fall into the trap of looking for Prince Charming and passing on Mr. Wonderful because he happens to like to tie you to the bedpost. All men have a kinky side. I found the entire experience liberating.”
“How was being suspended from Randy’s ceiling liberating?”
“Because it was the one thing I swore I would never do during sex. But when I did it, I found out that it wasn’t as bad as I thought. I even enjoyed it, and learning that about myself gave me the confidence to be who I wanted. I started lifting weights because I wanted my outsides to match the strength I felt on my insides. That directed me to Roger. If you ask me, Sam, that’s what you’re missing … your inner strength. It doesn’t matter if you find it through mountain climbing or bondage. The point is that you have to find it. You have to test your limits to find out what you’re made of, and only then can you move on. I think you need to explore that with Doug, so you can put your father and the past behind you.”
With a dismissive shrug, Sam picked up her black pen. “I have put it behind me.”
“No, you haven’t. You’re stuck, Sam. You’re stuck between the past and your future. Sometimes you need a swift kick in the ass to propel you forward. You should do this.”
In some strange way, what Piper said made sense. Sam had initially been terrified of taking her traveling nurse contract, thinking she would have a tough time making it on her own. Even so, she had succeeded, and in the process had learned a lot about herself. Embracing the opportunity for change had led her to a new life in a new city. Where could Master Morgan take her?
Sam sat down in her chair. “How would I … I mean, how do I go about being with him?”
“Remember the things we talked about the other night? Letting him come over and help you with repairs around the house and such. Just do that, and he will know you’re interested.”
Sam was about to ask another question when she felt that kick in her gut; the undeniable feeling that something was about to happen. Something bad. Taking an inventory of the other beds in the ICU, she spotted where the feeling was coming from. Darkness was hovering in front of the glass door of bed six.
“Piper,” she pointed to bed six. “Something is wrong and—”
She never got to finish before the alarms on the main panel at the nurses’ station started blaring.
“Code blue, bed six,” the tech sitting behind the panel yelled out.
Nurses and techs from across the unit ran to room six. All except for Sam. She knew there was no hope.
When she arrived at the room entrance, a group of nurses were working on the unresponsive patient, starting CPR and pushing medicine through his IV line, but Sam made no move to help out. She stood at the door and watched as the spirit of a gentleman came alongside her.
He wasn’t the same as the pale, bloated, and worn out older man in the ICU bed. His spirit was vibrant, glowing, and much younger.
“Tell my wife I love her,” he said to Sam. “She needs to know.”
Sam felt the warmth of other spirits over her shoulder. Peering back into the ICU, she saw the apparitions of a man and a woman, their outlines faint, waiting just before the ICU entrance.
“They’ve come for you,” she told him. “Best to not keep them waiting.”
With a last smile, he floated toward the entrance, and then with a flash of light he was gone.
When Sam veered her gaze back to the team working feverishly to save their patient, she sighed. How could she tell them that it was already too late?
Instead of giving away her secret, Sam returned to her table.
She stared blankly at her paperwork as the shouts of her coworkers still working on the dead man echoed throughout the ICU. How could she even consider a relationship with any man? Who would want a woman who could talk to the dead? Her mind clouded over with visions of giving herself to Doug, and all the things he would do to her.
“How was being suspended from Randy’s ceiling liberating?”
“Because it was the one thing I swore I would never do during sex. But when I did it, I found out that it wasn’t as bad as I thought. I even enjoyed it, and learning that about myself gave me the confidence to be who I wanted. I started lifting weights because I wanted my outsides to match the strength I felt on my insides. That directed me to Roger. If you ask me, Sam, that’s what you’re missing … your inner strength. It doesn’t matter if you find it through mountain climbing or bondage. The point is that you have to find it. You have to test your limits to find out what you’re made of, and only then can you move on. I think you need to explore that with Doug, so you can put your father and the past behind you.”
With a dismissive shrug, Sam picked up her black pen. “I have put it behind me.”
“No, you haven’t. You’re stuck, Sam. You’re stuck between the past and your future. Sometimes you need a swift kick in the ass to propel you forward. You should do this.”
In some strange way, what Piper said made sense. Sam had initially been terrified of taking her traveling nurse contract, thinking she would have a tough time making it on her own. Even so, she had succeeded, and in the process had learned a lot about herself. Embracing the opportunity for change had led her to a new life in a new city. Where could Master Morgan take her?
Sam sat down in her chair. “How would I … I mean, how do I go about being with him?”
“Remember the things we talked about the other night? Letting him come over and help you with repairs around the house and such. Just do that, and he will know you’re interested.”
Sam was about to ask another question when she felt that kick in her gut; the undeniable feeling that something was about to happen. Something bad. Taking an inventory of the other beds in the ICU, she spotted where the feeling was coming from. Darkness was hovering in front of the glass door of bed six.
“Piper,” she pointed to bed six. “Something is wrong and—”
She never got to finish before the alarms on the main panel at the nurses’ station started blaring.
“Code blue, bed six,” the tech sitting behind the panel yelled out.
Nurses and techs from across the unit ran to room six. All except for Sam. She knew there was no hope.
When she arrived at the room entrance, a group of nurses were working on the unresponsive patient, starting CPR and pushing medicine through his IV line, but Sam made no move to help out. She stood at the door and watched as the spirit of a gentleman came alongside her.
He wasn’t the same as the pale, bloated, and worn out older man in the ICU bed. His spirit was vibrant, glowing, and much younger.
“Tell my wife I love her,” he said to Sam. “She needs to know.”
Sam felt the warmth of other spirits over her shoulder. Peering back into the ICU, she saw the apparitions of a man and a woman, their outlines faint, waiting just before the ICU entrance.
“They’ve come for you,” she told him. “Best to not keep them waiting.”
With a last smile, he floated toward the entrance, and then with a flash of light he was gone.
When Sam veered her gaze back to the team working feverishly to save their patient, she sighed. How could she tell them that it was already too late?
Instead of giving away her secret, Sam returned to her table.
She stared blankly at her paperwork as the shouts of her coworkers still working on the dead man echoed throughout the ICU. How could she even consider a relationship with any man? Who would want a woman who could talk to the dead? Her mind clouded over with visions of giving herself to Doug, and all the things he would do to her.
Similar Books
