“You are a beautiful mommy,” Suzie said. “And that is the most important thing in the world.”
Kit climbed into the driver’s seat, and as he did, he met Suzie’s eyes. “Family is what you make it, Louise.”
“True, and they come in all shapes and sizes,” Suzie said.
“Then call your mom later,” Kit suggested. “Invite her to stay when the snow clears.”
“Would you mind?” Suzie asked.
“Of course not. I want her to know from the outset that she is part of this family. Anyway, I’m sure she’s going to want to join in with the wedding plans.”
“Wedding plans?” Suzie squeaked.
“Sure, we are getting married.” Kit’s expression switched to mortification.
“I think you are supposed to ask her first,” Louise said, laughing. It was good to hear Storm’s mom laugh for once, but it didn’t help ease Suzie’s panic.
“Sorry, I just got lost in my own thoughts.”
“Yeah, I get it, but I definitely need that date before you propose,” Suzie said, not looking too upset that he had taken so much for granted.
“Tonight,” Kit promised and started the engine.
Pulling out slowly, Kit waited for the snow chains to bite into the snow before he picked up speed. They drove down the track leading to the road and then he turned right to head down off the mountain. The sun was out and the snow was melting, with little rivulets of water cascading all around them.
“This snow is almost gone here,” Suzie commented.
“Yeah, look at the steam rising from the road,” Kit exclaimed.
Whether it was from the dragon fire, or the bright morning sun, he wasn’t sure, but the roads were clear and they made good time getting off the mountain. Down in the valley, it was not as easy; the snow was still deep, and the shade cast by the mountain stopped the sun from melting the snow, but luckily the roads were not impossible to navigate.
After a slow journey through the back roads, they hit the highway: it was evident the road had been plowed and salted. This was the main artery of a wider road system, and had taken priority.
“Looks good. If the thaw continues, you should be able to drive your car back to my place tonight,” Kit said.
“I should go home to my mom,” Suzie told him.
“One more night. Just you and me,” Kit pleaded.
“OK. One more night.” She smiled at him, making him want to wish the day away.
“And then forever,” Kit answered.
“Goodness, you two are as sweet as honey,” Louise said. Kit was not sure it was a real compliment, but he didn’t care. A bear loved honey, and he loved Suzie.
They arrived at the hospital to find the parking lot being cleared of snow. Kit parked the car in a section that had already been cleared and switched off the engine.
“I will see you both later.” Suzie got out of the car, and then helped Louise out. “Come find me when you are done with the doctor. I’m on the second floor for the day. I’ll get you and Storm placed somewhere together.”
“What if there is nowhere? Or at least nowhere around here?” Louise looked worried. “I feel safe here.”
“Then you can stay with me and Suzie until there is,” Kit offered. “If that is OK with you, Suzie?” It would mean them losing their alone time, but Louise and Storm took priority.
But what if Suzie said no? Kit was beginning to understand what it was like to be in a relationship. For so long he had made his own decisions. The thought of having to give up fostering children popped into his head once more.
However, Suzie smiled and said, “Of course. I mean, it is your house.”
“What’s mine is yours,” Kit offered, then frowned. “Too much?”
“A date. Let’s have one date before we talk about what happens after,” Suzie shook her head, but smiled as she walked toward the hospital. With his heart firmly in her hands. Hands he trusted.
Chapter Seventeen – Suzie
Suzie walked into the hospital with Kit and Louise, who cradled Storm in her arms, looking nervous.
“It’s OK,” Kit assured her. “I’ll take you to where you need to be, and when you’ve finished, I’ll ask someone to page me and I’ll escort you over to Suzie.”
“You don’t need to go to all this trouble for me,” Louise insisted.
“We want to,” Suzie replied. “We both want this to work out for you.”
Louise sighed. “This must be what it’s like to have parents who love you.”
Suzie hid a smile, Louise was making her feel old. But when she caught Kit’s eye, the look exchanged told her that he was imagining what it would be like for them to be an old married couple—with a child.
The heat in the reception area made her cheeks flush, and her head swim. This was all moving so fast. Meeting the man you were supposed to spend the rest of your life with, according to him, was one thing, but marriage and everything else…
“Are you OK, Suzie?” Kit asked.
“Yeah, I’m going to go on up to my borrowed office.” She did have a lot of work to get through. But that wasn’t the real reason she needed to get away. When she was in Kit’s house, she could forget the outside world existed, but here at the hospital, this was real, and the enormity of the situation crowded in on her.
“OK, I’ll catch up with you later, bring you some coffee,” Kit offered as he stood next to Louise, who was giving her details to Cindy.
“Sure. I’ll see you later. You too, Louise, come find me when you are done.” Suzie pressed the button for the elevator, grateful when the doors opened right away.
“Thanks,” Louise said nervously.
Damn it. Suzie put her hand out to stop the doors closing. “Do you want me to come with you, Louise? I should have offered.”
“No. I’m OK,” Louise said, and then added, “Don’t worry, I’m done with running.”
“I’ll buy you lunch when you are done,” Suzie offered.
“I’d like that,” Louise replied, her face pale.
Suzie cast a glance at Kit, who met her eyes with a confused expression. Had he picked up on the fact that Louise might not be the one about to run out on him? Did he realized that Suzie had cold feet, and not from being out in the snow?
She pulled her hand back and the elevator door closed, leaving her in the closed in space of the elevator. Closing her eyes, she let out a breath and tried to figure out why she had suddenly gotten cold feet. Kit was a great man; he would make an amazing husband and an incredible father.
That’s where her brain stalled. Suzie had never had a father, she’d never had any other family except her mom. Opening her eyes, Suzie gasped at her own realization. She was scared, scared of becoming part of something bigger. Scared of not fitting in. Growing up, her mom had been happy to hide away; she hated going anywhere where people didn’t know her, she hated people staring.
Her hand went to her cheek. There was no birthmark there. She wasn’t her mom. But she was her mom’s world. The two of them against the world, wasn’t that what she’d grown up hearing?
Suzie believed she had stepped away from that when she trained to work at Social Services, but it was there, like a deep-rooted weed, ready to extend its long tendrils and strangle her. Meeting Kit had triggered something she’d buried away. That was not who she wanted to be. She wanted to step out into the world and be Mrs. Malvern, Kit’s wife, and the mother of his children.
As the elevator opened and she made her way to her office, it became clear what the trigger had been. Not meeting Kit. But seeing Louise so determined to put her past behind her. She would live her whole life trying to make up for deserting Storm.
Us against the world.
Suzie opened her office door and went inside, sitting down heavily. Pulling out her laptop, she opened it up and logged onto the system. Locating the number of Dean Capel, she entered the numbers into her phone and gave him a call. Work always reminded her of the bigger picture, of wh
at was truly important in life.
“Hello, is that Dean Capel?” Suzie asked.
“It is,” came the reply down the phone. “Can I help you?”
“I hope so. I have your number on file as someone who fosters older… people.” Suzie wasn’t sure how to phrase this. Louise certainly wasn’t a child, but she was not an adult either, not legally at least.
“This sounds interesting,” Dean said.
“It is. I’m Suzie McLeish, I work at Social Services.”
“How do, Suzie?” Dean replied.
“I do well, thank you.” She smiled to herself. “Sorry, I’m not being too clear am I?”
“Take your time.” Suzie liked Dean already. He reminded her of a kindly grandpa. Like the one she always dreamed about. One who would teach her to ride a bike, or fish in the river.
“I have a young woman. She’s not quite eighteen.”
“She needs a place to stay? If so, I have room,” Dean said.
“The thing is, she has a newborn baby,” Suzie explained.
“Ahh, I see.” Dean paused. “I don’t usually have babies in my care. I’m long in the tooth, and can’t run around all day after them.”
“I understand,” Suzie said. “I’m sorry to have bothered you.”
“Hang on a second, I didn’t say no,” Dean said. “I have always opened my house to whoever needed it. Is this a shifter child?”
Suzie sighed. “No, neither mother nor child are shifters.”
“Ahh, shifters are my specialty.”
“They really need a place to stay. Somewhere they can feel safe.”
“That sounds like something I can do,” Dean said. “How long for?”
“Indefinitely.” Suzie winced. “At least until I can find somewhere else, or Louise turns eighteen and I can help her stand on her own two feet.”
“Two feet is a lonely place to be,” Dean said. “Look, I have an empty house, I have room for a mom and her baby for as long as she needs a roof over her head.”
“Are you sure?” Suzie asked. “Sorry, but I need to make sure; they haven’t had the best start and I need for them both to be settled and feel wanted.” She banged her head with the heel of her hand. “That isn’t what I meant.”
“It might not be what you meant, but it is correct.” Dean chuckled. “I’m used to dealing with Fiona. She’d have turned up on my doorstep and told me to take this young woman in, so I appreciate you asking. Bring the two of them over whenever you are ready. I’m here, and they will be welcome.”
“Thank you so much, Dean.”
“My pleasure. You drive carefully in this weather.”
“I will.” Suzie ended the call, and then sat staring at her computer screen.
“Knock, knock,” Kit’s voice from outside the door made her sit up.
“Come in,” Suzie called.
“I brought you coffee.” He came in and placed the cup down on her desk. “It’s not machine coffee, it’s from Cindy’s private stash.”
“Does she know?” Suzie asked, raising her eyebrows.
“She lets her favorite doctor use it.” He grinned. “And I buy an occasional replacement jar for her. We have an understanding.”
“Oh, that is good,” Suzie admitted as she tasted the bitter liquid.
“Do you know what else is good?” Kit asked, perching on the edge of her desk.
“Finding a placement for Louise and Storm?” Suzie asked, feeling proud of herself.
“You did? That is great. So date night is back on,” Kit replied.
“I think we might be in luck,” Suzie said.
“I already know I’m lucky.” Kit leaned forward and kissed her. “But that was not what I meant.”
“So what did you mean?” Suzie asked, sipping her coffee, while keeping two eyes very focused on her doctor boyfriend.
“Snowball fights.” Kit left the words hanging there, his expression hidden by his coffee cup.
“The same snowball fight you promised Callum?” Suzie asked.
“The very same.” He drank the rest of his coffee and set the cup down on her desk. “Come on, a few of us are taking the kids outside to enjoy what’s left of the snow.” He looked at his watch. “About an hour, we’re all taking an early lunch. That way the kids can get their fill of throwing the snow at each other and still be back in their beds for their lunch.”
“OK.”
Kit looked surprised. “I expected to have to twist your arm.
“No arm twisting needed.” Suzie cocked her head to one side. “I need a bit of fun.”
“Didn’t you have fun last night?” Kit asked, standing up and heading for the door, both coffee cups in his hand.
“I did.” Suzie watched him open the door. She so wanted to grab hold of him and have mad, passionate sex on her borrowed desk with the good doctor. “Wait, I have nothing to wear.”
“Beth and Ben are coming in specially to join in. Beth said she would bring you some clothes.”
“You have it all planned, Dr. Malvern. I am once again impressed.” Suzie tapped her mouse and brought her laptop back to life.
“See you soon,” Kit said, leaving the room.
“Oh, unless Louise needs me,” Suzie called. “I have to take her over to Dean’s and get her settled.”
“I see, you are choosing another man over me already,” Kit replied, poking his head back around the door.
“Never.” And she meant it. Kit Malvern might look perfect on the outside, but she was quickly learning that he was pretty darn perfect on the inside too.
Chapter Eighteen – Kit
“OK, are we ready?” Kit asked. He had two hands on Callum’s wheelchair, and was turning around and around in the parking lot, which had been cleared of most of the snow, leaving it banked up around the edges.
“We are,” Ben called, standing next to Beth.
“You know the rules?” Kit asked.
“Get as much snow on the other team as possible,” Callum shouted. He was wrapped up in several layers of clothes, and his cast had been covered to stop the melted snow from getting it wet.
Kit was probably going to end up in trouble for this, but just seeing the happy faces around him made it worthwhile. “Are you ready, Suzie?”
“We are.” Suzie placed a hand on the shoulder of a young girl, called Neave, who had come into the hospital with a suspected appendicitis. She’d been given the all-clear and was able to go home, but her parents could not get through the snow from Cougar Ridge. “Aren’t we, Neave?”
“Ready. Let’s get them!” Neave scooped up a handful of snow in her gloved hand and threw it across the parking lot. “We need to get closer.”
Suzie pushed the wheelchair forward, and the fun began. All the children were sitting in wheelchairs, as if they were chariots, while the adults pushed them around. It was harder than it looked, steering was next to impossible, but somehow they managed to pull off half an hour of throwing snowballs with no one getting hurt.
Slipping and sliding, the whole scene was hilarious, and the cheers of the spectators told Kit this was just what everyone needed to lift their spirits.
“It is lunchtime yet?” Suzie asked, sliding to a halt beside Kit.
“Five minutes to go,” Kit said. “Having fun?”
“I am, but I’ve ended up on my butt more times than I’d like to count.”
“Suzie is not very well coordinated,” Neave told Kit. Then she looked up at Kit. “I’ve had an amazing time, though.”
“All we need now is cake, and you will have had a birthday party after all,” Callum said.
“Yeah, maybe my mom and dad will get here.” Neave shrugged. “I doubt it though, the road from Cougar Ridge is too steep to come down in the snow.”
“Wait, it’s your birthday?” Suzie asked.
“Yeah, I’m thirteen today,” Neave announced.
“Wow, happy birthday,” Kit said. “You have to have a cake.”
“Yeah, Neave, you have
to,” Callum said.
“Hey guys, we are going to be in trouble if we don’t get everyone back inside for lunch,” Beth said, coming over to them.
“You are right, and I have rounds to do,” Kit said.
“And I need to go and find out of Louise is ready to go,” Suzie said.
They all turned and walked toward the hospital. More than once, Kit had to reach out and tuck his hand under Suzie’s arm to keep her upright. As they reached the building, and entered reception, Neave got out of her chair and turned to Suzie.
“Thanks. That was fun.” Neave smiled and shook the wet snow off her hair. “I’m going to go and take these off before I roast.”
“It is hot once you get inside,” Suzie agreed, pulling her borrowed hat off her head. “I’m glad you had fun.”
Neave waved as she walked away. “See you around, Callum.”
“Not if I see you first,” Callum called after her. But he kept his eyes on Neave as she walked away. As soon as she was out of earshot, he hissed, “What are we going to do about her birthday? She was so sure her mom and dad would make it here in time to take her home.”
“I can get a cake when I go out,” Suzie said. “Probably pick up a couple of gifts.”
“Would you?” Kit asked. “I don’t like to ask since I know you are working too.”
“You don’t have to ask, and I would be happy to do it,” Suzie said. “I’m going to go and find Louise and see if she is ready to leave. We can pick up lunch on the way.”
“OK, well, I’ll take Callum up to the ward and get him dried off and check his cast. When you get back, let me know and I’ll come sing happy birthday too.” Kit kissed her cheek and whispered, “Thank you.”
“I’ll see you boys later,” Suzie said, and walked off.
“She’s a keeper,” Callum said, sounding older than his years.
“She most certainly is,” Kit said. “And what about Neave, is she a keeper too?”
“She’s a friend,” Callum said. “I don’t know about anything else, she’s younger than me.”
Doctor Daddy Bear (Return to Bear Creek Book 8) Page 11
