[ - ]
Table of Contents [Report This]
Printer Chapter or Story Microsoft Word Chapter or Story
- Text Size +
Bianca tried to stifle a yawn as Holly drove down the interstate. As tired as she was, Bianca was too scared to go to sleep. Holly had never been the best driver.

“So,” Holly broke the silence. Glancing away from the road to look at Bianca, she grinned. “What did you do last night?”

“Do you mind watching where you’re going?” Bianca motioned to the open stretch of highway. She tried to keep herself from blushing, but it was pointless. “I took a bath and went to bed.”

“Oh…alone?”

“Holly!” Bianca screeched when her car swerved onto the shoulder before finding its way back onto the road. “Can we please talk later? You obviously cannot talk and drive at the same time. You can barely drive as it is. And I’m sure everyone back home wants to see us alive. I honestly don’t think that identifying our bodies at the morgue is at the top of their list of holiday festivities.”

“I resent that,” Holly’s voice was flat. “But anyway, you didn’t answer my question.”

“And what question did you ask? I’m sorry, I’m a little too scared to remember.”

“Were you alone last night?” Holly asked, smiling. “The only reason I’m asking is because there was an extra car in the driveway and I didn’t have a guest with me. So, if you were alone, someone decided to use the vacant spot. Although,” she paused, as if she was thinking, “it did look an awful lot like AJ’s car.”

Bianca kept her face toward the window so Holly wouldn’t see how badly she was blushing. “That’s weird.”

Holly sighed to herself. She’s gonna be a hard one to crack. “Yeah.”


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Julie, you have a phone call,” one of the other nurses called. “Line 3.”

“Thanks. This is Julie, how may I help you?” she greeted politely.

“You sound so professional. Aww! Little Julie is growing up,” Brian teased.

“Aww! Little Brian never will,” she retorted.

“Well, then. Anyway, I was calling to see if you wanted to grab some lunch.”

“Did you realize it’s only 9:15?” Julie laughed when she checked her watch.

“Yes, I realize what time it is. I decided to call early so I wouldn’t miss you at lunchtime. See, I’m learning how to manage my time a little better. And I wanted to make sure no one else beat me to it. So, did you want lunch today?”

“Of course,” she smiled to herself. “Is 12:30 okay?”

“Perfect. I’ll see you then.”

“He’s such an idiot,” Julie laughed aloud before going back to work. She hoped the next three hours wouldn’t take too long.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hayley hummed to herself as she walked through the electronics store. She hadn’t known Nick a terribly long time, but he had become a great friend and she wanted to get him something for Christmas. She was completely lost in her thoughts when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

“Excuse me, could you recommend a Play Station 2 game?”

Hayley turned around, fully prepared to give her sweetest smile with an ‘I’m sorry, I don’t work here’ before she smirked and smacked the ‘customer’ on the back of the head.

“Oww! What was that for?”

“You are such a major dork, Nick!” she said laughing at his sunglasses and had. “What’s with the get-up? Halloween has already passed.”

Nick rolled his eyes and playfully smacked Hayley lightly on the forehead. “Forget who I am?”

“Ohhh!” she said, the realization of his celebrity status dawning on her. She had a hard time remembering he wasn’t able to live a normal life all the time. He didn’t act like a celebrity to her, so she often forgot. “Sorry,” she smiled sheepishly.

“What are you up to today?” Nick asked as they wandered around the store.

“Just window shopping,” she said. She couldn’t tell him she was looking for his Christmas present. “What about you?”

“The same and Christmas shopping for my family.” They continued to walk through the store, quietly looking at the various electronic toys.

“So,” Nick broke what had become a somewhat uncomfortable silence. “We’re having a Christmas party in a couple days and I thought you might like to come.”

“Oh, well, that’s really sweet Nick, but I dunno,” Hayley replied quickly. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings, but she didn’t know about a party with his family and friends.

“Oh, come on. It’ll be fun. It’s not gonna be anything real big and flashy and none of the other guys are even gonna be there. We’re all kinda doing our own things this year. You know you wanna come,” he explained. “Come on, Hayley, take one for the team.”

When he said that, Hayley burst out laughing. “You are an idiot, but okay, I’ll go.”

“Alright! You won’t regret it,” Nick smiled, happily.

“You better hope not, Carter.’


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Brianna sat up from her cozy spot on the sofa when Kevin plowed into the living room. “Baby, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”

“Go pack a bag, we have a flight to catch,” he answered, the excitement evident in his voice and eyes.

“Where are we going?” Brianna asked as she made her way to their bedroom.

“It’s a secret.”

Turning around, she looked at Kevin like he was insane. “You tell me to back because we have a flight to catch and then think you don’t have to tell me where we’re going? Think again. Where are we going, Kevin?” she asked sharply.

“Baby, this is your Christmas present. You’ll find out when we get there.” Leaning in to give Brianna a soft kiss, he smiled. “Please don’t make this difficult.”

“Kevin, you know I don’t like flying.”

“We have a private jet. I pulled some strings and it’s gonna be a cozy flight with just the three of us and the pilot. No interruptions or anything. So, please, just pack and come with me without asking too many questions.”

“Okay, fine,” Brianna gave in. Finding his lips again, she smiled. “If I guess will you tell me?”

“Brianna.”

“Okay, fine. It was worth a shot,” she laughed.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hey,” Julie greeted Brian when she got in his car.

“Howdy,” he grinned.

“So, where are we off to?” she asked.

“How’s Emma’s?” Brian asked, referring to a small café not too far from the hospital.

“That’s fine,” Julie sighed.

They were soon seated across from one another inside the intimate little café.

“So,” Brian began as he looked over a menu. “What are you doing for Christmas?”

“Nothing. Well, working, but that’s it.”

“You aren’t coming home?”

“No,” Julie let out a sad sigh. “I talked about it with Mom and it’s just not the same without Daddy. I’m going home to see Mom and everyone else in about a month or so. Besides, I asked for Christmas off last year and it wouldn’t be fair if I asked for it again this year. But Mocha and I have big plans after I get off work,” she said, referring to her cat. Subtly wiping her eyes, she shrugged and added, “Someone has to work…I mean, it is a hospital.”

“Yeah, but you aren’t gonna see your family at all?”

“Really, Bri, it’s no big deal.”

Before he could protest further, their waitress walked up. “Are you ready to order?”


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Howie sighed and closed his eyes. He could feel the first pressures of an oncoming headache. He hadn’t heard any more from Ivy, but he did what she said and turned that name into the police. Unfortunately, it didn’t prove to be any help.

As it turned out, Andrew Davidson was a very wealthy Florida native who, at the moment, was out of the country on business. The police told Howie that right now, he wasn’t a major suspect to them, but they would keep him in mind. Howie was planning on doing a little research himself if the police continued to be no help.

Letting out a tired yawn, he closed his eyes. He had been wondering what he should tell the guys, but hadn’t been able to think of anything, He knew they would want to know, and when they found out, they would no doubt be upset with Howie for not telling them sooner.

“But how can I explain this to them?” he asked aloud. He didn’t even know exactly what was going on; how could he expect his friends to understand. “I don’t even understand.”