Page 73 of Hale Yes
I’m realizing Dr. Nicolette Bell is anything but a doormat. I know now that she used apathy toward her family as a coping mechanism because she had been programmed to believe she was an afterthought. Despite the first half of her life, she rose and grew into the strongest woman I’ve ever known.
And I think I have a bit of a crush on her.
Not just her body but also her mind and her heart. She was still a teenager when she went to a hospital to hold a screaming premature infant every night because he didn’t have anyone else.
There are depths and layers to Nicolette that I never could have imagined, and I blurt, “I’m so proud of you.”
Confusion marks her forehead with two lines above her glasses. “Um, okay. Thank you. What did I do?”
I’m not sure what to say, so I go with, “For sharing your story with me. I know that was difficult.” Then I release her hand because these sandwiches require both. “Eat your dinner.”
“Yes, boss,” she replies with a smartass salute.
“So I’m guessing the rehab was successful for Angelica? She looked healthy when I met her.”
Nicolette wavers her head from side to side. “Yes and no. She was good for a while. Went to dental hygiene school and got a job. Then a year later, she got fired for stealing a tank of nitrous oxide from the dentist’s office. Of course, I learned all this from another cousin. Austin… you met him.”
“Yeah, he was a nice guy.” I inhale the rest of my sandwich. “Your parents didn’t talk about it with you?”
She takes a bite and chews before saying, “Nope. Never brought it up. They sent her off to rehab again. I would talk toPop about once a week, and he acted like nothing was going on. He’s the ostrich in this story, remember?”
“He was probably still embarrassed his teenager saw very clearly what was happening all those years ago, while he was a grown man who ignored the problem and got mad at you for trying to help.”
“I think so too.” Nicolette’s lips twitch. “You should think about a career in psychiatry. You’re pretty insightful.”
I pretend to shudder. “Talking to actual people all day, every day? No thanks. I prefer my lab work.”
She regards me with a scrutinizing gaze that makes my shirt feel too tight. “Not a fan of people?”
“Meh. I prefer to keep my circle small.”
“And am I in your circle?”
Her cheeks pinken the prettiest shade of rose, and I’m pretty sure she didn’t mean to ask that.
“You are most definitely in my circle, queenie.”And lately, you’ve been directly in the center of it, though I don’t divulge that part to her.
We share a smile, and then Nicolette reverts to the previous subject. “As far as I know, Angelica hasn’t used since that stint, though she does have her other issues.”
“Like what?”
Nicolette’s tone is weary as she rolls her eyes to the ceiling. “Oh, where do I start? She moved back home with my parents so she could save money. She can’t hold down a job for any amount of time because she keeps changing careers.” A giggle escapes her, and she leans forward. I find myself doing the same. “At one point she decided she wanted to be a restaurant manager. Now, mind you, she has absolutely no experience in the hospitality industry, so they told her she had to start out as a server.”
I shake my head and chuckle, imagining Angelica Bell serving food. “Bet that went over like a pole-vaulting walrus.”
“Yep, she didn’t last two weeks. Let’s see… she applied to be a secretary at a Baptist Church but didn’t make it past the interview because she said shit in front of the pastor. Then there was the photography phase. Pop even paid for her to take classes. She started booking outdoor sessions to get started until she had the money to open her own studio.”
I’m becoming amused by her Angelica career saga. “How did that one end?”
Her grin is just this side of smirky. “Out of the ten sessions she booked, she only showed up for five because it was too hot or she was tired. Then there was the one with the newborn. Angelica canceled in the middle because the baby was misbehaving.”
I’d just taken a drink of water and had to jerk my napkin to my mouth to keep from spewing it all over Nicolette. “The baby was misbehaving?” I ask incredulously.
“She was only a month old and started crying. Angelica said she couldn’t work like that and flounced out, like she was a world-famous artist or something. Of course she was raked over the coals in the reviews on her website, so she quit.”
I drag my hand down my face. “How are you two even related?”
Nicolette’s lips flatten. “Trust me, I ask myself that all the time.”
