Hope's Toy Chest (5 page)

Chapter Eight

Kingsley tossed the empty pizza box in the trash before leaning against the counter. It had been a long time since he made his way over to D’s Pizza. Their square pizza by the slice with the thick, crunchy, crust was heavenly. After spending nearly three hours at the hospital decorating the room to perfection, there had been little choice but to grab pizza and come back to his place.

“I can’t remember ever having such delicious pizza. Wow. I don’t even like crust normally.” Chelsea sat there at the table looking
as if she was in Heaven.

“
It’s sure worth the twenty minute drive.” He stepped away from the counter and added more wine to their glasses. The desire to move into the living room, curl up with a beautiful woman and a good movie was new to him. Over the years there had been flings, but no one ever made him feel like he did in that moment. She occupied his thoughts, even when she wasn’t physically there, and the longing to touch her was almost overpowering.

A little voice inside him reminded him of Hope, screaming for him to make an excuse to go to his office and busy himself
with work. He couldn’t get involved with her, no matter how much he wanted her. He tried to force his thoughts back to the duty ahead; they still had to find the toys from Jessica’s wish list and wrap them.

“
We should start…”

“There’s time.” He sat down next to her
, not wanting the moment to end. “You’re a big reason why this is possible for Jessica.”

“You’re the one doing it
. I just provided the decorations.”

“The presents as well
,” he reminded her. “What I’m saying is that I’d like to invite you to be there. You won’t want to stay in those shitty crash rooms, but you can come by in the morning to see her with the gifts.”

“Oh no
, I wouldn’t want to intrude. This is a celebration for Jessica and her mother.”

“That’s your choice. Will you join us tomorrow evening? Santa will be making a visit, maybe you can ask him for your
own Christmas wish.”

“Okay. That sounds like fun, but does Santa still deliver to old women
?”

“
You’re not old.” He slipped his hand over hers. What he really wanted to say was how beautiful she was. “Santa will make a special delivery for you if you tell him what you want.”

“I’ll be sure to do that
. It would be nice to be on the receiving end for once.” She blushed, taking a sip of her wine. “Now come on, we’ve got to find the stuff on the list if either of us is going to get some sleep.”

They rose from the table but before they could move away from it
, his cell phone went off. “Excuse me a moment.” He grabbed the phone from the counter. “Doctor Mathews.”

“Doctor
, this is Tammy, a R.N. at Cedar Grove Children’s Hospital. There’s a note here that you want to be notified of any changes in Jessica Cook’s condition.”

“Yes, how is she?”

“She spiked a fever and has become violently ill. As stated in her chart, we administered the medication through her IV.” The nurse rambled on, the lack of feeling in her voice bothering him, making him wonder if she wasn’t in the wrong field.

“How long has she been showing symptoms? Any change since the medication was given?”

“She received the first dose just over an hour ago and no changes as of yet.”

He gulped, a cold sweat passing over him.
“Give her a second dose and I’ll be in.” He glanced at the clock. “Twenty minutes.”

“I don’t believe that’s necessary.”

“I do.” He emptied his wine glass into the sink. “With her current condition I’d like to examine her.” Without waiting for her reply, he ended the call and glanced to where Chelsea stood waiting for him.

“The hospital
?” She frowned.

Her expression reminded him
why relationships never lasted for him. He had yet to find a woman who would understand his career, and he doubted he ever would. “I’m afraid so. Jessica’s taken a turn, and I need to go check on her.”

“Go ahead. If you don’t mind
, I’ll stay and find what we need for tomorrow.”

“Hopefully tomorrow is still doable.”

“That bad?”

He prayed not, but there was
only one way to find out. He stepped toward her and took her hand in his. “I don’t know how long I’ll be. If you’re gone by the time I get back I’ll give you a call in the morning to let you know if we’re still on for the celebration.”

“Go, she needs you.”

He wanted to kiss her, to ask her to stay, instead he grabbed his coat and headed for the door. There would be another night for them. Jessica, on the other hand, might only have a few hours left.

The minutes ticked by and still Chelsea stood in the middle of Kingsley’s kitchen, her mind on his touch. The brief moments when their hands met sent her heart fluttering.
She had never been drawn to someone the way she was drawn to Le. For the first time she was seeing him in a new light. When he was her daughter’s doctor, she didn’t see him, not really. He was just there; her daughter had been at the forefront of things, and everything else was just background. Now she could see he was so much more than just a doctor. He truly cared for his patients, and he grieved for those he’d lost as much as the families did. Le was a man who would never be satisfied until childhood cancer was a thing of the past, until he was put out of a job because of a cure.

Having been in the position of the parents with sick children she knew just how
valuable a dedicated doctor was. Le had done his best to help her daughter. He had done everything that could be done. Even at the very end, when they knew the time was coming, he had been there. Thinking back, she remembered him always being present. She never realized it then, but even late at night when Hope had gotten worse, he had been there.

Throughout it all
, he had a word of encouragement when she needed it, a tissue when there was nothing to say. When Hope lost her fight, he had rushed to the hospital, arriving only minutes after she died, and held her while she cried. He had come to the funeral, offering his help with anything she needed, going above and beyond what was expected of him.

Knowing how dedicated he was to his career and patients
, she still couldn’t stop herself from wanting him. He had a heart of gold, and the body of a god. A flush of heat washed through her. Damn, did she want him.

Would Santa bring her
a second chance at love?

Chapter Nine

It was after two in the morning when Kingsley opened the door to his house
. The only thing on his mind was sleep. They had finally brought down Jessica’s fever and she was resting comfortably, on oxygen to help her breathe, and additional antibiotics to combat the slight congestion in her lungs. Stepping inside, he slipped out of his coat. The living room light glowed through the darkness, and there on the sofa Chelsea was sound asleep.

He hung his coat
in the hall closet before strolling into the living room. A beautiful woman waiting for him when he got home made his heart skip a beat. If only he could pick her up and carry her to his bed, feel her warm body pressed against his. He needed to put distance between them or he was going to end up breaking her heart.

Even knowing that
, he couldn’t stop his body from moving forward. He leaned over the sofa, rubbing his finger along her jawline. “Chelsea.” Oh, how he loved the way her name rolled off his tongue.

A soft moan escaped her lips as she turned her face into his hand, her eyes still closed.
“Hmm.”

“Come on
, sweetie, wake up.” He dragged his hand through her hair, the soft strands sliding through his fingers like silk.

Her eyelids shot open. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep.” She
rubbed her hand over her face.

“It’
s fine, and it’s late. The snow has started and the roads are getting bad. Why don’t you stay here tonight?”

“The same bedroom
we have a million toys piled into?” She scooted up on the sofa, pulling her legs under her.

“I do have another guest room, come on. It’s late and you need some sleep.”
He took her hand in his. “It’s too nasty for you to go out in this storm.” He led her down the hall toward the guest room closest to his. Everything within him screamed for him to take her to his bed, even if it was only for one night.

She leaned against him
, half asleep, as he pushed the bedroom door open. “Thank you.” Her words came out in a soft whisper. “You don’t have to be so nice to me.”

“Yeah, let me just throw you out on a cold and snowy night, that’s what a gentleman would do.” He led her to the bed, and pulled down the comforter. “Get into bed
, we’ll talk in the morning.”

“Okay.” She mumbled, climbing into bed
with her clothes on. The minute her head hit the pillow she was asleep.

With her snuggly
under the blankets, he made his way to his room. He needed to get a few hours of sleep and get back to the hospital to check on Jessica and his other patients. There was also a stack of paperwork that needed to be completed by week’s end if he didn’t want the hospital administration staff and Annabell breathing down his neck. He pushed it aside and slipped between the sheets, his mind wandering back to Chelsea.

Kingsley
awoke to screams and shot out of bed. It was the middle of the night, darkness enveloped his house, but he knew something had woken him and he wasn’t sure where it had come from. In an instant, he knew.

“Hope!”
Chelsea’s terrified voice cut through the stillness of the night.

He rushed to the door, not bothering to grab any clothes. Something
was wrong. Dashing down the hall, he pushed open the door. There in the middle of the bed, Chelsea struggled against the tangled sheets.

“God, no
, Hope!”

“Sweetie.”
He closed the distance to the bed and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him. She fought against him, tears pouring down her face. “Chels, it’s okay. I’ve got you.”

“No, please.”
Her fists slammed into him.

“Come on, wake up.”
He leaned against the pillows, holding her to him, and running his hands down her arms. “Chels.”

“
Hope.” Finally waking, her voice was cloaked with tears, and she clung to him.

They sat there
as he gently caressed her until the tears finally ended. “Are you okay?” She nodded, her body shaking like a leaf. “Do you want to talk about it?”

She laced her fingers through his. “Hope…she came to me in the dream.”

He nodded, resting his cheek against the top of her head. “You were screaming her name.”

“
She came to me, and she’ll come for Jessica.”

Knowing it was a dream didn’t stop him from feeling sick. He didn’t want to lose another child, not at Christmas, not ever. “It was only a dream.” He
was trying to reassure them both.

“It seemed liked so much more than that.” She curled into him until they were looking at each other. “We’ve got
to do something.”

“I’m doing everything I can.”
He held her, needing to feel her against him, grounding him.

“
I know you are.” Tears cascaded over her cheeks. “That poor mother.”

Somewhere in the mi
dst of all of it, beyond the sadness and helplessness, he realized he was falling for her. It was a whole new territory for him, one he wasn’t sure she was the perfect person to explore it with. He still wasn’t sure what she saw or felt when she looked at him. Did she see someone that had failed her? Would they be able to use that as the foundation to a relationship instead of a divider?

“I’m sorry.” She wiped her eyes, drying the tears.

“There’s nothing to be sorry about, nightmares happen.”

“This wasn’t just a nightmare, this was a warning. Is Jessica’s mother ready for what’s coming? Is there anything I can do?”

“No one is ever ready. She’s holding out hope, but I think she realizes it’s a possibility or she wouldn’t have wanted to celebrate Christmas early.” He brushed the hair away from her cheek.

“You’re right, you’re never ready to lose a child.”
Her hair tickled his chest when she nodded.

“Things were different in your case. Hope’s change was quick and unexpected. Jessica hasn’t had any positive
reactions to
any
treatments she has undergone.”

He was prepared for
failing Jessica. He’d done everything he could, even used experimental treatments, and nothing had worked. Losing Hope had been a surprise. She had been on her way to recovery, the treatment had been working for her.

A sudden change and everything
had gone wrong.