“That’s true. What are you doing for supper? Do you want to stay for some beef stew? I made a big pot of it yesterday.”
“I’d love that.”
Bernie heated up two bowls of the stew. While they ate, she asked him about his auction date, and if they’d gone out yet.
“We did. Thursday night, actually. Had a great time.”
“You did? Good! What did you do?”
“We took a drive out of town, to Lewiston, and had a nice dinner at Rome’s Steakhouse and then came back to Riston and went ice-skating. She loved it.”
“Do you think you’ll see her again?”
Jack took a bite of his stew and considered the question. “Maybe. She’s a great girl, pretty as can be, but I didn’t really feel that spark. You know what I mean? When you’re just thinking about kissing someone all night and waiting for the right moment.”
“Oh, that’s too bad. So you didn’t kiss her?”
“Of course I did.” He grinned. “I’m just not eager to do it again. There were no fireworks. What can I say? I’m a hopeless romantic.”
Bernie laughed.
“What about you? Did you go out with David?”
“I did. We went out Friday night and he just left here this morning.”
Jack’s spoon clattered in his bowl. “So, I take it that means the date went well?”
Bernie swatted her brother on the leg. “You know me better than that! It means he got stuck here because of the storm. It was too dangerous for him to drive home. But we did have a good time, too. Better than I expected, actually.”
“Oh, good. Maybe the rumor I heard isn’t true, then. Mind if I have a little more of this stew?”
“Help yourself. What rumor are you talking about?”
“I’m sure it’s nothing. One of the guys at hockey practice the other night said he thought David was getting back together with Lindsey. His wife knows her from yoga class or something. You know how things get lost in translation.”
“Right. It sounded like the relationship was totally over from what he said. He even got a cat after she left.”
“Well, there you go, then!”
* * *
Mondays were always busy at the ranch. Lily and Bernie fielded calls all morning until there was a moment of calm around ten. But that was quickly shattered when the wife of one of their high profile guests walked into the office in a panic. Erin Westerly was in her early fifties and her husband, Carl, was a CEO of a major hospital in Spokane, Washington. They were staying at the ranch for the week. She said her husband loved to go hiking and that he’d set out early that morning for a walk in the mountains, and now he wasn’t answering his phone.
“He always answers his phone. Carl is on it 24/7. I’m just worried that something must have happened to him, that he might be hurt,” she said, the fear in her voice evident.
“We have a search and rescue team here. We’ll get them on it right away,” Bernie assured her. She called Dani and filled her in, and Dani said they were on their way.
An hour later, Dani called back.
“We’ve got him. Looks like he fell, may have broken his leg and passed out for a while. He a little out of it, probably has some hypothermia. We’re going to bring him to the hospital now. If you want to let his wife know, she can ride in with us.”
* * *
David did a double-take when he saw Dani Weston wheeling a stretcher into his ER section. A nurse directed her to the one spot that had an empty bed and they helped lift a semi-awake man onto the bed.
“Accident at the ranch?” he guessed.
Dani nodded. “Carl’s wife said he’s an expert hiker, but he was by himself and looks like he tripped over something. I’m not sure if his leg is broken or not but he doesn’t seem to be able to put any weight on it. He was unconscious when we found him. He seems to be coming around now, though.”
Ten minutes later, after a nurse had checked all of his vital signs, David looked over the information. One thing stood out as surprising; his patient was spiking a fever of about 101. When Dani had first checked it when they’d taken him off the mountain it was 97—a little below normal, which was to be expected after being exposed to the elements the way he had been. That it had risen so quickly indicated that some kind of an infection might have taken hold.
He took his clipboard with the computer printout of his data and went to talk to his patient. Carl looked more awake than he had been when Dani wheeled him in, and his wife was holding his hand and talking to him softly. Both looked up when David approached them.
“Hello, I’m Dr. Summers.” He shook both of their hands.
“Carl, can you tell me what brings you in here today? What happened before Dani found you at the ranch?”
“It was a clear, sunny morning and I’m an early riser so I decided to go for a walk with my dog, Huck. We set out around six and walked along the road that goes up the mountain. We stuck to the roads because there was too much snow otherwise. We’d been gone maybe an hour when another dog came out of nowhere—an aggressive one, a Rottweiler, maybe. Anyway, he got into it with Huck and I tried to break things up. The other dog bit my leg and I went down hard. Huck chased the other dog off and stayed by my side. Next thing I knew, Dani found me and brought me to you.”
“All right. Let’s take a look at that bite, then, and we’ll order an x-ray to see if anything is broken.” David pushed the sheet aside and examined the wound. It had broken through the skin but didn’t look very deep. But the surrounding area was swollen and red, indicating a possible infection. He ordered blood work drawn as well and a rabies check, just to be sure the dog that bit him wasn’t rabid.
A little over an hour later, the test results were back and Carl’s temperature was up to 102. His wife was still by his side and looked at David nervously.
“There’s something we forgot to tell you. Carl had his spleen removed a few years ago. I’m not sure if that’s important or not, but I thought you should know.”
“Thank you. It means your husband is more susceptible to infection. We do have the test results back and there’s some good news and bad news. The good news is that I didn’t see any fractures on the x-ray, which indicates that it’s just a bad sprain and should heal up quickly. But he does have a pretty serious and rare bacterial infection that is sometimes transmitted by dog bites. We’ll get him on an antibiotic and keep him here at least tonight and see how he’s doing tomorrow.”
“Do you think he’ll be all right?” She squeezed her husband’s hand. He was sound asleep.
“He should be, once the antibiotic does its thing. He came in right away, which means we are catching it early before it does too much damage.” He filled the nurses in on the treatment orders and planned to check in the next day to monitor his patient’s progress.
* * *
The following morning, David paid a visit to Carl’s room. He’d been moved out of the main ER area into an overnight room and when David stepped inside, his patient was sitting up in bed, sipping a glass of water and watching the early morning news. David pulled the data sheet that was in a file on the door, and was pleased to see that his vital signs had improved and his temperature was inching downward. It was still slightly high at 99, but considerably improved.
“How are you feeling this morning?”
“Much better than the last time you saw me. Erin filled me in when I woke up yesterday. Seems I had some kind of rare infection from that bite. Given my history, could have been a mess if you didn’t get that right.” He sounded thoughtful.
“We do see similar infections every now and then. Your particular one was a first, though. And without a spleen—well, it’s a good thing you were treated when you were,” David agreed.
“Did my wife tell you anything about my background?” Carl asked.
“No. Just that you and your dog—Huck, I think—went for a walk in the mountains.”
“Right. No, I meant what I do for work.”
&n
bsp; “She didn’t mention anything, no.”
“We were staying at the ranch for a much-needed vacation. My wife insisted. I am the CEO of Mercy Hospital in Spokane.” David was impressed. Mercy was one of the biggest hospitals in the area.
“Do you like working in the ER?” Carl asked.
“I do. I’ve worked in other areas of the hospital, but this is where I decided to stay.”
Carl smiled, apparently liking what he heard.
“Before they moved me to this room, late last night, when I woke up, I watched you going from patient to patient, and I listened. I liked what I saw and heard. My point in mentioning all this is that we have an executive search going for a head doctor in our ER. We have a great fellow, but he’s retiring in a few months and there’s no one internally who is ready for the role. It would be a step up in your career, if you’re open to considering a move?”
To say David was surprised was an understatement.
“Thank you, it’s very kind of you. To be honest, I haven’t really considered moving out of Riston. I like it here.”
Carl nodded. “Understood.” He was quiet for a moment and then added, “The job pays well.” He mentioned a figure that was nearly double what David was earning. It was life-changing money as he was already well paid.
“That certainly is impressive,” David said.
“Why don’t you consider it? I’ll give you a call end of the week before we head home, to see what you think?”
There was no harm in agreeing to that, so David did.
“Now, can I get out of here soon? I have things to do.”
Chapter 10
David called mid-week to see if Bernie wanted to meet for lunch.
“I know it’s last minute but this week has been crazy. We have a doctor out so everyone has picked up extra shifts. I don’t have a free night until Friday and I didn’t want to wait until then to see you.” That made her smile.
“I usually just eat lunch at my desk, but my schedule is actually fairly light today. I could sneak out for an hour or so.”
“Great! Let’s go close to you, then. How about meeting at Kelsey’s Kafe at noon?”
“Perfect.”
When Bernie hung up the phone, she turned to see Wade walking her way.
“Is our guest out of the hospital yet?” he asked.
Bernie nodded. “Yes, his wife said he was released yesterday afternoon. I had a fruit basket sent to the room and as you suggested, I included a gift certificate to the restaurant that they could use as room service if they preferred. Erin already called to thank me.”
“Good, thanks. It’s their first time staying with us. Hopefully, it won’t be the last.”
* * *
When Bernie arrived at the cafe, David was already seated at a table by the window. He waved when he saw her.
“Glad you could make it. You look pretty today,” he said as she hung her jacket on the back of her chair and sat down.
“Thank you.” She was wearing a winter white sweater dress and her favorite turquoise blue cowboy boots.
“I heard you were the doctor taking care of one of our guests,” Bernie said as a waitress brought them menus and told them the specials.
“Yeah, we don’t see many dog bites. They can be more serious than people realize.”
“Because they wait too long to get treatment?”
“Yes. They don’t think it’s anything serious, but it can be life threatening. Carl was lucky he came in when he did. He seems to be doing fine now.”
“Thanks to you, and whatever you gave him,” Bernie said with a smile.
“Just doing my job. So, what looks good to you for lunch?”
Bernie noticed how he changed the subject. He didn’t like to brag about his work, which was another thing she admired about him. He was humble.
“I don’t even need to open the menu. I’m getting the special. It’s always good.”
“Okay, you sold me. I’ll get it, too.”
They put their orders in and five minutes later their food was delivered, a steaming bowl of cream of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich with bacon and tomato for each of them.
“How has your week been going?” David asked as he dipped his spoon in the soup.
“Good. Very busy, as usual. Every time we have an event in the new barn building, we pick up new bookings. People seem to really love it.”
“That’s great.”
“There’s always something, though.” Bernie sighed. “I had to let a vendor go today. They sent an invoice that was almost double the price we agreed on and they lied, said they’d never agreed to the lower price. But they backed down when I said I had an email copy with the original quote. I hate liars!” It was the one thing that she just couldn’t tolerate and was a deal-breaker for her in any relationship.
“That’s too bad. Lying drives me crazy, too.” He picked up his sandwich and took a bite. They ate in comfortable silence for a few minutes. Bernie noticed Jaclyn and her constant companion, Simon, who worked part-time in the pro shop walk in and settle into their usual chairs along the counter. Jaclyn waved when she saw her and gave her a thumbs up. Bernie smiled as she waved back, but she was glad David’s back was to the door, so he hadn’t seen Jaclyn’s enthusiastic thumbs up. It was cute, though.
“So as I mentioned on the phone, my only night off this week is Friday,” David said. “I’d love to do something then, if you’re free?”
“I am. What did you have in mind?”
“Well, since you were nice enough to cook for me, I’d love to return the favor and show you where I live. The sunsets over the lake are gorgeous.”
“Oh, I’d like that.” She was curious to see his house.
After they ate, they stopped over to say hello to Jaclyn and Simon. Bernie introduced David to both of them.
Jaclyn shook his hand and then looked him up and down and finally nodded, apparently satisfied by what she saw. “Tell me, young man, do you believe in fairies?”
Bernie was impressed when David didn’t even hesitate before answering, “Yes, of course.”
Jaclyn looked delighted with his response. She looked at Bernie and smiled. “I think this one might be a keeper.”
* * *
“Thanks so much for seeing me so early,” Bernie said as Maddie met her in the spa waiting room the next morning at seven sharp.
Maddie laughed as they walked to one of the treatment rooms. “It works out well for me. I actually start at seven twice a week which gets me home just after three, in time to meet Vivian at her bus stop.
“What does she do on the other days?”
“She used to go with Violet and stay at Sadie’s shop until I got off. But now that the Kid’s Korral is open, they both go there in the afternoons. It works out really well.”
Maddie gave her a few minutes to get undressed and under the blankets on the heated massage table. The warmth felt wonderful. Bernie tried to get in to see Maddie at least once a month, and the early morning appointments were perfect and got her day off to a great start.
Maddie started with her face, lightly massaging her temples and jaw line, where Bernie was often tight. She then massaged her scalp, and Bernie started to feel drowsy and fully relaxed. Once Maddie moved to working on her back and shoulder muscles the pressure was deeper and Bernie came out of her sleepiness.
“Are you starting to get excited about the wedding?” she asked.
“Yes and no. I can’t wait to be married to Wade, but this was originally going to be a very small, simple wedding.”
Bernie laughed. “And then his parents came home?”
“Exactly. I love them dearly, but they are very excited about this wedding. It keeps getting bigger and bigger. It seems like she wants to invite the whole town, practically, and cousins Wade hasn’t seen or talked to in years.”
“And the carving and pasta stations,” Bernie added.
Maddie’s hands stilled for a moment.
“W
hat are you talking about?”
“They haven’t told you yet? His mother thought they would make nice additions to the menu. When I mentioned it to Wade he laughed at first, but then said he thought it sounded like a good idea, too.”
“I give up. I’m just going show up at my wedding and have a good time. They can do whatever they want, I’m done.” She sounded resigned and sick of the whole thing.
“Maddie, remember, it’s your wedding. Yours and Wade’s. His parents mean well, but you can stick to your guns if you feel strongly about anything. Let me know or Lily and we’ll make sure everything is the way you want it.”
Maddie sighed. “It’s fine, really. I don’t care if there are carving stations or pasta ones or whatever. If Wade likes the idea, I do, too. It’s just the way his parents, his mother especially, swoops in and sort of takes over that is a little much to deal with at times.”
“She is like a force of nature,” Bernie agreed.
“That she is. I know she’s just excited, though. It’s the first wedding of her children that she’ll be attending. It’s a big deal.”
“I bet it will be a really fun time, an evening to remember,” Bernie said.
“You’re right. I’m sure it will be. So, what about you? Have you had your date with the doctor yet? Wade was excited to do that for you.”
“Yes, we’ve gone out twice now.” Bernie told her all about their snowy first date and lunch the day before. “I’m going to his place this Friday night for dinner.”
“That sounds promising. Three dates in less than a week. Well, technically four if you count the Saturday night he was stranded at your place ,too. Was that awkward at all?”
Maddie continued to work on Bernie’s lower back and spine area, loosening up the muscles that often grew tight from behind hunched over a computer for much of the day.
“No, much to my surprise. I thought it might be, but he was easy to be around and we had fun playing Scrabble.” She told Maddie about the bet that she’d lost.
“So, you’ve kissed him. And I take it there were sparks?”
Bernie's Birthday (River's End Ranch Book 22) Page 6
