AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’ll be there.” He watched her leave with the baby before telling Nellie to call him if she needed him.
He went up the elevator to the ICU and stopped at the nurses’ station to ask about Kelly. He showed his ID. “Could you tell me how she’s doing? We’re taking care of her baby.”
The reserve drained out of the nurse’s brown eyes at therealization he was more than a police officer. “No change. Still on a vent.”
“Is she going to live?”
The nurse’s gaze flickered. “We’ll do the best we can.”
His fingers curled into his palms. That didn’t sound good. “Thank you. Is it possible to see her? I’d like to reassure her that her baby daughter is doing fine.”
The nurse hesitated before pointing to the room. “Just a minute.”
He thanked her and went to Kelly’s room. Myriad beeping and suction noises filled the room. Tubes and contraptions were connected to her. Her eyes were closed, and she was so very pale that she hardly looked alive.
Though he wasn’t sure she could hear him, he leaned down and spoke into her ear. “This is Detective Lucas Bennett. Carly Harris is taking good care of Caroline. She’s eating and doing well. She and Noah enjoy being with each other too. But nothing can take the place of her mother. You need to fight hard to get well, Kelly. Come back to your baby girl.”
There was no obvious response, but he put his hand on her shoulder and prayed for her before he left. He’d done all he could do for her, and she was in God’s hands. It hurt to think her little girl might grow up without parents. With a heavy heart he made his way out of the hospital to his truck. The events of the past few days left him reeling, and he didn’t know how to feel about much of anything. Especially Carly.
Thirty-Two
Gram put her hand on her stomach. “Heavens, I’m so nervous I have hummingbirds flying around in my stomach. What if she doesn’t like me? Do I look all right?” She patted her white hair. Her updo was firmly in place with bejeweled combs and pins, and she wore a blue flowered dress with a flowing skirt.
Carly hugged her. “You look beautiful.” She caught the aroma of Gram’s Tabu cologne. Her grandmother had nursed the last bottle Grandpa had given her for as long as Carly had been alive, and it was nearly gone. The fragrance could still be purchased, but Gram saved the one Grandpa had bought her for special occasions. This meeting was so important to her grandmother, and she planned to do whatever she could to make it a wonderful evening.
The door in the entry opened, and Lucas’s voice called out Carly’s name. “In the kitchen!” she called back.
His footsteps came toward them, and he smiled when he caught sight of them. “Look at you, Mary. You’re a vision. I need a kiss.” He caught her in a hug and brushed his lips across her cheek.
She smacked him on the arm when he let go. “Don’t be atease tonight, Lucas. I’m too scared to handle it.” Her voice wobbled. “To think I have a sister is so amazing. I can’t quite take it all in.”
He grinned. “She’ll love you. No one can help it. You’re the Pied Piper and impossible to resist.”
She smacked her lips. “I forgot lipstick. I’ll be right back.”
Carly smiled as Gram rushed from the room. “She’s been like that ever since she heard. Thanks for trying to reassure her.” She glanced at the clock on the wall above the sink. “Elizabeth and her family should be here any minute.”
“Both of the babies asleep?”
“Down for a nap at the same time. In the same bed too. They like being next to each other, and it’s adorable to see them all nestled together.”
The smile faded from his hazel eyes. “I saw Kelly. She’s still on a vent. No real improvement. The nurse wouldn’t tell me much.”
Carly winced. “I wish she had family here to look in on her, be with her.”
“I talked to her a minute—told her Caroline was doing well and the children love each other already.” He fell silent a moment. “I prayed for her, but I didn’t have a good feeling when I left. I’ll be surprised if she makes it.”
He didn’t seem as distant since Vince was shot. Maybe he needed her support regardless of how he felt about a relationship with her. She wanted to probe and ask what he was thinking, but now wasn’t the time. Not when the big event was about to happen.
He turned toward the window. “I think I heard a car.”
She followed him across the dining room to peer out thefront window. A white sedan was in the drive, and a man about Lucas’s age got out of the driver’s side. Carly’s pulse sped up. They were here! Lainey exited the passenger side and opened the back door to let Elizabeth emerge. The older woman looked even more like Gram in the undiluted sunlight, especially with her hair up like Gram’s.
Elizabeth had changed into something with more of a classic feel. Her black skirt and white blouse were tailored and refined. The black pumps gleamed, and she carried a tiny purse tucked under one arm. Her makeup was the perfect touch—not too much and in good taste. Maybe she was trying to impress her newly found sister.
Gram came down the stairs wearing a touch of pink lipstick. “Is she here?”
“They’re climbing the steps to the porch right now,” Lucas said.
