Blood of the Rainbow (15 page)

‘
Good morning Angel,

What you did last night took courage and will power - you made the right choice. Special moments like last night are what bind us together forever. Next time, you might be the one begging me to stop – for real. I’ll call you later on today. Just sleep and dream of me.
’

Sara tried to move her foot, and remembered that she’d twisted her ankle, when she fell down the hill. She threw the covers back, and saw that she wasn’t wearing anything.
Had
he made love to her? Had she actually slept right through it! No, that couldn’t be possible.

Sara grabbed the card and read it again.
No, we couldn’t have made love, but where are my clothes?
Of course, I remember Jared washed me off. He must have taken my clothes off then. But that would mean, when we were - I would have been - and he would - Wow!

Jared had more self-control than Sara had given him credit for. But, if she couldn’t find her clothes, what was she going to wear?

She wrapped the sheet around her naked body and sat on the side of the bed, but not without pain. She attempted to stand, and fell back on the bed. “Well,” she mused. “I’m not going to walk away from this one. Maybe I should just lie back, and wait for Jared to call.” Sara yawned, and lay back against the pillows, but not before she’d made sure her cell was in reach. She must have truly been exhausted, because before she knew it, she was asleep again.

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

Sara was awakened by her cell. She picked it up and looked at the name on the display. It was Jared, just as he’d promised. She smiled. “Hi.”

“
Hi Angel, feeling any better this morning? Well, I say morning, but it’s actually almost noon. I was beginning to think you’d run away from me again.
”

“Really – why? It’s not as if I
can
run.”

Jared chuckled. “
You’re probably right, but
I rang you about half an hour after I got to the office. You must have been sleeping
.”

“Probably….”

“
If you hadn’t answered this time, I was coming home to check on you. Listen, I spoke with Lucy, and she and I agree. You might as well stay with me until your ankle has mended. Besides, I need to make sure you’re not going to have any kind of reaction to the bump on your head.
”

It was Sara’s turn to laugh. “You want me to hang around because of a twisted ankle, and a little bump on the head? Are you sure it’s not because you don’t
want
me to leave?”

Sara could hear the embarrassment in his voice.

“
All right – I’ll admit it, I’m being selfish again. After holding you in my arms all night long and realizing you were still there when I woke up, and you’re still there now. I want you with me. I need you with me! You have no idea how I felt when I thought I’d lost you. Nothing seemed to matter Sara - not the house, not the job, not even my life. I want you to stay with me, but, if you truthfully want to go back to Lucy’s…
” he said, with a smile in his voice. He already knew what her answer would be.

“No, I’ll stay, if you’re really sure about this….”

“
Sara, I’ve been sure since I laid eyes on you, and even before then. It’s you that I want to be sure about this. Is this what you want?
”

Sara couldn’t stop smiling. She couldn’t see for the tears in her eyes. If he only knew, how sure she was of him, and how badly she needed him. “I’m sure. I’ll need some things from Lucy’s….”

Jared’s voice was high with excitement. “
You’re going to move in with me?
”

“Yes, I will. But, I think we should hold off telling Lucy for a while. She already knows I’m staying until my ankle has healed. I think it would be a good idea if we left it at that for now, for fear she might talk to my mother, and that would
not
go over well.”

“
Sure – anything you want. And I’ll pick up some stuff for you when I get off work. Just text me a list of what you need. I might be kind of late – I do still have that staff meeting I was telling you about
.”

“I thought it was last night.”

“
It was supposed to be but, I was rescuing my damsel in distress. My very sexy, damsel in distress,
” he said, playfully.

“Oh! Right. Jared?”

“
Hmm
.”

“What am I supposed to do today?”

“
Whatever you want to – within reason. With that twisted ankle, I wouldn’t suggest trying out for any marathons, and I’m afraid the dance contests will have to wait a week or two
.”

“Ha - ha – very funny. What about going down stairs?”

“
I’d rather you didn’t. My staff knows you’re there. If you need anything, something to eat or drink or just someone to talk to, you can get one of them to help you – or I suppose you could call me, but I may not be able to talk long if I’m with a patient. I would call you back later, when I got a break. It’s up to you. Seriously, you need to stay off your ankle as much as possible and give the swelling a chance to go down.

I’ve booked us at the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum. KWKH is throwing a reunion for the old Louisiana Hayride next month. We’re in the line-up. I’m not sure exactly what time we’ll go on. They’ll be sending me a schedule later on. I’m going to need my lead female vocalist in top shape, so you’ve got to do everything within your power to be whole by that time, or I’ll have to cancel. ‘Raging Storm’ gets bookings occasionally, but this could be your big break. I doubt this kind of opportunity will come along in a while.
”

My big break?
Sara was surprised. “You’ve booked us at HMC? Jared, that thing holds over ten thousand people. And there will likely be radio and TV crews there, as well! If you want me to get out in front of all those people, you’ve got a lot more than my ankle to heal.”

Jared’s voice was deep and husky. “
Don’t worry Sara. I’ll conquer all your fears
.” Sara could tell he wasn’t just talking about her stage fright. Her heart suddenly fluttered.

She tried to keep her voice even. “I’m looking forward to that.”

“
See you tonight – gotta run, love you
….”

Sara opened her mouth to respond, but he’d ended the call – he was gone. “I really do need to talk to him about that,” she complained, but she couldn’t stop grinning. “He loves me!”

Wrapping the sheet around her, Sara hobbled over to the closet, to find something to wear. It wasn’t an easy task, but she finally found one of Jared’s old flannel shirts in a drawer. She held it to her nose and breathed in deeply. It still had the scent of his cologne on it. She closed her eyes, slid her arms in the sleeves and imagined his arms wrapping around her, keeping her safe and warm. Sara loved that feeling. Hell, she loved everything about him. The sleeves were too long, so Sara rolled them up a few rounds until they were just above her elbows. The tail of the shirt went almost to her knees, so she didn’t bother putting anything over her underwear. Besides, her shorts from yesterday were dirty and covered with mud. She had no idea where Jared put them.

Sara brushed her hair, tied it up in a high ponytail, and sprayed on a hint of perfume. She stood and surveyed herself in the mirror. She didn’t look half-bad, but she didn’t expect she would be making fashion statements. At least she had more covered than she’d had yesterday. Just thinking about Jared seeing her topless made her blush, but at the same time, made her stomach tickle. Anyone else would have taken advantage of her, but not Jared. He was a one-of-a-kind.

Sara wondered if it would be possible for her to be more in love with him than she was right now. Jared had woven himself into every fiber of her soul. There was no use to fight it – she was doomed. She felt so happy and light, and had it not been for her twisted ankle, and bruised ribs, Sara would have danced around the room like a ballerina. Her injuries forced her to hobble around, desperately searching, for something to do. She couldn’t even find a puzzle or crossword magazine. She was literally bored out of her mind. She didn’t have her laptop or her guitar with her, so she couldn’t work on her songs.

Sara remembered Jared mentioning he had the Twilight set, but she figured it would be downstairs in the library across from the Navajo room – out of her reach. She thought about trying to go down stairs and pick around on Jared’s baby grand in the lounge, but he said she needed to stay off her foot as much as possible, so she guessed that would have to wait. Man she needed
something
to do.

In search for something to read, Sara hobbled to the bookcase. She was just about to give up, when she found the complete ‘Twilight’ saga by ‘Stephanie Meyers.’ She smiled. “Great! They’re not out of my reach,” she mused.
 She took the first story in the saga - ‘Twilight’ - crawled back on the bed, propping her head against the headboard, and settled down to read. By the time she’d read the prologue to the book, she was hooked. She quickly sympathized with the heroine. If she had been in her place, she would eagerly risk her soul, and become a vampire if it meant eternity with Jared.

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

With technically nothing else to do but read, Sara finished the book that afternoon, and started on the next one, ‘New Moon’. She was hooked on it too, at least until she realized the hero was leaving, never to return. This wasn’t how it was supposed to happen. Sara wanted the happily ever after. Surely, he couldn’t just leave Bella like that, with not even a photo to remember him by! Sara eagerly continued reading, laughing sometimes and crying others. She looked at her watch and realized Jared would be leaving work soon, and she hadn’t texted him her list yet.

She grabbed her cell, quickly made a list of the things she needed from Lucy’s, and texted it to him.

After a couple of minutes, Jared sent back a reply. ‘
Anything for you – home soon – love you.
’

How could those two little words turn her world upside down? How could she fall so hopelessly in love with a stranger in less than a week? The answer was easy, because they were meant for each other and always had been. Sara loved hearing him say those two words, even if they were just a text. She knew he would say them when he was with her again, and that would be soon.

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

After reading the note he’d left on her pillow this morning for about the tenth time today, she smiled. She grabbed her book and curled back up on the bed, as much as she could.

There was a knock on the door, and Sara was so engrossed in her book that she nearly jumped off the bed. It was the cook, bringing her a snack. A plate of various fruits and yet another colossal glass of cold drink. Jared was going to make sure she was properly hydrated. Sara must have already drunk half a gallon of iced tea now, and her trips to the bathroom had become more frequent. She had just got back from one of them, when her cell rang.

“Hello?”

“
Hey, Kiddo, how’s it going in the lap of luxury?
”

Sara smiled. “What are you talking about Lucy?”

Lucy laughed. “
Don’t be naive Sara. I know Jared has his staff waiting on you, hand and foot. It must be nice….
”

“I
can
come home if you want me to,” Sara half-heartedly offered. She knew Lucy was teasing her.

Lucy laughed again. “
Oh come on Sara, tell me you’re not in seventh heaven?
”

Sara laughed and blushed. “I guess you could say that. You’re not mad at me, are you Luce?”

“
Heavens no Kid! If I’d had the chance, I would be right where you are. Jared and I went out to the movies a couple of times, but it never went anywhere – mainly his decision. We’ve stayed good friends, and there were no hard feelings. I’m glad you’re happy. How are you feeling?
”

“Well, I’m a little stiff and sore and I can’t put my weight on my foot, but other than that – I’m ok.”

“
Do you think you’ll be well enough to join us with the Reunion gig?
”

“I’m gonna try to. I’ve already told Jared he has between now and then to get me over my stage fright. He said, quote, “I’ll conquer
all
your fears, unquote.”

“
Wow, he’s truly getting serious about you. I just don’t get it. I hang around the guy for five years, and practically throw myself at him. You come along, and manage to get two dates out of him, in the same number of days. You’ve spent three days with him, and you’re practically engaged. What’s your secret Kid?
”

Sara laughed. Lucy was joking of course, and she didn’t expect an answer. At least, Sara didn’t think she did. She wasn’t giving Lucy one either way. Sara had brought up the idea of marriage, and Jared had backed off. There was no way she was going to make that mistake again. The next time the subject of marriage came up; it would be him that instigated it.

Sara attempted to change the subject. “So, has Mom called anymore?”

“
Yes, she has, and she’s getting very suspicious. I had to tell her something. I told her you were with your boyfriend.
”

“What?” Sara shouted.

“
Hey, I’m just kidding. I told Kaye you’d gone to the store. She’s not going to keep buying these stories much longer, Sara. You’re going to have to tell her about you and Jared. I think she’s half figured it out already
.”

Sara sighed. “Yeah, I know. I have told her a little about him. She knows he’s Navajo, and the leader of the band. I just haven’t told her how
close
we’ve got, and how much he means to me. I don’t want her to spoil this for me Lucy.”

“
Hang on a minute, there’s someone at the door.
”

“That will probably be Jared. He’s coming over to pick up some of my things.”

“
Hang on a minute
,” Lucy said and laid the phone down. Sara heard them talking in the background. She came back to the phone. “
I’ve gotta go now – Lover boy is here. I’ll talk to you later.
” Lucy hung up the phone.