Breaking Love Full Hearts 2 (24 page)

San Francisco

Two hours later, Megan found herself walking into a suite at the Mandarin Oriental. Luc carried her bag in, setting it down in the bedroom. He took her hand and led her over to the closet. “Now for the surprise!”

When he opened the door, Megan gasped. The most beautiful gown hung in the centre of the closet. It was strapless and had a sweetheart neckline, a black, beaded bodice and a metallic-tweed mermaid skirt in gold. Black strappy heels sat waiting on the floor. Megan stood for a long moment with her mouth hanging open before she allowed herself to touch the dress with one finger.

She turned to Luc. “This must have cost a fortune,” she whispered.

He shrugged. “I wanted to see you in this, but only if you love it.”

“I love it.” Megan answered, her voice quiet. “I really, really love it.”

“I’m glad. I can’t take all the credit. I had a lot of help from Harper. Now, we have only a short time before we need to leave for the ballet, so if you like, I’ll give you your privacy and go get ready in the bathroom.”

With that, Luc gave her a lingering kiss on the neck and turned to leave the room. Megan grabbed his arm and stopped him. “Wait.”

Luc turned back to her and she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him hard on the mouth. “Thank you,” she whispered after she had pulled back a little. She stared into his dark eyes, smiling at him.

“You’re welcome. If anyone deserves to be treasured, it is you.”

“I don’t know if
anyone
deserves to be spoiled like this, Luc. This is incredible.” Her eyes were shining as she looked at him.

“So are you.” He gave her a long kiss on the lips. “Mmm, I’m going to leave now, before we end up in bed and miss the ballet.”

Megan slapped him on the ass as he walked out of the room. “Well, you better get going, then.”

“I’m going! I’m going!” Luc waved his arms in surrender. “But hold that thought for later.”

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Megan heard a gentle knock on the door just as she finished buckling her heels.

“Come in,” she called.

Luc opened the door in time to see her stand up. His eyes moved over her as he leaned against the door frame. He let out a big, happy sigh. “You are a goddess.”

Megan’s heart fluttered at the way he pronounced
goddess
, with the emphasis on the last syllable. He was impossibly handsome in his tuxedo as he stared at her. The look on his face said that he was trying to memorize how she looked at that very moment. His hair was slightly damp and a bit messy, as usual. Megan gave a spin to give him the full effect of the dress. The skirt twirled with her as she moved.

“I have one more thing for you, to keep you warm,” he said, holding up a faux-fur stole. “It’s not real. I didn’t know how you would feel about that.”

Megan walked to him and held her hand out to feel the stole. “This is perfect. It’s so soft.”

Luc held it up for her. “Allow me,” he said.

Megan turned her back to him and he placed it over her shoulders. She turned around. “Seeing you in that tux just makes me want to start undressing you.”

“Good, that was the idea.”

* * *

A little while later, the couple found themselves settling into box seats in the grand tier at the War Memorial Opera House. The lights flickered, indicating the start of the performance. Luc picked up Megan’s hand and brought it over to rest on his leg, lacing his fingers through hers. Megan smiled over at him as the lights dimmed and leaned in to whisper in his ear, “I love that you planned all of this.”

“I love that you are here with me.”

This was as close as either of them could come to using the word
love
. Luc held Megan’s hand through the entire first act of the ballet. An intense passion flowed between them as they sat, Megan utterly entranced by the graceful and vibrant performance. The music was both romantic and dramatic as the dancers leaped and spun and thrilled their audience. Everything about this moment was overwhelmingly sensuous. Luc couldn’t help but think about getting Megan back to the hotel and unzipping her dress. Even just the feeling of her hand in his was completely arousing for him. Every so often, he glanced over at her and each time, he was struck by how beautiful she was. Her hair was done up, revealing her long neck, and her dress showed off her willowy arms and the feminine curve of her shoulder. He couldn’t help leaning over and letting his lips graze her skin, drinking in the smell of her. When the curtain came down and the lights went up to signal the end of the first act, Megan and Luc stood and made their way with the crowd to the lobby.

“I should run to the ladies room,” Megan said.

“I’ll get us some champagne. Meet me back here in a few minutes?”

“Sounds great,” Megan replied, following the surge of women heading to the restrooms. As she waited in line, she could feel her phone buzzing in her clutch. She picked it up, only to see that someone was calling from her house.

“Hello?”

“Mom! Mom, something’s wrong with Grandma!” Elliott sobbed into the phone. He was crying so hard Megan could barely make out what he was saying. Her heart pounded as she tried to take in what he had just said.

Megan plugged her other ear with one finger and started walking to the door in hope of finding a quieter location. “Slow down, baby. Take a deep breath and then tell me what’s going on.”

“Grandma fell. She can’t walk; she said she’s really dizzy. Now she’s started throwing up. I don’t know what to do! Come home, Mom! Come home, because I’m really scared.”

“Okay Elliott, listen to me.” Megan fought the tears of panic starting to fill her eyes and focused her attention on keeping her voice steady. “Listen carefully, Elliott. You
did
know what to do. You called me. I want you to run over to Mr. Peterson’s next door and get him, alright?”

“He’s not home! Grandma said he’s away right now!” Elliott yelled into the phone. “She just puked again, Mom! Her face looks all green.”

“Okay, it’s okay. You stay on the line and I’m going to find another phone to call an ambulance. We’ll get help right away.”

Luc walked up, holding two champagne flutes. His smile faded when he saw the look on Megan’s face. Megan let out a breath of relief when she saw him.

“I need your cell right now. Call 911!” she whispered.

Luc quickly put down the drinks and dialed, then handed her the phone. He watched as she spoke calmly into the phone and explained the situation to the 911 operator. It took him a few minutes to patch her through to the emergency dispatch in Boulder. Megan spoke reassuringly to her little boy as she waited. Luc was overcome by how strong she was in this moment, handling the situation as though it were a regular event.

“Okay Elliott, the ambulance is on the way. You need to unlock the front door and let them in when they get there. The 911 operator is going to call you on the home phone, so you’ll need to hang up with me, okay? I’m going to start calling your friends’ parents and get someone to be with you. You call my cell back again after the ambulance gets there and the 911 lady says you can hang up with her, okay?” Megan paused for a moment, then said, “I’m going to hang up now. I love you. And tell Grandma I love her too, okay, baby?” Pause. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Megan hung up both phones and started searching her contacts for help. Luc took back his cellphone. “I’ll get our coats and be right back.”

As he walked, he called Simone, who was at home in bed. “Simone, I’m sorry to wake you. This is an emergency. I need you to get a flight immediately from San Francisco to Boulder. Start with the charter service but just get us on any flight that will get us back there now. We’ll be at the airport in about forty-five minutes.”

“What? Where are you going?” Simone sat up in bed, turning on her light. She tried to process what her boss was saying.

He repeated himself in a firm voice. “Now, Simone. I need this right now. It is urgent that we get there as fast as possible.”

“I’ll call you as soon as I’ve found a flight.”

“Thank you.” Luc hung up and crossed the lobby to find Megan speaking into her cellphone, her voice breaking. He wrapped the stole around her shoulders and started walking toward the door, pressing his fingers to the small of her back to guide her along.

“Okay, thank you, Rebecca. Thank you so much. I just can’t believe this is happening.” Megan hung up a moment later as they stepped into a cab. Tears were now streaming down her cheeks as she stared at the phone in her hand, waiting for Elliott to call back. Her hands were shaking and she felt cold and scared.

“I shouldn’t have left them. I should be there right now to handle this. This isn’t something a six-year-old should have to deal with.”

Luc wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close to him, kissing the side of her head. “This is not your fault. You had no way of knowing this would happen.”

“But my job is to protect him! And I’m here with you when they both need me there!”

“I will get you home. Simone is getting us a plane right now. I’m so sorry this is happening, Megan.”

Megan nodded, unable to speak for a moment. “It sounds like maybe a stroke or something . . . I don’t know.”

* * *

Two hours later, they finally boarded a jet. The tired-looking crew greeted them wearily, trying to be pleasant as they waited for permission to take off. Outside, the sky was completely black. Megan shivered, feeling cold but sweaty at the same time. Luc asked the flight attendant for a blanket and some wine for Megan to warm her and calm her nerves.

Megan got a call from Rebecca, who had picked up Elliott at the hospital and now had him tucked into bed in Jase’s room for the night.

When Megan got off the phone, she looked up at Luc. “Well, at least Elliott’s okay. My friend who has him said they’re going out of town for the day tomorrow to visit relatives, so I’ll have to pick him up by 8 a.m. She said he could go with them, but I don’t want him away in case something happens. . . .” Her voice broke as she trailed off.

“I’m going to stay and help you any way I can. I know it wasn’t in our plan, but I could never leave you right now, even if you wanted me to.” Luc wrapped an arm around Megan and pulled her to him. Megan, burying her face into his chest, allowed a sob to escape.

“I don’t know what I’ll do without my mom, Luc,” she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Try not to think like that. Maybe it isn’t serious. From what you’ve told me, she’s a young, healthy woman. There’s every reason to believe that she’ll be alright.”

Megan lifted her head to face Luc. “I thought my dad was healthy and strong too. He was fine and then he just died with no warning. One day he was there and then he was just gone.”

The plane was finally starting to move and the crew dimmed the lights in the cabin. The flight home would hold none of the excitement and romance of the trip earlier in the day. Megan’s mind flashed to how quickly things had changed.

“Try to rest, Megan. You’ll need it,” Luc said, tucking the blanket around her shoulders and wrapping his arm around her again. He rubbed her arm absent-mindedly with his hand while trying to think of the best way to make himself useful. He had already arranged for a car to meet them on the tarmac, but for now, all he could do was to be there for her.

Boulder

Megan managed to find her strength again by the time they touched down. She stood, straightening her dress, as Luc placed the stole over her shoulders. She stepped out into the cold night to face what was coming. Turning to Luc, she gave him a determined nod. “I’ll be okay, Luc. Thank you for being here with me.”

“There is nowhere else I want to be right now. Let’s go.”

They climbed into the back of the waiting limo and Luc told the driver to take them to the hospital. The ride seemed to take an eternity for Megan as she sat silently watching the city lights go by. She might be on her way to find out that her mom was gone or would be left with lasting damage from whatever had taken hold of her earlier this evening.

Please be okay, Mom. Please. I need you
, she begged in her mind, over and over.

When they arrived at the hospital’s emergency entrance, Megan got out so quickly the driver hadn’t even had a chance to unbuckle his seat belt. She rushed through the sliding doors and to the front desk, feeling ridiculous in her evening gown. Luc hurried to catch up with her.

“My mom was brought in earlier by ambulance—Helen Foster.”

The nurse looked up from her paperwork. “Oh yes. She’s here. I’ll check if you can go see her.”

“Thank you,” Megan said, trying to give her an appreciative smile.

The nurse walked to the back for a few minutes and then returned. “They took her upstairs for a CT scan. They’re trying to rule out a stroke right now. She was talking when she came in, but she’s extremely dizzy and her balance isn’t good enough to walk.”

Megan nodded, biting down on her lip to stop herself from crying.

“If you could take a seat in the waiting area, we’ll come get you as soon as we know anything.”

Luc held her hand as they made their way over to the chairs. They sat down next to each other in the otherwise empty waiting room.

“Can I get you anything? Some tea or water?” he asked softly.

Megan shook her head. “No, thank you.”

“You tell me if you need anything. Okay?”

“I will.” Megan picked up his hand and placed it on her lap, holding it between both of her hands as they sat. She was grateful that she had his strong shoulder to rest her head on right now. He would see her through this—whatever was about to come and however their relationship would end. For now, she didn’t have to face this moment alone and that was more than she would have expected.

An hour later, a doctor came into the waiting room and walked over to Megan. She was young and, based on the dark circles around her eyes, tired. But she gave Megan a warm smile.

“Are you Helen Foster’s daughter?”

Megan nodded and stood up. Luc stood with her.

“I’m Dr. Sheppard. You can call me Bonnie. I’ve been looking after your mom. First, I want you to know she’s going to be alright. We’ve been able to rule out stroke and heart attack, which were our primary concerns. I’m running a few more tests, but it looks like she has something called peripheral vertigo. It’s a temporary condition of the inner ear that strikes fast and can knock someone on their butt for a few weeks. I’ve seen some huge men get taken down hard by this, but the good thing is that it will go away on its own.”