Two days later everyone was in the living room talking and laughing, enjoying time with the baby. Frank looked around and that's when he noticed Denise was nowhere around.

Robert had gone to the Richmond branch of his office for some work. Frank went to look for Denise to see if she was okay.

He found her curled up in her room crying her heart out.

He sighed, "Hey, Dee. You all right?"

"In pain," she said through clenched teeth.

"Pain?" he sat on the bed. "Migraine? Pain in your stomach?"

"Everywhere," she hissed trying to keep from crying out.

"Just be still, I'll get Tanya."

"No," she said quickly. "I'm fine."

"You are crying in pain," he sighed. "Okay out with it."

She sighed she was too tired to keep hiding. "It's the cancer."

He blanched white, "The what?"

"Cancer," she repeated.

"I knew something wasn't right," he sighed. "Cancer of the..."

"Bones," she said and curled tighter.

"Okay." He thought a minute then sat on the bed and held her. "Let's just breathe in deep now...just think about how deep you can breathe in then release it all out. I've got you."

She did that but it wasn't helping, she was sobbing now.

"Do you have pills or shots or anything?" he asked gently.

"Pills," she said. "In my bag."

He put her down and got the pills from the bag, "Here, try to sit enough to swallow then I'll stay until it's better okay?"

She nodded and sat up and took her pills, then she lay back down and curled into a ball.

"How bad is the cancer?"

"Stage 3," she whispered into his leg. "And it's progressing fast because I won't do chemo"

"That stops when we get home," he replied.

"What?" she asked.

"The chemo, you start it as soon as I get you home, team work, right?"

"Frank, we live in separate houses, even separate towns," she reminded him. He was being ridiculous.

"I have a car and a spare room," he reminded her. "You think I'm going to your funeral you're wrong."

"I'm not doing chemo," she said "And besides I'm married and so are you, I'm not leaving my husband"

"He's not here," Frank replied. "When you need him he's not here, he's letting you get away with this lunacy."

"Because I told him if he didn't like it leave. I'm not doing chemo, I won't do it."

"Why not?" he pressed. "You want to be dead this time next year"

"I'm not going to get sick and lose my hair," she said. "It's not worth it."

"It is worth it, you're life...you have so much more to give, a grandson, more grandchildren maybe...Denise...you have to be so miserable..."

"I am but I won't do chemo," she repeated. She would not let him convince her. "I won't have my son ashamed of me"

"What?" Frank was very confused. "Denise you sure it's bone and not brain that's insane!"

She rolled her eyes.

"Why are you...okay you agree to chemo or I go back and tell Jeremy right now and I mean it. If Robert can't or won't care for you then I will"

"I don't need anyone to take care of me," she said defensively. "I can take care of myself!"

He gave up, "Just lay, I'll sit until the pain goes."

She nodded, an hour passed but the pills didn't seem to do anything and she was getting weaker from the pain.

"Dee, let me get Tanya. She's a doctor she can't say anything to anyone," he soothed. "Please honey. You can't breathe right."

"No, I don't want them knowing," she murmured.

"Denise, you need more medicine, I can't let you suffer like this. It's Tanya or I get you over my shoulder and we go to the ER and you spend Christmas in a hospital."

"It'll go away, just stay with me." She was falling asleep from exhaustion.

"I'll stay with you no matter what," he whispered. "What if you lay against me for support?"

She nodded and reached for him, she didn't understand this but she wanted him, she didn't want Robert, she wanted Frank.

He got on his side and eased her back to him, "Remember when you had the boy and he was laying on your sciatic nerve how much it hurt? And I'd lay with you like this...remember what you said?"

She shook her head; she was in too much pain to talk.

"You said I was better medicine that any of the other stuff they had you try," he reminded her. "We'd lay this way or sit in the bath or you'd lie on the floor on your back, remember?"

She smiled and nodded "Yeah."

"Maybe the tub might help you," he offered as the door slowly opened and Jeremy poked his head inside.

"You okay mom?"he asked.

"Mom's feeling a little fluish," Frank lied. "And the great prize she refers to as a husband bailed on her. I've got it, go back to the party."

"You sure?" he asked.

"I'm sure, go and keep everyone else out of here until the headache dies down, go on."

He nodded and left the room and closed the door.

Jordana got up when Jeremy came back, "Where's your dad? He okay?"

"Yeah, he's with mom. She's not feeling well," he replied.

"Oh well, I'll go and give him a break then? Where's her husband?" Jordana tolerated the friendship but she hated the underlying emotion that sizzled whenever her husband and his ex wife were in a room together.

"He bailed apparently," he replied and rolled his eyes. His mother was alone a lot.

"You Dad only got out of the hospital two weeks ago he doesn't need all this," she sighed.

"I know," he replied, and he agreed. "But there's nothing we can do, he won't leave her if she's sick."

"Tanya, can you take a look at Denise, please. I'm worried about Frank catching anything respiratory."

"Sure," she said and went to take a look at Denise.

"Dee, please," Frank was begging her to let him get Tanya. "Denise you can't breathe."

"What's going on?"Tanya asked knowing there was more than the "flu" happening in that room.

"Dee?" He didn't want to overrule her but she had to have help.

She shook her head.

"She's in a lot of pain," Frank sighed. "Headache and bones just achy but she's never been good with pain."

"Okay, let me check her over."

Denise knew the cat was coming out of the bag then but she just let it go. Tanya didn't say anything; she went to her back, got a syringe of opiates and injected the medicine. "You'll sleep awhile and tomorrow we'll figure out a dosing schedule. Try to rest."

"I can't stay in here long, Jeremy will know something's wrong," she protested, she was already so exhausted.

"Jeremy is so busy with the baby," Tanya soothed. "You'll sleep and I'll back up Frank's very bad lie about you having the flu, it's fine."

She nodded and tried to get some sleep.

The drugs knocked her out and Frank was able to leave her side and return to the gathering.

"She okay?"Jordana asked

"Asleep for now," he sighed. "She doesn't get sick often but when she does." He wrapped his arms around Jordana and held tight.

She was very tense and a little shaky.

"You feeling all right love?" he asked. "You look a little pale."

"Yeah, just a headache."

"Want to lie down or take a stroll with the little man here?" he picked up his grandson and tickled his belly. "We can take him to see Santa."

"Yeah, let's do that, I hope he isn't afraid of him," she said laughing. So many times she'd seen the babies on Santa's laps screaming.

"Jeremy was terrified of him," Frank replied already laughing. "Screamed his head off, yanked off Santa's beard, then took off naked though the mall only after kicking and elf, Denise as so embarrassed."

Jordana burst out laughing, she could picture that and it was hysterical.

"He's not mobile yet, so let's go."

Jordana agreed with a smile and they packed up Jake for a trip to Santa Claus.