Say Yes (21 page)

We
pulled apart, and she said, “Please let me know what you decide about Luke,
okay? Good or bad, I want to know.”

“I
promise you will be the first to know.” After one final group hug, I picked up
her bag and we all walked toward the door.

Violet
stopped and leaned in to hug Daisy. “Please let me know about you and Jack as
well, okay?”

“I
will. You have a safe flight and a wonderful honeymoon,” Daisy said.

“I
will. And you,” she said, leaning down to Daisy’s stomach, “You take care of
your mommy and daddy while I’m gone, okay? Someone around here needs to make
sure they act right, and I think you are just the one to do it. I love you,
little baby,” she said, and kissed Daisy right on her belly button. We all
giggled.

 There
was a knock on the door and Violet quickly stood up straight. Mama peeked her
head inside. “There you are, darlin’. You ready to go? Your husband is waitin’
on ya,” she said. Daisy and I stepped out to give Violet and Mama a moment
alone, and when we stepped outside, Jack and Luke were waiting in the hall. I
smiled at Luke and he walked over to me. He pulled me into his strong arms.

“I
got your wrap for you. You want to come and wait outside with me?” he asked.

“Sure,
let’s go,” I said. I looked over my shoulder as Luke was placing my wrap around
my shoulders, and I saw Daisy turn white as a sheet.

“Hey,
Jack, do you have a minute? I wanted to talk to you about something,” she said,
touching him on the arm.

He
cleared his throat. “Uh, yeah, sure. I guess so. But, can it wait until after
Evan and Vi leave?”

She
nodded her head. “Sure,” she said, and I noticed her cheeks were turning pink.
She began fanning herself with her hand, like she was hot. She looked like she
was going to get sick.

Before
there was time to see if she was okay, everyone that was in the reception hall
came rushing out to see Violet and Evan off. Luke was behind me with his arms
wrapped around me tightly, shielding me from the cool air and keeping me warm.
Everyone threw a handful of rice as Evan and Violet ran out the door and
climbed into their limo. Violet blew me one last kiss and I waved at her as she
climbed into the limo. Soon, the car was rolling away and just like that, she
was gone and starting her new life with her handsome husband. Luke rubbed my
arms, which now had goose bumps. “You ready to head back inside and say your
goodbyes to everyone?” he asked. I knew he was antsy to get me out of here and
to the lake house.

“I
was born ready baby,” I joked, and he laughed. We walked back inside together.
When I looked around I saw Jack and Daisy talking in the corner of the room. I
hadn’t seen them come back inside. Their heads were bent together, and her eyes
were as wide as quarters. I saw her lips moving slightly as if in a whisper.
God, I hope things were going well. I didn’t want her to see me staring, so I
turned my face away to give them privacy. Just as my eyes were scanning the
banquet hall for Mama and Daddy to tell them I was going home with Luke, I
heard a loud noise behind me.

I
turned around, and Jack was saying loudly, “Daisy, are you okay?” He was
holding her by the arms, and her face was ashen. Then all of a sudden, she
collapsed in his arms. Luke and I rushed over to her side along with Mama and
Daddy.

“Daisy!
Oh my God, what happened?” Mama shouted.

Jack
looked terrified, and he held onto her, not letting her go. “Daisy, baby,
what’s wrong?”

She
just shook her head. “I’m sorry, I just feel a little dizzy.”

Luke
placed two fingers on the outside of her wrist, checking her pulse. “Her heart
rate is a little fast. Have you had anything to eat or drink today? I mean,
like a real full meal?”

She
looked around at each of us, and suddenly looked guilty. “No, I haven’t. I
haven’t felt hungry today. I’ve been nervous,” she admitted.

“Nervous?
About what?” Daddy asked her.

“About
the wedding, of course. I am the maid of honor, and I just wanted to make sure
everything was perfect for Vi’s big day,” she lied. She looked up at Jack, his
forehead crinkled with worry lines as he held onto her tightly. He was stroking
her hair with his free hand…it was as if she was the most precious thing in the
world.

“Sweetheart,
you need to eat. With as sick as you have been these past few weeks, you have
to keep your strength,” Daddy said.

“Wait…you’ve
been sick?” Jack asked.

She
nodded at him sheepishly. Mama said, “She’s been more than sick. It seems like
she’s been throwing up almost everything she eats and then after that she’s as
hungry as a full grown man.”

Something
flashed in Jack’s eyes as he looked from Mama back to Daisy. “Baby, why didn’t
you tell me?” Jack asked her, and all of a sudden Daisy looked more terrified
than I had ever seen her.

“Well,
I didn’t think it was a big deal at the time,” she said.

“Wait
a minute…did you just call her ‘baby’?” Mama asked, looking confused. “Why are
you holding onto her like that?”

Daisy’s
eyes flicked to mine for a moment before Jack sighed and said, “It’s because I
am in love with her, Ros. I’m holding onto her because she almost fainted in my
arms, and it scared me to death because I love her. I don’t want to let her
go.”

Daddy
and Mama exchanged looks that were a mix between surprise and hidden amusement.
I couldn’t hide my smile. Mama just looked at her and asked, “Daisy?”

Daisy
looked into Jack’s eyes, and said, “It’s true. I love him too Mama.” I heard
Jack draw a sharp breath. “I was trying to tell you before, but I thought that
I would just fake a fainting spell and tell you I love you for the first time
in front of my family,” she joked. Placing her hand on his cheek, and said
again, “I love you, Jack Riley.” In a blink of an eye, his lips were on hers in
a sweet kiss.

I
snaked my arm around Luke’s waist and he wrapped his arm around me. Daddy just
chuckled and shook his head. “Well, it’s about damn time,” he said.

Daisy
looked up at him. “What?”

“Oh,
you two weren’t foolin’ anybody. Your Mama and I saw the way you two looked at
each other the past few months every time you were together. Thank goodness you
two finally worked this out. I thought I was gonna go even more gray worrying
about you both.”

Jack
smiled at him, and Daisy started to move toward Daddy. She reluctantly broke
away from Jack and moved into Daddy’s waiting arms. Laughing, she said, “I
can’t believe you knew about this.”

“I’m
your Daddy. I’ll always know,” he said. Just then, his eyes met hers, a knowing
look on his face. Something unspoken passed between them, and her eyes widened.
He leaned in and whispered something into her ear, and she threw her arms
around his neck in another hug. When she pulled back, they both had tears in
their eyes.

“Calvin,
is everything okay?” Mama asked.

He
wrapped his arms around Mama and said, “Everything’s fine.”

Daisy
stepped back over to Jack, and he said, “Daisy, I love you, but you are making
me crazy here. Will you please tell me why you’ve been so sick and didn’t tell
me?”

She
looked at me for a moment. I nodded at her in encouragement, and she smiled.
“Yes, but, can we go somewhere quiet and talk about it?”

“Sure.
Of course we can,” he said, and he placed her wrap around her shoulders. “But
first things first, we need to get some food in your system before you faint
for real this time.”

“Okay,
that sounds good. We can order pizza at your place. Is that all right?”

“That
sounds good to me.” He and Daisy said their goodbyes to Mama and Daddy, who
looked happy at the news of Jack and Daisy finally being together. Daddy’s
happiness seemed to be something more. I bet he knew about the baby already. He
was a doctor after all.

I
hugged Jack goodbye, and he whispered, “Thanks for encouraging me to listen,
Lilly. I owe you one.”

“You
do, so be ready to pay up someday.” He smiled at me and handed me off to Daisy.
I hugged her tightly, and whispered, “Good luck.”

“Thanks
Lilly. I’ll call you in the morning. Go have fun with your man,” she said.

“Oh
I will.” With a wave, she and Jack walked out together, hand in hand. “Well,” I
said to Mama, “I think we’re going to head out too, if that’s okay.”

She
smiled at me. “Of course it’s okay.” Kissing me on the cheek, she whispered
goodbye. She then moved to Luke, kissing him on the cheek. “You take care of
our girl now, you hear?”

“I
will, I promise,” Luke said, and my father reached out to shake his hand.

“You
two have a good night,” Daddy said. “I think I want one more dance with my beautiful
wife before we head home.” He took Mama’s hand and led her out onto the dance
floor.

“You
ready to go?” Luke whispered to me, desire in his voice.

“God
yes,” I purred, and we quickly walked out of the reception hall and ran to his
car. I hope he wasn’t afraid to speed, because if we didn’t get to the lake house
soon I was going to make him pull over and jump him right in the car.

The
last four days with Luke had been a dream. After a hot night after the wedding,
I couldn’t bring myself to leave him, which was good because he wasn’t willing
to let me go. He insisted that I stay with him for my last week in town, and we
spent most of those days naked in bed. It was heavenly. Every time we made love
was a new experience. He would do something to my body or touch me somewhere
that would turn me on in a split second and the outcome was always earth
shattering. All thoughts of California had been banished because I was falling
deeper and deeper in love with him every day, and I just didn’t want to tarnish
my memories with him by agonizing over my impending departure. But, it was
coming up in two days, and I just couldn’t bear to dwell on the fact that I’d
have to leave him.

It
was now Christmas Day, and Luke and Jack had made plans to go to a children’s
ward in a nearby town to cheer up the patients for Christmas. I was excited
because I was coming with him, and I couldn’t wait to see him dressed up as
Santa. The thought was strangely titillating. Daisy was coming along with us as
well, so it would be nice that to someone to talk to. We had talked on the
phone daily, but I hadn’t seen her since the wedding. Jack and Daisy had been
inseparable. Once they talked and she told him she was having a baby, their
relationship went from finally admitting their love and agreeing to try to full
blown relationship status. To say he was excited to be a father was an
understatement. Since Daisy’s apartment was still being worked on and it was
going to be a much more expensive problem to fix, he insisted that she move in
with him. Jack told her that even though he knew that it was a big step and it
was a little scary, he wanted her living with him so he could be there for
every moment of her pregnancy. He was so ecstatic that he already wanted to get
things for the nursery even though at that point Daisy was only eight weeks
along. She was able to rein him in a bit, and he agreed to hold off buying
anything until she was in her second trimester. They were so cute together, and
I was so happy for them.

We
had spent a quiet Christmas morning together in front of the fireplace
downstairs. I had woke up early to make him breakfast and I had a little
blanket set up downstairs for us to have a nice Christmas breakfast in front of
the fire. It was the best Christmas morning I could remember. We sat there, him
in his boxers and me in one of his old tee shirts, eating and talking and
laughing. Soon it was time for us to get ready to leave, so we ended up in the
shower together. Luke naked was a beautiful site to see but Luke naked and
wet…the thought almost made me explode.

After
getting ready to leave, Luke and I had just finished lunch, and he was upstairs
getting his things together for the afternoon. I was sitting on a stool at the
kitchen island and checking my messages when Luke came down the stairs. He was
carrying a duffel bag that more than likely contained the Santa suit. “Hey,
baby. What are you doing?” he asked, walking over to me and kissing me.

“Oh
nothing. Just checking my messages. Seems I’ve missed a lot of stuff while I’ve
been here,” I said, mindlessly scrolling down the list.

“Anything
bad?”

“No,
not at all. Most of it is just some of the employees either telling me
different things that are going on with the restaurant, or wishing me a Merry
Christmas.”

“Well,
that’s good, I guess. Looks like things are running pretty smoothly while you
are away.”

“Yeah,”
I said. I placed my phone on the island.

He
took a seat next to me. “Hey, you okay?” he asked, grazing the back of his hand
across my cheek.

I
leaned into him and we kissed again. “Of course I am. Merry Christmas,” I said.

“You
too.” He stood up off the stool and lifted me into his arms, wrapping them
around my waist. He leaned his lips to mine, and his tongue grazed my bottom
lip. Moaning, I opened mouth and invited him inside. After several minutes of
making out like teenagers, he reluctantly broke the kiss.

“If
we keep this up, we’ll never get out of this house, and there are some kids
waiting on us.”

I
grinned brightly. “Then let’s get going, Santa. I’ll call Daisy in the car and
let her know we’re on our way.”

The
pediatric ward of the hospital was decorated to the nines, with a large
Christmas tree full of homemade decorations and colorful lights. The chair for
Santa and his reindeer helper was sitting by the tree, and there were dozens
and dozens of presents in piles around the tree. It was beautiful. If I wasn’t
already in love with Luke for doing this for these sick children, he personally
bought all the gifts he was going to give the children. That was another thing
he and Evan traded off doing for the holidays. Next to Daddy, he had to be one
of the most generous men I’d ever known.

Luke
and Jack were getting dressed in their costumes, which gave Daisy and I time to
chat. We had gone to the cafeteria to get some tea, and had just come back on
the unit and taken a seat on a sofa in the lobby, which was filled with the
patients and their families. My heart was breaking for these poor innocent
children, being ill and stuck here on Christmas. There was one little girl in
particular that I couldn’t look away from. She had large, beautiful brown eyes,
and was wearing a pink rhinestone scarf on her head. Most likely to cover the
loss of her hair. She was quiet, and was watching everyone around her with an
aching serenity about her, like she was taking it all in. For a second, our
eyes met, and she smiled at me. I smiled warmly back at her, and just as
quickly flicked her eyes over to the bright, sparkling tree. I took a drink of my
tea, and turned to Daisy. I asked, “So, how you feeling? Any more morning
sickness?”

“No,
it’s actually getting better. Jack put a mini refrigerator in our bedroom and
it’s stocked with everything I need to help my stomach in the morning. He’s
been taking ridiculously good care of me.” I smiled widely at her. “What is it?
What is that face?”

“You
said ‘our bedroom’. That’s so cute.”

She
smiled. “I know, right?” She took a deep breath and sighed. “I can’t believe I
freaked about this relationship for so long. It just feels right. Jack, our
baby, living with him…it’s been a wonderful surprise. I’m so happy. Isn’t that
crazy?”

“It’s
not crazy at all.”

“I
just wish I hadn’t wasted all this time being stubborn. He’s such a great guy.
I’m lucky he held on through all my fear and was willing to wait.”

“Well,
you are worth waiting for, Daisy.” She reached over and squeezed my hand.

“Aw,
thanks.” She took a sip of her tea and looked around. “What’s taking the guys
so long? The kids are all waiting.”

“I
don’t know,” I said. And then, right on cue, I heard jingle bells. All of the
kids started to cheer, and as soon as I looked up, I saw Luke and Jack dressed
as Santa and Rudolph, walking down the hall. Luke had his arms open and all the
children that were mobile ran to him and hugged him. Jack was high fiving some
of them, and pulled a boy into a one armed hug. It was so sweet. Daisy laughed,
and after my initial shock of seeing him in his suit, I started to laugh too.
At that moment, Luke’s eyes met mine, and he winked at me. I waved and mouthed,
“Hi.”

He
smiled at me, and he and Jack walked over and took their seats near the tree.

It
had been an inspiring afternoon. Luke and Jack were so entertaining, and the
children seemed to forget their troubles, even if it was for just one day.
After almost two hours, there was only one child that hadn’t seen Santa yet…the
beautiful little girl that I had seen before. A woman that resembled the little
girl, presumably her mother, wheeled her over to the tree. She seemed too weak to
get out of her chair, so Luke leaned over to her and took her hand. “And what
is your name, pretty girl?” he said, in his Santa voice.

“Arabella,”
she said quietly.

“Well,
that’s a beautiful name. I hope you are having a Merry Christmas,” he said.

She
looked up at her mother with her beautiful brown eyes, and looked sad. “I guess
so,” she said, and looked back to Luke.

“You
guess so? Well, tell Santa what he can do to make it special. What do you want
or Christmas?”

She
lowered her head, shaking it. Her mother gently patted her shoulder and said,
“It’s okay, Arabella. Tell Santa what you want.”

“It’s
all right, sweetie. I’m sure if you tell Santa what you want most in the world,
he might be able to help,” Jack said.

After
a few moments, she looked over to me. She leaned into Luke and said, “Is that
lady an angel?”

My
eyes widened slightly and my heart constricted, and I felt a huge lump in my
throat. Daisy squeezed my hand.

Luke
moved his eyes from Arabella to me and back, and he smiled. “Why do you think
that?”

“Because
she’s so pretty.” I really thought I was going to cry.

“Yes,
she is,” he said, winking at me.

“Santa?
Can I tell you what I want for Christmas now?” Arabella asked.

“Of
course you can. What is it, sweetie?”

“Can
you ask the angel to help my mommy not feel sad when I’m gone?”

I
gasped sharply, and her mom let out a sob. Before anyone could respond, I let
go of Daisy’s hand and stood up off the sofa. I walked over to Arabella and
knelt down in front of her chair. Taking her hand, I said, “So, I guess you
discovered my secret, huh?”

She
nodded. “Uh huh. I’m pretty smart.”

“Yes
you are. You love your mommy, huh?”

“Yeah.
She’s my best friend.”

“I
bet she is.”

After
a moment, she looked at me. “Can you help me? I don’t want my mommy to cry when
I’m gone.”

“Sweetie,
where are you going?”

“To
heaven, with my daddy,” she said. Her mother gasped.

I
was fighting hard to keep the tears at bay. “Your daddy?”

“Yes,
he died in Iraq. He’s been protecting me and Mommy from heaven, and I can’t
wait to see him again. I just don’t want Mommy to be sad.” Her mother was
understandingly sobbing, and Jack had his arm around her, trying to provide
some comfort.

“Why
do you think you’re going to heaven?”

“Because
I’m so tired,” she said.

This
was so incredibly difficult to see. I didn’t know what else to say, so I
decided to go with my instincts. “Well, your Mommy is going to be so sad if you
leave her, because you are a pretty special girl. But, I can promise you that I
will tell all the angels in heaven, even your daddy, to watch over your mommy
and we’ll keep her safe for you, okay?”

Arabella’s
face lit up for the first time all afternoon. “You promise?”

I
touched her nose with the tip of my finger. “I promise.”

She
held out her arms. I leaned in and hugged her tiny frame. “Thank you, angel.”

“You
can call me Lilly,” I whispered. I looked up at her mother, and she mouthed, “Thank
you.”

I
nodded at her, and I pulled away from Arabella. As I was about to walk back to
the sofa with Daisy, Luke grabbed my hand and squeezed it. I looked at him, and
a few tears escaped my eyes. I weakly smiled at him and I walked back to the
sofa. Daisy looped her arm through mine. “That was such a great thing you did,
Lilly.”

“I
just had to,” I said, my voice breaking. I was afraid that Arabella would see
me cry, so I took several deep breaths and stashed my tears for later. I was
sure they would come.

It
had turned out to be a wonderful afternoon, despite the sadness. These children
looked like they were happier than they’d been in a while. Luke had gotten some
pretty incredible gifts for them, complete with some pretty popular toys and
electronics. It was like he bought several of every toy on the top gift lists.
Once all the children were back in their rooms, and Jack and Luke were back in
their regular clothes, we were all heading out. We were heading to Mama’s for
Christmas Eve dinner. As we were waiting for the elevator, I felt a tap on my
shoulder. Turning around, I saw Arabella’s mother standing there, tears in her
eyes.

“Excuse
me, I’m sorry to bother you. Lilly, is it?”

“Yes,
that’s right,” I said, and placed my hand on her arm.

“I’m
Kathryn Hayes. It’s nice to meet you.” She nodded at Daisy, Luke and Jack.

“It’s
nice to meet you too. This is my sister Daisy, and this is Luke, and Jack. Or
rather, Santa and Rudolph,” I said, smiling at her. “How’s Arabella after all
the festivities?”

She
softly chuckled. “She’s pretty worn out, but she’s seems happier than she’s
been in a while. Listen, I can see you all are on our way out, so I won’t keep
you.  I just had to thank you before you left. What you did for Arabella…it
meant everything to her. And to me,” she said, tears welling in her eyes.