Nurse to Forever Mom

by Susan Carlisle

  The girls entered ahead of Cody and her, leaving the door open. He pushed it wider. “Welcome.”

  The hallway, laid with gleaming wood, went the length of the house. There was a staircase near the front door and large rooms off the hall. It was gorgeous.

  “Head on back to the kitchen.” Cody indicated down the hall to the back of the house.

  As they made their way there Stacey could tell that it was a functional home with little extras for decoration. It screamed that no woman lived there. In the kitchen, she found a large bar and picture windows through which she could see a porch running the length of the house. There was also a great view of the ocean beyond.

  “Girls, let’s get what we need together before we go out to check the lobster pots. Jean, you get the fire supplies. Lizzy, the pot, napkins, plates and bowls.”

  Both went into action. Stacey couldn’t help but be impressed. Cody was teaching his girls important lessons like teamwork. “What can I do to help?”

  “Uh...how about getting the butter and drinks out of the refrigerator and the bread off the counter?” He pointed to the other side of the room.

  A few minutes later the girls headed out the back door, down the steps of the porch and along the path to the water. She and Cody followed with their hands full. He had pulled matches out of a high cabinet, put a roll of brown paper under his arm, located a butcher’s knife and picked up a bag of tiny potatoes before he was ready to go.

  They continued down the path through the rocks to a small sandy beach where a wooden rowboat sat beached and tied to a pole.

  “You run a smooth operation, in and out of the OR, Doctor.”

  He grinned. “It helps to be doing something they want to do. I can’t say that it’s always that way.”

  “They’re nice girls. You should be proud.” She watched Jean and Lizzy place the things they had on a rock.

  “I am. It hasn’t always been easy for them.” There was a sad note in his voice.

  “My guess would be not for you either.”

  He gave her a wry smile and continued ahead of her. He called, “Girls, get your lifejackets on.”

  Both girls scrambled to the boat.

  Cody put his things down beside the others and turned to her, taking what she held. “Thanks for asking me along. I could tell your heart wasn’t in the invitation.”

  “The girls are right, everyone should experience a lobster bake when they have a chance. I’m glad you agreed to come. Really.”

  He sounded sincere. “I’m looking forward to seeing how this all works.”

  “Have you ever been out in a rowboat?” he asked.

  “Nope.”

  “Thankfully it’s a calm afternoon so we should have a good trip out and back. We aren’t going far. You’ll need to put on a lifejacket as well.”

  They walked to the boat. Cody reached inside and pulled out a lifejacket, handing it to her. While she put hers on, he did the same with one of his own and checked the girls. Stacey was glad she’d worn her windbreaker, her old jeans and canvas shoes. Her evening walk had become an unexpected adventure.

  Jean and Lizzy scrambled over the side of the boat and took a seat on a bench in the middle.

  “Get in,” Lizzy called. “Daddy will push us out.”

  Stacey looked at Cody. “You don’t need my help?”

  He gave her a pointed look. “Just have a seat.”

  She did, taking the small one up front, facing the girls and the back of the boat. They were soon sliding into the water. Cody hopped in with the litheness of an athlete at the last second, keeping his feet dry. He took the bench seat in the back of the boat and picked up the oars. Moving into a rhythmic pull, with determination, he had them out in the water in no time. With skill he turned them around so that he was facing out to the horizon.

  Since Stacey faced him she couldn’t stop herself from appreciating the flexing of his body as he heaved the water forward. The tendons in his neck rose, making him look more masculine. This type of exercise must have something to do with creating his firm chest. She was staring, but she couldn’t help herself.

  “We’re going out there to where those red and green floats are. Our pots are tied to them. Those are our colors so the lobster fishermen know not to pick them up.”

  Stacey pulled her attention away from Cody long enough to crane her neck around to see the bobbing buoys behind her, which were large enough to see clearly.

  “Hey, you okay?”

  She met Cody’s gaze, hoping her expression revealed nothing.

  “You’re not scared, are you?” He was watching her closely. “You do know how to swim?”

  Stacey swallowed. “Uh...no. I mean yes. I’m just enjoying the scenery.”

  His eyes widened slightly, holding a questioning gleam before his lips curved at a rakish angle. “Really?”

  Realizing what she’d said, heat as hot as a summer day shot up her neck. Had he thought she’d meant something else by the way she’d been looking at him? Maybe she should jump overboard! She stared at Maple Island behind him instead of his impressive chest. “Yes, really.”

  Cody’s soft chuckle carried over the sound of the water lapping against the boat.

  Soon he pulled alongside the first float and Jean grabbed it. Cody quickly brought the oars into the boat and took it from her. Hauling the rope attached to the buoy hand over hand, he brought the pot to the surface.

  Stacey held her breath in anticipation. The girls’ eyes were glued to the water.

  “I bet we’ve got a big one.” Lizzy’s voice was filled with excitement.

  “It’s a little early in the season so I hope we have at least one.” Cody continued to work.

  “We’ll get one, Daddy. You know where to put the pots.”

  Stacey watched him, grinning. It was nice to hear a child have that much confidence in her parent. Stacey hadn’t felt the same about hers. If her father had been around, would she have adored him? She’d never know. “Why, Dr. Brennan, you’re a lobsterman as well as a surgeon. Who would have thought?”

  He gave her a quick acknowledging look before his attention returned to the job at hand.

  The girls were inching toward the side of the boat the pot was on.

  “Girls, stay put. We don’t want to turn Stacey over. Better yet, move to the other side while I’m getting this up.”

  “Where do you want me?” Stacey asked.

  “You just stay put. If you see the boat dipping too far to one side, then adjust a little.”

  Stacey had next to zilch experience with boats but she could do that.

  Cody continued to lift the square metal cage until it sat on the rim of the boat, with water sloshing through the holes until it was completely out of the water. Cody’s thighs were wet now, defining the strength of them.

  “Daddy, we got one. We’ve got one,” Lizzy squealed, half-standing.

  The greenish-brown crustacean remained secure in the middle of the pot.

  Stacey reached over and placed a hand on Lizzy’s shoulder, easing her to the bench.

  “Well, it looks like at least one of us is going to eat tonight.” Cody’s broad smile beamed at them each in turn. He placed the pot in the bottom of the boat, sat and picked up the oars once more. The girls’ attention remained on the lobster as Cody rowed to the next buoy. Minutes later he came alongside it.

  “I’ll get it.” Stacey reached over the side. Grabbing the buoy then the rope, she hung on as the boat continued to move forward. When the slack was gone it jerked her forward and onto the bottom of the boat, but she continued to clutch the rope.

  “You all right?” Cody’s concern was clear in both his voice and face. He started over the girls’ bench toward her.

  “I’m fine. Give me a second and I’ll have this trap...uh...pot out of the water.” S
he righted herself by sliding into a sitting position. Tugging, she felt the pot lift off the sea bottom. Slowly she drew the rope up. Her shoulders burned.

  When she started to stand Cody called, “Don’t! You might go over. You’re doing great. Just keep at it. It should almost be up.”

  Seconds later the top of the pot surfaced.

  Jean leaned over the side. “You have two. Two!” Her smile went from ear to ear.

  “Our best catch ever.” Cody sounded as excited as his daughter as he sat as far to one side as he could as a counterbalance to the extra weight. Stacey grabbed the pot.

  “Let me see.” Lizzy moved to Stacey’s side of the boat.

  “Hold on a minute. Let’s let Stacey get it into the boat. Give her some room.”

  Stacey pulled it up and over the side until it sat on one end in the bottom of the boat. The process wasn’t nearly as effortless as Cody had made it look. She had gotten wetter than him. Yet she smiled triumphantly. “I’m going to get to eat tonight after all.”

  “That you are.” His smile was the one that she liked so much.

  “We all are.” Jean moved the pot around, laying it down as she gave the lobsters a closer look.

  “You’re right.” Cody picked up the oars again and started pulling them toward the shore.

  The return was much faster with the help of the current.

  When they reached the sand, Stacey jumped out with the rope in hand having given up on trying to keep her shoes or clothes dry. She hurried to the pole to secure the boat. Cody hopped over the side, pulling the boat up on the shore. He then lifted Lizzy out. Jean handed him one lobster pot then the other before he assisted her.

  “We need to get the fire going, girls.” Cody tied off the pots so that the lobsters remained in the water. “Go out and scrounge up some driftwood. Think small pieces first.”

  Jean and Lizzy scampered away in opposite directions.

  Stacey watched them with a smile. “What can I do?”

  “All we’re going to need is a good fire. Have you ever built one?”

  She threw her shoulders back and let him see her indignation. “I’ll have you know I’m a professional at that. When you live part of your life in different spots all over the world you learn some survival skills.”

  “Well, all right, Ms. Professional Fire Builder, let’s see what you’ve got.”

  Getting down on her hands and knees, Stacey scooped out a hole in the sand. With that done, she pulled some paper off the roll Cody had brought down. By that time both the girls had returned with kindling-size driftwood. “Now run and get some larger pieces and we’ll soon have this fire blazing.”

  Jean and Lizzy took off.

  “Hey,” she said over her shoulder to Cody, “do you have those matches?”

  He sat the large boiler he’d filled with water down next to the fire pit and dug into his vest pocket, bringing out a small box of matches. Her hand brushed his as she took them. Awareness shot through her. Her hands shook as she tried to strike one.

  “If we’re going to have cooked lobster then we’re going to need a fire, Ms. Professional Fire Starter. Do you need my help?”

  Stacey took a stabilizing breath. She could do this. Leaning close to the paper, she struck another match and the paper and kindling caught fire. “I’ve got this.”

  Cody grinned. “I see that.”

  The girls returned with their arms full and dropped the wood on the ground. Stacey added pieces and they soon had a roaring fire. Standing, she stretched the kinks out of her muscles. She glanced at Cody. Their gazes met for a moment.

  Jean called, “Daddy, put the pot on.”

  He hesitated a moment before turning away to pick up the boiler and carefully place it over the fire. “It’ll take a few minutes to boil.”

  “What do we do now?” Stacey was enjoying this adventure more than she had anticipated.

  “We need to set the table.” Cody picked up the roll of paper and opened it across the ground.

  “We’re going to eat on that?” Stacey looked at his arrangement in amazement.

  “Yep. Jean, you want to help me with the lobster?” He handed Stacey a small metal bowl and the stick of butter on his way to the boat. “Will you put the bowl near the fire so it’ll melt?”

  Stacey did as he asked, aware of Lizzy watching.

  Soon Cody and Jean returned with a lobster pot carried between them. “We’ll get this one in then go get the other two.” Pulling heavy gloves on, Cody removed the lobster.

  “Watch the pinchers, Daddy. You know what happened last time.” Jean moved to stand beside him as if she planned to protect him.

  “What happened?” Stacey really wanted to know. To be included in the shared story within this close-knit family. She had so few stories of her own with her family. What family? She only had her mother. They had never really been a family like Cody and his girls were. She always missed that.

  “Daddy forgot his gloves and tried to get the lobster out without them. It pinched the end of his finger and he danced around.”

  Both girls giggled while Stacey laughed.

  “It hurt.” Cody sounded pitiful, but he smiled.

  “It was so funny.” For once Jean appeared happy and her age instead of older than her years.

  “You can see I didn’t forget them this time. I left them in the boat, so I’d have them close.”

  Stacey grinned. “I can see it now in the papers: ‘Eminent surgeon loses finger to lobster.’”

  “Funny, very funny. If you’re not careful, you might not get to eat.”

  Right now, Cody was nothing like the uptight, humorless and far too serious doctor she’d first met. She liked this guy. Really liked him.

  Lizzie came to sit beside Stacey, crossing her legs. When Cody held the lobster over the boiling pot, Lizzy clutched Stacey’s arm. “Oh, this is the part I don’t like.”

  “Why not?” Stacey searched Lizzy’s stricken face.

  “Because the lobster cries.” She put her hands over her ears.

  Cody lowered the lobster into the pot. Soon a small keening filled the air.

  Stacey wrinkled up her nose and twisted her mouth. “That is bad.” She covered her ears.

  “Well, well, well, such a tender heart.” Cody had leaned close so that she had no trouble hearing him. “You don’t flinch at the sight of blood but you’re sympathetic to a lobster.” His low chuckle rolled through her, leaving behind a lovely warmth.

  They all watched the pot for a few minutes then Cody pronounced, “It’s time for this one to come out.”

  “How do you know?” Stacey asked.

  “When it turns red.” Jean’s tone implied that anyone should know that.

  Cody picked up tongs, reached into the pot and pulled out the lobster. Giving it a gentle shake, he placed it on the paper. “Don’t touch. It’ll still be too hot.” He opened the bag of tiny potatoes and dumped them in the pot. “Jean, let’s go get the other two.”

  His daughter didn’t hesitate, slipping her hand into her father’s larger one. It was a sweet picture, one that Stacey had never experienced with her own father. Shaking off the morose thought, she watched them return with the second pot. Was Jean afraid she might lose her father like she had her mother? What was the real story about Cody’s wife?

  They returned and set the trap down. She and Lizzy considered the lobsters. One of them was missing a claw.

  “What happened?” Stacey asked no one in particular.

  “They get in fights when sharing space.” Cody picked up the lobster. “This one lost.” He unceremoniously dropped that one and then the other into the water.

  Once again Lizzie covered her ears, and Stacey joined her. Cody was wearing one of those spectacular smiles she rarely had a glimpse of. The one that made her stomach flutter. When the
lobsters were done he lifted them out. He then dumped the water, saving the potatoes. Those he poured out onto the paper. “Stacey, would you please get the butter?”

  She did and placed it on the paper as well. He sat on the ground and the girls joined him around the paper “table.” Stacey took her spot. Cody reached for the cans of drink and handed one to each of them. Next, he picked up one of the lobsters, removed its head then, using the knife, sliced it down the middle of the back. Pulling the meat from the tail, he halved it and gave a piece to Jean and the other to Lizzy.

  He picked up another and waggled it at her. “Do you want to do the honors or shall I?”

  “Let me have a try.” Stacey reached for the lobster.

  “Figures. Is there anything you won’t try?”

  Stacey looked directly at him. “I try to stay open to new things.”

  He raised a brow, his gaze not leaving hers as he handed her the lobster.

  She clenched her jaw as she twisted the head off, following his example. Handing the body to Cody, she waited while he sliced it open and returned it.

  “Here, dip it in the butter.” Jean pushed the bowl toward her.

  Stacey did as Jean suggested then put the white meat into her month. “Mmm...” A rivulet of butter ran down her chin. “Wipe.” She waved a hand in a give me, give me motion.

  “Be still and I’ll get it.” Using a napkin, Cody caught the stream before it dripped onto her jacket.

  Her gaze jumped to his. Her breaths came in jerks as if she had been running. Among all the men in the world, why did this one affect her so? Why did she let him? It had to stop. “May I have my own napkin?”

  Cody pulled back as if rejected. Dismay filled her. She hadn’t meant to sound so harsh. But they were becoming too easy with each other. She was being sucked into his world. Even worse, she liked it. But she didn’t belong here. Had no experience with a real family.

  Reaching beside him, he snagged a napkin and thrust it in her direction.

  “Thanks.”

  “Daddy, my hair is getting in the way.” With a messy hand Lizzy pushed the mass of hair that had slipped from the band.