Page 20 of Love Me Fearless

Beth slips free and disappears through the door.

I put Beth’s attitude out of my mind and pull up a chair.

“Nice of you to stop by,” Louisa says, her soft brown eyes clear, though her face is edged with exhaustion.

Up close I can see that she’s pale, the wide neck of the gown revealing skin that’s beginning to thin with age. Monitoring leads connect from inside her gown to machines set up behind her on the left. An IV in her left arm is set to a slow drip from the bag of fluid hanging above her head.

“They taking good care of you?” I ask. From one of the monitors, one of the lines jumps. Louisa doesn’t seem to feel the irregularity, which is good, but my problem-solving brain starts working. If the medications they’ve been giving her since she arrived haven’t fixed her heart rhythm, it could be why she’s still here.

“The best,” she says. “Even the food’s not bad.”

I laugh. “You don’t need to lie to me.”

With a grimace, she runs a hand through her short dark hair threaded with silver. “I could use a shower, though.”

“Want me to help?” Finally, something I can do.

Louisa’s eyes go wide. “Really? I can wait for one of the nurses. Maybe after Dr. Shelby comes.”

“I’m here now,” I say with a smile.

Relief fills her eyes. “That would be amazing.”

“Let’s do it.”

I use the call button to alert the nurse, who appears in the doorway seconds later.

“Go ahead,” she says after I give her our plan. “There’s a call cord in the shower if you need me. I’ll bring a fresh gown.”

Louisa isn’t frail by any means, but she’s a little shaky when we start walking. If her heart isn’t pumping efficiently, it can cause dizziness. Over time it can cause fatigue, even weakness.

“I’m sorry about Beth,” Louisa says once we get into the bathroom. “She’s…angry.”

“It’s okay,” I say. “She’s worried about you. I completely understand.”

Louisa doesn’t reply, and an awkward silence stretches between us. When I moved home last year, she was one of the first people to call and congratulate me. She invited me to come riding, but I haven’t had the courage yet. Moonbeam Farm holds too many memories.

I reach into the shower and turn it on, testing it until it’s the right temperature.

“You need some privacy?” I ask.

Louisa laughs. “Goodness, no. Once you get to be my age, modesty is a foreign concept.”

I assist her with the gown then help get her seated on the sturdy plastic chair inside the shower.

Louisa closes her eyes and leans back, so the water wets her hair and runs down her face. “Wow, that feels good.”

I roll up my sleeves and help shampoo her hair, then give her the nozzle and a handful of soap so she can wash up and rinse wherever she needs it.

“How’s it been taking over Dr. Boone’s practice?” she says overthe crashing of the water. “He was such a kind man. I still remember when I brought Ryan in with his broken arm. He took extra time to make sure I was okay too.”

I swallow hard. I remember that broken arm. It was the second thing I noticed about him. The first was the mischievous glint in his eye. Like he was trouble…and knew it.

“He left me some big shoes to fill,” I say to move the conversation along.

“I have every faith that you’ll do just that,” Louisa says. “Okay, all done.”

After turning off the water, I hand her a towel. From the bed, I grab the fresh gown and help Louisa slip it on, being careful of the IV port.

---