Page 59 of Sapphire Sunset

That’s when Connor saw one of her legs bend. Sideways.

He caught her by one arm before she went down, and by thetime he’d guided her into the nearest chair, Logan had her other arm.

“I’ve got her,” Connor said.

“We’ve both got her,” Logan said. “She’s on the chair. Sether down.”

Once Gloria’s nearly dead weight settled into the chair,Connor saw that she was pale and sweating. “Where are your glucose pills,sweetie?” he asked.

“Handbag. My office.”

“I’ll get it,” Logan said.

“No, I’ll get it, you stay.” Janice hurried from theballroom before Logan could protest.

“What have you eaten today, Gloria?” Connor asked.

“Some bread and juice… Trying to keep it up so Ididn’t…crash.”

Gloria wasn’t just diabetic, she was insulin dependent,which Connor had learned when they’d worked his graduation party together. He’dbeen present for one of her low blood sugar episodes before, but it hadn’t beenquite this severe. She was stressed and overworked, and given the contents ofher most recent meal, hungry.

“Gloria,” Connor whispered, taking her hands in his, hopingto both steady and warm them. “I need you strong, gurl. I need you to get somerest.”

“I couldn’t leave, Connor.” Her eyes were full of tears. “Icouldn’t leave your grandpa…your dad.”

A blood sugar crash could sometimes cause delusions, but itmostly caused a slight, drunken slurring of words, and Connor figured that’swhat he was seeing now. But Gloria’s tears were real. Piercingly real.

“This place,” she whispered, “this place gave me everything.I couldn’t leave thinking it wouldn’t be here when I got back.”

Fighting tears himself now, Connor brought their foreheadstogether. “I need you to go home and eat a nice big meal and get a good night’ssleep. And if you do those things for me, I promise you, Sapphire Cove will bewaiting for you when you’re ready and back on your feet. We’ll all be herewaiting for you.”

“Got it!” His mother’s hair was a flyaway mess and her chestwas heaving, but she clutched a handbag.

Her hands still shaky, Gloria was able to get the glucosepills to her mouth.

“There we go,” Janice said. “Perfect. That should get us torights.”

Blinking back tears, Connor stood. Gloria took a deep breathand smoothed her skirt back into place.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry, guys.”

“You have nothing to apologize for.” Connor helped Gloria toher feet. “Do you need us to get you a ride?”

“I can call my daughter. She’s been trying to get me toleave too.”

Now that she was standing, Connor gave her a hug.

Gloria gently held the flaps of his blazer. “Maybe this ishow it was supposed to be. I mean, it shouldn’t have happened like this, Iknow. But you running Sapphire Cove. It’s what your dad would have wanted.”

Connor had assumed he’d cried himself out at the lawyer’soffice, but Gloria was bringing him perilously close to a second round.

Janice took Gloria’s elbow in hand. “Come on, sweetheart.I’ll walk you to your office. We can call your daughter from there.”

The rest of them fell silent as the two women left theballroom, slowly and arm in arm. Then, groping for his most businesslike tonein order to push away the emotions Gloria’s episode had brought to the surface,Connor turned to Logan. “All right, Mr. Murdoch. Tell me why I should believethe FBI.”

“About what?” Logan asked.

“About you.”

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