Arranging Love by Nina Pierce

hire nurses to be here with you.” Meghan sat forward in the chair, feeling like the suggestion had come out of nowhere. Taking care of their father had been stressful on their mother, but this seemed too drastic a measure.
    “Well, Alice, I think you need family time to talk this over.” Doc McCarty stood as if dismissing all their arguments. He smoothed his palms over his dress pants and picked at a piece of lint on his suit jacket. “This isn’t a decision you can make right away.”
    Alice stood and walked around the coffee table strewn with tea cups and partially eaten donuts. “I have the list of numbers and the brochures you brought,” she said, pulling Doc’s coat from the front closet next to the piano. Alice handed it to him, her voice catching in her throat. “The girls and I will certainly think about everything.”
    “Rest isn’t going to be enough after this last attack, Alice. John simply needs more care than you can provide.” The disapproving smile he flashed Meghan and Julie was unmistakable.
    Alice cleared her throat. “Yes, well, the girls are my saving grace, Gordon.” She laid a reassuring hand on Julie’s arm. “I don’t know what I would have done without them all these months. They’ve been the solid rock supporting me.”
    “You’re blessed, Alice.” Doc McCarty’s voice cracked as he wrapped a woolen scarf around the emotion clogging his throat. Obviously, he was still wounded from his son’s murder. Meghan couldn’t imagine going through life without any family as Doc McCarty had to do now.
    “Just tell me you’ll think about it. It would be best for all concerned.” He leaned over and placed a chaste kiss on Alice’s cheek. “He’s my friend too. I only want what’s best for all involved.” And with that he left.
    Alice bent and began gathering dishes. Both women stood and helped.
    “You can’t honestly be thinking this is the right thing for Daddy, can you, Mum?” Meghan’s voice shook. She didn’t want to think that her father wouldn’t pull through this time.
    Her mother stood, tears filling her eyes. “Meghan, it was only a suggestion.” A soft sob escaped. “I don’t know why we can’t help him. He’s just getting so sick.” Meghan set down the cups and wrapped her mother protectively in her arms. “I can’t loose him. I just can’t.”
    The kitchen phone rang, and Julie slipped out to answer it.
    “Daddy’s a strong man. It’s just not his time. I feel it.”
    “Oh, I want to believe you’re right. But he just isn’t getting any better.”
    Julie came back in the room, her face ashen. “That was the doctor from Bangor Hospital . She needs to see us right away.”
    * * * *
    The ride to the hospital had been excruciatingly long. Though Julie had broken every speed limit between Delmont and Bangor, the miles ticked slowly by. None of them had spoken, each imagining what grave news the doctors would deliver upon their arrival.
    Now, Meghan stood against the wall, huddled next to Peter, grateful to have his arm holding her up. The pain behind her eyes had quieted to a dull ache, but her stomach still churned unpleasantly. Whether it was from the exhaust of the car or nervous concern, she couldn’t be sure.
    Deirdre leaned on the window by the door, her heavy work boot poised behind her on the wall. Nervously picking her nails, she stared at Julie. Being the oldest, she stood next to their mother, her arm around the woman’s waist, both comfort and support. Alice Tilling looked small and frail hunched over the hospital bed talking quietly to her husband.
    No one had any idea why they had been summoned—least of all her father.
    “Oh, good, you’re all here.” The doctor’s white lab coat fluttered behind her as she swooped into the room, pausing at the foot of the bed to retrieve the chart before taking up position on the far side of the bed. “Good morning, John. I’m Dr. Dixon, Chief of Staff here at Bangor Hospital .” She opened