Page 55 of Promise Me This Christmas
“I’ll look after him,” Carson promised.“You guys should go now.This early in the morning you’ll get in and out faster.”
“At least let me get dressed,” Amy said.She was still in her flannel pajamas and housecoat.“And brush my teeth.”
But the men overruled her.Carson brought out her long wool coat and wool-lined boots, and the two men packed her into the passenger side of the car.Fortunately it was a short five-minute drive to the medical center.
“I don’t understand why that step was so icy,” Amy said.“I saw Robert clear the snow off it yesterday and he assured me he was going to sprinkle sand as usual.”
“He did.”Chet’s mouth was set in a grim line.“I checked yesterday afternoon and the stairs were perfect.We had no snow or any kind of precipitation last night.Maybe someone spilled a cup of tea on the step, didn’t bother to clean it up, and the liquid froze overnight.”
Amy stared out the side window, not seeing a thing.Or maybe, she thought, someone deliberately poured water over that step intending for it to freeze.It was a horrible suspicion, and she wasn’t yet ready to share it with Chet.
“We’re here,” Chet said as he pulled into a parking space.“Wait for me to come and help you out of the car.The last thing you need is another fall.”
It wasn’t until Amy had been triaged, and she and Chet were sitting together in the waiting room of the medical clinic that Amy remembered she hadn’t picked up theCourier.
*
Carson watched asChet and Amy drove off together.He sure hoped Amy was going to be okay.A broken wrist would definitely make her life a lot more complicated than it already was.
As he turned back toward the house, he noticed a rolled-up newspaper at the bottom of the stairs.That must have been what Amy was doing out here.She’d come to retrieve theCopper Mountain Courier.
He picked up the rolled-up newspaper and brushed off the snow.Larkin’s article would be in here and he wanted to read it.But first he had to check on Robin.After making sure he’d put enough sand on the top stair so that it was no longer icy, he went inside.Even from down here in the foyer he could hear the sound of Robin crying.
He stashed the newspaper in the basket of knitted slippers in the anteroom and dashed up the stairs.On the second floor landing he almost ran into Larkin, who was already dressed, with her hair in a neat ponytail.
“Is that Robin?”she asked, glancing up toward the sound of the crying.She immediately corrected herself.“Of course it’s Robin.But where are Amy and Chet?”
“Amy fell on the porch stairs and hurt her wrist.Chet’s taking her to the clinic to get checked out.”He said the words fast, was already halfway up the next set of stairs by the time he’d finished the explanation.He could hear Larkin’s footsteps behind him.
“How badly hurt is Amy?”she asked.
“Sounds like she bruised her hip and shoulder.But her wrist is the worst.It might be broken.”He swung open the door to Amy and Chet’s suite and followed the sound of Robin’s cries to his little bedroom.Robin was standing up, hanging on to the side of his crib, face red and eyes streaming with tears.
“Hey, buddy, you’re okay.Uncle Carson is here.”He scooped up the toddler, who rewarded him with an uncertain smile.
Larkin had found some tissues somewhere, and she handed him a wad to use to dry Robin’s tears.“He obviously likes you,” she said.
“He was just glad to be sprung from that crib.”He sought out Larkin’s gaze, wondering if she was still as angry as she’d been yesterday.He hadn’t seen her since their confrontation at Ethel’s house.After finishing the grouting yesterday, he’d driven home to Whispering Pines to check out the ranch and have a visit with his folks.
His mom hadn’t asked about Larkin, but he could tell she’d been concerned about him.He’d avoided her subtle invitation to talk.He needed to sort out his own feelings about Larkin first, and he was far from having accomplished that.Because as angry as he’d been yesterday, he knew he still cared about her more than any other woman he’d ever met.
She was stubborn and independent, which could make her hard to get along with.But those qualities were also a big part of the reason he loved her.
Love.He’d been avoiding thinking that word, but now, watching as she brushed her finger over Robbie’s soft cheek, he had to admit that was exactly what he felt.
Larkin’s gaze shifted from the toddler to him.“I think he needs a diaper change.”
He gave a short laugh.Talk about being brought back to earth.When was he ever going to stop mooning over this woman?
“Okay, Robbie.Let’s get you out of that soggy diaper.”While he unzipped Robin’s sleeper, Larkin sang a song about an itsy-bitsy spider that made the toddler giggle and ask for “Mor!Mor!”
While Larkin continued to distract him with the song, Carson changed his wriggly nephew’s diaper.When he was done, Larkin looked impressed.
“You’re not bad at that.”
“It’s sort of like hog-tying a calf.”
She laughed, then suddenly looked sad.“There are times…” she began.
