Protecting What's Mine(24)

“Oh, shit,” she said under her breath.

They were going to have to Lysol bomb the waiting room.

“Happy first day,” Freida said. “We got ’em scheduled out in ten-minute windows.”

“Okay,” Mack sighed. “Who here is on a schedule and needs to get out of here quickly?”

About half of the hands rose.

“We’ll start with you all. Do the rest of you like pizza?” she asked.

The response was lethargically positive.

She reached into her pocket and produced a slim wallet. “Tuesday, call whatever pizza place we’ve got in town and get a couple of pies and whatever else you recommend.” She tossed her credit card to the receptionist. “And, for God’s sake, don’t let anyone touch you.”

“On it, Dr. Mack,” Tuesday said cheerfully.

“We’ll start with you,” Mack said, pointing at a harried mother with three kids.





In three hours of emergency medicine-style efficiency, Mack had nearly cleared the waiting room. The last of the pink eyes had been seen. She’d just wrapped up a UTI, and the final patients on her list were two kids with fevers.

She snagged a piece of cold pizza from the break room and scarfed it down. She poked her head out into the waiting room and found it empty.

“Freida’s getting their vitals in Exam Room 2,” Tuesday told her. “And these came for you.”

Mack blinked at the wildflower bouquet sitting on the front desk.

“They’re from Chief Reed,” Tuesday said, unable to contain her enthusiasm.

Mack plucked the opened card out of the blooms.

Dreamy,

I found Nemo twice yesterday, and now I can’t get the Moana songs out of my head. Also I hate burnt toast with chocolate chips. I owe you. Good luck on your first day.

Your Very Attractive Neighbor (Linc) (Clarifying in case you noticed how swole Mr. Nabuki two houses down is)





She bit her lip to keep her face from exploding into a gossip-inducing smile.

Yeah, she definitely had a soft spot for the sexy fire chief. And that was inconvenient.

She met Freida in the hallway outside Exam Room 2.

“So did you retire from the military or quit?” Freida asked.

The woman had been grilling her in increments since that morning.

Where are you from originally?

Where did you go to medical school?

Ever been married?

Do you have a favorite Jonas brother?

It was all part of the small-town experience. An alternate universe.

“Declined not to stay in after my last deployment,” she said. “Didn’t have enough years for retirement.” Or the physical and emotional stamina to survive another few years.

“You’ve got the Garrisons in there. Mom Harper, almost eight-year-old Ava, and four-year-old Sadie. Spoiler alert: It’s not pinkeye.”

“Thank God for that. Do you and Tuesday mind wiping down every surface in the waiting room before heading out?”

“Might be faster to burn it down, but we’ll save the drastic measures for flu season,” Freida said. “Gorgeous flowers. I didn’t know you and Linc knew each other.”

“We’re neighbors,” Mack said.

Freida’s eyebrows seemed to insist on more of a disclosure. But there were patients waiting.

Mack knocked briskly on the exam room door. Garrison. Harper and Ava and…shit. She’d forgotten.

“Come in!”

“Mrs. Garrison, what can we do for you today?”

Harper Garrison was a pretty blonde with big gray eyes and the kind of smile that seemed permanent…and genuine. She and Tuesday probably got along great.

Her kids were cuties. Ava was admiring her sparkly flip-flops every time she kicked her little legs up from the end of the exam table. She had dark, curly hair and big dark eyes. There was zero family resemblance.

Sadie however could have been cut from the same cloth as her mother. She had fine hair so blonde it was almost platinum. Her gray eyes were wary.

Harper plopped Sadie on the table next to her sister and surprised Mack with a hug.

“Oh. Uh. Is this a thing? Hugging doctors?” Mack asked.

“I’m Luke Garrison’s wife and Aldo’s friend,” Harper explained.

It clicked into place. Aldo, recovering from his amputation, had enlisted the help of his buddy’s then-girlfriend. He’d ended up teaching her to run. Mack had seen the pictures from that long-ago Fourth of July 5k when Aldo Moretta had reminded the entire town—and himself— what he was made of.

“Harper. Of course. It’s nice to meet you.” From all accounts, Luke Garrison’s wife was a ray of sunshine. It appeared the rumors were true.

“So this is Ava and Sadie,” Harper said, making the introductions. She placed a loving hand on each girl’s head. “This is only half of the family. The boys are healthy, thankfully. But our girls don’t feel very well, do you?”

Ava shook her head, dark curls bouncing. Sadie looked at Mack like she expected the doctor to steal her soul.

“We don’t feel good,” Ava announced, still kicking her flip-flopped feet to a beat only an almost eight-year-old could hear. “Mama says we can’t go to school until we stop throwing up and having fevers.”