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Chapter 54 – Heaven Can Wait

Nicola exhaled a slow breath as she gently lifted Howie’s uninjured arm, taking great care in running the washcloth over it repeatedly to clean his body thoroughly. The dampness of the cloth left a soft glistening trail of water that caught against the brilliantly scolding sun of Florida’s beautiful weather. It had been over a week since the accident and Howie had yet to make any type of communicative response to those that had been visiting frequently. That much was expected, though. He had severe internal injuries when he was first wheeled into the emergency room. Both of his femurs had been practically crushed on impact. His spleen had been punctured and his lung had been ripped by one of the pieces of metal from the wheelchair that practically impaled him from the impact. The head trauma was severe, causing a great amount of swelling in his brain tissues, but he had survived. In fact, if he woke up, the doctors gave him a good prognosis. They didn’t see any serious nor permanent brain damage that would alter him. But, comas were just funny oddities in the medical field. Unknown and baffling. So, he maintained his silent state, oblivious to what happened around him.

But Nicola still maintained a shred of hope, visiting with him every day, taking care of him every day, and loving him like no other. She knew that he could possibly wake from the coma at any day, but felt his silence was perhaps punishment for abandoning him foolishly. She didn’t dwell on that though, just imagining the day he woke. It would just take an instant, as if he were coming out of some deep sleep. He would be groggy and disoriented, but she wanted to be there. She wanted to be the first thing he saw when he decided to come back. So, like always, she always started first with a bed bath so he would look comfortable for company. She hated the way that some nurses had no pride in taking care of their patients, especially those that were unresponsive. In fact, Nicola had taken over most of the duties the nurses considered meaningless, knowing Howie would have preferred her to do it anyway. Because she did it out of love.

“Y’know, Lucy is asking about you every day. She wants to know when her Daddy is going to come home and play Princesses with her again. This time, she wants me to be Aurora and you be Prince Phillip,” Nicola spoke softly as if he were awake, folding Howie’s blankets down so she could wash his chest. She ignored the various bruises, tubes, and bandages, taking care of his sweet flesh instead. He was still warm to touch and his skin always seemed to welcome her touch. She smiled softly when she remembered how she loved to lay in bed with him, offering the most gentle of kisses to his chest. So, she did so now, favoring him as if he were a sweet candy. It was hard to keep the tears from falling as she kissed him, missing him so terribly. “Of course, I told her right now you’re Sleeping Beauty…”

“Nicola…” a raspy voice mumbled out of no where, causing Nicola to look up from her tasks. And, she was shocked to find Howie’s beautiful brown eyes staring at her with obvious confusion. He was groggy and beat with exhaustion, but his eyes communicated everything within his heart. Shock and an overwhelming sense of loss at seeing his reflection in the depth of Nicola’s emerald eyes. It felt like ages since he had seen her last and the ache in his heart was far more raw than anything else reflecting in his broken body. Unable to help it, he immediately reached out with the arm Nicola had just cleaned, cupping her face in his hand. Gently, he stroked his thumb across her cheek, smiling softly at the warmth of her. He had to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. That she was really with him again. “…Nicola…”

“Morning, Handsome,” Nicola whispered with sheer relief, unable to keep the tears from flooding down her face.

“…You’re here…”

“And I’m not leaving. Not again. Not ever,” Nicola instantly promised as Howie’s thumb ran over her face to clear away her tears. They continued to fall, however, because she was just overwhelmed with such joy. She had prayed so hard that Howie would survive despite the dangerous odds built against him. Just like Kevin had said, Howie had walked when no one said he could, so what would make this any different? But, she couldn’t help but thank God repeatedly for this chance, knowing how precious it was.

“The last thing… The last thing I remember was this car…” Howie trailed, finding it somewhat harder to take a breath than he anticipated. The pain was uncomfortable, but not unbearable, especially as he looked into Nicola’s emerald eyes. She soothed him in ways that neither would probably never understand, allowing him to drink in the atmosphere without a terrible panic attack.

“It hit you,” Nicola admitted softly. “It was Dr. Jacobs and Darcy.”

“God…”

“Darcy’s in the legal system as we speak. Dr. Jacobs is getting prepared for his funeral.”

“He’s dead?”

“He died at the scene.”

Howie nodded briefly, not really bothered by the state of affairs since the accident. Darcy and Dr. Jacobs were a distant memory, one he could most certainly live without. God had dealt them their fates and Howie trusted that. Besides, he had only one concern at that moment while he pulled Nicola to sit at the edge of his bed. He captured both of her hands into his, ignoring the IVs racing through his arms and the sting of his slightly labored breathing. He only concentrated on her, drinking in her soul as he brought her hands to his lips. “And me? What about me?”

“The doctor is going to be able to explain it better than I ever could,” Nicola answered softly, affectionately rubbing her thumb across his still bruised cheek. It was as if she had never left his heart before the accident. “I mean, Sweetheart, you got hit by a car. There was a lot of damage, but nothing that’s going to be permanent. We’re going to work with you until you’re walking again. It’ll take a few more months, but it’s nothing we can’t handle. We’ve done it before. Right?”

“We?”

“We,” Nicola repeated with a firm nod of her head, releasing the breath that had stuck in her throat. She owed him an explanation. “Howie… I was so horrible to you and I was so lost… Dr. Jacobs had threatened to take Lucy away from me, because of what happened with my first husband and… He had a lot of pull in this city… And Lucy has always come first in my life… He said that I had to end my relationship with you to keep Lucy. She’s my life… I didn’t know how I could… How we could… With… I really can’t explain it any better… I am just so sorry--”

“It’s okay,” Howie hushed her softly, not really having to hear another word. In fact, her emerald eyes had given away more than her words had and he would always trust her. She was back and he was still hopelessly in love. He couldn’t deny her. Never.

“I love you so much, Howie…”

“I always loved you…” Howie promised with a soft smile, wanting to see the smile he had pined for. “That’s why I’m in this hospital bed again. I definitely jumped in front of that car, because I loved you so much to be your client again. And I happened to remember how much fun water therapy could be with you…”

Nicola laughed softly, cupping a hand over his mouth. “You’re horrible.”

“But you’re going to marry me anyway.”

Nicola smiled again, leaning to kiss him. “…Yes… I’m going to marry you anyway…”

“Really?”

“Really, I can’t spend another minute without you.”

“I’ve been waiting to hear that for so long, Nic,” Howie breathed, pressing a kiss to her knuckles.

“We’re going to have a perfect love, Howie, I promise.”

“We already do.”

“Then a perfect marriage on top of the perfect love,” Nicola corrected with a smirk.
“I can’t wait.”

“Good thing, because we’ve got about four months before I’ll start showing and refuse to wear a wedding dress that’ll make me look like some bloated baby beluga whale.”

Howie furled his dark brows in confusion. “Showing what?”

“Your beautiful child sleeping in my belly.”

“That’s a good reason,” Howie praised with pure joy, bringing Nicola down for a long, slow, beautiful kiss.