Т Нован - Exposure Season 2

I’m raking my fingers gently through her hair, calming her from her latest nightmare when the door opens slightly.

"Hey," Bear calls softly, sticking his head in the door.

"Hi, buddy. Come on in."

"CJ’s with me. Is it okay…?" He lets the multitude of possible questions fill in the empty air.

I don’t object. There’s no need for me to play the jealous, immature lover. "Oh yeah, please, come on in."

They both enter quietly. Bear has brought a stuffed teddy bear that has a really silly, little hat. He holds it up, giving me a grin. "I just thought…." He shrugs, handing me the bear.

"Thanks, she’ll love it." I set it on the table near Kels’ bed. Both the bear and I would love to crawl in there next to her.

CJ has brought flowers, a bouquet of Freesia, yellow, white and purple. Their strong scent quickly fills the room. "Her favorite," she says quietly, nodding to Kels, and lays them on the bed tray. I make a mental note of the information.

I know this has to be as hard on CJ as it is on me. They did, after all, love each other once. I move from Kels’ side and offer my place to CJ. She looks mildly surprised, but takes me up on it. Once seated, she gently reaches out to hold Kels’ uninjured hand.

Watching her with Little Roo, I can see that CJ definitely loves her still. This must be hard on her. I can’t imagine how I would feel if our positions were reversed. I find I’m feeling a little jealousy. There is a nagging deep in my gut, a strange feeling for sure; one I don’t recall experiencing in the past. Kels doesn’t need me to be a child right now, though, and I decide to get over it. Bear and I move back a bit, to allow them some privacy.

Kels opens her eyes, looking panicked. "Harper! Harper!"

I move to the other side of the bed, brushing my fingers through her bangs. "I’m here baby. I’m right here." Strangely enough, her calling out my name has assuaged the feeling in my stomach. "You have some visitors." I gesture toward CJ and Bear.

Kels turns her head and smiles at the cop. "Hi, Tough Stuff," she whispers, squeezing CJ’s hand.

"Look who’s talking," CJ chokes out, her throat constricting. "Brought you some Freesia."

"You remembered."

"Of course. How could I forget?"

The little gnawing is coming back in my gut. I stand by impassively though. I am a mature adult.

"I still get them on my birthday." Kels bestows CJ with a fond smile.

Okay, I am a mature adult. I am a mature adult.

"And you always will. As long as it’s all right." CJ looks to me.

I do my best to give a sincere smile in return. I may not have been the first to love Kels, but I do intend to be the last.

I guess the talk of the future, reminds Kels of their past together. "Erik," Kels whispers, tears spilling out of her eyes.

"I know, sweetheart." CJ drops her head closer to Kels, giving her a little kiss on her left temple.

"I killed him, CJ. I killed Erik." Kels curls toward CJ, clutching at her shirt.

"No, sweetheart, you didn’t. Bill killed him. You saved him, Kels, a long time ago."

"Bill?" she echoes. "Oh my God! That was Bill! I knew I recognized him, but I didn’t make the connection." She shakes her head sadly.

"See, my fault too. If he hadn’t been my partner, he never would have met you." I appreciate CJ trying to take some of the guilt off of Kels’ shoulders. "Erik had a great life that he wouldn’t have had if it weren’t for you."

Kels sniffles. "If it weren’t for us."

"Right. We did good with our boy." CJ laughs a little, before her tears start flowing.

It occurs to me that these two people are basically parents mourning the loss of a child.

Kels reaches out, brushing away CJ’s tears, words failing her.

"He was a good kid, Angel, and he loved you a lot. He’d be very proud of you for coming out of this alive. And it’s through us that he’ll always live. Well, us, and those really bad movies he made." She laughs, trying to ease the tension.

Kels sniffs a little, nodding. "There are those."

"Lots of those," CJ agrees. "The most important thing here, Kels, is that you’re all right,"

"I will be."

"Good. Well, you know me, if you ever need anything don’t hesitate to pick up the phone." CJ looks over at me. "Either of you."

I smile at being included in her offer.

"I love you, CJ," Kels whispers.

I am a mature adult.

"Love you too, Angel. I’m gonna get going. I’ll drop by soon." She kisses Kels’ knuckles and stands up, stretching her lower back. I think all cops have lower back pain after a year on the force.

"Be careful out there, ok? Nothing bad is allowed to happen to you, Tough Stuff."

"Always."

CJ gives Kels one last kiss on the forehead. She then stands up straight and offers me her hand across Kels’ bed. "If either of you need anything, day or night."

"You’ll be the first to know," I reply, taking her hand.

She winks at Kels and leaves. Bear moves into the spot vacated by CJ.

"Hi, Bear." Kels gives him a little smile, reaching out to take his hand. "Thanks for everything."

"It wasn’t me so much as your partner there. She figured it out and put it together."

Kels’ green eyes track over to me. They look a bit surprised, but also proud of me. "Well, I know her. I’m guessing you made her keep her head and she probably didn’t like that much. Thanks for keeping her safe."

"No problem. I’m pretty fond of that one."

She looks to me again and beckons me closer. The fingers of her broken hand graze across my mine. "So am I."

"Well, you’ve got your hands full, that’s for sure." Bear winks at me.

"Wouldn’t have it any other way." Kels yawns a little, her eyes fluttering closed.

I can tell the sedatives are starting to take effect again. "Sleep, chér," I instruct gently.

"Sorry, Bear …" Kelsey mumbles before fading off.

Bear remains quiet, moving away from the bed to let her rest. He settles into a chair on the far side of the room.

I stay with her until I can tell she’s fully asleep again, her breathing deep and even. Then I join Bear.

"So, how’s she doing?"

"All in all, not too bad right now." I pick up a cup of coffee that must be three hours old. It’s cold, but it’s coffee. "I think she’s overwhelmed and not sure what to focus on. We’ve got a long road ahead of us here."

Bear looks at me steadily, then asks, "You sure you want to travel that road, Harper?"

The force of his question hits me square in the chest just as sure as if he had thrown a punch at me. "Of course, I am," I reply angrily, biting off each word. "What kind of a dipshit question is that?"

"Think about it, Harper. You’ve gone from being a very free spirit to being settled with one woman rather quickly. And that woman is now facing a very rough time in her life, physically and emotionally."

"Yeah, and I won’t let her go it alone. I love her, Bear. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. I can’t just let her go because it’s inconvenient for me." I take a deep breath. "I know it’s going to be rough, but we’ll make it. As soon as I can, I’m going to get us the hell out of Los Angeles. That’ll be a big help."

"New Orleans?"

"Yeah." I have to laugh a little. "When Papa found out Kels will most likely be in a wheelchair when we get there, he was ready to call a contractor to start making the house accessible for her."

"You have a very special family."

"I know it. I’m lucky to have them. And I’m grateful to be able to share them with her. Her own family is fucking worthless. Her mother wouldn’t even come out here to be with her. She didn’t want to be part of a ‘media snowstorm.’"

"What about her father?"