The Single Dad Next Door. Jessica Keller
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rather not be around you right now. I know this inn belongs to you and I’ll leave as soon as you say so, but for now I just want an evening to remember how beautiful it is and—”
Kellen sat down firmly and faced her. “Maggie, you need to chill for a second. I came here to tell you that I’m not going to— Ouch.” A small stabbing pain shot into the side of his neck. Then another. He swatted his neck, and his hand collided with a large bug. Another one buzzed near his ear. “Bees.”
No. Not again.
Maggie got to her feet. “Did they sting you?”
His throat was already closing up. A rush of blurry warmth flooded his brain. “Allergic.” He wheezed out the word. Why did it have to be his neck? Swelling there would make his breathing much harder than his normal reaction. The bees had chosen to inject their poison in the worst place possible.
Black dots painted across his vision. Kellen tried to stand, but he fell backward.
Maggie wrapped her arm around his shoulders and helped him stumble to a lounge chair.
“Do you only get a rash, or are you allergic-allergic? Is this a CPR type of thing? Because I took training once, but I’m not real confident. Do I need to call for an ambulance?” Her eyes were wide, searching his face.
Kellen fought to keep his eyes open, but the whole world was swirling. Maggie’s hair looked twice as big as normal. “EpiPen. My bathroom. Black bag. Quick.”
The last thing he saw was Maggie taking off across the yard.
If he died, what would happen to his girls?
Shoving open the front door to the cottage, Maggie banged into a couch that had been moved to a new location. Ida used to have all the furniture lining the walls. But this wasn’t Ida’s home any longer, was it?
Maggie’s body shook with adrenaline as she sucked in a ragged breath.
Four sets of eyes landed on her. All of them held questions.
Mr. Rowe grabbed her arm to steady her. “Maggie. You don’t look so well.”
“Emergency. It’s medical. Call 9-1-1.”
“What’s wrong, dear?” Diane, Mr. Rowe’s wife, wrapped her arms around the two little girls.
Maggie’s thoughts piled up together like an accident on the expressway. How much information should she tell them? No time. She needed to help Kellen.
The bathroom. She had to find the black bag.
Used to stressful situations as a lawyer, Mr. Rowe already had his cell phone to his ear. “Yes. We need an ambulance. Someone is hurt.” He rattled off the address to the cottage as he walked out the front door.
Maggie pointed at Skylar. “Do you know where your dad keeps his EpiPen?”
Skylar gave one brave nod before taking off. She returned a second later and handed the injector to Maggie. “A bee sting?” Her voice wavered.
Maggie wanted to stop and hug her, but she knew Kellen needed the shot. And although she wasn’t well versed when it came to allergic reactions, she also knew time mattered. She prayed that Mrs. Rowe would be able to comfort the girls.
“My dad is hurt?” Ruthy dissolved into tears. “Is he gonna die?”
“I want to go with you.” Skylar trailed Maggie to the door. Her little hands fisted at her sides.
Maggie wasn’t about to let the little girl see her dad wheezing and in pain. Not at such a young age. If only someone had protected her from the pain of learning about her own father’s death all those years ago. And more recently, of seeing her mother suffering from illness for so long. Maggie shook those thoughts away.
Action. Right now she needed to stop thinking and act.
Grabbing Skylar’s shoulders, Maggie squeezed them once. “Your dad needs you to go back inside and pray for him. That’s the best thing you can do for him right now. Can you do that? Mrs. Rowe will help you, okay? I need to go give this to him.” She waved the EpiPen.
Without waiting to see if Skylar had obeyed, Maggie sprinted back across the lawn. Thankfully Mr. Rowe had left the gate propped open so she wouldn’t have to worry about messing with the rusted latch.
The lawyer was still on the phone with 9-1-1 when she got back to Kellen. Being a blond, Kellen had a pale complexion to begin with, but his skin looked sickly and ashen. His head was tipped to the side.
Maggie tapped his shoulders. “Can you hear me? Kellen. Please. I don’t know what I’m doing.”
Unresponsive.
Mr. Rowe covered the mouthpiece to the cell phone. “Open up the pen. Hold it to his thigh and press the trigger. Count to ten and then massage the area for ten seconds, as well.” He turned back to his phone. “Yes. I’m still here. The victim has lost consciousness. I’ll be at the end of the drive to flag them to the right location. I initially gave the address to the next-door neighbor’s house.”
He took off toward the street.
Please, God. Calm my nerves. Let Kellen be all right.
Following Mr. Rowe’s instructions, she removed the cap and held the end to Kellen’s thigh. Hopefully the shot was strong enough to work through his jeans.
She took a deep breath and pressed the button.
“One. Two. Three. Four.” She licked her lips and looked back at Kellen’s face. Be okay. Please be okay. His daughters needed their daddy. They shouldn’t have to grow up having lost their dad in a tragic accident as Maggie had lost hers. No little girl should experience that pain. “Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten.”
She put the cap back on, covering the shiny needle that now showed, and then tucked it under the lounge chair. Maggie watched Kellen’s face, hoping to see an instant change. She put her hand where she’d used the EpiPen and massaged the area as Mr. Rowe had instructed her to.
Seeing no immediate change in Kellen’s condition, she took the advice that she’d told Skylar only a minute ago. Pray. That was the best way to help him.
“Please, Lord, save him. Let him recover without any lingering problems.”
All the stress from the past few minutes rushed over her, making her blink back tears. She shouldn’t have argued with him...again. If she’d gone to the porch and talked as he had asked, they wouldn’t have been near the bees. Sure, he might have been about to tell her to skedaddle, but being kicked out wouldn’t be as bad as letting him get hurt. If she wouldn’t have been so stubborn—like always—none of this would have happened.
“Don’t let anything bad happen to Kellen.”
Kellen shifted on the chair. Maggie looked back at his face to see him watching her through a half-lidded gaze. Never in her life had she been so happy to see a man’s blue eyes. She leaned forward and grabbed his hand. “You’re okay? Thank You, God.”
He put his free hand over his swollen neck. Letting her know he couldn’t speak yet. He squeezed the hand she held twice. She imagined that meant thank you.
A cool spring breeze swept over them, and Kellen shivered. From the cold, from shock or the medication coursing through his body, she didn’t know.
“I’ll go get a blanket.” She started to get up.
But Kellen tightened his hold of her hand and shook his head.
Maggie sat down on an open area of the lounge chair and stared at the flower beds surrounding the West Oaks Inn. Usually the sight of the happy flowers bobbing in the wind made her