She was sitting in the rose garden that was meant to help calm the nerves of those who had family members in the hospital. Nate told her that Nick and James were in the middle of a nasty argument in the hallway earlier and she hadn�t seen Nick to ask him what had happened. He left and went to get something to eat with Larry.
�What?� She hadn�t expected James to answer the phone with such anger.
�Are you ok?� She instantly regretted asking him such a question. He was probably still angry with her for ignoring his idea to get married soon.
�No I�m not alright.� She waited on him to tell her how much it hurt him that she ignored his idea.
�Why the fuck is Nick paying your bills?� She couldn�t help but gasp when she heard what he said,
�He told me he�s paying for all your bills. Damn Quinn, I mean not only does he know our business but you�ve got him paying your bills?� She didn�t know what to say. She didn�t know if there was anything she could say to him.
�Do you know how that makes me feel? And to have him gloat about that shit in my face. He couldn�t wait to tell me. It made his fucking day. How could you put me in that position?�
�Put you in what position?� It was the macho act. Men couldn�t take it.
�Making me look like I can�t take care of you.� Her eyes began to water as she listened to him,
�How do you think I feel? While you�re sitting there feeling bad about not being able to take care of me I have two people who are trying to do it because I cant do it for myself. How do you think that makes me feel? Think about me.� She wasn�t happy about the situation she was in and he was complaining about not being able to do something that wasn�t his responsibility anyway.
�Do you want me to help you or do you want him to help you?� What kind of a question was that for her to answer. It was unfair.
�I would prefer to take care of myself.� He sighed heavily into the phone,
�That doesn�t answer my question.�
�I would prefer you to help me.�
�Tell him you don�t want him to help you.� Even though she understood why he demanded such a thing in her opinion it just wasn�t smart. Nick could help her without blinking an eye. It would be a struggle for James.
�James, he just wants to-� Before she could tell him this was Nick�s way of apologizing and trying to make up for his past mistakes he cut her off.
�You know, when we get married, whatever it is that he was able to give you when you guys were together, I can�t give you. I�m not rich. I can�t fly you around the world. I can�t buy you expensive jewelry and buy a big house. But I�ll tell you what I can do and that�s love you. Love you more than he ever has. I love you Quinn. And I don�t understand why you can�t do this one thing for me and tell him you don�t want his help.� It was almost as if he were pleading with her.
�I may not be able to pay for your mortgage and my rent and two of everything but when we�re married I promise you I will take care of you. We will never need for anything.� She could hear the desperation and the pain in his voice. She couldn�t deny him his request,
�Ok. I�ll tell him. I won�t let him help me. I won�t and I love you too.� They said their goodbyes and she turned her phone off before heading back inside the hospital. Soon she was going home to sleep in her bed again and she wanted to see Mac again.
She walked in the waiting room and saw the band, the two wives and a couple of the bodyguards standing around talking. When she entered the room it suddenly became quiet. Nick walked over to her,
�Brian and Leighanne are leaving for LA tonight. We were all just saying goodbye.� He led her over to them and she was so embarrassed because of her previous behavior she didn�t even want to be around them. She wanted desperately to apologize to Brian for her outburst but she was afraid he wouldn�t accept her apology. She smiled shyly down at everyone and there was that uncomfortable silence. It was too quiet for her to ask Brian if she could talk to him alone. What if he said no. Everyone would hear and she would be even more humiliated. She glanced over at Brian and he smiled at her,
�I�m so glad things are going well with Mac. I know God will watch over her.� He stepped closer to her when she smiled and the tears ran down her eyes,
�Why don�t you let me see her one last time before we leave?� She nodded her head and looked at Nick before leading Brian out of the room.
They stood over Mac�s bed and Brian smiled,
�She really is a beautiful girl Quinn. You and Nick are blessed.� She nodded. She didn�t bother to look up at him,
�I didn�t mean the stuff I said about the religion and all that. That lady made me so mad and I took it out on you. It was wrong.� He handed her a tissue from the box that sat next to Mac�s bed,
�I know that. I know you�re a nice person who wouldn�t say things like that. And I also know you were, and still are under, a lot of stress.� She dabbed her eyes,
�It was still wrong of me to take it out on you. You didn�t deserve it. You�ve never done anything to me. You�ve been nothing but nice to me.� He shook his head,
�Thank you. Just do me a favor. Make sure Nick doesn�t do too much damage to our first baby.� She nodded,
�That�s a definite promise.� They sat there for a couple of minutes in silence as they both watched MacKenzie sleep. The door opened and they looked to see Leighanne peaking her head in,
�Is it ok if I say goodbye too?� She looked at Brian before nodding her head,
�Yes. Its fine.� She walked over and stood between Brian and Quinn. For the first time, Quinn actually looked at her and she was quite pretty.
�Quinn. Kristin told me you overheard us talking about you and all that stuff a long time ago. About you dating Nick not being a good idea.� Her stomach dropped at the mention of that incident. It was one of those times when she felt like she was being put in her �place�.
�Let me explain my part in that. I wasn�t agreeing with them. I was just telling Nick that they had a point when it came to being concerned. Is it wrong that Nick might get harassed and the group would suffer if he dated you? Yes, but it�s still a reality.� She placed her hand on Quinn�s shoulder apprehensively,
�That�s all it was. I wasn�t saying he shouldn�t date you. I still think you and Nick look great together.� She looked at Leighanne and she believed her. She remembered when they were playing flag football and she did say something along the lines of her and Nick looking good together.
�Thank you. I�m sorry about what I said the other day. I was wrong for that.� Suddenly she was enveloped in a tight hug thanks to Leighanne. She was surprised to say the least. Sharing a hug with Brian�s wife was something she never saw coming. It was becoming a bit uncomfortable and she pulled back. Leighanne smiled at her,
Chapter 94 contd