I wanted to point out that she’d already closed off the possibility of taking a kidney from one of our children, but bit my tongue, having already been called out for not letting him finish his thoughts.
A sparkle entered his eyes. “Ready to hear what I’m thinking?”
“On bated breath.” I couldn’t refrain from uttering the sarcastic comment. My patience was wearing thin, and I hadn’t been kidding earlier when I told the doctor I was tired.
“Typically, the Foundation grants funds to already established charities and organizations . . .” A few years into their marriage, Mac and Aspen had decided to funnel a large portion of Mac’s massive fortune into the creation of the Forever Freckles Foundation, which supported worthy causes around the globe, with Bex Grant at the helm. “What if, instead, we use our resources to start a nationwide campaign to find a living donor match for Daisy? If we’re successful, maybe we can do the same for more people out there waiting for a transplant. Pay it forward, you know?”
Pay it forward. Those might as well have been the magic words, and a part of me wondered if old Buck Livingston was speaking through my daughter’s husband, reminding me to accept help when I needed it so I could turn around and provide assistance when I was in a position to do so.
“You know what, Mac? I think that’s a great idea.”
In the span of a single day, my son-in-law had not only saved my life, but he might have saved my wife’s too.
I’d never been more glad Aspen had needed a fake boyfriend all those Christmases ago.
Chapter 33
Jett
Age 67
September
Ourentirefamilyandhalf the town were donning green shirts featuring theDonor for Daisylogo.
When the community discovered Mac’s plans to actively find a live kidney donor for my wife, they were the first to step up and volunteer to get tested. Since Daisy wasn’t a Rust Canyon local, unfortunately, she lacked the extended family that most folks around these parts boasted, so there hadn’t been a match among them.
But that didn’t mean their support ended when we hit that particular dead end. Today, we were gathered in Oklahoma City, where we would be canvassing businesses and raising awareness for living organ donation. Mac had not only secured national press coverage but also organized a meeting with the governor, who would lend his support to our endeavor.
With the spotlight on our search, we became more optimistic than ever that our efforts would result in finding the perfect donor for Daisy.
The highlight of my day wasn’t meeting our state’s highest elected official. No, it was watching my grandchildren speak to the cameras, telling anyone who would listen how much they loved their grandma and listing all the reasons why. Honestly, they might as well have been our secret weapon. Who could resist an adorable kid gushing about how much their grandparent meant to them? I had no doubt their pleas would convince even more people to get tested to see if they were a match.
The waiting game might still be hell, but at least now we were doing something about it. And I was convinced this was the spark we’d needed all along.
A match was out there somewhere; I could feel it in my bones.
December
The whole family was just sitting down to Christmas Eve dinner at Tripp and Penny’s before we headed to church when Daisy’s cell phone rang in her purse near the entryway.
My wife glanced over her shoulder, a frown pulling the corners of her lips down. “Who in the world could that be?”
Everyone we knew would be doing the same thing as we were at this exact moment—sharing a meal with their loved ones before attending the candlelight service. That realization had me shoving back from the table, heart racing as I hustled across the house to retrieve her phone.
My breath caught in my throat when I saw the name on the Caller ID. There was no hesitation when I answered on Daisy’s behalf. “Dr. Pierce?”
“Hey, Jett.” His tone was jovial. “I sure hope you’re with Daisy because, boy, do I have the Christmas gift for her.”
“Please tell me that means what I think it does.”
“Just got a call that there’s a kidney that’s a match for Daisy, and we’ve sent someone on the transplant team to retrieve it. We need her to come in right away, so we can get her prepped for surgery.”
My knees nearly buckled. Daisy was getting a new kidney. This nightmare was finally over.
But something he said gave me pause.
“You need her to come in tonight?”
