I Promise You This (Love in Provence Book 3) Read online

  Katherine held Molly’s hand and looked at her sadly for a moment. Nick walked over to stand silently by the window.

  Katherine added, in almost a whisper, “The only other person I know she’s close to is a Catholic priest. You’ll meet him. He’s very nice and when Molly’s brother died, he stepped in and was a tremendous help and support to her. He comes by every day to see her here. But that’s it. There’s no one else who really knows what’s happening in her life.”

  Nick’s face took on a somber expression. “That’s not good. Everyone needs people to share life with. To help each other, care for each other, laugh and cry with each other.”

  “She’s always been a loner.”

  “I would never have guessed that about her. She’s such a vibrant personality, so much fun to be with. What about guys? No one?”

  “Y’know, she’s had an ongoing affair for a few years—at least, she alludes to it from time to time. Friends with benefits, as she says, some hot Italian lover. But I have no idea who he is. I just know Molly is a straight shooter and if she says something, it’s true.”

  “Maybe you should try to find him.”

  “I wouldn’t know where to start . . .” Kat’s eyes filled again. “No one should be this alone. All I know is that I’ll stay here with her as long as she needs me. That’s a given.”

  “She’s lucky to have you, Kat. You’re a true friend. Now, tell me how you feel about being back home. It’s been a while, right?”

  She smiled ruefully. “I’m feeling conflicted about being in my old house, without my mother and surrounded by memories of her and my father that make me both happy and sad. I think I’m caught up in a bit of grieving.”

  “No doubt. It takes a while to come to terms with losing our parents—losing anyone, of course. Grief is hard. It’s different for every person.”

  Their eyes met, and Kat felt his sympathy before her face clouded.

  “You’ve got to be a tad jet-lagged too,” he said.

  “For sure. On top of all that, I’m faced with the reality of the choices I’ve made about my life this past year and . . .” She paused.

  “And? Any regrets?”

  A light came back into her eyes. “No regrets. Just an awareness of how different my life has become. This trip is a reminder of what I am abandoning, and it’s affecting me more than I thought it would. I realize I have a few issues to sort out without being under the mesmerizing spell of the South of France.”

  “You’re carrying quite a load right now. How about letting me take you to dinner tonight and I’ll attempt to lighten it a bit with my irresistible charm and wit?”

  Kat snorted in spite of herself. Nick did have a way about him. “How can I refuse that?”

  “Right. Besides, it would be pretty rude to turn me down after I flew here just to see you—and Molly, of course, ” he quickly corrected himself.

  Looking serious again, Kat suggested they make it an early evening before her jet lag kicked in. As if on cue, she stifled a yawn.

  “Okay, let’s stay here until you’re ready to leave Molly for the evening. We’ll go somewhere close. I’m sure you know some good places, and then I’ll get you home. I’ve got a car and driver on call while I’m here. Or do you have a car?”

  Katherine smiled to herself, shaking her head, as she was reminded of Nick’s luxurious lifestyle. “No, I’ve been taking the subway back and forth. It’s so convenient.”

  “Perfect. Now pass that book to me and I’ll share my dulcet tones with the bald and beautiful Ms. Malone for a while.”

  “Read her some more of this Nora Ephron book. It’s hilarious, and I hope with all my heart that somehow our words are reaching into the depths where Molly lies.”

  Katherine’s cell phone vibrated while Nick was reading. Suffused with sudden warmth as she saw the call was from Philippe, she left the room. The misgivings and anxious thoughts that were gaining a foothold in her mind faded at the sound of his voice.

  “Ma belle, how are you doing? Is there anything new with Molly? I miss you and want to put my arms around you right now.”

  Katherine swallowed a lump in her throat at the sound of his voice. “I wish that could happen, mon amour, but you are with me all the time. I never remove the bracelet you gave me—jamais—and it helps me feel you are here.”

  There was an electric silence for a moment before Katherine continued. “There’s good news about Molly. The doctors say the swelling in her brain has lessened dramatically. They may begin to waken her in a day or so. Hopefully . . .”

  She could hear Philippe blow out a sigh of relief.

  “Oh . . . and Nick is here!”

  “Incroyable!” Philippe exclaimed. “He is unbelievable. He called me yesterday. Tim e-mailed when I got back from Paris to see what had happened with the whole situation with Dimitri and Idelle. I told him about Molly’s accident and he told Nick.”

  There was a pause before he continued. “And now Nick’s there! He didn’t mention he was going to Toronto.”

  “That’s something, isn’t it? He was just in New York, though, so . . . not so far . . .” She told him what the doctor had said to Nick about Molly and that they all agreed she could not be in a better place.

  “Nick’s reading to Molly right now. The staff think the sounds of our voices help her subconscious.”

  “Should I look into flights?” Katherine sensed a new urgency in his words as he continued. “I have meetings with Didier and his crew tomorrow; you will be very excited when I tell you how plans on our villa restoration are progressing! I should be able to come to Toronto in two or three days. D’accord?”

  Kat was shocked at her hesitation. “Maybe not yet. There’s nothing to do but sit here in the hospital. Stay and take care of things there for now.”

  Philippe’s voice became softer and deeper. “These few days without you have been longer than I might have imagined. You’ve become such a part of me.”

  Katherine pressed the phone to her ear as the warmth of those words spread through her. The tone of Philippe’s voice, the way he expressed his feelings, and that very sexy French accent always thrilled her.

  “I feel the same. It’s just not the right time to come,” she replied, her voice heavy with indecision.

  There was an uneasy silence before she continued. “Hold on and I’ll put Nick on the phone. I miss you. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

  She took the phone in to Nick and he left the room for several minutes. When he came back, he handed Kat her phone and said, “Philippe is one hell of a decent bloke.”

  “No question,” she replied, feeling upset with herself over her less than satisfying conversation with him.

  The nurses told them it was a good time to leave for the evening.

  Katherine described to Nick how the staff would turn Molly and prepare her for the night. One of the nurses smiled when Kat motioned to the narrow glass vase on the table next to Molly’s bed. “We’re still trying to see if we can solve the red-rose mystery.”

  Katherine gave her a thumbs-up as she reached for her coat and scarf. Nick helped Kat on with her coat. “Meaning?”

  She explained, “Each morning since Molly’s been here, a fresh rose is placed in that vase and we have no idea how. No one is allowed in at night.”

  A nurse interjected, “We monitor everything and the only people coming in here at night, apart from medical staff, are the clergy. Rabbis, ministers, priests, imams, pastors—we get them all. They come to pray and offer comfort and are in and out at unusual hours. God doesn’t have to worry about visiting hours.”

  The hospital was a few minutes around the corner from the office where Katherine had spent the last fifteen years of her professional life. She knew exactly where they should go for dinner. The family-run Casa Mia was a welcoming trattoria and the food was guaranteed to please.

  Nick put his arm around Kat’s shoulder, with an exaggerated shiver, and pulled her close as they walked. “Brrr! It’s blo
ody frigid here! I’m expecting polar bears to come out of the shadows. Is your winter always this cold?”

  Her breath coming out in frozen puffs, Katherine explained they were having an unusual subzero cold spell and that sometimes conditions were quite mild. “Not this year, though. Sorry!”

  Welcoming the warmth of the restaurant, they were seated quickly. Crispy bread pulled straight from the oven, and two glass containers of olive oil and balsamic were set on the table immediately. After they had chosen their meals, Nick asked, “White or red, Kat? What’s your pleasure?”

  Katherine agreed with his choice of a bottle of Amarone and settled back in her chair.

  “That was a big sigh,” Nick exclaimed.

  Katherine looked surprised for a moment and then answered with a wry smile. “I wasn’t aware it was so obvious. This feels like the first time I’ve relaxed since I got here.”

  The waiter arrived with the wine and, after Nick approved the choice, poured each a glass. Raising his, Nick said, “Here’s to Molly and to the friendship we all share. Yours with her has been so long and meaningful, and ours has been very short, but meaningful in its own way. May all of this long continue.”

  Katherine raised her glass in return and nodded. They continued talking about friendship and how life works in unexpected ways to bring people together. Kat inquired about Nick’s close friend, Graham.

  “Ah, the dear bloke and his family are all well. I’m hoping they will all come to France this summer. Just think, it was thanks to Molly that Graham and I got to meet you ladies that fateful night in Antibes!”

  Laughing at the memory, Kat agreed, “Too true!” Then her expression changed to a concerned frown and she took a sip of her wine.

  Nick reached over and took her hand. She could feel the emotion in his touch and his voice. In spite of his bravado, she knew he was a man who cared deeply. “It’s so hard to see someone you love in Molly’s situation. Trust me, I truly feel optimistic after meeting with the doc.”

  He patted the back of her hand and then changed the mood by giving her a wide-eyed look of delight as a plate of delicious-looking antipasto arrived.

  They declared themselves ravenous and dug in as the focus of conversation switched to food. Kat reminded herself she needed to pay better attention to what she was eating. Her diet the past few days had been muffins and mochas.

  The lighthearted combination of great conversation, laughter, and wine brought back memories of times they had spent together in Antibes. The intimacy of some of those moments caused Kat to avert her eyes and quickly change the subject. She felt unsettled as to whether it was embarrassment or remembered pleasure that was making her squirm.

  We did share some moments . . .

  After a decaf cappuccino, Nick called his driver, who was waiting outside when they left the restaurant.

  “Katherine, this is Mohammed. He will get you home safely.” Pointing across the street, he said, “I’m staying at the Marriott and have a conference call to make, so I’ll dash.”

  As the driver held open the car door, Nick kissed Kat’s cheeks lightly, in the French way. “This was a lovely evening, Kat. I’ve missed you.” His eyes held hers, saying more than his words.

  Kat glanced away briefly but smiled warmly. “Thanks for coming to Toronto, Nick. It’s wonderful to see you. I appreciate you being here . . . and I know Molly would too.”

  “Hey. What are friends for? Call me when you’re ready to leave home tomorrow morning and Mohammed will collect you.”

  As she began to protest, Nick put a finger to her lips. “Shhh . . . let me do what I can.”

  On the way home, she chatted with Mohammed, who told her he traveled with “Monsieur Nicholas” everywhere he went these days. At her urging, he disclosed he was from Syria and still had family in the midst of the raging conflicts. When she asked why they had not left, he explained that they were reluctant to leave their lives behind in the beginning; when it got so bad that they finally decided to flee, they could not get out. “I’m sorry,” Kat said. “It’s so difficult to find words to talk about the tragic events there. What a worry and sorrow it must be for you.”

  Katherine felt a tug at her heart and could not help but think sadly of the somewhat similar tragic experiences her parents’ families had undergone in World War II.

  They reached her house in what seemed like minutes, and the car sat in the driveway until she unlocked her door and waved. As she removed her layers of outerwear, she smiled and shook her head, feeling disbelief and pleasure at Nick’s sudden appearance.

  Katherine called Andrea and Terrence to fill them in on the day and said there was no point in them going back to the hospital just yet. They were relieved to hear that Nick was there to give her support. “We’ll have to meet him one of these days, after all you’ve told us!”

  Next, she found the box with her yoga gear and, after changing into yoga clothes, unrolled her mat on the living room floor. She had been thinking about it all day, missing that part of her routine. She stretched and warmed up before she focused on a solid hour of positions. There was an immediate calm she felt from doing yoga that was unique to anything else she did.

  The exercise, combined with the food and wine from dinner, made her feel mellow. For the first time since arriving in Toronto, she slept through until her 7:00 a.m. alarm sounded.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Katherine phoned Nick as she was going into the subway station.

  “It’s so easy, and I needed the walk,” she told him when he admonished her for not using Mohammed. “I’ll be at the hospital in twenty minutes.”

  She enjoyed the subway ride. It had been part of her daily routine for so many years. Past history, she thought as the familiar stops rolled by and she arrived at the hospital.

  Stepping out of the elevator to Molly’s floor, Katherine chuckled as Roslyn blurted, “Another rose!” Another nurse shook her head. “No one gets in here at night. It’s bizarre!”

  Father DeCarlo and Nick were sitting together in the reception area and motioned for Katherine to hurry to Molly’s room.

  There was a collection of white coats around Molly’s bed. Dr. Primeau, the neurologist, nodded to Katherine and waved her into the room.

  “We’re beginning to bring Molly out of her deep sleep today. We’re slowly reducing the dosage of her drugs, and in a few days she will be fully conscious. We’re hoping for the best in terms of her function levels. However, we want to alert you that there are no guarantees.”

  Katherine’s voice betrayed her anxiety as she asked what the outcome might be.

  “It’s still too early to say for certain. Today and tomorrow will be critical. No visitors. You and your friend can spend a few minutes with her now. Roslyn will text you with updates throughout the day. We have asked Father DeCarlo to look in on Ms. Malone, as her records indicate she is Catholic and knows him.”

  A nurse pointed to her watch and said to Katherine, “Ten minutes.”

  “Please ask my friend and Father DeCarlo to also come in.”

  As Nick and Father DeCarlo walked in, Katherine said, “Obviously you two have introduced yourselves.”

  They nodded. Katherine repeated what the doctor had told her as she held Molly’s hand and lightly rubbed her arm. They spoke quietly and the priest assured them he would stay all day with Molly. “I’ll keep you updated as the day goes on,” he said, his eyes filled with compassion. “I know this won’t be easy for you.”

  “Nor you. Knowing you are here with Molly makes all the difference.”

  Katherine was aware of a slight flicker in the priest’s eyes that communicated he was as concerned as she.

  Sitting together in the reception area, Katherine and Nick planned their unexpected day off.

  Kat had just texted the news about Molly to Philippe when her phone vibrated in her pocket. Philippe was on the line, saying he intended to book a flight in a few days. “You sound anxious, Minou,” he said. “Whatever is going
on with Molly, I want to be there to support you, even if I only stay for a short time.”

  Kat wanted him with her but also felt increasingly conflicted about it. She was struggling with emotions that she couldn’t quite identify. Something did not feel right.

  Nick offered to send his plane for Philippe, speaking briefly to Philippe about arrangements. A direct flight from Nice would be a lot more convenient than having to go through Paris again.

  “Nick, your generosity knows no bounds,” Katherine said, touched by the earnestness of his desire to help.

  His laugh was tinged with modesty. “I hope you’ll take this the right way.”

  Kat looked at him with a puzzled expression as he went on. “I have so much money it’s ridiculous. If I can use it to do something good for my friends, that’s the most satisfying thing I can think of . . . along with the charitable foundation I established, of course. I didn’t start off this way, y’know. I got very lucky, very early on with some big business deals, worked my ass off for many years, and the circumstances of my life changed.”

  “I remember you telling me your story when I was in Antibes,” Katherine recalled. She also remembered being impressed with what a down-to-earth man he was, in spite of his immense wealth. Google had told her about his Field Foundation and its philanthropic work around the world. Brash as he might be, Nicholas Field was not a man to brag about his accomplishments.

  Nick shifted awkwardly in his chair and changed the subject. “Okay, now we have the day free, so let’s do something that takes our minds off everything else—especially our dear Molly. Let’s hope today goes well in that hospital room.”

  Katherine nodded wordlessly, quelling an empty feeling in the pit of her stomach. She sent a silent plea into the universe that Molly would come through all this.

  Nick’s voice broke into her thoughts. “Okay, gorgeous. Show me your fair city . . . even if we are dressed like Nanook of the North! Gawd, it’s bloody freezing! I’ll call Mo and you direct the tour.”