Page 23 of Lost on Ice
I giggle. “That’s for boo-boos.”
“I still kiss it better, Mommy,” she insists, furrowing her brow stubbornly.
My perfect, sweet little girl. “Yes, baby. Yes, you can.”
She gives me a kiss on my cheek and my heart is so full of love for her, it could burst. I need to remember that she’s my priority and I need to do whatever I have to so she feels safe and secure. Having Jake in her life might not be what’s best for her, since I can’t be certain he’d be a stable and constant figure in her life.
I’ll just have to try and stay as far from Jake as possible. With him in Boston, that shouldn’t be too hard.
By Monday morning, I’ve managed to push almost all of my thoughts about Jake to the back of my mind. Mostly. Memories of our night together filter through my head now and again, but I quickly shake them away. I need to focus on work. It’s my first day back at my uncle’s doctor’s office since before I was pregnant with Lilah.
“Abbie, you have no idea how glad I am to have you with us again,” Uncle Andrew declares when I walk into his office in my nurse’s scrubs.
I smile, but a part of me feels a small ache at how sickly he looks. At fifty-five, he should still be energetic and active, but he’s been battling cancer and it shows. He’s always been bald as far back as I can remember, but now his once ruddy and full cheeks are shallow. His cheekbones are so visible, and he’s lost a lot of muscle. His green eyes are still bright and shiny, though, which gives me some comfort regarding his condition.
“Glad to be back,” I tell him. “How are you feeling?”
He waves his hand, as if shooing my question away. “Oh, I’m just fine. Tired. Your aunt would say cranky, but I think she’s full of it.”
I laugh. “She’s just trying to take care of you, but she’s got Lilah with her down the hall today. She’ll be a lot more patient with you after having some kiddo time.”
Uncle Andrew’s smile turns tender. “Lori loves that little girl to pieces. An easy enough thing, really. Lilah is an angel.”
“I totally agree.”
Clapping his hands and rubbing them together, he declares, “All right! So, we have a full day today. Plenty of patients to see, but I also want to start training you in the administrative side of things. All the fun stuff—paperwork, personnel documents, record keeping, and billing. Everything you need to know to eventually take this place over.”
My stomach twists at the thought of running this practice on my own, but I don’t let my nerves show. This is why I’ve moved back home. Uncle Andrew and Aunt Lori don’t have any kids of their own but have always treated me like I’m theirs. I think they always felt bad that I didn’t have my mom growing up and so stepped in with my dad to raise me. When I told them I was going to go to school for nursing, they were thrilled, and I think Uncle Andrew started planning right then and there to pass the practice to me eventually. I never wanted to be a doctor myself—the sheer amount of schooling involved gives me a headache—but that didn’t make a difference to Uncle Andrew. Just the fact that I’d entered the medical field has always made him so happy, and I think he’d be just as thrilled had I been a paramedic or a surgeon.
“Any luck on finding a doctor?” I ask, addressing the elephant that’s hanging out in the room. It’s the only thing really keeping Uncle Andrew from retiring completely, not having someone to take his place.
Unfortunately, it’s not the easiest thing these days to get a high-quality doctor to move to a small town clinic, and no way Uncle Andrew is going to let anyone step into his shoes who doesn’t meet his high standards.
“Actually, I have,” he answers. There’s a twinkle in his eye.
I smile. “Oh, you are totally holding something back.”
“Nah.” He chuckles.
“C’mon, Uncle Andrew. Tell me!”
“Well, it’s a startling coincidence, I’ll say that much.” He relents. “You’ll never believe this—the new doctor is someone who actually worked at your old hospital in Harrisburg!”
“What?” I stare at him in disbelief, wondering if he’s gotten confused. It wouldn’t be the first time — another good reason for him to be retiring — and I can’t imagine why anyone from Harrisburg would come here. If he’s not confused, then this is some sort of strange joke. “Are you sure?”
He nods. “It was the strangest thing! When I saw the resume come across my desk, I did a double take. He was by far the most qualified of the candidates, and so it was an easy choice to hire him. He’ll start on Monday!”
So soon? Holy crap… this feels like it’s all happening so fast. I’m still reeling from the news that the new doctor coming on board is from my old hospital, and now Uncle Andrew is hitting me with the fact that the new guy is starting so soon!I tell myself it’ll be okay. This is a good thing. Uncle Andrew will be able toretire and get some much-needed rest. He and Aunt Lori deserve that.
But… who is it? Who did he hire? The hospital in Harrisburg was huge, so the chances that I actually know this doctor personally aren’t big, but still.
“That isinsane.” I shake my head, laughing. “Okay, who is it? I probably never met them, but…”
Before I can get my question fully out, the chime for the front door rings from the small speaker hanging in the corner of the office’s ceiling.
“Ah!” Uncle Andrew pushes to his feet. “That must be our first patient of the day. Would you mind getting them checked in? Send them to exam room two.”
“Yeah, no problem,” I murmur, a part of me still wanting to ask him for the name of the new doctor. However, duty calls, and he’s busy, so I decide to put a pin in this conversation and turn to head to the clinic’s front desk to get our day started. We can always talk about it later.
