by Amy Ruttan
So she had no family left. Not really.
“I understand,” he muttered, but then shook his head as if he felt bad about what he’d said. “Look, let’s get out of this drizzle before it turns to full-out rain.”
“That’s fine with me. Is the apartment far?”
“Nope.” Derek shoved his hands in his hoodie and headed up an alleyway behind the clinic.
Evelyn rolled her eyes and followed him. It wasn’t really an alleyway after all, but a steep slope up to a set of wooden stairs that were at the back of the clinic.
“This is the place,” Derek said. “There’s no connection to the clinic on the inside, however.”
“Great—well, at least it’s summer.” Evelyn would hate to climb those open wooden steps to the second floor in the winter. She wouldn’t be here then.
A shudder ran down her spine as she thought of those cold Alaska nights. How the sun had set early, the northern lights had shone and there had been hot chocolate by the fire with her father in the cabin.
He had read to her for hours, until her eyes were so heavy that he’d had to carry her to bed and tuck her in while the snowstorms had raged outside her window.
She’d been safe in her father’s arms.
“Come on, then,” Derek said, interrupting her thoughts as he jogged up the steps, not even offering to take her suitcase for her.
Evelyn cursed under her breath and lugged the case up, bumping it with each step. So much for her new luggage.
At the top Derek was waiting, and he was smirking. She wanted to wipe it off his face.
“You okay there?” he asked, a hint of humor in his voice.
“Perfectly,” Evelyn said through gritted teeth.
Derek opened the door and stepped inside. She dragged her suitcase in. The apartment was a mess.
Derek was annoyed. “Yeah, sorry about this. I forgot. Dr. Pearson is a bit of a slob.”
“It’s fine,” Evelyn said. She could clean it up, no problem. She was definitely not a fan of Dr. Pearson, though. First the jerk had left without waiting for her, leaving her to the mercy of Dr. Derek Taylor, and now this.
Derek handed her a key ring. “The clinic key is this large one and the other is the apartment.”
“Is there a car that’s available for me while I’m here?”
“Unless you drove one in from the ferry terminal that connects to Juneau then, no, but everything is in walking distance.”
Great.
She’d been hoping a car would be available because she wanted to see if her father’s place was still standing. She was wondering if it had changed. From going through what had been left to her after her grandmother had died, she knew that the property had been sold shortly after she’d left Wolf’s Harbor.
Grandma hadn’t want any part of Wolf’s Harbor. She hadn’t wanted any reminders of her son’s worst mistake.
“Your father could’ve been a great surgeon, but he left for Alaska and took up with your mother and I never saw him again. He could’ve been great, Evelyn, but he threw it all away for a woman who was not part of the world he was brought up in.”
Evelyn shook her grandmother’s voice from her head.
Her father might not have become the kind of surgical god her grandmother always envisioned, but he’d been a respected general practitioner in Wolf’s Harbor. People had looked up to him. He’d saved lives and her grandmother had never got to see it.
Now she, Evelyn, would finish what he’d started and lay the memories of her father to rest. Maybe then she could move on.
“I flew in from Sitka,” she said as she pocketed the keys. “So if I want to order in a pizza I just say the back of the clinic?”
“Yeah—they’ll know,” Derek said. “The clinic opens at nine.”
“And how do I access patients’ records? Is there a computer password?”
“No password—and you can access the patients’ records by opening the filing cabinet. Your schedule is on the receptionist’s calendar.”
There was that smug sense of humor again. As if he was trying to shock her with the fact that they still had hard copies of their records.
“Okay. Well, I’ll be there earlier than nine to get myself acquainted with everything.”
Derek reached out, grabbing the arm with the fancy watch, and stared at its face. “Not if you don’t set your alarm to Alaska Daylight Savings, you won’t.”
Just that simple touch caused a shiver of anticipation to run down her spine. He was annoying, but there was something about him which drew her in.
He was dangerous.
She had no interest in any relationship. Every relationship she’d been in had ended with her being dumped because she could never commit—because she was never there and was too focused on her career. Or so those men had believed. She’d actually pushed them away because she knew she didn’t deserve what she secretly wanted.
A family of her own.
She shook him off. “I’m well aware of the time-change.”
He smirked and raised an eyebrow, then moved past her through the open door. “Okay, then. I’ll see you tomorrow—bright and early. Good night, Dr. Saunders.”
Evelyn shut the door after him and was glad to be rid of him. For now.
She’d see him tomorrow, but after a good night’s rest she knew that she would be better suited to dealing with him.
She could handle guys like Derek. Guys who were arrogant and used to being the lone wolf. They saw every new arrival as a threat.
Nathan had been nothing like Derek. When she’d first met him he’d been nice and almost too accommodating. Still, look where that had got her. It had got her nowhere. She’d spent two years of her life with Nathan and he’d left her.
You really gave him nothing, though. Remember?
She locked the door and scrubbed a hand over her face, staring at the apartment and feeling completely exhausted and hungry.
There was a clock that was showing Alaska time, so she quickly set her watch even as her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn’t had much to eat since leaving Sitka. While she’d been dragging her bag up the stairs she’d noticed a pub across the road, and it had looked like the kind of bar that might serve a quick meal. She was starving. She didn’t feel like waiting for pizza. She felt antsy, trapped in this messy apartment. It would be better for her to get out of there and grab a breath of fresh air.
She grabbed her purse and her keys. First she’d eat and then she’d tackle this mess—even though she was still running on East Coast time and needed to sleep.
The drizzle had dissipated and a damp mist hung in the air. Outside it was quiet, with only a couple of trucks slowly puttering through down town. She knew that it was at least three hours to the nearest ferry terminal, and then four hours to Juneau. Wolf’s Harbor was remote, and surrounded by the dense, mountainous forests of the Inside Passage.
She remembered when her father had used to drive her to the far side of the island, to the ferry terminal, so she could watch the large ferry bringing people to the island and sometimes a cruise ship on its way to Skagway. And sometimes she’d see the orcas.
For the most part Wolf’s Harbor relied on logging and fishing, and it was only fishing vessels or large logging trucks that would go by.
A shiver ran down her spine as she thought of her father’s death. How he’d been hit by that runaway logging truck that had been going too fast through town. And how a ring had been in his pocket.
“Evelyn, your mother has been gone a long time now. Jocelyn isn’t going to replace her. She makes me happy. Be good. I won’t be long at Jocelyn’s.”
That had been the last time she’d seen her father alive. The last words he’d said.
Don’t think about it.
She dashed across the road and straight into the pub.
As soon as she took a step inside the murmur of hushed talking stopped and people stared at her. There’d never been a lot of visitors when she was a kid.
“Hi,” she said, waving uneasily. “I’m the new doctor in town.”
There was another few seconds of stares, which felt like an eternity, but then most people returned to their food, their conversations or their drinks.
Except one.
Derek.
He was positively glowering at her from the far side of the bar. And he was next to the only empty seat in the place.
Great.
Maybe it would be better to wait for pizza? But of course now that she’d made her entrance and he was staring at her she couldn’t really back down.
So she pretended to ignore him and sat down, picking up one of the vinyl-covered menus and pretending to study it, ignoring the sensation of his staring at her.
“I thought you would be cleaning,” Derek said gruffly.
She glanced at him. “Usually a gentleman would introduce himself or offer to buy a woman a drink before trying to strike up a conversation with her.”
Derek snickered, staring ahead at the bar. She could see his reflection in the mirror.
“I’m no gentleman. And you know who I am.”
“Do I?” she muttered.
He got up and just stood there, saying nothing until she turned and looked at him.
“What?” she asked.
“Hi, I’m Derek Taylor. Can I buy you a drink?”
“Not interested.” And she turned back to her menu, trying not to smile.
“Oh, for the love of...”
“Sit down.” She chuckled. “I don’t need a drink.”
Derek sat down, setting his mug of beer back on the bar. “I’m surprised to see you out and about.”
“Why is that?” she asked.
“Because usually the specialists who come into town to do their rotation don’t bother with the locals. They order in, keep to themselves—it’s somewhat of a burden.”
“Well, the cleaning of that apartment is ‘somewhat of a burden.’”
She set down the menu. She was hungry, but she wasn’t sure she really wanted to eat at this moment. Her stomach was twisting and turning from being back here. And as she glanced around the dim bar she had faint memories of this place.
Her father and Uncle Yazzie playing pool here, and her mother singing up on that stage. Her last gig before she’d got sick with the cancer that had killed her. And as she studied the room further she remembered the booth that was reserved for live entertainment. It had seemed so much bigger when she’d been curled up in it, eating ice cream.
“Daddy, what’re you doing?” Evelyn asked, seeing her father with another woman.
Her dad stood up, shocked. “Evie, what’re you doing here?”
Her eyes brimmed with tears. “I saw your truck outside. I was running an errand for Léelk’w. Who is that woman?”
“This is Jocelyn. She’s my girlfriend.”
Jocelyn smiled and waved. She was pretty, blonde and young—and not her mother.
“No!” Evelyn screamed. “No!”
And she turned and ran out of the bar.
Her father yelled for her to come back.
“Hey, you okay?” Derek asked, interrupting her memory.
“Yeah,” she said, and ran her hand through her hair in the nervous twitch she’d always had. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
“You totally zoned out,” Derek said. “Tired?”
“A bit.”
“Where did you say you were from?” he asked, trying to draw her into conversation.
“Boston, but I’ve been in Sitka a couple of days.”
“Still, the change is a bit jarring if you’re not used to it.”
“I’m used to it,” she whispered. “It’s just been a long time.”
Derek cocked an eyebrow. “Pardon?”
The door opened and the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. She slowly turned around in her seat, because instinctively she knew what to expect and she wasn’t sure she was ready for it.
She wasn’t ready to face a ghost from her past.
Taking a deep breath, she stood and looked up at the man who had been her family. A man she’d never thought she’d see again because her grandmother had cut off all ties to Evelyn’s life here in Alaska.
The man her father had thought of as a brother, because he had estranged himself from his WASP mother back in Boston, “throwing his life away” to live in the wilderness.
It had been Uncle Yazzie who had introduced her parents. Her mother’s loveable, goofball little brother. A man who had represented everything her grandmother had hated about her son’s life and his wife in Alaska.
Tears stung her eyes as she stared into the dark eyes of Joe Yazzie Sr. She could still see him standing on the Tarmac of the airport all those years ago when she’d been forced to move to Boston.
“I had to see with my own eyes,” Yazzie whispered. “I thought my son was bluffing me.”
Her stomach twisted into a knot as she wondered if he would turn his back on her. She wanted to run. She was afraid of his rejection in person, because his silence had hurt her as a child.
No. You have to face him. Good or bad.
“Uncle Yazzie...” she whispered, her voice faltering.
Derek was highly confused. “What’s going on here?”
Evelyn sighed and turned back to Derek. “I’m from Wolf’s Harbor. I’m a local.”
* * *
She’s a local?
If Evelyn Saunders was a local he would know that. He’d lived here for fifteen years and he knew everyone in this town because he was the general practitioner.
And he would remember her.
She was local?
He was still in a bit of disbelief over it all, but there was no denying it when he saw Joe Yazzie Sr.’s reaction to her.
The man who was usually stone-cold and emotionless had his arms wrapped around her, holding her and crying.
Crying?
Derek did a double-take. He’d never seen Joe Sr. cry. Ever.
“Am I missing something?” Derek asked.
Joe took a step back, tears glistening in his eyes as he spoke some words in Tlingit.
Derek could only make out a piece of what he was saying. Something about someone being home?
Joe turned to him. “Dr. Taylor, this is my sister’s child. She’s been missing for over twenty years.”
“Missing?” Derek asked, confused.
Evelyn smiled up at Joe and then looked back at Derek. “My father died when I was ten and my guardian was my grandmother in Boston. A social worker came and—”
“Took her away,” Joe interrupted. “We were her family. Her father left her care to me and my mother. Evelyn is half-Tlingit and we would’ve cared for her, but we lost out to the Matriarch Saunders in Boston. There was no will, and a judge determined Georgina Saunders a better fit. She had the finances...we didn’t and couldn’t afford to fight. Georgina had sole custody. It broke my mother’s heart, being separated from her. We tried to call, but Georgina changed her number and blocked us at every turn.”
“I see.” Derek was in shock.
Joe turned back to Evelyn. “We tried to get in touch with you, Evie. I swear!”
Evelyn nodded, only Derek noticed a strange expression on her face, as if she didn’t quite believe it. “I know.”
“So you’re related to the Yazzie family? You didn’t mention it before,” Derek said.
Evelyn shot him a warning look. “It didn’t come up naturally in conversation.”
“I asked where you were from.”
“I am from Boston.”
Joe frowned. “Well, I’m glad you’re
back, Evie. We have a lot to catch up on.”
“I think that’s my cue to go,” Derek said as he stood up.
“You don’t have to,” Evelyn said.
“I have things to do. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He quickly slapped down money for his beer.
He had to get out of this place. He had to put some distance between him and Evelyn. Fast. He’d overstayed anyways. He’d only come for a quick drink before he had to head home to relieve the sitter and deal with a cranky, fussy five-year-old who wanted the sitter to stay longer because Jessica read stories better than Daddy.
Derek looked back at the reunion scene. He smiled and for one brief moment wished he could stay. Evelyn’s smile made his heart skip a beat. It made him feel like his old self.
Seeing Evelyn with Joe Yazzie made him feel lonely.
She was from here.
She had family.
He frowned at the realization.
Evelyn had a reason to stay, and if she stayed...
He didn’t want to get his hopes up that another doctor would stay. They never did. So he was going to carry on believing she was like every other doctor before her. A doctor with a time limit.
Even if secretly he wouldn’t mind if she stayed, because he was so drawn to her and it would be nice to share the load—
That thought scared him.
There was no room in his heart for anyone else.
His heart was too broken, too damaged, for him to make room for someone again.
CHAPTER THREE
EVELYN GOT UP before her alarm in the morning. Of course it had been hard to sleep, because her emotions were all over the place.
The reunion with Uncle Yazzie had wrung her out completely, even if she had managed to keep it all together. And every time she’d closed her eyes she’d seen her father, her mother or Derek. And the fact that Derek had invaded her thoughts irritated her greatly.
He shouldn’t be in her thoughts.
She was here to serve Stefanie’s rotation in Wolf’s Harbor and then she’d return to Sitka. And then... She didn’t know where.