“This is going to need stitches,” she said, reaching for her supplies. “The good news is it’s not as deep as it looks. The bad news is scalp wounds bleed like crazy, so you’re going to look worse than you feel for a few days.”
“Story of my life,” Tom said with a dry chuckle.
As Lucy worked, cleaning and preparing the wound for suturing, she found herself acutely aware of Tom’s proximity. The familiar scent of his cologne, the way he held perfectly still despite what had to be considerable discomfort, the small scar on his left ear from a childhood accident she remembered from their teenage years.
“This might sting a bit,” Lucy warned, injecting local anesthetic around the wound site.
“I’ve had worse,” Tom said, though she felt him tense slightly.
“I remember,” Lucy replied without thinking, then felt her cheeks warm as the memory surfaced. Tom fell out of the old oak tree behind the school when they were sixteen, ending up with a concussion and a broken wrist that had sidelined him from football for half the season.
“You remember that?” Tom asked, surprise evident in his voice.
“Hard to forget,” Lucy said, focusing intently on her suturing to avoid meeting his eyes. “You scared me half to death when you wouldn’t wake up right away.”
They fell into comfortable silence as Lucy worked, the familiar rhythm of medical procedures providing a safe refuge from the emotional undercurrents swirling between them. When she finished, she applied antibiotic ointment and a protective bandage, then stepped back to survey her handiwork.
“All done,” she announced. “Try to keep it dry for the next few days, and come back in a week to have the stitches removed.”
“Thank you,” Tom said, standing carefully and testing his balance. “I really appreciate you taking care of this so quickly.”
“Of course,” Lucy replied, then found herself adding, “That’s what I’m here for.”
Tom paused at the door, turning back with an expression Lucy couldn’t quite read. “Lucy, I know this might seem sudden, but would you like to have dinner sometime? Just as friends, of course. It’s been too long since we caught up properly.”
Lucy felt her world tilt slightly, the same sensation she’d experienced as a teenager whenever Tom Morrison had smiled at her across the hallway at school. The rational part of her mind warned that this was dangerous territory, that getting involved with her high school sweetheart forty years later was the stuff of midlife crisis clichés.
But another part of her, the part that had been lonely since her husband’s death and tired of spending every evening alone with medical journals and cable television, found herself nodding.
“I’d like that,” she heard herself say. “When were you thinking?”
“Tomorrow night?” Tom suggested, his face lighting up with genuine pleasure. “I’m off duty, and I know a place in Cedar Key that has great seafood if you don’t mind the drive.”
“I’m free tomorrow,” Lucy confirmed, wondering if she was making a terrible mistake or finally doing something right.
As they walked toward the clinic’s main exit, Lucy felt distinctly lightheaded, as if she’d been transported back to her teenage self getting ready for her first date. It was both exhilaratingand terrifying, this reminder that some feelings never really went away. They just waited patiently for the right moment to resurface.
They reached the main doors just as Detective Rad Dillinger appeared, his expression concerned as he spotted Tom’s bandaged head.
“Chief, how are you feeling?” Rad asked, holding the door open for them.
“Fine, just a few stitches,” Tom replied. “Dr. Tanner fixed me right up.”
“You need to go home and rest,” Lucy interjected, her medical training overriding her personal feelings. “No strenuous activity for the rest of the day, and if you experience any dizziness, nausea, or vision problems, call me immediately.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Tom said with a grin that reminded Lucy exactly why she’d fallen for him in the first place.
Rad’s phone rang, interrupting the moment. He answered it quickly, his expression growing serious as he listened to whoever was on the other end.
“I’m on my way,” Rad said, ending the call and turning to Tom. “I’m going to have to drop you at home now, Chief.”
“Why? What’s going on?” Tom asked, immediately shifting into professional mode despite his injury.
“There’s a fire in the forest just north of the campgrounds,” Rad explained, and as if summoned by his words, the distant wail of sirens began to fill the air. “We need to move.”
“I’m coming with you,” Tom declared, ignoring Lucy’s sharp intake of breath.
“Chief, you just had a head injury,” Rad protested. “Maybe you should?—”
