Chapter Seventeen
On Friday morning, Reaves stood on the front steps with Alara and Zia, watching Grady's car come up the driveway. Zia bounced up and down on her toes.
"Here they come!"
He chuckled. "You're going to have a great time."
She looked up at him, wide-eyed. "I know. I can't believe there's a place where all the doggos who don't have anywhere else to live get to go and stay. Isn't that awesome?"
"It is," he agreed.
Her little smile faded. "Don't you think so, Mom?"
"I do. I think it's great. But you know you can't have one, right?"
Her shoulders drooped. "I know. But I can make friends with them. And maybe I can go back and see them again." She looked up. "But are you okay? Do you want me to go with you instead? I don't mind."
Alara held her arms out and Zia went to hug her. "I don't mind at all. I want you to go and have fun. Enjoy seeing the dogs and the cats. There'll be cats there too."
Zia shrugged at that.
"And enjoy yourself with Ava. Okay?"
"I will. Ava's awesome. She's kind of quiet. But she likes talking to me."
Reaves smiled to himself, wondering how much talking Ava got to do. But Alara surprised him when she said, "That's because you're a good listener."
When Grady brought the car to a stop at the bottom of the steps, Zia hugged Alara one last time. "Are you sure you'll be all right?"
"I'll be fine, Z. I promise. You go and have fun. I'll see you this afternoon. Just forget about me and enjoy yourself."
Zia scowled at her. "I'll never forget about you. That's a silly thing to say." She came to Reaves and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I'll see you later, Prince Daddy. You have to hold Mom's hand when she has the injection. They hurt, you know."
"I will. I'll take good care of her."
Zia frowned. "Do transfusions hurt?"
Reaves didn't know whether to correct her, but Alara beat him to it. "It's not a transfusion, Z. It's an infusion. They're going to put some extra iron straight into me, so they can top me up more quickly than I'd manage by only getting it through food."
Zia considered that for a moment, tilting her head to the side. "That makes sense. But I hope you have to keep eating iron, too. It's in the cheesy green muffins, and I like those."
Alara laughed. "I think we're safe there. Mrs. Faye likes making them."
"I know."
Zia blew a kiss at them and ran down the last few steps as soon as Grady opened his door.
Reaves jogged down after her—until this moment he'd completely forgotten about her car seat.
He soon had it set up in the back of Grady's car, and then he went to stand beside Alara as they watched them leave, Zia's little hand waving madly in the back window.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine." She stopped. He watched her decide to try again. "Actually—it just hit me that I didn't have her seat ready. I should have—"
"No. I should have had it ready. I told you the only thing you had to think about this morning was being ready to go.
I said I'd cover the rest." He knew she'd give herself a hard time over it if he let her.
"It's not a big deal anyway. She's safe in her seat and on her way. And we should get going, too."
"I think I have everything. I'm ready to go if you want to."
"You don't have everything yet. Come on. We have to stop and see Faye on our way out—I promised." He took her hand. "But what I really meant was, are you okay with Zia going off like that?"
She smiled. "I am and I'm not. I know it has to come. And I know it's good for her that she's making friends and getting out in the world without me. But I won't claim that it's easy."
He took her hand as they went back inside. "I can't say I know how you feel. But I think I'm having a taste of it. You've had her all her life—it must be so much harder for you. But I'm kind of torn up about watching her go off for the day like that."
She rested her head against his shoulder for a moment. "That's so sweet of you."
He gave her a puzzled look. "I wasn't trying to be sweet. I was telling you the truth."
When they made it to the kitchen, Faye came bustling toward them. "Here you go," she said, picking up a picnic basket from the island.
"What's this?" Alara asked.
"A few things to keep you going. I looked it up online, and from what I've read, it'll take a while, this appointment. It said maybe forty-five minutes, and they have to keep you sitting there for observation afterward as well. You're going to need something to eat."
When Alara turned to him, wide-eyed, Reaves couldn't hold in a laugh. "There's no point in arguing," he told her, lifting the cover on the basket. "And even if you were about to—please don't. I'll eat these if you don't want to."
Faye slapped his hand. "They're not for you. Well. Some of them are. But you make sure Alara eats, okay? There's chopped-up oranges and strawberries in there. Some of the cheese and spinach muffins." She waved a hand. "Anyway, I'm probably holding you up. You'll see the rest when you get there."
Alara stared at her for a few moments before stepping forward, holding her arms out.
Reaves loved seeing them hug.
Faye stepped back. "Go on, you'd better be on your way. I don't want to make you late."
"Thanks, Faye," he said, kissing her cheek. "We'll see you later."
When they were almost to the front door, she came hurrying down the hallway after them. "Here. Take this." She thrust a blanket at Reaves. "It might get cold in that room while she's sitting there."
"Thanks, I—"
"You're welcome," Faye told her, before turning to scowl at Reaves. "Don't look at me like that. It might come in handy. And if it doesn't, it's not as though it cost you anything to carry it, is it?"
"No. Sorry, Faye."
They all turned when his dad called, "Oh, there you are. I'm glad I didn't miss you." He hurried toward them and held his arms out awkwardly to Alara. "May I?"
Reaves had to swallow as he watched. Seeing the two of them hug was even more touching.
His dad looked a little embarrassed as he stepped back.
"Anyway. I didn't mean to delay you. Just wanted to wish you good luck.
And to let you know that I won't be around this evening—a friend's invited me for dinner.
" He smiled. "But that doesn't mean I'm neglecting my duties as Chief Enforcer of Rest. The family room's all set up for the three of you to hang out this evening and watch movies, or do as you please. "
"Thank you, Charles."
"It's my pleasure. I'll see you later."
When they were finally out on the road, Reaves reached for her hand. She took his with a smile.
"Everyone's so kind. How am I ever going to repay you all?"
"You're not. That's not how it works. Kindness doesn't come with a bill. It's given freely. Out of love."
He probably shouldn't have used that word, but there was no point tiptoeing around it. She had to know that his dad and Faye loved her and Zia. And if he wasn't ready to spell out his own feelings, it was only because he didn't know how she'd receive them.
~ ~ ~
When they arrived at Dr. Ambrose's office, Clara greeted them with a smile and got to her feet, pointing to the door beside her reception desk. "Come on through. Caroline's waiting for you."
Alara froze for a moment, and Reaves put his hand at the small of her back. "Are you okay? Are you ready for this?"
She nodded. "I am. I keep telling myself it's silly to be nervous. I mean, come on, Reaves. The first time I walked into this place, I feared I'd be facing a whole lot worse than iron infusions."
"I know. But I'm not going to try and encourage you by claiming this is nothing, either. This is what we have to face today. And we'll get through it."
She smiled at him. The way he'd turned them into a we was something she'd resisted ever since she met him. Now it meant the world to her.
They followed Clara down a short hallway, and she knocked on a door before pushing it open. "Hi, Caroline. Alara's here. I'll leave her with you."
Alara stepped inside and Caroline looked up. "Hi. Come on in." She glanced at Reaves. "Are you joining us? If you're coming back for her, I'd say give it an hour and a half."
Reaves came to stand beside Alara, looking determined. Alara chuckled—they'd already discussed it. "I'd like for him to stay, please."
Caroline grinned. "Okay then. Reaves, you can sit in the corner and do as you're told."
He winked at Alara. "You have to remember; I've been coming here since I was a kid."
"And you have to remember," Caroline told him, "that Henry said it wasn't up to you whether you stay."
That made Alara smile. She loved that Dr. Ambrose would look out for her like that. In her experience, people with any kind of authority were more likely to make her decisions for her than pave the way for her to make them herself.
"Come and take a seat over here."
Alara went and sat warily on the chair while Caroline turned to Reaves again. "And what on earth have you got there? The blanket, I understand. But an entire picnic basket?"
"Faye loaded us up. She's in charge of diet and nutrition." He set a box on the desk. "And this is a special delivery for you. Her cupcakes, with a message that you're taking care of a very special patient here. And thank you."
Caroline smiled at Alara. "You must be special, if you've got Faye advocating for you."
Alara didn't know what to say. "She's wonderful. She's been so kind to me."
"That says a lot about you. Don't get me wrong—Faye's a lovely woman. But she doesn't take to everyone."
Alara glanced at Reaves, and he nodded. "It's true."
"Anyway. Let's get on with it, or we'll have you here all day." Caroline patted the back of the chair. "Sit back, will you? All the way back. There's no point perching on the edge like that as if you're about to get up and leave."
Alara settled into the reclining vinyl chair, propping her elbows on the arms of it, and Caroline pulled her stool across and picked up a clipboard.
"Right. Boring bit first. Any allergies at all, that you know of?"
"No."