Hotshot Doc(97)

“Josie!” another one of them shouts. “He’s the hottest boy in our grade! You have to reply!”

Matt stays on the bed, chiding me for eavesdropping. I shoo him with my hand and press my ear to the door for better acoustics. Where’s a plastic cup when I need it?

Josie’s social life is alive and well thanks to the small private school we found for her in Costa Rica. Most of the students are also expats. She goes to school with teenagers from all over the world and last I checked, she has three boys from three different countries head over heels in love with her. She’s still more into books than ever, but I’m not sure how much longer that will last.

“Eh, I don’t really want to lead him on,” Josie replies. “You know the other day I asked him who his favorite literary character was and he couldn’t name one! Not one!”

There’s some mumbling and inaudible conversation. Most of it is drowned out because Matt has turned the TV on and cranked the volume to a deafening level to teach me a lesson. I hurry over to mute it. There’s a skirmish with the remote, but I eventually wrench it free, opting to use a carefully timed fake contraction to distract him. I’m a proud little monster as I mute the TV and run back to the door. He groans, but this is important! This is teenage-girl gossip.

“Oh my gosh, wait—did Derek just text you too? Why do you even bother with him? He’s a total nerd.”

“I like him,” Josie insists, sounding a little defensive. “We’re friends.”

“Why?! He doesn’t hang out with any of the cool guys.”

“So? Who cares? He’s really funny, and I happen to think he’s the cutest boy in our grade.”

I pump my fist in the air. That’s my girl.

Go for the nerd, Josie!

I turn, brush my hands together as if to say, My job here is done, and then stroll back to the bed.

“Happy with yourself?” Matt asks, looking adorable propped up against our headboard with his shirt off. He really should never wear clothes.

I grin. “Very.”

I’m glad to see Josie seems to still have a good head on her shoulders, especially considering the whirlwind of the last two years. Moving to another country, starting a new school, adjusting to life with Matt, and now with this new baby on the way—I’ve kept her at the forefront of my thoughts, careful to make sure she’s not totally overloaded with all the change.

We’ve worked hard to ensure she feels like part of our unit. When Matt was considering proposing to me, he took Josie with him to the jewelry store so she could help him pick out a ring. He later told me she tried to pick out the biggest stone they had (worth tens of millions) and he had to talk her into something a little more realistic, one that wouldn’t cause back strain.

At our tiny wedding ceremony on the beach with close friends and family, Josie acted as flower girl, ring bearer, and maid of honor. If we’d allowed it, she would have been the officiant as well.

“I just got certified online! I think…I’m not sure. I had to enter your credit card information.”

When Matt and I were first thinking of trying to conceive, Josie accidently found my stash of pregnancy tests in our bathroom cabinet. I was making dinner and she walked out, cradling the boxes in her arms, tears running down her face.

I freaked out, assuming the worst—that she was overwhelmed and upset we hadn’t consulted her first—but then with a shuddering sob, she exclaimed, “OH MY GOD! I’m going to be an aunt!”

She didn’t really care that I wasn’t actually pregnant yet. To her, the possibility was just as exciting.

We’ve settled into life here easier than I thought we would. The clinic has taken off. Matt and I both spend our days there, continuing to train staff from all over Costa Rica and operating on patients three days a week. When the grant committee approached Matt and offered him the opportunity to stay on for another two years with full funding, we all jumped at the chance. We love our life here and even though we’ll likely move back to the States when Josie goes off to college, we’re all happy to be here now, growing as a family of three, soon to be four.

Another chorus of laughter rings out from our living room and Matt tugs me closer on the bed.

“You know we’re not getting any sleep tonight, right?” I joke.

“Well, I guess there’s only one thing we can do,” he replies with a smirk.

I know immediately what he’s suggesting.

“No. You’re terrible. We said last time would be it. No more.”

“C’mon,” he says, nuzzling my neck. “You know you want to.”

I smile and shake my head. “You’re a terrible influence.”

“You’re the one who got me addicted.”

It’s true. This is all my fault.

He’s already turning on the TV and navigating to Netflix. “C’mon, indulge your husband.”

“Fine,” I say, throwing my hands up in mock defeat.

Then we sit together, hip to hip, while the Grey’s Anatomy theme song plays on our TV.

A few minutes later, he gestures to the screen. “Oh, c’mon! Those doctors would totally get caught.”

He’s talking about the surgeons currently getting it on in a storage closet.

I clear my throat. “Matt, we did that.”