A portrait of Dr. Killingsworth hung over the bookcase. A shadow box held his original stethoscope and a newspaper clipping from 1965 about the doctor’s work to develop a cardiac care unit in the hospital. Brett straightened the portrait. I’m honored to follow in your footsteps.
“Hey, Doc.”
Brett turned to see Roy Wilson, a supervisor in the maintenance department, standing in the open doorway. He wore a dark blue uniform with a tool belt secured around his waist. He held a long narrow strip of metal covered in bubble wrap. “I’m gonna put your name on the door.”
“Sure.” Brett tried not to look overly excited, but what he really wanted to do was run out in the hall and yell, “They’re putting my name on the door.”
Roy discarded the bubble wrap and placed the nameplate in the same spot where Dr. Collins’s had been located, just above the CHIEF OF CARDIOLOGY plaque. With a couple of zips from an electric screwdriver, Brett’s name was on the door.
“That’s got it,” Roy said. “Congrats, Doc.”
“Thanks.” He waited until Roy was gone before he walked over to the door. He touched the nameplate, letting his fingers trace the letters of his name. It was real. This is really happening. He withdrew his phone from the pocket of his pants and snapped a photo of his nameplate. He sent it to Natalie with a text message.
They put my name on the door!
She replied: Good for you.
Let’s go to the White Lily tonight. Steaks. Champagne. The works. We have a lot to celebrate. His name was on the door, and she wasn’t going back to London.
Sorry, but I can’t go. I’m leaving for Nashville and I won’t be back until late. I’m going to buy a new outfit to wear tomorrow. Dad said to dress up, and I want to find something really nice. I don’t want to disappoint him.
Her response was a letdown, but they could do something later. His phone lit up again.
You know if you don’t want to come to the reception, you don’t have to. I don’t expect it of you.
No, I want to meet your dad.
I’ll see you tomorrow then.
He frowned at his phone. She hadn’t added any emojis like she usually did.
“Is your name on the door?” At the sound of Aaron’s voice, Brett looked down the hallway to see Aaron, Kayla, Marla, and Caleb heading his way, carrying gift boxes and bags.
“We come bearing gifts for your new office,” Kayla said. “We’ve got you fixed up with all the essentials.”
“Look. His name is on the door,” Marla said, and everyone took a glance at the door as they walked in the office and put the gift bags on the desk.
“Guys, I don’t know what to say except this is like Christmas.” Brett reached for the tall, slim gift bag from Aaron, the former athlete who lived for spring and baseball diamonds.
“I knew you would pick my gift first.”
“Liquor always wins.” Brett pulled a bottle of Dom Perignon Brut Rose Champagne from the gold bag. “Look at this.”
“Whoa.” Caleb peered over Brett’s shoulder. “It’s vintage.”
“Thank you so much.” He set the bottle on the desk. Next, he peeped inside the large gift bag from Marla. He smiled as he withdrew a beautiful set of oak desk accessories trimmed in gold. “Just what I needed.” There was also a shiny brass desk nameplate with his name and his new title engraved on it. “Wow.”
He gave his adopted sister a hug. “Thanks.”
He picked up the box from Kayla, the tall redhead who claimed if she hadn’t become a doctor she would have been a madam, and shook it. There was no noise, and he guessed that was a good thing because when it came to Kayla, you never knew. She had a wild streak.
Kayla tried out the new executive chair. “Are you afraid to open it?” she asked him with a daring sparkle in her dark green eyes.
Aaron laughed. “There’s no telling what’s in there.”
“Hey, Baby Doctor,” Kayla said. “It’s not a gag. I promise.”
“That doesn’t count for much.”
She made a face at Aaron and looked at Brett. “It’s a serious gift. It’s not something you’ll love, for sure. But it’s kind of a necessity now.”
Caleb frowned. “I wouldn’t open it.”
Brett looked at Kayla, who was toying with the nameplate on his desk. “Is this gonna embarrass me?”
“Open it,” Marla urged, and Brett braced himself as he loosened the tape on the box.
He lifted the lid of the box and let out a chuckle when he saw the white lab coat. His name was monogrammed on the breast of the coat, and below his name was CHIEF OF CARDIOLOGY.
Kayla leaned back in the chair. “With the office comes responsibility and a white coat. You gotta suck it up and wear it.”
Brett withdrew the white coat from the box. There was another one beneath it. “Two?”
“One and a spare. So you have no excuses.”
“You thought of everything.” Brett removed his leather jacket and slipped on the white lab coat. It was crisp, white, and had plenty of shoulder room. “Thank you, Red.”
Marla patted him on the shoulder. “We’re going to miss the James Dean look.”
“I’m not wearing a white coat all the time,” he said as he reached for the large, square gift that Caleb had brought. Unlike Kayla, Brett trusted the former Marine.
He ripped off the wrapping paper and let out a cheer when he saw the single-serve gourmet coffee maker, plus an assortment of single-serve gourmet coffees. “I have one of these at home. I love it, bro.”
“You’ve got a perfect place for it.” Caleb motioned to a small walnut credenza on the other side of the room. “I’ll be up here every morning.”
Brett glanced at his friends. They were the brothers and sisters he had never had. “You know you’re family to me,” he said, his voice raw with emotion.
“Aww.” Marla roped her arm around his back. “We love you.” She motioned to the others. “Bring it in.”
Caleb backed away. “I don’t do group hugs.”
Aaron laughed, and Kayla hopped out of the chair behind the desk. “Doctor Sheldon,” she announced loudly. Everyone turned to see the chief of staff standing in the doorway.
“Doctors,” Sheldon greeted them. “Are we goofing off?”
They looked at one another like a group of kids facing the principal.
“Just getting moved into the office, sir,” Brett said.
“I do like the white coat, Doctor Harris.”
“Thank you, sir.” He heard Kayla chuckle.
“Carry on,” Sheldon said, and he turned to go. Then he stopped. “By the way, during our next staff meeting, I’ll be announcing the new committee heads for the coming year. Expect to hear your names called.”
After Sheldon disappeared, a couple of groans and a few curses filled Brett’s new office. He picked up the bottle of vintage champagne. “Guys, if you want to meet tonight at the Thunderbird and commiserate, we’ll share this.”
Chapter 20
Early Friday morning, Natalie sat in the salon chair as Amber worked on her hair. She had decided to wear it in an updo for her father’s reception, a style that wasn’t overly formal but dressy.
“I know it needs to be over.” She had spent most of last night struggling with the truth about her relationship with Brett.
Amber secured a lock of Natalie’s hair with a hairpin. “It doesn’t need to be over. You’re wrong about that. You two make a great couple.”
“That’s true. I would have never believed it, but we’ve had the best time together.”
She sighed as she sat facing the salon’s mirrored wall. Strangely enough, she and Brett had a lot in common. Things they liked and didn’t like. “He has a good sense of humor, and he seems to love life. We’ve never had a fight.”
“Match made in heaven.” Amber stuck another pin in Natalie’s hair.
“I don’t think so.” The ache in her chest didn’t feel heavenly in the least. “And it’s all on me. I�
�m the one who initiated sex and got myself into this.”
“Did you see him running in the opposite direction?” Amber waved her comb in the air. “It is not all on you. Don’t ever think that. And,” Amber looked in the mirror at Natalie, “I don’t think it was all to please your grandmother either. He’s pretty much made you part of his life, and he didn’t have to go that far.”
Natalie agreed. “I know. But the sad truth is when Nana was saying how she’d talked to him and he was all in, my first reaction was that he had used me. I didn’t even give him the benefit of the doubt,” she explained, “because, deep in my heart, I wasn’t surprised. It was like what I had expected all along from him, and that’s the root of the problem.
“I remember how much he didn’t like me and what a lousy opinion he had of me in school. He’s tried to gloss over that, but the thing is I haven’t changed. I’m older. Hopefully a little wiser. But I’m still a slacker compared to him. I’m the girl who is totally wrong for him. He has to know that, even if he won’t admit it and I can’t get past that.”
Amber frowned as she squirted Natalie’s hair with the hair spray that added hold and shine to the updo. “If he knows that, why’s he sticking around?”
“I don’t think he’ll stick around a lot longer,” Natalie admitted to something else that had been in the back of her mind.
“Really?”
“Why should he? He got what he wanted. It’s always been about ambition, not love.” Neither one of them had been looking for love. Especially her. “They put his name on the door yesterday. I think the end is inevitable. I think we’ll make it past the holidays and into the new year. He’ll be nice about it, and it’ll be a polite breakup because he won’t risk alienating my family. To him, they’re power brokers.”
The presidential march blared from Natalie’s purse. “Speaking of family.”
Amber fetched Natalie’s phone for her. She had a text message from her father letting her know that he was on Interstate 40 and should be in Lafayette Falls within three hours. She sent her dad a reply, telling him she couldn’t wait to see him.
“As soon as you find out what the surprise is, you let me know.” Amber handed Natalie a hand mirror. “What do you think?”
“I think you work miracles.” Amber had given her a classy look, with a loose, side-swept updo and subtle makeup. “Let me try out the Layton smile.” Looking in the mirror, she produced the broad smile that had always been expected of the senator’s daughter. Always smile when you’re swimming in a shark pool.
Amber laughed. “You do that so well.” As she removed the styling cape from Natalie’s shoulders, the shop door chimed as the next client arrived.
“Listen,” Amber spoke in a low voice, “I hope you’re wrong about Brett. But, if you’re not, you might stop by Mozart’s shop some time. Tell him you need your oil checked.” Her dark eyes sparkled. “You know when you’re going through a breakup, you need a strong shoulder to cry on. He might let you wail all over that gorgeous body of his.”
Although that was a tempting idea, Natalie declined. “I’m done with car guys. I’ll call you later,” she promised as she left the shop.
Behind the wheel of the Lexus, she circled through town because she had some time to kill before going home and getting dressed for the reception. She drove out to the Thunderbird Bar and Grill, which hadn’t opened for the day. During the past few weeks, she and Brett had eaten at the Thunderbird several times. Some evenings, they’d had a couple of drinks and danced to a few songs.
She came to a stop in the empty parking lot and looked at the classic cars parked in the old showroom. She’d loved being part of his world. At times, she actually felt she belonged there with him. His friend, his lover, his everything. She had ignored the truth, but she had never lost sight of it. She didn’t belong there with him, and she didn’t trust him.
She didn’t trust him to love her. She never would.
Her phone started playing an old Beach Boys tune called “Help me, Rhonda.” As a tribute to Brett’s Road Runner, she had assigned that song as Brett’s ringtone. She sucked in a deep breath and answered. Maybe he was calling to tell her he couldn’t make it to the reception for her father.
“Hi. Just thought I’d check in with you this morning,” he said, and she found herself thinking she would miss his low, sexy voice. “How’s it going?”
“Great,” she managed to get out.
“I just picked up my suit at the cleaners. Did you buy a new dress?”
“Yeah. I bought a black dress with long sleeves. It’s a silky linen fabric. I think it’ll work for an afternoon reception.”
“I’m sure you’ll look gorgeous.”
“Thanks.” She grew quiet. A part of her insisted her relationship with him should end. Why drag things out? But this was not the right time. Not with her father coming home and all that would entail. Maybe after the weekend.
“Hey? Are you there?”
“I’m here.” Not for long.
“Is everything okay?”
She had never broken up with a guy before now. After graduation, she and Jeremy had gone in different directions. There was no big breakup. Then she had married Aidan, and death had separated them forever. She would have to figure out how to do it—or give it time and he’d do it.
“I’m good,” she said quietly. “Listen, I’m really happy for you. I’m happy everything worked out and you got the position you wanted. I know how much it means to you, and no one deserves it more than you.” She was honest in that assessment.
“I’ll show you the office this weekend.”
“Okay.” She creased her lips. Breaking up had rough written all over it. “I need to go and find some Valium.”
He laughed. “You’ll be fine, and I’m sure you’ll love whatever surprise your father has planned.”
She hadn’t been thinking about her father or the surprise.
On the drive back to her grandmother’s house, she stopped at an intersection across from a car dealership. She spotted a yellow Jeep, with a black hardtop and off-road wheels, on display. She liked it immediately. It was all bright and shiny in the winter sunlight. Calling to her.
The Lexus was a luxury car anyone would love, but it hadn’t been her choice. She took a second look at the Jeep. A four-wheel drive was great for rough terrain. As a photographer and as a person, she wanted to go places where there were no roads. She stopped at the dealership.
Her life was becoming all about change.
When she turned into the driveway at the Castle House, she was driving the yellow Jeep. She’d decided it was a “him,” and she’d named him Jesse. She had even pimped him out with a pair of red furry dice that she had bought at Jerry’s auto parts store.
They dangled from the rearview mirror. She had never owned a car she’d really loved or wanted or picked out herself. This was a first, and she was excited about her new purchase.
Great road trips awaited her and Jesse.
Indoors, the event planners were at work. The kitchen staff was arranging hors d’oeuvres and desserts on silver platters. A flower truck had arrived, and bouquets of fresh flowers were being placed in each room. Foil-lined buckets contained festive poinsettias and American flags. A couple of workers were trimming the staircase banner in red ribbon.
The pocket doors of the ballroom were open, creating an archway into the long room, where folding tables were covered in white linen and holly-print runners. Natalie stopped in the archway and looked at the grand Christmas tree in the corner.
She thought of the day she and Brett had decorated that tree. He had stood on the ladder, and she handed him ornaments to hang on the top half of the tree. She smiled as she remembered how he had grumbled about moving some of the ornaments to give the tree décor better balance. “You know, I’m hanging onto this ladder for dear life.”
An ache rose in her chest. The cost of loving him had come with a price, and she’d be paying that price for a while to
come.
“Natalie.” Anna walked across the hall. She wore an exquisite dark red dress with a collar that formed a cape over her shoulders.
“I hope someday I’m half as fashionable and smart as you, Nana.”
Anna smiled. “You already are,” she reassured her. “I do love the hairstyle. I’ve always thought that nothing looks more elegant than a young lady wearing her hair up. Come.”
Natalie followed Anna to her bedroom on the first floor. A turn-of-the-century bedroom suite made in rosewood graced the bedroom, which had tall windows and mint-green walls. Pharaoh stared out from behind the locked door of his carrier and let out a yowl.
“I’m sorry, darling,” Anna spoke to him. “But I can’t have you attacking the guests.” Then she spoke to Natalie. “He’ll probably be irate for days.” She opened the doors to an armoire and withdrew a black case. “If you want, you can wear these today.”
She opened the case, and Natalie gasped as she saw a pair of diamond drop earrings and a matching choker. “Are they real diamonds?”
“Why, yes, darling. They date back to nineteen twenty, I think. Your great-grandfather, Sam Senior, gave these to your great-grandmother, Helen, as a Christmas gift. He may have noted it in his journals.” She handed the case to Natalie. “They are yours now.”
She touched the jewels. “They’re so beautiful, but I can’t take these.”
“Of course you can,” Anna insisted. “Your great-grandparents would want you to have them. I think they would be delighted to know you wore them. Today and maybe on your wedding day, too,” she added.
“I don’t think I’m going to have a wedding day anytime soon.”
Anna disputed that. “Doctor Harris loves you, and he’s certainly no quitter.”
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