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“I hate this, Josh. I hate this so much.” She sat up and slipped into his arms. His fingers caressed her bare back.
“I do too, babe. I don’t want to see you go through this.”
She leaned back, and his hands slid down to her hips. “Josh, my mom said I don’t understand when I’m the one that’s sick.”
He caressed her face. “Sophie, it’s not that we aren’t aware of what you are going through. Trust me. Every single one of us is dreading what this is going to do to you. I don’t think she meant it that way. You are her daughter. Try to imagine if one of the kids was going through this. How would you feel?”
Sophie laid her head against Josh’s chest. “Terrified. Kids aren’t supposed to die before their parents.”
“Nobody said anything about dying, Soph.” He held her close. “Your mom said your dad went home the other night and cried. She found him at the kitchen table eating Snickers with a glass of milk. He had tears running down his face.”
She raised her head and looked at him. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen my dad cry.” She was in shock.
“It is all about you, and what you are going through but we all have our own emotions too that we are trying to deal with. Some better than others.”
“I get it,” she replied then she leaned back on her palms. “Did you hire Jagger Crosby?”
“I did. Love this guy. Easy going. Great resume. Has worked for around four years in a landscaping business in Northern Kentucky as a supervisor. Prior to that he had a career in business. Just moved back to Cooper to be closer to his mother who is ill. He graduated from here.
“We got along great. Sam and Miguel promised to support him with whatever he needs when I’m out. He starts Monday which works well for me since I’ll be with you.”
“Miguel is fine now?” Sophie asked.
“He is.” Josh ran his finger down her face. She loved it when he touched her like this. A gentle, caress letting her know how much he adored her.
“Ally suggested she work in my place,” Sophie informed Josh.
He shrugged. “It would be good for her. Keep her busy and out of trouble. We don’t know how you are going to feel.”
“Should she be at work on Monday?”
“Fine by me,” Josh told Sophie. “She knows the business. She’s helped you out during the summer months when we’re swamped. She can help Jagger get his feet wet.”
Sophie shook her head. “I wonder if that’s a good, idea. He’s a great, looking guy. Our daughter is an impressionable eighteen-year-old.”
He shook his head at Sophie. “He’s twenty-nine, Sophie. He’s a professional and I think Ally would think he’s too old for her.”
A knock on the door made them turn their heads and look to see who would come in. Kai stuck her head inside the door. “We’re all here.”
“Come in here,” Sophie told her.
Kai shut the door behind her and walked over to the bed, standing behind Josh. “I heard you had a rough time with Ally when you got home.”
“I just can’t believe she quit school and that my parents went to Columbus and got her,” she frowned at Josh and Kai.
Kai laid her hand on Josh’s shoulder. He glanced up at her, giving her a smile. “Why can’t you believe that, Soph?”
“Duke and Daisy adore you and Ally. If Ally was upset like I know she was, of course, they would do whatever she asked to make it better. Ally wanted to be here. She thought it was best for you and for her. Imagine being ninety minutes away if Daisy was going through this. Put yourself in Ally’s shoes.”
She sighed. “That’s what Josh was telling me and I’m trying. I don’t want her to throw her future away because of my cancer. It will go away but she has this one chance to not mess things up. We know about that all too well.”
“We do. Things can happen that change your future like babies which we all accepted and made out just fine.”
“But it was hard,” Sophie interrupted her.
“Sure, it was difficult being an eighteen-year-old parent. We grew up with our kids for a while as we matured.”
“I don’t want that to happen to Ally.” Sophie stared at the blankets covering her lower half.
