louder than that was starting to hurt my
head. I closed my eyes but it seemed to make the dizziness worse. Riley reached
out and gently lifted my hair back from my face to take a look at the bump
 
forming on my forehead.

“Why don’t you
come back to the office with me?” asked Scott. “You can get your car and I’ll follow
you home.” I’d forgotten to tell Scott I’d got a lift in with Riley.

“I think she
should see a doctor first,” suggested Riley.

“I think so too,”
agreed Jared, who was now kneeling down in front of me and looking quite
concerned. “That’s quite a bump you’ve got there. It’s more than possible
you’ve got a concussion.”

“No, I’m fine.
I just want to go home.” I stood up quickly, ready to go. Uh-oh, shouldn’t have
done that. Quickly turning towards the bin next to me and holding on with two
hands, I threw up. I could hear Scott groan as Riley reached over and pulled
back my hair. Normally throwing up in public would be particularly embarrassing
but right now, I didn’t care.

“I’ll call an
ambulance,” said Jared pulling his phone from his pocket. I was feeling too
sick to argue. All I wanted to do was close my eyes, go to sleep and wake up
when I was feeling better again.

Chapter
Fifteen

I
hate hospitals. I hate the sound of them, I hate the smell of them, I hate the
way you have to wait for hours before anybody sees you, but most of all, I hate
the anxiety I feel when I’m in them. I wanted everybody there to be better and
no longer sick or dying. If a magic genie appeared and granted me three wishes,
my first wish would be that hospitals were unnecessary because nobody got sick
or injured. I know that’s a stupid unrealistic wish, but there you have it. That’s
my wish. My other two wishes involved Riley and a private beach in the
Caribbean, but I didn’t think I had any more chance of that coming true than my
first wish.

I was at
present lying on a bed in emergency, with Riley and Scott sitting beside me,
waiting anxiously. I’d had a scan and a doctor had been to see me a while ago,
had looked in my eyes, taken my blood pressure—I’m not sure now is the
best time to find out the result of that one—had scribbled on a chart and
left, all without telling me a thing. The tension in the cubicle was building. I’d
informed Scott I’d driven in with Riley this morning and he didn’t seem too
happy about it. I’d had tried to explain car-pooling was great for the
environment but since I was slurring my words a little bit, he didn’t seem to
be taking me too seriously. Riley glared at Scott and gave the distinct
impression there was no love lost there. Ignoring them both, I turned my back
and tried to have a nap.

“Hey…Sleepyhead…wake
up.” Riley gently rubbed my shoulder to encourage me to wake up. If he had any
idea, he would be around the other side of the bed facing me, and he’d strip
naked. That would be about the only reason I would want to wake up about now.

Not to be
outdone, Scott came around to the other side of the bed and rubbed my forehead,
attempting to push my hair out of my face.

“Ouch, that
hurts,” I said, pushing his hand away. The nurse had given me something for my
headache but with the noise coming from the cubicle next to mine, it didn’t
seem to be helping. “What the hell is going on over there?” I snapped, rolling
away from Scott.

“Keep your
voice down, Elizabeth,” he scolded.

“Why? They
can’t hear me over all that racket.” My mood wasn’t improving. “And when the
hell is the doctor coming back. I just want to get out of here.”

“There are
other people here that need attending to,” said Scott, attempting to soothe me.
If the pounding in my head subsided a bit, I might have had some sympathy for
the poor woman next to me.

“I think she’s
in labor,” commented Riley.

Hunph.
 
Well okay.
 
Maybe she has a reason then.
 
But they really needed to give her some drugs that would
stop her screeching, though.

“I’m sorry,
she’s just really loud.”

“At least she’s
keeping you awake,” smiled Riley.

“I can think of
better ways to stay awake,” I said, smiling back at him. Oops, did I just say
that out loud? Lucky for me, they have no way of knowing what I’m thinking,
which is good because Scott would be quite shocked. I heard a curtain pull back
and looked up in the hope it would be the doctor coming back to tell me to go
home, but I was disappointed when I realized it was the curtain belonging to
the lady next to me.

“Pastor
Thornton!” she yelled. “Thank goodness you’re here. I don’t know what to do! It
hurts sooo much!”

“There, there. Why
don’t you calm down, Angela, and then I’ll see what I can do,” I heard him say.
His voice was very soothing and if I listened to it for very long, it would
lull me to sleep.

She started to
cry. “I have no idea what is happening. No one will help me,” she sniffed.

“You’re having
a baby Angela,” he said matter-of-factly.. I have no idea what her response was
as it was a mixed up noise of her wailing and speaking.

Oh please,
someone shut her up.

“God is
watching over you, Angela, so let us pray.”

It went silent
for a few minutes and I could visualize them, heads bowed, praying. Gee,
praying really shut her up fast. I know I should have more sympathy, but if you
had been laying here for the past hour listening to her constant wailing—with
a pounding headache I might add—you wouldn’t have much sympathy either,
I’m sure.

Hearing the
curtain pull back, I assumed the doctor had returned for her but as much as I
was straining to listen, all I could hear was her moaning. Well, at least she’d
turned it down a notch from the screaming. After a minute or two the doctor
pulled back her curtain, left her cubicle and entered mine.

“We’ve had a
good look at your scan, Ms. Fuller, and there doesn’t appear to be any major
trauma,” he said, standing at the end of my bed and looking over my chart. “The
injuries to your hand are superficial and will heal nicely if you keep some
antiseptic ointment on it. You do have concussion and will need to be monitored
for the next twelve hours.” He looked at both Scott and Riley. “Other than that,
you are free to go. If anything changes or if you have no improvement in the
next twelve hours, you will need to come back for another assessment. Here’s a
prescription for some pain medication, which will help with the headache. Don’t
take anything for another 8 hours though. What we’ve already given you is quite
strong.” Giving me a final smile, he turned and left, closing the curtain
behind him.

“Thank God for
that,” I muttered, standing up so I could get dressed. Turning to look at Riley
and Scott, I raised my eyebrows. “Well, are you going to let me get dressed in
private?”

“Is that wise?”
asked Scott. “You’re not exactly steady on your feet. I’ll stay and help you.”

He turned and
glared at Riley who, understanding he wasn’t being welcome, walked out behind
the curtain. Not that it mattered if Riley stayed or not. He’d seen my knickers
more times in the last week than Scott had in months.

I‘d just
finished putting my clothes back on when my curtain was pulled back with a
flourish. Even though my back was turned, there was only one person I knew who could
open a curtain with such drama. Turning around, there stood Danny in all his
glory.

Today his hair
was fire engine red, he was wearing the usual skintight black t-shirt—with
a huge
I love my husband
logo on the
front—skinny jeans and painted red finger nails to match.

“
Oh.My.God
. There you are! Do you have
any idea how worried I’ve been?” he yelled, rushing at me and pulling me into a
big hug.

“Danny, keep it
down, my head is killing me,” I said. “How the hell did you know I was here
anyway?” I asked, confused.

“Molly told
me.”

“How did Molly
know?”

“Dad told her.”

“How did
Dad
know?” I was getting a bit impatient
now.

“Well, Mum told
him of course.”

He looked at
me, hand-on-hip as if I was stupid. Did I really care how he found out?.

“I phoned your mother
when you were brought in,” Scott explained.

“Why did you do
that? It’s not like I’ve been admitted,” I said irritably.

“Well, we
didn’t know what was happening did we? So I thought it best for your family to
be here. I can’t stay all night and someone should stay with you.”

“I was here,”
stated Riley, who’d walked back in behind Danny.

“Yes, but
you’re not family are you. It would be inappropriate for you to stay here all
night,” said Scott, giving Riley a disgusted look.

“Now, now boys.
No fighting,” said Danny, turning his gaze on them, his face quite animated. There
was nothing he loved more than watching two grown men fighting over someone. Preferably
it would be over him but Danny wasn’t fussy really. “I’m taking her home and
Andrew and I are going to get her better again. First though, I think that totally
cute doctor over there should check me out. I may have caught something just
being here,” said Danny wrinkling his brow and looking towards the ER doctor.

“I’m not sick,
Danny. I’ve just got a slight concussion and need to sleep, and you haven’t been
here long enough to catch anything.”

“Well, alright,”
said Danny with a wistful sigh.

 
As we walked out, the curtain next to us
pulled back and out stepped who I assumed to be Pastor Thornton. He was quite
commanding in appearance, dressed in a very expensive cashmere sweater over
neatly pressed wool slacks. As he walked past Danny, he turned and stared. I
watched as he looked Danny up and down and saw what could only be described as
disgust in his eyes. Danny’s overtly gay appearance obviously offended him. His
features went hard and cold, and if looks could kill, Danny would be toast.
Dead. Gee, what about
loving thy neighbor
and all that.

“You’re just
lucky I found you. We’ve been here for ages trying to find out where you were,”
said Danny, thankfully unaware of the looks he was getting from the good
Pastor. Just then, Andrew appeared.

“Sorry, we had
a bit of trouble getting past the nurse,” he said, passing Pastor Thornton on
his way. As Andrew tended to dress a bit more conservatively than Danny, he
didn’t so much as get a peek. What I wasn’t expecting was Mum, Dad, Grandma Mabel
and Molly all following him. Mum came rushing towards me, crying.

“Oh,
Love
. I’ve been so worried about you.”

She pulled me
into a hug so tight I thought she might break a rib. I really wish my family
were a bit less enthusiastic with the hugging as my head was still pounding.

“She’s right
about that. Do you know how many toilet stops we’ve made getting here? I always
forget how sensitive her bowel is to stress,” said Grandma Mabel.

“It is not! I
just had too much to drink before we left home, that’s all,” replied Mum,
indignantly.

“Yes, well,
we’re here now,” said Andrew, trying to distract the conversation away from
Mum’s bowel habits.

“Yes, and
you’re all about to leave,” I said. Everyone looked at me. “I’m fine, just
concussion, no big deal,” I sighed. With that I led the very noisy parade outside
into the cool night air.

“I’ll run and
get the car,” said Andrew, racing off in the direction of the car park. I looked
over at Riley and smiled. Bless him. With all the chaos that surrounds my
family sometimes, he hadn’t run away screaming. He was smiling back at me as I
noticed Molly step into his line of vision.

“We haven’t met
yet,” she said, holding out her hand. “I’m Molly,” she said, quietly assessing
him.

“Pleased to
meet you, Molly.” He took her hand and gave it a small squeeze, giving her the megawatt
smile.

Suddenly I felt
a bit nauseous. I’m hoping it was the concussion but I actually think it had more
to do with Molly and Riley. I get told all the time I’m quite pretty but next
to Molly, I’m really beige.

Scott stepped
over to me, took my hand and smiled.

“Well, I can
see you’re in good hands now, so I’ll say goodnight, Elizabeth.” Seriously not
even my mother calls me Elizabeth.

“Yeah, thanks
for staying, Scott.” I really needed to appreciate him more but next to Riley
he also seems very beige. With that he kissed me on the cheek and turned to
leave for his car.

“Wait a minute,
Scott,” Molly called. “My car is parked over there and I don’t want to walk
alone. I’ll walk with you. I’m sure you’ll protect me from any bad guys lurking
around in the dark,” she said with a small smile. Personally, I thought Scott
would probably hand her to the bad guys.

As I watched
them walk away, I saw Andrew driving slowly towards us and pull up at the curb.
Mum, Dad and Grandma Mabel all piled into the back. Danny got in the front. I’m
left standing on the footpath. They really didn’t think ahead, did they?

“Oh Love, I’m
sorry. We were panicking a bit when we left and didn’t really think it through.”
Mum looked really concerned.

“It’s okay,
Mrs. Fuller, I can drive Lizzie home,” offered Riley.

“Well, if
you’re sure. But we don’t want to put you out,” said Mum.

“Really,
it’s no problem. Lizzie got a lift in with me, so it’s really no trouble,” he
smiled.

Danny,
ever the matchmaker, was quick to pipe up. “Mum, get back in the car, its fine.
Lizzie is in good hands.” He looked at me and smiled. Even in this light, I
could see the glint in his eye.