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“Absolutely not,” Robert said. “I know my brother, and seeing you here with Lily will be the best medicine for him.”
“Oh, um…”
No one talked until they reached William’s room. Robert went in alone and stayed in there for a solid five minutes. When he came out, he looked devastated and clapped Noah’s arm and whispered, “Don’t let her go in there alone,” before walking away.
So together, he and Lily went into the room, and he had to admit, it was a little shocking. The larger-than-life man he’d known for almost four years suddenly looked small and frail. Lily immediately went to him, bending over and resting her head on his chest. Noah could hear her quiet sobs and as he stepped closer, he saw William smiling wearily at him.
“Take care of my girl,” he said to Noah. “Everything’s going to be alright. I promise. I’ve got a lot of living left to do. You’re not getting rid of me this easily.”
She lifted her head and gave him a watery smile. “I’m going to hold you to that promise. I expect to be sitting and talking with you tonight about how I’m going to convince Mom and Dad to finally put a hot tub in our yard.”
William chuckled softly before going into a coughing fit.
“Oh! Oh, God! Oh God, I’m sorry!” Lily said frantically, but fortunately, William quieted down quickly. “Grandpa, I…”
“Don’t worry so much,” William told her, his voice weak and raspy. “Tell those doctors to get this show on the road. I’m ready to get this cancer out of me.”
She nodded but started to cry again. That’s when William looked up at him. “Don’t let anyone give you any grief today,” he said, this time his voice sounded a little stronger. “This is where you belong. Here. Not at the office. The most important job for you is to make sure Lily is okay, understand?”
“I do,” he said solemnly.
Lily kissed him on the cheek before heading out of the room. Noah turned to follow her when he heard William say, “I knew you were the one.”
But when he turned around to look at him, William’s eyes were closed and he looked like he had fallen asleep.
Knew I was the one? What one?
With no choice, he joined Lily in the hallway just as the orderlies were coming to take William up to surgery. They stood to the side and waited until he was wheeled away, and then Noah held her while she cried some more. It was impossible to say how much time had passed, but it was safe to say it had been a while.
“Come on. We should go find your uncle.”
She agreed but was silent as they made their way back toward the waiting room. When they stepped out into the area, Robert was nowhere to be found. They inquired at the desk if anyone saw where he went, but the receptionist could only suggest the cafeteria. So they went there and found him sitting alone in the corner talking on his phone.
“Maybe we should give him a minute…”
“I’m guessing he’s calling my grandmother,” Lily said, wiping her eyes. “I have no idea what her travel itinerary is or when she was supposed to be home. I hate to think of her flying while she knows this is all going on.”
As they approached Robert, Noah heard him say, “We’ll see you soon,” before hanging up. He looked up at both of them and sighed. “Your grandmother’s on a plane right now and I can’t reach her. I called the office and let Sara know what’s going on.” Then he looked up at Noah. “I told her you were here with us and to call you if there are any emergencies.”
“Okay.”
“I’m going to start a phone tree so the family knows what’s going on,” he continued. “I’m not sure if I should tell anyone to come yet or…”
“Have you called my parents or Uncle Mac or Uncle Jason?”
“They’re all on flights too,” he said miserably. “But I left messages for all of them to call me as soon as they land. The airport is only fifteen minutes away, so once they touch down, they can be here fairly quickly.”
“What can I do?” Lily asked. “Is there anyone I should call?”
“I’m not sure you want to call your sisters until we know more, but that’s up to you.” Then he glanced toward Noah. “Would you mind grabbing me another cup of coffee?”
“No problem.” He walked over to Lily and kissed her cheek. “How about you? Would you like one?”
She nodded. “And a muffin or something. I just…I need a little something to eat, please.”
“You got it.”
For another hour, there wasn’t a lot to do except sit and wait. When his phone rang, he almost sagged with relief to have something to do. Sara was calling for an update and while he spoke to her, Lily got up to use the restroom. Then Robert got up and said he needed to get some air. He was alone for all of two minutes before Lily walked over and literally crawled into his lap, resting her head on his shoulder as he hung up with Sara.
