He kissed her on the cheek, glad of the conversation shift. “If Daisy Rose is anything like her Mama then I am truly a blessed man. I can’t wait to meet her. Did Donna send you anymore photos?”
Lily pulled out her phone and clicked on a recent video Donna had sent her that morning. It was of Daisy Rose singing Itsy bitsy spider.
“Wow, she’s a cutie.” Robbie said. Lily looked at him and her heart sang when she saw the expression on his face. She had no doubt that Daisy Rose would love Robbie and visa-versa.
“You know, I was thinking. . .” Lily smiled
“Uh oh, that could be dangerous.” He began to laugh. His laughter devolved into a series of coughs.
Lily continued, “Well you told me that Captain Sherman said you definitely need knee surgery, right?” Robbie nodded. “Why don’t you fly back to New York, have it done by one of your colleagues at New York Hospital, and this way you could stay with me and I can take care of you.”
Robbie paused for a few seconds. “I know what your angle is, Lil.”
Lily was taken aback. “Angle, I don’t have an angle—what do you mean?”
“I’m going to be in your bed recuperating—on my back—and each and every time you walk into the room, you’re going to jump my bones. You’re using me for my body!”
“Lily threw her head back and laughed. “You got that right and if we weren’t in a public place that’s what I’d be doing at this very moment, Dr. Rosen.” She looked around to make sure there was no one nearby and took his hand, placed it under her tee shirt, and let him cop a feel.
“No bra? Baby, you’re killing me.”
Lily took his hand out from beneath her shirt. “Okay, that’s enough. I just want you to know there’s more where that came from. Much more.”
“Okay then, I’ll take you up on it. I’ll stay with you.”
“Awesome. Since your mom will be here to take good care of you, I’m going to get a flight tomorrow. I really need to get back home to Daisy Rose. This way, I can get the house ready for you.”
“I understand, but I’ll miss you like crazy.” He gently touched her face. Do you know how beautiful you are?”
Lily batted her lashes and laughed. “Yes, but you can tell me anyway.”
“You are the most beautiful woman I have ever met. Inside and out. And brave. Seriously, you were beyond brave to go to Somalia. I owe you my life. I will never forget that.”
“I would do it again. I mean it—
“There’s something else I’ve been meaning to say: I was stupid and am I am beyond sorry that I left you like that—at your mother’s memorial. I regretted it almost immediately.”
Lily took his hand. “It’s water under the bridge, no need to talk about it.”
“I really needed to say it” Robbie looked uncomfortable. “There’s something else on my mind that I’ve been trying to say correctly. And since we are being open and forthcoming. . .”
Lily felt a wave of dread wash over her. “Just say it.”
“Look I know that everything is happening fast, but one thing that I’ve learned from the horror show I just came from is that life can change without a moment’s notice. I don’t want to be apart from you ever again.”
Lily smiled and hugged him.
“Excellent, so it’s a deal Ms. Lockwood.” In a mock gesture, he extended his hand for her to shake.
She looked around, shook his hand, and promptly put it under her t-shirt again.
Chapter 36
Lily looked at her watch. In fifteen minutes David was scheduled to pick her up from the hospital and take her to the airport. Lily’s stomach sank when she realized soon she would be in a car speeding away from Robbie.
Saying goodbye to him was bittersweet. She hated to leave, yet she knew that if all went as expected, he could very well be on a plane heading for New York in less than a week.
Robbie held Lily’s hand and they slowly walked around the grounds of the hospital. Lily was so grateful that Robbie was getting stronger every day. She thought of all the work that had piled up while she was gone—scripts that needed to be read and decisions to be made. Arthur Thomas’s film had been delayed so it wasn’t slated for preproduction for five more months. Franny had spoken to the producers of St. Joes to see if Lily could rejoin the cast, not as a series regular but as a recurring character. This way she would be free to accept film roles. Franny had said, because the ratings had fallen after she left the show, they would take her back any way they could—and give her a fat paycheck to boot.
But now that Robbie was going to be with her and recovering from knee surgery, going out to L.A. immediately was out of the question. Her two priorities were Daisy Rose and Robbie, and she planned to spend all her time with them.
Eventually, when Robbie was fully recovered, they talked about moving out to California together. Robbie told her that after he healed and was ready to go back to work, he would speak to a friend of his at U.C.L.A Medical Center about the possibility of joining their Cardiology team. This way they could be together on the West Coast, where Lily would be spending most of her time.
“A penny for your thoughts.”
“So not worth it.” She laughed. “Just work stuff.”
They stopped to sit down at “their bench” and Robbie lifted a flat, black stone, threw it across the pond, and it skipped four times before it disappeared.
“So when you get back are you going to see Actor Boy?” He asked nonchalantly.
“You mean Jamie? I’ll see him only when he visits Daisy Rose or picks her up for the day.” She put her hand on his, reassuringly. “There is absolutely nothing between us. The last thing we talked about was my feelings for you.” Lily kissed him. “I don’t want you to worry at all, promise?”
“I won’t.” He smiled, relieved.
Lily snickered, “And also, please stop calling him Actor Boy.”
“Yeah—now that I can’t promise.” He laughed and Lily swatted his arm.
She stood up and grabbed his hand to pull him up. “Time for us to go up front. David will be here in five minutes.”
They walked together toward the front entrance of the hospital.
Robbie broke the silence, “What am I going to do here, without you?”
Lily slipped her arm through his. “Well, you are going to do everything you can to heal fast, so that you will be on a plane this time next week.
“It’s a plan.” Robbie said.
They were midway up a small hill when Robbie became breathless and began to cough. He coughed non-stop for several minutes. Lily was concerned; she didn’t like the sound of the cough. It was the kind her mother used to call “productive.” When he finally stopped coughing, he took her hand and continued to walk.
“Did you tell the doctor about the cough? Because, to me it doesn’t sound good—it sounds sort of phlegmy,” Lily said.
“So now that we have the symptoms, what may I ask is your diagnosis, Dr. Lockwood?” Robbie teased.
“Seriously, Robbie, I’m worried. Please tell me that you’ll notify the doctor today. Promise me. Otherwise I’m going to be worried the whole plane ride home.”
“Even though I know there’s nothing to be concerned about, I’ll have my nurse contact the doctor. Does that make you feel better?”
“Much.” She said.
“I promise I’ll do everything I can to get home to you.”
They continued to walk in silence. When they turned the corner, they saw David leaning against the car parked by the front entrance of the hospital.
“My brother’s here,” they both said in unison. They looked at each other and laughed.
“Now how do you suppose we’re ever going to explain to people that I am deeply in love with my brother’s brother?” Lily joked.
“Just tell them we come from an extremely close family and that’s just how we roll.”
They were both laughing as they approached David. He opened the passenger door with a dramat
ic flourish, “Your car awaits you, Madam.”
Tears filled her eyes when she looked up at Robbie. He wiped away her tears and kissed her. Then, he leaned down and whispered in her ear, “The silver cord is tied from my heart to yours that can never be severed. Lily Lockwood, you are the love of my life.”
The Lily Lockwood Series: Book Three: The Family Bond will be published 2016.
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The Lily Lockwood Series: The Seeds of a Daisy, The Silver Cord, The Family Bond.
The Silver Cord: The Lily Lockwood Series: Book Two Page 23
