“No, I grabbed us a bite to eat from work. She loves when I do that.”
“She always brags when you bring food home.” Her friend acknowledged.
“Well, I guess I better go collect my rambunctious daughter and her things. We’ll visit you tomorrow.” Kelly reported as she gathered Emma’s bag and called her to the front door.
“Okay. Hey!” Dawn stopped her. “You might want to watch her, she did something else weird today.”
“What?” she asked, concerned it had more to do with her daughter’s illness.
“It’s nothing bad, but she picked the scab off her arm and used the blood to create small red dots all over her body to pretend she had chicken pox,” Dawn said laughing.
“Oh. My. God. No, she didn’t! I swear, my child has an imagination!” Her daughter smirked at her and shook her head, agreeing with her mom.
“Momma, you brought us home dinner for tonight?” she asked as she opened the car door and spied the containers in the seat.
“Yep, I figured my Emma Buggy would love to have fancy food from my work.” She beamed in the rear view mirror as the child buckled herself.
That night after her daughter was ready for bed, she sat down on the couch to relax before she went to sleep. As she followed the television program, she thought about the man who gave her the generous tip that afternoon. It was a beautiful gesture, but for a salad? He must have motives; then she realized—he left the lavish amount of dough with his phone number. He was trying to impress her so she would call him. She was torn on what to do.
Kelly drifted off on the couch as the television continued to play. A loud scream that came from Emma’s room startled her from her slumber. She jumped up and ran to check on her. Emma was sitting up in her bed, tearful while holding her legs.
“What’s wrong Emma Buggy?” she asked, despite how sleepy she was as she tried to rub her eyes.
“Momma, they hurt. I can’t even bend my legs,” she cried.
“Let me have a peek,” her mom insisted, pulling the covers back. Emma’s knees had swollen more than they had been. Kelly lightly touched them, trying to investigate what was causing the swelling. “Emma Buggy, you’re scalding hot. Can I take your temperature?”
Her daughter nodded her head as she got up to grab the thermometer. She placed it under Emma’s tongue and waited for the beep. When she removed it, she was surprised when it read 101.6 degrees Fahrenheit.
“Do you hurt anywhere else? Is your throat sore or do you have a headache or anything like that?” Kelly probed her daughter, trying to find the cause of the fever.
“No, momma. It’s just my knees, and my back hurts down at the bottom. My whole body feels tight.”
“It’s okay. Everything is going to be just fine. I’ll go get your medicine, would you take that for me?” She asked as she brushed her daughter’s hair away from her face.
She nodded and replied, “Yes, but will it make me feel better?”
“I hope so honey. I’ll have it ready for you in a minute.”
Kelly went to the kitchen and poured out a dose of ibuprofen for Emma. As she did, she wondered what was wrong with her. Her baby almost never got sick and when she did, she never actually complained; it was puzzling to her. After she had replaced the cap on the bottle, she headed to Emma’s room with her meds and a cup of water.
“Okay sweetheart, you have to take a little and I brought you water,” Kelly said as she held up the small pink cup. “Drink this up and get rested. You should feel better in the morning.”
Like a good girl, she took the dose and drank the water before she dozed off. Her mom stayed with her until she was fast asleep. Once she was sleeping, Kelly headed to the kitchen to place the spoon and cup in the sink. Worried about the child, she decided that she would go to sleep in Emma’s room for the rest of the night. She scooted her daughter over in her bed and climbed in beside her before she curled up with her and nodded off.
In the morning, she woke up to moaning in her sleep. She listened for a moment before waking her; she was in so much pain.
“Emma Buggy,” she whispered. “Emma….” Kelly nudged her. “Are you feeling okay?”
She opened her eyes and looked at her mom, unaware she’d been making noise as she slept. “I hurt mommy.”
“Yeah, I caught that baby. I’m calling in to work today and am going to try to get a hold of your doctor. You rest here for a little while.” She got up.
“Momma, I don’t like being in here by myself. Will you carry me to the couch and let me watch cartoons?”
“Sure, come here,” she gently scooped her up. “Do you want me to bring your blanket or pillow?”
“My blanket, please,” Emma said, wrapping her arms around her mom’s neck.
Kelly grabbed the blanket and headed for the living room. After she had been settled in, she went off to start a pot of coffee and make her daughter a bowl of cereal before she called the doctor.
“Here you go Emma Buggy. I’ll call Dr. Hinton’s office to see if they can get you in any sooner.”
She hated calling in but didn’t have a choice in the matter. She really couldn’t afford it, but she also couldn’t let her daughter suffer. True, Dawn would’ve taken excellent care of her while she was ill, but her baby needed her mommy.
“Brian, this is Kelly. I won’t be able to make it in today.” She explained to her manager.
“What? Why not?” he asked.
“Well, it’s Emma. She’s been sick the last few days, and the doctor’s office said they can’t get her in until tomorrow. I’m going to find out if they can schedule her for this afternoon. She’s gotten progressively worse and I’m worried about her.”
“You’re aware that’s a point if you don’t come in, right?” He reminded her of the attendance guidelines.
“I know, but I never call in and I have no points right now. I’ll keep you informed and tell you what the doctor says.” Kelly said, annoyed that her boss would try to make her feel threatened by the company policy.
After she had hung up with her manager, she went into the living room to check on Emma. “How are you holding up?”
“I’m okay momma. You won’t get in trouble for not going into work are you?” the child asked, overhearing the phone conversation.
“No baby, it’s fine. Don’t you worry about that. I will call Dr. Hinton now. I’ll be back.”
Emma was so sweet, she thought. Her daughter was suffering but was worried about her mom. Pouring herself a cup of coffee, she dialed the doctor’s practice.
“Dr. Hinton’s office, this is Wendy, how may I help you?”
“Hi, this is Kelly Hall again. I called yesterday about Emma?”
“Oh yes, did you still need your appointment or were you calling to reschedule?”
“Well, I was trying find out if there’s any way you could get her in today instead of tomorrow. She ran a high fever last night, 101.6, and she’s in more pain.”
“I’ll take a gander,” Wendy looked, scanning the daily schedule. “I don’t have any open slots. Let me put you on hold while I go talk to the doctor and we’ll figure out how we can work you in somehow.”
“Okay, thank you.” Kelly uttered as she listened to the hideous elevator music that crackled over the phone line.
After a few moments, the assistant came back on the phone. “Okay, Miss Hall?”
“Yes?”
“Dr. Hinton confirmed that we have nothing available today, but it sounds urgent. He asked if you will bring her in at 5 PM when the office closes and he’ll stay after to examine her. Is that okay with you?”
She thought about it for a moment; she hated making her wait so long, but it was better than waiting a whole extra day. “I’ll accept it. We’ll be there early.”
“Okay, we’ll fit her in at five o’clock,” Wendy told her as they hung up the phone.
She walked back into the living room, “All right Emma Buggy, momma’s working her magic and the doctor
will see you, but we have to wait until the office closes. He can’t take you in until he’s seen everyone else. Do you think you’ll brave it out until then?”
She shook her head yes. “Momma, would you turn on SpongeBob? He’s my favorite cartoon. I don’t like these kid cartoons.” She commented as she watched Woody Woodpecker.
Kelly chuckled at her daughter and her way with words. “We wouldn’t want you looking at childish shows! What was I thinking?” She changed the television channel and said, “Okay, one more call to my boss and then I’ll come hang out with you.”
She took the phone into her bedroom and called her work. “Brian, it’s me again.”
“And what did they say?”
“The doctor indicated they’re all booked up today and he can’t examine her until the practice closes because they have no empty slots.”
“When does his office close?” he quizzed her.
“They said to bring her in at five.”
“Good, you can make it in after all.”
“Brian, my shift started almost an hour ago. What do you suppose I do? Just leave my sick kid?” she challenged, angry at what he was suggesting.
“We need you. If you come in, I’ll waive the point and just put you down for six hours on the schedule this afternoon so it looks like you were here for your scheduled time.”
Kelly thought about it for a moment. “And what do you suggest for my baby who can hardly walk because she can’t bend her legs?”
“Can’t your friend babysit her at your house? She does have a babysitter, right?”
She sighed, “I’ll call her and ask if she will drive over here.”
Kelly was heartbroken as she hung up with her boss. She wanted to stay home with her daughter so bad, but she didn’t wish to get into trouble either. She felt like she was ditching her baby for work, but she needed this job if she would pay bills and have insurance.
“Dawn?”
“Yes? Where are you? Weren’t you supposed to be working almost an hour ago?”
“Yeah, I was, but Emma woke up last night. She was running a fever and was unable to bend her legs at all. Her knees appear more like knobs.”
“Aww, poor thing. Is she okay now or is she still sick?”
“Well, I have her on the couch with her blanket, watching cartoons. I called the doctor, and they said they will see her today, but it would be after office hours because they didn’t have any open slots this afternoon. I tried calling in to work, but Brian is being a complete ass. He said I’ll receive an occurrence if I take the whole day off, or he’ll let me come in as soon as I can, change the schedule and not give me a point.”
“What are you going to do?” Dawn asked.
“Well, as much as I hate to abandon Emma, I will go in late. I was wondering if you would drive over here to babysit her though since she’s having trouble walking, plus it would buy me a little extra time while I get ready for work.”
“Absolutely. I’ll leave just as soon as I slip on my shoes and grab my purse.”
Chapter Two
“What did the doctor say?” Dawn asked.
“Well, he noted Emma might have a bug, which would explain her fever. He also seems to think the way she plays on the floor all the time are causing her knees to swell and hurt from it,” Kelly reported.
“So what’d he say to do?”
“Just to let the bug run its course, and he suggested having her play while sitting on her bed or at the kitchen table. He thinks that will help her back and knee pain and swelling should subside.”
“That’s good. Are you bringing her over tomorrow when you go to work?” Dawn questioned.
“Yeah, we’ll be there at the usual time. See you in the morning.” She said as she hung up the phone.
“Momma?”
“What Emma Buggy?”
“I was wondering if you would read me a story tonight after I put my jammies on.”
“Sure baby, I’ll do that. Why don’t you brush your teeth and hop into bed? I need to give you some ibuprofen first, though, okay?”
The blue-eyed sweetheart nodded her head, “Momma, is it all right if I wear my princess nightgown?”
“Yes, that’s fine. Why don’t you go get your pajamas on while I pour your medicine and then we’ll read you a story?”
“Yep! I’ll race you!” Her daughter yelled, running to her bedroom.
Kelly headed into the kitchen and measured out Emma’s ibuprofen as she made her a cup of water. She was already in her PJ’s, waiting for her mom under her blanket and had her favorite book picked out— “Cinderella”. After she had given her daughter the medicine, she snuggled beside her and read to her. As they were wrapping up the story, her little girl had a question for her.
“Momma when are you going to find your prince charming?”
“That’s a good question Emma Buggy, hopefully, one of these days.” Kelly sighed.
“But Momma, I want a daddy like all my friends at school,” she pleaded with her.
“I know baby. I’d rather you have two parents also, but mommy wants to make certain you have the best father in the whole wide world!” She smiled at her daughter as she wrapped her arms around her and squeezed her tight.
“Momma? Is your heart big enough for both a mom and a dad?”
“What are you asking?”
“Does that mean you love me twice as much since I have just you?”
“Yes, I do Emma Buggy. There’s not a thing in this universe I wouldn’t do for you! Now go to sleep.”
She had kissed her beloved angel good night before she went to her room. Emma’s question rang through her head while she tried to fall asleep. When would she find the perfect guy to settle down with? My baby deserves to have a dad so much, she thought. Kelly’s heart ached within her chest that Emma longed to have a father figure. As hard as Kelly worked to provide that little girl with everything she needed in life that was the one thing she couldn’t give her daughter no matter how much money she had.
She remembered the handsome stranger that came into the restaurant. He seemed like a nice enough guy. What would she even say if she phoned him? She couldn’t figure out why such a prestigious man would want her to call him. I wonder if he thought I was pretty. Kelly questioned herself. No, that can’t be. I’m just average looking, and I could stand to lose a few pounds.
As she imagined calling him, she tried to envision how their conversation would go. Her eyes darted at the clock; it was 8:30 PM. It wouldn’t be too late to call him—or would it be? After wrestling with the idea for a few moments, she felt nervous. What would she say if he answered the phone? Would he even remember her name? At least now that Emma was feeling a little better, she didn’t have to focus so much on her at the moment. It would also be the perfect excuse to tell him why she hadn’t gotten in touch with him within the last couple of days.
Butterflies stirred in her stomach as she reached for her cell phone and pulled out his business card. She looked it over again, took a deep breath and dialed his number. Just before she called him, she chickened out. “Oh I can’t call him,” she whispered. Then she glimpsed at the card again. If he was the president and owner of the company, he at least had goals, which was more than she could say for any of the guys she’d ever dated. She hoped he would be good for Emma. She punched the digits again, and this time hit the send button. He answered on the second ring.
“Hello?” Dave said.
“Hi, David.”
“Who is this?”
“This is Kelly. You came into my restaurant the other day and left me your business card.” She swallowed, trying to dry her mouth, “I was just calling you back.”
“Oh, right. I remember you. How are you doing?”
“Good. How are you?”
“I’m doing great.” He answered.
There was an awkward silence for a few seconds. “I’m not sure why you asked me to call you,” Kelly said at a loss for words.
“Ah, I wan
ted you to because I like you. You’re so beautiful and sweet. I was wondering if I could take you on a date.”
“Me?” She pondered in disbelief. “Why would you want to go out with me?”
“I thought you were kind, cordial…. and you’re pretty. So what do you say?”
Kelly smiled. “Well, I’d have to say I’m not sure right now. I mean, I don’t know you or anything, and I have a daughter.”
Rescued by the Billionaire (Billionaire Romance Novel) Page 2
