“I’ll have to check in with my mom and see if she has anything I need to do.”
“Tell her I’m seriously injured and need you,” he said. “If my dad likes me even a little bit, he’ll make Sean work at the pub and we’ll be alone.”
“Are you going to behave?” she asked.
“I’ll do whatever you say. But we could be alone.”
“How long is it going to take for that hand to heal?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “We can use it to our advantage. Want to go out Friday night? Obviously I don’t have baseball...”
“I have to babysit Friday night and till about five on Saturday afternoon. Then I’m free. I have to clear it with my parents, though.”
“Tell them I’m pathetic and need you.”
She giggled a little. Then she kissed his cheek. “I gotta go. Can you handle the trash with one hand?”
“Got it,” he said, lifting the bag.
She took her Diet Coke and skipped out the door.
“Thank you!” he called out. And she smiled and waved.
He closed the door and leaned against it. “Thank you, God!” he said. She was the hottest, sweetest, coolest girl in his school. And she was his.
He backed up to the couch and flopped down on it. He did not sleep. His hand miraculously did not hurt. At. All.
Experience is the teacher of all things.
—Julius Caesar
LEIGH WOKE UP and looked out the window at the heavy rain. She smiled as she remembered what Sully had told her when she’d asked him when he thought it would be hamburger day. “First really wet rainy day when I can’t work outside,” he said.
Knowing he got up even earlier than she did, she called Sully. “Can we meet at Shandon’s Pub and will you let me buy you that hamburger today?” she asked.
“Perfect. That’s where I like to get my beef. I’m not going to waste my special day on meat loaf at the diner.”
“Noon?” she asked.
“That’ll do,” Sully said.
At fifteen minutes prior to noon Leigh put her raincoat over her scrubs. With her wallet and cell phone in her pocket and umbrella in hand, she told Eleanor where she was going. “Call if you get anything you can’t handle,” she said. Then she walked down the street in the rain. From within every business doorway she passed, someone yelled, “Hey, Doc!” A couple of cars tooted their horns and she waved. This little town seemed to sparkle in the rain. It was clean and busy and shop owners left their doors open in a welcoming fashion unless it was freezing outside.
She was glad she’d given Helen her support in selling the house. She missed her aunt, but if she’d been working in Chicago, Helen wouldn’t have seen much of her, anyway. Her hours had been brutal and Helen was often away. Helen had been clear—those tough winters were in her rearview mirror. She was passing through Chicago for just a week and got caught in a huge spring blizzard. She announced that was the last time she’d be in the Midwest before May.
She shook her umbrella under the pub’s awning, closing it up. It was a little less busy than usual, probably because of the weather. She loved the food here but she usually got it to go. In fact, she usually got whatever anyone at the clinic wanted and took it all back. At least once a week they got take-out orders from the diner, the pub or the pizza kitchen down the street. Most other days they all packed a lunch or dashed home for a quick bite.
Today she chose a booth in the bar. Sully had not arrived yet.
“Hey, Doc,” Rob said, coming out from behind the bar. “How’s it going?”
“Excellent,” she said. “How’s my favorite patient?”
Rob chuckled and slid into the booth across from her. “After we left the clinic the other day, he stayed home from school and his girlfriend cut class to bring him lunch. His hand hasn’t hurt since.”
“Amazing how that works,” she said with a smile. “Bring him in next week and I’ll take his stitches out. I can fix him up with a more manageable bandage and he can see how baseball works for him. Unless he’s getting a lot of mileage out of the big, bulky one.”
“He’s always been kind of shy with girls. I’m amazed by the girlfriend. They’ve been an item all year,” Rob said.
“I’m surprised to hear that he’s shy with girls—he’s so darn cute.”
“Boys don’t want to be cute, if I remember correctly,” Rob said. “From a father’s perspective, I’m happy he doesn’t seem to be a player. But for the last several months every time I talk to him, his mind seems to be elsewhere. Can I get you something? Did you call in an order for lunch?”
“I’m eating here today,” she said. “I have a date!”
“Do you now?” he said, smiling.
“You sittin’ in my place, boy?” Sully said, looking down at Rob.
He got up immediately. “Sully! Long time, buddy! Is it hamburger day already?”
“I want bacon and cheddar on it, too,” he said, sliding into the booth.
“You got it, pal. And for the lovely doctor?”
“Turkey club sandwich with a side salad, no fries or chips. And how about a Diet Coke.”
“Girl food,” Sully scoffed. “I guess you’re allowed. I’ll take a water and coffee, black.”
“I have to mind my figure, you know,” she said.
“Your figure is fine,” Sully said. “You doing any interesting doctoring today?” he asked.
“It is very boring doctoring today,” she admitted. “Tomorrow or the day after tomorrow everyone who got their feet wet today will come to me complaining of a cold or cough. Being cooped up inside means people are exposed to more viruses and they all pass around the same germs. What’s going on with your family, Mr. Sullivan?”
“Well, little Sam is walking and, when he picks up steam, running. Sierra’s big as a house and about ready to whelp. Elizabeth is talking nonstop but only about ten percent of her words are recognizable. Thing is, Cal and Maggie respond to her as if they can understand everything she says. Maybe they can. Dakota and Sid are just hanging around—Dakota’s still working on that garbage truck, sometimes they let him drive and he gets the biggest kick out of that. Sid helps out in here sometimes but she’s been back to UCLA a couple of times to work on those fancy computers. They’re going to move to Boulder at the end of summer. Sid has herself a job in the university computer lab and Dakota is going to take a few courses so he can teach in high school. He said he had a lousy experience in high school. He was bullied a lot...”
That caused Leigh’s eyes to widen in surprise. “Dakota? Bullied? He doesn’t look like he could’ve been the kind of kid to get picked on. He’s big, strong and to-die-for handsome!”
“No one is immune, that’s what. He was dirt poor and his father is crazy as a bedbug. Those Jones kids—they grew up with a lot of drama going on. The other Jones kids did all right in that regard but seems like Dakota took a real hit. So he thinks if he’s a teacher, he can profile bullies, help with that problem. Plus, I think he likes kids.”
She just stared at Sully. “That’s wonderful,” she said. “I think I love him for that.”
“Yeah,