did he feel as if he’d let her down?
After he’d returned home, he’d caught another couple of hours of sleep before the rest of the household had gotten up. Once they’d eaten breakfast, Mitch had left to return home and he’d decided to celebrate the mild weather by taking Josh down to Central Park. They’d both used their wheelchairs, much to Josh’s amusement.
As much as he tried to spend quality father-and-son time with Josh, he’d often become distracted by thoughts of Molly. He couldn’t remember the last time a woman had dominated his thoughts.
Suzy didn’t count as she’d once dominated his thoughts in a bad way. Molly’s fresh laughter was the complete antithesis of Suzy’s bitterness.
Yet he was forced to admit that maybe some of his ex’s bitterness had been justified. He had worked a lot of hours. He could have spent more time with her. At the time he’d thought maybe he simply wasn’t capable of love.
But being with Molly and Josh proved that theory to be false. He loved Josh. And he cared deeply for Molly. He knew she cared, at least a little, about him, too.
Maybe he wasn’t so unlovable after all.
Once they’d returned home from Central Park, he spent some time working on Josh’s surprise birthday party, and he called Molly again.
This time she answered. “Hello?”
“Finally we get to talk,” he said. “I’ve been getting your machine most of the day.”
“Really? Why didn’t you leave a message?”
“Because I wanted to talk to you.” And now that he was talking to her, his nerves settled down. He took the phone into the other room, out of Josh’s hearing. “How are you? What have you been up to?”
“Had brunch with my parents, ran a few errands. The usual.”
Was it his imagination or did she seem to be a tiny bit standoffish? Was she upset with him? “I wish I could have stayed with you this morning,” he murmured. “I wish you were here right now.”
There was a moment of silence before she spoke again. “I’ve been thinking of you, too.”
The admission made him feel better. “I’d like to see you again. Soon.”
“You and Josh are coming to therapy in the morning, aren’t you?” she asked in a teasing tone.
“Yes. But what I meant is that I want to see you alone. Maybe we can do dinner one night this week?”
Another small silence and he wished she were here in front of him so he could read her facial expressions. He didn’t like having to second-guess her thoughts. “I don’t know if that will work. I generally try not to stay up too late on work nights.”
Was she really worried about getting up for work in the morning? Or was she trying to put distance between them? “How about Friday night, then? Josh’s party is on Saturday and it would be easier if you just stayed here overnight. You can sleep in the spare bedroom, if you’re worried about Josh being here.”
“Hmm, let me think about that,” she said evasively. “Speaking of Josh’s birthday, how is the party planning coming along?”
“Great.” He injected enthusiasm into his voice when really just the thought of being in charge of all those kids was as daunting as hell. “Most of the kids in his class have responded that they’re coming, which makes me feel better.”
“Oh, Dan, that’s great news.” Molly’s excitement was contagious. “Josh is going to have a wonderful time, you’ll see.”
“And he’ll owe it all to you for coming up with the idea.” He gripped the phone tighter and wished once again she was there with him. Especially when she laughed softly.
“No, you need to take the credit for having this party, not me. After all, you’re doing all the work.” There was a brief silence, and then she added, “I have to get going. See you tomorrow, Dan.”
“All right. See you tomorrow, Molly.” He disconnected the call, wondering how he was going to manage to wait until Friday night to be alone with her again.
Molly did her best to keep things on a professional level when she saw Josh and Dan the following morning. She was already too close to falling for him, and didn’t want to make the same mistakes she’d made in the past. But it wasn’t easy when Dan stood close, his arm lightly brushing hers.
She eased away, concentrating on Josh. “Wow, you’re doing very well, Josh. Look at how high you can kick your feet!”
Josh beamed. “We’ve been practicing, right, Dad?”
“Right,” Dan agreed.
She was glad, very glad that the two of them were so comfortable around each other now. A far cry from their first day of therapy, that’s for sure. She went through her list of warm-up games, and then decided it was time to move onto the next step.
“Okay, now we’re going to try to stand again,” she said, gesturing for Josh to follow her in his wheelchair over to the small platform nestled between parallel bars. “Are you ready, Freddie?”
Josh giggled, as she’d hoped he would. “I’m not Freddie,” he said, as he set the brakes on his wheelchair.
“Are you sure? Because you look like a Freddie.” She was proud at how bravely he faced the challenge of standing. His leg muscles were getting stronger, but they still had a way to go before he would be walking again.
Although there wasn’t any doubt in her mind that he would accomplish that task.
“Wait for me,” she said quickly, when Josh pushed up on the padded armrests of his wheelchair. His upper-arm strength had grown by leaps and bounds since Dan had agreed to let him use a wheelchair. “Steady now,” she warned, as he stood up on his own two feet.
Josh didn’t say anything, his face scrunched up with fierce concentration. She put her elbow under his armpit and took some of his weight.
“I can do it myself,” he said testily.
“Okay.” She eased back, allowing him to support his own weight but staying close by in case he lost his balance.
“Look, Dad,” Josh said excitedly when he managed to grip the parallel bars and balance between them. “I can stand!”
“You sure can, Josh,” Dan said in a husky voice. Molly didn’t dare take her eyes off Josh to look over at him, but she knew he had to be thrilled with Josh’s progress.
“How are your legs feeling?” she asked. His muscles were quivering beneath the strain, but he seemed determined to stay upright.
“Fine,” he claimed, although the quivering got worse.
She waited a full minute before stepping forward. “Okay, Josh, let’s have you sit back down, slow and easy.”
He didn’t argue this time, and soon he was seated once again in his wheelchair.
Dan came over and crouched beside Josh. “I’m so proud of you, Josh. Your hard work is really paying off. The way your leg muscles are getting stronger is nothing short of amazing.”
“Thanks, Dad,” Josh said, throwing his arms around his father’s neck and squeezing tightly.
Molly had to blink back tears, watching the way father and son clung to each other. And then Josh pulled back and glanced up at Molly. “Is it time for the massage yet?” he asked.
She had to laugh. “I suspect that’s your favorite part of the day,” she teased, as she headed over to the table set up near the ultrasound machine. “Either that or you just want to get through the rest of your therapy so that you can pick out a lollipop.”
“I’m betting it’s both,” Dan said with a broad smile.
As