Dance and Be Glad

by Melissa Wardwell

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Epilogue

  To the Reader

  Thank You

  About the Author

  Prologue

  Christmas Eve

  The day had been pleasantly awkward. Never had Mike Emerson imagined standing up in the front of a congregation with a man who was about to marry the woman who he had wondered at one time might be the one for him. Guess God has other ideas.

  Mike had begun to fall for Emma Daniels and her three children. Unfortunately for him, the minute she told him that David, the crippled and mangled town handyman, was really her long lost ex-husband Ryan, he knew that the right thing to do was to step back. A family deserved to be together. He just hoped that Ryan would do right by his family this time. Not everyone received the redemption this man had.

  Ryan was a good guy. In fact, his brother-in-law Brad, Ryan and Mike had become close friends over the last few weeks. The day Ryan asked him to stand with him for this wedding, Mike thought that he was crazy. He reminded Ryan that he had tried to date Emma, but Ryan hadn’t seemed to be bothered by it. Not wanting to look like a disgruntled friend, he agreed and hid his reluctance for the sake of the friendship. The situation was odd to say the least, but the friendships had become more valuable. His heart would heal.

  The sanctuary of Cornerstone Church was silhouetted in soft candlelight on this Christmas Eve night. Heavy snowfall had caused a blackout throughout the small country church but the wedding proceeded as planned. He wasn’t an overly romantic guy, but he must admit, the ambiance of the dimly lit sanctuary made him long for something he hadn’t had in a long time.

  The setting brought flashes of a pretty redhead whose dazzling green eyes made his head spin. After the way things went down with Jillian the night before he left for college, he found it difficult to find anyone else who could make him feel and hope like she did. He thought that Erin, a woman he met right after college, might be his saving grace in the love department. Sadly, she proved to be less than honest with him shortly after they married. The divorce jaded him and he made a point to not let others get too close. He decided that practicing medicine, at home and abroad, would be his focus. That and enjoying the only family he had left - his brother Tom, his sister-in-law Rebecca, and their little girl Emily. He was fine living vicariously through his brother, as far as children were concerned. Sure, he hoped for a family of his own, but when the children of his dreams had her emerald eyes, he feared it was a dead dream.

  The doors of the sanctuary swung wide and in walked the woman who ruined him for all women, Jillian Matthews. He knew that she would be his partner for this wedding, but he hadn’t anticipated her being even more breath-taking than she had in high school. He wasn’t able to be at rehearsal the day before due to having to work an extra shift in the emergency room, so this was the first time he had seen her in seventeen years. He had tried a million times to imagine how this moment would be, but the reality of it surpassed all his previous ideas.

  His heart thundered in his chest as she sauntered down the aisle in the blue satin gown. Her red hair glowed like a flame in the candle light. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her, no matter how hard he tried. The closer she came, the clearer her features became. She wasn’t as thin as she was in school, but he didn’t mind. She had more curve, more shape. He liked it, probably more than he should have. Not liking the direction his thoughts were taking him, he focused on her face - tired, but happy. Her dazzling green eyes had grayed a bit and faint lines fanned out from her eyes and around her mouth. The changes to her looks didn’t detract from her beauty but enhanced it. In his years of practicing medicine, he had met many who time had not been kind to. He could honestly say the opposite was true for Jillian. She had grown to become a striking woman.

  Standing across from one another, she seemed to study him as much as he was her, making him nervous under her scrutiny. A part of him wondered if she was liking what she saw as much as he was. He forced a smile in a hello to her and she responded in the same way. He ran his tongue around in his mouth in an attempt to moisten it again. Either the air was dry or seeing her again was doing things to him. He fisted his hands in an effort to loosen the tension, his fingers met wet palms. The sensation of being hit in the gut reaffirmed that she still had an effect on him.

  The wedding passed quickly and before he knew it, she was taking his arm as the wedding party followed the bride and groom to the back of the room.

  “Hello there stranger,” she whispered. Her soft tone was like a melody in his ears.

  “Hello Jillian. How are you?” he asked through the pleasant smile he gave the photographer.

  “I’m good,” she replied.

  “You look good.”

  A delicate giggle escaped her, “I do my best, but the make-up artist is a miracle worker.”

  “Don’t be so modest, you have always been beautiful.” Michael didn’t know where all the smooth talk was coming from. He hadn’t a coherent thought in his brain at the moment.

  Not another word was exchanged as pictures of the bridal party were taken. He wasn’t close enough to her to say anything more. He found himself looking at her from time to time, hoping no one noticed. An elbow to the gut from Brad during pictures with the guys told him otherwise. “You’re going to ruin every picture if you don’t focus,” he teased. “Just talk to her later.” From that point on, he did his best to stay focused. The day was not for him to catch up with an old flame, but to celebrate Emma and Ryan.

  He pried his thoughts from Jillian long enough to give the happy couple his best as they gathered in the fellowship hall where finger foods and cake were waiting to be enjoyed.

  “You’re a lucky man,” he told Ryan as he shook his hand.

  “Thanks man. And thank you for agreeing to stand up with me. You’re a good man who I’m proud to call you my friend,” Ryan remarked. “I noticed by the way,” he commented, jabbing Michael with his elbow. What was it with these guys and elbow jabs?

  “Noticed what?” Michael pretended like he had no idea what Ryan was referring to.

  “Don’t play dumb with me, Emerson. Your poker face is terrible. I noticed you making goo-goo eyes at Jillian. You’d have to be blind not to notice.”

  A claw of a hand clapped him on his back and Michael winced in discomfort. “Man, if you don’t leave here with her number, you’re a fool,” Brad commented from beside him.

  “Guys, take it easy. I’m happy being a single guy.” Liar! “I don’t need a woman in my life like you two. Besides, it’s not like I have the kind of time to give a woman what she wants.”

  Both his friends held their hands up in mock surrender giving each other knowing looks.

  Later, standing by the punch bowl, he saw her sitting alone at the table designated for the attendants. He grabbed another drink and decided to take it to her.

  “You look thirsty,” he commented as he gave her the glass and took a seat next to her.

  “Thanks,” she replied with a shy smile, never looking him in the eyes.

  “You’re wel….”

  “Mom! Mom! Can I have a piece of cake?”

  The young girl with strawberry blond ringlets and ice blue eyes ran to Jillian as she asked her question. He knew she had a daughter but
he’d always pictured a small child; not a girl who looked to be about his niece’s age. His mom told him years ago that Jillian married a buddy of his, Doug Matthews, shortly after she graduated high school. He quit asking about her after that. He reasoned that it was for the best, she being four years younger than he was. Of course, she was younger than Doug as well. Mr. Anderson, her dad, must have approved of Doug more. Michael was in the middle of a village in Kenya when he received word that Doug had been killed in Baghdad.

  “Katie, honey, do we yell across the room like that?” Jillian asked her daughter as she came and stood next to her.

  “No.” The glint of tween irritation flashed in the girl’s eyes. He had seen it many times in the eyes of some of his patients.

  “How about you try that again?”

  He watched as the girl took a frustrated breath and asked her question in a quieter tone. “Mom, may I have a piece of cake?”

  “Yes, you may. First, I want to introduce you to my friend from high school. This is Mr. Michael Emerson.”

  “Nice to meet you, sir,” the girl stated, her shy tone reflected her mother’s. He held his hand out to shake the girl’s hand. Her delicate hand slipped into his. Not used to having a little girls hand in his, he was surprised at how small it was.

  “Nice to meet you too, Miss Katie.”

  The girl looked back at Jillian, a repeat of the question gleaming in her eyes.

  “All right, go have your cake… “The girl began to walk away before Jillian could finish. “Just one though. It is already late.” The seven o’clock wedding made things last a little later in the night than a typical wedding.

  Katie waved that she heard her mother as she walked away and met up with Ryan and Emma’s daughter, Sarah. He was starting to connect the dots. Living in a small town meant everyone knew everyone.

  “She’s a beauty, Jillian. She has Doug’s eyes. I see you too of course, but it is nice to see a bit of Doug walking around.” Guilt filled him as he recalled the loss of communication, “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for the funeral.”

  “I just go by Jill now and it’s okay, Michael. I know it was hard to get home. Yes, she does look like her dad. So, how have you been?”

  Her smile was warm and inviting.

  “Most people call me Mike now and things are all right. I can’t really complain. I’m about to open a private practice in New Lothrop but I have to finish the remodel of the space first. Until that’s ready, I’m an ER doctor at the local hospital.” He hated talking about himself.

  “Wow! So you’re doing well for yourself. That’s good to hear. I always wondered what had become of you. When Emma told me that we were walking together, I’ll admit I was pretty excited.” Jillian turned her head and he caught a glimpse of pink making its way up her slender neck to her perfectly shaped ears. He couldn’t help but smile.

  Christmas music played as servers passed out cake and people mingled. One song came on that kind of brought a whole new meaning to what this evening held for the bride and groom and it made Mike smile.

  “Oh I love this song,” Jill remarked as “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” rang through the air and he couldn’t agree more. Sitting next to her made him feel like he was home. There was something about seeing a familiar face.

  Movement from the other side of the room caught their attention. Ryan led Emma across the room to a clear area in the small fellowship hall and took her in his arms. Dancing wasn’t on the docket for this reception; the spontaneity made it all the more special. The two of them watched as the newlyweds danced. It wasn’t the most graceful display due to Ryan’s bad leg, but knowing the couple’s struggle to get to this place made it just as beautiful.

  “They look sweet.” Jill leaned toward him and whispered. The gentle breath that brushed his ear swept through him like a refreshing breeze. An idea formed in his head.

  Holding his hand out to her he asked, “Care to join them?”

  Her hesitance had him praying she would accept his invitation. “It’s a dance, not a date, Jill.” She finally conceded and slipped her soft, slender hand into his calloused, overworked ones.

  Others followed and soon the small space was packed with dancing couples, swaying to the Christmas music. Laughter filled the air and mingled with the carols playing from an MP3 player docking station. The scent of hot cider and cocoa mixed with the spicy vanilla scent of Jill’s perfume. It was intoxicating.

  “You said that you were opening an office in New Lothrop. My dance studio is there as well. It’ll be nice to have a doctor in town. No more driving a half an hour to get care. I hope you’re ready for an onslaught of new patients.”

  “It’ll be nice to make my own choices and do what is best for my patients instead of whatever the hospital tells me to do.” Her comment about her dance studio being in the same town brought to mind something he had seen. “Wait, next to my office space is a little dance studio. Is that you?”

  “Unless there is another one, then yes, that is me. So you’re the one making all the noise next door. Now I know who to call to make a complaint,” she joked. Her coy smile made his stomach flip.

  “That is me, but Jill, you are more than welcome to call for other reasons as well. Not just to complain.” He thought they were comfortable enough to tease back and forth. The disappearance of her smile told him otherwise. He chided himself for being so forward so quickly.

  “Mike…”

  The ring of his cell phone broke their conversation. He forgot he even had it on.

  He apologized to her for the interruption and pulled it from his pocket. He was about to silence the sound when he saw the hospital number. Typically, they would page him, but he wasn’t on call.

  “Is it work?” He barely heard her question as he pushed send.

  “Dr. Emerson speaking.”

  “Doctor, this is Ellen in the ER. You are on the emergency contact list for your brother Thomas and his wife Rebecca?”

  The bliss he enjoyed as he held Jill seconds ago left and his blood ran cold. “That is correct.” He didn’t want to hear the rest of the spiel. He knew what was going to be said next because he said it himself many times. He locked pleading eyes on Jill, hoping to pull some support. She offered it by placing her hand on his bent arm.

  “Sir, you need to come to the hospital immediately. Something has happened and you need to be here.”

  “I’m on my way,” he muttered as he ended the call and gave Jill an apologetic look. “I have to go. Pray Jill, something’s happened to Tom and Becca.”

  He moved to the door without saying another word. All the worst case scenarios flew through his mind as he sped to the hospital. Clearly the snowstorm had caused more problems than the blackout at the church.

  On his way, he came across the remnants of a six car pile-up in the middle of an intersection. At the center of the pile, under the crushing weight of a heavy duty Dodge pickup was a car that resembled his brother’s. The mangled metal left no guessing as to the condition of its inhabitants. He hadn’t been an ER doctor for as long as he had not to know the outcome of wreckage like that.

  Mike prayed all the way to the hospital. He knew in his gut what the outcome was, but hoped he was wrong.

  Pulling into the hospital parking lot, he slammed his car into park with great force and ran to the emergency room door, not even sure he had even closed his car door.

  The ER was a buzz with activity; he had never seen it so busy. Co-workers gave him sorrowful looks or expressions pleading for help. He ignored them all and found the one nurse he could trust on the night shift.

  “Chelsea, where’s my brother and Becca?” He could hear the panic in his tone. Pull it together until you know for sure.

  Her startled response shifted to pity, “Follow me. Doctor Graham came in to help. This accident has us hopping.”

  He didn’t respond, he just kept praying. It was all he could think to do to keep from freaking out as flashes of he and Tom played out in his m
ind. They were hoodlums his Nana had said many times.

  Seeing his friend and colleague, Mike indicated his thanks to Chelsea and quickened his pace to Doctor Graham. “Graham. Talk to me. Please, tell me their okay.”

  Graham wore the face of a doctor with bad news as he looked for a quiet place to talk. All the rooms were full, so the men went to the office off the ER. “Have a seat, Emerson.”

  “No, I can’t. Just tell me.”

  Graham took a deep breath. “Okay, Rebecca suffered numerous lacerations and broken bones, including her ribs. Three of those ribs punctured her lungs which in turn collapsed. She also had massive internal injuries. I’m sorry, but she was too long without care because of this snowstorm…..”

  “She didn’t make it.”

  “She did not.”

  Bile rose as the blow from the shock hit him with its first punch.

  “And Tom?” Mike was losing hope with every heartbeat.

  Graham bowed his head and shook it slowly, “Not much better but he made it to the ER. He is in OR now, but Mike, be prepared. You know how these things go.”

  “He’s not looking good, is he?”

  “Not when I sent him over.”

  The second punch made his head spin. Mike sat in the closest chair as he processed the information. He had lost his sister-in-law and would most likely lose his brother. He felt cold and numb. His brain quit thinking and his senses quit working.

  “Mike?” Graham touched his shoulder, “You can wait in the O.R. waiting room. At least that way they’ll know where to find you.”

  He didn’t want to be found, he didn’t want to know, but he got up from the chair without saying a word to his friend and walked down the hospital corridor to the waiting room. He told the volunteer worker who he was waiting for and went to stand in front of the windows that overlooked the hospital courtyard.

  The snow continued to fall but at a much slower pace. He figured that there were maybe ten inches on the other side of the window. He watched and waited for who knew how long, watching the snow fall.

  Memories of playing in the snow with his brother played out before him. Mike was bigger, stronger and had no issues tackling his little brother and whitewashing him in the snow banks. Tom would run in the house, crying to mom, but mugs of steaming hot cocoa and an apology for being too rough always made things right. Their relationship was tight and the thought of not having Tom in his life threatened to break Mike. His brother’s family was all he had.