Stand of Redemption (2 page)

“The high rollers left without giving me a tip; I fudged the credit card slip. Will you fix it b
efore you put tonight’s receipts in the office; credit it back to his account?”

His face became furious. “Those fuck-wads stiffed you?”

“Yes. I was so mad I filled in the tip line. I’m sorry. Are you going to tell?” Ria bit her lip. She didn’t know what she would do if she lost this job.

Chris’s face softened. “Don’t worry; I’ll take care of it.”

Ria reached out, giving him a quick hug. “Thanks, Chris.”

Chris stood in the doorway, watching the waitresses get into their cars, before going back inside.

After locking her doors, Ria sat in her car for a few moments to gather herself. She needed that money so badly. She had come from a life of luxury to this. She hated herself for it, but she had also promised herself it was only temporary. She would get herself and her mother out of this situation if it was the last thing she did.

Chapter 2

“What are the cause and symptoms of a febrile seizure? Ria!”

Ria jumped and saw the exasperated expression on her friend Lacey’s face.

“Wake up! You’ve got to be ready for the exam.” Her pointy finger prodded her shoulder.

“Sorry, Lacey, I had a late night,” Ria explained.

Ria didn’t mention that she’d stayed up half the night, worried about the repercussions from giving
herself that tip. It hadn’t mattered that she’d done the right thing in the end.

Lacey
folded her arms across her chest. “Unless you were up all night studying, that’s no excuse!”

Ria rolled her eyes.
Lacey knew damn well that Ria had spent the night working.

“Couldn’t sleep last night; work sucked,” Ria replied.

“If you don’t pass the exam, you’ll be stuck there even longer,” Lacey snapped.

Ria sighed.
Lacey was right. Ria was studying for the paramedic cognitive exam. She had been an EMT before and had done so well she was often given the lead role when sent out for emergencies. That was, until she was fired for being disrespectful. She wasn’t able to get another EMT position because it was a small world, and no one wanted to hire someone with an attitude. It hadn’t even been her fault. If not for that Rocky-impersonator, she would still have her well-paying job, not showing the depth of her cleavage.

Lacey
was the perfect study partner. She was currently in med school, and had fully dedicated herself to being one of the top students in her class. She didn’t take kindly to slackers, considering how hard she worked to obtain her own success, and didn’t want to hear Ria’s excuses. For Lacey, there were no good excuses for not accomplishing a goal. Ria respected her dedication; she just wished Lacey was a little more understanding of the responsibilities Ria held.

They had met each other their freshmen year of high school.
Lacey’s family were all highly educated and expected the same from her. Ria wasn’t as studious, and her family couldn’t care less about her education. Unfortunately, Ria wasn’t one to sit in a classroom, but she was still a hard worker.

Becoming an EMT
had required training in the classroom, yet it had also consisted of a lot of hands-on, keeping Ria interested. Now, it was time to move up to the next level and become a paramedic. She felt guilty knowing that Lacey was taking time out of her busy schedule to help her study. With that thought, she picked up her mug and took a gulp of the lukewarm coffee to try to give herself a caffeine boost.

“Okay, febrile seizure… young child, rapid elevation in body temperature, loss of co
nsciousness, typical seizure actions. Emergency services called if seizure lasts longer than ten minutes with abnormal sleepiness and breathing problems.”

Lacey
nodded. “That should be enough info for the exam.” Her stern expression softened into a sweet smile.

Ria knew there was a lot more information behind all the questions, but
Lacey did a good job of making sure Ria didn’t waste her time on too many details, knowing she would pick up the details later. It was more important to study for what would likely be on the exam.

They studied for the next three hours before calling it a day. Then they talked about what to do for dinner that night.

“How about Chinese?” Ria asked. She had a coupon for buy one get one free, so it wouldn’t cost too much.

Lacey
stared at her. “This is how you pay me back for helping you study?”

Ria smiled mischievously at her friend. “Come on; maybe he isn’t working today.”

“Let’s go somewhere else, and I’ll pay,” Lacey offered.

“No, you paid last time. It’s my turn,” Ria replied firmly. Her friend hated going to Ria’s f
avorite restaurant because she had a burning hatred for one of the waiters working there.

Peter was a really nice guy, as far as Ria was concerned. However,
Lacey felt Peter was lazy and partied around too much, while Peter felt Lacey was too boring and studious for her age.

“Okay, then, but when it’s my turn, I’m picking El Grande,”
Lacey said vengefully.

Ria nodded her head.
Lacey believed in fair play. Whenever she went to a Mexican restaurant, the waiters treated her to abundant attention and drinks. By the time they would leave, she was often drunk and felt like J-Lo.

Both women gathered their things.

“Ready?” Ria asked as Lacey touched up her makeup.

Ria hid her smile. For someone who declared her dislike of Peter often, she was making sure she looked her best.

“Yep. Let’s go,” she replied, snapping the compact shut.

They always studied at
Lacey’s apartment as Ria barely had enough room for herself and her mother in her own. Lacey had wanted her to share the apartment with her, but Ria had been unable to leave her mother behind, even at the cost of being dragged into her world.

Lacey
often offered money to Ria, but Ria couldn’t take it. She didn’t want to feel indebted, even though she knew Lacey wouldn’t expect to be paid back. Ria didn’t envy Lacey’s money and taste for the fine things in life, either. She merely wanted to be in the situation to care for herself and her mother. Ria knew she had to find a way to fix the precarious situation they were in, though.

They stepped into the elevator and made their way to
Lacey’s Avalon. Ria liked to tease her about her staid car, but Lacey said comfort was more important to her than being flashy. Ria didn’t disagree; her own piece of shit felt like she was sitting on a tractor when she drove.

They slid onto the leather seats and made their way to the restaurant. It was a local place, off the main strip. Most tourists tended to stick to the chains and even most of the locals didn’t realize how good the small restaurant was. It was one of Ria’s favorite places to eat.

As they walked in, they heard their names.

“My favorite ladies. Ria and
Lacey, where have you been?” Ria smiled at Peter. He always greeted them with a smile and usually gave her a big discount on food.

“Work and school, what else?” Ria replied with a smile.

“Oh, Ria, you must always make time for fun.” Peter winked at her. “Come out with me, and I’ll show you.”

Ria laughed and shook her head. He was a harmless flirt, yet she couldn’t help appreciating his flattery. He was friendly with
Lacey, but was always a little more reserved with her when Lacey didn’t return his friendly chat.

He ushered them to their usual table and went to get their drinks without asking them what they wanted. He always brought them a surprise mixed drink each time they came. So far,
they had all been delicious, and she looked forward to whatever concoction he brought them tonight.

“Ria, I think he likes you. You probably shouldn’t encourage him. We may need to stop coming here,”
Lacey said.

“What the hell, Lacey
?” Ria scowled at her. She was trying to hide the flicker of hurt in her eyes, but Ria had known her friend a long time.

“Do you really want to date a guy
who flirts with every woman he sees?” Lacey questioned.

“I thought you liked this place?” Ria asked.

“Yeah, it’s good food—period,” Lacey stated.

Ria started to snap back at her to quit being so obnoxious, but she chose to bite her tongue.
Lacey didn’t date often, and when she did, it was with men who shared her serious outlook on life. When a woman looked at Peter, her thoughts would be of sex—wickedly fun sex. Subsequently, Ria was sure Lacey found him disconcerting.

She liked Peter and coming here. She enjoyed returning the harmless flirtations, letting them take her mind off all the crap going on in her life. If she had to come without
Lacey in the future, she would. She had hoped Lacey would gradually ease up on him, but Ria had been wrong. Lacey was only becoming more antagonistic.

“Okay. Let’s enjoy whatever he brings us, okay? No worries.” Ria smiled at
Lacey and saw her relax.

“Great. He does make a fantastic drink.” As she leaned back in her chair and looked around the room, Ria glanced around the room, as well.

It was about half-full, and she had seen most of the people before on previous visits. She glanced past one of the corner booths and something caught her attention. She looked back. She recognized the man; he was the Rocky-wannabe who had gotten her fired from her EMT job.

“What’s gotten into you?”
Lacey asked. “Peter flirting with another customer?”

When Ria stared at her reproachfully, she had the grace to blush at her behavior, quickly dropping her eyes.

“Don’t look, but remember the guy who got me fired from Metro? He’s here,” Ria growled quietly.

Lacey
laughed out loud, causing Ria to scowl at her friend.

“That’s how you refer to him, as ‘the guy that got you fired’?”

“That’s one of the more polite terms I use.”

Lacey
laughed again, promptly turning her head to look at the man.

“I told you not to look!” Ria exclaimed.

Lacey quickly turned back to Ria. “Ria, you have told me over and over what happened that night. You should have just ignored his comments. The poor guy was obviously in pain, and you acted unprofessionally.” Lacey always had to give her honest opinion. She would never lose her cool with a patient. Moreover, she was right. It was an EMT’s job to soothe the patient, not insult them. Hell, if Ria had thought she could have gotten away with it, she would have strangled the obnoxious man in the back of the ambulance that night.

“Whatever you believe, you’re wrong. He thinks he’s God’s gift to women, and couldn’t b
elieve I wasn’t interested.” Ria huffed.

“That still didn’t give you an excuse.”
Lacey shrugged.

Ria knew
Lacey was still pissed for being so unprofessional. She hated that her friend was working in the bar.

Ria was disappointed in herself. That
ten minute ride had irrevocably changed her life, putting her back in the sights of those she had been hiding from. Lacey had given Ria an earful later that night for her behavior, telling her she should have laughed it off. Ria had taken her opinion in stride. They had remained strong friends through the years because neither of them pulled their punches, nor worried about hurting the others feelings.

She thought back to that ride to the hospital. She recalled thinking he had dozed off, that he must not be in much pain for him to be so quiet. In pain, men were usually quite vocal, while women were the more
stoic.

When she had turned back from talking to the driver, she had glanced down at him. He had been
staring at her with an odd expression. She had asked him if he was in pain, which had led to the jerk going into graphic detail of which part of his anatomy had been in pain. It hadn’t been her first time being propositioned in the back of the ambulance, but those patients—both male and female—had been several decades older and suffering from dementia.

She
had gotten angry yet had strived to control her temper and professionalism.

“Are you on any medications?”

“Just the pleasure of seeing you bent over me.” His eyes had been glued to her breasts as she leaned over to take his blood pressure.

She had ignored his comment, rolling her eyes.
Like I haven’t heard that line before
, she’d thought.

She had carefully stabilized his arm while feeling his gaze watch every movement she made.

“So you’ve never seen me fight?”

“No. I usually work another run, but the EMT for this one called in tonight.” She had then picked up her clipboard, beginning her paperwork that she would hand over in the ER.

“You’ll have to come to my next fight. I’ll make sure you have a front row seat.”

Ria had looked up from her paperwork. “No, thanks. I have better things to do with my time than watch two men deliberately hurt each other. Besides, it’s going to be a while before you’ll be fighting again.”

“I guess I’ll have to find another way to stay in shape. Want to meet me after I get released from the ER?”

“Seriously?” Ria batted her eyes and pretended to swoon before straightening and bursting into laughter. “Dude, not only are you not my type, but if I was going to date a fighter, it would be the winner, not the loser.”

His demeanor had changed in an instant. Ria hadn’t needed to imagine him as an opponent, his fierce expression causing her to slide down the bench seat, farther away from him.

When they’d pulled up to the ER, she had stepped out of the ambulance, turning to offer her assistance.

“I’m fine,” he’d snapped, taking the step down.

As he had stepped out of the ambulance, she had seen the head of the hospital come out to greet him personally, solicitously ushering him inside the ER.

She followed closely behind, turning her paperwork over to the chart nurse behind the desk. Her eyes had then followed the man as he was taken into a room, and the ER doctor promptly went in to check on him. In the time she had been an EMT, she had never witnessed someone receiving such preferential treatment.