lake later this afternoon for a picnic, and I was wondering if you’d like to come with us, maybe give me my first lesson in everything I need to know about children. Assuming that when you told me I needed help, you were also offering it.”
She thought about it for a moment. Frowned, then asked, “And the horse thing…is that negotiable? The only horse I’ve ever ridden was a mechanical one on a carousel, and once it started going up and down, I jumped off and sat on the bench seat, the one reserved for the cowards and elderly couples who wanted to ride and reminisce.”
Rafe laughed out loud, something he hadn’t done in a while. Being stuck in Lilly Lake for the next few days didn’t seem as bad now as it had only a few minutes ago. Actually, he was beginning to look forward to it.
Yes, he definitely liked Molly’s friend.
CHAPTER TWO
WHAT in the world had she done? Had she really accepted a date with a total stranger? Maybe even instigated it a little?
In a sense, Rafe was familiar to her. Grace had spoken about him so often she almost felt like she knew him. Well, some of him. And he was, after all, Molly’s…well, she wasn’t really sure what he would be called. Temporary guardian? Honorary uncle? Adopted cousin? Soon-to-be father? That was the one she hoped for. But however Rafe defined himself in that relationship, it was a difficult situation all the way round, and the day Grace Corbett had asked her to look out for Molly, she hadn’t anticipated just how difficult it was going to get, or how much looking out she might be called on to do.
“I have a medical condition,” Grace had said. “Don’t think I’m going to have much more time here, and I want you to promise me that you’ll help Molly through this. I want Rafe to be her guardian and I’m going to need someone special, like you, to make sure my nephew does all the right things for her. He’s got to be taught that he can take care of a child, Edie. And that he can love her. Rafe’s a good man who doesn’t know he has that potential in him, and I want you to guide him to that potential, to that place where he knows he can be what Molly needs, because he needs Molly as much as she’s going to need him. But he’s got to discover that for himself, with some gentle nudges from you.”
That was why Grace had hired her, as a matter of fact. For her abilities as a child life specialist primarily, but also for those gentle nudges. Sure, the hospital pediatric department was expanding in new directions, and having a child life specialist on staff was a smart move, especially in the initial stages of the new services. But hiring her months in advance, even before the changes were to start…At first, Edie had thought it was simply good fortune, or being in the right place at the right time. But when Grace had come to her, that was when Edie had known her being there was as much about taking care of Molly as it was taking care of the children who would come to the new pediatric ward.
Funny, but in a way Grace had reminded Edie of her mother. Strong, compassionate women, both of them, always putting the needs of their children first. Edie missed her mother terribly, missed Grace, too, and, in a way, felt that maybe the two of them had connected in some karmic fashion to guide her life to this place and time, even though her mother had died years before Edie had even met Grace.
Grace had taken a big chance hiring Edie straight out of school, with no real work experience in the field except what she’d done as a student. In fact, Grace hadn’t batted an eye when Edie had walked into her office that day and explained how she’d been delayed in her education, which was why she was graduating at the age of thirty-two rather than a full decade earlier, as most people in her position did. None of that had mattered to Grace. She’d hired Edie almost immediately. So now, for the unusual opportunity Edie had been given, she owed it to Grace to fulfill her most fervent wish. Yes, she’d teach, nudge, or otherwise encourage Dr. Rafe Corbett in the many ways he should care for Molly. Of course, loving that child was something Rafe was going to have to do on his own. Edie certainly couldn’t force that. But Molly was easy to love. So very easy…
A knock on her office door jarred Edie’s attention. “Are you busy?” Dr. Rick Navarro asked, opening the door several inches and poking his head in.
“Not really. Just trying to figure out why I got myself into a horseback ride later on, considering how horses scare me to death.”
Rick chuckled. “Riding a horse is like riding a bike…only bigger, and bumpier. Horses do have a little more personality than a bicycle, though. But, trust me, once you mount up, you’re going to see there’s nothing else like it in the world. It’s an amazing feeling, being on the back of a horse. Nothing you can duplicate with anything else. Think of it as a great big bike with legs instead of wheels, and you’ll do fine.”
“You have horse experience?” she asked.
“Not so much lately. But when I was a boy…my mother was housekeeper for a man who had a stable, so I got to ride just about whenever I wanted.”
She could picture Rick on a horse, actually, sitting tall and rugged in the saddle. Not anything like the way she could picture herself…hunched over, shaking, holding on for dear life. “Suppose I was to tell you I’ve never learned how to ride a bike? That they scared me, too.” As had so many things in her young life. Truth was, she’d never really had a young life. Most of the time it didn’t matter. Sometimes, it did.
“Then I’d say you should plan on calling in sick tomorrow, because you’re going to be too stiff and sore to get out of bed. And my prescription for that, by the way, will be a nice, long soak in a tub of hot water.”
She really liked Rick. He was not only a great hospital administrator, he was an amazing doctor. He cared. Took time with his patients. Treated his staff with respect. Unfortunately, there were rumors floating around that he might leave now that Grace was gone and her two nephews had inherited the hospital. She was keeping her fingers crossed, though, that the rumors weren’t based on fact. Lilly Hospital needed Ricardo Navarro. He brought the heart and soul to it that so many other hospitals lacked. “Well, I think maybe I’ll stop by Physical Therapy later on and see if they’ve got any other advice for me. Or put in my reservation for one of their traction machines, since that’s probably where I’ll be spending the next few days…in traction.”
“Cervical or back traction?” he asked, chuckling.
“Both.”
“You could stay off the horse. Admire it from afar, but stay away.”
Easier said than done, if she wanted to go on that picnic with Rafe and Molly, which she really wanted to do. Probably more than she was even going to admit. Her life had never really afforded her much in the way of picnics, playtime, holidays or simply relaxation, and she was looking forward to this outing. To most of it, anyway. “Or tie myself to the saddle once I’m there.”
“You could also ask for a horse with short legs. The trip to the ground isn’t as far and it’s less painful that way.” His expression sobered. “Look, Edie, getting back to work, we’re admitting a boy through Emergency right now. Keith Baldwin. He has a ruptured appendix, and he’ll be going to the operating room in about thirty minutes. I need you to go down to Emergency, explain the surgery to him, make sure he understands everything that will be happening while they prep him, as well as what happens during the surgery, and especially what to expect afterward. He’s awfully worried about playing baseball this summer, so talk to him about some timelines for his return, and what his recovery might entail.”
It often still amazed her, all the responsibility she’d been given in this hospital. It’s what Child
