The Mommy Plan

by Susan Gable

  The freckled face lit up. “For me?” She reached for the bag.

  “I don’t see any other special kids around. Sorry about the wrapping job, but I didn’t have much time.”

  The paper rustled as Molly’s hand dipped inside. She pulled out the gift, a firefly Beanie Baby. Her eyes widened, a soft spark glowing in them as she cuddled the toy. “Oh, thank you. I love him.”

  “I thought maybe we needed a wish or two.”

  “I’ll drink to that,” James said, perching on the opposite side of Molly’s bed.

  “I’ve already made a wish,” Molly said. She gently grasped Rachel’s hand, then James’s, and laid them on top of each other on her belly.

  Warmth infused Rachel’s skin where James absentmindedly rubbed with his thumb. “Are you going to tell us about it, Unsinkable?”

  When Molly didn’t whine about her father’s use of the nickname, a quick jolt of panic raced through Rachel.

  “I wished for Miss Rachel to be my new mom ’cause I thought she was fun, Dad, and could do all the mom stuff with me. And she doesn’t have a germ obsession.”

  James made a dismissive noise deep in his throat.

  “Anyway, now I know why it’s really important to have Miss Rachel in our lives.”

  The child fell silent, making the sounds from the machinery seem all the louder. Rachel tried to ignore the murmur of nurses in the hallway, the scents of the disinfectants. “Why is that, honey?”

  Molly squeezed their hands tighter together. “’Cause I don’t want Dad to be alone…if something happens to me.”

  “Oh, Molly—”

  “Don’t talk like that, tiger. You’re going to be fine.”

  “Cherish almost died, Dad.” Molly turned her attention to Rachel. The uncertainty on the little girl’s face twisted something deep in Rachel’s chest. “If I go to heaven, do you think I’ll see Daniel?”

  Rachel swallowed a sob. Untangling her hands from Molly’s and disregarding the tubes and wires, she drew the child into a deep embrace. “I love you, Molly.”

  And she did. Whether they had ten minutes, ten days, ten years, or the rest of Rachel’s life, she knew that giving her heart to this child would be worth everything.

  Positive attitudes.

  “You are not going to die, Molly. You’re unsinkable. I believe in firefly wishes, and all of them are going to come true. I wished for your heart to be healthy, and it will be. This is just a little bump in the road, that’s all. You wished for a new mom. Well, I can’t be a mom without a kid, can I?”

  “Are you sure about this, Rachel?” James asked.

  “Yes, I’m sure.”

  “What was your wish, Daddy?”

  James wrapped his arms around both of them. “I wished for a kiss. So which of you pretty ladies is going to give it to me?”

  His attempt to lighten the mood worked. Their sniffles turned to giggles. Rachel jerked her head in James’s direction; she and Molly each took a cheek and placed loud kisses on his face.

  “Does this mean we get to keep her, Dad?” Molly asked when he finally drew away.

  “Yeah.” James nodded. “If she’ll stay.” His caramel eyes turned to Rachel. In them she could see his love, and his fear. His need. For her. Had she been the one hooked to the monitor, they would have heard the faster beats as her heart swelled with love. She smiled at him and nodded.

  Molly sighed and sank back into the pillow. “Good.”

  James leaned closer to his daughter, accidentally hitting the TV’s volume control. On the screen, Hannibal from reruns of the A-Team pronounced, “I love it when a plan comes together.”

  Molly giggled. “So do I.”

  NO WHEELIES IN THAT THING. James shook an admonishing finger at them as he leaned on the nurses’ station desk.

  “Aww, Dad.” Molly crossed her arms and slumped lower in the wheelchair.

  Rachel flashed him her most angelic grin and tightened her grip on the handles, careful to avoid the ribbons from the balloons fastened there. “Who, me? Would I do a thing like that?”

  James’s answering smile said he certainly believed so. Then he turned back to the final paperwork for Molly’s release. Hard to believe that only three days earlier Rachel had raced to the hospital, fearing the worst, and now, on Saturday afternoon, they were taking Molly home. Her cardiologist was satisfied that the rejection was under control. Though she’d have to visit him more frequently over the next few weeks and months, and be subjected to more tests, things were looking good.

  For which Rachel was extremely grateful. James picked up Molly’s small pink suitcase and came over to them. “Okay, you two, let’s go.”

  Once inside the elevator, he slipped his arm around Rachel’s waist and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “How are you doing?” he asked softly.

  “Good. And I mean that.” She winked at him.

  “In case I haven’t told you recently, you are an amazing woman, Rachel Thompson,” he murmured into her ear. “And I love you.”

  A pleasant warmth rushed through her. She’d never tire of hearing him say that. “I love you, too.”

  “And me?” Molly piped up.

  Rachel chuckled. “Yes, Molly, and you. I wouldn’t want one without the other.”

  “Cool. You know, Dad and I have a—” “Molly, shh,” James warned. “Not now.”

  Rachel looked from child to father. Molly wiggled in the wheelchair and grinned at her. James’s eyes twinkled.

  “What are you guys up to?”

  “Nothing,” James said.

  Molly giggled. “Nothing.”

  “Why don’t I believe that?”

  Several hours later, her suspicions were aroused again. At eight o’clock James appeared in the living room archway. “I have to go out for a little bit,” he said to Rachel, who was once again snuggled up with Molly on the couch. “Can you hold down the fort for me?”

  “Sure. Is it a patient?”

  He just smiled. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  “Bye, Dad. See you later,” Molly called as he turned to leave.

  Rachel narrowed her eyes at the little girl. “Are you going to tell me now what’s going on?”

  “Nope.”

  Rachel wiggled her fingers along Molly’s ribs, causing her to burst into laughter. “I’ll tickle you if you don’t tell me.”

  “No! I’m not telling!”

  “Okay. I suppose I’ll just have to wait and see.”

  “Yep. You will.”

  Three-quarters of an hour later, the front door opened. “Rachel? Molly? Can you come out here, please?”

  Molly slipped from the sofa, tugging on Rachel’s hand. “Come on.”

  James stood on the front porch, framed in the doorway. “Out here.”

  “Okay.”

  “Sit down, Rachel.” James guided her to the top step. Molly sat alongside her, and he sat on the step beneath her. “You ready, tiger?” Molly nodded, and he handed her something.

  “Rachel, Molly and I have something we want to say. Go ahead, honey.”

  Molly held up a small clear cup with plastic wrap on it. Inside, tiny flickering lights indicated fireflies. She unwrapped the container. “Miss Rachel, we wish you would marry us.”

  Rachel accepted the cup from the child and looked at James.

  He nodded. “Look inside.”

  She lifted it higher and peered through the side as the fireflies crawled to the rim. On the bottom, something sparkled. Something gold. “Oh, James…”

  The little insects flew off. “Hey, they’re flashing,” Molly said.

  “They sure are.” James looked back at Rachel. “Can we take that as a yes?”

  She fished the diamond ring from the cup. “Absolutely. I would love to marry you. Both of you.”

  “Woo-hoo!” Molly launched herself off the step and flung her arms around Rachel’s neck. “That means I can call you mom now, right?”

  Rachel cleared her throat, struggl
ed to find her voice. “If it’s okay with your dad, sweetie.”

  “It’s definitely okay with me.” James took the ring from her tightly clenched palm and slipped it onto her finger. Then he eased onto the top step and sat behind her, taking both her and Molly into his arms. “I hope you liked it,” he said. “I worked darn hard for this wish.”

  Rachel held her hand up, admired the round diamond in the glow from the porch light. “It’s beautiful.”

  His laughter rumbled against her back, sending waves of pleasure through her. “I’m glad, but I wasn’t talking about the ring. That was easy. I was talking about finding fireflies in the middle of September.”

  “Hey. How did you?”

  Molly wiggled backward in her embrace. “Uncle Cord has a friend who’s an enta…enta…a bug guy. Dad and I wanted this to be perfect.”

  Rachel smiled at both of them. Though a part of her would always miss Daniel, James and Molly had soothed the ache in her heart.

  Apparently firefly wishes really did come true.

  ISBN: 978-1-4592-2189-5

  THE MOMMY PLAN

  Copyright © 2003 by Susan Guadagno.

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  All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.

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