They both knew it would be weeks before Beth returned to teaching, possibly even months. Beth was in for a long haul of physical therapy due to the rod in her hip. She’d been up and walking, but it was difficult and painful for her. The doctor had scheduled her for intensive physical therapy until she’d gotten the blood clot in her lung. Now her rehabilitation had come to a standstill.

“Do you still call your mother every day?” Sunshine asked. That was one of the stipulations Ellie had made when Beth chose to leave Chicago.

“I did in the beginning,” Beth admitted. “Now it’s every other day. I’m weaning myself away from her.”

“Good for you.” Sunshine was happy to see her niece make the break. It was long overdue.

Beth looked down and avoided eye contact. “Unfortunately, Mom isn’t taking it so well. If I don’t call her, then she calls me.”

There was more to this, and Sunshine waited for Beth to explain.

“I let her calls go to voicemail.”

A smile crept across her mouth as she struggled to hold back her amusement.

“I explained I can’t be at her beck and call while teaching. I have a life, and really it’s ridiculous. I’m twenty-five years old, not fifteen. Mom asks the most outrageous questions.”

No doubt. Ellie’s real fear was that Beth, given her own choice, would steer away from the life path she had chosen for her daughter. It astonished her how little her sister knew Beth. Again and again Sunshine had been impressed with her niece’s kind heart, her passion, and her insights into the teens she worked with at the high school. Beth was wonderful, and her sister didn’t seem to appreciate or understand her own daughter, nor did she trust her.

“How’s that working for you?”

“Up until now, fairly well. Mom isn’t controlling me, and it’s like her main purpose in life has been taken away from her.”

“It’s time, Sweet Pea.”

“Past time.”

Sunshine more than agreed but didn’t say so. Beth had been smart enough to figure this out on her own.

“Now, about your young man—”

“He isn’t mine,” Beth cut in, her cheeks flushing pink.

Sunshine held back the giggle as best she could. “My dear girl, I know your mother has controlled most of your social activities from the time you were old enough to date. You should know no man spends the night in an uncomfortable chair if he doesn’t have a strong interest in a woman.”

Beth’s shoulders tensed. “If you’re going to make an issue of the fact that he isn’t someone—”

“Hey, hey.” Sunshine did laugh then. “I like Sam. He’s good for you.”

Beth’s eyes smiled, although Sunshine could tell she struggled to hide her feelings for Sam. “I think he’s good for me, too.”

Before Sunshine could comment, Beth continued.

“We’re not dating or anything …”

“Yet.”

Beth did smile then. “Yet,” she agreed. Almost right away the smile faded and her eyes grew dark and serious. “I know Mom will be here soon, and I’m worried.”

“About her meeting Sam?”

Beth nodded. “You and I both know Sam isn’t someone my mother would consider suitable for me. Which in my mind is ridiculous. What about character? What about being a man of his word? Those are qualities I consider important. Okay, I know all about The Dog House from Nichole, but—”

“The Dog House?”

She snapped her mouth closed as if she wanted to yank back the words before she quickly added “Never mind.”

“Beth, you don’t need to defend Sam to me. I’m on your side.”

Her niece’s shoulders visibly relaxed. “Good, because I like Sam … a lot.”

“I know you do, and that’s great.”

Sunshine left the hospital shortly afterward and headed to her studio, eager to get back to her latest project. Often, when she returned from a business trip or a few days away, her head would swim with ideas. She could barely wait to get to the studio and get a paintbrush in her hand. Not so this day. Once in her studio she found she couldn’t paint. This was what Ellie did to her. She’d allowed her sister to steal her joy. So many times over the years, Sunshine had wished for a better relationship with Ellie. It hurt that they couldn’t be sisters, couldn’t be friends.

After an hour of fussing around her work area, Sunshine drove home. Agitated, she cleaned her house and scrubbed the stovetop until she wore a hole through her rubber gloves. Then she set to work in her yard, clearing the flower beds despite the threat of rain. It was necessary to do whatever she could to take her mind off the sadness that made her heart ache for the sister and the friend she might have had in Ellie. This lifelong tug-of-war that had left them divided and wounded. Sunshine couldn’t help wondering if it would ever end.

Chapter 11

Sam

Beth’s doctor said he wanted to keep her an additional three days in the hospital. With this latest scare, Sam decided he didn’t care what Nichole or anyone else thought. He fully intended to keep seeing Beth. She let him know she looked forward to his visits, and the truth was he liked spending time with her. Thursday night, however, was his poker night with the guys. He never missed it. It was a ritual. Him and the guys. All his friends were married and they faithfully attended unless it was a family emergency. Usually Sam was the first to arrive and the last to leave.

This Thursday was different. As always, Sam joined his friends, but his mind wasn’t on the game. It was on Beth, wondering how she was doing, if breathing had gotten easier for her, if she was regaining her strength. Worries for her circled his mind. He missed her and his concentration wasn’t on the game. He lost his money early, and much to everyone’s surprise made an excuse to leave.

“Already?” Alex asked, not bothering to hide his surprise.

“What’s the rush?” Charley wanted to know. Charley was a high school friend of Rocco’s and had become a friend to Sam, too.

Even Rocco looked surprised. “It’s not even nine-thirty.”

Rather than explain, Sam grabbed his jacket and headed for the door. He knew even as he pulled away from Charley’s house that he was heading to the hospital. By the time he arrived it was after ten.

Sure enough, Beth was awake. The minute he walked into her room, her smile nearly blinded him. It was as if she reached out and grabbed hold of his heart. Try as he might, he couldn’t explain his reaction. No woman had ever affected him this way.

“I had a feeling you were going to show,” she said and stretched out her arm to him.

Gripping her hand, Sam kissed her knuckles and felt mildly guilty. “You should be resting.”

“I couldn’t sleep. I just had this feeling you were coming.”

“Yeah, I did, too,” he admitted. Beth got to him in ways that should make him run for the hills, yet he remained rooted to the ground, unable to stay away. He wasn’t sure where this relationship was going. Hadn’t taken time to consider the future, and knew he probably should. He didn’t want to think about anything but the present. He was living one day at a time with Beth, and while he fully expected this to blow up in his face sometime in the future, he didn’t care. He’d deal with it when the time came.

“Did you have a good day?” he asked, and noticed she no longer needed the oxygen tube to aid with her breathing. That was an improvement.

“I’m anxious to get out of here. People die in here.”

Sam snickered at her joke.

“What about you?” she asked. “How was your day?”

They’d texted back and forth a few times and talked over his lunch break. “Best parts were talking to you.”

She smiled again, her eyes bright and warm. “For me, too.”

“Are you being transferred tomorrow?”

“That’s the word.”

He saw the fine lines etched between her eyes in a soft frown. “You worried about something?” he asked, and realized he was getting to know her well enough that he could tell when something troubled her.