Читать книгу The Best Of Us - Robyn Carr, Robyn Carr - Страница 14

“THEN DAD HIT on Dr. Culver,” Finn said.

All movement stopped. Everyone in the kitchen froze. Present were Rob’s younger son, Sean, his sister, Sidney, and her husband, Dakota Jones. And of course Rob. He had made dinner and Sidney and Dakota wanted to check on Finn since the accident.

“I guess those pain pills are stronger than I thought,” Rob said.

“Dad, you totally hit on her. And I think she liked it.”

“This sounds interesting,” Dakota said, leaning back on his chair.

“Go ahead and tell us all about it, Finn,” Sid said.

“He almost passed out from the blood and stitches. He was sitting on the floor, I guess to keep from fainting, and she told him to stay down. Then she rubbed his shoulders or something and talked to him real soft. Oh, and the nurse gave him a bowl to puke in.”

“You puked?” Sean asked. It was hard to tell if he was appalled or thrilled.

“I did not puke,” Rob said. “I got dizzy and light-headed. Not from the blood and stitches but... Through all the injuries these two have had, this one actually scared me. I thought he’d cut his hand in half. When the doctor had it under control, I had an adrenaline drop. That’s all it was. She told me not to try to get up too fast. She rubbed my shoulders and head for a minute.”

“And Dad said, ‘Marry me.’”

Rob shrugged and grinned. “In that position, I think that’s just what you do. I admit, I forgot you were in the room for a minute.”

“No kidding,” Finn said.

The doorbell rang and Sean shot away from the table with a hearty, “I got it!” A moment later, the sound of female voices talking and laughing came from the living room.

“Can I be excused?” Finn asked.

“Sure. Of course.”

The house was full of teenage girls, momentarily. They were all fussing over Finn. They brought him flowers and chocolate, let him tell his war story, which Rob was relieved didn’t seem to include him hitting on the doctor. Rob counted. There were six of them. All adorable. All around seventeen. Included among them, Finn’s girlfriend of the past year, Maia—a sweet beauty.

Dakota took a drink from his bottle of beer. “That never happened to me,” he said.

“Or to me,” Rob said.

“Uh...it most certainly happened to you,” Sidney said to her brother. “Maybe not identical circumstances, but girls chased you all the time. I was the wallflower who never went to a prom or formal. Not even in college.”

“I don’t remember that,” Rob said. He glanced into the living room to see six girls and two boys sitting on the furniture, floor, anywhere, talking and laughing. “My house is going to be dripping in testosterone tonight.”

“I’ll help you clean up the dishes,” Sid said. “Why’d you have to make spaghetti? I hate cleaning up the spaghetti pots.”

“I got it,” Rob said. “I left Kathleen in charge at the pub. In case Finn needs me.”

“Oh, I think you’re the last person he needs,” Dakota said. A burst of laughter came from the living room. “He seems to have this under control.”

Sidney started rinsing plates while Rob gathered pots off the stove and put away leftovers.

“It wouldn’t kill you to take a woman on a proper date,” she said to Rob.

“Nah. Someone around here has to keep a clear head.”

“She seems like a nice woman, the doctor. Not at all crazy—a plus in this town.”

“Agreed, she seems nice,” he said. “And she knows how to get out stains. Did you know hydrogen peroxide gets out blood? I could’ve used her expertise while I was raising those two maniacs.”

“Not to mention a discount in medical costs,” Sid said. “You know, the boys are certainly old enough to accept the idea of their father going out with women now and then. After all, they do.”

“Sean isn’t exactly dating yet,” Rob pointed out.

“I bet he’s got something going on—walking a girl to classes, sitting with a girl at games, that stuff. Finn has a steady girl,” Sid said.

“I think he lucked into that,” Rob said. “She’s a sweetheart. And smart.”

“They’re going to leave you, you know,” she said. “You should be looking. For companionship.”

“Maybe I am and don’t want to talk about it. Keep the water in the sink, please,” he said.

And then he thought about it. He’d always had an open mind. But most of the women he’d met since his wife died nine years ago had been a bit too eager and anxious to win over his sons and take charge of his life. He just hadn’t been ready for that. There were a couple of women from out of town he’d had casual relationships with. What that meant was he’d see them briefly, talk to them occasionally, maybe there would be a quick roll in the hay. He’d had that kind of relationship with a woman named Rebecca for a couple of years, then she wandered off for a more serious man. A couple of years later he met Suzanne. She was in sales for restaurant supplies. He took her out for a drink, learned she was divorced, had a couple of grown daughters and was not interested in anything serious. That was about his speed. They got together infrequently but when he did spend a little time with her, it was good. She was also nice and didn’t seem to want anything more than he did.

She didn’t rub his neck or head, as he recalled. And she didn’t have that creamy, peachy skin. He wondered how long Leigh Culver’s hair was—it was always tied up in a bun when he saw her. She had playful green eyes. And a real take-charge attitude. She came into the pub from time to time, was well-liked in town. Today was the first day he’d called on her professional services.

He wouldn’t mind seeing more of her, but that was complicated in a town like Timberlake. Two dates and the whole town had you engaged. Maybe that didn’t happen to everyone but he and Leigh were pretty high-profile—the town doctor and the town pub owner. They would run into more people every day than the average citizen. And people had been trying to fix him up for years.

He wondered if she’d been fixed up lately. He didn’t even know if she’d ever been married. Maybe if he got to know her, he’d find she wasn’t such a prize.

No, that wasn’t going to happen. Eleanor and her husband liked to eat at the pub and Eleanor loved Leigh. Eleanor didn’t suffer fools gladly. Connie Boyle was always saying she was great, as did some of his fellow firefighters.

“Dad? Is it almost time for another one of those pills?” Finn asked as he walked into the kitchen.

Rob looked into Finn’s eyes. He could see he was hurting. He felt his head—warm. But he’d gotten antibiotics. “What’s the matter?” he asked.

“It’s throbbing. It feels like the bandage is too tight.”

“Let’s take your temperature,” he said.

It was just barely above normal.

“You’re almost due a pain pill,” he said. “We’ll watch your temperature. If you’re still having trouble in the morning, I’ll call the doctor. If it gets bad in the night, I have her cell number.” She had said it would save her a world of trouble if he’d just call that number rather than meeting a big problem first thing in the morning. Made sense. “We’re going to be good boys and not take off that bandage. I don’t know what happens if you do that but I think she executes you. It sounded serious.” He craned his neck toward the living room. “Your girls gone?” There they sat, waiting patiently. Quietly.

“Everything okay?” Sid asked, drying the last pot.

“Pain, like she said would happen,” Rob said.

“Can you put ice on it?” Sid asked.

Rob got a shocked look on his face. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’ll call her after things quiet down and ask.”

“Good idea,” Sid said. She leaned toward Finn and kissed his cheek. “We’re going home. If you need me for any reason, please call.”

“We’re good,” Rob said.

Dakota put a hand on Finn’s shoulder. He leaned close. “Nice cheering section, bud,” he said.

“Thanks,” Finn said.

A half hour later, Finn had another pain pill and the girls retreated. Rob ordered Finn to bed and Sean to his room to either finish homework or find some quiet pastime—it would probably take place on his tablet or phone.

Once everything was quiet he called Dr. Culver.

“Yeah, that’s exactly what I would expect. You can cover the bandage with Press’n Seal or a plastic bag and rest a bag of frozen peas in the palm. Gently.”

“We have a variety of cold packs,” he said. “Athletic boys. They have to ice knees and shoulders and even heads regularly.”

“As long as it’s a soft ice pack,” she said. “We don’t want to disturb the stitches. Why don’t you bring Finn by the clinic before school and let me have a quick look, just to be sure.”

He grinned so big his cheeks hurt. And he was glad no one could see his face. “Thanks,” he said. “I’ll do that.”

“We mustn’t have any regrets,” Helen Culver said. “The house can sit empty until we’re absolutely sure. I have plenty of friends here in Naperville so after we sell the house I can come back for a visit anytime. I don’t have to have my own house to visit friends.”

“It’s the only home I’ve ever known, but I’m not there. It’s just that...”

“You like knowing it’s waiting for you?” Helen asked.

“Well, I haven’t decided I’m staying here for the long-term, but I haven’t decided I’m not, either. And I understand you’re done with those winters. Winter here is not like that. It’s mostly calm. And with all the ski lodges, it’s very festive. And cozy. There’s nothing like a blazing fire on a snowy evening.”

It was early morning. Helen and Leigh were both early risers. They usually had their daily chats before starting work and sometimes again after work in the evening. They talked every day with rare exceptions. Even when Helen was traveling.

“It should sell for a good price. The house is over fifty years old but in excellent shape in a nice neighborhood near shopping and restaurants, in a great school district...”

“Why does this come up today?” Leigh asked. “This morning?”

“I can’t get the car out of the garage!” Helen said. “I’m snowed in.”

“Oh,” Leigh said, smothering a chuckle. “It looks like spring is on the way here, but there are no guarantees.”

“You know I’ve been thinking about it, Leigh. I can arrange to have it polished up and put on the market. Maybe when I’m down there visiting you. Houses move nicely from spring through summer, before a new school year starts. If you’re ready.”

“Auntie, do you need the money from the sale?” Leigh asked.

“Nah, I’ve got money. I’m a miser! Eventually I’ll buy something in a more hospitable climate. Not only am I tired of the cold, I’m bloody over gray skies!”

“You’ll miss the changing seasons,” Leigh predicted.

“As I’ve said, I can always visit. More likely my girls will visit me!”

She always called them her girls. They were friends of a certain age and they were wonderful fun. Wonderfully bad. All writers. Leigh adored them. They came and went over the years, but Helen was always surrounded by sassy, hard-working, independent women, some married, some not. One of them was on her third husband. “What do you think, Auntie? La Jolla?”

“I’m not settled on that quite yet,” she said.

“La Jolla is a bit pricey, isn’t it?”

“Everything is pricey. I want you to decide if you’re settled. There’s no great hurry and it doesn’t have to be final. You might decide to go back to Chicago, in which case you can always buy a new house. Wherever I go will have room for you.”

“And I will always have room for you. We’ll spend the summer here.”

“Much of it, sure. I’m going to New York in May and visiting friends in San Francisco in July.”

“All right, I have a patient coming in early so I can look at his stitches. I’ll think about this. We’ll talk tonight.”

“Is he single?” Helen asked. “This patient?”

“Why, yes, he is,” Leigh said. “He’s seventeen.” No need to mention his handsome father.

“Ah! You’re no fun at all. I’ll let you go. Take this matter seriously. A house sitting empty is a liability. And I’m freezing! If we’re not going to live in it...”

“I’ll talk to you after work,” Leigh said. And just then she heard the bell on the front door of the clinic.

Helen was so right, she thought. Leigh didn’t see herself going back to that old life, that hectic grind in the big city. This probably wasn’t her final destination but she was enjoying her work life a lot more than she had a year ago. And she’d made some friends here. She actually had a pretty decent social life. Not like city life but still good.

She shrugged into her white lab coat and went to the reception area. Her staff hadn’t arrived yet and that early-morning time alone was great. The Shandon men stood in the waiting room. This time the younger brother was also present. “Good morning, gentlemen,” she said. “How’s the pain this morning, Finn?”

“It comes and goes,” he said. “I didn’t sleep much.”

“Did the ice help?” she asked.

He shrugged. “A little bit.”

“Okay, let’s look at it. This once.”

They all gathered in the treatment room. Finn sat on the table. Leigh pulled her bandage scissors out of her pocket. She reminded herself he was a seventeen-year-old boy. Men were often melodramatic when it came to illness. They could power through pulled muscles and broken bones, but let ’em get the flu and it was like death. Same with bloody injuries.

She sliced through the wrap. “You’re probably going to be sorry,” she said. “Eleanor is a much gentler wrapper than I am, or so I’m told. And we’re not doing this every day, you know.”

“I know,” he said. “Can you put something on it to keep it from hurting?”

“Your palm and fingertips are very sensitive, but they’re also good healers. Ah,” she said, spreading the bandage. “Looks good. A little inflammation, no bleeding, stitches intact. Here’s what should concern you—if bleeding shows through the bandage or if a red line is traveling up your arm, call me immediately. And don’t take off the bandage.”

Sean leaned around Finn. “Cool.”

“It feels so much better off,” he said.

“And it is so much more susceptible to infection or damage to the incision and stitches. Why don’t you take a day off from school, rest, put ice on it from time to time, take your antibiotics and chill out. It could be sore for a few days but you’ll be all right. It’s healing as it should.”

“We were wondering, what exactly do you do to people who take off the bandage?” Rob asked.

“Your name goes on a list of patients who just won’t listen,” she said. “And I’m not above sharing the list. So, when there’s a bank robbery or something, I have a list of people who won’t follow the rules.” She grinned. “You take off the bandage, you risk infection, difficult healing, complications.”

The bell on the clinic door tinkled and moments later Eleanor popped into the treatment room. “Did he take that bandage off?” she asked, sounding annoyed.

Leigh winked at Finn. “No, I did. We’re just checking it.”

“Let me wash my hands and I’ll wrap it up again,” Eleanor said, turning away while swinging her jacket off her shoulders.

“You got lucky,” Leigh said to Finn. “Listen, it’s going to hurt and eventually itch like the devil. Be brave. This will pass.” Then she felt his head for fever. “Don’t forget to take all of the antibiotic pills.”

“I won’t,” he said.

“As much as I enjoy seeing you, I’m sure you have better things to do.”

“Not really,” he said, and he grinned.

What a handsome boy, she thought.

Finn went home from the clinic, took one of his pain pills and sprawled out on the couch, falling asleep instantly. It seemed like only seconds had passed when the doorbell rang. And rang again. He rolled to his side and looked at the time on his phone. It was noon. He’d been asleep for hours.

He opened the door and frowned in confusion. It was Maia. His girl. Probably the prettiest girl in his class. She smiled at him and held up a bag from McDonald’s. “What?” he asked, groggy.

“I brought you lunch,” she said. “Sean said your hand was so sore you were taking a day off.”

“But you have school.”

“I’ll skip fifth period,” she said. “They’ll never miss me. I thought you could use a little special treatment.”

“Wow,” he said.

“Can I come in?”

“Oh,” he said, running a hand over his head, taking note that he felt some serious bedhead. “Yeah, of course.”

“Thanks,” she said as he held the door open. “I texted you three times but you didn’t respond. I hope you’re up to company.”

He looked at his phone. Yup, three texts. “I’m up to it, I just never expected it.”

“I think I woke you up.”

“I saw the doctor this morning. She looked at the stitches and told me to just take a day off if it was hurting. So, I took one of those pain pills and fell asleep on the couch. Gimme a sec.” He headed for the bathroom. “I’ll be right back.”

He had to pee like a racehorse but first he looked in the mirror. Oh, man, not only was his hair weird, it looked like he’d drooled a little. What a stud. So he peed, washed his face, brushed his teeth and tried to smooth down his hair.

He’d known Maia since junior high; she was part of a whole group who were buddies. He’d had a crush on her about that long but it took him until his senior year to ask her out because, well, she was one of the most popular girls in school and she tended to date the most popular guys. He thought she’d never go for him. Then he came to his senses and noted that she hadn’t had a steady boyfriend in a long time. He screwed up his courage and asked her out and was thrilled when she said, “Took you long enough.”

Now she was sitting on the couch and had set up a little picnic on the coffee table.

“Aw, you didn’t have to go to any trouble,” she said.

He looked at her, confused.

“Your hair is wet,” she said.

“My hair was pretty goofy from sleep,” he said. “And my brain might be on drugs.”

Her hair was beautiful. She had long, shiny dark hair and he loved plunging his hands into it. It was black or almost black. Maybe a little light around the edges. Soft and silky. He couldn’t believe she gave him a chance.

“Big Mac, extralarge fries, apple pie. I bet I should’ve gotten two Big Macs.”

In front of her was a cheeseburger, regular fries, a Diet Coke. That wouldn’t even start his motor. “No, this is great,” he said. “Why’d you do this?”

“I was looking for you this morning and couldn’t find you. Sean said you stayed home because of your hand.”

“You were looking for me?”

“Finn, you’re wearing a sling. I thought, since we have three classes together, I could help you with your books. Carry them for you.”

“Huh. I never thought of that. I have a backpack.”

“I’d still be happy to help, if you want.”

“I’ll probably manage,” he said. Because he was an idiot! “I wouldn’t mind the company, though,” he said. “I mean, if you want to.”

“Finn, I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want to,” she said with a laugh. “Besides, we walk to class together, anyway.”

“Cool,” he said. Because he was oh-so-smooth. “This is good. This was really nice of you.” He’d rather be making out. But she’d brought food.

“You’re welcome.”

“What did I miss in trig?”

“Phfft, nothing. Same old drill—we went over the last assignment we turned in, he explained the next chapter, assigned the problems at the end. We have a big assignment in English, though. A paper, due in a week. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. I hate when he does that. Why didn’t he give us more time?”

He groaned. “I’m lousy with writing assignments...”

“I can help,” she said. Then she flashed him her beautiful smile. “Don’t I always?”

She was in three of his classes. All three were college prep because she was smart. And beautiful. And thoughtful—she’d brought him McDonald’s. He thought if he didn’t fuck this up, he might get to kiss her for a while before she had to get back to class. “Tell me about the paper,” he said.

“Essay format and it has to be on the original work, which is about two hundred years old. It was on the reading list for the year so I have it. I was going to read it but, of course, I didn’t. It’s horror and I hate horror.”

“What am I going to do next year when we’re at different colleges?” he asked.

“You’re either going to find a new girlfriend or flunk English.”

“I guess I’m going to flunk English. And you’re not going to do that well in math.”

“You’re my go-to boy for math,” she said, laughing.

Maia read all the time. She wanted to be an English teacher. But even though they were hot and heavy by now, she was going to college in Flagstaff and he was going to CU in Boulder. Boulder was close; he’d be home a lot of weekends. Flagstaff wasn’t so close.

“I only read the directions on things I have to assemble,” he said. “Or textbooks when there’s going to be a quiz. Stories bore me.”

“But you’re a genius at math.”

“Well, that’s because I’ve got my aunt Sid—she knows everything about math. She’s really a genius. She’s a physicist. Big-ass brain.”

“I know. That is so cool.” She nibbled her cheeseburger.

She took little bites, he noticed. Her fingernails were pink and he liked that. A lot of the girls were painting their nails green and blue and black. Freaky. Maia’s nails were the color of her lips. And she didn’t wear much makeup. Just lip stuff that tasted so good. Her eyelashes were so thick and dark she didn’t have to dress them up.

They talked about school. Her favorite course was obviously English; he loved science and right now his favorite class was advanced chemistry. They talked about their teachers and both of them loved their math teacher even if Maia didn’t love math. They talked about how they dreaded being separated while they were in college. Then, lunch devoured, he reached for her. “Don’t hurt your hand,” she said before landing on his lips.

A few minutes later he stopped the kissing. “You’re making my hand feel better. Do you have to go all the way to NAU?” he asked.

“I love NAU. You should see it. It’s almost like home.”

“You can’t guess how bad I’m going to miss you.”

“That’s funny. I had to drop hints for months before you even noticed me!”

“Oh, I noticed,” he said, pulling her closer. Then he bumped his hand and yelped in pain and she pulled away.

“I’m going back to school before you do something to your hand.”

“Will you come back after school? I don’t have to work at the pub. The only bright spot...”

“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.