The Cure (A Michigan Sweet Romance #1)

by Parker J Cole

  Joslyn made a point to update him on Savannah, though he never asked. It was a pleasant kind of torture he endured to hear her name.

  “I’m glad to hear that as well,” he said quietly. “I have to go now, Mom. Thanks for keeping me updated.”

  He hung up the phone before his mother could say anything else. If he left enough time, she would go into how much he was needed back in Michigan with Savannah.

  He checked his appointment book and saw his next consultation was in about ten minutes. Enough time for him to review his notes and what the man needed for the procedure he’d chosen.

  Micah clicked on the computer but then his fingers froze over the keys. Who was he kidding? A week without Savannah close was killing him. How was he supposed to last for the rest of his life without her? Even though it had only been four days, those four days had lasted a lifetime for him. He’d seen her beautiful face every day, listened to the sound of her voice, kissed her mouth and drowned in her sweetness. Had a chance to hear her side of things.

  When he thought back on the fact she’d nearly had a breakdown, it eased some more of his animosity towards her. Had he come, he knew he could have made a difference for her. Maybe being there in her hour of need would have quelled all her doubts. The image of her sitting in that apartment with her wedding dress in shreds had kept him up at night. He hadn’t even known she had bought a wedding dress yet. They weren’t going to marry for at least another four months at the time. She had been as eager for their vows as he.

  His hands dropped on the desk. But she had chosen not to be part of his life. After all, wasn’t it a woman’s right to choose? Three years ago, she had decided to stay with Nascha. Three years later, she still sided with the woman, although she was dead.

  A week ago, when he arrived back home, he felt the emptiness of the place anew. Although Savannah had not been there, somehow her presence seemed to travel with him. Maybe he wanted to imagine her there with him. So last night, when no one else was around to see his foolishness, he sat in the apartment, closed his eyes, and allowed his imagination to roam.

  Liliana, healed with smooth, unblemished skin and those bright, honey eyes, stood at the kitchen counter with a child’s apron tied around her waist. Flour and wet dough smeared the front of the apron with her thin, brown arms elbow deep in a mixing bowl. Savannah, with her long, black hair tied in a ponytail and a daub of baking powder on her nose, positioned herself next to their daughter and instructed the girl on how to make cookies. Then Savannah looked and graced him with a beatific smile and warm, inviting gemstones eyes.

  They were together as a family. His very own family.

  But when he opened his eyes, it was just a dream.

  Last night, Nascha once more entered his nightmares. This time, she looked more triumphant than ever when she plunged the scalpel needle into her body.

  “Dr. Reddington?”

  He looked up. “Yes, Tabitha?”

  “Your ten-thirty’s here.”

  “Okay, thank you.”

  Tabitha gave him a worried look. “Is everything all right, Dr. Reddington? Did you meet with those women from the FBI?”

  “I did, Tabitha, and I can assure you, everything’s fine. Thank you for taking a risk and calling me when you did. It turned out to be the best thing.”

  “Am I—?”

  “Nothing to worry about. The FBI agents simply thought I’d come into town sooner than expected.” He hadn’t the heart to tell the woman the FBI agents had known she would call him once they visited his office.

  “What a relief!” The woman smiled. “I’ll send the gentleman in.”

  The information the FBI shared still had Micah in a state of shock.

  For all his rush back home, two days past before the FBI agents had come to see him again. Tabitha had opened the door to his office, looking as a frightened as a bird in front of a cat. “Dr. Reddington, these two ladies are here to see you.”

  Two striking women walked into his office. During the introductions, he observed them. Agent Stailey had long, auburn red hair that trailed down her back like a dark fire fall. Her composed face made the meeting all the more surreal. Agent Hy wore a pair of black frames on the bridge of her nose. She looked the younger of two, but the careful serenity of their demeanors made him nervous.

  What was the FBI doing here in his office?

  “Dr. Reddington, thank you for seeing us,” Agent Stailey had started the meeting off.

  “I’m sure I didn’t have a choice,” he couldn’t help remarking.

  “We all make choices. We knew Tabitha Young would contact you as soon as we stepped outside your door.”

  “We were counting on it,” Agent Hy added.

  He pulled at his collar. “I’m sure. So, what can I help you with? What’s this all about?”

  “This is about Nascha Dubois,” said Agent Stailey. The narrative that flowed from her and Agent Hy’s mouth had him thunderstruck. They asked him a number of questions about his association with Nascha, but after all was said and done, it completely exonerated him of any guilt. He had sat speechless when the women finished their tale.

  “Dr. Reddington,” Agent Stailey remarked, “you understand that due to the nature of this investigation, we cannot at this time release this information to the public.”

  “Of course,” he said. From what they had told him, once the investigation was complete, this was going to be a whopper of a story. To even think he had some part in it, albeit in a very public way, was incredible.

  At that moment, Savannah’s face flashed in his mind. “Ladies, I do have something I have to ask.”

  “What is it, Dr. Reddington?”

  How could he tell these women that he wanted to be the one to disclose this to Savannah? Not because he wanted to exonerate himself, though the story would do that, but because it would break her heart to know Nascha was not the person she thought she was.

  Nascha was not the person anyone, the world included, thought she was.

  “There’s a woman, who is very important to me. You mentioned her name several times, but she wasn’t relevant to your investigation. However, due to Nascha’s lies, she believed her and it tore us apart. I know you have to be very careful with the information you share but, if you will allow me to tell Savannah Woods—”

  “Do you mean, you and Savannah Woods, the one who does those fashion shows for the homeless and the women’s shelters, were an item?” Agent Hy’s eyes had turned into saucers.

  “Yes. More than an item, she was my fiancé. We were not very vocal about it.”

  “I love her!” Agent Stailey gushed, the calm demeanor broken and a smile of awe brightened her face. “She’s one of the nicest women in the world!”

  “How did we miss that?” Agent Hy interjected. “I mean, really?”

  Micah couldn’t help but point out, “If you didn’t know Savannah and I were a couple, then that goes to show you she’s a woman who you can trust to keep silent about a sensitive issue like this.”

  They had agreed to it, but only as long as she signed documentation about non-disclosure and other legal mumbo jumbo that amounted to the same thing. The papers were in his desk drawer, waiting to be taken out and used for the exact purpose of revealing Nascha’s true nature and clearing his name.

  But Micah hesitated to do it. Part of him was afraid Savannah would only hold onto her belief of his supposed guilt like a lifeline.

  Yet, was living without her better than that? This aching emptiness only she could fill? Was he to spend the rest of his life with wisps of dreams of what might have been? No, he couldn’t live like that. If it was a woman’s right to choose, then it was a man’s right to pursue. One more time, he would go after her. Just once more, he would try to make her listen to him, and show her the evidence.

  “Oh, dear God,” he prayed. “Please, please, let me have her for my own.”

  Maybe this time, he could convince her to let him stay. Forever.

&nbs
p; CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Savannah sat in the chair next to Liliana’s bed, reading a story. The little girl gained more mobility and strength each day. Savannah couldn’t be happier about it. Dr. Yamaguchi watched over her like a mother hen.

  “Oh! Pig! Oink! Oink!” Liliana squealed with delight.

  “That’s right, ladybug. That’s the sound a pig makes.”

  “Oink! Oink!” The child snorted and her laughter filled the room like a blessing.

  Savannah turned the page. “The dog says—”

  “Woof! Woof!” Liliana ended for her. They both giggled at the antics.

  Just then, Savannah felt a tug in her heart. One she hadn’t felt in over a month. Thirty-seven days to be exact.

  Micah was here.

  She kept on with the story, glad she was so familiar with it that Liliana didn’t notice her distraction. The tug in her heart grew tighter. It meant he was coming closer.

  A hot rush washed over her. What should she do? Should she acknowledge him with a cool smile and a carefree attitude? Or should she throw herself into his arms and beg him never to leave again?

  “And the cat says—”

  “Uncle!” Liliana screamed.

  Savannah didn’t try to correct her. Slowly, she closed the book and then faced the door.

  Micah stood there, his amber eyes fixed on her with an unreadable expression. Then he settled his gaze on the little girl in the bed. “Hello there, ladybug.”

  Liliana’s honey eyes seemed to rival the sun itself. “Uncle!”

  “Are you feeling better?”

  He walked over to the girl and got down on his knees on the other side of the bed. They talked back and forth for a few minutes. Savannah used the conversation to drink in the sight of him. He looked good enough to eat and she was in a devouring mood.

  But still, why had he given her that expression, as though he were trying to keep her from seeing too deeply?

  Was he trying to tell her that his presence held no significant value? Maybe he wasn’t here to see her, but to check up on Liliana as any old friend. After all, Donald had come by a couple of times to check on her. So had Tish, Connie, and a few members of the church.

  Her business associates had sent condolences and gifts for Liliana, content to give her time and space so she could reorganize her schedule to care for her niece.

  Micah’s being here could mean that he was coming only in the capacity of a concerned friend.

  But Savannah was in a place where she could admit to herself she didn’t want him as just a concerned friend. She wanted him as her husband. The man whose children she longed to bear and the one she wanted to grow old with. Her mistakes of the past had been massive ones. She had refused to believe his side of the story. She had judged him guilty. That kind of attitude wouldn’t hold sway in a court of law.

  During the last week, she searched for old videos of Micah on the Internet. She cried several times as she watched the man she loved get ridiculed, scorned, mocked, and hated by the world. It had seemed no one was on his side. His stony face as he stood before reporters tore at her heart. How alone he must have felt when she wasn’t there by his side. It hurt to see just how badly he’d been treated by the vicious animal of public scrutiny.

  She also looked at videos of Nascha during the same time. Though her lips had been horribly disfigured, Savannah noticed a certain gleam in her friend’s face she couldn’t get past. It was there when she cried on TV or when she looked at the camera. Despite her garbled words through her inflamed lips, that strange look of satisfaction remained.

  “How are you, Savannah?”

  From the look he gave her, she must have been staring. She blushed. “I’m fine, Micah. It’s good to see you. How have things been for you?”

  “They’ve been okay. I had some free time and I wanted to come and see how this little ladybug was doing.”

  “As you can see, she’s doing better. Dr. Yamaguchi talked with a specialist about a skin graft for her leg, but that won’t be a few weeks. Other than that, Liliana’s getting better all the time.”

  “Guess who’s here?”

  Savanna whirled around to see Joslyn and Cameron in the doorway. “Hi, there! I didn’t know you were coming today.”

  “We were coming to meet your folks for a bite to eat, and stopped to say hello.”

  “Mom, Dad. Can you stay with Liliana for a bit? I need to talk to Savannah.”

  Cameron walked over to the bed and tweaked the child’s nose, which made her giggle. “Of course. Haven’t seen this little lady in some time.”

  “Ya’ll go ahead and talk.” Joslyn shooed them out the door. “She’ll be here when ya’ll get back.”

  Before Savannah knew it, they were walking down the hall. Micah asked, “Can we go into the chapel? We can talk there.”

  “Sure.” She wiped her palms on her pants.

  When they were sitting on the seats in the chapel, Savannah took in the quiet atmosphere. The cross before them glowed from the candles set before it. The Virgin and child posed serene and calm in one corner, while a giant Bible lay on a stand in the center. There was no place she’d rather be than in this moment before God. If they were ever going to move forward to tomorrow, this was going to be the place to do it.

  “Savvy—”

  “There’s something I want to say first before you start, Micah,” she interrupted, and then took a deep breath. “I want to say that I’m sorry.”

  “Huh?” His amber eyes looked at her in surprise.

  “I’m sorry for everything. I’m sorry for not trusting you and not believing you. I’m sorry for not being there for you at the roughest time in your life. I wish I couldgoback and change everything but I can’t. All I can do is say I’m sorry. It’s not enough to make up for the pain but I truly hope it’s a beginning.”

  “I don’t know what to say—”

  “Let me finish before I lose my nerve, Micah.” She swallowed a lump in her throat and then glanced toward the cross. “I watched those videos online. When the reporters, and media personalities, and everyone one else tried to destroy you. I saw your face and the way you were barely holding on to anything. It was an awful time for you, wasn’t it?”

  A hard turn of his mouth was his answer.

  “When I saw them, I started crying. Here they were, maligning your character, and you couldn’t do a thing about it. You just had to take it.”

  “Yeah, I remember.”

  “It wasn’t until I saw Nascha’s face during the same time, I started to realize something. She seemed…satisfied. Greedy almost. No matter how hard I tried to turn those thoughts off, I couldn’t. That’s when I started to doubt what she said about your being the one who caused the damage to her.”

  Micah grew still. “Are you saying you believe I’m innocent?”

  She nodded. “I do. I know it’s three years too late, but I do.”

  “You told me nothing I could say would change your mind.”

  Savannah shrugged. “In a way, there wasn’t anything you could say. It was watching those videos and seeing your face that finally led me to my conclusion. No man of mine would ever do something as heinous as Nascha said.”

  ***

  Micah couldn’t believe his ears. It shouldn’t matter since he’d decided to love her anyway, but it did. Savannah believed he was innocent. The only person whose opinion had ever meant anything to him finally believed him.

  His heart almost jumped out of his chest at the joy. “Thank you, dear God,” he whispered out loud. “Thank you so much.”

  “Oh, Micah….”

  He reached and grabbed her delicate hand. He still had to tell her the truth about Nascha and how the woman deceived everyone.

  “Savvy, the day I left you, I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to stay and try to talk some sense into you aboutthings;but Tabitha called and it changed everything.”

  “What happened?”

  “The FBI came to my office. They wanted to sp
eak with me about Nascha.”

  He chanced a look at her. Her brow was furrowed in confusion. “I don’t understand.”

  “There’s no easy way to say what I’m about to tell you, so I’m just going to say it. Naschawas under investigation for a multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme.”

  “What!” Savannah shrieked.

  “She was being investigated for using her ties to the Native American community, and how she conned various financial institutions into giving her and four other persons millions of dollars to fund the scheme.”

  “You can’t be serious.”

  Micah felt grim. “I wish Iwasn’t. Many of the people she swindled were Native Americans who were on fixed income and had no other means of support. They gave her their houses for collateral. Art pieces, crafts, and anything else. Many of them believed she had their best interests in heart. And because of her status as a Native American, they were also proud of her.”

  Savannah stared at Micah, almost willing him to take back his words. But he couldn’t. it was there in all its ugliness.

  “I’m not sure how the FBI got wind of it; the agents never told me, but they started to investigate. Nascha, in turn, got wind of what they were doing and she had to act fast. When she came to me to have her lip procedure done, she was desperate, she needed to take the heat offofher in some way. So she came to me and after she left, she went to an underground woman who then deliberately added some unknown chemicals to what I had already done, which caused the chain reactions of events, as you know.”

  Savannahcoveredher mouth in horror. “But why—why would she--?”

  “The Feds didn’t have all their ducks in a row and she knew it. If she could put herself in the spotlight at the right moment, she knew the Feds would not go after her. After all, she was a high-profile person. No one goes up against a celebrity of her status unless everything is solid.”

  Her gemstone eyes moistened in the candlelight. “Why did she do this to you? How did you get the honor?”

  He picked up a length of Savannah’s hair and twirled it in his fingers. “Because of a tube of lipstick.”

  “I don’t understand.”