Part 3

Mrs. Dumas, formerly Hart, was speaking in hushed tones with her husband Pierre when the nurse knocked on her door. "Madame, you have vizitors. Do you feel well enough to see them?"

The couple exchanged looks. Visitors? "I thought only family was allowed in."

"Oui, monsieur," the nurse supplied. "They are family. Does Madame feel très bien or shall I tell them to come back a demain?"

"Send them in, Marie."

"Immédiatement, Madame."

When Kimberly and Tommy stepped into the hospital room a couple of minutes later, they were greeted by the wide-eyed expressions of Kimberly's mother and her husband. Kimberly clutched Tommy's hand tightly, the ring hidden within his grasp, his fingers almost bloodless. It was the only outside manifestation of her fear and he made no move to extract his hand.

"Hi mom."

"Kimberly... oh Kimberly!" Caroline opened her arms and Kimberly practically flew across the room to sweep her mother into a hug. "Oh, sweetie, I thought you couldn't get the time away!"

Laughing, tears already sliding down her cheeks, Kimberly pulled back. "I made the time."

Tommy hung back by the door as Kimberly and her mother exchanged hellos, the delight in the deathly ill woman's face unmistakable. Pierre hugged Kimberly - and it was the artist who noticed the ring before Kimberly had pulled away from her mother. Pierre looked his way and Tommy arched his eyebrows in a silent question. Pierre's lips twitched - the first smile he'd suppressed in days Tommy suspected - and nodded once.

"Kimberly, who is this?" Caroline finally focused on Tommy, looking at her daughter curiously - and was unable to resist teasing her. "He's not family - is he?"

Kimberly, who settled next to her mother on the bed, extended her hand to Tommy, beckoning him forward with a shy smile. "Surely you remember Tommy, mom."

"Tommy!"

He grinned at her surprise - more than a little flattered she remembered him. It boded well for their charade. "Nice to see you again, Mrs. Dumas."

"Tommy - as in Tommy Oliver from Angel Grove Tommy?"

He nodded.

"I thought you and Kim lost touch years ago."

"We did," Kimberly admitted as Tommy slid his hand into hers. He squeezed it, offering his silent support - he knew what was coming. "He was in Miami six months ago for a conference and we ran into each other again."

"Tommy, it's not that I'm not delighted you're here with Kim, but only family is allowed to visit," Caroline looked to Pierre apprehensively, as if worried about the consequences of his visit. "I considered you family once... but..."

"They made an exception in my case," he assured her, mentally bracing himself for lying to her. It wasn't as hard as it had once been - age and experience allowed him to relax and gave him the ability to look her in the eyes as he forged ahead. Pretending to be engaged to Kimberly and talking about it were child's play in the grand scheme of the things - he'd had to tell people a lot of worse fibs during his Ranger days. "They usually do for the fiancé of the daughter involved."

"Fi...an..cé?" Reaching for Kimberly's hands, Caroline tugged the one Tommy held from his grasp. He shifted his hands to Kimberly's shoulders, watching as her mother ran her fingers over the ring on Kimberly's. There were tears in her eyes as she lifted her head. "You're going to marry my daughter?"

Tommy nodded. The joy shining in Mrs. Dumas' eyes was worth the deception.

"Truly?"

"Hard to believe, isn't it?" Kimberly's words were fully of soft pride - it was something that didn't sound forced to his ears.

"Oh baby..." Tears slipped down Caroline's cheeks. "I thought..."

"My too, mom - he's something else, isn't it?"

"He certainly is!"

They shared a soft laugh Tommy didn't quite understand before he found himself pinned with a questioningly look by Kimberly's mother. "Not that I'm ungrateful you want to marry my daughter, Tommy, but... after what she did to you? How she hurt you?"

"I've had a lot of time to come to terms with that old hurt," Tommy answered honestly. "I forgave Kim a long time ago, Mrs. Dumas, we just never got back in touch at that point. Jason kept me up to date on how she was doing and everything; and I made sure he had my contact information in case she ever needed me."

"I know it's been a long time, but what she did-"

"Doesn't matter anymore. Life gives us choices - to live in the past or the present and look forward to the future. Kim's letter forced me to choose - so I chose to take the lessons she'd taught me and move on with my life. Despite it, I never stopped loving her." He smiled at Kimberly, squeezing her shoulders as he noted the surprise she was quick to hide at his words flash in her gaze. She freed one hand from her mother's to cover his. "Our meeting was the second chance I never thought I'd get - and even then I thought she was going to tell me no."

Their gazes were locked, a silent conversation Tommy didn't quite understand flickering between them. Once upon a time it would have been different, but now, there was too much distance for him to understand the question her eyes were asking. Her mother unknowingly broke the spell.

"Kimberly!"

They snapped their gazes back to Mrs. Dumas to find that Caroline looked horrified.

"He's the only man you've ever talked about and you were going to tell him no?"

The only man? Interesting - it echoed what she'd written him all the years ago. Tommy paid close attention as Kimberly flushed guiltily.

"I just made him wait for my answer mom, you know, make him sweat?" The look she cast his way was teasing, but Tommy could easily read the silent anguish she was struggling to hide; this was more difficult that she'd ever expected it to be - and Kimberly had always been uncomfortable about lying to her mother. Their little silent conversation was buried under an avalanche of reality. "I would never have told him no."

"Good." Turning her attention back to the ring, Mrs. Dumas examined it carefully. "This is lovely, just lovely - is it custom made?"

"It's a family heirloom," Tommy supplied, knowing Kimberly had told her mother about his situation. "My birth mother's engagement ring, actually."

"You found them then?"

"They're dead," Tommy allowed, keeping his tone conversational, though it cost him to feel the way Kimberly stiffened under his hands. It was a reminder of what she was about to go through. "I have a brother, David - and I found him."

"Oh Tommy, that's wonderful. Everyone should have family."

"The Oliver's are my family, Mrs. Dumas - and so will Kim be."

"When's the wedding?"

"Er..." Kimberly looked up at Tommy, her smile fading as she thought fast. "Tommy proposed the morning I learned about your illness mom; we haven't really talked about it yet."

"Oh sweetie!" Kimberly was wrapped in another tight hug. "I'm sorry. This should be a happy time for you and now you're dealing with this."

"It's okay, mom. We'll manage."

"Why don't you elope?"

Three sets of eyes turned towards Pierre; two in shock, the other in delight. He shrugged almost sheepishly; he wasn't a man of many words, but when he spoke, he had a reason to. "You're in France - a country of lovers; your mother has always dreamed of attending your wedding and she cannot return to the States for it - so why not marry while you're here."

"We haven't been engaged that long," Kimberly protested weakly. "And it was so sudden; we haven't had time to talk about the details..."

"You've waited twelve years, surely that's long enough?"

Tommy and Kimberly exchanged looks. This wasn't something they'd foreseen when they'd considered this little charade - and now they were caught. A thrill shot through him as he stared at her, watching the knowledge that they'd been ensnared brighten Kimberly's eyes. It was tempting to say it was a fabulous idea, to marry Kimberly, even in name only, but that wasn't why he'd come. He was here to back her up, to be her pillar of strength as she'd been through his teenage years. It wasn't his choice to make.

Bending down, Tommy brushed his lips over Kimberly's cheek. "Your call," he murmured softly.

She understood his message; it was her choice where to go from here. She could either continue with the charade they'd committed to, or end it right there. Kimberly swallowed hard - and gave an answer that was no answer at all. "I want you at my wedding as much as you want to be there mom, but it's not about me; it's about us. Visiting hours are just about over, so Tommy and I will talk about it tonight and let you know when we come by tomorrow, okay?"

"Consider it at least," Caroline told her daughter sternly, though it was a carefully concealed plea neither missed. It would mean the world to the dying woman to see one of her final wishes and dreams fulfilled. "Pierre?"

"Oui, mon amour?"

"That ache is back." She shifted with a grimace, pain evident on her features.

"I'll get the nurse."

He departed, disappearing into the corridor and Mrs. Dumas took the opportunity to pull Kimberly forward and into another tight hug, this one longer than any of the others. "Whatever you decide, Kimberly, I'll be with you one way or another. I wouldn't miss your wedding for the world."

Taking their leave as the nurse returned with Pierre, Tommy slid his arm around Kimberly's waist as they exited the room, helping keep her on her feet. They made it as far as the elevators before her knees gave out. In moments she was in his arms again and her composure crumbled. Tommy scooped her up and took three long steps to a nearby waiting area, settling onto the edge of one chair with Kimberly in his lap. Her arms wound around his neck and shoulders as she buried her face against him. Rocking her back and forth, Tommy held her, offering what silent support he could as he fought the tightness in his own throat.

They didn't speak as he pulled a kerchief from his pocket and offered it to her when the bout had subsided into sniffles. Nor did they move as Kimberly tried to collect herself. It wasn't until they were out of the hospital and back in the cab, headed for their hotel, that Kimberly broke the silence.

"She looks so fragile."

There was nothing he could say to that despairing comment, so he didn't say anything, he simply grasped her hand and squeezed. She squeezed back almost immediately, clinging to his strength.

"She's really d-dying - isn't she?"

"Yes," he couldn't stay silent in the face of that question as the cab pulled up to the curb and stopped. Tommy handed the man some Euros, waved away the change, and helped Kim out of the car. She went as if in a daze, the reality of the situation suddenly having hit home.

Helping her into the hotel, Tommy swept her into his arms when it was clear she was barely functional, her eyes glazed and glassy. Ignoring the startled looks of the other patrons, he kept a hold of Kimberly as the elevator arrived on the main floor. The old fashioned lobby came complete with operator for the elevators and for this trip, Tommy had made a point to reserve a large suite normally reserved for honeymooning couples - not only did it give them space so he could crash on the supplied couch, but it was fully equipped.

Kimberly in his arms, he turned in place to flash the proxy card over the reader to the room and the door clicked open. Pushing it open with his foot, Tommy carried her into the room. Their bags were still sitting - packed - just visible inside the bedroom where the bellhop had left them, and Tommy ignored everything but the woman in his arms. Striding to the couch, he took a seat and cradled her in his lap once more.

Gently stroking her hair with one hand, he used the other to undo the zipper on her light jacket before peeling it off. His own went with a shift and a wiggle, discarded to the floor nearby. His shoes slipped off next, hers going with a protest until she was in her stocking feet once more. Sliding back, he put Kimberly's feet on the couch next to him and eased his back against the cushions.

She curled into him, saying nothing, her grip desperate. She'd look at him only once through the whole ordeal and in her eyes had been a silent, irrational plea; to make everything go away so her mom wouldn't be sick and she wasn't about to lose her best friend. To make everything better like he'd always done.

Knowing there was nothing he could do to change the reality of the situation, Tommy simply held her until she went limp in his grasp, her head tucked under his chin, her fingers still tangled in his shirt in a death grip. Afraid of waking her, Tommy tilted his head back to stare at the ceiling and tried to come to terms with what had happened in the hospital - and the haunting image of a woman who'd once been hale and healthy.

Kimberly's mother was already a shadow of herself.

Veins were visible through skin that was more clear than opaque, standing out in stark contrast to the parchment color of her skin. Her chestnut hair - the same color as Kimberly's - was still full, but looked as brittle as straw. atrophy from inactivity, or perhaps a side effect of the disease, had left a once supple body now a shell of its former strength. He didn't see how Mrs. Dumas would make it a month in such a body, let alone a year or more.

It wasn't surprising that Kimberly had collapsed.

Her hands shifted, twisting a little more in his shirt as if trying to free themselves. Lifting the hand that wasn't stroking her hair, he carefully unwound her fingers from the fabric. The cool metal of his mother's engagement ring brushed against his finger tips and he paused, thinking about how comfortable he was at that moment; being Kimberly's rock - her shoulder to cry on.

None of this felt strange.

Not the fact he was in France or that Kimberly was currently curled up on his lap snuffling softly in her sleep. Not that he was here with her, or that she was wearing his mother's engagement ring as a ruse. Pierre's words came back to him, echoing about his head like a portent.

"Why don't you elope?"

Why not, indeed?

If he'd been engaged to Kimberly in truth, Tommy wouldn't have given a second thought about giving them an affirmative answer - but they weren't really engaged and for all the time they'd spent together in the last three days, they were still technically strangers. The Kimberly he remembered had matured and grown, acquiring habits and quirks she'd not had as a teenager. He'd done his fair share of the same and she'd more than noticed.

While they'd shared their histories, catching up on one another's lives, she'd been tickled pink by the fact he'd just finished another stint as a Ranger. Blue, she'd said, was the only color left for him - and then proceeded to tell him arbitrarily that white and green were his colors - black a close third - but blue simply wasn't his thing.

A faint smile creased his lips, but it was tinged with sadness. Mrs. Dumas would never know just how much a mixed blessing her illness was to him. He was sad Kimberly was losing someone so close and special to her, but in a way, it was that very same illness that had made her reach out to him once again. It had brought Kimberly back into his circle of friend - and into the circle of his arms - however temporarily.

At the hospital he'd simply said what had come natural; he'd been as honest as he could with her mother and Pierre, determined to lie as little as possible. Kimberly need never know he wasn't lying - providing it didn't upset her mother, she wouldn't complain. If he was opening himself up to hurt in the process, so be it.

He was tired of tip toeing around her, of pretending like they didn't have a history - and a damn good one at that; tired of pretending like he didn't care.

On the other side of the argument, he felt like a cad. Taking advantage of Kimberly like this, allowing her to make rash decisions while under such emotional stress went against every fiber of his being; but he'd sworn to be there for her and no matter what decision she made, he wouldn't question it unless it was detrimental to her somehow. The last thing he wanted was her to regret the last days with her mother and, because of that, he was willing to do just about anything to ensure she didn't.

"Tommy?"

The husky tone of her voice brought him out of his thoughts - and the realization that the room was now shadowed and the sun had set beyond the windows. "Yeah?"

"What are you thinking about?"

"What Pierre said; what your mother wants."

"What are we going to do?" Her grip on him tightened fractionally - she didn't even have to ask which part and it was gratifying to know he wasn't the only one thinking about it. "She looked so happy when we told her... if we... if I tell her the truth now, it'll be devastating."

Silence hung between them for a long moment before Tommy straightened, tilting his head back and down so he could see her face. Their eyes locked and he searched those brown orbs of misery for answers. There was little he could offer by the way of reassurance at that moment, and he knew it.

"What would you like to do, Kim?"

"The impossible," she whispered. "I'd like to make my mom better, but I know I can't. I want to grant her most fervent wish for me... but I can't."

Tommy didn't say anything, sensing she wasn't finished - and she didn't disappoint him as tears pooled her eyes.

"I don't want her to die with regrets, I don't want to die with regrets - and I know she will. She'll regret not seeing me marry you after all this time. But... you didn't come to France to marry me, no matter how much she might want otherwise."

She looked so tortured, so miserably desolate, his heart tripped in his chest - and it was his downfall. "Why not?"

Kimberly blinked. "Pardon?"

Having said the words, his mind was running a mile a minute. "I said, why not? We can get married here, so your mom and Pierre can come and then get it annulled when she..." he'd been about to say when she died, but amended himself hastily, "when we get back home."

She was already shaking her head before he finished as tears slowly slid down her cheeks. "I know the stock you put in marriage, Tommy," reaching up to cup his face, her smile was sad and tumultuous. "I know what family means to you."

"You're right," he agreed. "But family isn't something that binds people by blood alone. You're part of a family that few people have been admitted to, Kim and - let's face it - wouldn't you get a kick out of sending a wedding post card to Jason?"

He made her laugh - just a soft chuckle - but it was something. "He'd be furious he wasn't invited."

"He'd cope - though Trini might have my head."

"She wouldn't dare!"

Brushing her bangs back and away, he caught another tear on the pad of his thumb. It wouldn't be the proposal he'd envisioned all those years ago, but it fit the circumstances. Little did she know it, but if she said yes, it meant he would never be getting that ring back; the thought almost made him smile. It was fitting, after everything they'd be through that their marriage would be a sham - but then, it would also give them time. And time was something he could use to his advantage.

"How about it, Kim - marry me?"

"I couldn't ask that of you."

"You're not - I'm offering."

"Tommy…"

"I told you I'm here to be whatever you need. You needed me to be your fiancé; I'm playing that role. It's not that far a stretch to doting husband."

"That's not really fair to you."

"The only other option is to tell her the truth."

Which was no option at all. Mrs. Dumas didn't look as if she could take that kind of shock and survive it - Kimberly was shaking her head in silent denial. The knowledge hung heavily in the silence and Tommy sensed her wavering - funny, he'd never dreamed convincing Kimberly to marry him would be this difficult - and pressed his advantage.

"Neither of us is seeing anyone seriously so what can it hurt to give your mom a little happiness - to make her wish for you come true?"

He could tell she was tempted as she chewed her bottom lip. She looked away and then back. "Did... you mean what you said to her... back in the hospital room?"

"The thing about lies is that... if you tell too many they're hard to keep straight. We're already purporting one lie so I figured I'd be honest with her whenever I could to avoid tripping myself up."

"Is that a yes?"

"Does it matter?" His soft question prompted an answer in the depths of her gaze, saying it did - but she couldn't admit it, not yet, and Tommy was glad she wasn't pushing. Instead he forged ahead, cupping her face in his palm as he continued to brush his thumb over her cheek, his lips tilting into a half smile. "What do you say, Kim; should I be investigating how to get us married while we're here?"

There was a brief moment of silence where he believed she'd continue to fight him on it - and he was pleasantly surprised when she didn't. "In name only?"

He nodded, not trusting his voice; if he spoke he'd never be able to say it.

"And only until she's... until..."

"Until we're back in the States."

She took a deep breath - and amazingly relaxed, her gaze turning cautiously hopeful. "I'll need a dress."

"My VISA's at your disposal."

"We'll need a location."

"In Paris?" He couldn't help sounding affronted. "I'm sure we can find something."

"It's got to be somewhere mom can get to."

"I'll carry her if need be."

"Flowers will be a must."

"There's a florist on every corner." A lightness entered their banter as they batted the idea back and forth, becoming accustomed to it. "Any other conditions?"

"Mom will insist on their being pictures."

So would he. "I'll arrange it."

"You make it sound so easy."

Tommy shrugged. He hadn't told her about was his monetary worth, his investments and his savings - and wouldn't until it was absolutely necessary. "When you've battled monsters in space, the past and the future any other challenge is relatively minor."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Leave everything to me - except the location. What do you say we let your mom choose?"

Her answering smile and hug as she wrapped him in a tightly enthusiastic embrace was answer enough.