Janet (16 page)

Janet smiled. “That’s a typical child’s way
of describing a queasy stomach.” She took the thermometer out of
his mouth. “Temperature’s normal.” She put the pressure cuff on
him.

Butch opened one drowsy eye and murmured
sleepily, “That feels funny.” Then he drifted back to sleep.

“Betty June will never forgive me if I let
something happen to Butch.”

Janet read the pressure before she answered
him. “There’s no need to panic, Dan. It’s probably a simple stomach
virus.”

“Are you always this calm?”

She wasn’t as calm as she appeared, but she
was glad Dan couldn’t see her turmoil. Distraught parents and
guardians would not be served by panicked doctors, and neither
would the patients. She trained her stethoscope on Butch’s small
chest and answered Dan. “Yes.”

“I guess I should be glad.”

She straightened up and looked at him. “I’m a
doctor, Dan. This is my job.”

“Then, Doc, what’s your diagnosis?”

“Butch is a healthy three-year-old with a
common childhood ailment—what most people describe as an upset
stomach.”

“What will we do about it?”

“We will hope that he doesn’t vomit again. If
that continues, however, we will use suppositories, which will be
immediately effective in stopping the problem.” She snapped her bag
shut.

Dan had never been more aware of her career
than at that moment. He was deeply grateful to her, and at the same
time he was angry.

“You make it all sound so clinical.”

“It is.”

“No, it isn’t.” Dan left his chair and went
to the bedside. “This child is my nephew, my flesh and blood.”

Janet reached out and touched his arm in a
gesture of compassion. “I know that, Dan. But I have to think of
him objectively, otherwise my emotions might hamper my
judgment.”

Dan covered her hand with his.
“Intellectually, I understand what you’re saying, and I am truly
grateful to you for coming here tonight.”

“But?”

“What?”

“I sense reservations, Dan.”

“Reservations, yes. And conflicting
emotions.” He squeezed her hand. “Tonight I needed your skills,
your medical knowledge. But I also needed... wanted...” He took his
hand away. “Hell, I don’t know what I wanted.” In a gesture of
frustration, he ran his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, Doc. I
stood you up, then dragged you out of your house and deprived you
of your free evening—and now I’m lecturing like some depraved
idiot.”

She gave him a small smile. “I’m accustomed
to distraught parents, Dan.”

“But?” When she didn’t immediately answer, he
looked deeply into her eyes. “I hear reservations in your voice,
too, Janet.”

“What happens to us, Dan?”

He knew what she meant, and he wasn’t sure he
wanted it put into words. Instead of replying, he reached out and
ran his fingers lightly down her cheek.

She shivered. “Don’t.”

His fingers hovered there, not leaving but
not touching. “Why?”

“This...whatever you want to call
it—conflict, misunderstanding, lack of trust. You know what I’m
talking about, Dan.”

“Yes.”

“It’s always there between us.”

“I don’t want it to be.”

“Neither do I.”

They faced each other in the bedroom and it
was almost as if the sleeping child had floated off the bed and
positioned himself between them. They stood that way a while,
separated by a chasm that had many names.

Dan reached out and swiftly pulled her into
his arms. One hand braced her head and the other tucked her hips
closer to his.

“Dan, we can’t keep solving our problems this
way.”

“I know. But right now I don’t want to think
of another way.” He lowered his head, and when his lips were only a
fraction of an inch from hers, he whispered, “I need you,
Janet.”

His need pulsed through him like vintage
wine, heating his blood, warming his heart. Everything he was
feeling communicated itself in his kiss.

Janet took all his need and his turmoil and
transformed it into an exquisite tenderness.

Finally Dan lifted his head and gazed down
into her eyes. “You always do that to me, Doc.”

“What?” she whispered.

“Distract me.”

She ran her hands over his face, caressing
the high planes of his cheekbones and his sculpted lips. “Do you
think we could live a life of distraction?”

Her wistful question hung in the air for a
moment. From the bed, Butch sighed in his sleep. Somewhere in the
house the grandfather clock struck the hour. Eleven-thirty.

“If I had a magic wand, I’d stop time right
now. I’d capture this moment so that we could be this way forever.
Just you and me. Two people holding each other.”

“That’s a beautiful thought, Coach.”

His smile was both wise and sad. “Sometimes I
wish I weren’t an intelligent creature who knew better.”

“So do I.”

“It’s getting late. You should be in
bed.”

Some of the old playfulness came back, and
she smiled wickedly. “Your bed?”

Dan lifted one rakish eyebrow and then
sobered. “If I ever get you there, Janet, I’ll never let you
go.”

“I would never want to go, Dan.”

“Perhaps we could shove our problems under
the bed.”

“They might make such a big hump that the
mattress would be one-sided and we’d slide off onto the floor.”

“Ahh, Doc... my beautiful Doc...” He ran his
fingers through her hair. “We’re not that far apart. I won’t let us
be.”

She closed her eyes and fought her desire to
close her medical bag forever, to shove it into a corner of a
closet, climb into Dan Albany’s bed and never look back. Instead,
she did a sensible thing. “It’s getting late.”

“I’ve kept you up. I’m sorry.”

“I’m glad I could be here for you.” She
pulled reluctantly away and reached for her bag. Smiling at him
over her shoulder, she said, “Don’t tell a soul that I made a house
call.”

“Seal my lips, Doc.”

She moved back to him for a brief, hard kiss.
And when it was over she felt almost as if she had told him
goodbye. “I’ll see you, Dan.”

He took her elbow and escorted her out of the
bedroom and down the hallway. “I wish I could drive you home. It’s
late.”

“I’m used to being on my own, Dan. And
although I am female, I’m perfectly capable of looking after
myself.” She didn’t know why she’d said that, when a simple thank-
you would have done. She guessed she felt some perverse desire to
call attention to their problems. It was almost like having an open
wound that wouldn’t heal because it was constantly being poked and
prodded.

To make amends, she added, “Call me again if
you need me. I can be here in ten minutes.”

Dan propped one hand on the wall behind her.
“I’ll always need you, Janet.”

He touched her lips in a kiss so filled with
pent-up passion she thought she would burn from the fire racing
through his blood. When it was over they exchanged a long, deep
look.

“Call me, Dan,” she whispered. Then she
backed swiftly through the door, turned and hurried to her car.

o0o

Sunday morning came in an ordinary way, with
the sun rising in the east, melting away the veil of darkness that
had shrouded the earth. Everywhere in Tupelo lights came on and
people stirred from their beds.

In the Victorian house on Church Street,
Harvey rose early, his ears pricked and his sap rising. He padded
past the sleeping children and peered out the window. Across the
way, that gorgeous poodle was sniffing the air as if she felt
something great and wonderful had been let loose and she didn’t
want to miss it.

Harvey stretched leisurely, taking time to
feel the vibrant glow of good health, and then he puffed out his
chest in a show of male ego. Lifting his head, he sniffed.
Something wonderful
was
in the air. And he knew precisely
what it was.

Ordinarily he loved to go into Dan’s bedroom
and poke his nose under the covers, just to be absolutely sure his
master didn’t oversleep; but this morning he had more important
things on his mind. Without waking a soul, he padded quietly
through the house and through his doggie door. In the backyard he
strutted and preened. Gwendolyn, that foxy lady next door, came to
the fence and peered through. She whined. Harvey woofed softly.

And then they both began to dig. The hole was
soon big enough for Gwendolyn to slip through. Once she was in his
yard, Harvey took his time, courting her like the perfect Southern
dog he was. A true lady like Gwendolyn came along once in a
lifetime, and he had more sense than to spoil it with rash
behavior.

She succumbed to his courtly manners, just as
he knew she would, and soon they sought a lovers’ retreat in the
shelter of a big hydrangea bush that guarded Dan’s back door.

Harvey decided that being in love was the
best thing that had ever happened to him. With a curvaceous canine
like Gwendolyn, he might even consider settling down. He was
definitely going to have a little fling.

At his urging, Gwendolyn followed him to the
gate and watched in admiration as he nosed aside the latch. The
gate swung open, and together they headed down the street to great
and wondrous adventures.

o0o

Dan didn’t immediately discover that Harvey
was missing. He had too much on his mind. He’d spent most of the
night in a chair beside Butch’s bed, watching and waiting. When he
had finally decided the crisis was past and had gone to his own
bed, his sleep had been restless and broken by frequent dreams.

Consequently when he awakened on Sunday
morning he was tired and cranky, two feelings so foreign to him
that he decided he was coming down with something serious.

All four children were out of bed by eight,
as lively and bouncy as four rubber balls in a juggling act. By the
time Betty June arrived to take them home, Dan was feeling frazzled
and fractious.

His sister came into the house in her usual
breezy manner, dispensing hugs and advice at the same time.

“Merry, I’m going to have to call you my
little raspberry girl. Go in the bathroom, honey, and wash the
jelly off your face. Good land, Butch, you and Sam quit bouncing on
Uncle Dan’s sofa. My goodness. I have to put my feet up just a
minute.” She settled into the rocking chair beside Dan’s
fireplace.

Dan propped one elbow on the mantel and
observed the chaos in his house. It was the first time in his life
he’d ever considered that his sister’s four children were
rowdy.

“How was Memphis, Betty June?”

“Great. Ron was so carried away with the
exhibit that he started working on a Rodin lecture as soon as we
got back. How did it go here?”

“Butch was sick last night. Upset
stomach.”

“He looks healthy enough now. One of them
always has a stomachache or a runny nose or a stubbed toe.”

“I called Janet. I didn’t want to take any
chances.”

Betty June leaned back in her chair and
beamed at her brother. “Are you sure you called the doctor for
Butch?”

“Not entirely.”

“Well, don’t look so glum about it. In a
romance, any excuse to see your lover will do.”

“It’s not like that, Betty June.” Dan gazed
at his sister, but he was not seeing her. He was seeing a woman
with dark red hair and bright brown eyes. “In fact, I don’t know
what it’s like. Everything always seems to go wrong between
us.”

His sister stood up and put her hands on her
hips. “Dan, you’ve been a bachelor too long. I think you’re scared
to death of commitment.”

“Scared? I’ve never been scared of a thing in
my entire life. I’d walk into a pit of snakes and not be
scared.”

“I know it. But for some reason you’re scared
to walk down the aisle.”

“I’ve never found the right woman.”
Unconsciously his chin came up in a gesture of defiance. “When I
find the right woman,
then
I’ll walk down the aisle.”

“Well, now, let me see. Ten years ago there
was Sandra, who was just too flighty, and a year after that there
was that horse-faced blonde with legs that reached from here to
Arkansas... what was her name?”

“She wasn’t horse-faced, and her name was
Gretchen.”

“Ahh, yes. Gretchen. I believe her failing
was that she was a daddy’s girl.” Betty June ticked the women off
on her fingers. “And then there was Maria... the one who talked too
much. After her came Sylvia...”

“Stop.” Laughing, Dan held up his hand.
“Saying I’m scared just because I didn’t marry any of them is
stretching things a bit far. They were all seriously flawed.”

“Humph.” She turned to her children. “Merry,
Peter, go get your things so we can go home.” Then she faced her
brother again. “I suppose you’ve found some serious failing in Dr.
Janet Hall. Don’t look so surprised. Your face is a dead giveaway.
You look like a man caught with one foot in Heaven’s gates and one
on a banana boat sliding into hell.”

“Banana peel.”

“Whatever.” She pinched his cheek. “You look
a sight, Dan. Better call your doctor.”

Merry and Peter came back with their
overnight satchels, and Betty June gathered her children and
started toward the door.

“Bye, Uncah Dan.”

“Can we come back next week?”

“Can we see six moo-bees nex’ time?”

All the children were talking at once. Betty
June turned to wave at her brother. “Remember what I said,
Dan.”

Call your doctor.
The phrase echoed
in his mind after his sister had gone. In order to clear his head,
he decided to go for a long walk. He got his leather jacket from
the hall tree and crammed his baseball cap on his head.

Still standing in the hallway he called his
dog. “Harvey. Come on, boy. Let’s go for a walk.”

When there was no answer he walked through
the house, searching the rooms one by one. Then he checked the
backyard. The first thing he saw was the open back gate. The next
thing he saw was the hole under the fence.