of Michigan medical school.” His life had moved forward and the town had become a part of his past. But he hadn’t forgotten the time he’d spent with Charlotte. The summer they’d spent in the quaint town had been one of the best of his life. Sweet Briar seemed like the perfect place to start over and raise a family.
Of course, even as he believed it would be good for Bobby, he knew he had some bridges to repair, starting with Charlotte. He’d tried to apologize to her for leaving her at the altar, but he hadn’t succeeded. If he was going to move here, he was going to have to make amends to her. Additionally, he had to prove to the people of the town that he was worthy of being their doctor.
Jake Patterson, his mentor from medical school, had relatives in the area. He’d been the one to mention the town’s needs. The longtime doctor had died three years ago, leaving the people of Sweet Briar to travel to Willow Creek for medical care. Two other doctors had come and gone after him. When Dr. Patterson put Rick’s name forward, he reported back that several members of the town council and a few older residents in town expressed reservations about Rick. They remembered him as the runaway groom who’d thoughtlessly left one of their own standing at the church. They weren’t sure they could count on him to live up to a commitment.
Even though Rick didn’t need anyone’s approval to open a practice, he’d reached out to the mayor and the council. Rick had promised the mayor that he’d stay at least two years. Still, he knew he had a lot of hard work to do if he intended to show the people of Sweet Briar that he was reliable.
Of course, winning over the town was only part of his problem. He also needed to find a way to make amends to Charlotte. That was a key factor in deciding to return to Sweet Briar. He didn’t like the way he’d ended things between them. After what happened with Sherry, it became imperative to him that he make things right with Charlotte. He needed to do it in person.
Twelve years ago he’d known he’d hurt her, but hadn’t realized just how much. Then his ex-wife left him and he’d gotten a taste of the pain Charlotte must have experienced. The humiliation. Now Rick knew he’d blown a hole in Charlotte’s heart when he didn’t show up at the church. No matter how desperate he’d felt, he should have shown up. He didn’t imagine seeing her again would be pleasant, but he didn’t deserve it to be. What he’d done had been reprehensible. He knew that now. He only wished he’d known it then. He’d telephoned her the day after to apologize, but she hadn’t accepted his call. He’d written two letters, but they’d been returned unopened. He hadn’t contacted her again.
He and Bobby rode in silence for a while. When Bobby spoke his voice was tiny. Scared. “Mom won’t know how to find me. She’ll come back and someone else will be living in our house.”
Rick doubted she’d ever return. Sherry was too busy enjoying the single life. Not that he would ever say that to his son. “I left our information with the Browns next door. If she stops by they’ll tell her where we are. And I have the same cell phone number. If your mom tries to reach us, she’ll be able to. Okay?”
“Sure, Rick.” Sarcasm barely disguised the worry in his voice.
Rick sighed and counted to ten. The counselor Rick had taken Bobby to see had insisted his son was testing him because he was afraid Rick would abandon him, too. Rick had known that without being told. What he didn’t know was how to help Bobby.
“You’ve called me Dad for years. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t call me Rick now.”
“Or what? You’ll write a stupid letter and sneak out in the middle of the night, leaving me all alone?” Bobby’s voice quivered and tears flooded his eyes.
Rick clapped a hand on his son’s shoulder. “That’s not going to happen. You’re my son and I love you. Where I go, you go. Got it?”
Blinking furiously, Bobby nodded and turned to stare out his window. Rick once more cursed his ex-wife. Okay, so she didn’t want to be married to him anymore—he got that. But he couldn’t believe she no longer wanted her son. How was Rick supposed to help Bobby deal with that kind of rejection?
Hopefully Sweet Briar would provide the answers Rick was searching for. Bobby had gone from being sad, refusing to leave home in case his mother returned, to angry. He’d also begun hanging around the wrong kids and getting into trouble. He’d stopped doing his homework and become disruptive in class. His teacher had been sympathetic, but she’d had other students to consider. When the principal suggested enrolling Bobby in an alternative school, Rick had known he needed to act.
Rick didn’t delude himself into believing that Bobby’s problems would magically disappear in Sweet Briar. But Rick would be running a small practice here, so he’d have more time to spend with his son than he’d had in Milwaukee. That had to help. If not, Rick didn’t know what he would do. He just knew he wouldn’t stop until he found the solution.
He slowed, checking the numbers on the houses, searching for the address the rental agent had given him. Rick had been lucky to find the duplex. Sweet Briar didn’t have much of a rental market and the other two available options weren’t as nice as the three-bedroom unit with a backyard that the agent had found. The agent said the place wouldn’t be on the market for long, so Rick had taken the property sight unseen, renting it for a year.
He spotted the address and slowed, parking the truck on the street. “We’re here. Home at last.”
Bobby hopped out of the truck, reached behind the seat and grabbed his basketball, then began dribbling it on the driveway.
“Let’s get everything unloaded before you play. I want to get the beds set up. Then we can grab something to eat.”
Bobby huffed out a breath but he dropped the ball on the grass and walked toward the back of the truck. His movements were turtle-slow but at least he was cooperating.
Rick took care of releasing his Mustang from the tow and pulled into his half of the shared driveway, next to a midnight blue BMW sedan. Then he unlocked the truck and raised the door.
“Looks like our neighbor is home,” Rick said as he moved a couple of boxes, trying to find one that wasn’t too heavy for Bobby. He’d packed carefully, so the load hadn’t shifted too much during the drive.
Bobby took the box and grunted as he pressed it against his chest. He frowned. “That’s an old person’s car. It’s probably some grumpy old man who’s going to yell at me to keep off his grass.”
“Look at those flowers. They don’t look like something a grumpy old man would plant. Maybe a nice old lady who likes to bake cookies lives there.”
“And she’ll yell at me to keep out of her garden.”
Rick didn’t get a chance to reply because the front door opened and a woman stepped outside. He only got a brief glance at her before she turned away from him, but it was enough to reveal that she wasn’t an old lady. He guessed she was about thirty. She wasn’t much taller than average, but what she lacked in height she made up for in curves. No doubt she was married or involved. Not that it mattered. Bobby had to be his main concern. He didn’t have room in his life for a relationship. Still, since they were going to be sharing a wall, it wouldn’t hurt to be friendly.
“Come on, Bobby. Let’s introduce ourselves.”
Bobby rolled his eyes but he followed Rick across the yard to the short flight of stairs, juggling the box as he went. As they grew closer, the woman turned around. Rick got a good look at her face and his heart skipped a beat.
