Iris (Suitors of Seattle Book 8) (4 page)

"I can't say I don't understand it. I did feel the same way. But after watching you with Mallie, I realize that you're very suited to your profession. You were kinder and gentler with her than any doctor I've ever seen.  I don't know if it's because it's your nature, or because you're a woman.  Maybe more women should be doctors."

Iris smiled at his praise. She knew she was a good doctor, but that didn't mean that everyone around her would see it. She was glad he did. "Thank you."

Francis shrugged, a little embarrassed that he'd praised her. "Just telling the truth."

"So who all will be at Tracy's today?" she asked, changing the subject.

"My girls and me. Andy and Tracy and their kids. And you. My younger sister Mattie comes some Sundays, but she's expecting again, and she's not feeling well with it."

Iris frowned. "Would she mind if I called on her tomorrow?"

Francis shrugged. "I wouldn't think so, but you never can tell. I can give you directions out to her place if you'd like."  He liked the idea that she cared enough to check on his sister.

"That would be wonderful. I have some teas that often make women feel better while they're carrying."

He pulled up in front of a large ranch house. He walked around and helped her down from the wagon. He knew she could get up and down on her own, but if Tracy were watching, she'd get onto him if he didn't help. Besides, he liked touching her and being close to her. "I grew up here."

"Really? Was it only the three of you? You, Mattie, and Andy?" Iris was very curious about Francis. She told herself it was because she wanted to know about her patients, but she knew it wasn't true.

"No, Arthur is younger than me but older than Mattie. He's in the area too, but he's north of Nowhere and we're south. He goes to a country church north of town."

"Is he married as well?"

Francis nodded. "He married a girl from school. He's the only one of us that married a local girl."

"Any children?"

"Four and another on the way. Are you looking for more patients?" he teased.

Iris shook her head. "No, I'm just curious."

Tracy came out of the house then, wearing her apron. "Dr. Sullivan! Come in!"

Iris rushed toward the house. "Can I help with anything?"  She hated sitting idly while another woman did all the work.  She may not have learned to cook and clean growing up, but she'd learned since she moved out.

Tracy's eyes widened. "No, of course not! You're a doctor."

Iris laughed. "I'm also a woman. Would you have one of your friends help you if they came for Sunday dinner?"

"Well of course I would, but they're not town doctors."

Iris shook her head. "Why don't you call me Iris? And you can think of me as just another friend. Yes, I'm a doctor, but I'd rather you called me friend."

Tracy looked at Iris skeptically.  "It just doesn't seem right. I'd feel like I wasn't respecting you."

"I guess I'll need to call you Mrs. Harvey then, so you'll know that I respect you."

"No, please call me Tracy."

"Only if you call me Iris."

Tracy grinned. "I guess you've got me there. All right, Iris." She offered Iris an apron that was hanging from a hook on the wall and led her into the kitchen. "I started a stew before church. It's just a matter of setting the table, pouring drinks, and getting the bread out of the oven."

"Which would you like me to do?" Iris looked around her. "Where are the girls?"

Tracy shrugged. "Edith has them off somewhere. She's really good with them. I think she's enjoying playing mother for a little while." She handed Iris a stack of dishes. "Why don't you go ahead and set the table? Do you have a beau back home?"

Iris blinked a couple of times at the change in subject before setting the table. "I've been studying so hard I haven't really had time for a beau. Besides, who would want to marry a woman doctor?"

"Oh, I can think of a few."

Iris kept her eyes averted as she continued to set the table. "Do you want me to pour the drinks?"

"Oh, sure. Do you want coffee or milk?"

"I prefer coffee if you don't mind. Do the children get milk?"

"Just the little ones. We're a coffee drinking family. Mallie, Ettie, and Katie are the only ones who will drink milk. Mine all drink coffee."

Iris started to say something about children not drinking coffee too young, but as a friend she knew it wasn't the right thing to do. She was doing her best not to be in doctor mode. She followed Tracy's orders and poured the drinks for everyone.

Between the two of them they had lunch on the table within minutes. "Would you mind going out to the barn and getting the men for lunch?" Tracy asked.

"Not at all. Should I try and find the children as well?"

"They'll be close enough to home that they'll see you get the men, and they'll know it's time to come in."

Iris removed the apron and wandered outside looking for the barn. She'd been so focused on Francis when they arrived, that she hadn't noticed where it was. When she stepped into the barn, the men immediately stopped talking. "It's time for lunch."

Francis walked over with an older version of himself beside him. "This is my brother Andy."

Iris smiled. "It's nice to meet you Andy."

Andy looked Iris up and down. "So you're the lady doctor, huh?"

"I suppose I am." Iris wondered what he'd been expecting.  She hated being a curiosity, but she would have hated not being a doctor even more.

"You're a lot prettier than I thought a lady doctor would be." Andy looked at Francis. "You should marry her."

Iris blushed. Why did everyone think she should marry Francis? She looked at him. He certainly was a nice-looking man. She knew how he felt about women working though, so she knew nothing could work between them.

"Andy? Shut up." Francis looked at Iris. "Let's go in for lunch."

Iris looked between the two brothers. "I think that's a fine idea."

Andy nudged Francis with his elbow. "Offer her your arm. There's no reason you can't court a woman on my ranch."

Francis glared at his brother. "I said, 'Shut up!'"

"Oh, I heard you! I seem to remember you finding me my bride."

Francis stormed out of the barn, leaving Iris alone with his brother. Iris looked at Andy. "Are you trying to make him angry?"

Andy shrugged. "I've been waiting years to have revenge on him for the way he set me up. I love my wife, but he had no right to send for her."

Iris bit her lip to keep from laughing. "I'm not one to get in the middle of family squabbles. Tease him all you want."

All through lunch, Andy made faces at Francis nodding toward Iris. "Edith? Do you mind helping your ma with the dishes after lunch?" Andy asked.

Edith shook her head. "No, of course not, Pa.  Why would I mind?"

"No reason. I was just hoping that Francis could take Iris for a walk after lunch. The spring flowers are in bloom. Maybe he could pick her a bunch. You know, just like they were courtin'." Andy grinned at Iris. "Ow.  Tracy, why'd you kick me?"

Tracy glared at Andy. "Behave yourself. You're a grown man. You don't need to be tormenting your brother." 

Andy shrugged, not looking contrite at all. "Just trying to help. He helped me find my beautiful bride after all."  He took Tracy's hand and lifted it to his lips, his eyes twinkling at her.

Tracy just shook her head.  "And you've never forgiven him for it."

Francis looked at Iris. He could play his brother's game. "Dr. Sullivan? Would you do me the honor of going for a walk with me after lunch?  I'd like to pick some flowers for you and make cows' eyes at you."

Iris had no idea what Francis was up to. He was probably just trying to get back at his brother though. "I'd love to.  No one ever picks me flowers!"

"I will." Francis thought he actually would. Anything to annoy his brother.

Mallie's eyes grew around. "Pa, are you going to court Dr. Sullivan?"

Francis frowned. He didn't want to get his daughter's hopes up. "We're just going for a walk, Mallie."

"And then maybe you'll court her?" Ettie asked, sounding excited.

Francis looked between his three girls. Were they all that desperate for a mother?  "Don't get your hopes up, girls. We're just going for a walk." He wondered if it was smart to even go for the walk, but he couldn't back down now.  Not without Andy calling him a coward.  What was it about family members that made you act like a child again?

"I think Dr. Sullivan would make a great new ma," Katie said. "She fixed Mallie's arm right up. If we had a doctor living in our house, we wouldn't have to worry about getting sick."

Iris said nothing. She stared down into her stew. She didn't know how Francis was going to get out of it, but she knew he wasn't really interested in her. She told herself she didn't want him to be. But she knew it was a lie.

Chapter Four

As soon as lunch was over, Francis offered his arm to Iris, and they left the house. As soon as they were out of earshot, Francis said, "I'm sorry about that. Andy doesn't know when to shut up. I told him, but he still couldn't figure it out."

Iris smiled. "So you invited me for a walk to get revenge on him." She understood how siblings worked.  She may not have had brothers, but she had enough sisters to know.

Francis sighed. "It wasn't exactly a hardship for me to ask a pretty girl to go on a walk with me."  Did she think he hated her or something?

Iris dropped his arm. "I understand. Are you worried about getting the girls hopes up?"

"I am, but by the time I realized what they were thinking, it was too late to back down. I'm sorry." 

Iris shrugged. "I'm not. It's a beautiful day for a walk. I expected Texas to be much drier than it is."

"It is in the summer. Spring is always beautiful though." He walked up one of the hills and started gathering flowers. "We have to make it look good. I really am going to pick you some flowers."

Iris shook her head and laughed. "The girls are going to be asking for a wedding date."

Francis kept his eyes averted. "Have you thought about marrying?" He knew he wasn't a good candidate for a husband for her.  She was obviously from a well-to-do family, and he had three young girls. Who would want to marry him?

Iris frowned. "Not really. Who would marry a lady doctor?"

Francis looked up at her, his arms full of flowers. "Are you really worried about that?" She was one of the most beautiful women he'd ever seen, so he had a hard time believing that she would worry about finding a man.

"Of course I am. No man wants to marry a doctor. My mother's been telling me that for the past twenty years."  She shrugged.  Her mother hadn't meant to upset her, but really?  Being told no one would marry you for so long had convinced her she wasn't worth marrying.

"Maybe if the lady doctor were ugly, or manly. You're beautiful. Any man would feel lucky to have you as a wife."  Francis wasn't used to flowery words, but they seemed natural with Iris.  She was special.

"Any man but you, right?" Iris regretted her words as soon as they passed her lips. He would think she was being forward.

"Why do you say that? Have I indicated I don't find you attractive?" Why didn't she realize how attracted he was to her?

"Well, no, but you certainly didn't want to walk with me." She knew she'd already gone too far, but why stop there?

Francis stood, walking toward her. "I did want to walk with you. I didn't want to be told to walk with you. There's a difference. It's strange to think about courting anyone. I've never done it."

"It seems strange that you have three daughters, and you've never courted anyone. I know you had a mail order bride, but didn't you do some of the courting stuff with her?" Iris was puzzled.

Francis shrugged. "I had a strange marriage. I'm going to leave it at that."

Iris frowned, but she didn't ask any more questions. "Well, I'm glad we came for a walk. I'm enjoying getting to know you better."

Francis smiled. "Maybe I could take you for a drive sometime." He held his breath while he waited for her response. He'd never really even asked the girl to go on a drive before. He'd known she'd walk with him, because she had known what Andy was up to. This was different.

Iris studied his face for a moment and finally nodded. "I'd like that."  As she said the words, she felt her heart beat faster.  She'd just agreed to go for a drive with a man.  A couple of med-students had asked her out, but she'd always felt like they just wanted help studying and didn't really see her as a woman.  Francis?  The look he was giving her told her he really did want to be with her.

"Really?" He was surprised. Iris was not only beautiful; she was a talented doctor. What could she possibly see in a rancher like him?

"Really. I like you. I like your girls. Why would I say no?"

Francis just shrugged. He handed her the flowers he still held in his arms. She cradled them all in one arm, and accepted the arm he offered her. They walked further from the house.

"Tell me about your girls. All I really know is they don't have a mother, and Mallie has a broken arm. I know there's a lot more to them than that."

Francis thought about it, not making light of her question.  "Mallie is too serious in my opinion. She feels like she needs to be a mother to her younger sisters, and she's only ten. I worry that she doesn't know how to play. She only has very vague memories of her mother, and that upsets her. But she was only four when Katherine died." Francis stared off into the horizon. "Ettie… How do I describe Ettie? She has a lot more playfulness in her than Mallie, but she's still not as playful as I think she should be. I think they all feel like they have to grow up too fast, just because they don't have a mother. Tracy has done her best, but she doesn't live with us. She can't truly be a mother to them."

Iris frowned. "I feel bad for them. I'm not saying you're doing a bad job with them of course, but they seem to need more than what they've got. I'm really surprised you didn't send off for another mail order bride."

Francis shook his head. "My first mail order bride was not happy. She just never — seemed to adjust to life here."  He wished he could explain the moroseness Katherine had always lived with.  She'd married him.  She'd done her duty as a wife and mother, but she'd never been truly happy.

"It's not that way with all mail order brides. Tracy seems perfectly happy. I know my aunt and my sister are both happy as well."

"Oh I know that. I guess I just worry that there's something wrong with me, that no one can be happy with me." He gave a harsh sounding laugh. "I know that probably sounds silly to you, but it's how I feel."  He'd once thought he'd make a good husband. 

Iris shook her head. "No, I understand. When something doesn't turn out the way you think it should, it's hard to try it again. And truly? I'm glad you haven't remarried." She knew she was being forward by saying that, but it was the truth. And she'd already announced to him that he had a penis, what more could she say?

He stopped walking and turned to her. "You're not just agreeing to go for a drive with me for the girls are you? To keep them from being upset?"

"Not at all." Did he have no idea how handsome he was? "I don't want to go for a drive with the girls. I want to spend time with you. I like your girls, but they're not the main attraction."  Was she being too forward by admitting it?

He looked into her blue eyes for just a moment, his hand reaching out to stroke her cheek. "May I kiss you?"

Iris nodded slowly. "Do you always ask first?"

"I've only ever kissed my wife. I don't know." He took a step closer to her, pulling her into his arms. Lowering his head, he brushed his lips across hers.  It was no more than a butterfly kiss, their lips barely meeting.

Iris stared up at him as he pulled away.  She wanted more from a kiss than that.  Reaching up, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down for a deeper kiss.  She pressed her lips against his, hoping desperately that he'd take control of the kiss from her, because she had no idea what she was doing.  She'd never been kissed before. 

Francis was startled when Iris pulled him down for another kiss, but he didn't waste the opportunity.  He wrapped his arms around her, his tongue tracing her lips until she opened her mouth for him.  His tongue immediately stroked inside. 

Iris dropped the flowers that she'd been holding against his neck, moving as close to him as she could.  As a doctor, she knew about the technical aspects of passion and intercourse, but she'd never imagined that she could feel so much for a man.  Her stomach fluttered and she wanted his hands on her body in ways that would shock her mother.

When Francis finally lifted his head, they were both out of breath.  He stared down at her.  Nothing he'd done with Katherine had ever made him feel like he felt at that moment with Iris in his arms.  He swallowed hard.  He couldn't tell her that, of course, but he wanted to.  He wanted to scoop her up in his arms and carry her off to his bed.  Hell, he wanted to lay her down in the field of flowers and make love to her right there.  What had she done to him?

Iris stroked Francis's cheek.  Her sisters had alluded to how much they enjoyed their marriage beds, but she'd always assumed she wouldn't be able to have those feelings.  She was wrong.  "I liked that," she whispered.

Francis let out a choked laugh.  "You did, did you?"  Katherine had tolerated his touch.  It seemed odd that Iris would enjoy it.

Iris nodded.  "It made my stomach tingle.  Do it again!"

Francis shook his head.  "You are some woman, Dr. Sullivan."  Would he be able to walk away from her if they kept kissing? 

"If I'm going driving with you, you need to call me, Iris...Francis." 

"Iris.  It suits you somehow."

She pulled his head down for another kiss, letting out a disappointed sigh when he pulled away.  "I don't want to stop kissing you."

He grinned.  "I don't want to stop either, and that's the problem.  We have to."  He took a deep breath and forced his body back under control.  "Let's finish our walk."

Iris nodded, feeling like she was in a daze.  How could he make her feel a way that no other man had?  Some of the men in medical school had tried to kiss her, but she'd always pushed them away...or stomped on their feet when necessary.  She'd never wanted to kiss a man.

As they walked, he asked her about medical school. She explained about the courses she'd had to take, and how everyone had looked down on her, assuming that she'd never be able to keep up. She'd known there were medical schools just for women out east, but she wasn't willing to go that far. She wanted to stay close to home, so she kept her grades up and studied with the men.

"What really makes me crazy is when people assume I'm just a midwife. I can do anything a male doctor can do except relieve myself standing up. Why is that a prerequisite for being a good doctor?"

Francis was once again startled by her earthy speech. "Does your mother know you talk to men in that way?"

Iris had the grace to look ashamed. "I never talked to men that way until after medical school. We dealt so much with the human anatomy and different functions of it, that nothing seems to faze me now."

Francis smiled. "I'm sure I'll get used to it, and I promise not to tell her. Even if I meet her."

Iris looked at where the sun was in the sky. "We should probably get back. I need to get home and fix my supper."  She wondered if Edna Petunia would be there before her, or if she'd be in after bedtime.

Francis hated for the day to end. "I'll take you home."

"You don't have to sound so sad about it. I'm sure your brother will take me home if I need him to." Iris wasn't sure what his problem was now. She thought they were doing well.

He shook his head. "I'm just not ready for my time with you to end." He had never been so frank about his feelings, but she'd been honest about hers, and he felt he owed it to her.  He'd never particularly wanted to be around Katherine.  What was it about Iris Sullivan that made him want to spend every waking moment with her?

"I'm not ready for it to end either. I have to open my office in the morning though. And I know you need to get home with your girls." She sighed. "I'd invite you to stay for supper, but I don't know if Edna Petunia will be home or not. She's off somewhere." Iris was still worried about Edna Petunia's sudden friendship. She hoped the older woman wasn't off getting into some sort of trouble.

Iris thanked Tracy for lunch and hugged the three girls goodbye. "I'm sure I'll see you at church next week," she told them. She wished it could be sooner, but she didn't feel like she had the right to suggest that.

Francis watched Iris with the girls. They looked sad to see her go. "Why don't I pick you and Edna Petunia up for dinner tomorrow night? You could come out to the house. I'm sure Edith wouldn't mind."

Edith, standing across the room listening, shook her head. "I'd love to cook dinner for you."

Iris considered the offer for a moment before nodding. "I'd like that a lot."

On the drive into town Iris sat closer to him than her mother would've thought appropriate. As soon as they were out of sight of the house, Francis put an arm over her shoulders. "Do you mind?"

Iris smiled. "Not at all."

When they reached the house, he helped her down from the wagon and walked her to the door. He touched her cheek with his forefinger. "I want to kiss you goodbye, but anyone could be watching. I don't want to ruin your reputation."

Iris nodded. "I'm just glad you want to."

He laughed. "At this moment, I can't think of anything I want more."  Well, he could, but he wasn't going to be that graphic.

Iris squeezed his hand goodbye and turned and went into the house. The house was devoid of sound, making her assume that Edna Petunia was not home.

She cooked a meal for the two of them, not knowing whether or not Edna Petunia would arrive home in time to eat it. She needed to have a talk with the older woman to find out what she'd been up to.