“Are you sure you want to do this?” Jenna asked her brother.
“A hundred percent,” Mick replied as he packed his bags. Jenna visited him at the Willow B&B when she heard the news.
“So, when are you moving?”
“Tonight.” Mick was moving back home with his mother. If there was anything good to come out of this debacle, it was that he was rebuilding his relationship with his mother. The circumstances of his teenage years had meant that he had been an absent son. It wasn’t that he didn’t have the money to get his own place. It just felt like something he needed to do.
Jenna leaned back in her seat. “So you’re back for good, huh?”
“Yup,” Mick grinned.
Jenna smiled at him. “What about work?”
Mick shrugged. “I’ll be based here and just travel when I need to.”
“That’s really good to know. I mean it. It’s good to have you back home.”
“Thanks,” Mick said. “It’s good to be back.”
“What did Mom say?”
“She seems to be happy.”
“Really?” Jenna teased.
“Very funny,” Mick said.
Jenna curled her lips. “Well, can you blame me? I mean, you haven’t really been good at keeping in touch.”
“Things change,” was all Mick could say. Because they were. Things were definitely going to change.
“I’m glad. I think it will be good for her to have some company at home.”
When Mick went to visit his mother, he had been surprised to find that his old bedroom had remain unchanged—untouched. Surprise didn’t even convey what he’d felt when his mom showed Mick his old room. “I had always hoped you would return home,” his mother had said. It was, without a doubt, one of the most emotional times he had experienced in his whole adult life. It pained him to think about the hurt he had caused his parents.
“What about Ethan?” Jenna asked. Ethan was the youngest of the Myers brothers, but still older than Jenna.
Mick looked at her. “What about him?”
“Have you told him that you’re moving back?”
“I thought I would swing by the fire station today and see if he’s around.” Ethan was a local firefighter and his wife, Mallory, was a nurse. “If not, then I’ll go see Mallory. Besides, there’s no rush.”
“That’s true,” Jenna said. “But you also don’t want them hearing things through the grapevine. It’s better if they hear it straight from the horse’s mouth.”
Mick nodded.
“Have you—” Jenna hesitated. “Have you heard from Carly at all?”
“I saw her today.” Mick visited Carly at the hospital every day. And every day, she turned him away. “I’ll be back tomorrow,” he would always say. And just as she the day before, “Don’t,” Carly would say.
“And?”
“Same as yesterday.” Mick walked across the room to get his shoes from the closet.
“Are you sure about this?”
Mick put his shoes in his duffel bag. He turned to face the window and looked into the distance. “She’s hurting. I know it will take time—and I’ve got plenty of that to give her.”
“You know, I gotta hand it to you, Mick.” Jenna smiled at him. “I was worried that you were just around for a fling.”
“Me?”
“I’m sorry! I know that’s mean. But with Carly being thirty...”
“She’s thirty-two.”
“Whatever. So she’s thirty-two and you’re like... ancient.”
“Thanks,” Mick raised his chin.
“You’re welcome,” Jenna joked. “I was worried that you were just in it for some quick fun. And Carly’s a really nice girl.”
Mick looked at Jenna. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“About the cancer?” Jenna’s face crumpled. “It wasn’t my place to say. And besides, it’s not like we talked about it every day. I knew she had it when she was younger. I didn’t know about”—Jenna raised her palms—“all of this going on now. Dave says her specialist, Dr. Bennett, is really good. But that’s about all I know.”
Mick thought about what Carly might be going through at that very moment. She was going home that day. He’d been keeping in close contact with her parents and they were going to be picking her up at the hospital. He was grateful that they have been understanding of his plight, knowing full well that they were going against their own daughter’s wishes.
“Would it have changed anything?” Jenna asked softly.
Would it have? Mick wondered. “Nope,” he said. “Not a chance.”
“I hope you find your happy ending, Mick. I really do.”
“Carly is my happy ending. I know it.”
CARLY WISHED SHE HADN’T said all those awful things to Mick. But then again, it was the only way she knew to get him to walk away. He would thank her for it later on. She just knew it. No one wanted the burden of having to look after someone with cancer.
“Are you ready, darling?” Carly’s mom, June, asked. A nurse came in to the room with a wheelchair.
“Yes,” Carly said. But the truth was, she wasn’t ready for anything. She dreaded to think about the kind of life she would be returning to. In four short days, everything had changed. She had lost her womanhood, her self-identity, her independence, and now, Mick. What was a woman without breasts? She would never be able to feed her children, that is, if she ever had children.
But she would never have children.
Besides, she’d lost Mick. No one else would take her. She was damaged goods.
Carly swallowed her tears back. She’d promised herself she wouldn’t give in to self-pity. And she certainly wouldn’t ever lose anyone again.
If God wanted to take her away tomorrow, that was fine with her.
Chapter 29
Carly winced in pain when she reached for the kettle to make a cup of tea.
“Be careful,” June Matthews said, as she glanced up from her knitting.
“I’m fine, Mom.” She still felt like she’d been beaten up. Although she noticed improvements each day, there was no mistaking the pain she was feeling. On the brighter side, she had started walking around and doing things for herself again.
“I just don’t want you to push yourself too soon, too quickly,” June said.
Carly knew her mom meant well, but she was beginning to feel suffocated. Her parents have been doing a great job taking turns catering to her needs. She knew she should be more gracious. Without them, getting the medication timings right and seeing to the drains would have been too much for her alone.
Mick had visited every day. And every day, she’d refused to see him. She could hear from her bedroom as he sat down to a cup of tea with her parents. One afternoon, she’d embarrassed herself by shouting from the top of her lungs—yelling expletives like a teenager throwing a tantrum.
It had now been a week since the surgery and Carly had gotten dressed for her first post-surgery visit. Battling with the pain had been her toughest task, but she did it. Every day, she pushed through, taking comfort in knowing it was temporary. For now, she just needed to take it in slow, easy motions. “What time are we going to the hospital?” she asked her mom.
“Soon,” June said. And right at that very moment, the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it, darling.” June placed her knitting on the table and got up to get the door.
Carly eased herself on to a chair. She’d dressed in an over-sized sweater, careful not to cause any undue rubbing against the tubes.
“Hi, Carly.”
Carly sat frozen in her chair. It was Mick. And he looked as handsome as ever. “What are you doing here?” she asked.
“Mick has come to take you to the hospital, dear,” June said, following Mick into the kitchen.
Carly couldn’t believe her mom would do this. “What? Mom, no!”
“Your father is working and you know I can’t drive out of town, Carly,” her mother said matter-of-factly. “Mick will make s
ure you get there safely.”
“I’m not going.” Carly crossed her arms and winced at the pain caused by the sudden movement.
“I’m just going to take you to the hospital,” Mick said. He raised his hands as if in defeat. “Nothing more, nothing less.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you.” Carly knew she was being childish and stubborn.
“Carly, darling. I can’t do this without Mick. I asked for his help, and he’s doing me a favor. Now will you please get up and be on your way.”
“Couldn’t you ask for anyone else’s help?”
June looked at Carly with sadness in her eyes, and Carly felt it.
Carly rolled her eyes and slowly pushed herself up from her seat. Mick walked around to help her. “I’m fine,” she snapped.
MICK HOPED THAT THE drive to the hospital would give him and Carly a chance to talk. “How are you feeling?”
Carly kept her eyes out the window. “How do you think I’m feeling?”
“Carly—”
“No! You don’t get to Carly me. What were you thinking? I mean—what game are you playing here?”
Mick kept his eyes on the road. The last thing he wanted to do was to argue with her. “I’m not playing, Carly.” He knew it was her emotions talking. Somewhere behind the anger was his Carly.
“Then what is this then, huh? What are you still doing here?”
“I’ve moved back home.”
The minute of silence between them was deafening.
“You moved—back to Willow?” Carly asked.
“I did,” Mick said, careful to keep any emotion out of his voice.
Carly fell quiet once more and looked out the window. “Why?” she finally asked.
“Because.”
“Because what?”
“I want to be here with you. Because I love you, Carly.”
“Don’t say that.”
“Okay, I won’t,” Mick said. “But it doesn’t mean I don’t feel it.”
“I might die, you know. It’s how we choose to live that’s important.”
“We’ll all die at one point or another.”
“It’s not a joke!” Carly could feel the heat of her temper rising up from the chest to her ears.
“I’m not making any jokes.” Mick glanced at her. “I could die tomorrow too. I’m much older than you—I could kick the bucket tonight. Maybe in my sleep.”
“That’s not funny, Mick.”
“The point is, none of us own our lives. Whether it’s cancer or getting hit by a bus... when it’s our time—then it’s time. I’m not going to stop living my life until the Big Guy calls time on me.”
“You think everything’s just a joke, don’t you?”
“Hardly. In fact, I tend to take things very seriously. You should know that about me by now.”
MICK WAS RIGHT. CARLY knew how serious he could be. But still—she didn’t want him making any big moves because of her. “I’m not worth the risk.”
“You’re not a risk, Carly.”
“I am—if you just opened your eyes, you would see that.”
“Oh, my eyes are wide open, darling.”
“Don’t call me, darling.”
“Okay, Willow Girl.” Mick smirked and rested his elbow on the window’s edge.
Carly’s heart skipped a beat when he called her Willow Girl. It was her favorite of his pet names for her. They drove in silence the rest of the way to the hospital.
At the doctor’s office, although Carly didn’t want Mick to go inside with her; she needed his help whether she wanted it or not.
After going through the pathology results, Dr. Bennett inspected her chest area. She had asked him to draw the curtain, making sure that Mick couldn’t see them.
“Everything looks good, Carly,” Dr. Bennett said as Carly sat back down on the armchair in front of his big desk. “I’m thinking we could take the drain tubes out sooner rather than later.”
“Really?” Carly perked up, accidentally glancing at Mick with a smile. “I thought you said it would take about three weeks.”
Dr. Bennett brought his hands together. “Yes, the norm is about three weeks. There’s some bruising, a bit of swelling, but that’s all perfectly normal. You’re young and healthy, it’s all healing up very nicely. Once we get them out, you can go back to doing some of your regular activities. But you’ll still need to be careful and take it easy as much as you can. On the whole, I think we can say that the toughest part is now behind you.”
Carly didn’t flinch when Mick took her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. She was glad for the comfort and had it been her parents there, she most likely would have reached for their hands.
“So, let’s get together again next week,” Dr. Bennett said. “All going well, we can have you tube free then.”
“Thank you, Doctor,” Mick said, as he helped Carly up from her seat.
“So,” Dr. Bennett said, “is this the lucky man?”
What he’d meant didn’t register to Carly until Mick introduced himself as Carly’s boyfriend. “He’s not my boyfriend,” she said quickly.
Dr. Bennett smiled. “Well, I’m glad you have this man who is not your boyfriend looking after you.” Dr. Bennett gave them both a quick wink, which turned Carly’s lip into a frown.
When they got back to the car, Carly laid it on Mick. “I don’t know what it was you think you were doing up there, but I didn’t appreciate you telling Dr. Bennett that you’re my boyfriend.”
“Fine. I’ll correct him next time and tell him that we’re partners.”
“We’re not partners! And there won’t be a next time.”
“What do you want me to say then?” Mick started the ignition.
“Nothing! You and I are nothing.”
“Hardly true. In fact, we are bound to each other now.”
Carly threw him a look. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Exactly what it means.” Mick pulled out of the parking lot.
“I’m not bound to you in any way whatsoever, Mick.”
Mick looked both ways before turning out of the hospital driveway. “Have you ever heard the saying, the heart wants what the heart wants?”
Carly didn’t respond. She had no intention of getting into matters of the heart.
“My heart wants what it wants—it just so happens to be you. I really shouldn’t fight that, should I?”
Carly brought her thumb to her mouth and bit on her nail.
Mick reached for her hand. “Don’t bite you nails.”
“Don’t tell me what to do!”
“Stop acting like a child, then.”
“You stop acting like a child!”
Mick shook his head and grinned.
It infuriated Carly to see him smiling. She gritted her teeth and glared at him.
“Careful now,” Mick teased, “if you keep staring at me, you might just realize that you love me.”
Carly rolled her eyes. “How long are you going to keep doing this?”
“For as long as it takes.”
“You know I have no boobs, right?” She decided to get straight down to it. Slap him with the truth, so to speak.
“It might surprise you to know that I didn’t fall in love with your breasts, Carly. I fell in love with you.”
“I’ll never be able to breastfeed.”
“It’s just as well I stopped breastfeeding many, many years ago.”
“It’s not funny,” Carly snapped.
“Look—” Mick looked in the rear-view mirror and pulled over to the side of the road. “You and I, Carly, we have something special. I love you. Don’t you get that?”
“I have nothing to give!” Carly could feel her emotions swelling up inside of her, as tears began to well up in her eyes.
“That’s just it—I don’t want anything from you, Carly!” Mick turned to face her.
“I’m not whole!” And before she knew it, the floodgates had opened and her tears fell uncontrol
lably.
“Don’t ever say that,” Mick said gently.
“It’s true! I will never be able to give you children—a family. I can’t! I don’t know when my time will be up. It’s not fair to you, and it’s not fair to me.”
“Who said anything about children?”
“I want children!” Carly sobbed like she had never before. When she first had cancer, her parents provided her with all the support she needed. They were there—at her beck and call. Everyone tried to give her everything they thought she needed, even before she knew she needed it. But now... everything was different. This spelled the end of all her hopes. “Any dreams I had of falling in love and having a family—they’re gone! Gone!”
“You can still fall in love.” Mick took her hand in his and brought it to his lips. “Let me love you, Carly.”
“It’s for your own good, Mick. Trust me, you don’t want to have to look after me when things go wrong.”
“I think that’s a decision I can make for myself.”
“Please,”—Carly couldn’t bear it any longer—“just take me home.”
Mick replaced her hand in her lap and started the car.
They drove in silence the rest of the way back to Willow Oaks.
Chapter 30
The following week went by quickly. Mick had continued to visit Carly every day—and every day, it was her parents that he sat down with for a cup of tea. But Mick persisted. He wasn’t about to give up so easily.
That day, he was taking Carly back to the hospital for her follow up appointment. He hoped that once again, they might have the opportunity to talk. This time, Carly didn’t throw a fuss when she came down and found Mick ready and waiting to take her. She’d even said thank you when he helped her in to the car.
“Is there anything you want to do before I take you back home?” Mick asked after the appointment.
It took a while for Carly to answer. “I have been wanting to see the lake again. It’s been a while,” she said.
“No problem—we can do that.” From his peripheral, Mick saw Carly glance his way.
“Are you sure you don’t mind?”
Love Me Timeless--A Willow Oaks Sweet Romance Page 12
