Saved by the Doctor

by Ivy Wonders

  “I could help ya.” He shoved his hands in the pockets of his blue jeans, grinning up at me. “I live right next door, and I’m not busy most of the time. I could help ya. I like animals—even though I don’t have none yet.”

  The place next door was an enormous and gorgeous estate with a monstrous house. I expected the boy came from a rich family who might not want him working at all. “I’d love your help, but what will your parents think about that?”

  “Dad wouldn’t care. He likes helping people; he always tells me I should, too.” He followed my gaze, looking toward his house. “We weren’t always this rich, you know.”

  I didn’t think it was right to be getting into the family’s finances with this little boy. “Oh, you don’t have to explain anything to me.”

  “No, I want to!” Eli brushed his hair back with all the impatience of a kid his age, as that pesky chunk had fallen back into his eyes. “Dad saved this little girl’s life a couple years ago, and her dad had lots of money. He gave my dad a bunch of it, and Dad made something he called ‘vestments,’ and now he’s got billions and billions. So he bought us a fancy house, and he’s got more cars than I can count.”

  “How nice for your family.” I smiled at his enthusiasm as he told the story and at what I thought must’ve been a couple of exaggerations. It also floated across my mind how nice it would be to save a rich person’s pet and get the same type of gift. Though I was happy enough to have saved a rich person’s pet and gotten a great deal on a house.

  “Yeah, it is pretty nice being rich. I ‘member I used to have to wait for my birthday or Christmas to get ‘spensive things. Now, I just tell Dad what I want, and most of the time he gets it for me. But sometimes he don’t. Sometimes he says I should wait for a special occasion. Like, I been askin’ for a dog for a while now, and he keeps saying, ‘let’s wait on that, Little Buddy.’ He calls me his little buddy on account of I am his buddy. We do lots of things together. I think I might be his best friend.”

  I thought that sounded sweet. His energetic rambling was infectious. “And is he your best friend, Eli?”

  Shaking his head, he said, “Nah. I like playing with Jason from my class. I’m in the second grade this year, and we sit next to each other. He’s funny and makes me laugh a lot, so that makes him my best friend.”

  “I’m sure your father doesn’t mind sharing you with him.” I looked back at my half-made kennel and thought the boy might be of some help. “I could sure use another set of hands if you’re not too busy to help me out for a minute.”

  The smile that broke out over his face told me that was just what he’d been hoping to hear. “Sure, Rebel! I can help.”

  “If you can hold this metal piece right here, then I can pull the wire straight and attach it to the other one I’ve managed to get set up.” I pulled on my end while he held fast to his and in no time we’d put the kennel up.

  Standing back, we both had smiles on our faces. “We did it, Rebel!”

  The kid deserved something for his hard work. “I think this calls for a celebration. I’ve got cookies and milk inside. You want me to grab us some?” I nodded toward the small outdoor table and chairs. “If you’ll have a seat, I’ll bring them out. I doubt your parents would approve of you going into a stranger’s house.”

  “I bet you’re right.” He said as he walked over to the table and sat down. “My dad might get upset with me.”

  I noticed he’d only spoken about his father. “And what about your mother?” I felt bad about prying, but figured I was hardly the first person in the world who wanted to get to know her neighbors.

  “She wouldn’t find out, not with her being all the way over at her house.” Sliding into the chair, I noticed a frown on his face. “She was supposed to get me for this weekend, but she called Dad and said she can’t make it. She’s working at her shop.”

  The disappointment in his face tore at my heart. “Well, I’m sure she’s very busy, or else she would’ve picked you up.”

  “She mostly doesn’t,” he said as he looked at the table, running his finger over the floral design. “I haven’t seen her in lots of days. I talk to her every day on my cell phone, though.” He pulled it out of his pocket. “Dad gave me this when Mom left. He told me I could talk to her as much as I wanted to with this phone.”

  “He sounds like a great dad.” Though I knew nothing else about the man, it was clear he did the best he could with his son.

  “Yeah, he’s pretty good.” He looked at the French doors that led into the back of my new house. “Can I have water ‘stead of milk? I’m lactose intolerant, and milk gives me the squirty poops.”

  A laugh burst out of me. “Sorry, that’s rude of me. Sure, I’ll get you water instead. I’ll be right back.”

  As I grabbed the box of cookies and a couple bottles of water, I wondered about the kid’s life. Sure, they had a great place to live, and it sounded like his dad had a great job, but what kind of family life did the boy have?

  When I went back outside, I put some napkins down, then handed him a bottle of water. “Here you go, Eli.” I took a seat, then opened the box of cookies. “I sure feel lucky to have met you.”

  “I feel lucky, too.” He took a bite of the cookie. “Yum. Did you make these homemade, Rebel?”

  “No. A girl at work gave them to me this afternoon before I left the clinic. She thought I should have something to munch on while I moved into my home.” I looked around my backyard and my heart swelled full of emotion. “This is the very first house I’ve bought on my own.” Looking back at him, I tousled his hair. “Sure am glad to have a great neighbor like you, Eli. I think we’ll be great friends.”

  “I think so, too.” He smiled at me, showing off his missing front tooth before he looked down and tried to get the lid off the water.

  Reaching over, I unscrewed it for him. “There ya go.”

  “Thanks.” He took a drink. “Maybe, since we live next to an animal doctor now, my dad will let me get a dog.”

  “Well, even if he doesn’t, you can always come over here and play with the animals I’ll have here—especially if you’re going to help me out some.” I thought I should make him a definite deal. “How about I pay you twenty dollars a week to come over here every evening when I get home from work? You can help me feed the animals—it shouldn’t take more than a few minutes—and then you could play with them if you’d like.”

  “I’ve gotta ask my dad, but my answer is yes!” His bright green eyes shone as he grinned. “He’ll probably want to come over to meet you.”

  Pushing my hand through my hair, I hoped I didn’t look too much a mess after the work I’d done, and I wondered about the boy’s father. “Well, if he’s busy, we can meet another time.” If he were busy, I’d get a chance to clean myself up before meeting the man.

  “Nah, he’s not busy at all. He was working out in the gym at our house. He does that a lot.” He took out his cell and made the call.

  I sat there picturing what a man who worked out a lot in his home gym must look like. Then I ran my hand through my hair again. “I’m just gonna pop into my house for a sec. You wait here, okay?”

  He nodded as I headed inside to freshen up a little. Meeting anyone new while wearing a sweaty t-shirt and cut-off shorts was not ideal, and it definitely wasn’t the way I wanted to introduce myself to any of my new neighbors. You only get one chance at a first impression, after all.

  Chapter 3

  Harman

  The ringing of my cell signaled the end of my workout. Wiping the sweat off my face, I walked over to check the caller and found it was my son, Eli. Last I’d seen, he’d been in the foyer, watching something out the front window. “Hey, Eli. What’s up?”

  “Dad, I’m over at the new neighbor’s house. The little one in front of the big one that weird lady is making into a big mess—you know the one, right?” he asked.

  Alarm bells immediately started clanging in my head. My son was way too trusting.
“First, why did you leave our place without telling me? Second, what are you doing, going to stranger’s houses? Third, why are you calling me when you know you should be getting your backside home?”

  “She’s nice, Dad,” he told me. “She’s a vet—you know, an animal doctor. And she wants to give me a job.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea, Eli.” He was just a little boy, who would want to put him to work? And what kind of job could he do for anyone? “Come on home, son.”

  “Dad, just come meet her, and then you’ll see it’s going to be great for me,” he sounded enthusiastic. “Come on. Please, Dad.”

  That little pleading voice always got to me. And I’d been meaning to introduce myself to the new neighbor anyway. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

  The woman who’d inherited the house next to ours had been doing all kinds of renovations and downright demolishing other structures on the property. The rock wall behind the carriage house had gone up not too long ago, for what I now realized must have been to separate the two houses and properties. It sounded like some retired veterinarian—maybe an old widow—had moved into the place. Perhaps she wanted Eli to help feed her cats or something. I supposed it wouldn’t hurt anything for him to help out the elderly a bit.

  Jogging out the door, I figured I’d do a little cool-down from my workout while heading over to the place. I didn’t bother changing out of my workout clothes, thinking this would be a short visit. I’d say hello, tell her it was nice to meet her. Let her know, sure, Eli could feed her cats, and then it’d be goodbye. No need to change clothes for that.

  I saw Eli standing in the front yard when I got out onto the street. He waved his arms real big, as if there was any chance I couldn’t see him standing there. “Over here, Dad.”

  “I see you.” I chuckled as I jogged up to him. “So, where is she?”

  “Come on, she’s around back. Or she will be.” He led me around the side of the house. “She went inside for a minute. She’ll be right back.”

  I saw a few cages and a kennel in the backyard. “Looks like she’s going to have quite a few animals back here. Are you sure you can handle being responsible for her pets, Eli?”

  “She’s gonna be ‘sponsible for them, too, Dad.” He pointed at the double French doors at the back of the house. “There she is.”

  Looking up, I caught sight of a very lovely brunette coming our way. Faded blue jeans hugged her legs, showing off some pretty great assets. Her tight t-shirt clung to what I figured were D cups, at least. And that smile she wore—that smile alone could light up the dark quite easily.

  “Hi.” She extended her hand. “I’m Doctor Rebel Saxe.”

  Shaking her hand, I nearly forgot my own name, “I…um, I’m—”

  “This is my dad,” Eli saved the day. “His name’s Harman.”

  Moving her hand out of mine, she gestured to a small outdoor table. “Care for some cookies, Harman?”

  My tongue felt like it weighed a ton, and my brain didn’t seem to be working at all. But it did manage to make my feet work, walking me over to the table and chairs she’d pointed to. We all sat down, and Eli took over. “So, Dad, Rebel wants me to help her out, and she’s gonna pay me twenty bucks a week!”

  That jarred me back to reality and had me shaking my head. I didn’t think she needed to pay him. “No. That’s okay.”

  Rebel’s pretty blue eyes—eyes the color of a bluebird’s wings—went to Eli. “I’m sorry, sport. But if your dad doesn’t want you to do this, then that’s that.”

  That wasn’t that at all. “No. I mean you don’t have to pay him. It’s the neighborly thing to do, right?”

  Now she shook her head. “I can’t let him work for free.” She looked at me with a smile. “Your son told me you’re a doctor. He said you work with kids.”

  “Yeah, I’m a pediatric surgeon at Saint Christopher’s General Hospital.” Finally, my brain was thawing out. “And he said you’re a vet. Where is it you work?”

  “I work over at A Place for Paws Clinic.” She looked at Eli. “Your son’s been telling me how much he’s been wanting a dog of his own. I figure he’ll enjoy helping me with the animals I bring home.”

  “I see.” I looked at my son and wondered when he got to be such a chatterbox. “Well, you can’t have a dog of your own. Not yet. But if you prove to me that you can be responsible for animals, that’ll be a big feather in your cap.”

  Eli jumped up and clapped his hands, and I found myself smiling. I hadn’t seen him that happy in a very long time. “Thanks, Dad!” He pointed at the kennel. “I helped Rebel put that up already. I can be a big help to her.”

  Looking back at the young woman, I couldn’t help but wonder why my son had been the one to help her out. “Did you move into this place all on your own?”

  Nodding, she leaned back in her chair then picked up a bottle of water off the table. “This is my first home.”

  “Seems you’re quite accomplished. A vet and a home owner, and you can’t be more than what? Twenty-four?” It seemed she was a driven young woman. “That’s something to be proud of.”

  Her cheeks went pink with a blush. It didn’t look like she wore any makeup at all, and yet she still looked radiant. “I’m twenty-five, actually, and I’m a little bit of an overachiever. My mother started homeschooling me because I got bored in regular classes. They went too slow for me. I graduated high school when I was only fifteen. Then I went to college. And college courses, I liked. Not long into that, I found a calling in the veterinarian world, and now I’m here—a real vet with my own home. Feels like all my dreams have come true.”

  “Impressive.” I wasn’t just blowing smoke either—the woman really had impressed me. “I think Eli working with you is a great idea. It seems like you’d be a great role model for him.”

  She looked at Eli with affection in her eyes—clearly she didn’t only have a soft spot for animals, but for nosy eight-year-olds, too. “He’s a great kid, from what I can see so far. It would be my pleasure to get to spend time with him.” Reaching over, she tousled his hair. “I’ll teach you all kinds of things about animals, Eli. It’ll be fun.”

  “I think so, too!” Eli looked at me. “I’m glad Mom didn’t come get me this weekend. Rebel might’ve given the job to another kid, and I would’ve missed out.”

  I looked down, not really wanting to discuss my mess of an ex in front of our new neighbor. A woman like her, one who looked like she had it all going on, would never have time for something as messy as my life.

  Rebel waded into the depths of my complicated relationship anyway. “Eli, I don’t want you turning down spending time with your mother just to help me.” She darted a quick glance my way, as if to gauge my reaction. “It’s important to make time for the people you love.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Eli looked at me. We both knew that his mother was the one who wasn’t making the time for him, not the other way around, as Rebel implied. “Maybe you should tell Mom what Rebel said. Maybe then she’ll see how important I am.”

  Putting my hand on his shoulder, I looked him in the eyes. “You are important to her, Eli. Don’t let it get into your head that you’re not. She’s just very busy with her business.” Sure, it was a lie, but someone had to safeguard the poor kid from his mother’s neglect.

  Rebel gently put her hand on his other shoulder. “See, I told you she must be very, very busy to have missed out on spending time with you.”

  Seemed my kid had told the woman a hell of a lot personal information. “Yes, Tara’s a very busy woman,” I tried to make it sound legitimate. “She owns a boutique, and she’s only had it for about a year. It takes a lot of time to get something like that going strong. She’s only getting alimony for eight more years, so she has to find some way to support herself before that time runs out.”

  Rebel nodded. “Well, I hope she has good luck with that. I’m sure running a business isn’t easy. It’s not something I’d like to do. Not yet
, anyway.”

  Eli’s expression told me he didn’t think his mother was working all that hard. “Well, maybe she works harder when I’m not around. Whenever I go to the store, she just talks on the phone the whole time.”

  Rebel looked at me briefly before her eyes returned to Eli. “You know, with a job like hers, she probably has to be on the phone a lot. She has to order things for her shop and everything. We have to do that at the clinic sometimes, and we hardly sell any products at all.”

  I had to hand it to the woman, she was certainly trying her best to make Tara sound good. I knew that was not the case, but I appreciated that she was looking out for my son’s feelings.

  Wanting nothing more than to get off the subject of my son’s mother, I asked, “So do you specialize in any specific field of veterinary medicine, Rebel?”

  “I do.” Her face glowed, and I could tell she had a passion for her work. “I’ve got a thing for miniature animals. Not that I agree with the breeding practices that make them, but I do believe that people need to have a better understanding of these breeds than they currently do. There are so many problems with miniatures—from digestion, to breathing, and even eyesight and hearing. I’m working to develop ways to help these tiny creatures live better lives.”

  Eli seemed pumped about that. “So, a lot of the animals you’ll be bringing home are gonna be tiny?”

  “Most will be, yes.” She beamed at him. “Do you like little animals?”

  “Who doesn’t?” Eli got up and went to one of the small cages. “So, what kind of animal can fit into this cage?”

  “All kinds. We could have some baby skunks or possums that have been left alone after something happens to their mothers, or maybe some piglets. Those things are all the rage right now.”

  Looking at the kennel, I had to ask as curiosity bid me. “You could fit one of those mini ponies in that thing, couldn’t you?”

  “I could.” She nodded. “But I don’t like to keep animals of that sort in such small enclosures. I don’t think I’ve got enough room here to take in any of those types of animals anyway.”