Family for Keeps & Sadie's Hero

by Margaret Daley

  She stared at the small boy in the bed, his features ashen, almost gaunt, and something twisted in her heart. She knew she couldn’t save all the children, but what was it about this one that touched her so deeply? Kindred spirits? “I guess we weren’t very good guards. Sleeping on the job.”

  “I’d better not add surveillance to my résumé, then.”

  His teasing comment eased the tension she’d experienced from waking up beside him on the couch. “I know it wasn’t likely Johnny was going anywhere last night. He was very weak and dehydrated, but I just had to make sure.”

  “How about some coffee?”

  “I don’t want to leave yet.”

  “Then I’ll go get us some and bring it back here.”

  “That would be great. I take cream and lots of sugar.”

  “How much is lots?”

  “Four or five packets.”

  His eyes widened. “You drink hot sugar water with a little coffee flavor. You ruin a perfectly good drink.”

  “That’s the only way I could drink coffee when I was younger. The habit has stuck with me. The coffee in the room behind the nurses’ station is good. Get it there.”

  She watched him walk to the door and open it, a casual grace about his movements for such a large man. From what she had discovered about him on the playing field he had been surprisingly quick for his size. Not that she would ever tell him that she’d asked about him.

  When he left, she stretched her arms above her head, then twisted from side to side to try to work the kinks from her body. She rarely slept sitting up and was surprised she had even though she was exhausted. But she could vividly recall the warmth and comfort she’d experienced when Mac’s arm went about her shoulder and he held her close to him.

  Out of the corner of her eye she saw Johnny move, trying to take the IV out. She rushed to his side and placed her hand over the connection. “If you think you’re going somewhere, I have news for you, young man. You’re staying put. Got that?” She schooled her voice into a no-nonsense tone, making sure he didn’t hear the fear behind her words. Johnny was smart enough to use that.

  The corners of his mouth turned down in a pout, and he glared at her.

  She hovered over him like a mother hen protecting her young chick. “Understand?”

  “Guess so,” he mumbled and looked away.

  Tess pulled the one hard-backed chair in the room to his bed and sat. “Good. I lost three nights of sleep because of you, and I don’t know if I can keep that up. People count on me to be sharp when I work.”

  He turned his head to stare at her. “You did? Why?”

  She gentled her stern expression. Johnny really didn’t understand that she cared about him. She could see it in his confused look. “Because you’re important to me. I care what happens to you. Why did you run away?”

  “I ain’t gonna stay with strangers. I can take care of myself.”

  She wanted to hug him to her and knew he would be upset if she tried. “With luck Mrs. Hocks will find a relative soon, and you won’t have to stay with any strangers.”

  He huffed, his glare back. “I don’t have no relatives I know. My grandma died a while back, and she was all there was.”

  Tess leaned forward. “Please promise me you won’t run away again.”

  He clamped his lips together, his eyes narrow, his mouth set in a frown.

  “Johnny?”

  “I ain’t gonna promise something I can’t keep. My word is important to me.”

  “A man of his word. That’s a good trait to have in life, Johnny.”

  Both Tess and Johnny glanced at Mac who stood at the end of the bed. She’d been so intent on the child she hadn’t heard Mac enter the room. He smiled at her and held up a cup.

  Taking a sip of the coffee, she welcomed the warm, sweet brew as it slid down her throat. She needed the time to compose a response to Johnny’s declaration. “What if we can find someone you know to stay with?” she asked, desperate to keep him from running away, but not really sure how she could.

  “Maybe.” Johnny dropped his gaze from Mac who came around the bed to stand next to Tess.

  “I’ll have a word with Mrs. Hocks. I might be able to work something out.” Tess toyed with the idea of taking care of Johnny but still didn’t think that would be the best solution. He needed a family. He needed someone who would be there for him.

  Johnny pulled the white sheet to his neck and turned slightly on his side away from Tess. Mac nodded toward the door, and she rose. In the hallway Mac stopped her with his words. “I’ll have a word with Mrs. Hocks about taking care of Johnny until she finds a permanent home for him.”

  Tess whirled. “You’re a stranger. That won’t work any better than the foster parents he ran away from.”

  “Since the nurse at the desk told me Johnny would be staying a few days in the hospital, I’ll make it a point to get to know him.”

  “Just like that?” She snapped her fingers, not sure why she was upset by his solution. No, correction. She knew why. In order to get to know Johnny, Mac would have to visit him a lot at the hospital, and she was working the next few days, which meant she would see Mac a lot more than she wanted to.

  He stepped closer. “Yes, just like that.”

  “He’s a tough one to crack.”

  “I know that.”

  “Then how do you plan on doing it?”

  “By being here for him. I’m not easily discouraged.”

  Another appealing quality about him, Tess thought, and wished she could find reasons not to like the man. “I need to go home and change. I’m on duty in less than an hour.”

  Mac headed for Johnny’s room.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Getting started on getting acquainted with Johnny. See you in a while.” He opened the door.

  “Mac!”

  His gaze found hers.

  “Thanks for helping last night.”

  His smile lit his eyes. “Any time.”

  When Mac disappeared inside Johnny’s room, Tess inhaled a deep, cleansing breath. Her legs felt like jelly, and her hands trembled. Exhaustion, she told herself, but that really wasn’t the truth. Peter MacPherson affected her on many levels. Somehow over the next few days she was going to have to get real good at avoiding the man, because every time she was around him she felt herself weakening and dreaming of much more than friendship.

  Chapter Six

  You would think this pediatric floor would be big enough for the both of them, Tess thought, not for the first time that day. She fixed a polite smile on her face and said, “Johnny shouldn’t be gone too much longer, Mac.” Go find something to do that is useful. Quit driving me crazy. She wanted to add the words but remained silent, proud of herself.

  “Do you think he’ll like this?” Mac placed the handheld video game on the counter in front of her.

  “Are you using bribery to win him over?”

  “I’ll use any means I need to in order to keep him off the streets.” Mac slipped the game into the pocket of his navy blue windbreaker.

  “You could regale him with some stories of your days playing football. The other kids seem to enjoy them.”

  “I’ve done that. It didn’t work, and he leaves tomorrow. I asked Mrs. Hocks not to let him know just yet that I’d be his new foster parent.”

  “Chicken,” she teased, not daring to let the man know how elated she was about him being Johnny’s foster parent. Mac’s family and home would be perfect for the child if Johnny would allow anyone through his tough shell.

  Mac propped himself against the counter as though he was staying for awhile. “Okay, any bright ideas?”

  Shaking her head, she laughed. “No, the video game is great. I haven’t found a boy who doesn’t like them.” She glanced toward an orderly who was wheeling a patient down the hall. “And you’ll get your chance right now to see what Johnny thinks. I have to get back to work before they fire me.”

  “They wouldn�
�t do that. You’re too valuable. I’ve seen you work with the kids. You’re a natural,” Mac said as he headed toward Johnny’s room.

  Tess really tried not to feel pleased by his compliment. That would only endear the man more to her, but his words warmed her. You’re a natural. She repeated his words in her mind, her heart constricting. Memories of the times she and Kevin had discussed the family they were going to have inundated her, and for a moment she was flung back in time. She gripped the counter and closed her eyes, trying to right her world.

  She forced herself to concentrate on her job. She had several temperatures that needed to be taken, then some notes to jot down. Work had been what had gotten her through the rough times before. And it would again, she told herself as she made her way toward a patient’s room.

  Half an hour later she stopped by the counter to grab a chart and saw Mac leaving Johnny’s room, a frown etched into his features. Avoid him. She could have slipped into the examination room next to the nurses’ station and gone unseen by Mac.

  Instead, she walked up to him and said, “The video game didn’t work.”

  “So much for your theory. He acted like he’d never seen one.”

  “Maybe he hasn’t. He’s never had much. What are you going to do now?”

  “Try something else. I’m not giving up.”

  “What?”

  He raked his hand through his hair, a frustrated expression on his face. “That’s the problem. I’m fresh out of ideas.”

  “You were a boy once. What would you have liked?”

  He thought a moment then his face brightened with a smile. “That’s it! Thank you, Tess.” He clasped her by the upper arms, drew her close and quickly planted a kiss on her cheek before hurrying away.

  Tess stood in the middle of the busy hallway, stunned, her fingers caressing the place where his mouth had touched her skin briefly. She could swear it tingled. Beneath her hand she could feel the warmth of her blush as she thought of his kiss. Oh, my, what would she had done if he had kissed her on the mouth? Fainted?

  Perplexed, Tess frowned. Why would Mac bring Amy to visit Johnny? Not ten minutes before, the two of them had disappeared into the boy’s room. This was Mac’s big idea to win Johnny over? Okay, maybe he knew something she didn’t. He’d been a boy once. But a three-year-old girl?

  Finally, after ten more minutes had passed and no one had left Johnny’s room, Tess decided she couldn’t wait any longer. She headed toward the door. Okay, so she needed lessons in how to avoid a man, but she was dying to see why he had brought Amy to visit Johnny. Usually a patient woman, she had to acknowledge she had no patience where Mac was concerned.

  She pushed open the door and heard children’s laughter spicing the air with warmth. The sound wiped the frown from her face and lifted her spirits. Maybe the man knew what he was doing, after all. She stopped inside the room and took in the scene before her. Amy sat on the bed with Johnny, listening intently to him as he read a Dr. Seuss story about green eggs and ham.

  Johnny finished the book and flipped it closed, setting it on his lap. He peered at Amy, a smile on his pale face. “I forgot how funny that story was.”

  “Daddy, I want green eggs ’morrow.” Amy turned the book over and opened it. “Again—please.”

  She looked at Johnny, her big brown eyes framed by long, dark eyelashes, and Tess figured the little girl had made a conquest. Johnny wouldn’t be able to resist that sweet, innocent face or those dimples in her plump cheeks as she smiled at him.

  Johnny sighed heavily. “Okay. But only one more time.”

  Amy clapped. “Oh, goody. You do such a good job.”

  While Johnny started the story again, Mac slipped out of the chair and took Tess’s arm to guide her from the room. “Is there something wrong?”

  She shook her head. “No, it looks like you have everything under control. But I don’t understand why you brought Amy here.”

  “Once when I was about eleven I was in the hospital because my appendix had to be removed. The one thing that made me feel better was seeing my family—even my sisters. Little children have a way of making a person forget about his troubles. I was hurting but I didn’t care. I put on a front for them, and before long, I forgot about my own pain and enjoyed their company. I thought Amy could help Johnny.”

  “I don’t believe it. It’s working.”

  “It’s a start. She brought her favorite book to share with him, and when she asked him to read it, he couldn’t say no even though I know he wanted to.”

  “How many times has he read it?”

  “Three. Actually Amy could recite it for Johnny, but the last time he started using different voices for the characters, and she loved that. I don’t quite get into the story like he did.”

  She cocked her head. “And why not?”

  “Because I’ve read that book probably three hundred times. After the first twenty times it kinda loses its appeal.”

  She chuckled. “I can see what you mean.”

  “I’d better get back inside. Amy can overstay her welcome. I want to win him over, not chase him away. Oh, by the way, Casey starts work here tomorrow.”

  “Good,” Tess said and wanted to groan. Another MacPherson in her life. At this rate she would never be rid of the man.

  After Mac and Amy left, Tess paid another visit to Johnny. He plucked at the sheet, his gaze fixed on his lap, his forehead wrinkled in deep thought. He didn’t even look up when she entered the room.

  “Amy’s quite a character,” Tess said.

  “She’s okay for a girl,” Johnny mumbled, his head still down, his hands twisting the sheet.

  “I know she enjoyed you reading that story to her.”

  “Yeah, I guess so.” Finally Johnny looked up. “Why did Mr. MacPherson bring his daughter to see me?”

  “He’s taken an interest in you.”

  “Well, I don’t need no one to care.”

  Tess straightened the bedding, needing something to do with her hands. The urge to pull the child into her arms was so strong she was afraid she would act on it and really upset Johnny. He wasn’t ready for that. She didn’t know if he ever would be. The shell about his heart was tougher than hers.

  “Do you know what Amy said to me? She said she had lots of cousins but no brothers and sisters. She wants a brother and sister, but she knows her dad doesn’t like to talk about it.”

  “Is that right?” Tess’s hands trembled as she fluffed his pillows.

  “She says her mommy is in heaven watching over her. She told me mine was doing the same thing.”

  “She’s right.”

  “Then why isn’t my mother doing a good job?”

  The question caught Tess off guard. She didn’t have an answer for the child. Why did children like Johnny suffer? There was a time when she would have readily been able to answer him. Now her doubts about the Lord plagued her and made her wonder why, too.

  She pasted a bright smile on her face and said, “I know, Johnny, you’ll get better. I know that in here.” She pressed her hand over her heart, fighting the tears clogging her throat. “Everything will work out.” She had to believe that. She didn’t want to give the child false hope, but neither could she tell him that bad things happened to good people.

  “Sure. You have to say that.” He turned and presented his back to her.

  She reached out toward Johnny, wanting to connect with him, but she knew he would reject any attempt on her part to touch him. “No, Johnny, I don’t have to say anything,” she murmured and left the room. She hoped that somehow Mac could reach this child, because she couldn’t seem to.

  “May I join you?”

  Tess glanced up to find Casey standing beside her table with a lunch tray in her hands. The young woman wore a hopeful expression on her face, and Tess could remember her first day on the job. So much to learn, so many new people.

  “Of course.” After Mac’s sister sat, Tess asked, “How’s the job so far?”

 
“Great. A bit overwhelming, but then I expected that since it’s a new job.” Casey popped a French fry, smothered in ketchup, into her mouth. “I was supposed to meet Mac here for lunch, but I guess he’s running late. He wanted to get everything ready for Johnny.”

  “When’s he going to tell Johnny?”

  “This afternoon when Mrs. Hocks visits.” Casey took a bite of her hamburger, chewed it quickly, then leaned forward and said, “I’m so glad he’s decided to do this. Being a foster parent will be good for Mac. He’s great with children. He wanted a whole bunch of them with Sheila.”

  The aroma of onions and hamburger made Tess wish she had gotten what Mac’s sister was eating. Tomato soup and tossed green salad were good for her diet but didn’t do much for her appetite. “Well, he’s still young.”

  With a frown Casey munched on another fry. “I don’t know. When his wife died, something happened to Mac. He doesn’t talk about it, but he took her death especially hard. I think—”

  “Casey, I see you couldn’t wait for me to eat lunch.” Mac swung into the chair between his sister and Tess.

  Tess tamped down the disappointment she was experiencing at Mac’s untimely interruption. Everyone was so guarded about Mac and his relationship with his deceased wife. On the outside it appeared as though he had moved on, but Tess got the feeling that really wasn’t the case. He was still dealing with her death as Tess was with Kevin’s.

  “You’re late. I have a schedule to maintain now.”

  “Sorry. Traffic. I had to sign some more papers at Mrs. Hocks’s office.” Mac shifted his attention to Tess. “How’s Johnny today?”

  “Not saying much, which really isn’t that unusual.”

  “Well, now that I have everything signed, sealed and delivered, I’m gonna tell him about the arrangement I have with Mrs. Hocks.”

  “Good luck.” Tess looked around. “Where’s Amy? I thought you might bring reinforcements today to help bolster your case.”

  Mac chuckled. “If this is gonna work with Johnny, he’ll have to accept me. We might as well see how receptive he is to the idea of me being his foster parent.”