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For the first time in my life, since I was a child, I was putting my trust in another’s hands. I didn’t know how Luke would do it, but I would trust him to find someone to take care of my mom tonight.
When I mentioned the date to her, she threatened to never speak to me again if I didn’t go. I believed her, too. So, here I was, standing in front of my bedroom closet, trying to decide what to wear.
I had plenty of work clothes, but I wanted something that made me feel sexy. I had nothing like that. So, I pulled out the tight black dress I usually wore with a blazer but paired it with the highest heels I owned.
Not bad, I thought when I saw myself in the mirror. I grabbed the large hoop earrings I’d purchased last month but hadn’t worn yet and put those on. Slipping on a couple of bangles, I assessed the final look.
That’ll work.
“Grace!” my mother called from the living room. “There’s someone at the door.”
I hadn’t heard the door, but the music was pretty loud. Huh. I hadn’t played music while getting ready in forever.
“Coming!” I shouted.
“Honey, you look beautiful,” she said when I walked into the living room.
“Thank you.” I pulled down the dress. “Do you think it’s too much? I don’t know where we’re going, but I didn’t have many options.”
“No. It’s perfect.”
A soft knock sounded at the door. “You better get that, honey.”
I walked the short distance to the front door and opened it. Luke wore gray pants and a black dress shirt that seemed sized to fit the contours of his chest and arms perfectly. He had styled his brown hair so that the tousled locks all stood firmly in place. He looked every bit a Crawford right now and less like the teenager I remembered.
When my assessing gaze caught his eyes, I felt held in place by some invisible hands. He bit his bottom lip and swallowed. “You look incredible.” His husky voice sent chills down my spine.
When someone behind him shifted, I realized two other people were standing there.
“Grace, this is Theo and Laura. They’re both nurses at Mount Sinai Hospital with previous experience working with kidney disease patients and come highly recommended by two surgeons at the hospital. They’ve explained that your mother may tire easily, so I purchased a wheelchair for her should she wish to leave the apartment with their supervision.”
Laura stepped forward first. “Pleased to meet you, Ms. Sweeney.”
I shook Laura’s hand, still trying to process everything Luke had just told me.
“Your mother is in great hands. You don’t need to worry about a thing,” Theo said. Then he turned and pulled a wheelchair from the hallway. I moved out of the way so he could push it inside.
“Hello there!” my mother called from the living room.
“Hello, Ms. Sweeney. My name’s Theo and I’m pleased to meet you. Would you be interested in going for a walk this evening?”
From the couch, my mother looked at me, and her eyes welled up. Then so did mine. My mother hadn’t been able to do much more than walk to the balcony for some fresh air in nearly a year. She hadn’t been further than the front entrance of the building to step into my car for her appointments in that long, too. A walk. Well, I couldn’t remember the last time she did that.
She straightened her spine. “I’d love to,” she said. “Let me just grab my sweater.”
“I’ll get that Mom,” I said.
“Let me,” said Laura. “Is it this one here by the door?”
“Yes,” I stammered. “Yes. That one’s fine.”
“Perfect. Well, you both should be on your way.” Laura, not so subtly, tried to kick us out.
Luke stuck out his elbow. “Are you ready, Grace?”
Sneaking a glance at my mother, I watched as Laura helped my mom put on her sweater as gently as Lorna would have. I nodded, feeling safe, leaving her in their hands.
“Yeah. I’m ready,” I said. “Bye, Mom. I won’t be too late.”
