Not Through Loving You

by Patricia Preston

  A little girl dressed in a pink romper appeared beside the booth. She looked to be around three years old. She waved at Aaron, who smiled at her. “Annalee. It’s good to see you.”

  She bounced from one foot to the other and looked back at an older woman who waited for her.

  “Not sick today,” she told Aaron.

  “I’m glad to hear that. Are you with your grandmother?”

  She nodded. “She’s not sick today.”

  “Okay,” he said. “You come see me when you get sick.”

  “I will. Bye, Dr. Kendall.” She ran back to her grandmother.

  Lia smiled. “Do your patients usually recognize you?”

  “The kids I see regularly like Annalee do,” he answered as the server returned to their table with lunch. “I’m moving John Aaron out of the incubator tomorrow. We’ll see how he does with getting past the apnea episodes and putting on weight. I’m hoping to bring him home next week.”

  “Next week?” Excitement lit her eyes. “That doesn’t seem real.”

  “It’ll be real enough,” Aaron assured her. “I ordered a bedside sleeper bassinet today. At night, he’ll have to sleep in the room with us due to the SIDS risk.”

  “Sure.” As she dug into her salad, Lia thought of how short that time would be for her. Next Saturday she would be on the road back to Nashville to meet with Dallas and drop a bombshell on her father. Of course, she intended to return. She just didn’t know when that would be.

  “I have three interviews set up this afternoon for the nanny position.” Aaron took a sip of his tea. “I want you to sit in on the interviews. Then we can compare notes.”

  “Do you know any of them?”

  He shook his head. “No, not personally. Elaine Gray, the social services director at the hospital, recommended them. All three are retired nurses. One has worked as a nanny. I’ve looked over their ré-sumés. Looks good. And they have all passed background checks.”

  After he had poured more ranch dressing over his club salad, he said, “A baby and a nanny will be an adjustment for Dad. That’s not going to be fun.”

  “I think he’ll be fine. From what I’ve noticed, I think as long as you’re happy, he’ll be happy,” she said. “When’s he coming back?”

  “He got back about an hour or so ago. Stevie, too,” Aaron added.

  Lia gave Aaron a solemn gaze. “You know, you’ve got to move back upstairs.”

  He leaned back. “What?”

  “You can’t sleep downstairs with me.” She kept her face earnest as his frown deepened. “Not with your father and brother home.”

  “Lia, we’re not kids, and I’m not sleeping upstairs. We’re sleeping downstairs together, and that’s that.”

  “You didn’t fuss about giving up your bed before.”

  “I’m fussing about it now.”

  She speared a grape tomato and strip of romaine lettuce. “I think I’ve spoiled you.”

  He looked up and smiled. “In more ways than one.” His phone beeped, and he reached for it. As soon as he looked at it, he said, “I have to go.”

  The sudden shock on his face frightened her. “Is it the baby?”

  “No,” he answered quickly as he tossed a couple of bills on the table. “I’ve got to go to the emergency room, and I don’t know how long I’ll be. I need you to do those interviews if I don’t make it home in time.”

  “Yeah, I’ll take care of it.”

  “Thanks.” He gave her a quick kiss and left the café in a run.

  He hadn’t finished his meal; there were probably a lot of times that he didn’t get to finish a meal or sleep all night. She supposed the patient in the emergency room was a sick baby, and she hoped for the best. For Aaron and his patient.

  After she left the café, she couldn’t resist making a quick stop at Bundle of Joy.

  “Hi,” Katie greeted her. “I’ve got something to show you.”

  Lia stood at the counter as Katie fetched a small white box. “Wait ’til you see these.” She opened the box, pushed aside the tissue paper, and lifted a tiny brown leather boot. “They’re cowboy booties. Italian leather.”

  “Ohmigod!” Lia gasped as Katie handed her the bootie that looked just like a miniature cowboy boot. “Look at this. It’s got a heel, straps, and a ring harness.” The back of the bootie had a Velcro opening that would make it easy to put on a baby. “I have to have these.”

  She left the shop with the cowboy booties in a small shopping bag. She’d probably need to hide them from Aaron. As she started across the street, she noticed two men standing near her Jag. Uneasiness stiffened her gait as she approached the car. She tried to recall the two guys who had been on the hotel security video, but it had been dark, and she had thought they were probably teenagers.

  The two men who stood near her car weren’t teenagers. One was young, maybe around thirty. He had long, loose brown hair, and he wore jeans and a polo shirt. He was tan as if he spent a lot of time outside. The other man was older with a buzz cut, black T-shirt, and black jeans. He looked like the kind of man who would know how to steal a car in a heartbeat.

  “Is this your car?” the younger one asked, smiling.

  “Yes.” Lia unlocked the door quickly.

  “This is the first time I’ve ever seen a Jag. Like in real life. Custom job, too.”

  “It’s just a car,” she replied.

  “That’s what I told him,” the older man said with a shrug.

  “He doesn’t understand.” The young guy smiled at her and then glanced at the smartphone he carried. He looked up. “Jags and Porsches are works of art. You’ve got a great car. Be proud of it.”

  He joined the older man, and they walked away with the younger one doing a lot of talking while the other one dragged along beside him.

  Weird, Lia thought as she started the car. The Jag hummed quietly. It was a beautiful sports car and she’d always liked it, but she didn’t like the way men had been hovering around it in Lafayette Falls. She didn’t feel comfortable with that.

  “Sorry, beautiful,” she said to the car as she pulled out of the parking space. “You and I are parting company on the eighteenth. Dallas can do whatever he wants with you.”

  She planned to buy herself a nice SUV. Nothing special or attention getting.

  But with plenty of room for the baby.

  Chapter 12

  CODE D

  As Aaron brought his Range Rover to a halt at a stoplight, he glanced at the message from his friend Dr. Brett Harris, aka Hot Rod. He sent Brett a response.

  Is this a drill?

  No.

  Holy crap, Aaron thought. Code D was the hospital’s disaster code, which meant something huge and terrible had happened, like a pileup on the interstate, a building collapse, a mass shooting, or an industrial gas leak. There would be multiple victims and total chaos in the emergency department.

  He had worked only one Code D in his career, and that had been back when he was a resident. A mining explosion had sent more than fifty seriously wounded patients to the hospital. Some became casualties. He had hoped he would never have to work another Code D in his life.

  As he neared the medical center, he expected to the see the emergency department entrance crowded with ambulances and police cars with lights flashing. Instead, there was only one medical equipment van parked under the overhang. That meant the emergency vehicles were still on site or en route back to the hospital.

  He parked in the parking lot reserved for physicians and snatched his lab coat off the backseat. As he pulled on the white coat, a surge of adrenaline hit him, preparing him for what was coming. He ran up the catwalk that led to the physicians entrance. With a swipe of his badge, the door to the physicians lounge unlocked, and he rushed inside.

  “Surprise!” A chorus of female voices greeted him.

  He stopped abruptly as blue and white balloons floated around him. His jaw dropped as he saw a couple of folding tables covered in baby stuff. He was surro
unded by baby stuff. Stacks of boxed disposable diapers and wipes formed pyramids on the floor, and a paper stork floated above a table bearing frilly gift bags. God help me.

  “Welcome to your baby shower.” Kayla pinned a blue flower on his lab coat.

  He looked from her to Dr. Marla Grant, who stood beside her. “I’ve been had,” he said.

  Marla shrugged. “It was one way to get you here.”

  “Yeah, Doc,” Helen agreed. “If we’d told you it was a baby shower, you would have weaseled out on us.”

  Kayla nodded. “He would’ve used the old ‘I’ve got an emergency’ excuse.”

  That was probably true. A baby shower. A room filled with loud women ecstatic over the frilly cake that was topped with building blocks, booties, and a teddy bear all made of icing. He didn’t even know what to do, much less how to act.

  Kayla took him by the arm. “Come on. It’s not gonna kill you.”

  No, it wouldn’t kill him. But within an hour, he thought he might kill himself. He was stuck in one of the leather armchairs, surrounded by twenty-five women who were talking and laughing nonstop. They had cut the fancy cake, and being the guest of honor, he got the first slice. The cake was good, but the punch needed some kick. After the refreshments, the women started playing games. Who knew?

  With his phone in hand, he fired off a text to Hot Rod.

  Code D, my ass. Just wait till I see you.

  Marla and Kayla had Helen with them when they came to my office. I can handle the two La-Las, but Helen. You don’t mess with her.

  I’ve gotta send you a picture. Aaron lifted his phone and snapped a photo of Marla, Kayla, and Helen, who were sucking baby bottles filled with a couple of ounces of cola. Their various supporters cheered for them. Aaron sent the photo to Brett.

  WTF? Brett replied.

  I know. For whatever reason, they’ve started playing crazy games. It’s a bottle-sucking contest. The one who drains the bottle first wins.

  Damn. I’d put my money on Helen.

  That’s a bet you would have won. Aaron sent the text as Helen finished off the bottle first. Then he sent Brett another text. Rest while you can. In a few months, you might be the father of twins.

  Go to hell.

  I’m sitting in the middle of it now.

  Next, he sent a text to Lia.

  I’ll be home in time for the nanny interviews. The emergency turned out to be a surprise baby shower.

  OMG! A baby shower!!! That’s fantastic!!! They are so much fun, and you’ll get so many nice things for John Aaron.

  She was right about that. The last part of the baby shower focused on gifts. Helen had been astute in finding out from Lia that she had bought clothes, toys, and other items for the nursery. Along with the disposable diapers and wipes from the nursery staff, the assorted gifts included a humidifier, nursery monitor, a newborn medical kit and home apnea monitor, a baby bath kit with supplies, monogrammed baby bath towels, a music box, and an heirloom baby quilt.

  Kayla and Marla had presented him with his favorite gift. It was a matted and framed eleven-by-fourteen enlargement of a picture that Helen had taken a few days ago of him and John Aaron in the nursery. Wearing a surgical cap and scrubs, he held the baby in his arms.

  As things started winding down and most of the attendees returned to their respective departments, Brett came through the doorway rolling a two-wheel handcart that carried a large box covered by a thirty-gallon black garbage bag.

  “Sorry, I’m late,” the chief of cardiology announced. He wore loose scrubs and white athletic shoes. “I had an emergency.”

  Kayla rolled her eyes, and Marla frowned. “Hot Rod, what on earth is that?”

  “It’s a gift.” Brett grinned as he set the handcart on the floor. “They wrapped it for me down in maintenance.”

  Helen folded her arms and glared at him.

  “It’s a nice gift,” he defended himself.

  “I don’t know.” Aaron looked at the bulging garbage bag. He wasn’t sure he wanted to open it.

  “What’s going to pop out?” Kayla asked. She spoke to Marla. “It’s not big enough for a stripper. Maybe a dog?”

  “Listen to all of you,” Brett started, “and all of your preconceived notions. Just because I own muscle cars and wear a leather jacket and hate white lab coats, people think surely I’m not a doctor. You’re doing the same thing to my gift. You’re judging it by its wrapping. Just because it’s not all prettied up in gold paper and silver bows doesn’t mean it’s not worthy.”

  Kayla let out a groan, and Marla said, “Aaron, look in the bag so he’ll shut up.”

  “Okay.” Aaron pulled open the top of the garbage bag and started to laugh. “I should have known. It’s an infant car seat.” He took the box out of the garbage bag.

  “Yeah, we should have known,” Marla agreed.

  “It’s a top-of-the-line baby car seat with impact protection,” Brett said proudly.

  “Thanks. It’s perfect.” Aaron gave a nod of approval as he looked at the images on the box. “I was going to buy a car seat next week, and this is the one I would have bought.”

  “See.” Brett turned to Marla and Kayla. “Sometimes great presents come in garbage bags and great doctors come in leather jackets.”

  Kayla flung a piece of cake at him.

  * * *

  Frank groaned as he sat on his bed and heeled off his shoes. He had enjoyed the cabin on the lake and fishing all day and playing poker all night, but those damn bunks had killed his back. He was looking forward to a good night’s rest.

  Fresh out of the shower, Stevie appeared in the doorway, dressed in a Captain America T-shirt and boxer shorts and wearing a big grin on his face. Frank looked up. The kid that would not go away.

  “What did I tell you?” Stevie leaned against the doorjamb. “It’s just the two of us upstairs now. Aaron has hauled all his shit back downstairs.”

  Frank shrugged. He had assumed as much when they were having dinner, and he’d seen Aaron making goo-goo eyes at the girl. “He’s in his thirties. He’s a man, and what he does is his business.”

  “I bet they got it on hot and heavy while we were gone.”

  “I just hope he knows what he’s doing.”

  Stevie frowned. “He’s a doctor. He should know what he’s doing.”

  “That ain’t what I meant.” Frank shook his head. “Jesus, it’s not always about sex.”

  Stevie studied his father for a moment. “What’s it about?”

  “It’s about him getting his heart trampled again,” Frank explained in a worried tone. “Is there not another guy in her life? A singer?”

  “He’s not in her life right now.” Stevie gave his back a stretch. “When the cat’s away, the mice will play.”

  “The last thing Aaron needs to do is to make the same mistake twice.”

  “Ah, Dad, it’s not like it was back in the old days when guys went steady with girls. It’s not like that now. You gotta get out there and mix it up every chance you get. That’s all Aaron’s doing. Getting laid while he can.”

  Frank wondered how had he raised such an immoral kid.

  “Speaking of mixing it up.” Stevie’s smile widened. “I saw the way those nanny ladies were checking you out. They’d like to have some of you, Dad.”

  “Goddamn.” Frank was on his feet. “They’re old as the hills.”

  “They didn’t look any older than you,” Stevie pointed out.

  Rattled, Frank paced the room and stopped at the dresser. “They’re a damn sight older than me. Like way older, and besides that, I’m sure they are all nice, decent, respectable ladies who don’t mix it up. Aaron wouldn’t even consider them otherwise.”

  Stevie gave his father a serious gaze. “Listen, Dad, if he hires the one with the round face, you’d better watch out. I saw her giving you the look.” Stevie made a well of his fingers on his left hand and stirred his right index finger in it. “She wants to mix it up.”

  �
�Get outta here. Go to bed, damn it. Right now before I kick your ass,” Frank ordered.

  “I’m gone.” Stevie headed across the hall to his bedroom. Then he turned and called, “Dad, if Aaron hires the round-faced nanny, I’ve got some condoms you can have.”

  Swearing, Frank closed the door to his room. He was not about to mix it up with any round-faced nanny.

  Downstairs, Aaron stood in the nursery, holding the framed picture of himself and John against the wall. “How’s that?” He positioned it a foot above the chest of drawers while Lia watched.

  “That’s good,” she said, and he reached for the pencil on the chest of drawers.

  He marked a spot and attached a picture frame hook to the wall. As he hung the picture, Lia said, “I think that’s the best gift you got, but all the rest are really nice, too.” She turned to the crib where they had stacked boxes of diapers and some of the other presents.

  As he straightened the picture frame, she pressed the Play button on the music box. “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” started playing. “I can’t believe that,” she murmured.

  “What?” He walked across the room to where she stood and looked at the picture he had hung. It was straight. “I did a good job.” He noticed she was staring at the music box, her dark lashes lowered as if she were lost in the soft tunes it played.

  He took a moment to admire her. She wore the pretty white dress she’d worn that night when they’d met in the hotel restaurant and he had been determined to send her packing. A lot had changed since then. Lucky me, he mused as he took the music box out of her hands. He placed it on the chest of drawers and restarted the song.

  As “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” started to play again, he reached out his hand to her. “May I have this dance?”

  For a moment, it appeared her breath halted before she took his hand. “Yes. Yes,” she repeated as if she had agreed to more than just a dance.

  They settled against one another as they waltzed around the nursery in small steps, a couple forward and backward since there was little open space. “We need a bigger room,” he said as they bumped into the armoire.

  “This is fine,” she whispered. She began to softly sing the lyrics to “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”