Page 25 of Kent's Honor
“What’s that?”
“She asked me to tell you not to call her Buttercup.”
Kent shook his head. “I’ve been calling her that since the day she was born. Kind of a hard habit to break.”
“Take it from a father of three teenage daughters. Unless you’re handing them the keys to your car or a credit card, it’s best to stick with their given name.”
Opening and closing his hands, Kent slowly rid himself of the tension that had all his muscles tied up in knots. “Do they ever stop rolling their eyes?”
“My oldest is seventeen and she’s the worst, but my favorite is the foot stomp while yelling, ‘Daddy, you never let me do anything. You’re the meanest.’ All followed by a hair flip, long sigh, and a slammed door. Ten minutes later, she’s all, ‘Daddy, I love you, can I have twenty dollars?’” Josh shook his head, laughing. “It never gets easier; it just gets different.”
“Not sure that makes me feel any better.”
Josh slapped him on the back as they turned the corner. “I’ve got all girls, and I can’t imagine life any differently. Oh, before I forget, Elle keeps asking for Dixie. Is she somewhere in the hospital where I can track her down?”
“She’s at home. I’m hoping she’ll be here soon, though.” The fog started to lift from Kent’s brain as he recalled the events since he’d heard the call over the station radio, before he saw Dixie’s text. Everything between the time he heard his address and this moment had been one big blur. “Is there a phone I can use? I left mine at the station.” Only, he didn’t remember Dixie’s number.
“You can use the one at the nurses’ station.” Josh stopped at a door. A whiteboard with Elle Carter written in black ink hung from a hook. “I’m on duty till five tonight, so if you need anything at all, just let me or one of the other nurses know.”
“Thanks.” On his tiptoes, Kent made his way to his daughter’s bedside. Tears burned his eyes as he watched a machine pulse with her heartbeat. An IV hung from a metal rack above her head, the tubing circling down to where a needle had been threaded into a vein on the top of her hand.
Her head flopped in his direction, and a bright smile spread across her cheeks. “Hi, Daddy,” she said with a hoarse voice.
Leaning over, he kissed her temple, fanning his hand over the top of her head. “My darling Elle,” he whispered. “You gave me quite the scare.” He sat on the edge of the bed, holding her hand.
“I didn’t mean to.” Her eyelids fluttered heavily over her almond eyes.
“Well, we can’t control a burst appendix.”
“It was horrible, and I got sick all over Dixie.”
Lifting his hand, he squeezed the bridge of his nose. That had to be the worst smell on the planet. “It’s over now, and in a few weeks, you’ll be running around like nothing happened.”
A couple of taps echoed off the wood door. Josh peeked his head in. “Sorry to bother you, but Dixie is here.”
Finally.
“Unfortunately, we can’t let small children in,” Josh said.
“Daddy, I want to see Dixie,” Elle’s voice quivered as if it were laced with tears.
“I’ll go watch Nicky so she can visit.” He kissed her, giving her hand a good squeeze. Exhaustion from being up for over twenty-four hours kicked in. His eyes burned, and he suspected they were bloodshot as all hell.
Nurses and doctors hustled about the corridor. The smell of antiseptic made his stomach clench as it begged for food.
“Kent!” Nicky jumped up and down and around in a circle before bolting down the hallway.
“Stop,” Dixie called, but Nicky obviously wasn’t going to take heed as he flung himself into Kent’s outstretched arms.
“Hey there, little man, how are you?”
Nothing like having plump little fingers wrapped around your neck as a toddler attempted a big bear hug. Kent closed his eyes, taking in the fresh scent of baby soap.
“How is she?” the voice of an angel asked.
He blinked open his eyes and once again, Dixie sucked out all the oxygen from his lungs. Her long blond hair cascaded over her shoulders. Her indigo eyes twinkled under the florescent lighting.
“She’s really good,” he said, shifting Nicky to his hip. “She’d like to see you.”
