Page 52 of Finding Amanda

She dressed quickly, kissed him goodbye, and exited his counseling room. Her mom was writing a check, paying for her time with him, and the sight of it started a flow of anxiety and nausea. She looked down, certain she was going to find herself naked, but she was wearing clothes, though not the clothes she came in with earlier. She was wearing the sexy black silk nightie he bought her, staring at the tear down its front.

The phone rang again.

Her mother smiled. "You ready, honey?"

How did her mother not notice the nightie? Why didn't she know what had just happened? Couldn't she smell him on her? Amanda had to get away before her mother realized what she'd done. Her mother thanked Dr. Sheppard. He curled his lips in that detached sort ofit-was-lovely-to-see-you-againway. But his eyes were hungry and satisfied, and Amanda knew what he meant.It was lovely to have you again.

The phone rang. She dove out the window, falling from his building, watching the floors pass beside her.

Amanda gasped,fully awake, and sat up in her bed. The phone rang again. She flipped on the light, and reached for it with trembling fingers.

"Hello?" she said.

"Madi's having an asthma attack," Mark said. "We're on our way to the E.R."

CHAPTER TWELVE

Amanda ran into the emergency room and rushed to the counter, slanting over it as if that would move her closer to Madi. "My daughter was just brought in. Madison Johnson."

The woman reached beneath her desk, and Amanda heard a muffled buzz. "Go ahead," she said. The lock released on the door leading deeper into the hospital. Amanda pulled it open and entered to find Sophie sitting on a chair outside of a gray door.

"Mommy!" Her daughter ran into her arms. "Mommy, I was so scared. Madi's lips were all blue, and she was all white, and she looked so bad."

Amanda lifted her daughter. "I'm sure she's going to be fine," she said, though the fear she'd been trying to keep at bay now shivered through her. She held Sophie closer. "Where is she?"

The little girl pointed to the door. "They made me wait out here."

Amanda shifted Sophie to her hip to free her hand and swung the heavy door open.

A nurse inside the door stepped back, startled. Then shesmiled and brushed past Amanda and out the door. "You must be Mommy. Glad you're here."

Inside the room, Mark stood at the head of Madi's bed, brushing hair out of her face. He turned to Amanda, relaxed his shoulders, and turned back to Madi. "Here she is."

Madi slid a mask off her face and smiled. "Hi, Mommy."

"Hi, baby." Amanda set Sophie on the floor and approached the bed. She ran her fingers along Madi's hairline, felt her warm cheeks. "How you feeling?"

Madi scrunched up her tiny face and pursed her beautiful, red lips. "They gave me a shot!"

"Oh, I'm sorry." Relief coursed through her as she studied the color in her daughter's face. "Did it hurt?"

"A little, but it's okay," she said. "I couldn't breathe."

Her daughter said the words so off-handedly that it took Amanda's own breath away. She squeezed Madi’s mattress while the wave of fear dissipated.

"She's okay." Mark was standing on the opposite side of the bed, Madi's hand in his. "She was struggling, but they got her back here really fast." He cocked his head to the side and studied her. "Are you all right?"

She wasn’t, but she nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay." Forcing a smile, she said, "Put the mask back on, honey."

Madi obeyed, lying back on the raised bed and inhaling deeply.

"Hey, little lady." Mark ruffled their older daughter's hair. "Sorry I made you sit out there. It was sort of crowded in here." He placed his huge hand on her shoulder.

"Is she going to be okay?" Sophie asked.

He met Amanda's eyes and nodded. "Of course. She's going to be fine."

She could see the terror in her husband's face. Did he see hers? Ever since Madi's first asthma attack when she wasa baby, they'd both lived with the fear that one day, they wouldn't get to her in time.

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