"Because you hate people with money!" I said, looking up at her helplessly. "And I was afraid that if I brought it up, you would dump me!"
"But you thought that paying my bills in secret was a good way to avoid that?" she asked incredulously.
"I didn't...I...shit..." I said, shaking my head as I looked away from her.
"You didn't what?" she demanded.
"I didn't want you to be mad at me and I didn't want you to leave," I said, looking up at her as the raw emotion spilled out. "I haven't felt what I feel with you since Quinn died, and I didn't want to lose you. I want you to stay, Alex. Please. I'm sorry."
Confusion flashed across Alex's face as she listened to me confess my feelings. I watched her as she wrestled with whatever it was she was feeling before she spoke again.
"I don't want to leave you, Cam," she said softly as she moved around the bed and rested her hand on mine. "But you can't buy me. I don't like what money does to people. I don't like the way it changes them and makes them forget what's really important, and I thought you'd forgotten. I thought you were trying to buy me."
"I was just trying to help out," I said as I took her hand. "I knew how worried you were about Liz, and I didn't want you to have to worry about getting kicked out of school or your apartment while you waited for them to find you innocent. I knew they would. Cheating isn't you, Alex."
"You should have talked to me," she said.
"I know, I promise it won't happen again," I said, squeezing her hand. "Please stay."
Alex smiled as she leaned over and kissed me, then nodded. I wanted to pull her into my arms, but the minute I stretched out to her, I felt a sharp pain in my side and winced. Alex stood up and slid onto the bed next to me so that I could wrap one arm around her without having to stretch.
"Is this better?" she asked, looking up at me with a smile.
"Indeed it is," I said as I kissed her forehead. "We'll always find a way."
Chapter Forty-Two
Alex
It was a long road to recovery for both Cam and Liz, but by the time the spring flowers were blooming and the trees were turning green, both of them were out of the hospital and on their way to being well at last. Without her scholarship, Liz had been unable to afford her apartment. Cam had offered to pay her rent, but she’d refused, so I'd had her move in with me to share my place. She went to meetings or therapy every day, and managed to maintain her sobriety after being released, but her lies had caused a deep crack in our friendship.
I wanted to believe that she was on the road to recovery, but I no longer trusted her to tell me the truth. It created a stressful living situation and one that put both Liz and I on edge. I knew it couldn’t last for very long.
Liz found a job working at the diner where we'd spent so much time studying, and she loved being able to shoot the breeze with the wide range of customers. The constant movement helped her stay focused on what was important and her co-workers knew her challenges, so they treated her like a family member and kept a close eye on her. It wasn't perfect, but it was better than she'd been in a long time.
We'd talked about what had happened at the apartment the day Victor had almost killed us both, but Liz never wanted to talk about what had happened before that, and I didn't ask. I figured that she'd talk about it when she was ready. She did, however, tell me about the day she cheated and how she'd unintentionally implicated me when she'd done it. She'd apologized, and once I'd accepted the apology, we tried to move past it, though it was hard for me to trust her.
Once cleared of any wrongdoing, I moved forward with classes and my internship. Violet and the girls backed down and left me alone once they knew that Cam and I were a couple, and that his firm was running her father's security detail. I'd graciously thanked them for their kind thoughts after the incident, and then proceeded to do what I'd always done -- ignore them.
Mrs. Rikka watched me like a hawk when I returned to my rotation. I think she thought I was going to have a breakdown or something, but Leslie assured me that she was simply trying to ensure that I didn't get overwhelmed or overly stressed as I processed what had happened to me. I was required to attend counseling sessions to deal with the stress and process what had happened, but overall, I hadn't been traumatized by the incident. The therapist was not surprised, and told me that I might have some issues later when other stresses in my life surfaced. She let me go after ten sessions with the reminder that if things got stressful or overwhelming, I should come back and talk with her.
I passed my final exams with straight As and prepared to graduate. We would be walking across the stage at the Chicago Theater, and I wanted everyone who'd supported me to attend, so I asked for extra tickets and handed them o
ut. Cam wanted to include Danny and Leo, so we invited them as well. Liz and I shopped for a dress for me to wear under my gown and finally found one in Nordstrom's on Michigan Avenue where we also let a pretty young woman do our makeup and convince us to buy the products she'd used. All in all, it was a time of celebration.
The only downside of things was when, two weeks before graduation, Cam, Liz, and I were called to testify in Victor's trial. It was unsettling to see him again after all the damage he'd done, but when the verdict came down and the judge sentenced him to life in prison for kidnapping and attempted murder, we were all relieved. I watched him being led away in handcuffs and felt sad that he hadn't been able to find another way to deal with his rage and frustration.
"You okay?" Cam asked as I stood in the doorway of the courtroom staring at the empty stand.
"Yeah, fine." I nodded as I took his hand and turned my back on the past.
Chapter Forty-Three
Cam
It took me until Alex's graduation to make it through rehab, and even after the physical therapist pronounced me in tiptop shape, I wasn't sure I wanted to return to the fire department. I had developed a new perspective on life and I wasn't sure I wanted to spend my days running into burning buildings anymore. It was hard to admit, but once I told Alex how I felt, she encouraged me to explore other options.
Leo was adamant that I come work at CSC and help him deal with the surge in new business. I agreed to try that for a while, but I wasn't sure that's where I wanted to spend the rest of my time. Yet, I wasn't sure what other options I had. I'd spent the past decade running from what had happened to Quinn, so much so that I hadn't spent much time focusing on doing what would make me happy.