“Not bad, not bad,” Lindy said as she watched Celeste take a few steps with her walker. A male nurse stood beside her, holding tight to a belt he’d put around her for stability, but for the most part, she was holding her balance on her own.
“Five steps today, and we’re going to call that good,” the nurse said. “We’ll go for six tomorrow.”
“I don’t know. I think she’s kind of rocking that wheelchair,” Lindy said. “You should just keep her in it forever.”
“Not on your life, missy,” Celeste said. She turned to Joan, who was grinning in the corner. “You promised me ice cream.”
“Sure did.” Joan took hold of the handles on the wheelchair. “Let’s head down to the snack bar.”
Lindy watched them go with a smile on her face. The last few days had been tricky where Celeste was concerned, but she had nothing but hope. The natural stubbornness that ran in the family would see them through this too.
She’d been inside most of the day, and a walk sounded nice. She grabbed her sweater, then headed for the front doors, eager to catch some whiffs of autumn smells and feel a chilly breeze or two.
As she stepped outside, she saw Alan walking toward the building, along with a pretty young woman.
“Hey there,” Alan said, wrapping her in one of those gentle hugs. “How’s Celeste today?”
“She’s doing great. She asked about you this morning.”
“Well, here I am, and I brought someone along with me,” He stepped back and motioned toward the girl. “Lindy, this is my sister, Dara.”
“Hi, Dara. Did Alan make you play chauffeur today?”
Dara smiled. “Yes, he did. I don’t mind, though.”
“I can’t wait until Friday—that’s when I taper off the strong meds and can drive myself again. Still can’t lift boxes, but baby steps, right?”
Lindy reached up and touched his cheek. “Don’t be in too much of a hurry to get back to work. I like the scruff.”
Dara cleared her throat. “Should I just wander off somewhere while the two of you make eyes at each other?”
“You could, or we could go to lunch,” Alan said. “Your choice.”
“Food,” both girls said at once, and they headed off.
When they reached the restaurant, Alan requested their most private table, and after the orders were taken, he glanced at Dara. “I brought my sister here for an important reason, Lindy,” he began. “Not just to drive me around, although that’s pretty handy.”
Lindy looked at Dara curiously. “Oh? What else is he making you do? His laundry?”
“No, although I would if he asked.” Dara played with the wrapper of her straw. “He told you what happened to me.”
“Yes, he did. No details—just enough that I know he cares about you.”
Dara smiled. “Well, he’s told me a lot about you—and I know for a fact he cares about you.”
Lindy knew it too, but her cheeks still felt warm. It was nice to hear it from his sister, who was probably a little bit more objective than she was at the moment.
“Thing is, Alan called me the other day, and he told me about this amazing girl he’d met, and how impressed he was by everything she’d gone through, and he wanted me to meet her. So here I am.” Dara shrugged. “But then he asked me if I’d ever considering getting counseling.”
Lindy almost held her breath as she waited for Dara to continue.
“I can’t do everything you’ve done, Lindy. I can’t press charges—I just can’t. But Alan and I have spent a lot of time talking over the last two days, and I think I’m ready to see a counselor. I couldn’t before because everything was so raw and . . . I just couldn’t, but now I want to see if I can find myself again. I got lost in the middle of all this, and I miss myself.”
Lindy wiped tears from her cheeks. “And now who’s amazing? Dara, this is phenomenal. I’m so glad you came to meet me, and I’m so glad you told me this. You’re giving me hope.”
“I’m giving you hope? How’s that?”
“You have a flicker of light deep inside you that has never gone out—it just needed to be rekindled. Darkness can’t live where there’s light, did you know that? Even the tiniest match makes the darkness go away. Even a little flicker.”
Dara looked down at the table. “I think it’s still in there.”
“I know it is. I can see it.”
The waiter brought their food and they began to eat, but Lindy couldn’t be distracted from the joy she felt inside. Dara was a sweet, beautiful girl who deserved to feel her own worth. So was Trix. So was Lindy—and so were millions of women and men who had been through the same thing.
Dara threw her head back and laughed at something Alan said, and her flicker of light grew just a bit brighter. Lindy smiled. This was a very good day.
***
Dara and Celeste hit it off the minute they laid eyes on each other, and they were engrossed in a card game when Alan reached for Lindy’s hand. “Come for a walk,” he said.
She followed him outside. “What, we haven’t been for enough walks? It doesn’t matter how many times we come out here—I’m never going to use the fire hydrant.”
He laughed. “I don’t want you to use the fire hydrant. I want to talk to you, but it’s so hospital-like in there.”
“Probably because it’s a hospital.”
“Exactly. And so we’re out here.”
He led her around to the back of the hospital, where there were a few trees planted around a stone bench. “You’re right, you know,” he said as they sat down. “This whole Sense and Sensibility thing. You’re right.”
“Of course I’m right,” she replied. “Wait. Just how am I right?”
“You and the rain. You’re Marianne. You both have an unhealthy penchant for getting yourself thoroughly soaked.”
“But I didn’t nearly die because of it,” Lindy pointed out.
“I appreciate that, but there’s another similarity. It was the rainstorm that brought Colonel Brandon and Marianne closer together, and it was during the rainstorm that I realized just how very much I love you.”
Lindy’s heart thudded. “You love me?”
“Yes. There you were, drenched, looking like a drowned rat, and I realized that I’m in love with you. You’re my Marianne, I’m glad we ditched Willoughby, and I want to be your Colonel Brandon. Now, I’m not as perfect as he is, so don’t get your hopes up. I’ve been on my very best behavior around you, but Dara tells me I have a terrible temper when it comes to losing board games. We should get that out in the open so you know what you’re getting into.”
“Hmm. I like winning board games too. This might be a problem.”
“But only if we let it be.” Alan slid down onto one knee. “Lindy, I love you. I love everything about you. Your strengths, your weaknesses which have become your strengths—all of you. I want to cheer you on through vet school and be by your side as you open your practice. I want to love you all the days of my life. May I?”
Lindy took a deep breath. She knew that if she answered now, her voice would squeak, and that wouldn’t be good at all.
“There’s something you need to know first,” she said.
“Anything. It won’t make a difference.”
“Yes, I think it will. Alan, I’m a college dropout.”
He looked confused. “What?”
“That’s right. I called this morning and told them—I’m dropping out. I’m a disgrace to my family and to my college professor mother. I can never hold my head up high again.”
“And . . . you dropped out . . . why?”
“So I can be business partners with my aunt.” She grinned. “She called her lawyer, and he’s drawing up the papers right now. I’m going to run the place, she’s going to teach me all the little ins and outs I don’t know, and down the road, she’ll step back and I’ll be the sole proprietor. I can’t even tell you how excited I am about it.”
Alan grinned. “This is so great. That’s where you belong, Lindy—I see it all over you when you’re there.”
“I know it’s where I belong. I just wish I’d figured it out a lot sooner.”
“Okay. Let’s try this again.” Alan cleared his throat. “Lindy, I love you. I love everything about you. I want to cheer you on as you run your aunt’s business and be by your side as you stick labels on bottles. May I?”
“Yes,” she said, throwing her arms around his neck. “Yes, and yes, and yes.”
“Ribs,” he cried out.
“Ooops. Sorry.”
As she helped him up from his knee and guided him to sit next to her on the bench, she had thirty seconds to kill while she waited for him to get his breath back, and in those thirty seconds, she realized all over again just how very lucky she was.
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About Amelia C. Adams
Amelia C. Adams is a wife, a mother, an eater of tacos, and a taker of naps. She spends her days thinking up stories and her nights writing them down. Her biggest hero is her husband, and you just might see bits and pieces of him as you read her novels.
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The Kansas Crossroads Series:
(free!)
(A Kansas Crossroads novella)
The Nurses of New York series:
(free!)
The American Mail-Order Brides series:
The Hearts of Nashville series:
As part of the Brides of Beckham series by Kirsten Osbourne:
As part of the River’s End Ranch series:
As part of the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series:
As part of the Magnolias and Moonshine series:
As part of the Burnt River series:
As part of the Rocky Mountain Romances series:
As part of the Mail Order Mounties series:
As part of the Seven Sons series:
As part of the Cowboys and Angels series:
As part of the Main Street Merchants series:
As part of the Brody Hotel series:
As part of the Pinkerton Matchmaker series:
Short Fiction: