“Where?” Sara demanded. “Does he have a good shot of us?”
“The best,” Nellie retorted.
Sara pulled her arm back and let go with a rock-hard punch that almost dislocated her shoulder. Brian Granger fell to the floor.
“He’s out cold, Sara. This will make the six o’clock news and the late edition,” Nellie gasped. “I’ve wanted to do that for the last ten years. Thank you, Sara.”
“It was my pleasure. Did they get my good side.”
“Front and back. By back I mean that skimpy dress that hiked up all the way to your bra strap.”
Sara dusted her hands. “No kidding. Should I make a comment? You know, so they get the story straight?”
“Why the hell not,” Nellie muttered. “On second thought, let’s quit while we’re ahead.” She yanked Sara’s arm to drag her out of the restaurant.
Outside the well-known eatery, Sara tugged at the skimpy dress. To the parking attendant she said, “Get us a cab, please.”
“Certainly, Dr. Killian.”
“I’m not a doctor anymore, young man. I quit.”
“She retired,” Nellie said as she pushed Sara into the backseat of the cab.
“Spell your last name,” the reporter who snapped their picture called out.
“Why should I? No. Nellie, tell him how to spell Brian Granger’s name.”
“Burn rubber, driver,” Nellie barked.
“I’m probably going to get sick,” Sara said.
“Not in my cab you aren’t,” the driver said.
“Can I get sick if I promise to give you a Dallas Lord original song?”
“No!”
“Shit!” Sara said.
Nellie buried her face in her plump shoulder to stifle her laughter.
Sara slept through the six o’clock news. Not so the Lord brothers and Tom Silk, who were dining on beef stew and crusty French bread when the evening anchor, his voice full of laughter, announced the day’s lighter moment at a well-known eatery.
Adam’s jaw dropped. Dallas pushed his glasses tighter on the bridge of his nose. Tom Silk said, “Holy shit!”
“That’s Sara,” Dallas said.
“So it is,” Adam drawled.
“I never would have thought the doctor was a brawler,” Tom said.
“That’s Sara,” Dallas said again.
“Good legs. Snazzy dress, what there is of it,” Tom said.
“Which just goes to show you should never judge a book by its cover,” Adam said as he bit into a chunk of bread.
“That’s a cliché. You need to be more original, Adam. Sara’s here in LA. No wonder I couldn’t find her. Did I hear that guy right when he said she was going to make pottery?” Dallas asked.
“I heard that,” Adam guffawed.
“How do you not want to be a doctor anymore?”
“How do you not want to be a rock star anymore? I guess if you want to know the answer to that question, you’ll have to ask Sara?”
“It’s not the same thing,” Dallas said.
“The hell it isn’t. What makes her any different from you? You’re alike in so many ways. That’s probably what drew you together in the first place. This is really good stew,” Adam said as he filled his plate for the third time.
“It’s the horseradish,” Tom said.
“I’m going down there,” Dallas said.
“You have our blessing,” Tom and Adam said in unison.
Dallas was back in ninety minutes. “She’s not there. The house was dark, and there are new locks on the doors. I tried to pick the lock, but I couldn’t. There’s a For Sale sign in the yard and a lockbox on the door. I looked through the garage window, and there was no car in the garage.”
“Maybe she’s with her sister or the nurse,” Adam volunteered.
“I checked the nurse’s apartment. No one was there either. I have no idea where the sister is. Where the hell could she be?”
“Maybe she’s at her pottery shop,” Tom said. Dallas shot him a withering look.
“Let it rest, Dallas. She’ll see the broadcast and call or come up. Trust me. I know a little bit about women.”
Dallas spent the next two and a half days pacing and rehearsing what he was going to say during his live interview. Sara spent the time reading about pottery at the local library.
On Tuesday evening, Sara settled herself on the sofa, Nellie at her side. The remote was in her shaky hand. A pot of strong black coffee sat on the coffee table.
“It’s amazing that this has been kept secret. Everything in this town is up for grabs.”
“It’s on! It’s on!” Nellie cried. “God in heaven, is that Dallas Lord?”
“Oh, Nellie, look at him. He looks . . . he looks . . .”
“Just like his brother.”
“He’s wearing glasses. Nellie is that a hearing aid?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, God, that explains so many things. I must be the stupidest person walking this earth. I’m a doctor, why didn’t I pick up on his hearing and his eyesight? I used to think he was spacey. He probably didn’t hear half the things I said to him. If his eyesight is bad, then he probably wasn’t being spacey at all.”
“What ever came before doesn’t matter. Be quiet and listen to what he’s saying. I thought you said he was . . . ditzy. That person on the screen is no ditz.”
“No, he isn’t.” Tears dripped down Sara’s cheeks. “I’m outta here, Nellie.”
“Aren’t you going to see the end?”
“I don’t need to see the end. I’ll make my own ending. I gotta go before people start swarming up there. Are you going to wish me luck?”
“Honey, you don’t need any luck. It’s all yours, just reach out. Go on, go!”
“Do I look okay?”
“You look fine. Go! Take my truck. I parked behind you. No sense in wasting time moving cars. Will you go already! If you floor that baby, you can get her up to eighty,” Nellie shouted. “Take care of it, it’s your wedding present.”
Nellie was wrong. The old truck was doing eighty-five when a siren blasted the night air. Sara gritted her teeth as she pulled over to the side of the road. “I’m a doctor, Officer. I’m going to . . . an emergency. It’s life and death. Please, I have to go.”
“Follow me, Doctor,” the cop said.
Lights flashing, siren wailing, Sara sailed up the canyon road behind the police cruiser. “I’ll probably get ten years for this,” she muttered.
Inside Dallas’s mansion, Adam frowned at the sound of the police siren.
“Jesus, are they here already to arrest me? Listen, Adam, I have to get out of here.”
“Look at the monitor, Dallas, and tell me what you see.”
The color left Dallas’s face. “C’mon, you guys, clear out. The show’s over. Get this film crew out of here, Adam.”
“I love a happy ending,” Tom said.
“It’s the only way to go. Hey, we’ve got the best seat in the house. She’s getting out of the truck. He’s almost there. They’re looking at one another. Come on, Dallas, move!”
“What are they waiting for?” Tom demanded.
“They’re drinking in the sight of each other.”
“Huh?”
“It sounded good, didn’t it.” Adam said.
“Yeah. Yeah, it did.”
“Shhh,” Adam said putting his finger to his lips.
“Gee, I wish there was sound.”
“No you don’t. Turn off the cameras, Tom.”
Outside; Sara could only stare at the man coming toward her. Her feet felt rooted to the concrete.
“Are we going to get married or not?” Dallas asked.
“Are you asking?” Sara whispered.
“I’m asking.”
“Then I’m answering, and I’m saying yes. I’m not a doctor anymore, Dallas. What I mean is, I’ll always be a doctor, but I’m not going to practice medicine any longer. You really spooked me when you said you were going to b
uild me a private hospital and all that stuff. I felt like you put a chain around my neck.”
“I thought it was what you wanted. I’m not going to be a musician anymore either. I might want to perform someday, but that’s way far into the future.”
Dallas advanced a step. Sara advanced a step and then she was in his arms and then time stood still but only after the world exploded around them.
“We need to talk, Sara. We need to make decisions. Right now both of us are free. We don’t have jobs, and that’s by our choice. I’d like it if you’d tell me what it is you want, and then I’ll tell you what I want. We have to agree and work at this together because we’re going to be spending the rest of our lives together. I don’t want either one of us to have regrets later on. Both of us have had enough of that. Let’s sit over here on the grass and talk.”
“I love you. I never said that out loud to anyone in my life. My heart feels like it’s going to jump out of my chest. I fell in love with you the night you walked into the hospital,” Sara said.
“I waited all my life for someone like you, Sara. It seems like I always loved you. I can’t put a time or place to it. If you absolutely need a time and a place, then it was when I saw you guzzling one bottle of root beer after the other. You didn’t even burp. That’s the amazing thing. I love you, Sara Killian, and I will always love you. You are the wind beneath my wings.”
“Oh, Dallas, that’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. What are we going to do? We need to do something. We can’t just coast. Promise you won’t laugh if I tell you what I really want to do. If it isn’t feasible, I can fall back and regroup. I want to make pottery. I want to make something with my hands. I want to sign my name to it. I want someone out there to say, somebody named Sara Killian made this. I don’t know why that’s so important to me but it is. It’s a real stretch going from being a doctor to being a potter. It’s not just that I want to do it. I need to do it, Dallas. I also need to know you won’t think less of me if I do it.”
“Sara, I want what you want. I want us to be happy. Life is too damn short to be doing something that makes you unhappy. Can you make pottery in Montana? Will it be too cold? We can get an extra furnace. What’s the first thing you’re going to make?”
“A bowl for your dog with his name on it. I have to start out small. Now, tell me about you. What will you be doing while I’m making pottery?”
“Will you laugh if I tell you what I want to do?”
“I would never laugh at you, Dallas. Tell me.”
“When I get better at this writing business, I’m going to go to college. And . . . are you ready for the and?” Sara nodded. “I’m going to write a book. I only touched on it tonight during the interview. I want it to be my words, so that means I have to do it myself. I think I can do it. I want everyone to know what it was like for me, and I want them to know what Adam did for me. I don’t want any secrets in my life.”
“That’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever heard. I’ll be there every step of the way to offer encouragement.”
“I know I can do it. Do you really think you can live in Montana? It gets real cold there. It’s Big Sky country. You can sell your pottery at the state fair. You might even win a prize. I saw something in your eyes once that I couldn’t understand. I’m seeing it now. We had a very strange relationship. What is it I’m seeing in your eyes?”
“The same thing I see in yours. We were both stupid, Dallas. Oh, it feels so good to make decisions and to know both of us agree with each other.”
“How would you like to fly to Vegas and get married in one of those drive-through chapels?”
Sara laughed. “I’d love it.”
“I saw you on the news. You looked pretty good. What happened to the guy?”
“They fired him. Are you going to kiss me or not?”
“Damn right I’m going to kiss you. Get in the truck. I’d kill to own this truck. Do you have any idea how great this would be on the ranch?”
“You won’t have to kill for it. Nellie’s giving it to me for a wedding present. Are you going to kiss me now?”
“I am going to kiss you now, Sara Killian. Then I’m going to sit here in this truck and sing you a song. Your song. We recorded ‘Sara’s Song,’ and the boys loved it. All the proceeds are going to a foundation Adam set up for people. with learning disabilities. It will be number one on the charts before you can blink.”
“Are we going to be happy, Dallas, forever and ever?”
“Damn right we are. Now, pucker up.”
A very long time later, Sura said, “I really liked that. Do it again, and don’t stop till I tell you to stop.”
He did, and he didn’t.
Dallas tossed the last of his suitcases into the back of Nellie’s truck. He felt his throat start to close when he saw his brother walk toward the truck. “Guess this is good-bye for now, Adam.”
Adam’s voice was gruff and hoarse when he clapped his brother on the back. He cleared his throat. “We agreed, Dallas, I come to Montana for your Fourth of July fireworks and you come to Charleston for Christmas. Easter is up for grabs an so is any other holiday on the calendar. I’m going to miss you.”
“Yeah, me too. When I graduate, you’re coming, right?”
“Nothing in this world could keep me away. Dallas, are you sure you want to get married in one of those drive-through chapels?”
“Yeah. We want the memory. Adam One here is going to be our witness. Anything goes in Vegas. I like it that your family is giving us a send-off. Seven dogs!”
Dallas dropped to his haunches to scratch first one dog and then the other behind the ears. When he came to Dallas Six he raised his eyes to stare at his brother. He knew if he asked for the pup, Adam would hand him over. “Give him a little extra love, Adam. For me. Where’s Tom?”
“He went into the house to get your wedding present. Be happy,” he whispered in Sara’s ear.
“You, too, Adam. Thanks for everything. We’ll write and call. Oh, oh, what’s this?”
“A small token of our love and admiration. Her name is Rosie. Adam One already loves her. He spent the night curled up next to her. She’s a Yorkie. A teacup. She won’t weigh more than four pounds full-grown.”
“I don’t know what to say,” Sara said.
“You don’t have to say anything. Just love her, she’ll do the rest.”
They were in the truck heading down the driveway when Dallas backed up till he was within shouting distance of his brother. “Hey, Adam, I forgot to tell you that Adam One had his way with Izzie yesterday. We’ll be back in nine weeks since we get the pick of the litter.”
“Oh, God!” Tom Silk groaned.
“Didn’t anyone ever tell you not to sweat the small stuff, Tom?”
“Be happy!” Adam shouted, his voice, full of laughter, ricocheting down the canyon.
“We will,” Dallas shouted in return.
If you love the Sisterhood series,
but are hungry for a non-Sisterhood story from
Fern Michaels, you’re in luck!
Her next stand-alone novel will be
coming from Kensington in May 2010.
Turn the page for a special preview of
RETURN TO SENDER,
the wonderful new bestseller by Fern Michaels.
Prologue
January 13, 1989
Dalton, Georgia
Rosalind Townsend, whom everyone called Lin, held her newborn son tightly in her arms as the orderly wheeled her to the hospital’s administration office: A nurse tried to take him from her so she could tend to the business of her release, but she refused to give him up.
After eighteen hours of agonizing labor without any medication, she’d delivered a healthy six-pound eight-ounce baby boy. She wasn’t about to let him out of her sight.
She’d named him William Michael Townsend. A good, solid name. She would call him Will.
Like his father’s, Will’s hair was a deep black, s
o dark it appeared to be blue. Lin wasn’t sure about his eyes at this point. She’d read in her baby book that a newborn’s eye color wasn’t true at birth. Nothing about him resembled her, as she was fair-haired with unusual silver-colored eyes and milk white skin.
She gazed down at the securely wrapped bundle in her arms and ran her thumb across his delicate cheek. Soft as silk. He yawned, revealing tender, pink gums. Lin smiled down at her son. No matter what her circumstances, she made a vow to herself: she would devote her life to caring for this precious little child.
Lin had spent the past seven months preparing for this day. During the day she worked at J & G Carpet Mills as a secretary. Five evenings a week and weekend mornings, she waited tables at Jack’s Diner. Other than what it cost for rent, food, and utilities, Lin saved every cent she made. She had to be conservative, because it was just her and Will. She would allow herself a week off from both jobs so she could bond with her son, adjust to her new life as a mother. While she would’ve loved spending more time with her son, being the sole caregiver and provider made that impossible. She’d lucked out when Sally, a coworker at Jack’s and a single mother to boot, had asked her if she would sit for her two-year-old daughter, Lizzie. In return, Sally would look after the baby on the days that she wasn’t working. Lin had agreed because she had to. There were still the days to cover, but Sally gave her a list of reliable sitters she’d used in the past. Dear Sally. Only five years older than Lin but so much wiser to the ways of the world. They were fast becoming good friends. Sally was the complete opposite of Lin—tall, olive-skinned, with beautiful brown eyes that had a slight upward slant, giving her an Asian look. Lin had called three of the sitters: two highschool girls and one elderly woman. She would meet with them later in the week. Lin was sure that if Sally approved, she would as well.
Sadly, there would be no help from Will’s father or her parents. Lin recalled her father’s cruel words when he learned she was pregnant.
“May you burn in hell, you little harlot! You’ve disgraced my good name. Get out of my house. I don’t ever want to lay eyes on you again or your bastard child!”
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