Chapter 14

"It's been three days, Hunt."

Cass paced the corridor outside of Rebecca's room. Her patience was running out waiting for Rebecca to wake up.

"It's been forty-three hours, Cass," Hunter explained calmly. "Our goal was to begin waking her by forty-eight. I just looked at her charts, and I think we will make that goal."

Only forty-three hours?Cass frowned. It felt like weeks since she heard Rebecca's sultry voice. Months since she had seen Rebecca's incredible eyes. A lifetime since she had felt Rebecca's sexy body next to hers.

"So, the swelling has gone down?"

Hunter nodded. "Yes. And Rebecca's vitals are good. Dr. Lima will be here within the hour to examine Rebecca, and then we can wake Sleeping Beauty up."

"Okay." Cass blew out a breath. "Good. Can I be in there when she wakes up?"

"Sorry, Cass. You'll have to wait out here while all that is happening. But I'll come and get you as soon as I can." Hunter placed a hand on Cass's shoulder. "I'll be right there with her."

"Why is the party outside of Rebecca's room? Did we miss something?" Lainey asked as the group strolled in for their daily visit.

"Hunt says they're going to wake Rebecca up today," Cass announced with a toothy grin.

"Hunter says," Hunter began with her stern doctor's voice. "That Dr. Lima will be here soon to make that determination. But I do believe today is the day we start weaning her off the sedation medication."

Ellie bumped Hunter's hip as she walked past her to kiss Cass's cheek. "How are you holding up?"

"Excuse me, ma'am," Hunter whined. "I'm your wife. Why didn't I get a kiss?"

"Because you're on duty." Ellie stood on her tiptoes and whispered something in Hunter's ear.

Cass laughed. "Dude, your face is beet red! What did our sweet little Ellie say to you?" She waggled her eyebrows at Hunter.

"Sweet little Ellie," Hunter muttered. "If you only knew." Hunter's lopsided grin told the group all they needed to know. "Oh, hey. There's Dr. Lima," she pointed out, taking the attention off herself.

Cass was suddenly nervous. She didn't know why. She'd been waiting for Rebecca to wake up for what seemed like an eternity. So why the jitters now? She looked around for Aunt Wills.

"Where's Aunt Wills? We have to wait for her."

"I'm here, I'm here!" Willamena came rushing up to the group, looking a bit disheveled. "Sorry! My session with Dani and Claire ran a little long. But I'm here now. What's the plan?"

"My plan is to examine my patient," Dr. Lima answered. She glanced at the group, recognizing them all. Eve, Lainey, and Blaise were on the hospital board. Ellie was Hunter's wife. Dr. Woodrow was a renowned psychiatrist. Patty and Mo were exceptional nurses whom Dr. Lima would welcome in her OR any day. But this wasn't the OR. "I appreciate how close-knit your friendship is with Rebecca. However, there will be no audience for this portion."

"I've heard that tone before in the boardroom," Eve grinned. "Dr. Lima received experimental surgical equipment using that tone. Anyone up for a coffee while we wait?"

"You all go ahead," Cass answered. "I'm going to stay. Outside the room," she clarified for Dr. Lima. "But I don't want to be too far in case Rebecca asks for me."

"Same," Willamena chimed in. There were two chairs in the corridor. Perfect for the two nervous Nellies to keep each other company as they waited.

"Be aware that this process can take hours or days. It depends on Rebecca's response to being taken off the sedation. There's also a chance that Rebecca will wake up feeling confused or agitated. Patients respond differently to this procedure, so we'll have a better idea once Rebecca is fully awake." Once she was done, Dr. Lima nodded and disappeared into Rebecca's room, with Hunter following close behind.

"She said a lot without saying anything at all," Ellie said with a frown. "Perhaps we should convene at the diner while we wait." Obviously, that was directed at everyone except Cass and Aunt Wills, as Ellie knew they weren't going anywhere for the foreseeable. "Call us with any news?"

Cass smiled up at Ellie from her seat. "Will do, buckaroo!" She waved enthusiastically at the others.

"You're nervous," Willamena stated. "Overcompensating with exaggerated excitement."

"Are you shrinking me, Aunt Wills?"

Willamena glanced at Cass. "I am. I'm sorry. I'm nervous, and I don't know why."

Cass turned in her seat to face Aunt Wills. "You feel it, too? I have, like, this weird feeling in my tummy."

"It's fear of the unknown. The tumor may be gone, but we still have to wait for the biopsy results. Plus, we both know Rebecca doesn't like being uncomfortable. She's not going to be a good patient," Willamena laughed. Neither of them spoke of the warnings Dr. Lima gave. It was enough to hear it once.

"True. But that's okay. She can yell, cuss, whip me, or do whatever she needs to do. I can take it as long as she's with me and recovering."

Willamena shook her head, hiding a smile. Cass was so in love with Rebecca that it made Willamena's heart swell with pride. This is what she wanted for her niece all along. Someone who loved her enough to endure her own discomfort to make Rebecca happy.

"We don't need to talk about Mistress whipping you," Willamena teased, knowing it would embarrass Cass.

"I… Did I really say that?" Willamena nodded, and Cass buried her head in her hands. "Sorry."

"It's okay," Willamena chuckled. "I've come to terms with who my niece is and who you are to her."

"Have you? Before Rebecca, I thought this whole…" Cass looked around and lowered her voice. "BDSM thing was bullshit. I couldn't imagine being submissive to someone or getting some kind of pleasure from pain. I certainly didn't understand how someone could like hurting another person for the sake of sex. But even when Rebecca is in hyper-Mistress mode, she's conscious of how she's treating me. I've never felt more cared for …or more in control than when I give it up to her." Cass winced. "TMI?"

Willamena patted Cass's thigh. "You can't imagine the things I've heard as a psychiatrist. I think with Rebecca's past experience, she wanted to change the world she'd been thrust into. I believe the lifestyle is invigorating for her, but the way she was introduced to it… well, you know what happened there. She had to make it her own, and I think it helped more than just herself."

"It definitely helped me." Another wince. "What I mean is, I've learned to be more open and accepting. Even assertive. I don't automatically scoff at things I don't understand, you know? But I'm still not sure BDSM is the correct term for what Mistress offers. She's not a sadist. She doesn't want to see me in pain."

Well. Cass didn't think waiting for the docs to wake Rebecca would include a session with Dr. Woodrow. But talking kept Cass's mind busy enough to pass the time without too much restlessness.

"I wouldn't consider you a masochist either, Cass. Perhaps labeling what Mistress does isn't necessary. You both know what you need and want from each other. That's all that matters."

Cass smiled. "Yeah. We can keep the BD part, though."

"I am reducing the sedation,"Dr. Lima announced as though she was giving a seminar. "Heart rate and vitals will be monitored regularly. We'll perform simple cues to gauge her response as the medication wears off."

Hunter remained quiet. She had worked with Dr. Lima before and knew the instructions were not for Hunter's benefit but a running commentary on Lima's next steps. In her silence, however, Hunter began thinking of all of the side effects this medically induced coma could produce. Her hope was that Rebecca hadn't been under long enough to suffer the worst of those side effects.

"Dr. Vale?"

Hunter blinked, focusing on Dr. Lima. "Yes?"

"I asked if your friends were going to wait out in the corridor the entire time."

Hunter smiled. "Probably. Rebecca is very much loved."

"By you as well, I see."

Hunter nodded. "Yes. We met at one of the lowest points of her life. I was there at the happiest point of her life. I'll continue to be there for Rebecca and Cass. That's why I brought you in. I trust your work."

"The side effects are not inevitable, Dr. Vale," Dr. Lima said, seemingly having read Hunter's earlier concerns. "However, you should prepare for the worst scenario. Rebecca is healthy, fit, and relatively young. Those factors rule in her favor."

Hunter glanced over at Rebecca, chuckling. "She'll love you for saying she's young. Relatively or not." She placed a hand on Rebecca's foot, squeezing gently. "Rebecca is strong. This is nothing compared to what she's survived before. I'll follow Cass's positivity vibe she has going."

"Very well. I'll be back in an hour to check on Rebecca. I've left instructions with the nursing staff to page me immediately if there are changes before I return."

"If you don't takeit easy, you'll end up in a bed next to Rebecca."

Cass dropped from the bar she was hanging from. It had been five hours since Dr. Lima reduced Rebecca's meds, and Rebecca still wasn't awake. Cass's restlessness got the better of her, and Hunter sent her to the physical therapy ward to work off some of that energy.

"What I wouldn't give to be in bed next to Rebecca," Cass panted, taking the offered towel from Ellie. "Thanks. Is she awake?"

"Hunter is in with her now." Ellie handed Cass a bottle of water. "She said Rebecca is coming around, so I came to get you from torturing yourself."

"Torture is not being with Becca." Cass sniffed her underarms. "Should I take a shower?"

Ellie sucked in her lips to keep from laughing. "I'm sure Rebecca will love seeing you whether you're stinky or not."

Cass's eyes shot to Ellie in shock. Ellie's cute little mischievous smile did more to calm Cass's nerves than the workout she just did.

"You're mean. But probably right," Cass grinned. "Is Aunt Wills here? I know she stepped out to get food earlier."

"Mmhmm. She got back about an hour ago."

"Shit, I've been in here that long?" Cass glanced at her watch. "That explains why my arms are like jelly."

"You know, you could have meditated with me. That probably would have been less stressful on your body."

"Nah, the physicality of weightlifting really helps my concentration. I mean, no offense to your yoga stuff. Rebecca gets me to do that occasionally, but I guess I haven't mastered how to do it. I can't get my brain to stop thinking stupid things while I'm trying to relax."

Ellie smiled. "People don't realize how difficult meditating is. Some believe it's just sitting there, maybe chanting here and there. But it is something you have to practice. You should keep at it with Rebecca. You'd be surprised how it can change your life."

Cass wrapped a sweaty arm around Ellie, chuckling when Ellie let out a soft ‘ew.' "I will keep that in mind. I do know that yoga and meditation certainly help Rebecca in many different aspects of our lives together."

"Oh, I know. Hunter says the same about me," Ellie winked. "Now, let's go see your girl."