'Hi everyone. I'm very sorry for the rush job on part two of this wonderful story. I was in the process of waiting for and then reviewing my first book that should be out before summer.
Thank for your feedback good and bad on both parts.'
L.A. Wicker
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'Once upon at time, there was a young maiden who lived all alone. Dreaming only of a tall handsome prince that would come and love her, taking her to live in his big castle in a far away land.' Leona read from the book watching each of the children's faces and felt two big hands gently touch her shoulders.
'Would a big house on the beach in Miami do?' Dave asked as he slowly moved beside Leona. 'And instead of a prince, would a lonely football player be okay?' He asked moving in front of her and fell on his knees. 'I'm so sorry!' He sobbed laying his head on her lap. 'Please forgive me,' he cried harder than before. 'I can't eat or sleep. All I do is think of you day and night!' He sniffed back more tears. 'I'm dying without you!' Dave sobbed harder enjoying the feel of Leona touching him.
Tears ran down Leona's pretty face as she saw her one true love. Her hand reached to caress his hair from his face. 'Anyplace with you would be just fine!' She said as the room filled with the nurses and staff. Everyone loved Leona, they had heard stories about her dating a big football star in college, and now here he was.
'Well, in that case,' he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. Gently placing it in her tiny hand he asked, 'Will you marry me?'
Everyone in the room froze. You could hear a pin drop as everyone waited for her reply. A smile filled her beautiful face and tears of happiness ran from her eyes. She carefully opened the box and saw the biggest ring she had ever seen in her life. 'YES!' Leona yelled out hugging Dave around his neck.
Everyone cheered out for Leona. She had been so lonely the last year without Dave and now at last he came to claim the pretty woman. One by one, each of the nurses and a few doctors came to congratulate Dave and Leona.
'Well, I guess this means you'll be leaving us and going off to be a very rich young lady?' A tall older man asked Leona as he gave her a loving hug. He didn't want to say it, but with the hospital in such need of money, this was most likely the last story that the small, handicapped children would ever have read to them. It was a small town and the people there wanted jobs, not to volunteer their time.
Leona saw the hurt in Doctor Brown's eyes and knew what her leaving would mean to her many little friends she had made reading the stories each day. 'You won't be able to replace me will you?' She asked as her tears of happiness turned to tears of sadness and ran down her pretty face.
'Don't you worry about it. If God wants us to find someone like you, he'll send them.' Doctor Brown said wiping the tears from Leona's face.
Mandy moved to also hug Leona. 'I can do it until the baby comes and maybe even afterwards. Don't worry about it.' Mandy said, hoping Leona would believe that she would be able to help after her and Ken's baby came. Deep down, Mandy knew she would be back at her crummy job waiting tables in less than a week after the baby came.
Dave was down on his knees signing anything he could for every kid in the room when he looked up and saw Leona crying. He quickly jumped up, 'What's wrong baby?' He asked hugging her sobbing body to his.
'It's... It's the hospital!' She cried harder as the only man that she had ever loved held her safely in his strong, loving arms. 'They don't have any money to hire someone to read for the kids and nobody will be willing to do it for free, like I did.' Leona cried enjoying the feel of Dave's big hands caressing her slender back.
Dave hugged her while his hands gentle touched her back. 'Let me go talk with the Doctor and see if there's anything I can do for them,' he replied thinking of all the money in his bank account.
'Okay.' Leona said as she softly kissed Dave's face, hoping he knew some way to help the small hospital. She loved everyone there, most of all the small children and would hate to think of them not having their story time. It was time only time that their painful little lives were filled with joy and sometimes laughter.
'Can we go talk someplace?' Dave asked looking to Doctor Brown. Dave knew he could really help the hospital. He had some twenty million in the bank with lots more on the way. There would be no way that he and Leona would ever spend so much money in their lifetime.
The doctor gave Dave a quick look and pointed to a small room. Once inside he looked to Dave and asked, 'This whole town is about to go under, I don't even think if you helped with fund raising events it would really matter much. No one has any money to donate since the factory closed down,' he said with disappointment in his voice.
Dave just gave him a smile as he reached into his pocket. Dave pulled out his checkbook and began to write. 'Whom should I make this out to?' He asked with a grin waiting for the doctor to reply.
'Hunting Creek Hospital for Kids.' The doctor replied looking to Dave wondering how he could tell the kind hearted young man that it would take at least five or six million dollars to keep the hospital open.
Dave handed the doctor the check. 'Well, this should really help you out and when I get back to Miami I'm getting more of the team to help. Most of them like helping small places like this. They can come and really see the good things that are being done, not like just sending a check and never knowing if you're really helping or not.' Dave said giving the doctor a firm slap on his back and he turned to go back to the kids.
The doctor opened the folded check and fell against a wall when he saw how much Dave had given the hospital. He walked from the room with a white face. 'Ladies and gentlemen!' He said in a loud, excited voice. 'We need to give a very big thanks to Miss Leona and her wonderful friend Dave Gannon. He has just given us a check that will cover 'all' of our operating cost for the next five years. I have never seen what ten million dollars looks like until today!' He said seeing the shocked and excited faces of the small staff of the hospital.
Loud cheers filled the room as each person thanked Dave for his generous check. They were all happy for his help. It would mean the small kids would be staying where they lived and not being sent to the other children's hospital in the city, plus they would keep their jobs.
Leona stood with a shocked look on her beautiful face. She walked towards Dave. 'Do you have that much money?' She asked looking into his eyes. 'I can't believe how much you gave them,' she added feeling tears of happiness running down her face. 'Now they can hire Mandy to read to them.' Leona said when Ken and Mandy came to thank Dave for his gift.
'No!' Dave replied with a firm voice shaking his head. 'I'm telling the doctor not to hire either one of them,' he added seeing a hurt fill all three of his friends' faces. 'You can't work here. It would be to long of a drive from Miami every day,' he said with a big smile trying to hug his three best friends.
