Free Leaving Bluestone by MJ Fredrick Page B

tender kiss that surprised Quinn more than the welcome embrace. Maybe this was the reason he was different, this woman.
    “Tammy, meet my younger brother Quinn.”
    The pretty young woman smiled and offered her hand. Quinn couldn’t help smiling in return. Well, hell.
    “Quinn, I’m so glad to finally meet you. I’m sorry it’s under such bad circumstances.”
    “What are the circumstances, exactly?” Quinn asked, sitting down again. “Rose talked a lot coming up here, but she didn’t want to tell me in front of the kids.”
    Liam sat across from him, Tammy perching on the chair behind him, balancing on the arm. “Stage four colon cancer. Bad. Like, he was being fed through a tube until yesterday. The doctors said maybe a week.”
    “Was he doing chemo or anything?”
    Liam shook his head. “Found out too late. They did some surgery to get rid of as much as they could, but they couldn’t get it all and he didn’t want to go with the chemo.”
    Quinn nodded. He could see that.
    “He’s in a lot of pain,” Tammy added. “He’s on a ton of morphine so he sleeps a lot. He’s barely aware of us when he’s awake.”
    He’d been aware enough of Quinn.
    “I’m going to go check in,” Liam said, hooking a thumb toward the room.
    “You want me to wait here with you?” Tammy asked Quinn.
    “No.” He used the arms of the chair to pull himself to his feet. “I’m going to get some air. Thanks, though.”
     
    ***
     
    Lily had just come in from the lake when the phone in her pocket rang. She docked the launch, then pulled it out and looked at the display. She didn’t recognize the number, but it had a Bluestone area code. She clicked to answer.
    “Hi.”
    The voice gave her pause. She never heard it over her phone. “Quinn? Are you—okay?” Why was he calling her? “Is everything all right?”
    “Yeah. I mean, well, yeah, as good as can be expected. I’m sitting outside the hospital watching doctors take smoking breaks.”
    She opened the door to her office and flipped the sign to “closed.” He sounded so rough, so defeated. She imagined the trip had been hard, the reunion with his family, especially after so long.  She could picture him sitting on a concrete bench outside, hunched over talking on his tiny ancient cellphone.  “Why don’t you go in?”
    “Been in. Taking a break now.”
    Her heart squeezed with the desire to comfort him. She hadn’t realized how accustomed she was to touching him, just casually, until her palm itched to do so now. “Not good?”
    He made a sound of derision.
    She hopped on the stool and leaned on the counter. Outside, sunshine glinted off the water and reflected in the windows. One of Quinn’s favorite kind of Bluestone day. “How’s your dad?”
    “Stage four. A week, they say.”
    She sucked in a breath. “Quinn, I’m so sorry. I’m glad you went.”
    He blew out a long breath. “Yeah, well, he’s not. Mom, either. Not exactly the warmest welcome.”
    “I hope they come around, but if they don’t, remember, it’s not about you.”
    He was quiet for a moment, and she wondered if she spoke too bluntly. Usually he appreciated it, but now, when he was away from everything that was home to him, maybe he wouldn’t. Then he sighed, and she relaxed a little.
    “Yeah, you’re right. I’m—going to go back in. I’ll keep you posted.”
    “Quinn.” She bit her bottom lip, cursing herself for calling out to him.
    “Yeah?”
    His voice was close, intimate, right in her ear, and she wanted to say what was in her heart, what had been in her heart for a year, but like she told him, right now wasn’t about her.
    “Take care of yourself,” she said instead, and squeezed her eyes shut to focus on his voice.
    “Yeah, I will. I’ll call you later.”
    He disconnected, and she felt like an idiot school girl, holding onto that promise.
     
    ***
     
    Right. Not about him. After a loud dinner with his brothers and sister and their families at a buffet in