Fifteen minutes later, Dok and Wren were in the car. “We’re heading to Simon Esh’s,” Dok said, “to help him change out his colostomy bag. Apparently, it’s leaking.” She forced herself tokeep her eyes on the road, resisting the urge to grin at Wren’s mortified reaction.
If this young doctor was going to give Dok a run for her money, she might as well make it a lesson worth learning.
Annie shut the basement door and spun around to find Gus standing at the top of the cellar steps. His hair was tousled by the breeze, and that easy, winsome grin of his sent a little jolt straight through her. Every time he popped up unexpectedly, her heart did the same little stutter step. Nerves fluttered in her belly, leaving her slightly lightheaded. If sunshine could be bottled, it would look like him. Mr. Wonderful. “Gus! What are you doing here?”
“It’s my day off. I had a few things to do in town, so I thought I’d start at the Bent N’ Dent.” He tipped his head toward the store. “You know, for Sarah’s good coffee.”
Gus didn’t drink coffee. He’d come to seeher. A slow smile escaped.After Hank Lapp had spilled the beans about Annie’s car sickness, Gus had been very empathetic. Turned out, he’d struggled with it once or twice too. He understood! When she told him she was working on some remedies and was confident she could manage it, his only response was, “I know you’ll overcome it, Annie.”
She’d felt such a sweep of relief that she’d even slept well that night, something that hadn’t happened for a while. She’d had to ask the Lord for forgiveness for telling Gus she was confident she could manage it. That was a lie. Annie never lied. She promised the Lord she wouldn’t do it again.
And here he was, this morning, on his day off, just to see her! She felt a little shiver of delight and nervously smoothed her apron.
Gus glanced at the path that led to the basement. “How’s the remodel coming along?”
“It’s done! Charlie did a wonderful job.” A giggle escaped. “The first patient arrived this morning—Hank Lapp, with a rooster under one arm.”
“A rooster?” Gus blinked.
“Hank headed straight to the basement, calling for Dok. He told Dok he was here to ‘inspect the new coop.’ He held out the rooster and said that ‘this one’s been a bit off his crow.’”
Gus laughed. “How did Dok handle that?”
“She just gave him thatlookshe has,” Annie said, furrowing her brows and pointing at Gus. “‘Hank Lapp, this basement is no coop. It is the ... garden level ... for a medical practice forhuman beings. You and your crowless rooster can turn around and head back home. And tell Edith to put that rooster in tonight’s supper pot.’ Hank sputtered away, deeply offended.” She giggled again. “One thing for sure—that man never quits. If there’s a door, he’ll find a way through it.”
“Speaking of persistence,” Gus said, a probing look on his face, “I thought I’d come to your office and take you to lunch. If you’re free, that is.”
A little thrill ran through her, knowing their special friendship had returned to the way it used to be—easy, comfortable—before her motion sickness got in the way. “I am free, in fact.”
Then his mouth broke into a wide smile. “Good. We’re going on a bus ride.”
Annie’s good mood popped like a balloon.
A spark of adrenaline had shot through Evie when Dok Stoltzfus decided to pair her with Charlie for patient care. She never saw this coming—Wren’s insistence on being supervised exclusively by Dok meant Evie was left in charge of Charlie. Every day! It felt a bit odd being his supervisor, but the silver lining was that she got Charlie all to herself. While she’d miss the house calls with Dok, the idea of spending so much timewith Charlie—without Wren lurking around—was more than enough to make up for it. This was precisely what she’d hoped for during her three months in Stoney Ridge: a chance to connect with him on a whole new level. It was finally happening!
After Annie handed Evie the patient list for the day and Dok and Wren left for a house call, Evie went into the exam room to get it prepped for the first patient. Charlie came in and watched her, taking in everything with a mix of curiosity and eagerness. “Should I go get Lena Johnson?” he asked, glancing at the patient list.
“Actually, Annie said Lena Johnson called in to say she’s running late. It’s just as well, because there’s been an emergency.”
Charlie’s head snapped up. “An emergency?”
“Just a minor one. Timmy Kauffman got hit by a baseball on his way to school this morning and needs some stitches to his eyebrow.” Evie set out the necessary instruments.
Charlie grinned. “Ah, the classic childhood injury.” Then his grin faded. “I haven’t, um, stitched up an eyebrow before. Or anything else either.”
“You’ve ... never given anyone stitches?”
“Never.”
Oh my. Evie’s first instinct was to say she’d do the stitching and he could watch, but that wasn’t what Charlie needed. He needed experience. “Well, I guess you’re going to start today.”
Timmy, a freckle-faced seven-year-old, entered the room holding an ice pack to his forehead. He looked more curious than scared, but his mom was clearly anxious.
“Hi, Timmy,” Evie said warmly. “This is Dr. King. We’re going to fix your cut.”
Charlie crouched down to Timmy’s eye level. “Hey, buddy. How did a baseball manage to hit you in the head this morning?”
Timmy shrugged and glanced at his mom. “It just came flying out of nowhere.”
