by Fredrick, MJ
“Sure. Unless you want someone there with you.”
She would have wanted Poppy there. Not Beck. “Hang on a minute.” Even though she didn't have a lot of time if she wanted to make her appointment, she dialed Poppy and turned away, wondering if she’d answer since classes had already started.
“What the hell, Poppy? Why can’t you go?”
“You didn't get my message?”
“I got your text message that said you’re sending me to my first obstetric appointment with Beck Conover?”
“Geez, Lacey, don't think of it like that.”
“Well, I mean, I thought we we were going to do a girl day. My appointment, lunch, shopping. I’m not going to look at maternity clothes with Beck Conover.”
Beck stepped into her field of vision and gave her a little wave. “You don't have to say my whole name every time. There’s not that many Becks around, to be honest.”
“Could you not?” She waved him away. “Poppy. What happened that you can't come?”
“I told you all the details in the message. I had someone covering my summer school class, but they backed out at the last minute. Look, you know you don't want to ride all that way to another town you don't know so well by yourself. Let Beck take you. Plus. I think he likes you.”
“Oh my God, Poppy.” Why was she butting into Lacey’s business when she was still with Jesse? And wouldn't Jesse be pissed if Lacey went to her first appointment with another man?
But Poppy did have a point about Lacey not wanting to go to San Angelo alone. She hated driving in the city. The distance didn't bother her, but driving with the traffic and not really knowing where she was going made her nervous. She was going to let Poppy drive and she’d be the navigator.
She didn't want to do both on her own. And if Beck was really going...she’d take him up on the offer, even if it wasn't what she had planned. Even if it meant spending a couple of hours with someone she didn't really know.
“You need to figure out some way to make this up to me,” Lacey said low into the phone.
“Tell me everything when you get back,” Poppy said quickly before Lacey disconnected.
“I guess you’re stuck with me,” Lacey said to Beck. “If you don't mind.”
“No, of course.”
“Do you...want me to drive?” She thought she should ask instead of just assume.
“No, I need my truck.” He walked around the side of the truck and opened the door. “Let Beck Conover get that for you.”
She rolled her eyes and stepped on the side step thing to get into the truck.
For a guy’s truck, especially a guy who traveled all over the place, his truck was surprisingly clean and neat. She couldn’t stop herself from running her hand over the smooth leather seat as he walked around to the other side of the car.
“I drove out to San Angelo a lot when my dad was in rehab for his hip, you know. I could have driven myself.”
“I know. But I figured, and Poppy figured, you’d be nervous enough without having to figure out where you were going.”
Huh. Maybe Poppy hadn’t been the one to bail with her lame excuse. Maybe Beck had wanted Poppy to bail. But why?
She was being silly. Beck didn't like her. Why would he? She was pregnant with another man’s child. Why was she thinking he liked her? He was just being nice.
“This road sure hasn’t changed in ten years,” he said as he guided the big truck on the road out of town.
“Not much has.”
“Sometimes I feel like it’s good, you know, nostalgic, for nothing to change, and sometimes I think man, think about what everyone’s missing, hanging out in the last century.”
“Well, I wouldn't say we’re that far behind.”
“No, I guess not. So do you know what the plans are for the town? I mean, I know you said they built the new elementary with money from the Permian Basin.”
“Yeah, we did. We had hoped more of those families would move here and boost our economy. Everything stopped just on the other side of the interstate. People who can’t really afford to live in the basin were building out that way, but they all stayed in El Dorado county, didn't cross over.”
“I wonder why. That would be something to look into.”
“I guess I never gave it much thought.”
“It would be nice if we could get some of that money, improve the town. Would be good to have a hospital, some more businesses. Something to benefit the town.”
“Well, sure.”
“There should be a plan for that.”
“My dad is on the council, and I know they want that, too.” She turned on the seat to face him, drew one leg up on the seat and rested her head on her hand that she propped on the back of the seat. “I guess I’m surprised you’re thinking about it.”
“Well, I hate to see people having to drive an hour to get to a doctor or hospital. Even when Austin arrives, he’s not going to have access to the best equipment, and my mom isn’t getting any younger. Neither is your dad. No one in town is.”
“No, you’re right about that. But I don't know how we could attract something like that, not without promise of patients. I mean, the basin’s population is booming, but we’re just far enough away that we can’t get people to come here.”
“Maybe there’s a way.”
She didn't know what he was thinking about, because she could see by the crease in his forehead that he was thinking something. “Don't you have enough projects right now?”
“I do. But the good thing about working with my hands like this, it gives my brain some room to wander.”
“Where is it wandering?”
“It wanders a lot of places. Sometimes to California and Riley, wondering how they’re getting along without me.”
“Can’t you check on TV or online or something to see how he’s doing?”
“Yeah, I haven't brought myself to look.”
“Do you want him to do well without you, or not?”
He flashed a grin over at her. “That’s part of why I don't check. I don't want him to be doing badly, because I don't want to feel guilty for leaving him at this point in the season, but I also don't want to be replaceable.”
“I can see that. I wouldn't want to be easily replaceable, either.”
“So how did you get into this? Home health care?”
“Well, as you said, we don't have a hospital or doctor, and we needed some kind of health care. I like having a job that makes a difference. I like that people depend on me. I mean, yeah, sometimes it’s overwhelming, knowing that people are waiting for me, especially when I’m having trouble getting going in the morning.” A lot lately when she was having morning sickness. “And there aren’t that many more options. I mean, the diner hires kids from high school in the evening, and only has Ginny and Darla waiting in the daytime. And I could never be a teacher like Poppy. At least with my patients, I only have to deal with one at a time. And while your mom has enough attitude for a whole high school full of teenagers, at least she’s just one person, and it’s only three times a week.”
“And we appreciate your patience with her, more than you know.”
“Well, I’m not always patient.”
“But she keeps you around, so you have to be doing something right. You think you want to keep doing that when Austin gets back?”
“Oh, yeah, and actually, it will be easier, you know, because if something’s wrong, like someone’s blood pressure is up or their blood sugar, it’s going to be easier to get them to see Austin than to get them to go to San Angelo.”
“That’s true. And what about your dad? What’s he doing these days? Since he retired from the Air Force?”
“He’s doing work with the power company, or at least that’s what he’s getting ready to go back to. He’s been on medical leave for a couple of months. Honestly, when I was a kid, I thought we were just counting down to the days he retired, but he really loves it here, really loves the community. I kind of always
thought he’d go back with Mom, but then she met Andrew, and well, that was the end of that idea.”
“You like him? Your stepdad?”
“He’s all right. I don't really know him. I don't get over to Houston much, and they don't come here, for obvious reasons. But Mom likes him, my brothers and sister like him, so he has to be a decent guy. I mean, Mom was miserable here, and not really happy being a military wife, so I’m glad she’s happy now. Though there was a time when I wanted my parents back together, I see they’re better off apart.”
“And your dad? You think he’ll remarry?”
“Probably not. Hard to meet someone when your daughter lives under your roof. And soon your grandchild as well.”
“Not to say there’s a lot of women to choose from.”
“He could always do a mail-order bride thing,” she said with a grin. “‘Wanted: one bride for a middle-aged man. Must be fine with living in the middle of nowhere, miles away from restaurants and grocery stores, in the same house with his grown daughter and his grandchild.’ I can see them lining up out the door now.”
“You never know. Some women might be feeling grandmotherly, or want to get away from the world.”
“Most likely she would be desperate. I don't want my dad with someone desperate.”
“You don't want him to be lonely, you know, like my mom.”
“I don't think it will happen. He’s really involved in town.”
“It’s not the same.”
“No, I know, but it makes him feel needed and wanted. It’s important. And I think your mom likes being alone.”
“I used to think she was mad because she was alone, because she wasn't included and that people had forgotten about her. But now that I’m spending time with her, I’m starting to wonder if she’s agoraphobic. I was thinking about selling the land because it’s just a lot for her, out there on her own. But now I’m wondering if that’s the best thing for her. Getting her out of that house will be torture for her.”
“How long has that land been in your family?”
“I don't know. My mom’s grandparents built it, I think. Moving her will be a fight. But it will be best for her to be closer to town, not so isolated, physically, if not socially.”
She blew out a whistle and turned to face the windshield. “I do not envy you that task.”
“Ah, no, I’m not going to do it. You are.”
“What?” Her shriek echoed in the cab, and he started to laugh.
SHE WAS ALMOST RELAXED by the time they reached the city limits. She hadn’t thought she could be so relaxed around Beck. But now, as they got closer to the reason for the trip, she tensed again.
“Are you sure you just want me to drop you off? You don't want me to go in? I mean, this is kind of a big deal for you to go through on your own.”
Which was why she’d wanted Poppy, her oldest friend, with her. She didn't want Beck.
“No, I can do this.” She was going to have to do more on her own, harder things than this. “You go do what you need, and I’ll give you a call when I’m done.”
“Lacey, I hate sending you in there by yourself.”
Well, that was more than the baby’s father cared. “It’s okay, really. Enough that you drove me here, and kept my mind off my anxiety.”
He turned into the parking lot of the medical center. She wiped her suddenly sweaty palms on her skirt as she tried to spot her doctor’s name on the building.
“There it is. You can let me out here.”
He slowed the truck and she gathered her purse, then popped the lock and slid out when he’d barely stopped.
“Thank you,” she said, afraid that if she so much as looked back over her shoulder, she would take him up on his offer to go in with her. She didn't even wait for him to drive off before she hurried up the sidewalk and into the building.
The building was long and low, the front glassed in, with some angled red brick walls slanting toward the sidewalk, like it was built decades ago to look modern. She tugged at the heavy glass door, stepped into blasting air conditioning, and double-checked the directory for Dr. Fredrick’s office.
The office was nice, updated with navy print sofas and chairs lining the terra cotta colored walls. Nearly every couch was full, but a couple of empty chairs remained. But first she crossed the room to check in, then squeezed her way between a woman who looked about her dad’s age and another woman who was hugely pregnant and hugely uncomfortable, if the shifting and sighing was any indication.
The updated decor, however, didn't include fans, and the air was stifling. If Lacey was hot she couldn't imagine how hot the woman beside her was.
As Lacey looked around, she noticed none of them were accompanied by their husbands or partners. Glad she didn't invite Beck in, she still wondered at the lack of men’s interest in the pregnancy. She knew Jesse would never be here, so the idea that Beck had even offered seemed more special now.
She didn't have to wait too long in the waiting room, since she’d filled out her paperwork online, but once she was back in the exam room, time dragged. She would much rather be in the waiting room watching people. She didn't get to do that very often.
So she flipped through the magazines, scrolled through her phone, listened to doors up and down the hall open and close, and listened for footsteps.
Finally the doctor walked in, a middle-aged woman with a purple streak in her hair.
“Dr. Fredrick, nice to meet you,” Lacey said. She’d chosen a woman on purpose, but the woman’s age, and her inability to give in to that age, charmed Lacey.
“Lacey, what a lovely name. Tell me about yourself.”
Now she knew why she’d had to wait as she stumbled over what the woman might want to know.
“First pregnancy, probably close to my second trimester. The father is overseas, but he was here around Valentine’s Day, so conception is a pretty narrow window. I’m twenty eight, from Broken Wheel, and I’m a home health care provider.”
Dr. Fredrick’s eyes widened. “That’s a good job. A hard job. You have enough patients in a small town like Wagon Wheel?”
“Broken Wheel,” Lacey corrected. “I have six patients. Keeps me plenty busy.”
“You do heavy lifting, things like that?”
“Not too bad. I have some patients that depend on me to get around, but they also have a walker or a cane, so I don't bear all the weight. I do that, check their blood pressure and sugars, things like that, and then I clean their houses. Just light housework, you know, to keep them healthy. And meal prep.”
“That sounds like you keep busy. First pregnancy, you said. You live alone?”
“With my dad. Not a lot of single-occupant dwellings in town, and it just makes sense.”
“Will he help you with the baby? It’s best to have some kind of support, especially the first few months, especially your first baby.”
“Oh, yeah, he’ll help. I think he’s actually getting excited about it.”
Dr. Fredrick smiled. “It happens. First grandchild?”
“No, but the first that will be close enough for him to really know. The others are spread out over Texas.”
“Well, let’s get you on the table and see how things are progressing.”
LACEY WAS SURPRISED to see Beck sitting in the waiting room when she finally emerged. The room wasn't as crowded as when she’d gone back, but Beck was the only man, and the other waiting patients eyed him warily. Eyes wide, Lacey hurried toward him.
“Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, no, everything is great.” He stood slowly, stretching. “I just thought I’d make sure you were okay. Everything okay?” He looked from her face to her belly.
“Yeah, sure, everything’s okay.” Flustered, she turned to the counter to schedule her next appointment, hyper-aware of him behind her, aware of the other women in the waiting room watching him with curiosity. Watching both of them.
Bad enough to have the people of Broken Wheel speculating
about her. She didn’t need the people of San Angelo speculating as well.
She turned from the counter to Beck, aware she was holding her purse in front of her like a shield, gripping the strap with both hands.
“So you didn't go to the home improvement store?” she asked as they walked down the steps to the parking lot.
“No, I didn't want to be in the middle of something if you called.”
“I could have waited, just fine. The plan was for you to go shopping while I took care of business.”
“You don't mind going to the home improvement store, do you?”
The idea didn't exactly hold a lot of appeal for her, but she could find something to look at while he attended his affairs.
“I don't mind. But really, I could have waited. I’m not fragile.”
“Of course not.” Nonetheless, he came around the side of the truck to open the door for her.
She didn't think she’d ever been in a home improvement store as big as the whole of main street. She wandered around the nursery, talking herself out of a few plant purchases because they wouldn't travel well back home, not if she and Beck kept their plan to stop for lunch, and maybe a clothing store or two.
She ambled through the patio furniture, wishing Broken Wheel wasn't hot as Hades. She even wandered up and down the aisle of light fixtures before she settled in front of the rack of home improvement books and magazines, and thumbed through them until Beck texted that the truck was loaded and he was ready to go.
She looked at the load in the bed of the truck. Were they going to be able to get to go to lunch, with this vulnerable?
“It’ll be okay while we go to lunch,” he said as if reading her thoughts, pressing a button near the cab of the pickup, then drew it down the length of the bed to secure it at the tailgate. She didn't think it would fit over the boxes of tiles, but it did, and everything was hidden and secure.
“That was like magic,” she said, stepping up into the truck.
“Yeah, otherwise I would have stopped here last.”
When she got into the truck, she saw the backseat was filled, also, with things he obviously couldn't get at the hardware store back home.