AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Hi, Syd, it’s Lily. I’m so sorry to bother you, but I’m in a bit of a bind. It’s ten-fifteen. Could you call me back as soon as possible?”
A sinking feeling told Lily that if Sydney hadn’t picked up the phone, that probably meant she was busy. It would probably be a while.
Lily scrolled through her list of contacts, trying a few, but receiving voice mail after voice mail.
“Why don’t you just call Uncle Cullen?” Megan insisted. “He’ll come and get us. He told me that he would always be there for us if we ever needed him.”
Lily didn’t look up from her phone. “He is there for you, Megan. Your uncle Cullen is a very good man. I just don’t want to bother him.”
As a last resort, Lily dialed Kate Thayer’s number. Kate was married to Liam Thayer, Cullen’s colleague at the hospital. Liam and Kate had told her that Cullen was in need of a nanny.
“Hello, Lily?” Kate said. “How nice to hear from you.”
After reaching so many voice mails, Lily felt her heart leaping at reaching a real live person.
“Oh, Kate, I’m so happy you picked up.”
“What’s going on?”
Lily explained the situation, sheepishly admitting she didn’t have a subscription to a roadside-assistance program and that they hated to bother Cullen at the hospital.
“Not that I want to bother you,” she said. “But is there any way you can help?”
“Lily, I’m so sorry, but I’m in New York on business. If I were there I’d be happy to help.”
As the president of the Macintyre Family Foundation, Kate was in charge of a multimillion-dollar nonprofit organization. Of course she wouldn’t be sitting around waiting for something to do or someone to rescue. But it had been worth a try.
“Thank you, Kate,” Lily said. “I hope I didn’t interrupt you.”
“No, of course not,” Kate said. “I’m happy you felt comfortable enough to call me. Hey, wait a minute. I have an idea. Let me call my office manager, Becca Flannigan. She might be able to meet you and take you to get some gas. Where are you?”
Before Lily could answer, the call-waiting tone sounded. Lily pulled the phone away from her ear and saw Cullen’s name on the display screen. Her heart nearly leaped out of her chest; then her entire body went numb. For a fleeting moment she thought about not answering, but she knew that wasn’t an option. “Kate, Cullen is beeping in. May I call you right back? Or better yet, so as not to bother you, why don’t you just text me Becca’s number and I’ll call her? That way you won’t have to be the middle person and you can get back to work.”
“Sounds perfect,” said Kate.
Lily thanked her again before ending the call and picking up Cullen’s.
“Hello, Cullen?”
“Hi, Lily. Is everything okay? I just picked up an SOS text from Megan. She said you were stranded along the side of the road. I’m on my way to the car. Where are you?”
* * *
“Cullen, I’m so sorry about this,” Lily said as he popped open the trunk of his car and removed the red gas can. “You didn’t have to come all the way out here to rescue us. I had someone lined up to bring us some gas.”
Rescue us. The words resonated with him and he felt the edges of his mouth turn up. He’d been so angry when he’d gotten the text from Megan, but standing here now, all his anger melted away. Lily Palmer was feminine and graceful, but something in her posture and the apologetic expression on her face told him she wasn’t fond of being rescued. He wondered how much of her hesitancy over calling him stemmed from the kiss they’d shared last night.
“I told Megan we didn’t want to bother you at work,” Lily said. “I had someone lined up to bring us some gas. And where on earth did Megan get a cell phone? I had no idea she had one.”
“It’s a disposable phone,” he said. “I got it for her to help her feel more secure. She and her siblings have been through so much change. I just thought it would help her feel better to know I was only a phone call away. A lifeline.”
Lily’s mouth formed a sympathetic O. “Of course,” she said. “I didn’t mean to be insensitive. I was just a little surprised.”
