“Sit down, honey. Tell me, what’s going on this time?”
“This time? Do I get this way every time I come home?”
“For the last year or so, yes. Of course, you don’t come home nearly often enough.”
“Maybe that’s part of the problem. I’m just homesick. This is the first time I’ve planned on staying here more than a day or two. I don’t even stay in my own apartment more than a week at a time. Mom, you know I'm always on the road. Between the bridal fairs and photo shoots there's just no time.”
“Whatever is wrong with you is more than being busy and homesick, Alex. What’s wrong? What happened?”
“I ran into Harvey and Molly at the bridal fair. Did you know they were engaged?”
“Oh. That explains it. I should have warned you. There didn’t seem to be a good time or the right way to tell you. It happened kind of suddenly. I didn’t even know they were dating.”
“You knew?” Alex asked, standing to pace around the kitchen.
“Well, yes. I see Harvey at the nursing home regularly. He’s one of the doctors who cares for your grandma.”
“Mom, you should have told me.” Alex sat back down across the table from her mother.
Her mother held her hands. “Alex, I just didn’t know how you would take the news. You and Harvey were always so close. To be perfectly honest, I expected you to come back after you got this modeling stuff out of your system. I always thought you and Harvey would pick up where you left off. “
“I guess I expected the same thing. I took for granted that when I came home and was ready, Harvey would be here waiting. Now…” Alex’s voice broke with the overwhelming regret and sadness flooding over her. “It’s too late.”
Unable to hold her tears back a moment longer, she laid her head on the table and cried. Since the moment she'd seen Harvey with Molly, she had fought the tears that stung her eyes and threatened to fall. She hadn't hurt so much since her dad died. She'd taken Harvey for granted. She had no one to blame but herself and that made her hurt even worse. She sobbed, dropping her head onto her folded arms. Hearts didn't truly break, but Alex’s chest ached and she tried to catch her breath.
Alex’s mother stroked her hair. “Finish your tea, go get a hot bath and a good night’s sleep. You’ll feel much better in the morning.”
Alex stood, hugged her mother and headed upstairs to follow her advice.
Chapter Two
Harvey sat at his desk and thumbed through a medical magazine. Two appointments had already cancelled. It didn’t matter, though. The one walk-in appointment he was waiting on hadn’t shown up yet—Alex. Nothing else mattered.
He checked his phone to see if he had missed her call. He tried to think about something else, quickly moved his mouse back and forth to bring his computer out of sleep mode. He glanced through the charts absentmindedly, trying to get Alex off his mind. Every thought of her was accompanied by a pang of guilt. He was engaged to Molly and she deserved his loyalty. Alex deserved something from him too, though. She was his first love. They had never really broken up. It was to Alex that he had truly been disloyal. Now he was overcome with conflicting emotions. His sense of duty to Molly versus the love and desire he still held for Alex.
He was wasting time trying to review charts, so he picked up the phone and buzzed his physician’s assistant. “Allison, could you come in, please?”
“Sure, Harvey…I mean…Dr. Mitchell. I’ll be right there.”
Moments later, Allison tapped on the office door and entered. Her long blonde hair was neatly pinned in a bun at the nape of her neck and the crisp white lab coat gave her an air of professionalism. “Morning, doc. What’s up?”
“Have you heard from Alex this morning?”
“Alex?"
"Yes. Alex Dodson. Your best friend from high school."
"Heard from her at the office? What’s up with that? Is she in town? Why would she be calling here?”
“One question at a time, Allie. Yes, Alex Dodson. Yes, she’s in town. She fainted at the bridal expo where she was modeling yesterday and I asked that she come in for some lab work.”
“Is she okay? Do you want me to call her? Is she staying at her mom’s?”
“She was probably just overheated. I guess she’s at her mom’s. I was with Molly, so you can imagine how much Alex and I got to talk. Maybe I’ll go by and check on her. When’s my next appointment?”
Allison checked her iPod. “You don’t have any appointments until after lunch. Go. Tell her I said hello.”
“I don’t know. It would really make Molly mad if she found out.” Harvey rose out of his chair, shed his lab coat and searched his desk for his keys. He moved folders, patted papers, and then found the keys in his pocket. “We are engaged. I shouldn’t intentionally make her mad. But if I am going as a doctor to make sure Alex is okay…that’s different, right?”
“Go, boss. I’ll cover for you. I've seen Molly's hissy fits. We don't want her telling her daddy on you. Stop by the nursing home on the way back. If Molly asks, no one is going to know when you got there, just that they saw you.”
“Thanks, Allison. This is why I keep you around.”
“No problem, boss. Anytime.”
Harvey was halfway out the door before Allison finished her sentence.
In the car, he turned on the radio and knew he was in trouble when the first song was the theme from his and Alex’s senior prom. It wasn’t long after he was in college and Alex was off working as a model. They had written and called and emailed for the first year or so. Then they had just drifted farther apart. Instead of talking or texting every day, they only spoke once or twice a week. Soon weeks went by without them contacting each other. He wasn’t dating anyone else and didn’t want to. He was just busy and focused on school. He thought Alex must be going through the same thing. Alex's mother often told him of the exotic locations Alex visited on photo shots and while filming commercials.
The song ended and he thought about the last time he and Alex had seen each other. He was home for a short break during his residency and she was enjoying a brief visit with her mom before flying out to a photo shoot for some magazine. They had one evening together for dinner and a movie. Things were comfortable, like always. They kissed good night, said, “I love you”, and promised to get together again soon. That had been eighteen months ago.
He was trying to figure out what had gone wrong between them when his phone rang. He looked at the caller ID. It was Molly. He was tempted not to answer. Talking to Molly would be difficult when all he could think about was Alex. He sighed and pushed the Bluetooth button on his phone. "Hello."
“Harvey, we should have lunch,” Molly said. “What's on your calendar for the rest of the morning? We need to discuss the wedding plans. You know we don’t have a lot of time.”
“I have to go to the nursing home and run a few other errands while I’m out.” Harvey hoped she would accept his story and let it go. She could be like a dog with a bone if she thought something was going on, and she wouldn't leave it alone until she found out what was happening. Is she psychic? It’s like she knew I was up to something.
“But Harvey…”
He hated when she whined. “But nothing, Molly,” he said sternly. “I have work to do. I can’t stop every time you want to talk about the wedding plans. Get your dad’s credit cards and go shopping. Get what you want. It's your day. I'm okay with whatever you choose. I trust you to make those decisions…”
“Don’t you even care? It should be the most beautiful, special day of our lives. Why, Harvey Mitchell, I am hurt.”
“It’s not that I don’t care. It’s just…I know you'll do a wonderful job planning the wedding and everything will be perfect.”
How did I get myself into this?
Harvey knew how. Molly's dad had co-signed on a loan so Harvey could borrow the money to open his office. Everything happened too fast but, whether he liked it or not, timing was a factor. As soon as h
e was engaged to Molly, her dad had started the plans for the office. Molly always made it seem like the bigger, better things her dad was pushing were all his idea, but Harvey had heard Molly say, “Daddy don't you think…” more times than he could count. Even when Harvey and her father had agreed on a location for the office, Molly suggested something larger in a more affluent area of town.
“So I’ll see you at dinner tonight at my parents,” Molly demanded, like she was six and used to getting what she wanted whenever she wanted it.
“I don’t know, Molly. I’m pretty busy. We’ll have to do it another time.”
“But Daddy wants to talk to you about expanding your office.”
“I don’t want to expand. We have plenty of room. I’m happy with my office like it is.”
“Don’t you want more? A bigger practice, more patients and money?”
Money. That's what everything always comes back to with Molly.
“If I wanted to make a ton of money and have a huge practice, I’d be in Atlanta not Fairburn. I’m happy being the small town doctor. If that’s not going to be enough for you then maybe…”
If she breaks it off then I'm off the hook. I want to do the right thing…
“It is enough, Harvey dear. It’s just Daddy wants us to have more. He wants to help us.”
“I’m doing fine. I already owe your dad for co-signing everything to get the office opened.”
“I told you he wants to help. He also asked where we are going to live after the wedding.”
“In my house. We’ve discussed this, Molly. We are going to live in my house until I can afford something else.”
“But, Harvey…”
Pulling into the Dodson's driveway, he said, “Molly, I’ve got to go. No more buts. No bigger houses or offices. No more help from Daddy.”
“But—”
Hanging up, he sighed heavily. What have I gotten myself into? I can't leave Molly. Not now when she needs me. But how am I going to spend the rest of my life with her when I am still in love with Alex?
Climbing out of his car and approaching the door, he was as nervous as he'd been when he picked Alex up for their first official date at fourteen. His heart raced, his palms began to sweat…his voice would probably even crack. He breathed deep and knocked.
Alex’s mother opened the door.
“Ms. Dodson. It’s so nice to see you outside of the nursing home. How’s your mom today?”
She hugged Harvey. “She’s doing well. It’s so nice to see you off-duty. It’s been way too long since you’ve been here.”
“It has been, Ms. Dodson, but I’m afraid my visit isn’t totally social. May I come in?”
“Sure, what’s going on?”
“Is Alex here? She had a bad spell at her show yesterday and I want to do some lab work to make sure everything is okay.”
“Yes, she’s here. Thank you so much for coming by to check on her. What would I do without you taking care of my family?” Ms. Dodson turned toward the stairs. “Alex, get down here,” she called. “There’s someone here to see you.”
“Who’s here, Mom?” Alex answered from the top of the stairs. She wore a tattered bathrobe that had probably been hanging in her closet since high school. Then her eyes met Harvey’s. “Oh, Harvey, you didn't have to come by. I'm okay. But I'm not even dressed yet. Give me a few minutes.”
Harvey smiled. She sounds a little flustered. I wonder if that's because of me. Glad I'm not the only one having these old feelings.
“Come on, Harvey, into the kitchen. We’ll have a glass of tea and get catch up while Miss Priss gets ready. It's funny. She's not usually that way here at home.”
“Thanks, Mrs. Dodson. I thought she looked pretty good already. She always has.”
“So tell me what happened yesterday.”
“She got light-headed and I thought she was going to faint. I don’t think she was ever all the way out, but close enough to make me worry,” he explained.
“I worry about her a lot. She seems so thin and she just hasn’t seemed happy lately.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, Ms. Dodson. Has there been anything else? Has she complained of not feeling well?” he asked.
“No, but I don't talk to her very much these days. She stays so busy. She's very worried about her grandmother or I wouldn't be getting this visit.” Mrs. Dodson answered.
“I hope she’ll at least let me run the lab work. I’ll have someone else do an exam if needed.”
“What do you want to check for? Do you think she might be sick?” Mrs. Dodson offered Harvey a chair.
The kitchen had been remodeled since he had last visited. The appliances were all chrome and new, track lighting shined on marble counter-tops. The oak kitchen table and chairs had been refinished, but were the same functional set that had been there when he first visited the house as a teenager.
“I’d just feel better knowing her blood sugar levels are okay. Iron, that sort of thing. She
could probably use a good, thorough physical. But I’m not going to examine—”
“Examine who?” Alex walked into the room and Harvey completely lost his train of thought.
She wore pink Victoria Secret sweats and had her hair up in a ponytail. He couldn't tell whether or not she’d put make-up on, but she was beautiful.
He couldn't take his eyes off of her.
“He’s not going to examine you. Even though you almost passed out and we need to know what's wrong.”
“Mom, it was nothing. I don’t know what’s gotten Dougie Houser here all stirred up.”
“Your pulse was racing, you were flushed, and if what happened wasn't a full faint, it was close,” Harvey reminded her, laughing. “So either something was wrong or you were really glad to see me.”
“You haven’t changed a bit. We’re not the cheerleader and the football player anymore. We’re adults. We have careers and you’re engaged.”
“Yes, we are adults. I am a doctor and I say you need to have some lab work done to make sure there’s nothing seriously wrong with you. I’m trying to take care of you.”
“You have a fiancée. Why don’t you take care of her?” Alex raised an eyebrow and gave him a scowl that could kill as she sat in the chair beside his. “Alexandra Gabrielle Dodson, you need to check that attitude right now. Harvey has come all the way over here to try and help you and you're just being hateful. I did not raise you this way.”
“But, Mom.”
“But nothing, young lady.” Her mother stood over Alex and glared at her.
“I’m sorry. Thank you for coming over. Give me orders or a prescription or whatever and I’ll have the lab work done,” Alex said. Despite the fact that she rolled her eyes she did flash Harvey a smile.
“Can I do a quick exam? Just check your pulse, your pupils and, if it’s not too invasive, a finger prick.”
“Okay, doctor, just get this done. Let’s go to the living room. The couch will be more comfortable.”
Mrs. Dodson announced she had to run some errands. “Harvey, it was great seeing you. I hope your visits will be more often.”
Alex got up and headed to the living room. She sat on the couch and waited.
“I’ve got to get my bag,” he said. “Wait right there.”
“Not moving a muscle.” Alex rolled her eyes.
Harvey took several deep breaths at his car. The thought of touching Alex, even to take her pulse, was making him anxious. He grabbed the bag and headed back inside. Sitting on the couch, waiting for him, the pout had gone from Alex’s face and in its place was a desolate frown.
“Are you okay?” Harvey asked, sitting next to her.
“Yes. I’m sorry I behaved so badly. I just didn’t expect to come home and find you engaged.”
“I’m sorry, Alex. I never wanted to hurt you. In fact, I always thought you’d come back to town and we’d…well, we’d be together.”
“I didn’t stay in touch. I was always too busy. I was so worried about
Mom and Grandma. Dad’s life insurance didn’t go very far and Grandma’s income wouldn’t pay for her to be at Clear Creek. I had to work to take care of them.”
“I thought you were just too busy for me. I didn’t realize you had so much on your shoulders.” He clasped her hands in his.
“I should have told you. But you were so focused on school. I didn’t want to bother you with my problems.” Tears streamed down Alex’s face. Her shoulders shook. She pulled her hands from his and wiped her face.
“I should have known after your dad died there would be a financial strain. I didn't even try to help or even find out if I could. There must have been something I could have done. You went through too much alone and didn't have to. I should have been with you. I'm so sorry I wasn't.”
“I know you would have helped. I’m sorry. We were already been growing apart and then life just seemed to get harder. I knew if we talked, you would know something was wrong and I would tell you everything. I didn't want to burden you with my problems while you were working so hard at school. So I just avoided you.” Her tears began to flow again.
“Oh honey, don’t cry.” Wrapping his arms around Alex, he whispered, “Shhh…” Harvey rubbed her back and pulled her close. Her tears soaked through his shirt onto his shoulder. The lavender scent of shampoo on her freshly washed hair brought back memories of high school, when they would sit on this same couch, watching movies and stealing kisses whenever they were certain Alex’s parents wouldn’t walk into the room.
“Oh, Harvey.” Alex lifted her head from his shoulder. “How did we go so wrong? Her eyes were filled with tears, but beyond them the old desire and love still lingered.
Harvey could resist no longer. His mouth covered Alex’s in a deep kiss. He just wanted to comfort her, but the touch of her lips drove him over the edge. He was like a man dying of thirst who had finally been given water and couldn’t get enough. Alex must have felt the same way. She returned his embrace, responding to his kiss hungrily, and her body collapsed into his.
She pulled away. “We can’t.”
Always A Bride Page 2