“Sure. If you’re not in the waiting room when I arrive, I’ll send you a text.”
“If you don’t get a reply right away, don’t worry. I’ll come and get you as soon as I can.”
Barbara leaned forward. “I don’t know how to thank you both for everything you’ve done.”
“You don’t need to thank us,” Willow said. “I’m just glad we were at The Welcome Center when Jesse became sick.” She’d known for a long time that the world worked in mysterious ways. Driving to the hospital twice in three days had to be more than a coincidence. If Zac was looking for a reason to stay in Sapphire Bay, he didn’t have to look far.
“Here we go,” Zac murmured.
When the truck stopped, Willow unclipped her seat belt.
Zac reached across the cab and held her hand. “Thank you.”
A lump formed in her throat. She had no idea why he was thanking her. All she’d done was talk to Barbara and made sure Jesse had everything he needed. If anything, she’d talked too much. But filling the tension inside the truck with random snippets of conversation seemed to make the journey a lot easier.
While Zac gathered Jesse into his arms, Willow held open the door. “Don’t worry about your backpacks, Barbara. I’ll bring them with me.”
Barbara took a well-loved toy rabbit off the seat. “Thanks. I’ll see you soon.”
As soon as everyone was clear of the truck, Willow slid into the driver’s seat and drove toward the parking lot. Hopefully, Jesse wouldn’t have to wait long to see a doctor, especially when Zac was holding him.
“Penny for your thoughts.”
Willow nearly leapt off the hard, plastic, hospital seat. Zac had snuck up behind her while she was sitting in the waiting room. “You nearly gave me a heart attack.”
He didn’t look sorry for making her heart pound. “You were a million miles away.”
She slipped her cell phone back into her pocket. The email Megan sent her could wait until later. “How’s Jesse?”
“He’s asleep and doing a lot better since the doctors gave him an IV line. If you want to spend some time with Barbara, I can wait out here.”
“I’ll give her a few minutes alone with Jesse. She’s exhausted.”
Zac sat beside her. “It can’t be easy raising a child on your own, especially when they’re sick.”
“Or when you don’t have a home of your own or a job that pays more than the minimum wage.”
“Hopefully, the tiny home village will be able to help people like Barbara.”
Willow nodded. When Barbara wasn’t working at a gift store in Sapphire Bay, she helped cook meals at The Welcome Center. She was always there for everyone else, and now it was time for her to be looked after.
A man and a woman walked into the room and headed straight to the water cooler. They looked every bit as stressed as Barbara.
An hour ago, Jesse had been moved into an isolation room in the children’s ward. Until the doctors knew what was causing his high temperature and vomiting, they didn’t want to risk anyone else getting sick. Thankfully, the tests had already ruled out meningitis.
Willow turned to Zac. He was flicking through a magazine. “I bet you never thought you’d become Sapphire Bay’s next doctor.”
“I haven’t.”
Her eyebrows rose. “In the last three days, you’ve delivered a baby and looked after Jesse. Even Doc Reilly doesn’t have as many emergency cases when he’s here.”
Zac closed the magazine. “I was in the right place at the right time.”
“Exactly. It’s called divine intervention.”
“Are you telling me I’m supposed to stay in Sapphire Bay?”
Willow wanted him to stay, but he needed to do what worked best for him. “It’s not my decision to make.”
