Drawing Close: The Fourth Novel in the Rosemont Series (21 page)

Chapter 46

Frank Haynes sat in his Mercedes
sedan in the familiar opening in the road that ran below Rosemont. He’d
intended to drive to clear his head. But Rosemont asserted her pull on him, as
she so frequently did, and here he was.

He leaned back in his seat and looked up at
Rosemont’s rear facade, the bright afternoon sun shimmering off her mullioned
windows. The warm stone walls seemed to glow from within. He knew every detail
of her sweeping roofline and elaborate chimneys, every corbel and elaborately
carved stone ornament. How he loved her.

He’d wanted to live there his entire life. He’d
been coming to this spot to look at her—lust after her—for decades.
The desire to accumulate enough money to buy Rosemont was the principal reason
he’d been so successful in his business. And now, after all of these years, he
had the legal right to buy out Maggie Martin’s share and own Rosemont himself.
Not only that, but he had enough cash on hand to buy her out. He felt certain
that his planned bid of two million eight hundred fifty thousand dollars would
carry the day. He doubted that Maggie would be able to scrape together the cash
to offer the minimum bid of two million four hundred seventy thousand.

Haynes got out of his car and began to pace. By
Christmas he should be living in Rosemont. Maybe he’d put up a big tree and
invite Loretta and her children—have lavish gifts for all of them. He
smiled. He’d enjoyed buying the kitchen set for Nicole. He could imagine the
fun he’d have buying gifts for Marissa and Sean. Especially Sean—he’d
give the boy toys he’d dreamed about in his own childhood but never received.

He’d have a twelve-foot spruce brought in, and
he’d hire a florist to decorate it. And he’d buy Loretta the nicest piece of
jewelry she’d ever owned. Maybe a diamond-and-sapphire bracelet. He’d make her
forget all about that creep Paul Martin. Maybe this year he wouldn’t treat
Christmas like a normal work day. He would celebrate.

He grabbed a dry thistle and ripped it from the
ground. His fantasy of Christmas at Rosemont could only become a reality if he
didn’t dip into his “war chest.” If he took out the million dollars necessary
to pay for Nicole’s surgery, he wouldn’t have enough left to buy the thing he’d
spent his whole life working toward. But without the little girl who had stolen
his heart, owning Rosemont would be meaningless.

Haynes Enterprises was leveraged to the hilt and
he had the balloon payment on Forever Friends coming due in January. He
couldn’t let the no-kill shelter that he founded be foreclosed on. Haynes
wouldn’t be able to replenish any of his Rosemont money before the end of the
year. Every penny was needed to buy out Maggie.

The toe of his Italian leather shoe caught on a
tangle of roots and Haynes stumbled, catching himself with his hands. He picked
stones and twigs out of his palms, smiling as he remembered how Nicole had
kissed his “boo-boo” when she’d seen the gash in his thumbnail.

He turned and studied Rosemont. It looked dark and
cold, a large stone house baking in the hot sun.
What good will it be if I
don’t have someone with me who will kiss the boo-boos of my life?
He was an
idiot. He was going to pay for that transplant—Rosemont be damned. How
could he ever have his fantasy life with Loretta if he didn’t do everything in
his power to save her child? And he had the power to make that transplant
happen in November. A later transplant might be fine, but he couldn’t risk it.

He got into his car and headed back to Haynes
Enterprises. He needed Loretta to know, now, that she could count on him. She
and her children could count on him.

Chapter 47

Maggie Martin checked the clock on
the hospital waiting room wall for the hundredth time. They’d expected the
doctors to be out long before now with news about the transplant surgery. She
closed her laptop and stowed it in the satchel she brought with her. She’d been
well-prepared to use this time productively, but had been unable to
concentrate. John put his hand on her back and rubbed her shoulders.

“This is torture,” she said.

“Sitting in a hospital waiting room is like eight
hours on the rock pile,” he agreed. “These straight-backed chairs couldn’t be
any more uncomfortable if they tried.”

Maggie stood. “I can’t just sit here. I’ve got to
move.”

“Would you like me to come with you?”

Maggie shook her head. “They should be done by
now. The doctor may be out any minute. I’m going to the ladies’ room. Call me
if he comes.” Maggie nodded at Frank Haynes as he looked up from his newspaper
when she passed by.

Maggie made her way down the busy hospital
corridor and entered the cavernous restroom. She was washing her hands and
checking her reflection in the mirror when she thought she heard someone
crying. She turned off the water and listened. She was right—someone in
the last stall was in distress.

“Are you all right?” Maggie said softly,
approaching the stall. “Can I call someone for you?”

“No … oo … oo,” came the halting reply. “I’m
fine.”

“Loretta? Have you had news?” she asked in alarm.

“No,” Loretta quickly replied. The latch clicked
as she slid it back and emerged. “Nothing like that. I’m still waiting for
word.”

“You scared me.”

“I’m sorry. I guess the waiting is getting to me,”
she said, wiping at her eyes with a wad of toilet paper.

“Here,” Maggie said, handing her a pack of tissues
from her purse. “I’m on my last nerve, too.”

Loretta nodded. “We’re both waiting on news of our
daughters. Only yours didn’t have to be here. I’m still so grateful to Susan.”

“There was never any doubt in her mind,” Maggie
said. “She wanted to do this.” Maggie’s cell phone chirped. She snatched it out
of her purse and read the text message.

“Aaron’s back.” She put her arm around Loretta’s
shoulders as they made their way to the waiting room.

***

Maggie knew the moment she saw
Aaron that the surgery had gone well. His back was to them, but his shoulders were
relaxed. John pointed to the door, and Aaron turned to them as they approached.
His tired smile told them all they needed to know.

“They’re both doing great,” he said. Loretta
sagged against Maggie. “No complications. Everything went as planned. A textbook
procedure.”

Maggie felt tears prick the back of her eyes. “We
were getting so worried. They told us the surgery would take four hours, and
it’s been six. We figured there must be complications.”

“The only hitch was that the anesthesiologist was
called away for a family emergency, and we had to wait for another doctor
before we could get started. The surgery only took three and a half hours.” He
glanced between Maggie and Loretta. “I should have sent word to you. I’m
sorry.”

“As long as they’re both all right, you’re
forgiven,” Loretta said. “When can we see them?”

“Soon. They’re getting them set up in recovery.
You should be able to see them within the hour, I think.”

Maggie and Loretta turned to each other. Maggie
stepped toward Loretta and the two women embraced as fear was replaced by
gratitude.

They parted and Loretta beamed at Frank. “She’s
going to be fine,” she said as he approached.

“I’d better call the folks back in Westbury,”
Maggie said. “I’m sure Alex has been on pins and needles, and Joan Torres and
Tonya Holmes will want to update the prayer chain.”

“You’ve both had a lot of people pulling for you,”
Frank stated, wondering if anyone would care if he were in this situation.

“Nobody has been better to us than you have,
Frank,” Loretta said, taking his hand. “I can never repay you.”

Maggie stepped away as she pulled her phone from
her purse. If she didn’t know better, she’d think those two were an item.
Ridiculous,
she thought. Or was it? She brought the phone to her ear as Alex answered.

Chapter 48

Susan was sitting up in bed,
pushing scrambled eggs around on her breakfast tray, when John and Maggie
entered her room the next morning.

Maggie kissed the top of her head. “How are you
feeling, sweetheart?”

“I’m fine.”

“Any pain?” John asked.

Susan nodded. “A bit. I asked for something last
night, and I slept like a rock. If they came in during the night, I didn’t wake
up. I’m sore, but haven’t needed anything this morning.”

“Aren’t you hungry?” Maggie asked, pointing to her
tray.

“I am, but this is inedible.”

“Why don’t I go down to the hospital cafeteria and
get something for all three of us?” John asked.

“Thank you,” both women said in unison.

A half hour later, they were watching the morning
news as they ate their breakfast when Aaron entered the room. He crossed to
Susan and leaned down to kiss her.

“You must be over the anesthesia nausea,” he said,
looking at the empty Styrofoam container in front of her.

“Thankfully, yes,” Susan said.

“Have they gotten you up yet?”

Susan shook her head.

“They’ll take you for a walk this morning. The
doctor will be in to check on you, but I caught him in the hall. As soon as
they’re sure that your remaining kidney is functioning properly and you’re
steady on your feet, you can go home. With any luck, that will be tomorrow.”

“Awesome,” Susan said. “I’ll be much happier
recovering at Rosemont. Do you know anything about Nicole?”

“The doctors are with her now. Apparently she had
a good night.”

“Can I see her?” Susan asked.

“She was asking the same thing,” Aaron said. “One
of the first things she said when she came around was ‘Where’s Susan?’”

***

Susan was waking from a well-earned
nap after her second lap around the hospital ward when Aaron appeared in her
doorway with a wheelchair. “I’ve been authorized to escort you to Miss Nicole
Nash’s room,” he announced. “Your sister is demanding to see you and won’t take
no for an answer.”

Susan smiled. “I can walk. We don’t need that,”
she said, waving away the wheelchair.

“Why don’t you ride down there, and if you feel
well enough, you can walk back?” Maggie suggested. “You might be more tired
than you think.”

“You’re not going unless I push you in this,”
Aaron said, ending any discussion.

Nicole was quietly watching television with her
beloved doll tucked at her side when Aaron pushed Susan into the room and up to
her bed. The sisters smiled at each other. “How’s she doing?” Susan asked,
pointing to the doll.

Nicole nodded. “She’s feeling better.”

“I hear that you’re being a model patient,” Susan
said. “You’re a very brave girl, Nicole. I’m proud of my sister.”

Nicole beamed.

Loretta, who had been observing from the recliner
in the corner, now spoke.

“You’re looking great, Susan. How are you?”

“If my tests tomorrow morning look good, they’ll release
me. We’ll all drive back to Rosemont.”

“That’s terrific news.”

“How’s Nicole?” Aaron asked.

“They’re extremely pleased. They’re monitoring
everything very carefully, of course. They think her new kidney—your
kidney, Susan—has already started to work.”

Susan brought her hands to her heart. “That’s the
best news, ever. I was praying for it.”

“When you get well enough, I’m going to hug you
like you’ve never been hugged,” Loretta said.

Susan smiled and turned back to Nicole. “So I’ll
see you again when you come home. You continue to get better, okay? Do
everything that the doctors ask of you.”

Nicole nodded solemnly.

“We hope to be discharged next week,” Loretta
said. “Frank was here for the surgery but returned to Westbury this morning. He
said he’d come back to drive us home.”

She followed Aaron as he wheeled Susan to the door
of Nicole’s room. “Please let me know how she’s doing.” Susan said.

“I will. Safe trip home, Susan. You saved your
sister’s life.”

***

Susan stirred and opened her eyes
slowly in the dimly lit room. Aaron glanced up from the medical journal he was
reading and rose from the recliner to stand by the side of her bed. Susan
reached up and pulled him in for a proper kiss on the lips.

“That’s better,” she said. “I needed that.”

Aaron smiled at her. “Me, too.”

“What time is it? I thought you were going back to
the hotel with Mom and John.”

Aaron checked his watch. “Ten. I’ll leave in a few
minutes. I wanted some alone time with my girl.”

“I’m glad you’re here. I’ve been lying here,
thinking.”

“About?”

“The wedding.”

“Ahhh … I should have known. You’ve had lots of
time to think of all the details.”

“I know you feel I’ve been a bit overboard on it,”
Susan said. “And now that I’m in this place—with all these people facing
life and death decisions—I’m rethinking it.”

“Marrying me?”

“No, silly. I want to marry you with every fiber
of my being. I mean I don’t want to spend the money on a big fancy wedding. ”

“You’ve wanted a big wedding all your life, and
you know it.”

“I don’t want it any longer. And I know you’ve
never been crazy about the idea.”

Aaron shrugged. “It’s never been my thing, but I
want whatever will make you happy.”

“Admit it—you’d be thrilled with a small,
intimate affair. I think that’s what we should do”

“I’d be fine with that. And the sooner you’re my
wife, the happier I’ll be. But are you sure?”

“There are families here that have lost their
homes because of the medical bills they face. Even with insurance, a transplant
can bankrupt a patient. I understand Frank Haynes paid for Nicole’s transplant.
Without his help, Loretta would have had to wait for her insurance company,
which wouldn’t have paid until Nicole got sicker.”

“Our wedding won’t change that,” he said.

Susan took his hands in hers. “What if we donated
the money we would have spent on the wedding to the hospital? It’s not a
fortune, but it would be enough to help at least one family.”

“That’s very generous of you, but I think you’d
regret it down the line. You’ve got a dozen Pinterest boards devoted to our
wedding. Don’t make any snap decisions. You’ve got time to think about this
when we get back to California.”

Susan shook her head. “That’s the thing,” she
said. “I’d like to get married at Rosemont when we get back to Westbury.”

Aaron sucked in his breath. “Are you sure?”

“I’m positive. Let’s talk to Mom and John
tomorrow. We can get a license and get married next week before you have to go
back.”

“What about Mike and Amy and the girls? Sophie and
Sarah will be so disappointed if they can’t come and be in our wedding.”

“They got to be in Mom and John’s wedding. They’ll
get over it.”

“Sleep on it. I won’t say anything to Maggie or
John. If you still feel this way in the morning, I’d love nothing more than to
marry you next week.”