May I--Deleted Scene (Chapter 42) : A Little Help From My Friend

*This was meant to be a scene at the very end of this chapter. It's in draft form and is between Gillian and Corbin. 

Besides her: Cal Corbin and Emily where the only one who knew about Sophie. It had come to mind that she should tell Alec, since they had shared once shared custody of her. But since they had divorced and went their separate ways, she decided she would go there if it ever came to it.

Right now, she had a lot to do, in preparing Sophie to come home tomorrow. Taking the sling off, she put it down by her purse and carried all the clothes into the empty guest room upstairs.

Although she had taken great care to keep this room clean, it still had a bunch of paintings that she hadn’t figured out where to hang yet, leaning against the wall; a queen sized bed that had come with the house; an old desk that she kept her laptop on. Now this room was to become something else, and she couldn’t wait until she got back up to speed to create something beautiful for her daughter.

However, she didn’t know where to begin. It had been almost three years since that she had searched for a bed, bedding, toys, a stroller, and everything that a child would need when living in a new home.  And tomorrow she would finally be home—hopefully for good this time.

But before either one of them could both enjoy it—they had a couple funerals to attend; a house to mend; a complicated love relationship to figure out; a case of PTSD and heart problems to get rid of; a guest to stay with them; a room to put together, and a business to continue.  And if Gillian hadn’t thought about needing a vacation before: she definitely felt like she needed one now.

As she sat down at her computer, she thought about putting Emily to work while she was here; since her shoulder would take a lot longer to heal, now that it had been hurt twice in one week.

The room was painted a cream color, by the previous owner of the house. But as she was looked around the room, she thought back to Sophie’s bedroom. It was clear that by the way her bedroom was arranged that little girl was loved.

Walking back downstairs, Gillian reached for her phone in her purse. She searched through her contacts before dialing. It rang a couple times and then she heard his voice on the line.

“This is Corbin.”

“Hey Corbin, its Gillian Foster.”

“Hey Gillian. Is everything okay with Sophie?”

“She’s fine, but I was actually wondering if you could help me with something.

“Sure. What can I help you with?”

“I stopped by the house to grab some of Sophie’s things, but was wondering if you knew of anyone that can help me get her bed, and the rest of her toys.”

“Things that are familiar to her.”

“Yes. I thought that instead of buying new things that she already has, that I could bring them here. I can’t carry a whole lot without putting a lot of pressure on my shoulder.”

“You shouldn’t hurt even more than you have.” He made a humming noise. “Let me call around and see if I can get something together, and I’ll call you back later tonight?”

“That sounds great, thank you.”

“You know, you should really be the one that deserves a thank you.  For everything that you’re doing for Ava and Sophie—But like I said, I’ll ask around and see what I can come  up with.” A pause. “If you need anything in the meantime, don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Thanks, I will.”

“One more thing. Before my wife died, I never believed the phrase: it takes a village to raise a child. I suddenly realized that I no longer had her around to help with our daughter and newborn son. I was juggling full-time work and single parenthood. Don’t be afraid to let people in.

“I’ll take that into consideration, thanks.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll get back to you on that help.”

“Alright.”

“Have a good night, Gillian.”

“You too.” And with that she hung up the phone.