The Marine's New Family

by Roz Dunbar

“Luke, I don’t think I…”

  He caught the anxiety in her whisper and put his hands firmly on her slender shoulders. “You can and you will. Reach deep inside of you, Tess, and push the panic away. Fight it.”

  Her eyes were clouding over with fear and he knew his words weren’t getting through to her. In fact, she seemed to be on the verge of a panic attack. He had to say something to shock her enough to snap out of it. And even though this was the last way he would have wanted to tell her, he knew there was only one thing he could say.

  “You’re a fighter, Tess. I knew it when I pulled you out of that orphanage and walked down that mountain with you in my arms.”

  He watched her closely, seeing the realization dawn in her lovely eyes. He would talk to her about it later. Right now they needed her medical expertise for Dave.

  “Caleb, there’s a small black bag in the closet behind you. Grab it for me, please.” That was all she said as she nodded sharply at Luke. If she was angry at him for not telling her sooner, he would deal with it afterward.

  “Got it, Miss Tess. I think it’s his ticker. Grampy has a bad one. Do you think it’s his ticker, Miss Tess?”

  “I won’t know until I get out there. Let’s go.”

  “Are you a doctor?” the boy asked as they hurried through the front door.

  “No, but I might be able to help.”

  *

  At least it’s still light out, she thought. It was early evening and the sun had yet to set. God, please help me to help this man. I’m scared. I haven’t done this in a long time. Please be with us and with Caleb’s grandfather. The heartfelt prayer came easily to her and she immediately felt a sense of calm come over her, as she always had in the past when she asked for God’s intervention. Part of her was surprised by her prayer, but another part wasn’t really surprised at all. Caleb had planted the seed in her heart earlier in the day. The medical emergency was the catalyst that brought her full circle. It had been a long time since she had felt that kind of peace in connection with her life.

  Her mind turned to Luke for a second. The marine. He was the marine who had saved her life. Why hadn’t he said anything? No wonder he seemed so familiar, especially his voice. How could she have not made the connection?

  Easy. You were so immersed in yourself, you totally missed it.

  She honestly didn’t know what to think or feel. Part of her was angry that he hadn’t said anything. It might have helped her to know that he had been there that day and knew exactly what had happened. It might have helped her get through a few things that she had been struggling with for the past eight months. In fact, the more she thought of it, the more confused and angry she got.

  Let it go. He must have had his reasons, rational Tess told her.

  But he lied by omission, irrational Tess countered.

  He didn’t lie, he just didn’t say anything. Rational Tess again.

  Same difference, irrational Tess tossed back.

  She didn’t have time to take the matter further as she reached the elderly man lying on the ground. She felt the old panicky feeling return as she knelt next to him. Taking a deep breath, she ordered herself to carry on. The man needed help and she was the only game in town right now. She noted distantly that Sarah Fulcher looked frightened as she backed away to make room for Tess.

  “He got out of the car and just keeled over. Is he dead?”

  Tess threw her a sharp glance, willing her to shut up. Caleb was standing silently next to her, a worried expression on his face.

  “Luke, help me turn him over.” Tess looked up at him as she spoke in a distant, professional tone.

  He knelt next to her and they rolled Caleb’s grandfather over as carefully as they could. He was a large man and deadweight right now. She searched for a pulse and breathed a sigh of relief when she found it. It was weak, but he was still alive, and complaining! Complaining?

  “Get your hands offa me.” The words were gravelly and low, but he was talking! Tess felt a wave of relief. If he was talking, he had air.

  “Sir, I’m here to help you.”

  “Don’t need no help, girl.” The grizzled old man wheezed as he squinted up at her from below white, bushy eyebrows.

  “I’d say you do.” Tess kept her voice calm as she took in his pallor. She did a quick visual assessment and noticed he was sweating, as well.

  “Grampy, you gotta let her help you. She’s a medical something, but not a doctor. You don’t like doctors. She isn’t one, I promise.” Caleb knelt down next to the old man and took his hand. Tess saw the man’s gaze swing to the boy.

  “Where’d you come from, sport?”

  “From the house over there. See?” Caleb pointed to the cottage.

  “Can you sit up, sir?” Tess asked.

  “Course I can. Just don’t want to.”

  “I’m afraid you have to.” Again Tess kept her voice gentle, and she smiled at the sick man. It must have been something in the smile she gave him, or maybe her tone of voice, that made him immediately try to sit up. Luke reached a strong hand to help, but Dave shrugged it off.

  “I got this, boy,” he wheezed. But even though he tried, he couldn’t push himself up on his own. Luke and Tess helped him and then Luke stood and pulled Caleb away as Tess opened her bag and reached for a bottle of baby aspirin. Taking four out, she handed them to him and he put them in his mouth.

  “Don’t swallow them. They work faster if you chew,” she advised.

  “How’d ya know it was my ticker?” he asked, as he put a hand to his chest.

  “Caleb told me you had heart problems. I’m going to listen to it now, if you’ll let me.” Tess had taken out a stethoscope and was warming it with the palm of her hand.

  “Guess so. But don’t do nothin’ invasive, if ya know what I mean.”

  She was concerned at the way he had to work hard to catch his breath. “Nothing invasive, promise. How long have you been in pain?” She put the instrument on his chest, listening to the intermittent beats. Not strong. Hopefully, the aspirin was working to lessen any blockage.

  “’Bout two hours, I guess. Started right after I spoke with Barrett this afternoon.”

  She turned to glance at Luke and he just shook his head. Sarah, she noticed, was clutching Luke’s arm as though it was a life preserver. The woman looked worried, and maybe just a hint guilty, but her face shifted into a neutral expression when she caught Tess looking.

  Shaking her head, Tess turned back to her patient. “Try to keep quiet now. Help will be here soon,” she soothed as she sat down next to him. “I have to keep you sitting up till they get here.”

  “Don’t want no help. Don’t like doctors. Not even non-doctors, or whatever you are. You’re a pretty thing, though,” he said, focusing on her face. Tess smiled.

  “She looks like Grammy in the picture you showed me from when she was young.” Caleb kept hold of his grandfather’s hand as he spoke.

  “I’ll be. That she does, sport.” With that the older man closed his eyes for a minute.

  Tess spied a single tear roll down his weathered, stubbly cheek. She turned to glance at Luke and caught a warm smile slanting across his handsome face. She quickly turned away. She didn’t want to smile back at him. She was hurt and a little angry at him, still. He hadn’t really said anything since they had gotten to the older man, just helped when he was needed. He had spoken briefly, in a low voice to Sarah, but Tess couldn’t make out what he was saying.

  What was taking the emergency crew so long? She cast a worried look at Caleb’s grandfather, noting that his eyes were still closed and his breathing was shallow. It had been—she looked at her watch—fifteen minutes.

  The sound of a sharp siren cut into her thoughts and she looked up to see Joe Mason pulling into the drive. He jumped out of the police vehicle and hurried over to the scene.

  “I heard it on the scanner,” he explained. “The medics are right behind me. I had to show them where the cottage was. Rural address and a
ll. Thought it would be quicker.”

  Tess nodded and rubbed Dave’s right shoulder. She heaved a sigh of relief as the emergency vehicle arrived on scene. She gave them Dave’s vital signs and told them she had given him aspirin, as they took over. Then she stood aside and let them work.

  “Good thing you were around, Tess.” Joe put his hand on her shoulder as he spoke.

  “Not me, Joe. Caleb is the hero here. He saw his grandfather from the upstairs porch and alerted us.”

  “Good job, young man!” Joe praised the boy.

  Caleb blushed a little as his dad put his arm around his shoulders and gave him a hug.

  “I’m not goin’ nowhere with y’all!”

  The old man’s voice was weak but firm as he spoke to the paramedics. They looked over at Tess. Well, she was the senior medical person on scene, she reasoned to herself.

  She walked over to the stretcher and took Dave’s hand, feeling compassion swell within her.

  “I know how you feel. I wouldn’t want to go, either, but you have to. You have too many people who care about you, and want you to be around awhile longer. Think of Caleb, sir. You have to let these men help you so you can get better, for your grandson’s sake. I’d like to visit with you after you get checked out, if that’s okay?”

  The old man took a breath and leaned back against the padded stretcher. Whatever fight was left in him seemed to suddenly drain away as he looked up at her.

  “I’d like that, girl. I really would,” he whispered.

  “Then it’s a deal. I’d really like that, too.” Tess leaned down and kissed his forehead and then motioned for the paramedics to get him to the ambulance. She knew it would be touch and go for the man for some time.

  Luke, Caleb and Sarah walked next to Dave and reassured him that everything would be all right. At one point Luke looked back at Tess over his shoulder. He was smiling that smile that always caused her stomach to end up somewhere in the region of her throat. He mouthed the words thank you before bending down to say something in Caleb’s ear. The boy nodded and turned back to wave at her. She waved back, then wrapped her arms around herself in a protective gesture.

  She had done it. She had managed to perform medically without freezing. She was elated, yet confused. She also felt drained. She just wanted to go home, and maybe not to the cottage. Maybe back to Seattle. Although the cottage seemed more homey and this town more real and welcoming right now than Seattle did. Tess felt another wave of confusion. She really did have some thinking to do.

  Why hadn’t Luke told her?

  Chapter Twelve

  “So, you were here when I called you.” It was a statement, not a question.

  Luke was sitting in his former father-in-law’s hospital room, gazing at the man lying in the bed. Three days after his collapse, Dave was doing much better. Fortunately, the heart attack had been a minor one, and Tess had done all the right things to keep it from worsening.

  Katherine had flown in right away and taken charge of her irascible husband. It seemed that no one else could deal with him, especially the hospital staff. He was rude to everyone. Everyone except Caleb. Katherine was the only one who could keep him in line, and amazingly, he became almost docile when she was around. She and Caleb had left earlier to go shopping for school clothes.

  To say that Luke was shocked that Dave had shown up in the village was an understatement. He didn’t mind the man coming, but a little notice would have been nice.

  “Yeah, I was here. Thanks to the lovely Miss Fulcher, who picked me up from the airport.”

  “I wish you had told me you were coming, but I’m glad you’re here. We have some things to discuss and it’s good to do it face-to-face.” Luke picked up his coffee from the night table and took a long drink. He had asked the doctors if Dave was up for the conversation and they had agreed, as long as he didn’t get riled up.

  “Well, when Sarah told me about that woman, what else could I do? My grandson is the most important person in our lives. Katherine and I want what’s best for him.”

  “I’m fairly certain that your information about ‘that woman’ is inaccurate, but your concerns are valid. You love your grandson, and I’m grateful that you do. Family is important. But I want you to understand that I love my son more than life. I would never put him in harm’s way.”

  “I believe that you do love him,” the old man conceded gruffly, “but you’ve never been a father.” He held up his hand as Luke began to speak, effectively stopping him. “I’m not saying that you would deliberately put him in danger. Just saying that you have to be careful with your kids, especially these days.”

  Luke’s tone was matter-of-fact as he answered. Best to just put it out there and be honest with the man. “Tess does have PTSD, but as someone who’s suffered from the same condition in the past, I assure you that she is working hard to get through it and get her life back on track. She’s been through therapy. That’s why she came here, for a fresh start in a peaceful place where she could take the time to put the pieces back together. She’s not a dangerous person. In fact, quite the opposite. She’s kind, compassionate, giving and loving.”

  As for Sarah, since the incident at Moon Gate Cottage, Luke had found it difficult to be more than superficially polite to her. He said a silent prayer that God would see fit to insert a little compassion into Sarah’s heart. He knew it was there, just not for Tess. He also knew that Sarah liked him, and he liked her, despite her breach of trust in sharing false information with Caleb’s grandparents. But he didn’t love her in the way that she wanted him to. He hadn’t realized how much she wanted it until she had shown up at the cottage with Dave Lockard in tow. Luke had been blind to the depth of her feelings and felt badly about it. She’d behaved cruelly, but she’d been desperate not to lose him—even though she’d never really had him. The fault was partially his for not straightening her out sooner. As for the other woman in his life, Tess…

  He more than liked Tess, but he doubted that she wanted to have anything to do with him now that she knew he had hidden the fact that he had been with her on that day in Afghanistan The look on her face had said it all.

  “Humph. That’s the way you see it. Although she was good when she tended to me the other day. Capable, for one thing. Not like these idiots here. She…wasn’t what I’d expected from what the other lady said.” Dave cleared his throat before adding, “Caleb, his grandmother and I had a long talk this morning.”

  Luke nodded. “Good, I’m glad. I wanted to give you time alone with him.”

  “Well, I’ve got to tell you, his grandmother and I are still ready to take him,” Dave said gruffly. “But it seems that he loves you and wants to stay with you. The courts will take that into consideration, and we’re well aware of it.” The older man rubbed his eyes tiredly. “Look, Barrett, we only want what’s best for the boy.”

  Luke caught the slight pleading note in the man’s voice and felt compassion. All this angst over the love for a child. They both had the same goal.

  “I only want what’s best for him, as well. You and Katherine are wonderful grandparents, but I’m his father. And new as I am to that, I take the job very seriously. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love that kid.”

  “You know that we tried to get custody when Jennifer moved out of the house. We didn’t think she’d be able to handle being a single parent. I guess we should have had more faith in her. I don’t know. We didn’t want her to go, but she got a good job after the baby was born, and wanted to be out on her own again. The house was so empty when they left. I thought if we could get custody of the boy, then she would come home.”

  He shook his head. His eyes had a faraway look as he remembered things that Luke had no knowledge of, so he let him talk without interrupting.

  “Then she got sick, and we tried again, because she refused to come home and let us take care of her. Don’t know why I’m telling you all of this,” the older man said abruptly. “The past doesn’t matter. Caleb�
��s future is my real concern.”

  “We’ll work it out, Dave,” Luke said simply. And he meant it. He hadn’t had to tell Caleb anything. The boy’s grandfather had taken care of that, and evidently Caleb had given him an answer that he had reluctantly accepted.

  “We can give him so much. When Jennifer married you, I thought that she was marrying beneath her. You had nothing and were a young pup in the military. What kind of a life could you give her? I was thrilled when she left you to come home. Validation of what I had told her all along. I suppose you think that was just me being a cantankerous old windbag. That’s what Katherine says. She was always on your side.”

  “No. You were being a good father and grandfather, trying to do your very best for your daughter and grandson. In your heart, you were doing the right thing for both of them. Don’t ever doubt that. I don’t.”

  Luke felt a lump form in his throat as he thought of the love this man had for his family. It was a love worth fighting for with every fiber of his being. Dave’s decisions may not have been the right ones, but he felt they were and that was what had kept him fighting. Luke knew that his own willingness to fight to keep his son was born of a love like no other, and this man lying in the hospital bed was proof positive of that. You fight for the people you hold close in your heart. God puts you where you were meant to be, whether you want to be there or not.

  “Now it’s my turn to do what’s best for my family,” Luke continued. “And Tess is part of that. I don’t know if you can see it or not, but she really has been good for Caleb and for me. She’s a good woman, Dave. I would never leave Caleb with her if she wasn’t.”

  “I hear she’s a physician assistant? She helped save my life.”

  “She is and she did. Had a rough time when she volunteered to go to Afghanistan with a medical organization, but she’s working through it.”

  “Pretty little thing,” Dave said. “I saw the way you looked at her, too. You might want to think of courting that one. Just a thought. Caleb is certainly taken with her. I hear she throws a mean softball.”