Author's note: Thank you for continuing to read the story. Posted comments and reviews are most welcomed.
Lee awakened at 2 AM and got up quietly as to not disturb Amanda, although, he was afraid that she would wake up anyway. He walked downstairs and got Amanda a glass of milk out of the refrigerator and got her pain pills. He then just as quietly walked back upstairs and gently lifted her forward. "Lee?"
"Hi beautiful, I didn't want to wake you, but it's time for your next dose of medicine."
"Hello," Amanda said, as she sat up and leaned against Lee.
"How is your pain? With scale from one to ten; ten being the worse, what is your pain level?" Lee asked.
"About a five," Amanda replied.
"Let's see if we can get it even lower, this should help," Lee said as he handed Amanda the pills and the glass of milk. "Do you need anything else?" He asked once she was done.
"No," Amanda answered.
"I'll be right back," Lee said, and then quickly ran downstairs, rinsed out the glass; returned upstairs and pulled Amanda into his arms. "Now, let's go back to sleep."
"Okay," Amanda said as she snuggled even closer against Lee.
Lee wrapped his arms around Amanda as she placed her head on his shoulder. She closed her eyes and relished in the feel of Lee's hands running softly across her arms as he softly kissed her hair while she gently caressed the back of his hand. Amanda inhaled deeply as the rhythm of his hand across her skin began to lull her closer to sleep. Lee too closed his eyes and let out a shallow breath as his mind and body became completely relaxed under the touch of Amanda's hands. Before long, they both had fallen asleep.
/
Sunday afternoon, as the taxi pulled up to the house; Dotty noticed that Amanda's car was not parked in the driveway. She remembered that Lee's car was at his apartment, so obviously, no one was at home. Dotty had phoned last night and left a message saying that they didn't need to pick her up from the train station, that she'd take a cab home. She knew that the boys weren't expected til later in the day and she had wanted Lee and Amanda to have as much time together alone as possible. She'd expected to get home sooner, but she'd made a stop and was just now getting back herself. So by this time, she had expected that Amanda and Lee would be home with the boys back from their trip.
As she walked into the house she found complete and utter silence, just as she'd expected. She placed her bags down and as she walked in further, noticed that the boys' bags were placed haphazardly in the family room. That was certainly not like Amanda. She would've made the boys put their things in their bedroom even if they hadn't unpacked yet.
As she closed the door and moved further into the house, she noticed that there were dishes in the sink, a few glasses and plates. That also wasn't like Amanda; she was always particular about rinsing dishes and putting things away in the dishwasher. Just as her mind began to wander, she noticed a note written in Amanda's penmanship, taped to the refrigerator that said: See the answering machine. Dotty pressed the button on the answering machine. The message said: Our boss, Mr. Melrose was able to get us tickets to the game. And Lee's apartment isn't ready yet, I'll explain later. And don't worry about dinner; we'll bring something back. Game? Which game? Dotty thought to herself as she shook her head. Well, she'd probably find that out later.
"Well, halleluiah," Dotty said out loud as she clapped her hands. "As far as she was concerned, Lee could stay with them forever, starting now!"
Dotty glanced at the clock. Well, she thought to herself, I guess I have some time on my hand. With that in mind, she picked up her suitcase and headed towards the stairs.