A Walk Along the Beach by Debbie Macomber Page 0,84
so if you ever need help, you let me know.”
“I’ll do that.” As tempting as it was, I wouldn’t take his money to keep Bean There open. Whatever my father had managed to accumulate probably wouldn’t be enough to keep me solvent for longer than a week or two. I didn’t want to make my problems his. This was my business, and its success or failure was on my shoulders and no one else’s.
As we drew closer to Seattle and got tangled up in the heavy flow of traffic, dread settled over me. I hadn’t realized how depressed I’d become until we neared the hospital. With everything in me, I wanted to remain outside; breathe in the fresh air, look at the sky, forget that my sister was inside, battling for her life.
Dad found a good parking spot and we walked together, side by side, toward the bank of elevators. My steps were sluggish, but if Dad noticed, he didn’t comment.
“Dad,” I said, stopping him just before he pushed the button to call for the elevator. “I need to warn you…Harper is very sick.”
His eyes dimmed and he reached for my hand, taking it in his own and squeezing. “I know. Lucas has been giving me regular updates.”
That was all well and good, but hearing and seeing were two entirely different things.
“Don’t worry about me,” he said, giving my hand another squeeze. “I’m stronger than I look.”
I hoped he was right. It wasn’t like I could keep him away, not that I would want that. Protecting him as I had in the past had done more harm than good. As Harper had so often told me: I was such a mother.
Before we entered the hospital, I texted John and told him we were on our way to Harper’s room. He met us in the hallway outside her room, his expression revealing nothing about what had transpired in the time I’d been away.
I asked Dad if he remembered John.
“Of course,” Dad replied. “You’re the handsome doctor who escorted Harper down the aisle at the wedding.” He offered his hand. “Good to see you again, Doctor.”
“You, too.” They exchanged handshakes.
“You ready, Dad?” I wrapped my arm around his elbow, unsure who would need the support more: him or me.
“Ready,” he said.
I pushed open the door to find my sister curled up on her side. Apparently, she no longer needed the oxygen mask, because it was gone. I looked upon this as a good sign. When she saw it was me and Dad, she smiled. How pale she looked. So sick and so determined to be brave.
“Baby girl,” Dad said, as he pulled the chair up alongside her bed.
Harper extended her arm to him and Dad gripped hold of her hand, raising it to his lips and kissing her fingers. For a long time, he said nothing. Then he pressed his forehead against her hand. When he straightened, he looked to me.
“I’m grateful you’re here, Willa. I have something to say and you both need to hear it.”
“Of course, Dad.”
“You know how deeply I loved your mother.” His eyes filled with tears, which he managed to hold at bay.
Seeing how he grieved, we knew Mom had been his soulmate. He’d floundered badly without her.
“We met when I was in the Army, stationed at Fort Lewis, and she worked as a waitress at Denny’s, putting aside her tip money to take college classes. The minute I saw her it was like I got struck by lightning. Knew right then this was the girl I’d marry.”
He stopped, rubbed the side of his face, and chuckled. “Thing was, it took some time to convince her we were meant to be together. She was determined to graduate college and teach English. Oh my, how that woman loved to read. She could rip through a book in a day, swallowing up all them words like it was nothing.”
Harper’s eyes found mine and we grinned at each other. That was the perfect description of Mom. She’d read to us from the time we were infants. One of my first memories was Mom giving me a book. I could remember sitting in her lap as she read to all of us each night. Books were her world.
“When we first met, Claire wasn’t interested in dating anyone in the military,” Dad continued. “ ‘Here today, gone tomorrow’ is what she said. I ate at that Denny’s every night for a month before she’d agree to go to dinner with me.”