The Family Doctor (9 page)

Tony paid her a generous salary for caring for McKensy, and he looked after all the household expenses. But he was coming to realize that Dorothy was like a black hole, which no amount of affection or gifts or money or reassurance could fill.

Remembering the escalating voices and the loud and angry quarrel that ensued, Tony felt ashamed. He knew by her troubled expression that McKensy had heard at least some of it. Afterward, Dorothy had donned a martyred expression and murmured about a vicious headache, and Tony, as usual, had felt like a jerk.

“I'm sure Grammy's head is better by now,” Tony assured his daughter. “If it's not, I'll give her something for it and send her to bed early.”

“Okay.” McKensy's frown didn't go away, however. “My grandfather Ford who's coming to see us? He was
your
daddy, right?”

“Right.”

“Was he nice to you when you were little, like you are to me?”

“Yes. He was a nice man, and a good father. He
is
a nice man.”

“Then why did he steal from my grammy?” McKensy's gray eyes were puzzled. “She says he took something from her that didn't belong to him. That's not right, is it? That's stealing, right?”

Tony felt defeated. How did he explain to his child his family's conflicting views of the same event. “Grammy gave my father a ring when they were married,” he said. “It was a ring that had been passed down in her family from her great-grandfather. When we give something, we don't expect it back. But Grammy thinks that because my father went to Australia, he should have given the ring back. Because it had been a family heirloom.”

“What's an air loom?”

“It's something old that has been in a family for a long time and is valued by them because it represents their past.”

“Do I have any air looms?”

“You have that photo album Grammy gave you, the one with all the old babies in it.”

For her ninth birthday in April, Dorothy had given McKensy an ancient album that contained photos of their ancestors as babies and children, rolling hoops and dressed in outlandish costumes. Tony remembered looking at it when he was a child himself. It enthralled his daughter the way it had him, and she'd declared it her favorite gift.

That was the thing about his mother, Tony thought. She could sometimes do the most original and meaningful things, and at the same time be so
narrow-minded and impossible he couldn't bear to be around her.

“And of course you have me,” he sighed dramatically, getting up and balancing on his wretched crutches. “Some days I feel old enough to be an heirloom.”

“Oh, Papa,” she giggled, arranging her stuffed toys all around her in preparation for sleep. “Sometimes you're so funny. I'm glad you have a sense of humor.”

Except it doesn't show often enough.
Tony suspected that at St. Joe's, there were many who considered him grim. Lately he hadn't found much to laugh about, certainly not with his family. He'd made Kate laugh today, though. The thought pleased him.

“Could Eliza come over and see Fats's babies?” McKensy's pet hamster had produced a litter the day before. “I told her all about them. She said she was gonna ask if maybe she could have one. And I want to show her my room.”

Dorothy had given McKensy a wall-size poster of a sun-filled forest glen, and made sunny yellow curtains. The window seat was filled with dolls and stuffed animals. The white dresser contained trays of hair accessories and nail varnish. It was all as alien to Tony as the surface of the moon, and a reminder of how much he relied on his mother to fill in the blanks for him.

“Sure, Eliza can come if she wants to. If Kate
says it's okay.”
And why couldn't he ask Kate over to see
his
room?
The ridiculous lewdness of that brought a crooked grin to his lips, and when he went downstairs he was able to greet his mother with a kiss and a cheerful remark.

“L
ESLIE, GOOD MORNING
, c'mon in. Have a cup of tea, the kettle's on.” Kate looked up from her computer with a smile that faded as she got a closer look at her friend's face. “What's wrong, Les? You look pretty down.”

Leslie closed the door of Kate's office and sank into a chair. “I had to bring Mom into Emerg last night.”

“Is she okay? What was wrong?”

“When I got home yesterday, she was dizzy and staggering around. I was scared she'd fall and break her hip again. She'd been nauseous, and her right eye was moving involuntarily—nystagmus,” Leslie explained, giving the symptom its proper medical label. “As you know, nystagmus can relate to an inner ear disorder, or it might also be a neurological symptom.”

“Was she admitted?” Kate set a cup of peppermint tea in front of Leslie.

“Nope.” Leslie shook her head. “Hersh was on, that new guy that nobody likes.”

Kate nodded. She'd already heard more than a few complaints about the new resident in Emerg.
Nathanial Hersh was young and supremely confident, which was a good thing in an ER physician who was called on to make snap decisions. But from the reports Kate had received, Hersh was also impatient and brash, unwilling to listen to anyone else's input. He wasn't a team player.

“He examined Mom, and he diagnosed labyrinthitis.”

“Ear inflammation?”

Leslie nodded. “She's had a case of the flu, and she's still a bit stuffy. He gave her some antibiotics and sent us home, even though I asked him if he'd admit her and run a few more tests. At her age, the same symptoms could easily indicate something a lot more serious. But he was definite about the diagnosis. He as much as told me to butt out and let him do his job. I got mad and said some things maybe I shouldn't have, but I felt he was way too casual and offhand about the diagnosis.”

“So you're mad at him and you're worried about Galina.”

Leslie gave an emphatic nod. “You better believe it. She seemed a little better this morning, but it's hard to tell. I got one of my neighbors to stay with her today.”

Seeing how agitated Leslie was, Kate felt anxious herself about Galina. She was fond of the older woman. “Can you maybe get your family doctor to make a house call?”

Leslie shook her head. “Wouldn't you know he's
on holiday, and Mom won't agree to see a stranger. You know how stubborn she can be.”

Kate nodded, pondering what she could do to help. “Do you want me to drop by after work?”

“Thanks, Kate,” Leslie said after a moment's hesitation, “but I really don't think it would make a difference.”

“What would make you feel better about this?” It was a question Kate asked constantly.

“I don't know,” Leslie admitted after some thought. “I just have this bad feeling that I can't seem to shake.”

“If I can help in any way, just ask.”

A sharp knock at the door surprised them both.

Kate got up and opened it.

“Hi, Tony.” She masked the surprise she felt. He'd never come to her office before. They always met in his, or at meetings. “C'mon in. You know Leslie Yates.”

“I sure do. Hi, Leslie.” He nodded and smiled, but he looked uncomfortable. “I should have called instead of just dropping by, Kate. You're busy, I'll come back another time.”

“I've gotta be going right this minute,” Leslie said, getting to her feet. “It's probably bedlam down in the ER.” She gave them a distracted wave and hurried out the door.

“Sit down, Tony.” Kate indicated the seat Leslie had just vacated. “I see you got rid of the crutches.” He was using a cane instead.

“Yeah, the more I exercise this, the faster it'll get better. Sorry to barge in on you,” Tony said, sinking down in the chair. “I'm here with a message from my daughter. She wanted me to ask if Eliza could maybe come home with her after dance class on Thursday. I think it has something to do with the hamster's babies. And I have to warn you, McKensy's looking for foster homes for them.”

Kate laughed. “Sure, she can come. I'll check with her father, but I don't see why not. As far as the hamster goes, I half promised Eliza one for her birthday, anyway. It's coming up in July.”

He nodded and smiled. “McKensy will be thrilled. And I'll drive Eliza home right after dinner.”

Silence fell. He was a big man, Kate noted. Her office, already cramped, seemed to shrink still further with him in it.

“I like that print.” He motioned at the wall. “It's one of my favorites.”

“Mine, too.” It was Monet's water lilies, and it soothed Kate to look at it.

“We still on for coffee on Thursday?”

“Absolutely.”

“Good. See you then.”

When he left, Kate realized she had a ridiculous grin plastered across her face. He could have called her instead of dropping by. The fact that he'd made an effort to see her pleased her, and for the rest of
the day she found herself smiling more often than usual.

She raced down to the ER just before Leslie was due to go off shift to find out how Galina was.

“She's about the same,” Les sighed.

“If there's anything at all I can do, call me.”

Leslie promised, but the phone didn't ring all evening.

 

K
ATE MADE A POINT
of being early for Eliza's class on Thursday. She dropped Eliza at the entrance and drove to Tenth. Tony was waiting, sitting at the same table they'd had the previous week. Kate parked right in front of the coffee shop, and he smiled at her and waved. A spark came to life and glowed inside of her.

When she sat down, the waitress came by and Tony ordered. He remembered exactly how she liked her coffee, and he ordered the pastries she'd enjoyed. The glow intensified.

“You look pretty in blue,” he commented, admiring the summer dress she'd put on after work.

“Thank you.” She flushed with pleasure. It was the first time he'd commented on what she wore. She liked what he was wearing, too, although she didn't say so. He had khaki walking shorts on, and his legs were long and strong, nicely dusted with dark hair, the way she remembered them from the hospital. A shiver of awareness went through her.
What would it be like to have those long legs entwined with hers?

He was giving her a quizzical look, and she felt the color rising in her cheeks.
Idiot. Don't keep on blushing. He doesn't know what you're thinking.

But there was a spark of humor in his eyes, and a hot intensity to his gaze that made her wonder if maybe he suspected. To break the awkwardness of the moment she blurted, “How's the ankle?”

“Much improved, thanks. I've started working out again. I can't jog just yet, but walking doesn't seem to hurt it, as long as I don't go fast or far.”

“Do you like to jog?” Her glance went automatically to his legs. That was probably what made them so powerful.

“Yeah, I stay pretty active. I've done a couple marathons, but the training's intense and it takes up too much time. I still play the odd game of rugby, and I bike when I can. But since I came on board at St. Joe's I haven't had much time for anything but work. How about you, Kate? What types of exercise do you enjoy?”

This was tricky. She didn't dare admit that weeding her vegetables and her flower beds was her usual workout. Although she
did
go swimming with Eliza fairly regularly.

“Gardening. Swimming. Walking,” she embellished. It wasn't much of a lie. She walked quite a lot at work. “I'm like you, it's hard to find the time.”

“Want to start a routine, real slow, with me?”

Real slow. With him.
Her heart lurched. “Sure. Doing what?”

“Walking. Let's figure out a time that might work for us both. You a morning person?”

She definitely wasn't, but no way would she admit it just now and endanger her prospects. “I could be.” Would it kill her to get up half an hour earlier?

“Great. What about a walk tomorrow at, say, five-thirty?”

“Five-thirty?” Her voice was faint. “In the morning?” She knew she sounded like an idiot, but
was
there a five-thirty in the morning? And was this a date? “Yeah. I guess so. Sure.”

“Okay, it's a date.”

There, he'd said it. It just wasn't the kind she'd had in mind. Was she going to regret this? She glanced again at his legs and got a tingly feeling in her stomach. “Where?”

“How about Queen Elizabeth Park? It's equidistant from both of our houses, and it's got good paths.”

It also had hills, if she remembered correctly. “Great.” She did her best to sound enthusiastic and gave him a bright, phony smile. “I'll be there.”

Maybe she'd just stay up so she wouldn't have the challenge of climbing out of her warm bed at that ungodly hour.

He took a swallow of coffee and she did, too.

Then he smiled at her. He had the greatest smile.

“Eliza was fine with the idea of coming home with McKensy after class?”

“Yeah, she's looking forward to it.” Actually, Eliza hadn't been as enthusiastic about it as Kate thought she would, but the hamsters had clinched the deal.

He was studying his coffee cup. “I tried my best to put your advice into practice the other night.”

“What advice was that?” Kate was still thinking about Eliza.

“Your wise words about how assertive people handle themselves at critical moments.”

“Oh, that. And did it work?”

“It might have if I'd stuck with it,” he admitted in a rueful tone. “Trouble was, I lost my temper.”

She grinned at him. “Welcome to the club. Don't be too hard on yourself. Remember, we always get another shot at it.”

He pulled a face. “Oh, yeah, I've no doubts about that at all.”

She wondered what specific incident had triggered him, but she didn't ask, and he changed the subject. “McKensy's thrilled because she got the part of the troll in the recital. What part did Eliza get?”

“She's a rabbit.”

“Was she disappointed?”

“Yeah, she really was.” Kate shook her head. “She wanted to be the wicked stepmother.”

He looked puzzled. “Isn't there a princess in this one?”

Kate frowned. “There must be, there always is. At least in the ones I've watched. Eliza didn't say.”

“Why do you suppose our girls don't have any hankering to be the princess?” He sounded honestly confused, and Kate had to laugh. She was also touched at his reference to
our girls.

“I'd say it's an indication that we're raising them right. I mean, what future is there for a princess? All a princess can aspire to be is queen.”

He shrugged. “So what's ahead for a troll? Or a stepmother, for that matter?”

“Character parts on sitcoms?”

They both laughed. Kate noted that she laughed a lot when she was with Tony. She could only hope she'd still be laughing at five-thirty the following morning.