LITMIR.BIZ

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as if the boy was nothing more than a burden to be endured?

      “The other couple, who also died in the car with Toby’s parents, were named in their will as guardians. However, my mother and I are his only relatives. I’m an attorney and I filed the papers this morning to be named guardian. They’ve assured me it would be approved. I want to get Toby home so he can begin to heal.”

      “Good. He’s been feeling lost since no one had come to claim him.”

      “The doctor in charge of Toby says he’s very fond of you.”

      Molly frowned. “Yes, I told you we’ve become friends.”

      “He’s eight years old. How could you be friends?”

      Molly said nothing, turning to continue on her way.

      “Wait!”

      She didn’t like the order, but she obeyed. No need to irritate the man if he was going away in the morning. “Yes?”

      “Dr. Bradford said you didn’t have any family here.”

      “Why would Dr. Bradford tell you that?” she asked carefully.

      “Because I need someone to come with us to Dallas to take care of Toby and help him settle in.”

      “Sir, I’m a pediatric nurse, not a baby-sitter.”

      “I know. And I’m willing to pay your going rate, twenty-four hours a day, if you’ll come with us in the morning.”

      “For how long?” she asked, startled at his offering.

      “For a month. You’ll make more than three times your salary, Ms. Soderling.”

      “I don’t know if the hospital—”

      “Dr. Bradford assured me he could spare you.”

      Molly didn’t know what to think. “I’ll have to talk to Dr. Bradford.”

      “He left a note for you at the nurses’ station,” the man said, as if that alone should persuade her.

      He expected her to drop everything and go to Dallas for a month, as if it were nothing but a shift reassignment. Not that she had anything holding her here in Florida, especially at holiday time. Still, the man hadn’t even introduced himself! “Excuse me, sir, but who are you exactly?”

      “I’m Richard Anderson, Toby’s uncle.” As he spoke, he stood straighter, his shoulders back in a proud gesture. But he made no move to shake her hand.

      Neither did Molly. “I’ll go read the note,” she said. And she walked away.

      At the nurses’ station, she got the Dixie cup of ice cream for Toby and asked the nurse on duty if Dr. Bradford had left a note for her.

      “Oh, yeah. Sorry, Molly. I forgot to give it to you.”

      “Thanks, Ellen,” Molly said, taking the note with her as she found a quiet corner of the floor to read it.

      Indeed, Dr. Bradford had asked her to go with the Andersons to Dallas. Because of her rapport with little Toby, he thought her best for the job. He’d approved a month’s leave for her if she decided to go. And, she guessed, to make her refusal harder, he added that Mr. Anderson had offered two hundred thousand dollars to the pediatric wing if the hospital could supply a nurse for the boy.

      That much money could help the children, Molly knew. And she knew Dr. Bradford was counting on her love of the kids…

      But a month in Dallas with the seemingly pompous Richard Anderson? Could she handle it? The assignment would span the holidays, and aside from some volunteer work, she had no Christmas plans. At the very least she wouldn’t have to spend another Christmas alone. She could stand the thought of that. And she’d be with Toby.

      Still unsure, she pocketed the note and brought the boy his ice cream. “Your wish is my command,” she joked to Toby as she pulled the lid off the Dixie cup and held it out to him.

      Though his arm and collarbone were in casts, he could hold the Dixie cup in his injured hand and eat with his right.

      “Thank you, Molly. You’re not going to leave, are you?”

      The boy’s sad blue eyes reached right down into her heart. “No, sweetie, I’ll stay for a little while.” She smiled as she pulled up a chair next to the bed. His frown transformed into a broad grin and he dug into his ice cream. How could she leave him? Not just now, but when he went with his uncle and grandmother?

      “What’s wrong, Molly?” Toby asked anxiously.

      Molly knew her concerns were nothing compared to the tragedy Toby had experienced. She pasted a bright smile on her lips. “Nothing, sweetheart. Hey, would you like me to go with you to Dallas, where your uncle lives?”

      “You could do that? And stay forever?” Toby asked, hope in his voice.

      “No, but I could go and stay for a few weeks, during Christmas. Wouldn’t that be fun?”

      “Oh, yeah,” Toby said, reaching up to hug her neck. With his face buried in her hair, he whispered, “I don’t want to go with them.”

      “I know, sweetie, but we’ll be together and I’ll help you.”

      “Okay,” Toby agreed as he pulled back to look at her. “You’ll really come with me?”

      “Yes, your uncle has asked me to come.” She settled the little boy back in his bed. “Now, eat your ice cream before it melts while I talk to your uncle.”

      And just like that, her mind was made up.

      She stood and walked over to the man watching them with no sign of emotion. “I’ll take the job, Mr. Anderson. When were you planning on leaving?”

      “We have seats on an eleven o’clock flight tomorrow morning. We’ll need to leave for the airport by nine, which means you should be here by eight to get Toby ready.”

      “Does Toby have clothes?” The shirt and pants the boy had been wearing had been bloodied and torn.

      The man stared at her, as if he hadn’t comprehended her question.

      “Toby hasn’t had any clothes since he arrived and we cut off his bloody ones. He’ll need clothes for the trip.”

      With a weary sigh, the man said, “Of course. It’ll take a little while because I’ve got to get my mother back to the hotel. But then I’ll go to his house and pack his clothes.”

      Molly knew she was a sucker for the weary and downtrodden, but she couldn’t help herself. “If you want, I could meet you there and help you pack up his things. It would save you a trip back to the hospital.”

      After a moment’s hesitation, Richard Anderson nodded. “I’ll take that offer. Thank you.” He looked at his watch. “Can you meet me there at eight o’clock?”

      “Yes, but I don’t know the address.”

      He pulled a card and a pen out of his pocket and wrote an address on the back of the card. “Do you know where this is?”

      Molly nodded. The address was actually close to her apartment. How strange. She’d lived just a few blocks from Toby. “Yes, I do.”

      “Then I’ll see you there at eight o’clock.”

      Molly heard a warning in his voice not to be late. But she was always on time. With a nod, the man took his mother’s arm and left Toby’s room.

      That was when Molly realized the older woman had remained in the back of the room the entire time. She hadn’t taken a seat nor uttered a word to her grandson. Instantly Molly felt good about her decision. How could she have let this sweet boy go with these cold-hearted people?

      Molly came back to Toby’s side. “Was the ice cream good?”

      “Yes.

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