Page 38 of Too Much Heat

Shaky now—he only allowed the terror to rise inside him when he was sure of the outcome—he walked out into the waiting area. He dropped down in a chair next to Lara. “Thanks for waiting.”

Her face was soft and sympathetic. “Of course.” She held out her hand. “Come with me.”

“I have my car.”

“You’re too upset. I’m driving you.”

“Lara…” But she’d already started out. She was probably right. His hands were shaking and his whole body was weak.

Once they got out of the hospital parking lot, she turned onto the wrong road. “I live—”

“I know where you live. You’re coming home with me.”

“I appreciate the thought but you have enough on your plate. You don’t have to take care of me, too.”

“Hmm.” She didn’t spare him a glance.

He sighed. In truth, he didn’t want to be alone. In truth, he wanted to be with Lara.

They reached her house and she parked in the driveway then led him to the porch. He noticed something was different. “Who fixed the boards?”

“Danny. He’s pretty good at carpentry.” She pulled open the screen door.

“No squeaks,” he commented. “Let me guess. Abe Pike.”

“Yep.”

Her brother-in-law stood when they walked inside. “Hi, Mark.”

“Hey, Lara.”

“Mark Dawson, this is Joe Romano.”

“Hey, Captain.”

“Hi, Mark. Nice to meet you.”

“Sammy in bed?” Lara asked.

“Yeah. I got him ready. It wasn’t too bad tonight. I think he likes me.”

Some tasks were harder than others. When Sam went to bed, he had to pee and brush his teeth. Getting him into his pajamas was almost as difficult as getting him out of them in the morning. And sometimes, he refused to take the medicine that slowed the progression of the disease. Lara was thankful she only had to do the morning stuff four days a week because on the other three, she left before he got up.

After Mark said goodbye, Lara turned to Joe. “Want a drink?”

“Sure. A beer if you have one.”

“I do. Sammy likes it.”

She got them both bottles of Molson’s and said, “Let’s sit on the porch.”

She’d cleaned and straightened the small area as best she could, but the screens were still falling apart. He said, “I could put new screens on.”

“I can’t afford them. Especially now that I have to pay more for his care.”

“Did you hire the aides yet?” His voice was gruff. He hated that she had financial woes.

“Enough to give me breathing room to find one more.” She kissed his cheek. “I’m fine, Joe. Things’ll work out.”

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