Only You (Love In Montana Book 6)

It was evening when Sawyer woke up. The sun had set and he could hear voices coming from his mom's room. Looking at his wristwatch, he realized that he had slept for nearly five hours! He got up and freshened himself and went to his mom's room.

A doctor had arrived who was busy checking his mom. Antonio and Carlos were standing at the foot of the bed and watching with worried expressions on their faces. 

"What happened, Antonio?" Asked Sawyer, looking at everyone with concern.

"Lara had an anxiety attack in her sleep. She was already suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder along with heart and pressure problems arising out of anxiety and stress. We couldn't wake her up from sleep so we had to summon Dr. Ferrer," said Antonio in a whisper.

"Is she okay now?" Asked Sawyer, seeing her mom look blankly at everyone.

"No, she still hasn't recovered. We might have to admit her to the hospital again," said Antonio. Sawyer was too worried that she might have deteriorated because of him.

"Did mom's condition worsen because of me?" He asked Antonio.

"No, son. Whenever she remembers those years of torture she gets these attacks. They worsen with time and we have to get her admitted for psychiatric treatment. That pendant you wear might have reminded her of Romano," said Antonio. Sawyer agreed and felt guilty for not taking it off before coming to meet his mom.

"I should have taken it off before coming here," he told Antonio, feeling bad to be the cause of his mom's anxiety attack.

"Then she wouldn't have recognized you, son," Antonio pointed out. He was right. It was because of the pendant that his mom had recognized him.

The doctor got up and came towards them. "I'm sorry Mr Cruz, you'd have to admit her. I can't revive her here," said the doctor.

"Can't we talk to her? Maybe it'll help?" Asked Sawyer, hopefully.

The doctor looked at him with curiosity. "I've never seen you here before?" He asked Sawyer.

"I'm her son, Sawyer Wilson, " Sawyer explained, extending his hand for a shake. The doctor's eyes sparkled with hope as he shook his hands with him.

"Right then. You can try talking to her. It might work, " he said, hopefully. "Although, even during her attacks, Antonio is the only person she responds to but this time she didn't wake up even after he tried," informed the doctor. Antonio and Sawyer walked towards Lara while Carlos led the doctor outside to give them privacy.

"Just call me if things go out of hand," said the doctor. Antonio nodded and they closed the door after going outside.

"Lara, it's me, your Antonio. Can you see me? You know I love you very much, right? Won't you talk to me?" Asked Antonio softly, his warm hands touching her face gently, stroking her hair like a child's. Lara stared at him wordlessly.

"You're safe, you're at home with me. Can you see where you are? In our room. I'll not let anything happen to you, Lara. You're safe here. I'll protect you with my life," he said to her, stroking her cheek and hair. Sawyer watched, hypnotized. There was a lot of power in true love, it could do wonders, he had heard. Today he was able to witness it too.

"Wake up and see your Antonio. Look at me, talk to me. I've come back from work. Won't you have your dinner with me? I can't eat without you, Lara, you know that, don't you?" He asked. Lara closed her eyes and nodded. Sawyer heaved a sigh of relief. He was dumbstruck by the deep love that Antonio and his mom shared. It was a selfless kind of love, very different from what other couples have between them. Antonio had selflessly given up nearly eleven years of his life for Lara.

At last Lara opened her eyes. "Who am I Lara?" Asked Antonio, kneeling beside her, tenderly holding her hands in his.

Lara touched his cheek with her weak trembling hand. "Antonio," she whispered. Antonio smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Yes, your Antonio, " he whispered back. Lara drew him to herself, her hands going around his neck and they clung to one another. Sawyer quietly slipped out of the room to give them a moment to themselves. He was happy that she had regained consciousness and didn't need to go to the hospital.

Carlos came up to him to enquire after his mom. "She's come out of her attack. She spoke to Antonio, " he said with a smile. Carlos too smiled with relief.

"Then I'll release Dr Ferrer right away," he said, walking away. Sawyer went back to his room and sat down on the bed, looking out of the window into the still, dark night. Seeing the love between Antonio and his mom, he couldn't help but think about his Renée. A day had passed and yet he hadn't called at home to inform. His Renée might still be crying for him. He would talk to Antonio and call at home. If he had his mobile phone, he would have already spoken to her.

After a few minutes, Carlos came to summon him for dinner. "Antonio has fed your mom and ate his dinner with her. It's best not to disturb her tonight. Tomorrow morning, you can meet her, Sawyer. Hope you understand," said Carlos.

"Of course I understand, " said Sawyer.

"Let's go to the dining room," said Carlos leading Sawyer to their cozy dining room.

Carlos pulled a chair out for him and they sat down. A maid brought their food and Sawyer realized how hungry he had been. They talked about the ranch and Antonio's work. It seemed that they needed to earn more to run the farm as well as his mom's medical expenses. Added to that, they had the debt amount.

"Why don't you go for plantation farming? It'll earn you more, right?" Asked Sawyer. "You could start a commercial diary farm too. It has a lot of potential. I could help you with my experience, " said Sawyer.

Carlos's face lit up at the suggestion. "It'll cost a lot. We don't have money to invest right now," said Carlos.

"I'd like to check your dairy farm first and then we can plan how to generate the cost from the existing farm," said Sawyer. Carlos looked excited.

"How many people stay in this house?" Asked Sawyer.

"Only the three of us. And now you're there too. There's a full-time maid for Mamá. She does the cooking too," said Carlos.

"You could turn this into a homestay. It's so close to Mexico City, people can stay here for a day or two to get a feel of staying in the farm. I'll set up a website for you and you could promote it. That'll earn you a lot of extra money," said Sawyer.

"Right, we can have a talk with Antonio tomorrow. Actually he's so busy with Mamá, that he doesn't get the time to think and plan," said Carlos. Sawyer nodded. With the kind of love Antonio felt for Lara, it was clear that he took very good care of her. In fact, they didn't need him to live with them. He would set up their business and ensure that they were earning well and leave for Montana. His mom was in good hands and she didn't need him beside her for twenty-four hours. He had to think of his Renée too. He had his dinner and went to bed, happy with his plan.

The next morning, Antonio wasn't up yet and Sawyer and Carlos went to the dairy farm to check on how to generate income. "We have currently ten pure Holsteins. We produce around 100 litres milk daily," said Carlos.

"Oh? But that's too less. With a short-term target of 30 litres at the rate of 2.4 milkings per cow, your output should be 300 litres per day," said Sawyer.

They checked the cow feed. The type of silage was excellent, the reproduction system was great. "Do you have a vet to look after their reproduction cycle?" Asked Sawyer.

"Yes, we have a visiting vet," said Carlos.

"I think you need to check why the milk production is nearly 150 litres short," suggested Sawyer.

Carlos started his investigation while Sawyer returned back to the house. His mom was awake when he went into her room. Antonio was ready to go out to the farm.

"Oh there you are, son. I was looking for you. Where did you go off to?" Asked Antonio, looking quite happy. Sawyer told him where he went.

"You think someone's stealing nearly half the total milk output of our farm?" He asked Sawyer.

Sawyer shrugged. "Could be," he said.

"I'll go and check with Carlos. Will you stay here with your mom?" He asked. Sawyer nodded.

"Mom? How are you now?" Asked Sawyer, going beside his mom. She looked fresh and happier than last night. She nodded with a smile on her face.

"I'm better. Did you eat breakfast?" She asked him. Sawyer shook his head.

"I'll ask Juana to get your breakfast here," said Antonio, before leaving the room.

"Sit with me Sawyer, " asked his mom. Sawyer pulled a chair and sat down beside her. She seemed almost normal and in her senses. "I want to talk to you," she said, softly.