Her grandda had died around the time she’d been having the symptoms of the heart trouble.Her cousin, Phil, as everyone was calling him because he hated the shortened version of his name, had brought a will to the reading of the will, and they allowed him to clean out the law office that Debra was to inherit.In addition to the hospital being sued, she was also suing the law firm that had allowed access to the firm by her cousin, and he’d been arrested as a result.
“We’ll be eating soon.Your mom has made me something different than what you guys are eating, and that’s about the sweetest thing I’ve ever had done for me.”Penrod told her that her mom worried about her as well.“You’ve all been so good to me, and I feel loved.Now if only I can get the will taken care of and my firm up and running, I can get back to normal.Or whatever that word means to people nowadays.”
“It doesn’t mean all that much to me anymore.I think normal is highly overrated.”They both laughed, and she thanked him.“It’s all right.I needed a good laugh, too.It’s been a hell of a couple of days.”
“I bet it has.”She didn’t ask, but he could tell that she wanted to.Being an attorney, she’d know better than most not to talk about an ongoing investigation.When she sat down and did her breathing the way she’d been told—in her nose and out her mouth, he sat quietly beside her.She would stress out easily, but she seemed to be getting a handle on things better daily.“I don’t want to get overwhelmed by the stress that I’m having.I have to learn to control what I can.I’m trying, but it’s difficult to do sometimes.”
“You do what you need to do, and the rest of us will be here for you when you need it.There isn’t any problem that big that you’ll have to take it on by yourself.Just breathe, and you’ll be fine.”Debra nodded and told him it was getting easier.“I hope so.You need to take care of yourself over anyone else that’s around.”
They talked about the weather and how the storm had knocked a few trees down.It was safe topics, and she seemed to be all right with them.He even told her about his morning at home, getting ready for work when he’d nearly left the house with two different kinds of shoes on.He’d had to go back in his place twice because he’d forgotten his keys, too.
She laughed at his mistakes, for which he had intended, and they enjoyed their visit.When dinner was called, he walked with her to the dining room table and even pushed her chair in for her.Kahana sat beside her on the other side when he sat down.He wondered if Kahana had a thing for the pretty attorney and was going to try to get him to admit it by asking Debra out.She said yes, and he could see the steam coming off the top of his brother’s head when he heard about it.Good.Maybe he’d get his butt in gear.
~*~
Kahana wanted to pop his brother in the head when he asked Debra out.He didn’t know why; he didn’t want to date her.But the thought of his brother getting to her first irked him something terrible.He decided to ignore her and his brothers for the rest of the night.
“Do you have rounds in the morning?”He glared at his brother.“Don’t look at me like that.You’ve had every opportunity to ask her out, and you didn’t.Next time, be a man and ask the woman out.”
“I don’t know why I’m so pissed at you.”Penrod nodded as if he understood.“What?You know that I was going to ask her out, or you thought that I was.”
“Frankly, I don’t care.She said yes to me, and I’m going to take her to dinner.She’s a nice, very attractive woman, and I’ve not been out on a date in more weeks than I can remember.You want to date, then find yourself someone else.”He growled at Penrod.“Oh, come on.You know that’s not going to bother me.I’m the one who carries a gun all the time.You’ll have to be meaner if you want me to be afraid of you.”He stretched his neck twice and heard it finally pop.
“You always have the best luck with women.”He said because he was cute.“Nah, you’re ugly as sin, and you know it.The only reason she said yes is because she felt sorry for you.That’s it, isn’t it?You told her how you can’t get a date because of your ugly puss, and she felt sorry for you.”
“You’re just jealous.And have you looked in the mirror of late?Christ, it’s small wonder you don’t scare little children when you’re out.Speaking of which, are you on rounds in the morning?I might need your help.”He asked him what he needed because he could always change his schedule around.“I have a big table that’s finally finished from the jackasses Spindle and Son.I was wondering if you could help me finally get it into storage.I was going to put it into a house, but I’ve never gotten around to looking for one.I’m sick of condo life.”
“I am as well.Every time I come here to Axel’s home or the parents, I realize what I’m missing in being between people who have no tolerance for noise.And all I’m doing is walking across the floor to the kitchen.Or they hate it when I take a shower when I get home from work.I know it’s late, but damn, do they have to pound on the walls every time?”Kahana said he understood.Sometimes he takes two showers a day, and they get pissy with him.“We need to find ourselves a place that has our own four walls and no neighbors.”
“I’m all for that.”Kahana looked at Debra.“You take her out and then no more.I have no idea why I feel like knocking the shit out of you for asking, but don’t do it again.All right?”
“Yeah, sure.But you might want to clear that with the others, too.I’m thinking that she’s going to be busy for the next several weekends by the way that Audon and Stamos are eyeing her.”He could see it then, his brothers vying for her attention.He didn’t know how to make his intentions known without pounding a few heads.Instead, he let them have their fun.He was going to get his turn soon, and that would be the end of it.He looked over at Penrod when he said his name.“You’re lookingmurderous.Please tell me that you’re not going to pick a fight with them in here?If you do, then Axel is going to murder you.He just got his house all set up.”
“I’m fine.Really, I am.I don’t know why it bothers me so much, but it does, and there is nothing I can do about it, so I might as well give it up.”He looked at Penrod then.“You’re a good brother, and she’d be lucky if you found a wife in her.”
“Let’s not go that far.It’s only a date.And to be honest, I only asked her out so that I could see your reaction.”He rolled his eyes.“Well, it got you thinking, didn’t it?Christ, the look on your face was priceless.If I had known I’d have gotten that kind of reaction from you, I wouldn’t have done it at all.I’m sorry.”
“Axel has spent the most time with her.I’ve only talked to her a few times, but we seem to be all right.She accuses me of having a terrible bedside manner, and I tease her.I worry about her heart all the time.She’s lucky that I went with them when they went to her house to close it up.To think that one of the staff had told her not to waste their time by coming in bothers me on so many levels.”He said it would him as well, and he’d not been there when she had her first heart attack.“It wasn’t as bad as it could have been.Knowing the signs is what saved her life.Then getting her to the hospital when we did that was the real lifesaver for her.She’s doing well now, making sure she’s eating right and doing her breathing.She was under a great deal of stress.I don’t know that she’s not still, but she seems to be handling it better than before.I think it scared her as well.”
“Sure it did.I know it would have me as well.”Penrod smiled at him.“You got it bad, big brother.I’d ask her out now if you want to be able to do it this summer.”
“I think that I will.”He got up and sat back down.“If I asked her out, what will you think of me poaching on your woman?”They both laughed, and Kahana felt better about asking.
He really didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes, but the need to take her out on a date seemed imperative to him.Kahana wondered if his brother Axel had felt the same way when he met Mac.They fell in love so quickly, yet it seemed like they’d been together forever.
He got up to find Debra and found her in the kitchen with his mom and Mac.They all three stared at him like he didn’t belong there, and he nearly left them to whatever they were doing.He started to back away when his mom called him in.Going into the kitchen with the women, he nodded at Debra after getting a hug from his mom.
“We were just discussing Debra and her heart issues.She was wondering if she was in the wrong profession to be having heart issues.”He immediately went into doctor mode and told her of her stress levels and what she had to do to make sure she didn’t have any.Commenting on her eating habits, as well as her going all day on very little to drink, wouldn’t help her at all if she were trying to relieve some of her stress.“See?I told you that he’d know you could do it.So long as you’re careful.You’ve been given a chance, and you don’t want to mess that up by having another heart attack when there isn’t anyone around to save you.You were so very lucky this time.”
“I was.And I still am.”He told her that he’d be there for her whenever she had any questions.“All right.What are you doing next Friday night?I have this ball for the local attorneys to go to, and I need someone to go with me to keep me calm.”He told her how he’d come in to ask her if she was busy anyway.“Then good.If you don’t mind that we go out in black tie, then you can be my date.”
“I’d love it.And you don’t need me to keep you calm, Debra.You’re doing a good job of that all on your own.So long as you remember what you’ve been taught, you’ll be fine.”She said that she didn’t feel fine when her breathing got out of control.“Just breathe, and if you have to, find a nice quiet place to sit.Don’t overthink things, and you should be fine.”
“But you’ll still go with me, right?I mean, since you know that I can do this, you’ll still go with me, right?”He said it would be his pleasure.“Good.I need you there.I could have asked Penrod, who asked me out for this weekend, but I want you there for some reason.Maybe because you’re a doctor, I don’t know.But I’m glad that you’ll be there.”
He didn’t like to think that he was going only because she might need him as her doctor, but he was going to take what he could get.At least she didn’t ask one of the others to take her, and he washappy with that.As soon as the kitchen was cleaned up, Mom and Mac left them in the kitchen.He had so much to say to her that he didn’t know where to begin.
“I came to find you to ask you out.”She told him she was sorry that she’d asked first.“I’m not.I’m glad you did.I would have fumbled it all up, and my mom would think she raised an idiot.And don’t get me started on what Mac would say.She’d cut me no slack at all.”
