The Best of Us (Sullivan's Crossing #4)(25)

Right at that moment Rob burst through the door, panic on his face. “What’s going on, Finn? You all right?”

“I’m fine, Dad. I’ll explain in a minute. They’re taking Maia to the hospital and I’m going. She had a seizure or something so I called 911.”

“Connie?” Rob said.

“Business as usual, Rob, everything is under control. Maia needs to be seen by a doctor. We’ll start an IV and take her. Your son handled the situation like a pro. He’s going to follow us in his own vehicle.”

“I’ll take him,” Rob said. Then he put a hand on Finn’s shoulder and said, “Thank God you’re okay. And thank God Maia is all right.”

“She’s not all right yet,” Finn said. “We have to get her to the hospital. I’ll tell you about it in the car. You should call Sean.”

It was a very long night for Rob since Finn could not be coerced to leave Maia in the safety of hospital staff and her parents. It was after midnight when Maia’s mother came to the waiting room to tell them that Maia was being admitted at least for the night. Finn had begged to see her, at least to say goodbye, which he did under the supervision of her parents.

“I can stay,” Finn said.

“She’s very groggy and needs to sleep,” Mrs. MacElroy said. “I can give you a call in the morning and tell you how she’s doing. Or maybe she’ll call you herself. I take it there are going to be some tests.”

It was about six in the morning when Rob heard Finn’s phone ring, heard his soft talking in the room next door and got up to investigate. He learned that Maia was being transferred to Denver to have tests in their neurology department. “I’m staying home today,” Finn said. “I can’t use my phone at school and I want to hear what’s going on with her. If you need some help at the pub, I can do that. As soon as she knows something and I can see her, I’ll be driving to Denver. I hope you don’t have a problem with that because I’m going.”

“I understand, Finn,” Rob said. What he didn’t tell him was that this awakened some memories he’d rather not be having. Memories like when Julienne was sick, when she couldn’t breathe, when her chest hurt and her pulse raced and he and two little boys rushed her to the hospital. And she didn’t come out. “You must have been so scared.”

“You have no idea,” Finn said.

He had a very good idea.

He hadn’t slept much, of course. At one, two and three in the morning he had wanted to turn on the light, sit up and call Leigh. He had a feeling she would understand and forgive him. Being a physician, she might even have a few words he would find encouraging. But that was not all there was to his desire to call her. Being with her, even when she was her sassy self, brought him comfort. It had been a long time since he had a woman in his life who would make him feel safe and embraced.

On his way to the pub, he dropped by the clinic. He asked Leigh if she had time for a cup of coffee. They closed her office door and he told her all about Maia. When they’d talked over the whole event and she’d thrown out a few suggestions, he thanked her. “Poor kids,” he said. “And poor me. I had such a good time last night and I was looking forward to falling asleep with a beautiful doctor on my mind, ready for good dreams.”







Friendship makes prosperity more shining
and lessens adversity by dividing and sharing it.

—Cicero



6


HELEN THOUGHT PERHAPS her stay in Timberlake might be a bit shorter than she’d expected. She was still up when Leigh got home the night before and one look at her niece’s face told her everything; the girl was flushed and glowing. It was a look Helen hadn’t seen in years. And she liked this Rob fellow. He was charming and fun and mighty handsome. She might think of Leigh as a girl but she knew she was an adult—accomplished, attractive, independent and strong. And in the peak of womanhood.

Helen was thinking she might need to get out of the girl’s way so she could fall in love. She asked to borrow Leigh’s car. “Just to do a little exploring,” she said. She wanted to look around the area while she could.

“Let’s do some car shopping on the weekend,” Leigh said.

“Maybe,” Helen said. “Or maybe I’ll just rent a car.”

“Think about it. In the meantime, I’ll be at the clinic all day so you’re welcome to use mine.”

Helen put on jeans, a sweatshirt, her Sketchers and took off. She drove to Leadville first to poke around, check out the bookstore, ask about how far she’d have to go for help if she needed a laptop repair. Mostly she just enjoyed driving around the countryside and through a few small towns—there was still snow on the peaks and spring flowers lined the roads everywhere she went. At just about lunchtime she called Leigh at the clinic and asked if she needed her car to get lunch. When Leigh said she’d be fine, Helen asked for directions to Sullivan’s Crossing. She’d heard a lot about Sully over the last year but had not met him or seen the campgrounds everyone talked so much about.

“Tell him I said hello,” Leigh said. “He has a cooler full of sandwiches and salads if you haven’t eaten.”

“Thanks for the tip,” Helen said.

When she pulled into the clearing, she was immediately enchanted. Campsites were scattered among trees and flowers, at the edge of a glittering sapphire lake. There was a large building—it said General Store on the front window. Not far across the lawn was a house. A large log cabin, really. Flowers were springing up around the buildings and paths. And there was a handsome and fit older man sitting on the store porch with his feet up on a chair.