Starting Over with the Single Dad, page 6
“She’s in good hands. Dr. North has worked many trauma cases.”
“She was in the army, wasn’t she? Your mom talked to mine about her.”
He tensed before he realized it was likely just normal chitchat. “Yes. And like I said, she dealt with many trauma cases there on a regular basis. She knows exactly what to do.”
He actually had no idea how good a surgeon Mysti was, other than what he’d seen her do for Larry. But she’d been cool and calm that whole time, so he had no reason to think this would be any different.
“Please let me get you a coffee, Dorothy. They’re likely to be in there a while.” He should probably call his mom and tell her about Helen, but she was watching Sally right now, and he didn’t want to worry her. He’d call her as soon as this was over.
“Thank you. Just some creamer, if they have some.”
“I’ll be right back.” Jesse got up from his seat and headed to the doctor’s lounge down the hallway. Fortunately the pot of coffee in there looked fairly fresh. There was a carton of creamer in the door of the fridge.
A ruptured spleen was a medical emergency. It also meant they’d probably have to remove the organ. Helen was in her late seventies, and if she pulled through the surgery her recovery would be a long and painful one. Especially with her thinning bones. But the lady also had a will of steel and if anyone could beat the odds, Helen would.
He fixed himself a cup to go with Dorothy’s and headed back down the hallway. Handing her her coffee, he sat next to her again, listening as Dorothy shared stories of her mom and her childhood. Jesse knew that talking was sometimes the best thing to do during the long wait to hear news. He laughed when Dorothy shared some of the antics that she and his mother had gotten into when they were teenagers together.
“We were awful.” Then she sobered. “I was sorry for what she went through.”
He didn’t have to ask to know she was talking about his father. After years of fooling around on his mother, he’d finally walked out on her, deciding to move in with his secretary, the ultimate cliché. They’d left town a month later, leaving his mom and teenage sons to pick up the pieces. None of them had spoken to him in many years. Nor had his father tried to contact him or his brother. Whether from shame or because he just didn’t care, Jesse had no idea. And he had no intention of trying to find out.
“My mom had a lot of good friends to help her through things. Thank you for all you did for us.”
He remembered the outpouring of love and support from people in the town. The entire community had rallied around them. It was one of the many things that kept him tied to Forgotten Point.
“Thanks for all you’ve done for my mom,” Dorothy responded.
“She’s a trouper.”
“Yes, she is. I’m hoping that holds her in good stead. I’m not quite ready to...” Tears welled up in her eyes.
“I know. Let’s just see where things stand when Mysti finishes with her,” Jesse said gently.
Too late, he realized he’d used her first name instead of calling her Dr. North. But if Dorothy found it odd, she said nothing. Probably because they all knew one another from way back.
An hour later, Mysti came toward them. Dorothy popped out of her chair, a hopeful look in her eyes. “How is she?”
“Hanging in there. I had to remove her spleen, but there doesn’t appear to be any head trauma, and there are no other areas of internal bleeding.”
“Thank God.”
“She’s not out of the woods yet. She lost quite a bit of blood, but we’re replacing that. She was stable enough after surgery that Dr. Burroughs is already in there setting the breaks in her legs. The tibia can just be casted, since the bones didn’t actually separate.”
“When can I see her?”
“Once Dr. Burroughs works his magic, we’ll get her into a recovery room. You should be able to go in to see her then. She’ll be in ICU for a couple of days just to have some additional care.”
“Okay. Thank you so much,” Dorothy said fervently.
“You’re very welcome.”
Jesse watched as Mysti drew her left shoulder in a bit as if relieving some kind of tension. Almost as if she were sore. Maybe from lifting Brutus a couple of days ago?
He decided he needed to call his mom, so she didn’t hear about Helen’s injuries from someone else. She was incredibly fond of Helen. He asked permission from Dorothy and then asked her, “Will you be okay here for a few minutes?”
“Yes. I need to call my daughters, anyway.”
Jesse headed toward the hallway, motioning Mysti to follow him until they were out of earshot. “Are you all right? I noticed you rolling your shoulder.”
Her eyes widened for a second before glancing away. “I’m fine. I was just releasing tension from the surgery. It was a close call.”
The answer was quick. Too quick, as if she’d had it ready as soon as he asked. But he couldn’t very well challenge her without looking like a jerk. Besides, he remembered her talking about keeping their relationship on a professional footing. “Thank you for taking such good care of her.”
“Of course. I remember Helen from my childhood. She was always great with all of us. And she gave out the best Halloween candy.”
“Yes, she did.” Remembering Mysti as a kid in various Halloween costumes made him smile. “I may have passed by her house more than once each year.”
“You wouldn’t have.”
He laughed at the feigned outrage in her voice. “I did. Back then I tended to help myself to whatever I wanted.”
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, regret speared through his gut. Candy wasn’t the only thing he’d helped himself to in his lifetime. He’d once helped himself to the woman standing right in front of him.
“Well, it’s a good thing you’ve grown up since then.”
Had he? He looked intently at her face to see if there was any hidden meaning behind her words, if she’d thought the same as he had when he’d talked about helping himself to things. But if she did, she hid it well. There was nothing there except wry amusement.
“Yes, it is.” He’d grown up enough to know that you didn’t snatch at things that weren’t yours. At least he damned well hoped he’d learned that lesson, even if his father never had.
“Can you call me if you hear anything more about Helen?”
“I will. I promise.”
“Thanks, Mysti. I appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome. I’d better head back and see if they need me in the OR for anything else.” She gave him a wave and off she went, back the way she’d come. Leaving Jesse standing there staring after her. And sure enough, she rolled that left shoulder a couple of times as she moved away from him.
Just relieving tension, like she’d said? Or was there something else going on?
If there was, it was obviously something she didn’t want or need to share with him. And he had no right to push her for answers. Because unlike when he was a kid, he wasn’t going to help himself to anything that didn’t belong to him—including information.
* * *
Mysti met Anna for dinner a few days later. They caught each other up on what had happened in their lives. But whereas Anna shared freely, Mysti held back. There was no reason to tell her about what had happened in Joronha or the aftermath of it.
“I’m glad you came with Jesse to collect Sally the other day. Although I’m sure I would have heard from someone that you’d come home.”
“In this town? Nah.” She drew the word out in a way that held unmistakable subtext.
Anna scrunched her nose. “News does tend to make its way around Forgotten Point pretty quickly, doesn’t it?”
“It does. If you don’t want it shared, then you’d better keep it to yourself.”
“Truer words were never spoken.”
Mysti smiled, taking a spoonful of her soup and swallowing. It was one of the reasons she hadn’t spoken about her injury to anyone. Even when she’d been rushed back to the medical tent, she’d refused to let them call her mother to let her know what had happened. She hadn’t wanted anyone to know. She still didn’t. So she still hadn’t told her mom. The scars on her back were hers alone to bear. And they were nothing compared to dying, like Laura had.
When Jesse had noticed her using her shoulder to stretch the still-tight scar tissue back there, it had shocked her. The move, left over from her physical therapy days, had become such a habit that she didn’t even notice herself doing it anymore. And no one else had ever questioned the reflexive act. Not even her mom.
So why had Jesse asked her about it?
She had no idea. But she wasn’t going to assign any special meaning to his question. He was a geriatrics doctor and probably dealt with arthritis in his patients all the time. So maybe it was something he subconsciously looked for.
Yes, that was probably it. And although she didn’t have problems with the joint at this point in her life, she could imagine she might. Someday.
Anyway, he seemed to have bought her explanation. And it was time she forgot about Jesse and focused on the conversation!
“So you’re married now,” she asked her old friend.
Anna nodded. “I am. And I have two boys. Would it be weird for me to take my phone out and show you pictures?”
“No, of course not.”
It wasn’t, but Mysti couldn’t prevent a pang from going through her when she saw the smiling faces of Anna’s husband and sons. “How old are the boys?”
“Seven and ten.”
The younger one was the same age as Jess’s daughter. The pang deepened.
Sally had probably brought Kandid so much joy. If she’d been Mysti’s child, she would have...
But she wasn’t Mysti’s. She firmly pushed any other thoughts away.
Probably a lot of her high school friends had children in about that age range.
Even Laura had been well on her way to—
Think about something else.
“I don’t recognize your husband. Is he from here? Although it’s been fifteen years, so maybe he’s changed.”
With light sandy hair and a tall, athletic build, she could see what had attracted Anna to him.
“Nope, I met him in college, actually. University of Kentucky.”
“And you came back to live in Forgotten Point?”
She grinned. “This town doesn’t like to let go of anyone. And my husband loves it here. He grew up in the city. I kept expecting the small-town charm to wear off eventually, but so far, it hasn’t. He’s an architect, so he does a lot of his work from home, even though he has an office in Louisville. So he has an hour-and-a-half commute on days that he meets with clients.”
“And he doesn’t want to move closer to his office?”
“He says no. And I’m just as glad. Having my boys grow up in a house down the street from where I grew up is something I can’t get anywhere else.”
“No. It’s not.” Mysti hadn’t regretted not having children earlier in her life, but now she couldn’t seem to get away from constant reminders that she was thirty-three and there were no prospects for romance. No prospects of a baby daddy of any kind, actually. Not that she wanted to go the route of having a child with someone who wasn’t part of her life.
But there were plenty of women who used sperm donors and went it on their own. Why hadn’t she?
Maybe because too many soldiers had died on her operating table leaving loved ones—wives and children, brothers and sisters—behind. Could she in good conscience ask her mom to raise a child if something happened to her? Even if she chose the adoption route, it could happen. She felt like she had been away from Forgotten Point long enough that there was no friend close enough to ask to take on that responsibility. Maybe in a few years she’d settle down someplace. But not right now. And once she turned forty...
She shook her head, getting irritated with herself. It did no good to sit here and long for something she couldn’t have!
“I used to think you and Jesse would make a cute couple,” Anna commented.
Oh, no. No, no, no.
This was not a path she wanted to wander down. “Really? But Jesse only had eyes for Kandid. After all, he married her.”
“Yes, he did. But without wandering into gossip, I don’t think they had the happiest marriage. The summer before they tied the knot, he looked almost... I don’t know. Sad.”
Mysti hadn’t even stopped to wonder if Jesse’s marriage had been solid. She’d always assumed it had been, that whatever had transpired between them in his car that night had been a tiny blip on his radar. He’d talked about being like his dad. Maybe that’s why he’d been sad. She’d tried to reassure Jesse that night that he was nothing like him, but maybe she should have tried harder.
“I wasn’t here, so I wouldn’t know about that. He definitely loves his daughter, though.”
“Yes, he does.” Anna lifted her wineglass. “Anyway, none of that matters. I’m just happy you’re home.”
Mysti forced a smile and nodded in agreement. “I am, too. Even if it’s just for three months.”
“Really? Are you leaving again?”
“Maybe. I haven’t really let myself think beyond my temporary contract at the hospital.”
Especially since she was already wondering if she’d done the right thing in coming back. If she’d thought she could come here and wipe away the ghosts that had followed her back to Washington from Joronha, she’d been wrong. They’d trailed along behind her, making the twinges in her back and shoulder more pronounced. Worse, in Forgotten Point, there were other kinds of ghosts to contend with, too. Memories of her dad, whom she hadn’t gotten the chance to say goodbye to. And the memory of a certain kiss that she had never received closure on.
But right now, she was here. And all she could do was try to make the best of it. Until it was time for her to pack up and move. Again.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMER ARRIVED IN a blaze of heat that wilted plants and people alike. Larry was coming back in for a checkup in about a half hour, and he’d wanted to kill two birds with one stone and have both Mysti and Jesse examine him together to give him the all clear to participate in the fishing tournament the following week. It was just as well, Jesse figured. This way he and Mysti could get some logistical things worked out for the tournament, such as a meeting place and time.
And it seemed like a better plan than meeting with her alone. Because when he did, his thoughts overreached into other areas. Areas she herself had forbidden them to go.
So he texted Mysti to see if she was still going to be able to be there when Larry came to his office.
A few minutes later, his phone pinged.
Meet you at your office in a few.
The text was short and to the point. But then again, his had been, too. And his idea had been to meet at the exam room first, not at his office. So much for not being alone with her.
He cleared his desk off, not because he was afraid someone would look through his paperwork, but because he didn’t want it to look cluttered.
For Mysti?
Better not to answer that one.
A few minutes later, someone knocked on his door. “Come in.”
Mysti poked her head around the corner. “I wasn’t sure if you had another patient before Mr. Rogers.”
“Nope, come on in. He’s my next patient. He should be here any minute.”
She slid into the room and sat in one of the chairs parked in front of his desk. She crossed her long legs, one slender limb swinging back and forth. He pulled his glance back up to her face just as she spoke. “Mom said Helen is doing okay?”
“Yes. I’m sure you’ve heard that she was released from the hospital yesterday and is in a skilled nursing facility. I’m supposed to go check on her tomorrow. But her prognosis is looking far better than it could have. Thanks to you.”
“There were a lot of folks involved in her care, including you. Did they find out what happened?” She slid clasped hands over her knee.
“According to her daughter, a dog darted in front of her, and Helen swerved to miss it and couldn’t regain control.”
“It’s kind of what I’d thought. She looked very capable of driving, despite her age.”
A nurse stuck her head in the room. “Mr. Rogers is here in exam room two. Are you ready for him?”
“Yep. We’re on our way.”
They got up from their chairs, and he motioned for Mysti to precede him through the door.
When they arrived, Mr. Rogers was already sitting in one of the chairs.
“How are you feeling?” Mysti asked.
“Like a new man.”
“No more belly pains?”
“None other than the scars from the incisions pulling every once in a while.”
Mysti’s shoulder moved in what looked like a half shrug. But it wasn’t. It was the same movement she’d done on other occasions. Did she have a scar back there? From shoulder surgery, maybe? What had she called it the last time he’d asked? Oh, yes, shoulder tension caused by leaning over an operating table. But as far as he knew, she hadn’t done surgery at all today.
“That’s understandable,” she said. “Do you mind if we examine you?”
“You make me sound a fish you’re getting ready to gut.”
Mysti gave a choked sound that she covered with a cough.
Jesse grinned. “Wrong venue, Larry. I think your mind is already on the tournament.”
“Just planning my victory speech.”
“I bet Mysti will give you a run for your money.” He motioned to her to go ahead and start the exam.
