Page 33 of Pregnant by the Texan
“I’ll opt for the get-up-early choice,” he drawled, toying with locks of her hair. “The more time with you, the better life is.”
“I hope you mean that,” she said, suddenly serious.
He shifted to hold her closer. “I mean it or I wouldn’t have said it.” He kissed her and their conversation ended.
Monday, after breakfast with Aaron, she got back on track with appointments and meetings. Later that afternoon, she had another brief meeting with Paige at the Cozy Inn café.
“Paige, we need to have a meeting with everyone who wants to be on this committee. I’ve talked to Megan Maguire, Gloria Holt, Keaton’s mom, Lark Taylor, Edith Simms—they all volunteered to help us. I told Lark that Keaton’s mom had volunteered and Lark said she still wanted to be a volunteer. I think it will all be harmonious.”
“Great. I have Beth, Amanda Battle and Julie Kingston. This is such a good idea, Stella. It would have been dreadful if we’d ignored these people at this time of year.”
“Someone would have thought of it if we hadn’t. But it’s especially nice to do this in conjunction with the TCC Christmas festival. Also, I intend to raise some money beyond what we’ll need for getting presents. It’ll be wonderful to have people bring presents for those who lost so much, but I also want them to get cash to spend as they want to. Everyone wants to give their children something they’ve selected. Donated presents are wonderful, but giving these families a chance to buy and wrap their own gifts is important, too.”
“Another good idea, Stella. You’re filled with them.”
“’Tis the season. I’ll be in Dallas tomorrow and gone for the rest of the week. Aaron has made appointments for me to meet people he thinks will be willing and able to help Royal.”
“That’s good. I’ll take care of the Christmas drive while you’re gone. You see if you can get some more donations.”
“Thanks for all your help,” Stella said, giving Paige’s hand a squeeze, always sorry for Paige’s losses.
After they parted, Stella went to the hospital. Mayor Vance was improving and now he could have visitors. She knocked lightly on the door and his wife called to come in.
The mayor was propped up in bed. His legs were in casts and he was connected to machines with tubes on both sides of the bed.
“He’s sitting up now and he’s on the mend,” his wife said.
“Mayor Vance, I am so happy to see you,” Stella said, walking closer. He had always been thin, but now he was far thinner and pale, his dark brown hair a bigger contrast with his pale complexion. His brown eyes were lively and she was glad he was improving.
“Stella, it’s good of you to come by. I’ve heard you’ve been a regular and I’ve heard so many good things about you. I could always count on you at the office.”
“Thank you. The whole town has pulled together. Support for Royal has poured in—it amazes me and the donations to the Royal storm recovery fund grow steadily.”
“That’s so good to hear. It doesn’t seem possible the tornado happened more than two months ago. It’s almost mid-December and here I am still in the hospital.”
“At least you’re getting better,” she said, smiling at him and his wife.
“I’ve talked with members of the town council. We need an acting mayor and I hope you’ll be willing to do it.”
“Mayor Vance, thank you for the vote of confidence, but I think there are more qualified people. I’m sure the town council has others in mind.”
“I’ve heard all the things you’ve been doing and what you did the first twenty-four hours after the storm hit. You’re the one, Stella. I’m pushing for you so don’t let me down. From the sound of it, you’re already doing the job.”
“Well, I’ll think about it,” she said politely, wanting to avoid arguing with him in her first visit with him since the storm. “We’ve had so much help from other places that it’s really wonderful.”
She sat and visited a few more minutes and then left. His wife followed her into the hall.
“Stella, thanks again for coming. You’ve been good to check on him through all this.”
“I’m glad to see he’s getting better steadily.”
“We’re grateful. Come again. Think about what he said about filling in for him. He can’t go back for a long time.”
“I will,” Stella said, maintaining a pleasant expression as she left and promptly dismissing the conversation.
* * *
Tuesday morning she flew to Dallas with Aaron. He picked up his car at an agency near the airport and they headed to his house in a gated suburb north of the city.
