Silence greeted Heather when she opened her eyes. She glanced outside the window and took in the beautiful sunset with hues of orange and pink splattered across the sky.
She stretched out her arms above her head and looked at the clock on her nightstand. Without hesitation, she sat up in bed and realized it was past the time she was supposed to check up on Evelyn.
She rushed over to Evelyn’s room, and as she entered, she saw the girl happily watching television with Linda. Heather knew Linda was a stickler for schedules, so it was no surprise to see her helping Evelyn with her homework.
“Heather, Linda said no school today. Isn’t that great?” A grin spread across Evelyn’s face while Linda kept her eyes glued to the television, saying nothing. Heather sensed something was wrong.
“Yes, that’s great. Miss Linda is very sweet, isn’t she?” Heather made her way across the room just as Linda looked up at her. She couldn’t help noticing a bruise the size of a tennis ball on her right cheek.
Heather gasped slightly. “Evelyn, Linda and I are going to step out in the hall for a bit, but we’ll be right back.” Heather waited for Linda to stand up before they headed out of the room together.
Once down the hall from Evelyn’s room, Heather stopped and turned toward Linda.
“Linda, what happened?” Heather pulled Linda’s hair back from her face and inspected her cheek closely.
“It’s nothing Heather. Just a misunderstanding, that’s all ...” Linda brushed back her hair and looked away, but not before Heather noticed the redness in Linda’s eyes.
“Linda, it’s not okay for someone to hit you. Who did it and why?” Heather demanded as she sat down in the plush chair and gently pulled Linda into the one next to her.
“I can’t tell you, Heather. You’ll be upset, and I just don’t want that.” Linda’s eyes began to well with tears, and Heather patted her arm reassuringly.
“Linda, that’s not true. I just want you to be okay.” Heather clasped a hand between hers.
Linda eyed Heather for a moment, trying to decide if she could trust her without getting anyone into trouble. Moments later, she finally relented.
“I told you I was seeing someone. He’s sweet and kind to me, most of the time. But this time ... I ... I just didn’t listen to him. And I did it wrong, at least that’s what he said, and he was so upset ...” Linda sniffled and grabbed a tissue next to the chair to dab her eyes.
“What was he mad about, and what did he do?”
“I was supposed to make lunch, and he wanted me to be there by one. But I was late. I ran into Miss Padmore from the neighborhood, and she wanted me to tell her about my program with Evelyn. Before I knew it, I had lost track of time and ended up being fifteen minutes late. He was so mad at me because he had to get to work as soon as I got there.” Linda forced a sigh from her lips. “Then he hit me.” She paused for a second and continued, “But at least he apologized right away.”
Another sniffle escaped Linda’s lips as Heather put her arm around her shoulders to comfort her.
“That doesn’t make it okay, Linda. You know that, don’t you?” Heather reassured.
“I must get back in there with Evelyn, Heather. I know we aren’t having school, but she needs some structure, and me being there makes me feel better.” Linda stood to go.
“Wait Linda ... you’re not going to see him again, are you?” At her hesitation, Heather continued. “I don’t want you to get hurt anymore.”
“I’ll be careful, Heather.” She turned to walk back toward Evelyn’s room but stopped and looked back at the nurse. A shy smile painted her lips as she began to speak. “Thank you.”
Heather could feel the anger rise up inside.
How could someone physically harm someone they loved?
She had always believed there was no excuse for violence in a relationship. As a Christian, she knew God wanted mankind to treat each other with love and respect. As a child of the Almighty, Linda was a good woman who deserved nothing less. Growing up as a child, Heather had never seen her parents engage in any type of violence. While they still argued a lot, thankfully they never raised a hand at each other.
She made her way down the hallway toward her room to get ready for dinner and her trip back to the hospital. As she entered the kitchen, she saw Miss Jamie sitting in the kitchen playing cards at the table. The cook gave her a smile and motioned with her head to the food trays on the counter. Heather thanked her and took the trays up to Evelyn and Linda. When everyone had finished their dinner, Heather returned to her room and changed into something more comfortable before heading back downstairs. As she passed the entrance, she saw Eleanor, Andrew, and James enter the house.
“Heather dear.” Eleanor gave her a hug. “Michael sent us home to find you. He wants to know if you can come visit him tonight? He said something about discussing Evelyn and the gift he gave you?”
“Of course, I was just about to head out there in a few minutes.” Heather felt a pulse of excitement knowing that Michael requested her presence. She grabbed her purse and headed for the door.
“Wait dear, Michael is having dinner right now. He warned me that you would try and visit right away, but I was supposed to make sure you eat first.”
Heather stopped at the threshold of the door and turned toward Eleanor.
“Michael told you that?” She shook her head with amazement at how well Michael could predict her behavior. It seemed that with the few times they spent getting to know each other, he knew her better than she knew him. She set her keys back into her purse and followed the rest of the group into the dining room, wondering about Michael’s gift. With all the drama going on, she had almost forgotten about his mystery gift. She sat down next to Andrew and savored a tasty dinner of veal shank, creamy gratin potatoes, and asparagus.
“So Heather, Evelyn seems to be doing better these days. She tells me about how you always tuck her in and tell her stories. She’s taken a great liking to you.”
“Evelyn is very special to me.” Heather tilted her head at Eleanor. “She’s such a ray of sunshine. I can’t imagine how frustrated she must feel being stuck here while her daddy is in the hospital. I know she can’t wait until he comes home so they can spend time together.”
“Yes, me too.”
Eleanor’s gaze bounced toward one of the guards on duty as he walked past the dining room. “How do you ever get used to having so many people around here, Heather?”
“I take comfort in knowing they are there to protect me and those I love until the intruder is caught. Until then, I don’t believe we’ll ever be truly safe.” Heather took a sip of water.
Andrew joined in on the conversation as he looked at his mother. “That’s true mother. I was thinking about what you said. The intruder left Michael’s room and went outside. Wouldn’t that mean that he would need access to the house in the first place?” Andrew lowered his brows with curiosity.
“Possibly. The police are focusing on the staff and the guards, but they also said the attacker could have broken in by climbing up the trellis on the east wing and entering through the open window.”
“Was there anything unusual that night? Anything you did differently that you can think of?” Andrew pondered out loud.
“Not really. We had dinner. Michael wanted to discuss something with me, but I was so exhausted after caring for Evelyn that evening that I went to sleep early. At about two in the morning, I woke up from a nightmare and then decided to check in on Evelyn. On my way back, I noticed the light on in his office so I went in to see what he had wanted to discuss. And he gave me ... a gift for my birthday.” She mumbled the last words before continuing, “And I thanked him for it. After that, we had gone our separate ways. I went back to my room.” Heather gulped. She remembered the gift he had given her was in that envelope. She pushed back her chair and stood at the table.
“I guess I should be going now. I don’t want to keep him waiting.” Heather excused herself and headed upstairs to grab her gift before heading out the door for the hospital.
Minutes later, she pulled into the parking lot and found a parking space close to the entrance. She navigated her way up to the nurses’ station at the front desk where a young nurse greeted her.
“Hello, I’m here to visit Mr. Robbins.”
“Oh yes, he’s been expecting you.” The woman with dark hair pulled back into a ponytail peered up at her and smiled. “If you need anything, please let us know.”
“Thanks, I will.” Heather returned her smile before making her way slowly around the long corridor to Michael’s room. As she stepped quietly into the room, her brows lifted with surprise. A second portable bed had been rolled next to Michael’s. A small pillow and a folded blanket lay at the foot of the bed. Her gaze drifted to a bottle of sparkling cider and a pair of wine glasses on the table next to his bed.
She saw Michael with a black sharpie between his lips as he rested in bed, flipping through a huge stack of papers on his lap. By the pink hue to his cheeks, Heather could tell he was doing better.
She remained silent, watching as he stopped every few moments to use a red sharpie to cross something out. During his time in the hospital, his hair had grown longer, falling over his temple. She couldn’t help noticing the substantial beard sprouting around his chin, giving him a rugged and handsome look. There was no question in Heather’s mind the man was gorgeous, even in his raw, untamed state. Heather took a deep breath, cleared her throat, and walked in.
Michael directed his attention toward her. “Heather, good, you’re here.” His lips pulled back into a wide grin.
“Yes, your mother told me you wanted to talk and asked if I would come visit you this evening.” Heather hung her jacket on the hook by the bathroom and made her way over to his bed.
He gestured to the makeshift bed beside him. “That’s for you; I know it’s not fancy, but I wanted you to be comfortable.” He smiled.
“It’s perfect Michael and very thoughtful of you. Thank you.” She sat on the chair and placed the envelope next to her.
Michael lowered his gaze next to her. “I see you brought the paperwork with you. I don’t want to fight about it; I just want you to take it, Heather ... please.” A serious expression washed over his face.
“I haven’t opened it yet. I forgot about it completely when you got shot, and until your mother mentioned it, I had forgotten about it completely. I’m embarrassed to say, I had to go look for it.” She gave him a lighthearted laugh.
“You haven’t opened it?” Michael breathed a sigh of relief and ran his hand through his hair. “That’s even better. I wanted to see the expression on your face when you opened it.” He gave her a long look. “Please, open it now, here with me.” He gave her an enthusiastic smile.
She took the envelope in her hands and slid over next to him, pulling out a stack of paperwork from within. Michael glanced at her with a smile as she sat with a puzzled expression.
“What is this Michael? A novel?” She giggled.
“Read it out loud ... the first few lines anyway.” He leaned his head back on his pillow and studied her face.
“Okay.” She turned to page one and started to read. “This deed entitles the landowner, Heather Parks, to the rights of the property located at 102 Cove Lane. The property covers 2.2 acres consisting of one main building, a church and two outlying buildings ...” Heather gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. The paper went on to discuss the property and its dimensions. Tears spilled over her eyes as Heather read about the land and how it had been purchased for eight hundred and sixty-eight thousand dollars and was paid in full. She glanced up at Michael, who wore a huge grin. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she turned toward him and gave him a hug.
“Oh Heather, please ... please don’t cry.” He patted her back awkwardly as the nurse squeezed him tight.
“It’s too much, Michael, thank you.” She leaned back and gently brushed her hand across her eyes. “I can’t ever pay you back for this. I can’t even imagine having that much money.”
Michael savored the moment as if he had just rescued an orphan from a hopeless future. He couldn’t help feeling intoxicated by her close presence. The smell of honeysuckle and spring freshness filled his nostrils as she fit perfectly into his arms.
“It’s a gift to you, Heather. You don’t have to pay me back. I wanted you to have it. The church means more to you than it ever has to anyone else ... well, except for Pastor Avery. And now it’s yours. No one can take it, and you can tell Pastor Avery that he doesn’t have to move. If you want to keep the church, that’s your right.”
“Michael, this is so wonderful. I ... I don’t know what else to say.” She pulled away, suddenly realizing she was nearly on top of him.
“I don’t know how to thank you for this, I’m just so in shock.” Heather carefully put the deed back into the envelope and put it on the table in the middle of the room, where she could keep an eye on it.
“There’s no need to pay me back or do anything special for me. I simply wanted you to have it.” He smiled warmly at her, knowing he had pleased her heart.
“Really Michael, thank you so much.” She sat down in the chair, still holding his hand.
“How is Evelyn doing? I’ve been worried sick about her ever since I woke up from the coma.” His expression turned serious.
“She’s doing great, Michael. She is smiling and happier than I have ever seen her. And Andrew is wonderful with her. They were playing a spy game today and were even wearing bowls on their heads.” Heather chuckled.
“And shooting at each other ...” He finished her statement.
“How did you know that?” Heather noticed his tight expression after she had mentioned Andrew.
“It’s a game we used to play. We had walkie talkies and were the ‘Spy Movement’. We would pretend that we were these amazing spies who would save the world.” He said it in clipped tones.
“Well, she was having a wonderful time, Michael. I’ve never seen her laugh so much. Andrew seems to be great with children.” A smile formed on her lips.
Michael could feel the heat flush across his face as he studied the smile on Heather’s face. It seemed his brother’s wit and charm had endeared the only nurse he had ever cared about. Why did it seem Andrew always had his nose in everything, always messing up his life? Michael bit his lower lip. He determined to keep his brother out of his life and away from Heather.
“You like him, don’t you?” There was firmness to his voice as if he were interrogating her.
“Who? Andrew? He’s nice Michael. Look, I know you two have your differences. But I believe he’s really good for Evelyn.”
Michael tightened his hold on Heather’s hand.
“But do you like him?”
Heather hesitated to respond, knowing that the next words out of her mouth would affect Michael’s mood.
###
If you want to find out what finally happens to Heather and Michael
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Kelsey MacBride