A bright strike of lightning flashed through the window, and May glanced over. “I believe that next time I’m at Spades Hardware, I will pick up lumber and nails to make an ark.” A rumble of thunder followed, and she shook her head.
What in the world would the women do with the nursery outside in this weather?
May waited for the rain but didn’t hear anything. She swung her legs over the bed and sat there a minute. More lightning and thunder but no rain.
“That’s odd,” May murmured. She stood and hobbled off to the bathroom. The mirror was her mortal enemy this morning, and she didn’t even look over at it on her way to the toilet and then the bathtub. The bath helped a bit, and May wrapped a peach towel around herself afterward.
She walked to the closet and looked at the options. There must be professional gardening attire somewhere to be found. If the storm held the lightning’s promise, it could be another wet day. Hobbling to and fro in the dampness didn’t quite lift her spirits, either.
May wrinkled her nose and thumbed through several outfits before she gave up and walked over to her dresser. She pulled open the second drawer and pulled out a nice yellow T-shirt and a pair of jeans. The sisters wouldn’t be there, after all, so hopefully no one would notice her fashion faux pas. May grinned as she opened the top drawer and pulled out an ivory lingerie set with bra and boy-cut panties. She dressed slowly and rolled her head around on her neck.
Tense would be putting it mildly.
“I slept an entire day. Sheesh.” May grabbed a tortoise shell clip from the top of the dresser and pinned her hair back. She blew her bangs up and rubbed the back of her neck. Her brown sandals were in the kitchen. They at least had a durable thick sole that didn’t mean she would be on her ass in two seconds. It may have prolonged the hang time to six.
“Pessimist,” she muttered and smiled. Life is good, isn’t it? Why borrow trouble? It could always find you on its own.
A plain bagel with some cream cheese would suffice for breakfast. A bottle of diet soda, and she was gold. May glanced outside and frowned. The skies were clear. No twenty percent beat against her kitchen window. Maybe just a storm cloud rolling through. Thank goodness for small miracles.
May finished her bagel and walked down the hallway with her diet soda clutched in her hand. Caffeine a chemical miracle. She opened up the door to the garage and flicked the light on. Three small steps. May rubbed her thigh and took a deep breath and then navigated downward. Her feet hit the concrete bottom, and she grinned.
“Ha!” A happy dance crossed her mind, but she thought she may be tempting fate.
May grinned and tucked herself inside the car. She opened the garage, started the engine, and began her day.
* * * *
A gorgeous day outside. May rolled her window down and took the clip from her hair. She giggled and let the wind do what it may with all the loose tendrils. The landscape began to change from manicured and landscaped to wild and woolly. A fascinating mix to behold. Traffic thinned out, and May slowed down to better enjoy the blooms and foliage.
The four sisters danced through her thoughts, and she puzzled over the odd mix. Four women as different as night and day. But she could tell by watching them interact there was a deep love between them.
Not for the first time, May wished she had siblings. And then reality washed over her. Her mother bemoaned the fact she had May. Her body was ruined. Why would she want another? May pressed her cool hand to her cheek. Unpleasant memories on a pleasant day. She shook her head slightly and let the thoughts slip away.
But the sisters remained in her thoughts. How determined they must be. Eden obviously the driving force of the four. How she roped her beautiful sisters into a nursery, May would likely never know.
She brought herself back to the present with a jolt at the stop sign and then simply gaped.
No. Way.
May blinked and literally rubbed her eyes. Then she looked again. It didn’t even appear to be the same place. Gone were the brambles and the bushes that crawled along every square inch. The litter had been removed, and all that remained, evenly cut grass.
She shook her head at the sight and pulled up slowly to park her car. If she hadn’t believed before, she damn sure did now.
The transformation incredible. The building still looked like hammered dog crap, but the grounds were neat and tidy. May parked her car, tidied her hair and stepped out slowly. She took in every bit of land on the way up the sidewalk to the front door. Plenty of room for the nurseries. Good sunlight. Fresh air.
“Wow,” she murmured.
May reached the front door to knock when it opened.
Her greeting died in her throat. Words completely and utterly failed her.
She saw a massive figure of a man with skin so golden he appeared to glow. Sandy-blond hair curled this way and that while a neatly trimmed matching mustache and beard graced his face. Eyes the color of a calm ocean studied her. He wore a simple pair of drawstring pants the color of sand and a loose-fitting, short-sleeved cream shirt. Dark brown sandals completed the ensemble.
May blinked and searched for her vocabulary when a smile spread across his face.
“May Fairchild, I presume?” His deep voice rumbled across her and soothed her strained nerves.
She cleared her throat and returned his smile. “Yes. You’re the doctor?”
He inclined his head. “I am the healer. You may call me Clep.”
The large man extended his hand, and May reached out to take it.
When their hands met, Clep’s blue eyes darkened and widened. He opened his mouth to speak and then quickly snapped his jaws shut.
May had the oddest feeling they had met. She frowned and blinked.
Clep let go of her hand and stepped to the side. “If you will grace me with your presence and permission, we can begin the examination.”
May smiled and walked slowly across the threshold. The inside of the building appeared basically the same. Cobwebs and dust clung to most every square inch. She could see a clean path from the front door down the hallway, and May followed the doctor down it.
The lights allowed a warm glow as they came to a closed door, and Clep stopped. He turned and smiled apologetically at May.
“Most of my patients come to me. I can assure you that I have impeccable credentials and a professional office.”
She chuckled. “I am aware you’re doing this as a favor to the sisters. And I appreciate your time.” May took a breath. “I want to be completely honest with you.” Their eyes met. “I have been to some of the best doctors in the world. My right leg has severe nerve damage. I don’t expect a miracle from you. Maybe just a reinforcement of what I’ve already said to the sisters.” She swallowed her pride and lifted her chin. “I want to help them with their endeavor, but I don’t want my disability to affect our relationship. If I am unable to fulfill my commitment to them, you need to let them know.”
“You are honorable,” Clep murmured. “I knew you would be.” He bowed at the waist and then straightened. “I will tell the sisters nothing but the truth concerning this examination.”
“Thank you.” May nervously pressed her hands to her thighs.
Clep opened the door and moved to the side.
It appeared incredibly clean if a little sparse. There were only a long oak table and two oak chairs. The lights seemed to be brighter in the room as if they were actually in an examination room. Not one cobweb or a speck of dust showed anywhere.
May stepped through the doorway and bit her lip. Years of appointments and disappointments flooded her mind. There had once been hope. It had died along with the nerves in her leg. All she had to do, allow the doctor to examine her, and she could go back to her life.
“If you will please sit.” Clep motioned to the table.
May arched an eyebrow. The table clearly above the height she could just slide her butt across. “Clep.”
He glanced at her.
“The heigh
t of the table is an issue.”
“Ah.” He walked over, grabbed her by the waist, and lifted her up to sit on the table.
May’s brown eyes widened to the size of saucers. Well. That had never happened in an exam before. Her legs dangled over the side, and she fought a grin.
Clep walked over to a closet and took out a clipboard. Then he grabbed a chair and pulled it over to her. “Tell me what happened.”
The amusement faded, and May swallowed the lump in her throat. She clenched her hands in her lap and searched for the right words. Every other doctor had her chart. They knew her history. She never had to repeat the hows and whys. She never had to tread over the most painful period of her life.
“Take your time.” Clep’s blue eyes were kind. He patted her leg and waited.
“I had been riding a horse.” May’s thoughts flashed back to the day her life changed. It had begun picture perfect. They were filming a field scene. The sky a brilliant blue, and the sun shone down on the land for a beautiful shot. Katie, her character, would find a baby deer with a broken leg. The lesson for the episode dealt with compassion and giving. Katie would eventually have to return the deer to the wild.
Sunshine, her faithful Pinto of five years, pranced through the tall grass with her golden mane blowing slightly in the breeze. She smelled of the soap May used on her that morning. May giggled with sheer happiness. The crew settled back with the cameras in the shade to catch every second of the scene. Her parents hadn’t been there. May was a professional. The only time they came is if the reporters were there. Funny how she remembered that now.
The deer stood only a bit farther ahead by the tall oak tree. They cantered closer when suddenly May felt the earth tilt, and she struggled to stay seated. If she could only pull Sunshine to the side and correct her position. May jerked the reigns frantically and yelled Sunshine’s name when they both went down.
She screamed once, she remembered. The pair toppled to the right with May slamming into the ground while Sunshine rolled over her right leg and hip. The minute she hit the earth, pain burst through her head. There were no more memories of the accident.
May bit her lip to keep the tears from falling. “Sunshine tripped in a hole someone forgot to check for, and she rolled over me.” She didn’t tell the doctor how no one could contact her parents, and the make-up artist actually went with her to the hospital. And she saw no reason to tell him they put Sunshine down as they wheeled her into the emergency room. Her first question when she woke was not about her injuries but about her faithful horse and best friend. The only one who knew her secrets. And her parents coldly telling her that the veterinarian put Sunshine down. It had hurt worse than the terrible pain in her head and leg. Her heart bled then. The scar that none could see but the one that prevented her from ever having another pet.
Old wounds.
May pulled back from the memories of Sunshine and continued. “I was taken to the hospital. The doctors were amazed I woke at all. Much less, with my faculties intact.” She pulled up the hair behind her right ear and turned her head. “I fell on a large rock,” she explained. “It fractured my skull, but there was no brain damage.”
Clep stood and lightly touched the crescent-shaped scar.
Warmth flooded through her, and May jumped a bit. It was the oddest sensation. A memory of another’s touch on that exact area flitted through her thoughts. She struggled to remember when Clep cleared his throat.
“And then?”
May blinked and gathered her thoughts. She let her hair fall and touched her right hip. “The doctors mended my hip as best they could. But my right leg was another story.” A horror story. “Too many nerves were damaged in the fall.” Her lips twisted bitterly. “They told me that if I had jumped when Sunshine fell, I would be intact.” Pure acid dripped from the last word.
“Intact?” Clep growled. He stood and paced the small room with a scowl. “They blamed you for attempting to right your horse and save your friend?”
Emotion ripped through May, and she struggled with it. He understood. An unexpected blessing. May could no sooner leave Sunshine than she could rip out her own heart. The end had the same result, though. She still wouldn’t change a thing.
“Take your pants off.”
The words shocked May back to the present.
“Excuse me?”
“Your pants, May.” Clep motioned to them. “I need to examine the scars for myself.”
She didn’t say a word but simply sat there.
Clep grinned and winked. “I appreciate your reticence, May. I would hardly accept disrobing for a man I hardly know.” He tapped on the clipboard. “What can I do to make this easier for you?”
“Is there a cocktail around?”
He threw back his head and laughed. The deep timber rolled through the room, and May couldn’t help but laugh with him. Some of the tension eased from her body.
She held up her hand with a smile. “Isn’t there a robe somewhere I could slip on?”
“You have scars up on your hip, do you not?”
May nodded.
“You may keep your T-shirt on, May. But a robe would simply have to be lifted and moved out of the way.”
Nerves jumped at his words.
Clep put the clipboard down and moved in front of her. “I need to examine you, May. I will not harm you.” He paused. “I actually have a problem that I hoped you could help me with.” His blue eyes were clear and somber.
May tilted her head to the side. “What can I do for you?”
For the first time since their meeting, Clep appeared nervous. He raked his hands through his hair and cleared his throat.
May waited patiently.
Clep stroked his beard and took a deep breath.
She smiled. “The sooner you spill it, the sooner you get my pants off.”
He chuckled. “It is a matter of a personal nature. I do not freely give my thoughts.”
“I understand.”
Clep looked at her and nodded. “I think you do.” He waved his hand around the room for a second and then continued. “It is Eden.”
May waited.
“I care for Eden.”
Understanding dawned. This big, gorgeous man had a crush on her client. May mentally fit them together in her mind and smiled. They would be beautiful together.
“She pushes me away,” he continued. “Always working in her gardens or with her mor—” Clep trailed off. He smiled. “Or with more important items.” His smile slid away. “She refuses to listen to me. Stubborn and single-minded woman that she is. I need help to get through to her.” He paced in front of her. “If she would only listen to me.” Clep stopped and touched his chest. “If she would listen to my heart, she would know.”
May reached out her hand and took Clep’s in hers. “I will do whatever I can to help you.” She smiled. “Your heart will have its say.”
Clep bowed his head. “Thank you, May. I would be eternally grateful for your assistance.”
“Eternally grateful, eh?” May patted his hand and then let go. “I’ll keep that in mind. First, you need to turn around so I can take off my jeans.”
As soon as his back faced her, May undid the button of her jeans and slowly slid them down to her thighs. She rocked back and forth until she could easily slide them down her legs. The pain in her leg came back with a deep throb. May folded her jeans and put them beside her on the table. She yanked her yellow shirt down to the middle of her thighs. Shit. At least she had nice underwear on.
“Okay,” she muttered.
Clep turned and nodded approvingly. “Thank you, May.”
“Sure.”
He set the clipboard next to her jeans and looked her in the eye. “May I?”
May nodded, not trusting her voice.
Very gently, Clep lifted the hem of the shirt on the right side.
May looked everywhere but at him or what he did.
“It hurts now, doesn’t it?”
She bit her lip and nodded.
Clep’s hands started at the bottom of the scar and moved up gently. He paused where the scar was thickest and felt around before moving higher.
The top of the scar uncomfortably high on her leg, and May fought not to fidget.
He removed his hand. “Now the hip, please.”
May sighed. “Can’t you take my word for it?”
“I could. But then I wouldn’t be able to draw my own conclusions.”
She lifted the hem higher and blushed.
His hands were gentle, she would give him that. Some of her doctors caused her more pain with the examination than the injury did.
He traced the scar on her hip while mumbling something under his breath. When he lifted his hand, he stepped back. “Are there any others?”
“No.”
Clep squinted his blue eyes. “Sunshine’s tack didn’t scar you?”
Her brown eyes widened. None of the doctors before this one even bothered to ask. They focused solely on her leg. May swallowed convulsively and nodded. She touched her right breast, not trusting herself to speak.
“I won’t ask you to remove your shirt.” Clep grinned. “That may be pushing it.” He moved forward. “But I will simply feel the scar through your shirt. Is that acceptable?”
She nodded again.
His hands unerringly found the thin scar. Clep traced it with a slight frown on his face. “That can easily be taken care of with plastic surgery. Do you not wish to have that done?”
“No,” she whispered.
“Ah.” Clep stepped back. “You carry her with you, don’t you?” he asked quietly.
Emotion welled up so quickly in May, she nearly choked on it. Her hands clenched in her lap while she struggled.
“Why do you think it wrong to mourn your friend?”
May’s head jerked up, and her brown eyes blazed with anger and unshed tears. “It’s weak. She’s been gone for decades. The crying is ridiculous.”
“So say those who abandoned you.”
The quiet words undid her.
May covered her face with her hands while the tears streamed down her cheeks. She had always cried quietly so as not to disturb her parents. Thick arms quickly gathered her close, and May leaned into them. She mourned Sunshine with bits of her soul. Pain splintered through her chest before a semblance of peace slipped through.
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