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He owed her at least that much.
Still, when he reached his room and the bed was empty, the thudding began in his heart. He had been working in the Home for three years and he knew what that might mean. No. Mr. O had been out in the heat unloading furniture. How could anything happen to Andie and he wouldn’t know it?
He grabbed a work shirt and took off his sweaty undershirt as he ran. But the sound of a popular song came from the recreation room. Cat and the children. Singing. Andie had to be with her, but how? How could she? He knew the rules of the Home. She was supposed to be in his room, not associating with the other children.
The rec room was on the third floor, so he had to go down stairs again. He opened the doorway to the stairs, following the golden throaty voice. He pushed open the doors to the rec room and every head, except Andie who was propped up in a bed, turned toward him. “Mike!” Several of the children shouted out to him.
He took time to greet each child with a touch or a ruffle of the hair, working his way back to Cat who sat next to Andie’s bed with two nurses he knew. Cat finished the song and those who could, clapped. Cat clapped hard for those who couldn’t, encouraging them.
She looked calm and fresh, as if they hadn’t fussed in the van. Steady. Not afraid of the braces and illness that surrounded her.
“What’s going on here?”
“Oh Mike.” Mary Beth Kelly, one of the nurses, exploded. “We have had a lovely time getting to know your daughter and your future wife here. They are delightful.”
“Really?” Mike folded his arms. He glowered at Andie. “You aren’t talking about this child are you?”
“Of course they are.” Andie burst out.
“What a darling child she is. A lovely voice to match her mother.”
“And father,” Rita Bauknight, the other nurse, put in. “How could Andie help but have a wonderful voice?”
“Truly. Even if she’s a bit of a grouch.”
Mary Beth waved a hand. “There’s nothing wrong with her.”
“I have polio,” Andie chimed up.
“Well, that,” Rita spoke out. “But we are going to work hard on that. Won’t we?”
Andie actually smiled at the red-haired woman. Little minx. Like her mother. Cat stood up and went to him, reaching out her hand. “We can look at houses tomorrow. I don’t want you to get in trouble for too much time off.”
Rita shook her head. “Mike’s been our rock here at the Home. Imagine our delight in finding out he had you two. So close mouthed about it all.”
Cat reached an arm around him. “Hard for him to know, when I didn’t tell him. But we’re going to make it good. Won’t we, Mike?”
He swallowed hard. Overwhelmed by Cat’s words, as well as the generosity of the two nurses, he didn’t know what to say. He reached around and took Cat by her small waist. “We will. We’re going to make it right. As soon as possible. If that’s fine by you, chocolate drop.”
Andie’s eyes blinked very fast and she boomed out in her strong voice. “I want everyone to be nice to one another. That’s all I ever wanted.”
The thickness invaded his throat again and he reached over to her, patting down her braids and kissing her on her forehead. “Of course, sweet. Just because you want it, we’ll all be nice to one another. Especially me and your mother.”
The adults in the room laughed as did the children, who really didn’t know what they were laughing at, but in their current condition, children always opted for laughter over tears.
“Cat, it was the worst day of my life when I left you. I’m sorry. I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”
A slow feline smile crept across her beautiful face. Then stopped. “I need time.”
“I’ve got all the time in the world for you.” He wrapped his arms around her neck, not minding the slow nervous laughter of the children or the shy laughs of Mary Beth and Rita. Everything he wanted was in this room, at arms-length. The sweetness of life had opened to him.
Finally.
About the Author
Piper G Huguley, named 2015 Debut Author of the Year by Romance Slam Jam and Breakout Author of the Year by AAMBC, is a two-time Golden Heart ®finalist. and is the author of “Migrations of the Heart,” a three-book series of historical romances set in the early 20th century featuring African American characters, published by Samhain Publishing. Book #1 in the series, A Virtuous Ruby, won Best Historical of 2015 in the Swirl Awards. Book #3 in the series, A Treasure of Gold, was named by Romance Novels in Color as a Best Book of 2015 and received 4 ½ stars from RT Magazine.
Huguley is also the author of the “Home to Milford College” series. The series follows the building of a college from its founding in 1866. On release, the prequel novella to the “Home to Milford College” series, The Lawyer’s Luck, reached #1 Amazon Bestseller status on the African American Christian Fiction charts. Book #1 in the series, The Preacher’s Promise was named a top ten Historical Romance in Publisher’s Weekly by the esteemed historical romance author, Beverly Jenkins and received Honorable Mention in the Writer’s Digest Contest of Self-Published e-books in 2015. A Champion’s Heart was named by Sarah MacLean of The Washington Post as a best romance novel selection for December 2016.
