regular doctor gave her the go ahead to drive and since she still had some
trouble getting around, she grudgingly agreed.
Sam was sleeping on the couch when she was again awakened by noises in the
hall. She lifted up and saw Jess and Frank in the hall just like the previous
night. What in the hell are they up to? She wondered to herself. Frank again
passed something over to Jess, kissed her on the cheek and headed back into
the guest room. Sam's curiosity was overflowing and she bit her lip to keep from
calling out to her sister. If they wanted me to know, they'd tell me. She thought
sighing as she lay back down.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kim and Jess left bright and early to head home. Sam wasn't able to get Kim
alone to ask her what was going on. She knew something was happening. Kim
was positively glowing and Jess looked like she was walking on air. Add to that
the fact that Frank had a huge grin on his face. Sam was about to explode with
curiosity. Kim and Jess promised to come back the following weekend and Sam
swore to herself she'd get Kim alone and find out just what the hell was going
on.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The week had passed slowly for Sam. She was tired of being cooped up and
had moped around most of the week. She just couldn't seem to let go of the
thing with Riley. The redhead slipped into her thoughts and dreams constantly.
Frank had taken her to her physical therapy appointments during the week. She
was exhausted after her sessions with the therapist and swore the man must've
worked in a torture chamber in a previous life. Her therapy took place at the
hospital and she found herself scanning the crowds of people as she navigated
the halls hoping to see Riley. At the same time, she prayed she wouldn't run into
her. The constant churning of her emotions was taking its toll on her. She wasn't
sleeping well and only eating when Frank or Cheryl insisted. She knew she
couldn't go on like this but just didn't know what to do.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was finally Friday. Frank had driven her to her doctor's appointment. She'd
hoped she would give her the go ahead to start driving. She loved her brother
and Cheryl but was ready to have her apartment back and try and return to her
life. She looked up when the nurse called her name.
"Dr. Shafer will see you now."
Sam made her way into the exam room and removed her sweats before
climbing up on the table. The door swung open just as she was getting settled
and Dr. Shafer walked in. She was in her mid-fifties with shoulder length brown
hair and dark brown eyes that seemed to sparkle. Her figure was still trim but
starting to show that middle age spread. Sam had seen her on Monday for the
final okay to start her physical therapy.
"Hi Sam, How are you doing today?" she asked.
"Not too bad. The physical therapy is a bitch. I swear Tony gets too much
enjoyment out of working other people to death."
Dr. Shafer laughed. "Oh you got Tony huh. He'll have you up and running again
in no time, he's tough but one of the best. Now let's have a look at that leg."
Dr. Shafer completed her exam and left while Sam got dressed. She returned to
the room and sat down obviously wanting to talk.
"Everything looks good Sam. I'd estimate a few more weeks of physical therapy
then you should be able to go back to light duty. So how are you doing
otherwise? Sleeping well? Eating?"
Sam squirmed slightly. She'd been a patient of Dr. Shafer's for several years and
the woman knew her well. She debated lying but knew the doctor would call her
on it.
"I haven't been sleeping that great and I eat ok... I guess." She hedged.
"It's not uncommon for officers who have been injured in the line of duty to
require some counseling. I'd be more than happy to set you up with a good
counselor I know."
Sam looked uncomfortable. She really didn't want to talk about Riley. For all she
knew Dr. Shafer knew the surgeon.
"It's not that, just some personal things I'd really rather not talk about. I just need some time to work things out."
Dr. Shafer waited until Sam finally met her eyes. She stared into Sam's eyes and
seemed satisfied with what she saw.
"Okay but if you change your mind let me know." She started to walk out the
door then turned. "Oh you can drive, just no long trips and don't overexert
yourself." She warned.
Sam smiled for the first time since entering the office. "Thanks Doc."
Chapter Six
Sam walked down the corridor heading for the cafeteria after having completed
her therapy. She was hot, tired, and sweaty; Tony had worked her hard. She'd
been out of the hospital for two weeks and happy to finally ditch the crutches,
she tried to use the cane he'd provided as little as possible. Frank and Cheryl
had left the previous Sunday to return to San Francisco so she'd been driving
herself to her therapy appointments all week. Jess and Kim had also spent the
weekend in San Diego then driven Frank and Cheryl to the airport on their way
back to Los Angeles. She had tried several times over the weekend to corner
Kim to find out what had gone on the previous weekend but the blond had
managed to avoid being alone with her. After seeing another meeting of Frank
and Jess in the hall, she'd tried to ask Jess about it but she conveniently
changed the subject. Sam had finally given up figuring they'd tell her when they
were ready. She appreciated everything her siblings had done for her but was
happy to have her space again. She still wasn't sleeping well and the well
meaning but constant hovering by her brother and his wife had been getting on
her nerves. She was still plagued with recurring dreams of Riley and couldn't
seem to get the beautiful redhead out of her thoughts no matter how hard she
tried. Just forget it Sam, she doesn't want anything to do with you. She reminded
herself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Riley had just completed an extensive surgery on a car accident victim. She was
tired and sweaty and just wanted something cold to drink. The machine upstairs
was out of order so she headed for the cafeteria. The last two weeks had taken
an emotional toll on her. She couldn't get thoughts of Sam out of her head and
had come to the realization she'd made a terrible mistake. She had been
miserable the last two weeks knowing she'd thrown something precious aside
using the excuse of not getting involved with a patient. The truth was Sam
McKenna scared her, she stirred feelings in her she didn't know she was
capable of feeling. She dreamed repeatedly of the beautiful cop and woke each
time soaked and incredibly aroused. She'd always considered herself to have an
almost non-existent sex drive until Sam entered her life. It wasn't just about the
sexual thoughts either; she missed the woman something fierce. She hadn't
realized how much she'd looked forward to and enjoyed their conversations.
Just being around the woman had made her feel good. She'd gone as far as
going down to patient affairs and pulling Sam's admission records to get her
phone number and address. She hadn't been able to convince herself to call and
still carried the piece of paper with the information in her lab coat pocket. Riley