Forever Together (11 page)

The more Kate thought about it, the more
depressed she felt. Tess would make a wonderful girlfriend,
especially if the boyfriend in question
was
looking for the perfect woman.

“Most of the men in the room couldn’t take
their eyes off her.” Anna smiled. “She looked
incredible,
especially in her last dress. Tess
isn’t Dan’s problem. I think you are.”

Kate took a minute to think about what Anna
had said. “But he doesn’t like me. He thinks I’m going to leave
before the transplant.”

“My brother has trust issues. When he went to
Iraq,
he was engaged to a girl
he’d known since high school. It didn’t work out and he hasn’t
dated much since then.”

Dan wasn’t quite as rusty at the
boy-meets-girl thing as Anna thought. He’d managed to leave Kate in
a tangle of
tingles
and she didn’t
know what to do about it.

“I won’t be here for much longer.” Kate
pushed her hair behind her ears and picked up her coffee mug. “I’d
like to stay in contact, maybe visit again in a few months time,
but I can’t live here.”

“Just remember our invitation. Our home is
your home.”

And that, thought
Kate,
was what family was all about.

CHAPTER SIX

Kate woke early. By six-thirty she was standing in
the kitchen, eating a piece of toast.

Dan appeared in the doorway, stood stock
still, then kept moving forward. “I thought you’d be in bed.”

“I couldn’t sleep. The rooster woke me
up.”

Dan grunted and put two slices of bread in
the toaster. He was already dressed, ready for a day of fighting
crime and speeding motorists.

Kate sighed as he moved across to the fridge.
His shirt hugged his body, stretched across shoulders that were
wide and strong. His hair was still damp from the shower, curling
at the ends, making another sigh work its way around Kate’s
body.

“What are you doing today?” he asked.

Kate wiped toast crumbs off her face and
reached for her coffee. “Work. We’ve got our normal appointments as
well as two weddings. One of the brides is bringing in three
bridesmaids, mother of the bride, and mother of the groom.
Stephanie, the other bride, is coming in with four bridesmaids and
a flower girl. I’ve got to be there by eight.” She
closed
her mouth before more early morning
babble erupted.

“Busy day.”

Kate nodded. It was going to be a good day.
She loved weddings; the excitement, the
glamor
, and the tears. It brought out the best in
everyone and being part of that made her happy.

“What about you?” she asked.

“I’m on patrol for a couple of hours, then
it’s back to the office to
plow
through my paperwork.”

“Do you like being the Deputy Chief of
Police?”

Dan poured himself a coffee and leaned
against the counter. “Most days. Then there are the others when I’d
sooner disappear into the mountains.”

“What do you do when you get there?”

“Into the mountains?”

Kate nodded.

“Hike, ski, hunt. Doesn’t matter as long as
I’m there.” An amused look crossed his face. “Do you normally ask
this many questions first thing in the morning?”

Heat
hit
Kate’s face. “I don’t normally have anyone to talk to this early in
the morning.”

Dan took a big gulp of coffee. His toast
popped and he grabbed a piece as it headed toward the sink. “The
toaster’s got a megawatt spring.”

Kate finished the rest of her coffee and
rinsed her mug. She had her chores to do before she left for The
Beauty Box. They wouldn’t take long, but they’d get her away from
Dan’s clear blue eyes and freshly shaven face. Passing the time of
day with him in Anna’s kitchen wasn’t a sensible thing to do.

He was a morning person, not quite bubbles
and sunshine, but getting close. She’d hoped for at least one
grumpy comment to make him less likable, less like a man she could
spend time with. But that hadn’t happened, so she was left with
plan B. She’d keep as far away as possible from him and ignore all
of the warm fuzzy tingles.

Dan watched her dry her hands and put the
milk in the fridge. “I feel like an idiot for asking about whether
you’ve got a boyfriend.”

Kate closed the fridge door. She shrugged her
shoulders and moved further away. “Don’t worry about it. I’m
twenty-eight. It makes sense that I’d have a boyfriend.”

“Do you?”

“Not at the moment.” She glanced at Dan. He’d
moved closer, reducing the space between them quicker than she’d
moved away.

Dan took a step closer. “That’s good.”

“It is?” Kate’s mouth went dry just thinking
about boyfriends and Dan at the same time. She licked her lips.
Dan’s eyes zeroed in on her mouth and she knew why standing close
to him wasn’t a good idea.

“I…umm…I’ve got to…” she waved her hand
toward the door and took a half step backward.

Dan took a whole step forward and kissed her.
On the lips. It wasn’t unsure or hesitant. It didn’t leave her
wondering what it would be like to be really kissed by him. It was
everything all at once and it felt wonderful. So wonderful that she
opened her mouth and pulled him close.

Kate didn’t know if she groaned or Dan did,
but either way she didn’t care. She wrapped her arms around his
shoulders and held on while their mouths molded against each other,
nipping and teasing until she couldn’t think straight.

He pulled her closer, held her against his
body and worked more magic with his mouth and hands.

“Oops…”

Kate heard Anna’s
voice,
but didn’t figure out what it meant until Dan’s
lips left her mouth. She stared at the pulse in his neck, smiled at
the goofy expression on his face. Then looked over his shoulder and
straight into Anna’s eyes.

She dropped her head to his chest.

“Don’t mind me,” Anna said. “I’ll go and make
my bed. Give me a yell when you’re done.”

Kate didn’t look in Anna’s direction to see
if she’d imagined the smile she’d heard in her voice.

Dan cleared his throat and dropped his hands
from around her waist. “I’ll go and speak to Anna.”

Kate sat at the kitchen table before her legs
gave out. “What are you going to tell her?”

“I have no idea,” he muttered.

“It was just a kiss.” Kate looked away. Her
face flamed redder than the mug she’d been drinking out of. Dan’s
kiss had knocked her senseless, spun her in circles, and left her
wanting more.

“You’re right.” Dan sounded peeved. “It was
nothing. We’ll bury our heads in the sand and pretend it didn’t
happen.”

Kate made the mistake of looking at him. He
was annoyed; grumpy, irritable and feet-walking-on-hot-coals kind
of angry. “What are you so upset about?”

“I’m not upset, not with you anyway.” His
voice dipped low, making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on
end. “I’ll go and see Anna before I leave.”

He threw his toast in the trash and headed
toward the hallway. So much for Mr. Bright and Breezy. Kate had
gotten her wish. Winter had arrived early.

***

Kate hummed to herself as she unwound a lock
of Cora-Lee’s hair. The seven-year-olds blond hair bounced around
her face in a riot of curls. She looked as pretty as a picture.
Once Kate added the
circlet
of
baby pink roses to her
hair,
she’d
be adorable.

“Lunchtime everyone.” Robyn Cranshaw, the
mother
of the bride, lifted a box
of food onto the reception desk.

Cora-Lee fidgeted in the chair. “I’m
hungry.”

Kate knew Cora-Lee had walked to Angel Wings
Café with her mom about an hour ago. She’d bounced back into The
Beauty Box with a tummy full of pasta and a bottle of juice for
later.

Kate glanced at the clock on the wall. She
had another thirty minutes before the bridal party needed to leave.
“How about I finish your curls and add the flowers after you’ve had
something to eat?”

Cora-Lee nodded and looked expectantly at
Kate. She wrapped the last section of hair around the curling wand
and smiled. “Nearly there.”

In less than four minutes, Cora-Lee had her
cape off and was sitting on the floor eating a slice of chocolate
cake.

“What would you like, Kate? We’ve got
sandwiches, quiche, turkey
wraps,
and cake.”

She smiled at Robyn and shook her head.
“Thanks for the offer, but I’m going to the hospital soon. I’ll
grab something to eat there.”

Robyn passed her eldest daughter a sandwich.
“Eat this, honey. You won’t get a lot of time for food after we
leave here.”

Tania looked down at the paper plate her mom
was holding. “I’m so nervous I couldn’t eat a thing.”

“You haven’t had anything since breakfast.
Half a sandwich won’t hurt.”

Tania took the plate and sighed. “Were you
this nervous when you married
dad
?”

Robyn laughed. “I cried from the moment I
woke up to when your granddad walked me down the aisle. As soon as
I saw your dad I stopped crying and started smiling. Thirty years
later we’re still going strong. I can’t believe my baby is about to
get married.”

Robyn pulled a tissue from her pocket and
blew her nose. “I’m going to smudge my mascara if I start crying.”
She sniffed and sent a wobbly smile toward her daughter. “None of
us
know
what the future holds. We
can only go with what we know, and I know Justin is a good man. Now
start eating that sandwich and I’ll get you a coffee.”

Loretta walked across to the front window,
peering past the people strolling along the sidewalk. “Would you
look at that?”

Everyone in the salon turned toward the
street. Kate
heard
the siren
before she saw the police car. With lights flashing and siren
screaming, it stood out like a flaming beacon on the busy
street.

“It’s Dan.” Loretta turned to Kate. “I wonder
why he’s stopped here?”

Kate dropped the cape she’d been folding. Dan
burst through the door, scanning the salon with something close to
desperation.

“Thank God.” He rushed over to Kate and
grabbed her hand. “We have to go. Kaylee’s not well. She needs
you.”

“Wait.” Kate yanked her hand out of his
fingers and ran toward the reception desk. Another beautician
already had Kate’s bag in her hand. She passed it across the wooden
counter and Kate turned to Loretta. “I’m sorry, I have to go.
Cora-Lee’s flowers are in the fridge.”

“Don’t worry about a thing. Go and see
Kaylee. I hope it all works out.”

Kate didn’t know what was going on, but she’d
never seen Dan so upset. “I’ll call you when I know what’s
happening.”

She followed Dan out of the salon and jumped
into his car. Before she had her seatbelt on he’d pulled out from
the curb and was roaring toward the hospital.

“What’s happened?”

“Kaylee’s liver is shutting down. Doctor T
wants to do the transplant now.”

And just like that, Kate’s mind switched
gear, taking her to another hospital, in another city. She hadn’t
been able to help Lily, but she could do something for Kaylee. She
just hoped they weren’t too late.

***

When they arrived at the hospital, Anna and
Tom were sitting with Kaylee. She’d been transferred back into
isolation in the Intensive Care Unit and she wasn’t looking
good.

Kaylee’s skin and eyes were yellow. Her
breathing was
labored,
as if each
movement of her lungs was painful. There was no sunny smile, no
mischievous glance that told Kate her sister was happy to see
her.

Living had become difficult for Kaylee and it
brought tears to Kate’s eyes.

Dan wrapped his arm around her waist and led
her out of the room, past the other beds in the Intensive Care
Unit. He pushed the door open that led to the corridor and didn’t
let her go. “Doctor T will be here soon. Are you okay?”

Kate shook her head, too overcome with
emotion to answer. Dan pulled her into his arms and hugged her,
sharing the grief she couldn’t tell him about. She leaned against
him, accepted the friendship he offered without hesitation.

Hurried footsteps echoed along the corridor.
She looked up to see Doctor T coming toward them.

“I’m glad you’re here.” He rubbed Kate’s arm.
“Let’s go into the family meeting room and we’ll talk about what’s
happening.”

Dan hung back, but Kate reached for his hand.
Their eyes locked on each other and he nodded. Without saying a
word, Dan squeezed her fingers and they followed
Doctor
T.

She sat beside Dan, wiped her face and blew
her nose.

Doctor T opened the folder in his hands.
“I’ve already spoken
with
Tom and
Anna. Kaylee’s white blood cell count has risen significantly which
is causing problems with her liver and spleen. We moved her back
into the Intensive Care Unit so we could keep a close eye on her. I
called the team of doctors we’ve been consulting with at Cincinnati
Children’s Hospital. We’re all in agreement. Kaylee needs her bone
marrow treatment now. I don’t want to risk leaving it another two
days.”

Doctor T glanced down at his notes. “You’ve
signed the consent forms. Doctor Murray, the anesthesiologist, will
meet us in the surgical ward to talk through her side of the
procedure. I want to go over the procedure we’ll use to harvest
your stem cells. Do you have any questions before I start?”

Kate shook her head.

“I know we’ve discussed this before, but I
need to make sure you’re clear about what we’re doing. We’ll be
harvesting your bone marrow in an operating room under anesthesia.
I’ll insert a needle into the back of your hip bone and take the
marrow from the center of the bone. You’ll be in the operating room
for about an hour and a half, maybe two hours. When you wake
up,
you’ll be in the recovery
room. All going well, and I don’t expect it won’t, you’ll be able
to go home tonight or tomorrow morning. You may have some bruising
and be sore for a few days after the procedure, but it should pass
fairly quickly. We’ll give you ibuprofen to help with any
discomfort.”