Chapter Thirty Seven - A Bitter Sweet day...
Victor and Nikki were kissing in a frenzy of pain, love and passion, at last Nikki broke the kiss, out of breath, gasping for air.
They remained standing very close together, a bit overwhelmed.
Victor, who was holding Nikki’s face in his hands looked into her eyes that rose to meet his, he ran the tips of his fingers on her face, wiped the tears away with his thumb and said into her eyes “Oh Nikki...”
Nikki couldn’t respond with anything more but a teary whimper “Hmmm?”
Victor smiled at her as a tear rolled on his cheek and he sent a hand to get a strand of hair away from her face “You’re not going to lose me sweetheart, you’re not...not to death and not to...”
He paused and looked at her and with a shaky voice continued “And not to anything in the world...okay?”
He took a deep breath and continued “I never realized how much I missed you in my life as in the past few weeks, and the more time I spend with you... the more I miss you when you’re not with me, I love you...”
Another tear rolled on his cheek and Nikki reached out and let it slide on her finger as she looking at him with yearning eyes as she finally heard from him the words she longed to hear for so long....
He continued with a slight smile, looking into her eyes “I always have loved you, you know... even when I first met you and was so stubborn and wouldn’t to let you know how deeply you touched my heart...and even when we fought and said angry and bitter things... beneath the anger and pain...it was always there...I don’t think it ever went away, I don’t think it ever could...I don’t think I wanted it to ever go away “
Nikki shook her head, looking into his eyes “Neither have I...”
She paused and admitted “Well, maybe sometimes, when things were bad between us when I would lie in bed at night and wish that I would care less about you, it never happened though...I could never make it happen, no matter how hard I tried...” She said with somewhat somber expression.
Victor started to say something but Nikki stopped him “No, don’t say anything, it’s in the past now... all I care about is what’s happening now...”
Victor took a deep breath and groaned as a wave of pain hit him strongly, he half leaned, half set on the desk, trying to fight the sharp pain that spread in his entire right side.
Nikki put her hand over her mouth and said, looking at him, extremely concerned.
“Victor, I don’t like it, I really think we should go to the hospital before going to see Nicholas, the least they could do is give you something against the pain.”
Victor voice came out sounding more pained that he meant “It would go away in a few moments, I took a deep breath and that’s why it’s hurting so badly”
He looked up at her and saw her standing there, looking at him with concerned eyes and it just warmed his heart, in those moments he realized how much he loved her, he tried to reassure her “It’s a couple of badly bruised ribs, nothing life threatening”
Nikki protested “I *hate* seeing you in pain”
Victor with a soft smile, reached out and pulled her in between his arms, she reluctantly let him, knowing it was a way for him to end the discussion and say he won’t go to the hospital.
Nikki, still reluctant to give up on the idea frowned and said “You are so, so stubborn...”
Victor laughed “You’re not any better”
And grimaced again as another wave of pain hit him, he put his hand over his rib cage “Remind me not to laugh, okay? It hurts too much”Nikki leaned her forehead against his and mumbled “I hope we will have something to laugh about, and soon...”
Victor caressed her cheek and whispered “So Do I”
At that moment, Jack walked in, Nikki sharply turned around and breath out a sigh of relief when she realized it was only Jack.
Jack stopped on his track, realizing he interrupted an emotional moment “Oopps, Sorry, the door was ajar and I didn’t realize you were here... I was looking for Jill...”
Victor quietly said “That’s alright Jack, Nikki and I need to get going anyway”
Jack said “It was good to hear the accident wasn’t too bad, you both were very lucky”
Victor answered sadly “We know...”
Jack looked at both of them, they looked depressed and glum, so he asked “What’s wrong with you two?”
Nikki asked him “Aside from the obvious, You mean?" She sent a sad look toward Victor and told Jack “Someone at the prison told Nicholas we got killed in the accident”
Jack was shocked “You’re kidding me, right?”
Victor said, getting up from the table and standing up, not without difficulty “I wish we were, he was very distressed and upset when he called”
Jack shook his head in disbelief “Poor kid”
Victor sighed and said “Anyway, we’re heading there right now, we promised him we would come”
Nikki said “Yea, let me just get my purse...”
Jack stopped them “Well, if you want to calm Nicholas down I wouldn’t suggest it”
Nikki turned to him puzzled “What do you mean?”
Jack pointed out “Well, there is blood all over you clothes...You can’t let Nicholas see you like that”
Victor and Nikki looked at each other and realized he was right, Victor commented “I didn’t even notice I was bleeding that badly” he touched the bandage on his head and winced. Jack asked him “How on earth did you get the doctors release you?”
Nikki frowned at Victor and Jack gave out a smile “I think I should have kept my mouth shut, but seriously Victor, you can’t take too many chances with a head injury”
Victor shot him an irritated look because he was seeing Nikki was getting more and more worried, Nikki noticed that, rolled her eyes and said “Jack doesn’t have to say it for me to be worried, Victor, if you haven't noticed, I already am ”
Victor touched her cheek tenderly “I’m fine, I promise you that if I would feel worse I’ll tell you about it, so don’t worry”
Nikki gave in “Well, alright, but Victor, Jack’s right, we have to change before we go to see Nicholas” She paused and checked her watch “but visitation hours are almost over, and to drive from here to the ranch is almost 30 minutes this time of day”
Victor said “Lets go to the apartment, I’ll have Fennmors send us something from the stores downstairs, it’s 5 minutes from here”
Nikki nodded wearily “Yea, that sound like a good plan”
Victor looked at Jack that was standing there, staring into space “Jack, Will you take care of the middle east people bussiness?”
Jack didn’t respond, he was obviously thinking about something else, Victor asked “Jack, Are you hearing me?”
Jack snapped out of his thoughts and answered “What?... Oh, sure, consider it covered... listen, I got to go and find Jill...” He smiled at Nikki “Stay in touch, okay?”
Nikki nodded and Jack took off.
Victor looked after Jack leaving skeptically but said nothing, he said to Nikki “I’m going to call for a limo, because neither one of us can drive”
At that moment, Vicki and Cole walked in, Vicki asked her parents “So, did you manage to convince Nicholas you’re not dead?”
Nikki nodded “Yea...”
Vicki shook her head sadly “You should have heard him when I first talked to him, he thought I was lying to him...I didn’t know what more I could say to convince him” She looked at her parents “Where are you going?”
Nikki smiled, for the first time “To see your brother, and you’re coming with us”
Vicki broke into a smile “Really? Nicholas agreed to see us? Both of us?!”
Nikki nodded “Aha, for the very first time!”
Vicki said “Oh mom, finally!”
Nikki said “Yes, I know... hmm.. listen up, your father and I are going to his apartment because we both need to change, you go ahead before us, Just in case we’ll come too late”
Vicki nodded “Alright...”
She hugged her mother carefully, so she won’t hurt her arm “I’ll see you later, okay?”
Nikki nodded and smiled at her daughter.
Victor approached slowly and said “Well, the Limo would be here any second...” He looked at Nikki and then to Victoria and Cole and said “You two go ahead...” Vicki kissed her father on the cheek and she and Cole walked out the door.
The moment his daughter was out the door Victor set down heavily on the chair and Nikki set next to him, cupping his hands and taking them to her lips “Are you okay?”
Victor closed his eyes as he fought dizziness...”Yea...I just need to sit down for a moment”
Nikki said “Just a second, I’ll get you some water...”
She went to the bar and poured water to the glass and handed it to him, he finished the water in one gulp and said “Thank you”
Nikki said to him pleadingly “I know I won’t manage to convince you to go to the hospital now, but please, please promise me that as soon as the visit is over this is where we’re going.”
Victor nodded, he didn’t even want to argue with her about it “I promise”
He said detrimentally “Now come on, lets go”
He got up slowly from the chair, Nikki looked at him, smiled at him and offered him her arm, he took her arm in his as they walked outside.
After they picked up Nikki’s shirt on their way up they entered the apartment, Victor said “Quickly now, I really don’t want to miss Nicholas’s visitation hours”.
He looked around and said “I guess I will go upstairs to find a clean shirt to wear, we don’t have time to shower now”.
Nikki stopped him “No, I’ll go and find you something to wear, you stay here and sit on the couch”
Victor smiled and said “If you insist”
Nikki rolled her eyes at his direction and went upstairs to find him a shirt...
When She got back downstairs she saw him standing there without a shirt, a bandage over his chest, she winced when she saw him “Does it hurt as bad as it looks?”
Victor answered curtly “Nope”
Nikki glared up to him “You’re lying”
Victor looked at her softly and said “If I told yes, would that make any difference?”
Nikki said “Perhaps, Come here...”
He approached a step toward her and she leaned down and she pressed her lips against his injured right side, she looked up at him “Better?”
Victor told her quietly, touched by her gesture “Much...”
She handed him his shirt and he put it on and set down again.
Nikki took her from the box and glanced at Victor, that was sitting on the couch with a little smile, watching her about to undress...
As her shirt buttoned in the back she sent her hands to the back unbutton them when a short cry escaped her lips “Ouch!” she winced and held her right hand with her left, Victor was immediately at her side “What happened?”
Still in pain Nikki said through greeted teeth “I really shouldn’t have done that, It didn’t even hurt until now...Ou...god!”
She looked at Victor and said “You’re going to have to help me with that”
Victor said, smiling at her "Of course I will..."
Victor helped her to take the sling from her hand so she could get out of the shirt, she bit her lip as it was painful to straighten it.
Victor told her “Turn around”
Nikki did and gratefully let him unbutton her shirt for her, she muttered “From all the days to wear that thing”
Victor unbuttoned her shirt and took it gently and carefully off her shoulders, leaving her in a sheer black bra.
Nikki could feel his breaths getting shorter and smiled a little, she slowly turned to face him with a mischievous grin...Victor eyed her appreciatively up and down and Nikki’s breath caught in her throat...
She said softly “You know Victor, you can make a woman feel very self conscious...”
Victor whispered into her eyes “When the woman is as gorgeous as you, she has no reason to be...”
Nikki told him with a hint of a smile “Why thank you”
He closed his eyes and composed himself and said “Come on, I’ll help you get dressed”
Victor helped her to slide her arm into the shirt, that, luckily, buttoned on the front and to get her hand into the sling again.
Nikki leaned her forehead against his shoulder, trying to fight the pain and mumbled “This really isn’t our day...”
Victor fondled her hair and asked her worriedly “Is it better now?”
Nikki nodded “Yea, now that I’m not moving it anymore...”
She looked up to him with teary eyes and he held her face in his hands and planted a kiss on her eye lids and then said “Lets go...”
He wrapped his arm around her waist and she smiled at him as they walked out the door.
