“That’s not good. He sounds so much worse now.”
“Yeah. The doctor is nice, he made a house call and checked them and it’s all good otherwise, but the COPD isn’t something that gets better. It can be managed better for a while, but it always gets worse and eventually the lack of oxygen starts to affect the organs and….”
Mark grimaced. “That can’t be easy.”
“No, it’s not. In fact, Dr. Clapton said that patients with COPD don’t actually die by suffocating which is what most people think and are afraid of. They die of organ failure. Their bodies just shut down.”
The fact that Francis could speak of it so calmly spoke volumes of how professional he was, despite being all but part of the Graham family by now.
Mark didn’t know what to say, so they continued back outside and went to sit with Henrietta on the porch. She looked at them over her book and smiled sadly.
“I don’t think he has long,” she said, her tone almost matter-of-fact. “Once he starts napping more and more, we know it’s getting worse.”
Francis had told Mark it was Charles’s second nap of the day.
“I wish there was something I could say to make it better,” Mark told her and reached over to squeeze her hand gently.
She smiled. “Thank you, Mark. I’m afraid getting old and sick is just a reality we have to deal with.”
“So, what are you reading today?” Francis asked, pointing at the cover of her book.
Henrietta chuckled. “This is one of those pirate romances Moira loves. She sent me a box of her old books in the spring and I’ve been going through them one by one.”
“Handsome man on the cover,” Mark said, feeling a weird sort of rush to be able to say such thing.
Henrietta turned the cover toward herself and frowned thoughtfully. “I think I prefer my Charles.” She then smirked. “Although, he never did have such luscious flowy locks.”
* * * *
When Sheriff Newman heard that Francis’s friends were coming to town for a week, he insisted on Mark taking that time off because he’d never used his vacation days.
“It’s nice that you’ll be here,” Francis said as they made the beds in the freshly cleaned guestrooms.
“Really?” Mark couldn’t help but to blurt out.
“Of course. Besides, I’ve felt a bit awkward occasionally when I’ve been hanging out with them. They’re all couples, right?” Francis fluffed a pillow and put it in place. He glanced at Mark and smiled. “This time and from now onwards, I’ll have someone next to me.”
Mark flushed with contentment. Then he cleared his throat. “Lotte is due late August and I know Jason wants to take time off once the baby arrives, so this is perfect timing.”
“Ah, right. I saw her in town the other day and she looked radiant. She didn’t think so, but I mean, pregnant women rarely see their own beauty.”
They moved to the master bedroom that Francis was finally starting to call his room. He’d been living there for a week now and his friends would arrive the next day, but he’d confessed it still felt weird to be there.
“It’s not like they’re using the room, Francis,” Mark said when Francis stood in the middle of the room, looking at the old wallpaper and the spots where a couple of pictures had hung on the wall before being moved to the downstairs bedroom.
“I know. It’s just weird.” Francis went and sat on the edge of the bed. “It feels like I’m living with my parents and can’t wait to get their room so I’ve shoved them downstairs while I wait for them to die.”
Mark snorted in surprise. “Well that’s not morbid at all. Or accurate.”
Francis rolled his eyes. “Iknowthat.”
“In any case, are we done with the preparations?” Mark asked, walking to stand in between Francis’s legs. He leaned down for a kiss.
“Yeah, I think we’re good. They said they’d rent a car from the airport for the duration. They’re all pitching in so it’s the smartest way to get all six of them here. And even though they’ll be in Rhinelander around midnight they’ll just drive through, because it makes no sense to pay for a night for all of them.”
“The drive isn’t much more than an hour anyway, so they should be good,” Mark agreed.
“I can’t believe they’ll be here soon.” Francis did a little wiggle and reminded Mark of an excited little kid.
