He gives me a wry look that tells me he knows I am lying. I collapsed at the Valentine’s dance on a Friday, and I was back to work on a Monday, so it depends on how you count your days, I suppose. “That’s four days in biblical days.”
He laughs. Yay me, I get an A in doctor’s appointments.
“And how many days passed until you filled your schedule with piano lessons and training your replacement at your dad’s garage?
I roll my eyes. “This is what I get for staying in a small town. Everybody knows everybody’s business.”
“And that’s what you get for seeing the same general practitioner for your entire life,” he corrects.
I have to contradict him on one thing. “I only schedule piano lessons two nights a week.”
“Yes, you schedule them, but then how many times do you let people squeeze extra time out of you?”
Damn. This man even knows that I keep an extra two nights a week open for families who can only pay per lesson, not per month. And for the artsy adults who decide they want to learn piano on a whim. That happens more than you would think.
Dr. Taylor leans back in his chair and says, “And now you’re back with the flu.”
My head is so woozy, and the words he says sound like they’re almost underwater.
He scribbles something on a piece of paper and hands it to me. “I can prescribe the antivirus, but I’m also going to prescribe rest, lots of fluids, and no going back to work. Not your office, not your laptop from bed, for two weeks.”
Damn.
Somehow, I drive myself back home after that visit.
I don’t even glance at the house across the street out of curiosity. If I were feeling like myself, I’d be calling Ari over to snoop with me. And that box on the porch? I don’t care. It can stay there, kicked under the rocking chair.
As soon as I get the key in the door and push it open, I’m so dizzy, and my head is so full of fever, that I fall to my knees right on the carpet.
Ouch.
Well, actually, it’s not too bad right here. The rug is pretty comfortable. I’ll just close my eyes for a bit. And then to bed. Before anybody finds me like this.
Just for a minute…
Chapter
Five
Ewan
Pascal bolts out the door and down the stairs of the porch before I can catch up. He’s on a mission. And then I realize he’s headed straight to Maddie’s house.
I bought the house as soon as it became available. The opportunity to move in across the street from Maddie was too good an opportunity to pass up.
Maddie’s door stands ajar, and Pascal goes right inside, pushing it all the way open. I run up the porch stairs, and that’s when I see her feet and her legs.
My heart races, and my lungs burn, as panic tries to set in.
And then I take control of myself and gather the facts.
It’s Maddie, and she’s face down on the floor, in the doorway. The most horrible possible scenarios run through my mind.
She’s dead?
No, she can’t be dead. I won’t allow for that.
I kneel next to her while Pascal is nudging and licking her head. I feel for her pulse, and it’s there. I blow out a breath.
