A Kiss of Color: The Complete 3 Book Collection (38 page)

Now, all of that was gone.

Somehow, she was going to have to support Xavier as they fought through this case, take care of her son, and watch carefully for her mother.

She was exhausted just thinking about it.

She tried to find her Zen place as she nursed Isaiah, stroking through his wispy hair and feeling his warmth. She could never let anything happen to her son. She would do anything to protect him.
Anything
.

Helena was so tired from the stress that she began to doze off while Isaiah was still suckling. Her head nestled against the back of the sofa, she drifted in and out of consciousness, her son clutched protectively to her breast.

Until the doorbell rang, startling her from her nap. Carefully, Helena rose, wrapping a blanket around both herself and her child before hurrying to the door before Xavier could overprotect her. A quick peek through the spyhole revealed that there were remarkably few reporters on their lawn this morning, and that it was, in fact, Susan calling.

Sighing in relief, Helena let her in, smiling at the Doctor’s friendly gaze. “Hi, Susan.”

“Hello, darling. I just came to check on you and Isaiah. I know how hectic things must be for you just now.” She’d brought her bag with her and set it on the table in the living room before giving Helena a quick hug. The young woman offered her mentor something to drink, only to have Susan wave her off, insisting that she sit before she went to the kitchen herself.

After a few moments, she returned with two mugs of green tea, passing one to Helena. The young woman gently set a sleeping Isaiah on her lap before taking a sip of the soothing liquid.

“We miss you in the office.” Susan smiled ruefully as she sipped at her own tea. “Miranda is driving me crazy asking when you’ll be back.”

Helena swallowed thickly, tears of gratitude rising, unbid, to fill her eyes. “Then…she doesn’t believe anything the media have been saying?”

Susan frowned deeply, her brown eyes disapproving. “Why would she?” Setting down her tea, she reached across the table to take the gray-eyed woman’s free hand in her own. “Helena, we’ve known you for far too long to believe any of the horse shit the news says.” Helena’s eyes widened. Susan rarely cursed unless she felt particularly strongly about something.

It was always nice to know that she still had those she could trust.

“Thank you, Susan.” She managed, hurriedly wiping her tears away. “You have no idea how much that means to me.”

“Oh, come now, Helena. It’s just those post-pregnancy hormones talking.” Susan laughed off her statement kindly before taking Helena’s cup from her. “Now, shall we see how you’re doing?”

Susan gently took Isaiah from her, checking over his tiny body and weighing him. She was so gentle that the tiny boy didn’t even wake up, and was soon safely in his pen as his mother got her own checkup.

First, Susan inspected the caesarian section scar on Helena’s abdomen to make sure that it was healing properly. As a precaution, she also checked the healing cuts from Helena’s run in with Elliot weeks prior. She took the young woman’s temperature and felt over her stomach to make sure there was no swelling or infection. After about twenty minutes, she finally finished, declaring Helena perfectly healthy. She was healing well, and, Susan added slyly, she would be ready for intimacy in another week or so.

The thought made Helena’s face heat.

It seemed like forever since Xavier had last touched her. With all that was going on in their household, they tended to fall into each other’s arms, exhausted, at the end of every day. While she couldn’t deny that feeling the hard length of Xavier’s body against hers made her want him powerfully, she knew that she had to wait until her body was strong enough – even if her sex drive was more than willing.

Just remembering the last time they’d been together , his hands moving hotly over her body, attesting to how beautiful she was even with her stomach swollen with her pregnancy – it was enough to make her bite her lip in longing.

Suddenly a week seemed forever away.

A sudden, low knock at the door caught both her and Susan’s attention. Before she could rise, the doctor hurried to the door, peering through the small hole before frowning and opening it to reveal a disheveled looking Brandy. When she got a good look at her, Helena groaned in dismay. It looked as if the blonde woman hadn’t slept in days. She carried a huge bag of law materials under one arm and there were dark circles under her eyes. Helena knew that every time Brandy left the house she was being relentlessly hassled by reporters. Of course, they had found out about her connection to Xavier and what had happened back in New York.

In short, she had her own little circle of drama lingering over her head.

It must be doing wonders for her, Helena thought bitterly, as she hefted her body from the sofa to help Brandy

“It’s alright, Helena, honestly. I have it.” Brandy dropped her bag near the door before sinking into an armchair in the foyer.

Sighing, Helena knelt next to the woman she considered her sister, taking Brandy’s hands between her own. “Brandy, really. You’re running yourself ragged. You need to rest.”

The blonde woman let her head fall back against the rear of the armchair, exhaling a heavy breath. “How can I relax when my little brother might be convicted for a crime that he didn’t commit? He might…he might be the only family I have left.”

Helena’s heart twisted.

She was partially to blame for this. Brandy had abandoned her family – her husband – all she knew, for her sense of loyalty to Xavier. As much as she attested that she wanted to help them, Helena knew that she must be going through a great deal of pain.

“Brandy, I’m sorry.” Helena whispered, biting her lip. There went those damn tears again. After her mother had been put away, the young woman had promised herself that she wouldn’t waste so much time crying when she had so much to live for. But, she couldn’t help it. She couldn’t stand seeing the people she loved in pain. “I’m so sorry.”

Brandy looked down at her incredulously. “Helena, what are you talking about?”

“If I hadn’t…if Xavier and I had been more informed…if we hadn’t been so callous and moved that money...you wouldn’t be in this situation. You and Hank would still be together and this wouldn’t even be an issue.”

Brandy sat up straight, her expression intense. “Helena, don’t you start. Don’t you
dare
. None of this is your fault. I chose to come because I
love
Xavier and I love you. What my parents have done is wrong. I’ve accepted their authority my entire life.” She shook her head slowly. “It had to stop some time.”

Still, Helena felt guilty. Brandy was one of the first real friends she’d ever had, aside from Magda, her college roommate. Though things might not directly be her fault, she still hated the thought of Brandy and Hank being separated because Brandy had sided with them.

“Quite right.” Susan suddenly interjected, drawing both of their attention to her. “None of this is Helena’s fault, nor is any of it your fault, Brandy, from what I’ve heard.” The older woman’s expression became suddenly severe. “I cannot
stand
when parents try to control the lives of their children, only to their detriment. You were right to escape that situation. Both for yourself…and for your child.”

With that said, she leaned down to place a hand across Brandy’s shoulder before her frown returned. “You, my dear, have a fever. When’s the last time you saw a prenatal doctor?”

Sighing, Brandy waved her away gently. “I haven’t had the time…and my insurance went with everything else my parents took from me.”

“Well, luckily for you, your family has a personal physician.” Before Brandy could protest, Susan had taken her hand to lead her over to couch where Helena had recently reclined. Brandy tried to tell Dr. Forge that she was fine, but Helena smiled as Susan shushed her and began examining her.

The only thing Brandy could do, ultimately, was grumble about how she was going to pay Susan for her services as the doctor resolutely ignored her. Susan went about her business, casting the blonde woman a small smile and apologizing when she took a blood sample. After taking her blood pressure, testing her vision and heart rate as well as the baby’s, and asking her a series of questions, the Doctor pronounced herself displeased.

“It’s just like Helena says. You’ve been running yourself ragged.” Susan sighed. “You need to make sure you eat three square meals a day and get plenty of sleep every night. You can’t forget that your body has another occupant now. If you neglect your health, Brandy, you neglect your baby’s health.”

Brandy opened her mouth as if to protest before closing it. Then, she sat up from the couch to envelop Susan in an unexpected hug. “Thank you.” She whispered softly to the elder woman, and Helena could hear that she was on the edge of tears. Susan shushed her, giving her a bottle of prenatal vitamins with instructions to take two a day. Then, giving both Brandy and Helena a final hug, she took her leave.

Both women were silent for the moment it took for Helena to come and join Brandy on the couch. The younger woman watched over her sleeping son, thinking about how her entire life had changed the moment she’d heard his first cries. She knew how much Brandy must love her unborn child…and how much its safety must mean to her.

“Susan really is a gem.” Brandy finally murmured, rubbing a hand absently over the small swell of her stomach. “She’s amazing.”

“I owe my career, my life, and Isaiah’s life to her.” Helena smiled in gratitude. “I’ll never be able to thank her enough.” She trailed off, looking over Brandy’s long, lean form. She really did look tired – and as far as Helena knew, she’d been working nonstop for the past week or so. “Brandy, how are you?
Really
?” She added the last part before Brandy could give her the usual ‘I’m fine’ answer.

She knew that was bullshit. Brandy wasn’t fine. And if she heard her say so one more time she was going to blow a gasket. “You can tell me the truth.” She insisted, her gray eyes gleaming with concern. “I want to know. Really.”

Brandy took one look at her before shaking her head slowly. Without a word, she covered her face with her hands, leaning back against the couch. Helena watched her with bated breath, waiting for Brandy to speak. She was horrified, however, when Brandy, instead of speaking, began to sob softly.

Immediately, she put her arms around her friend, holding her close as Brandy poured out her grief against Helena’s shoulder. She closed her eyes, blinking back her own tears. Just now, she needed to be strong for Brandy. Brandy, who had been so strong for everyone else.

Helena held her for a while, allowing the blonde to let go of the front she put up and simply be a woman. Brandy clung to her, but her tears only lasted for precious few minutes. She took some tissues Helena offered her and wiped at her eyes, taking several deep breaths to regain her composure.

“I’m…I’m sorry, Helena.” She finally professed, rubbing at her face. “I didn’t mean to fall apart like that. I just…I’m just scared.” She sniffled. “These are the highest stakes I’ve ever played for. If I don’t do this right…if I forget some important detail…Xavier could go to jail for a long time. I don’t think I’d ever forgive myself if I let that happen.”

Helena said nothing, knowing that, for once, Brandy needed to be the one to put voice to her fears. “I…got a letter from Hank the other day. God knows how he got it out, but he did. He told me that he’s sorry for going through with the divorce. That he loves me, but his hands are tied where his parents are concerned. My parents are threatening to buy out their business and leave them destitute.”

Helena’s stomach turned at the news. Were there any lengths the Thompsons wouldn’t go through to get their way? It was insanity how they had manipulated their daughter and her now ex-husband. Brandy had only ever done everything they’d asked and still they tormented her just because she wanted to stand with her younger brother.

“He told me to wait for him. That he’s coming…and that he’ll never stop loving me.” The blonde woman inhaled a shuddering breath. “I believe him, Helena, but it’s just
so
hard. So hard. Everything would be better if I had him by my side.”

“You will.” Helena reassured her, holding Brandy’s hand tightly. “Brandy, I could never in a million years believe Hank really wanted to divorce you. He loves you, and he loves your child. He’ll be here.”

“You know, they even got Emily to call me. I answer the phone and she’s crying and going on about how much she misses me…damn.” Brandy shook her head in incredulity. “I never realized how much they corrupted her, you know?” She wiped away a single tear at the thought, and Helena remembered the young woman she’d met briefly earlier that year. Emily was sweet enough, but she stood very firmly with their parents, and they often used their youngest daughter in an attempt to manipulate their other two children. She was, perhaps, the only Thompson “success story.”

“She’s only doing what she thinks is right.” It was the only reply that Helena could think of, herself having been the victim of Emily’s lies.

“I know.” Brandy sighed, wiping the last of her tears away. With a soft laugh, she glanced down at the bottle of vitamins in her hand. “I guess I should take these, right? Can’t have my little monster going hungry.”

Helena managed a small smile, vowing that she would never forgive the Thompsons for the way they treated their children. “Of course not.”

Another week passed in uneasy peace with all of them working to prepare for the court date they knew was in their future. At Susan’s suggestion, however, Brandy slowed her pace quite a bit, making sure that she got to sleep by ten o’clock every night and had breakfast, lunch and dinner. Despite how upset Helena knew she was to be separated from her husband, Brandy had also revealed to her that Hank’s letter had strengthened her resolve. She wanted Xavier to be acquitted so that she could put all her strength into her pregnancy and seeing her husband again.