LITMIR.BIZ

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of her cheek, drawing blood. That did it. The sharp pain brought her back to herself.

      He kissed her temple. “Get your coat. Lock up both apartments. I’ll run up and put the rest of my clothes on and be right down for you.”

      * * *

      Once they were in the limousine and on the way, Lucy called Viv’s daughters to break the frightening news.

      Marleah burst into tears. Shoshona was calm and thoughtful and then at the end said, “Oh, my sweet Lord. Just let her make it through....”

      Lucy told both daughters that Viv had been conscious and still able to talk when they took her away. She promised she would be there until they had her stabilized, all the while sending silent prayers to heaven to match Shoshona’s spoken one: Please, God, let her make it. Let her pull through. She gave them her number and promised to call them the minute she knew anything more. They both said they would call the hospital right away and be there as soon as they could make arrangements.

      When she hung up, Dami reached for her. She unhooked her seat belt, slid across the wide plush seat and settled next to him.

      “We’re almost there,” he promised.

      She rested her head on his shoulder and kept on praying that Viv would pull through.

      * * *

      Six hours later they were still sitting in the waiting area outside Cardiac Intensive Care, with Quentin standing guard a few feet away.

      A doctor came out to talk to them.

      They had Viv stabilized, he said, and the prognosis was good. They’d put her through the usual endless battery of tests and performed an angioplasty with stent placement. The angioplasty opened the nearly blocked artery that had caused Viv’s heart attack, and the stent, a small mesh tube inserted at the same time, would keep the artery open.

      Even though she wasn’t family, Lucy talked the doctor into letting her go in and visit Viv briefly. As expected, Viv was exhausted and barely conscious. They’d given her a mild sedative to get her through the angioplasty without too much pain. She moved her hand restlessly against the sheet until Lucy settled her own over it, slipping her thumb into the smooth, dry heart of the older woman’s palm.

      Viv closed her eyes tight. Still, a pair of tears leaked out at the corners and trailed down her temples into her short tightly curled hair.

      Lucy bent close and whispered, “You are going to make it. And your daughters are on the way.”

      Viv let out a tired little sigh at that and managed to give Lucy’s hand a weak squeeze. Lucy stayed with her just holding her hand, gently stroking her forehead, until the nurse came in and signaled it was time to go.

      A woman came rushing into the waiting area about ten minutes later. She was tall, slim on top and generous through the hips, with honey-colored skin and blond-streaked dark hair. She carried a large shoulder bag and a small suitcase. Lucy liked her style. She wore knee-high black boots, dark tights, a short wool dress and a fabulous heavy coat that reached to midcalf. And especially around the mouth and eyes, she looked a lot like Viv.

      Lucy stood up. She had Viv’s purse, which they’d given her at the front desk.

      The woman spotted her and came right for her. “You have to be Lucy. I’m Shoshona.” She dropped the suitcase and they grabbed each other and held on tight.

      Lucy tried not to cry, but a tear or two got away from her anyhow. “Your mom’s resting now. I know she can’t wait to see you....”

      Shoshona sniffled a little, too. Then she took Lucy by the shoulders, looked in her eyes for a minute and gave her shoulders a squeeze. “I do believe you saved my mama’s life.”

      “No. I just happened to be there.”

      “That’s what I’m talking about. You were there and you did what needed doing and I am so glad. Thank you.” She swiped the tears off her cheeks with the back of her hand, which was as slim and beautifully manicured as Viv’s.

      “I’m just so happy she’s pulling through.” Lucy held out the purse. “This is your mom’s. Her keys are in here, her wallet and cell phone, too— Oh, and there’s a small brown bag with her rings.”

      A nurse appeared. “Mrs. Caudell?”

      Shoshona nodded, then asked Lucy, “My suitcase...?”

      “We’ll look after it,” Lucy promised.

      “And the purse, too, for now?”

      “Of course.”

      The nurse led Viv’s daughter to the long hallway that led into the business end of the CICU.

      Lucy took the suitcase and purse back to her chair. She slid them both under the corner table topped with a small artificial Christmas tree. With a long sigh, she sank down beside Dami. He took her hand and folded her fingers over a fresh tissue.

      “So much for spending the day in bed, huh?” She sagged against him and he gathered her in, cradling her in the shelter of his arm, guiding her head down to rest on his shoulder. Again she felt thankful to have him beside her. The awful day would have been ten times worse without the constant comfort of his presence, of his strong arms to hold her when her energy flagged.

      “There will be other days,” he reminded her softly.

      His words warmed her—for a minute. And then she couldn’t help thinking that the other days they had together weren’t nearly enough.

      Tomorrow and the next day, he had meetings. Maybe on Wednesday, which was their last day, they could laze around in bed.

      One day for lazing. Uh-uh. No way was it enough.

      Yes, Viv was going to make it and she was so grateful.

      But why did their Christmas love affair have to fly by so fast?

      * * *

      Two hours later Marleah arrived. Though she was smaller and slimmer than her older sister, anybody could tell the two were related.

      Lucy and Dami stayed in their chairs as the sisters shared a private moment. And then Marleah dried her eyes and went in to be with their mom for a while.

      When she came back out, Shoshona introduced her to Lucy and Dami.

      Marleah recognized him. “Mama’s had a heart attack and the Prince of Montedoro is hanging around the waiting room to make sure she’s going to be all right.”

      They all laughed at that, tired laughter. It had been a hard day and it wasn’t over yet.

      Then Shoshona said to Lucy, “You two go on now. You’ve been here all day. It’s way more than enough.”

      Dami called for the car and then Lucy asked if maybe one of the two sisters wanted to go back to Viv’s place with them. The sisters agreed that Marleah would go. She could take their suitcases, rest for a while and then return to give Shoshona a break.

      The drive was a quiet one overall. Marleah seemed deep in thought.

      But then, as they approached the apartment building, Marleah shook her head. “This is it,” she said with certainty. “Mama can’t be living on her own anymore. Denver or Chicago. The day has come when she will have to decide.”

      Lucy reached over and took Marleah’s hand. Marleah didn’t object—in fact, she held on tight. “Don’t worry about it now,” Lucy said softly.

      “You’re right.” Marleah swallowed hard. “But the time has come, oh, yes, it has.”

      * * *

      They helped Marleah carry the suitcases up to Viv’s place. Quentin put them inside for her.

      Lucy hugged her at the door. “I’ll be back at the hospital in the morning. Call me if there’s anything I can do before then.”

      “I

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