Cathy frowned when she read the auto-response in her e-mail inbox. Apparently Michael was so completely out of pocket that he was not responding personally to his emails. She chewed nervously on her bottom lip. Now she would have to wait until his return before she could terminate their association. She disliked having to do the disagreeable task all over again. She groaned aloud. “Damn it!” She just wanted to have it over and done with!
Cathy thought about using the phone that he had given her, which she had never done before. He had said that he had programmed his office number and his home number into it. Leaving a message at his office was definitely out of the question. Anyone could hear it. It wouldn’t do any good to leave a message at the house, of course, because he wasn’t there. She also had his direct cell number programmed into her phone. She could simply call him, but she hesitated. He had said that he was meeting with an important new client. Cathy did not want to unintentionally interrupt or even jeopardize the smooth transaction of Michael’s business deal.
She sighed in frustration. All right, she would just have to deal with it. She would make an effort to put it out of her mind for now and make it a point to talk to Michael once he returned. She just hoped that her courage wouldn’t fail her.
Cathy shut down her computer, locked her apartment, and hurried out to her car. She shouldn’t even have turned on the computer. She was already running a few minutes behind in going to see her daughter.
She was taking the beautifully dressed teddy bear along with her on today’s visit. She smiled, anticipating how Chloe’s eyes would light up at seeing the soft plush toy. She sat the teddy bear on the passenger seat of her car. In her purse, she also had a cheap pair of pink plastic hoop earrings for Chloe.
Cathy turned the key in the ignition. There was a grinding noise and the slow spluttering rev of an engine that didn’t want to crank. The electrical warning light flickered. “No, oh no, not today,” she groaned.
She turned the key again, and this time the engine caught without a beat. Cathy breathed a sigh of relief and threw the car in reverse. “Just keep going, car, okay? I need you to keep going.”
Chapter Eight
After the fright with her car, the trip across town seemed abnormally long. It didn’t help that she had gotten off work later than usual, and the traffic was bad. But at last Cathy turned into the hospital parking lot. She grabbed her purse and the teddy bear. As she hurried inside, the familiar odor of stale ammonia assailed her nostrils. She pressed the elevator button more than once, made impatient by the slowness of the elevator. At last, she reached Chloe’s floor. She hurried down the hall, calling out a quick greeting to the nurses at the station as she passed by on her way to her daughter’s room.
Holding the teddy bear behind her back, Cathy pushed open the door and stepped inside the hospital room. She saw that Chloe was awake, watching television. “Hey, Chloe! I’m here.”
Chloe turned her head, a grin lighting up her small pale face. “Mommy! I was worried. I thought you weren’t going to come.”
“I’m sorry, baby. I’m just late.” Cathy swiftly crossed the room and bent over the bed to give a one-armed hug to her daughter. She kissed Chloe’s forehead under the brim of her hat. That evening, Chloe was wearing a deep-red crushed-velvet cloche that framed her piquant face and highlighted her brown eyes. Cathy thoroughly approved. Whoever had sent the cloche had been exceptionally perceptive. Unless someone was already aware of it, there was no way of telling that the small head under the cloche was bald. “I think that is your prettiest hat yet.”
“Thank you,” said Chloe in a grown-up manner. Her solemnity dropped away as she tried to look around her mother’s body. “What are you holding, Mommy?”
“I’ve brought you something. I think your hat is a good match for her.” Cathy brought the teddy bear out from behind her and held it out.
Chloe’s eyes rounded. She reached out for the stuffed bear almost reverently. “She’s be-u-ti-ful,” she breathed, smoothing down the red velvet and white lace with careful hands.
“I’m so glad you like her. Do you want to name her?”