“But…” Experience told her to shut up. She didn’t need to kill a sale by arguing with him. She clamped her mouth closed and swallowed her questions. Sam was an adult; he knew what he wanted. Far be it from her to stand in his way.

“I trust you to be fair,” he continued, adding the pertinent details to the blank check. “How much should I fill in for the amount?”

—

Hours later Marjorie was still completely bemused. She wandered around her apartment, moving from room to room, listless and bored and, at the same time, excited. She’d seen Sam again, and even if he had come into the showroom to buy a car and not just to see her, she was thrilled. At the same time, she regretted the encounter. Knowing that other patients fell in love with him had been reassuring, but to her dismay she’d learned that the attraction she’d experienced toward Sam hadn’t lessened with time. It had been weeks since she’d last seen him, and he looked better to her than ever. All the emotions she’d struggled so valiantly to bury had surfaced the minute she’d walked into the showroom to discover him standing there. All the pleasure of seeing him again had returned to remind her how strongly Sam Bretton appealed to her.

—

When Sam walked back into Dixon Motors late the following morning, every word that Marjorie had rehearsed so carefully, every scenario she’d spent hours plotting, fell by the wayside. All she could see was the gentle man who had sat at her bedside and held her hand.

“Hello, Sam.” It was amazing that she’d been able to utter those few words. She was trembling inside. No longer an inept hospital patient, she was a woman who knew what she liked—and Sam Bretton was it. The thought terrified her.

“Hello again.”

“Everything’s ready.” She straightened the French cuffs of her sleeves, bemoaning the fact that virtually everything she owned was blue, black, or gray. It wasn’t any wonder dates were few and far between. Marjorie swallowed her self-doubts and gestured toward the customer-service counter. “Lydia will need you to fill out a few forms.”

Sam looked mildly surprised, but he followed Marjorie anyways. Lydia greeted him with a wide smile, and Sam was left with the impression that he’d done something very right to have gained her undying gratitude.