The Doctor's Not-So-Little Secret (5 page)

Chapter Five

K
ate inhaled sharply.

Joel’s pizza slice dropped to his plate.

“Mommy used to wear those black shorts when she went to the gym. Before she got sick.” Chloe’s voice broke. “Then she died.”

Kate swallowed a nervous gasp. For a second, she’d thought that like Mitzi, Chloe had looked at her and seen…

But she hadn’t and Kate was relieved. Still, her heart twisted at the pain in Chloe’s voice. While some might say it’d been two years and it was time for the child to move on, Kate knew better. Time did make such a significant loss easier to bear, but even after ten years Kate still missed her grandmother. She squeezed Chloe’s shoulder. “I can tell you loved your mother very much.”

“I did.” Tears shimmered in Chloe’s eyes. “I miss her so much.”

Across the booth, Kate saw Joel stiffen and for a second she thought he might put an end to a conversation. Instead he reached across the table and patted his daughter’s hand. The look he shot Kate was filled with unmistakable gratitude. Her breath caught, then began again.

“I bet she loved you just as much,” Kate said softly. “I—I know I would if you were my little girl.”

Kate clamped her lips shut.
Where had that come from?

“She told me that she thanked God every day for me.” Chloe’s voice grew thick. “Didn’t she say that, Daddy?”

“You were her world, princess.” Joel cleared his throat. “I’ll never forget the look on your mommy’s face when the nurse put you in her arms. You were only three days old.”

Chloe leaned her head against Kate’s shoulder and Kate stayed very still, afraid to move and ruin the moment.

Finally Chloe straightened and reached for another piece of pizza, moisture clinging like little crystals to her lashes.

“Do you belong to a gym?”

Joel’s question seemed to come out of left field. Not until Kate met his gaze did she understand that while he didn’t want to shut down Chloe talking about her mom, he didn’t want their evening out to turn maudlin either.

“I joined the Y the month I moved here,” Kate said. “I like it there.”

“I took swimming lessons at the Y,” Chloe said. “One of the girls in my class had her birthday party there. Everyone got to swim and then they had cake and ice cream.”

Kate took a sip of tea, missing the feel of Chloe’s head against her arm and conscious of the warmth in Joel’s eyes that seemed directed straight at her. “Was it fun?”

Two bright spots of pink dotted Chloe’s cheeks. “I wasn’t invited.”

Open mouth. Insert foot.

“Well, if they were trying to keep the party small—” Kate scrambled for a logical answer “—she probably couldn’t invite everyone.”

“She had pretty invitations that looked like a flower,” Chloe advised in a matter-of-fact tone, but Kate saw the hurt in her eyes. “She put them in everyone’s cubby at school. All the girls got one except me.”

Anger rose inside Kate. What kind of teacher would allow something like that to go on in her classroom?

“How could your teach—” she sputtered, then stopped when Joel shook his head ever so slightly.

“I’m sorry that happened to you.” Kate took a deep, steadying breath. “Something similar happened to me when I was your age. It hurts.”

Chloe’s eyes widened with surprise. “You? They didn’t like
you?
”

“Really?” The skepticism in Joel’s voice came through loud and clear.

“I was shy,” Kate admitted. “We moved when I was eight. My sister, Andrea, had a whole group of new friends the first day. I—I didn’t have any. Not for a long time.”

Chloe sat quietly for a second, a strange look on her face.

“I have to go to the bathroom.” She pinned Kate with her gaze. “You have to move.”

“Chloe.” A warning sounded in Joel’s voice. “Ask, not tell. And say
please.
”

“Please, Dr. Kate.” A pleading note sounded in Chloe’s voice. “Can you move? I have to go real bad.”

“I’m moving.” Kate slid out of the wooden bench. “I need to be leaving anyway. My pizza should be almost done.”

“Don’t go. You talk to Daddy.” Chloe grabbed her hand. “I’ll be right back. I promise.”

Kate glanced at Joel.

“If you have time…” His eyes seemed to glitter, suddenly looking more green than brown.

“I’ll stay,” Kate promised the little girl. “And, really, there’s no need for you to rush.”

“Yes, there is.” Chloe hurried off, her legs pressed tightly together.

Only when the child was out of sight did Kate chuckle. “I guess when you gotta go, you gotta go.”

“Thanks for agreeing to stay.” Unmistakable gratitude flickered in his eyes. “Chloe really likes you.”

“I like her, too.”

His mouth relaxed in a slight smile. “But please, don’t feel you have to make up stories to make her feel better.”

“Unfortunately they’re true.” Kate sighed. “For me, growing up was a painful process. I was gawky, all arms and legs. And very shy.”

“Well, you certainly turned out nice.” Joel’s admiring gaze settled on her. Suddenly her stomach and her heart were involved in a competition for the most flip-flops per minute.

She laughed, a short, nervous burst of air.

“Don’t feel like you have to make up compliments so I’ll feel better,” Kate said teasingly, throwing his earlier words back at him. “I’m well aware of how I look in this outfit.”

“You look beautiful.” He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table. The gleam in his eyes sent blood flowing through her veins like warm honey. “Casual. Relaxed. Approachable.”

Kate didn’t know whether to be insulted or amused. “Are you saying I usually look uptight and unapproachable?”

“Not all the time,” he said, with a lopsided smile.

Kate firmly ignored the unsettling flutter in her midsection.

“Your daughter seems like a remarkably well-adjusted little girl,” she said, with a studied nonchalance.

Joel didn’t smile as she expected.

“Her mother’s death hit her hard. And the move here, well, I’m not sure it was the best thing for Chloe.” His expression grew somber. “She had a lot of good friends back home. Kids she’d known since kindergarten.”

“But surely Chloe has made some new friends by now?”

Joel shook his head. “If she has, I’ve never seen them. I’ve noticed girls her age here seem to be much more into adult kinds of stuff than the ones in Montana. Perhaps that’s part of the problem.”

“You think so?” Kate thought of her patients. Coming from Los Angeles, the children here seemed like such innocents.

“I’ll give you an example. A couple of days ago, Chloe asked me for money to buy makeup.” The look of bewilderment on Joel’s face would have been funny at any other time. “She’s nine years old. Who wears makeup at that age?”

“That
is
really young,” Kate agreed. “How did she take it when you said no?”

“She just looked at me. There was this expression on her face that I can’t even describe.”

“Anger? Resentment?”

“Neither.
Crushed
would be more accurate. It would have been easier if she’d been angry.”

“Did you ask her why she thought she needed makeup?”

It suddenly hit Kate that they were talking about Chloe the way parents would discuss their child. It seemed so right and, at the same time, so very wrong.

“I didn’t think to ask,” Joel admitted. “I see now where that would have been a good thing to do.”

He looked at her and she felt the impact of his regard all the way down to her feet.

Time to change the subject.
“By the way, did Chloe ever get a chance to talk to her friend Savannah?”

“Why don’t you ask her?”

“Ask me what?” Chloe asked, sliding into the booth when Kate rose to let her in.

“Did you speak with your friend in Montana yet?” Kate asked.

Chloe smiled broadly, showing her prominent canine teeth. “She was so excited to hear my voice she almost peed her pants.”

“Chloe,” Joel chided.

“That’s what she told me, Daddy.”

A half smile tugged at his lips.

Kate leaned forward, resting her arms on the table. “What else did she have to say?”

Chloe had just finished going through the entire conversation sentence by sentence when a red-haired girl with a Perfect Pizza T-shirt and an anxious expression stopped at the table.

“Did you order a large ham and pineapple with cream cheese?” the restaurant employee asked.

Kate smiled at the girl. “I did.”

“There was a problem.” The teen’s cheeks turned as red as her hair. “But the new pizza is in the oven now. It will be ready in about ten minutes. I’m sorry for the delay.”

“No worries,” Kate said, feeling guilty she wasn’t more distressed. “Just bring it out when it’s ready. And if you could put it in a to-go box that would be wonderful.”

“Guess you’re stuck with us a little while longer,” Joel said, not looking sorry at all.

Kate wasn’t sorry either. Even though she was still convinced keeping her distance would be best for all concerned, she was enjoying her time with Joel and Chloe. The conversation moved to braces and all things orthodontic. When her stomach growled—even more loudly—Kate finally gave in and accepted a piece of their hamburger pizza.

She’d finished her first piece and had been laughing about something Chloe said when she heard her name being called from across the room.

Sarabeth Brown, one of Kate’s patients, waved wildly.

Kate swallowed a groan and waved back. That was one thing she’d quickly discovered after moving to Jackson Hole. Her pediatric patients—and their parents—were everywhere. Restaurants. Grocery stores. Gas stations. It was one reason she always liked to look her best when she went out.

Not today,
she thought with a rueful smile. Today she looked…approachable.

As Sarabeth and her mother crossed the dining room, Kate hurriedly wiped her lips with a paper napkin.

“We don’t want to interrupt your meal.” Mrs. Brown offered an apologetic smile. “Sarabeth saw you and insisted on coming over to say hello.”

“Well, I’m happy she did.” Kate smiled at the blond-haired child who looked adorable in tan shorts and a hot-pink top. “Hi, Sarabeth. How are you this evening?”

If Kate remembered correctly, the child was about Chloe’s age. She wondered if they knew each other.

“Mommy ordered the vegetarian pizza.” Sarabeth wrinkled her nose. “I like pepperoni.”

“Sarabeth,” her mother said sharply. “Dr. Kate doesn’t want to listen to you complain when she’s out with—”

The brunette paused, her curious gaze settling on Joel.

“Oh, forgive my poor manners,” Kate said. “I thought you knew Joel and Chloe.”

Before Kate could proceed with introductions, Sarabeth piped up. “I know Chloe, but I didn’t know you were her mom.”

There was a respect in the little girl’s eyes that hadn’t been there a second before.

“My mommy died.” Chloe tensed beside Kate. “Dr. Kate is—”

“A very good friend,” Kate said, looping an arm around Chloe’s shoulders.

Sarabeth pulled her sandy-colored brows together. “Oh.”

“Honey, your dad is sitting all by himself. We need to go.” Mrs. Brown placed a hand on her daughter’s shoulder.

“I’ll see you tomorrow at day camp,” Sarabeth said to Chloe. “Maybe you can be on my kickball team.”

“Maybe.” Chloe’s tone was offhand, but the look in her eyes said she was pleased.

After a few moments more of polite conversation, the mother and daughter headed back to their table.

“Sarabeth is the one who didn’t invite me to her party.” A thoughtful look stole across Chloe’s face. “You know what, Dr. Kate?”

“What, honey?”

“You’re a pretty good friend to have.”

* * *

Joel tucked the sheet up close to his daughter’s neck and brushed a kiss across her cheek. Instead of rushing off, like he’d done for much of her young life, he took a seat on the edge of her bed.

When they’d lived in Montana, Amy had done most of the “tucking in.” He’d been busy with his business, reviewing blueprints and lining up subcontractors for the next day. On the few occasions when he had gotten Chloe ready for bed, he’d made quick work of it.

It wasn’t until Amy was gone and he and Chloe had moved to Jackson Hole that Joel realized how much he’d missed. His wife had tried to tell him how special these end-of-the-day times were, but he hadn’t listened. Now he understood. With the lights down low, and quiet filling Chloe’s bedroom, conversation and confidences came more easily. It was during these moments that he and Chloe had their best talks.

Like so many nights since moving to Jackson, his daughter gazed up at him. Her lids were heavy, and there was a dreamy smile on her lips. She looked so young in her pink-and-purple-striped pajamas, surrounded by her favorite stuffed animals. “We had fun tonight, didn’t we, Daddy?”