Page 1 of Love Under Review

Chapter 1

Liam Pearson watched the sunrise from the front porch, breathing in the fall morning air. After a long day at the hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado, the day before, it was nice to sit on something other than hard waiting room chairs, especially after trying to keep Cari occupied as her mother went in for surgery.

He’d had to fight his six-year-old niece to get in the car to go home late that night. An image of her defiance played in his mind, and he smiled, realizing she was the spitting image of her mother when she did that. Cari had been lying on the hospital bed next to her mother, playing a game on his tablet. He understood somewhat the fear the young girl harbored. She’d gone through so much in her young life, and the hospital was a place of unknowns. Would her mother come back home alive after her treatments? Because her father hadn’t after his car accident.

At this hour, he should be waking her up to get ready for school, but he needed the silence, the quiet reflection this moment gave him. He’d never had moments like these in New York, and he wondered how he’d made it five years there without slowing down even a bit.

Every day over the past six months, his decision to leave investment banking and move in with his sister and niece in Sage Creek, Colorado, proved to be a good move, and better health was only the tip of the iceberg. Had someone told him he’d now own an independent bookstore, he’d have thought they’d lost a few brain cells.

Most of the stress he felt now was in regard to his sister’s health. She’d been diagnosed with leiomyosarcoma the month before, after several months of fatigue, nausea, and weight loss. As stubborn as Kara Plumfield was, it had taken her fainting and blacking out on two separate occasions to convince her she needed to get checked out. But Liam hadn’t imagined the whirlwind that would come of it.

They’d had to wait for the specialist to come over from Denver. The surgery from the day before had been to remove the tumor in her stomach, a procedure with several risks. But Kara had never wavered, knowing she had to do whatever she could to prolong time with her daughter.

On the doctor’s recommendation, Kara had chosen to do a session of radiation before they sewed her back up. Liam just hoped it would get all of the cancerous cells and help his sister get back to her normal vivacious personality. She still gave off as much enthusiasm as she could from her hospital bed, but that spark of excitement seemed to wane each time she saw the doctor.

The door opened, and Cari walked out, her hair sticking out in every direction. She rubbed her eyes beneath her glasses and climbed into his lap, snuggling her head against his chest. For the moment, all was right with the world, and he could have stayed like that for days. He’d checked his phone several times in the half-hour since he’d been awake, knowing this morning’s updates would bring critical information about his sister’s health.

“How’d you sleep?” he whispered into Cari’s ear.

“Okay. I had one bad dream that woke me up. But I closed my eyes and went back to sleep.”

Liam smiled, kissing the top of her head. He could only imagine what she would dream about. Most likely hospitals and needles as she’d seen the nurses poke and prod her mother for blood samples over the past few weeks.

“How about pancakes for breakfast? I’ll get making them while you get ready for school. How does that sound?” He leaned back and smiled as her head popped up, eyes wide.

“Can we call my mom?” Her eyelashes fluttered, and as much as Liam wanted to call his sister, he knew she still needed the rest.

He shook his head. “Your mommy’s probably really tired still from the surgery yesterday. When I hear back from the hospital, we’ll know we can call her. Maybe after school. Is that okay?” He watched as the sadness on her face disappeared with his proposal.

“Can I wear my purple dress?” Cari asked, bouncing up and down on his knee.

Liam turned his lips to the side and tapped his cheek with one finger, watching as she waited in suspense. “It looks like it will be a nice day. I think your purple dress would be fine.”

She slid off his lap and danced on her toes in celebration before running inside. Her footsteps pounded up the stairs, the sound echoing through the hallway and out the front door.

Liam looked out at the line of trees over the tops of the houses across the street and smiled. She definitely got her zest for life from her mother.

Walking in, Liam pulled out the bag of pancake mix and measured it out, not needing to look at the directions anymore after the many times he’d made them over the past few months. He looked around the kitchen, seeing his sister’s touch everywhere. Her favorite color was plum, and some of the appliances she owned were either completely that color or they had some part in that shade.

A minute or two later, Cari ran down the stairs and took up her usual seat at the table. Liam studied her face as she stared at the griddle, her eyes wide with excitement. He’d never met anyone who loved pancakes more than his niece.

He tried to hide a smile as his eyes traveled to her hair. It looked as though she’d tried to put it into a ponytail, but with the large bumps on top and several sections sticking out on the sides, she looked like she’d been in a tussle rather than just waking up.

“Here are a few hot off the griddle,” he said with a smile, piling two pancakes on a paper plate. He poured syrup over the top of it and gave her a fork. “When you’re done, we’ll have to do something with your hair.”

Cari turned to him with a scowl. “I already did it.”

“I just want to fix one little part,” Liam said, making a small space in between his forefinger and thumb.

Cari liked being independent, especially with her clothes and hair. Liam wasn’t all that good at the fancy hair Kara could create with a few elastic bands, but he’d learned fast how to braid and use bows to his advantage.

“Fine. But we get to go to the park after school today if I let you.” She held out her fork, using it to emphasize each word. Her negotiation skills were something to admire.

Liam chuckled, the serious face of his niece reminding him so much of Kara when they were younger. She was three years older than him and should have the world ahead of her. He just hoped the results of the surgery would be favorable and they could get back to their lives.

Twenty minutes later, they were out the door and walking the few blocks to Sage Creek elementary school.

“Don’t forget. We’re going to the park after school,” Cari said, her lips pursed and her chin raised.

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