Falling for the Millionaire(18)

A tear trickled down Tiffany's cheek. She sniffled. "Thank you. Sharon,  the lady who watches them when I'm at work, is expecting you."

Melody wanted to reach out to Tiffany but felt inadequate. Every day she  dealt with tragic situations in the lives of the women she helped, but  these kinds of events nearly froze Melody's mind. They only created a  flood of bad memories, but thinking about herself didn't help anyone.

"Would you like me to pray for Carter?" Melody asked, hoping it was the right thing to say.

Tiffany nodded, and Melody prayed for Carter and the doctors. She  silently begged God to spare the life of this young father whose wife  and children needed him. Would God answer in the affirmative? She had to  believe He would. After she finished praying, she hunkered down beside  the chair. "Who do you have here?"

Tiffany sniffled, but smiled. "This is Aubrey, and over here is Carter, Jr., but we call him CJ."

"Will she come to me?" Melody reached out.

Nodding, Tiffany held the little girl out to Melody. She took the child  in her arms and stood. Melody breathed a sigh of relief when the little  girl didn't make a fuss. "Hi, Aubrey. Would you like to visit with Ms.  Sharon this morning?"

The little girl nodded and smiled shyly at Melody. Her heart melted as  the child snuggled close. She hadn't thought about having children since  Christopher had died. She swallowed hard as a powerful longing  inundated her. She shoved the thought from her mind. This wasn't the  time to be thinking about herself.

Hudson scooped CJ up in his arms. "You ready to go with Uncle Hudson?"

CJ giggled as Hudson bounced the boy in his arms.

Melody looked over at Hudson. "You're going with me?"         

     



 

Hudson nodded. "At least to the car. You can't manage two kids and this mammoth diaper bag all by yourself, can you?"

Melody wasn't going to argue with him. "I suppose not."

Hudson grabbed the bag, then turned to Tiffany. "Be back in a few minutes."

Melody followed him as he trotted to the car. He helped her put the kids  into their car seats and placed the diaper bag in the front. He handed  her the keys and the directions to the babysitter's house as she got  into the car.

The whole scene screamed of family.

Hudson. Her. Kids.

She pushed that thought away. There were so many reasons she couldn't go  there. Pretty soon her mind would be a blank if she kept banishing her  thoughts.

Hudson stood for a moment by the open door. "I'll call you if I learn something new before you get back. Thanks for your help."

Nodding, she started the car and Hudson closed the door. He stood there  and watched as she drove away. His caring heart for the man who worked  for him brought a lump to Melody's throat. It would be so easy to care  about him.

A few minutes later Melody delivered the children to their caregiver.  With the kids safely in Sharon's care, she made her way back to the  hospital. Please, Lord, spare Carter's life. She repeated the prayer  over and over as she drove.

While Melody walked through the parking lot to the emergency room, she  could see Hudson on the phone and Tiffany in a nearby chair. As Melody  stepped through the door, Hudson ended his call and came her way.  "Carter's still in surgery."

Melody looked Tiffany's way. Worry still clouded the other woman's features. "How's she holding up?"

"As good as can be expected. She's talked to her parents and Carter's  parents. They're on their way to the hospital from Dalton, where they  all live. No matter what happens, I plan to stay until they get here."  Hudson looked as though he wanted to say something else, but he remained  silent as he stared at her.

"That's good. I'm sure she'll appreciate your support." Melody looked  toward the parking lot. "I have to get back because I have a meeting  with some of my ladies in a half hour."

"Sure. I can't expect you to stay. Thanks for coming and helping out." A muscle worked in his jaw. "I'll call with any news."

"Thanks. I'll be praying." Melody said her goodbyes to Tiffany, giving her a hug.

On the drive back to The Village, Melody continued to pray. The  situation had stirred up a lot of emotions for her. She couldn't shake  the hurt in her heart. She prayed that Tiffany wouldn't have to deal  with the loss of her husband. These circumstances made Melody more  determined to keep Hudson at a distance, even though his goodness  invited her to let him into her life.





Chapter Seven

Carter had come through the surgery and would eventually recover, but it  would be a long process. Hudson didn't know what he would do without  the man who knew the ins and outs of the projects they had going,  especially the one at The Village. Carter would be absent from work for  months. Those months would test Hudson in more ways than he'd ever  expected.

Searching for a replacement would take time he didn't have right now.  Responsibility for Conrick Construction and its survival lay solely in  his hands. A lot of people were counting on him, and he had to come  through for all of them.

The image of Melody's face floated across his mind. Her willingness to  help out today made him wish he hadn't given her the promise not to ask  her out again. He had to be patient and do his best to show her he was a  man she could count on-a man she wanted to get to know and spend time  with. And so he could get to know her, too, and find out if his  impression that she was different from the other women he'd dated was  right. He wondered if Melody could be the one woman who could erase the  bad memories and hurt that Nicole had left behind.

Would Carter's accident help Melody see that life was uncertain and that playing it safe didn't always result in security?

With these thoughts swirling through his mind, Hudson parked his car  near the administration building. He had to keep his mind on the  business at hand-the road rally. Melody had offered to talk to him about  his plans during her lunchtime. Grateful that she'd agreed to let him  bring her lunch, he grabbed the bag containing sandwiches from his  favorite deli. Despite the burdens that weighed him down, he had no  doubt seeing Melody would lighten his heart.

As Hudson made his way through the reception area, Lovie greeted him.  "I'm so sorry to hear about your friend Carter. I'll be praying for  him."

"I appreciate that."

Lovie gave him a speculative look. "Are you here to see Ms. Melody?"

"Yes, we have a fund-raising idea to discuss."

Lovie wagged a finger at him. "You should be discussing more than  fund-raising. You got to get busy on the romance front. Valentine's Day  is right around the corner."

Hudson couldn't help laughing as he shook his head. "Lovie, what am I going to do with you?"         

     



 

"Follow my advice and romance that woman."

Hudson wanted to tell Lovie that it was easier said than done in  Melody's case, but he wasn't about to admit to this grandmotherly  matchmaker that he was a flop in the romance department. "Some things  can't be rushed."

"I don't know what it is with you young people these days. When I was a  girl, we didn't waste time thinking about love, we did something about  it."

"I'll consider your advice." Hudson chuckled as he started down the hall.

"Don't consider it. Act on it," Lovie called after him.

Hudson knocked on Melody's door and wondered whether Lovie had given  Melody the same little talk. No matter what Lovie said, he wasn't about  to jump into any relationship without making sure there would be no  repeat of his former experience with love. At this point, working with  Melody would have to suffice for getting to know her and judging whether  she was the kind of woman he believed her to be-someone who cared about  people, someone who didn't use people for their own advantage.

Melody opened the door. "Are things still okay with Carter?"

"They are, but he'll be in intensive care for a few days." Hudson set  the bag of food on Melody's desk. "They're grateful that he's going to  pull through, but they know it won't be easy. Tiff's mom will stay with  her for a while. That'll help."

Melody nodded. "You were a big help to them today."

"I did what had to be done. Carter and I have known each other for a  long time. I helped him get a job with Conrick Industries after we  graduated from college."

"He's blessed to have a friend like you." She opened the bag and peered inside. "What did you bring me?"

Hudson tried to digest the compliment from Melody. "I'm doubly blessed  to have a friend like him. I brought you a turkey on wheat with tomato,  lettuce and provolone cheese, just like you requested."

Opening the container, Melody sat behind her desk while Hudson sat on the chair on the other side. "You want to give thanks?"

Hudson nodded and bowed his head. He thanked God for Carter's good  prognosis and prayed for his recovery, then gave thanks for the food and  asked a blessing on their meeting. When he said amen, he looked up to  find Melody blinking back tears. He frowned. "What's wrong?"