Rescued by the Billionaire (Billionaire Romance Novel) (7 page)

“Brian, this is Kelly. I won’t make it in today.”
 

“Again? What is it now?” he protested in a hostile voice.
 

“Emma’s still sick, but she’s gotten worse. I can’t even get her out of bed.”
 

“This is getting ridiculous. You can’t just take off once a week. I gave you a break last time when you needed off, but I’m giving you a point today.”
 

“Well, then I guess that’s what you’ll have to do. Brian, my baby is sick and she needs me. She’s too weak to get dressed or to take her to the
sitter’s house. I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow afternoon so I won’t be in then either.”
 

“Really?” he hissed.
 

“No, I’m not. Emma is my priority. With the condition she’s in, I’m going to stay with her.” Kelly stated, not caring whether her boss liked it or not.
 

“That’s two points.” He warned before hanging up on her.
 

Frustrated, she called her best friend. She was beside herself as she reflected how hateful and mean Brian was treating her. Venting would do her some good. After she had told Dawn what happened, her friend agreed with her—he was being a jerk and didn’t show any compassion. It
made her feel better that at least someone shared her opinions.
 

By the time Friday rolled around, her daughter had shown no change. Her back still hurt and her fever was still present. Her knees, ankles, toes and fingers were all swollen. The ibuprofen only seemed to keep her temperature at bay for a few short hours before it reared its ugly head again. When they finally got to her appointment, she explained all of her daughter’s symptoms and her behavior to the pediatrician.
 

“It’s just so out of the blue for her to act this way. She’s normally your typical rambunctious eight-year-old girl who loves to run and play.” Kelly pleaded with the doctor to figure out what was wrong with her little girl.
 

“It’s possible we could do an x-ray, though it won’t help much since whatever she has is affecting various parts of her body. I’d suggest we do some blood testing and analyze the results. It’s hard to say what she might have without having some numbers to determine what we’re dealing with.”
 

She agreed that it was probably the best route to go. “When will those be available?” she asked as she held Emma closer.
 

“We should have them back within a few days, but a couple of them might take about seven days or so.”
 

Kelly sighed; it didn’t sound very promising to her. She wanted immediate answers—she didn’t want to wait a week. She wanted her back to her old self. “There’s no way we can rush the tests?”
she begged, hopeful that the doctor might be able to pull some strings.
 

“I’m afraid not. That’s just how long some of the labs take.” He looked over Emma’s chart, “Is there any family history of others having these symptoms?” he inquired.
 

“No. No one in my family has ever had any kind of disease except diabetes, and that was on my mom’s side.” Kelly answered him.
 

“What about on her dad’s side?” he continued probing.
 

“I couldn’t tell you, but I don’t recall him ever speaking of any.”
 

“Is there any way you could find out? Perhaps call him and ask him?” the doctor suggested.
 

“Maybe I’ll try to write to him. The last I heard, he was in prison, and I couldn’t begin to imagine which one. We’ve not had any contact for a long time and I don’t have anything to do with his family either.”
 

“I understand. We’ll get her blood drawn and request the labs right away. In the meantime, continue to give her ibuprofen for her fever, and it should also help alleviate some of the pain she’s suffering from. I’ll keep you posted,” he promised as he walked them to the door.
 

In the parking lot, Kelly broke down after she got her daughter buckled into her booster seat. She tried to hide it from her, but the loud sobs escaped her mouth before she could stop them. Fear and panic took over and won.
 

“Momma, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Emma worried as she looked at her mom from the rear view mirror.
 

Kelly turned the mirror, looking at her as she sat in the backseat. “I’m just upset about you baby. Mommy loves you so much.” She wiped the tears from her face.
 

“I’m sorry for worrying you, momma. I’ll get better. I promise.” Emma vowed.
 

Kelly hated that she witnessed her breakdown. She was worried that it might scare her child, but it seemed to have the opposite effect. The ride home was quiet as she was unable bring herself to talk. She knew that if she opened her mouth, she’d start crying again, and she didn’t want to risk having an accident as she drove. That was how
she’d lost her mom, and she wasn’t going to do that to her daughter too.
 

They lied in bed together that night. After her sweet angel was asleep, Kelly prayed to her parents to help her baby girl get over whatever she had. It was all that she could do, hoping they were watching over them.
 

“Mom and Dad, if you can hear me, please help Emma. I have no clue what’s wrong with her and the doctor’s trying to figure it out. Watch over her and keep her healthy and strong for me. I love you and miss you.” She whispered as tears fell from the corners of her eyes.
 

The next morning, Kelly awoke with swollen eyelids and a pounding headache. Still, she was in better condition than Emma. Her poor little girl tried to hide the fact that she was crying in pain as
she hugged herself. The fever had returned with a vengeance.
 

“Sweet Pea, mommy’s going to go get your medicine. Do you want anything to eat?”
 

The slumped over eight-year-old shook her head no. All she wanted to do was lie there and cuddle up with her mom. Kelly called in to work for the third day in a row. At this point, money was the furthest thing her mind, and she didn’t care about her job. Emma’s health was more important at the moment. She hoped that her parents had listened to her prayers and would answer them. Dawn phoned her later that morning to check on her.
 

“How come you’re not here yet?” Her friend questioned.
 

“Emma’s so bad right now; I can’t leave her.”
 

“Did you call in again?”
 

“Yeah, and that bastard told me it’d be another point,” Kelly whispered.
 

“Can’t you do something? Like file for FMLA or something? Or take vacation, maybe?” Dawn prompted, trying to help find a solution to Kelly’s problems.
 

“No, nobody at my work can. They don’t have more than 50 employees within a 75-mile radius so they’re not required to offer it to us and we’re not offered vacation.”
 

“That stinks! Your boss wouldn’t fire you, would he?” she sympathized.
 

“Who knows? There is a rule stating we’re only allowed to have 10 points before we’re terminated.”
 

“And how many do you have right now?”
 

“Three, including today.”
 

“When did you accumulate the others?” To Dawn’s knowledge, she almost never took a day off.
 

“He’s given me a point each day for the last three days.”
 

“You should ask him if he’ll reconsider and roll it all into one since you were consecutively off. It’s all about the same absence. A lot of employers will do that; it’s worth a shot asking him.”
 

“Yeah, I’ll have to do that when I return to work. He’s pretty pissed off at me now, so I doubt this would be the most opportune time to try to sway things in my favor.”
 

“You’re probably right. I’ll let you go so you can get back to her. If you need anything, just give me a call. Love you guys.”
 

“We love you too, and thanks.” Her best friend was so kind to them.
 

Kelly continued to stay next to Emma’s side for the rest of the afternoon, watching cartoons and repeatedly checking on her. She fed her a diet of soup, Sprite, and ibuprofen. She continuously prayed to her parents, asking them to heal her daughter, hoping they would. It was unbearable seeing her baby so sick. Her heart physically hurt.
 

Chapter Five
 

Dave wondered if Kelly had as a good of time as she claimed she had. He hadn’t had any communication with her all week and started to take this as a signal that she wasn’t interested. Confused by her behavior on their luncheon and her most recent actions, he decided to consult with his friend Charles. Perhaps, he thought, an outsider can give me some gainful insight as he dialed his buddy.
 

“Do you remember that girl that I told you I was going to take out?” He questioned, trying to jog his memory.
 

“Sure, wasn’t her name Karen or Katie?”
 

“No, it was Kelly. Anyway, I took her out, we had a great time, and she said she’d get a hold of
me, but I have yet to receive a single call or text from her all week. Why do you suppose that is?”
 

“I don’t know. Are you positive that you weren’t supposed to call her?” his friend suggested.
 

“No, I remember that I specifically asked her if she was going to call me. She had laughed before she answered ‘maybe’, and then she got out of the car and we parted ways.”
 

“It’s possible that her answer was really a no, and she was being polite. Did that ever cross your mind?” Charles joked.
 

“I hope not. She’s great, and you’d like her too if you had the opportunity to meet her. She’s awesome.” He bragged.
 

“With all the money that you have, are you sure you didn’t offend her in some way? Usually, the ladies are lined up to score a date with you.”
 

“No, we made small talk, and she spoke a lot about her daughter, we talked about our jobs and that was about it.”
 

“Well, there you have it. You must have bored her to death talking about all of your properties and stocks.” Charles teased.
 

“Seriously Charlie, I was hoping she would get a hold of me. Should I call her?”
 

“It couldn’t hurt; maybe she’s been busy. If I were you and as crazy about her as I suspect you are, I definitely would. The worst that could happen is she doesn’t answer or sends you to voice mail.”
 

“Yeah, I’ll try her in a bit. I’d like to take her out again. She told me that she’s off tomorrow and Monday.”
 

“You’re the only
wealthy,
eligible bachelor who would sit at home on a Saturday night debating whether to call a waitress in hopes that she’ll go out with you again. What’s so special about her anyway?” Charles quizzed.
 

“You’d have to meet her. She’s really down-to-Earth, she’s friendly, funny, smart and beautiful. She’s like a diamond in the rough—and how do they say it? It’s better to have a diamond with a flaw than no diamond at all. That gorgeous diamond makes me light up every time she crosses my mind.”
 

“Oh boy, save it for the vows. You’re making me gag,” his friend snickered at him.
 

“Yeah? Well, look at you. You’ll date anything that can walk and has a warm hole. The way your love life’s been going, I’m thinking the warm hole is optional these days,” Dave taunted, busting his friend’s chops as he laughed.
 

“Ha. Ha. You’re so smart, aren’t you? Go call your little girlfriend and set something up. Good luck, man.”
 

Working up his nerve, Dave finally picked up the phone and dialed Kelly’s number. Why was he so nervous? She was just another woman—but she was
the
woman he wanted to be with. “Here it goes, now or never.” He whispered to himself, still convincing himself that he was doing the right thing. The phone rang; she answered before it
went to voicemail. He was relieved to hear her voice; Charlie had scared him with the comment about her rejecting his call when she didn’t answer immediately.
 

“Hey Kelly, I was calling to see how you were doing.” Dave mused, trying to keep it light.
 

“I’ve been sitting here with Emma for the last few days. She’s been really sick.” She explained.
 

“Oh, that's a shame. Does she have a cold or something?”
 

“No, it’s nothing like that. It’s much more complicated than a simple cold.” Kelly explained all of Emma’s symptoms and how her behavior had changed from energetic to lethargic.
 

“That sounds pretty serious,” he stressed. “Have you taken her to the doctor?”
 

Even though he’d not had the opportunity to meet her, he already felt he knew her by how much her mom had talked about her during their lunch date. She was quite the topic of conversation. Oddly, he pictured Emma to look exactly like her mom. In his mind, he could envision a small blonde girl with long hair, fair skin and freckles sprinkled across the bridge of her nose. In reality, he was almost dead on in her description.