Practicing Partners (Maiden’s Bay #2)

Chapter Sixteen

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20

“GOOD MORNING.” brAN entered Doc Bernie’s practice, hoping he beat Aubrie in arriving.

“Morning, Doctor Jackson.” Edith greeted him with her usual smile. Even though it was routine, Edith’s smiles were real.

But Bran caught her staring at the purple bruise around his eye, and her smile faded.

“My goodness, what happened?”

“Oh, a misunderstanding yesterday. Not a big deal.” He reflexively pressed his lips together, the fattening decreased from yesterday. With his eye, the swelling had gone down a bit, but the color took on a personality of its own.

He shed his coat and thin scarf, Edith eager to hang them up for him. It was something he could do on his own, but Edith made it clear she’d be offended if he didn’t let her do her job. He wasn’t going to argue what her job entailed or didn’t entail.

Bran cleared his dry throat, nervous about seeing Aubrie after last night. “Is Doctor Turnbridge here yet?”

“Oh, yes. Aubrie went into Doc Bernie’s office a few minutes before you arrived.”

Bran nodded. Of course he didn’t beat her here. Aubrie considered herself late if she arrived less than fifteen minutes early.

There were things he needed to clear up with her, and conflictingly wanted to get it over with and skip all-together. As the morning progressed and patients rotated in and out of the practice, it was obvious Aubrie was perfectly happy immersing herself in work and ignoring him. She seemed to always be going in the opposite direction when he crossed her path, and while she acknowledged his presence with a brief upright flinch of her mouth, she didn’t stop as much as to say hello.

When lunch had come and gone without having seen her leave by herself, Bran took the opportunity during an afternoon lull to address the trout in the room.

Bran scanned the hallway and waiting room before walking right up to her. “Hey.”

“Hey.” She messed around on her cell phone, standing by Edith’s desk. Edith had a way of busying herself to seem as if she wasn’t paying attention, but Bran knew better.

“About last night....” He nodded away from the desk, and Aubrie reluctantly set down her phone and stepped closer to him.

Aubrie spoke in a whisper. “I thought we resolved this well enough last night.”

“I know, I just—” He wanted to tell her why he invited Macy out. It wasn’t to date her, to rekindle some flame that barely burned years ago. In fact, it was because of Aubrie that he took the initiative to call Macy. To apologize for his past behavior, to buy her dinner, as a friend. He even told her that he wasn’t looking for a relationship—or a fling, to be frank. He genuinely wanted her to know her friendship was valued, is valued, and that he has changed. It was nice to hear how well her career has been going.

“I said last night, it’s fine. You had your date, I had mine. We ate our meals.”

It wasn’t fine with a cloud of awkwardness hovering over them the entire dinner. “I realize my presence made it hard to focus on your date.” He meant it in the most innocent way—that he had interrupted her time, but realized after the words came out how poorly they sounded. “I mean, you had a hard time paying attention to him.” Nope, not better. But it was true. He had watched her throughout the evening. It was hard not to, seeing her dressed up, smiling and flirting with what’s-his-name. Garrett.

Aubrie put her fingers on the bruise around his eye. While the puffiness had gone down, the tenderness still lingered. “And you have a hard time not ticking people off, you know that?”

He let out a brief chuckle. “I suppose I deserve that.”

Aubrie crossed her arms, eyebrows furled in satisfaction.

“For many reasons.”

“I just don’t understand you, sometimes. Or maybe it’s me.”

“What do you mean?”

“For some reason, the men around me act so childish sometimes.”

“You should’ve seen him as a kid.” Doc Bernie handed a file to Edith. “He was never one to follow rules.”

“I think that still goes.” Aubrie gave him a widened stare.

“He’d come around looking like—” Doc Bernie paused, smirking. “Well, like he does today. Remember that scuffle with the Crinton boys?” Doc shook his head, all too happy to reminisce. “Broken collar bone, a few stitches to the ear.”

Aubrie stepped closer, investigating his left ear.

“It’s the other one,” Bran said. “And there’s not much to see. The scar all but faded.” He switched his attention to Doc. “To be fair, they came after Nathaniel.”

“True, true.” Doc switched to Aubrie. “I heard Bran jumped right in the middle of it. Took the brunt of the fighting and never threw a punch.”

Bran’s cheeks felt alight with heat.

“I’m sure whatever this was—” Doc Bernie waved his hand in the vicinity of Bran’s face—“there’s a good justification for it.”

“Thanks, Doc.”

“Of course.” He turned to Edith. “I’m off to grab a bite.” He gave a loose salute, his fingers not quite straight and hand shaky, as he exited.

Aubrie scoffed. “Of course your grandfather is going to stick up for you.”

“He’s a wise man, regardless of being my grandfather.” Bran didn’t hide the smirk until he remembered what they had been talking about before Doc’s interruption. “But in all seriousness, I am sorry.”

Her hands moved to her hips. “For which part?” She leaned closer, speaking in a low whisper. “Crashing my date, or getting in a brawl? No, for not telling Doc Bernie about your probation?”

At the sound of the word, she turned her attention to Edith, whose head remained down. Bran caught her eyes drifting, betraying her pretend unawareness.

“For all of it.”

“Then you’ll tell Doc Bernie what’s going on when he gets back?”

Bran rubbed the bump on his lip. “It’s not that simple.”

“Sure it is.”

“Aubrie, please. There’s more to it than—”

The front door swung open, a woman holding it while a hefty man carried an infant in his arms.

“She’s burning up and not moving.” It was Ben, one of the Campbell brothers who had been in not long ago for his physical. His face beaded with sweat, his t-shirt wet from the damp towel wrapped around the infant.

“Bring her back.” Bran rushed to the back, through the hallway to the first examining room. Aubrie said something to who Bran suspected was Ben’s wife. They met up in the room as Bran took off the little girl’s onesie and pants, leaving nothing on but the diaper.

“How old is she?” He grabbed a stethoscope and listened to her heart. Her skin was hot. “Aubrie, temp?”

Aubrie’s eyes were glazed over, as if in another world. She was pulled back with his words, and she nodded.

“She’s going on nine months,” Ben said.

“When did this start?”

“103.1.” Aubrie’s voice was weak.

“I went to do her feeding before nap time, but she wasn’t latching. And I felt how warm she was. About an hour ago.”

“Did you give her anything?” Bran gazed over the two parents, and they shook their heads.

“Her fever was escalating, and we wanted to get here as soon—” She broke down, Ben holding her in his arms.

“It’s okay, Ange, we got her help.”

Amid the frantic couple, just behind them, was Aubrie. Her face was stone, eyes moistening. Bran wanted to reach out to her, but she backed out of the doorway and bolted down the hall.

Bran focused back on the parents. “That’s right,” he assured them. “What’s this little angel’s name?”

“Annabel,” Ben said.

“All right. Wait right here.”

Bran stepped out into the hallway to the front desk. Aubrie sat in one of the waiting room chairs, biting her thumb and forefinger, focusing on who knew what.

“Edith, I need your help.”

“You got it.”

“I’m going to need some children’s acetaminophen, some fresh wet cloths, and some formula if we got it.”

“On it.” Edith ran to fetch the items, while Aubrie continued to stare at the wall.

“Aubrie?”

She turned her head to him. “I—” All she managed was a shake of the head.

“It’s okay. You just wait here, see if we get any other patients.”

She nodded, as if relieved to be given a responsibility other than the imminent one.

Bran made his way back to the room. After looking for obvious signs like rash, he administered the acetaminophen and changed out the cool cloths. “You were wise to use the cool compresses.”

It was the first bit of relief he saw in Ben’s eyes since arriving.

After a painfully long thirty minutes, Annabel’s fever came down, and her alertness improved. He briefed the parents about caring for Annabel at home, and when to call him or 911 if her condition worsened.

Ben and his wife left after another thirty minutes, just to be safe, and thanked Bran with hugs.

He walked them out to the waiting room. “I know it can be scary, the first time your child is sick. As it’s most likely a virus, it’s mainly managing symptoms and keeping her comfortable. You let me know if she starts screaming, tugging at her ears. We don’t want that mucus getting into her ears, causing an infection.”

“Will do.” Ben looked at his wife. “I’m going to be heading out again soon. I’m trying to take on less fishing trips.”

His wife rubbed his back, then patted Annabel’s head.

“Would you mind following up with Angela? My reception will be in and out.”

Bran nodded. “No problem.” He could see the pain it caused Ben, having to leave his wife and sick daughter on their own. It was their way of life, one Bran couldn’t see for himself. But if calling Angela every day over the next week alleviated Ben’s worry, then that’s what he was going to do.

“Thank you, Doc.”

Bran held the front door open for them and watched as they walked off. He turned back to the waiting room, Aubrie out of the chair.

He was going to ask Edith where Aubrie had gone to, but Edith merely pointed at the doorway as Aubrie walked an elderly gentleman to the waiting room.

“Every day, Mister Guzman. No skipping this time.”

“I know.” The man waved the order away and exited.

Bran wanted to get Aubrie before she had time to run off or pretend she was too busy with whatever. He nearly pushed her into the hallway, the concern unavoidable in his voice. “What was that?”

“What was what? Mister Guzman?”

“No, not Mister Guzman. With Annabel?”

She stood silent.

“The little girl? You froze. What’s going on?”

“It was… nothing.”

Bran scoffed. “I see. When it’s me freezing, it’s something, but when you do it, nothing.”

Her resolve began to return. “In all fairness, you passed out. I didn’t.”

She was good at turning the tables. He’d give her that. “You may not have passed out, but you flipped out. I could’ve used you in there.”

“But you managed just fine, didn’t you?” Her eyebrows nearly met in anger. If anything, he should be the one upset, not her.

“Luckily, she’s likely fighting a common virus, and we got her fever under control. Taking fluids. But if it had been something else—”

“Well, it wasn’t something else, so we’re good.”

“What’s going on out here?” Doc Bernie stopped short of the hallway entrance. Bran hadn’t noticed he’d returned from his meal break.

Aubrie’s glare could’ve cut through metal. “Maybe you should ask Bran.” Her steeliness gave in to pleading.

“I asked the both of you, but okay. Bran?” Doc Bernie nibbled on an oatmeal cookie, not ready to hear what Aubrie wanted Bran to say. When would Doc ever be ready? Aubrie didn’t even know the half of it.

“The Campbells were in here, while you were gone. Brought in little Annabel.”

“Everything okay?”

“She is now.” He returned the glare to Aubrie. The seconds ticked by before turning back to Doc Bernie. “We’ll need to call Angela, just to follow-up, over the next couple of days.”

“Okay.” Doc Bernie said it hesitantly, as if unsure of the whole thing. “I’ll have Edith put that in the schedule. Helps to remember when it’s in writing.”

“I agree.” Bran gave a brief smile.

The three of them stood there, Bran and Aubrie facing each other, Doc Bernie the third wheel looking in on them.

“Okay… well, how about we get back to it, then?” Doc Bernie pointed to his office entrance, no doubt eager to escape the tension in the air.

“Gladly,” Aubrie said.

You sure about that? is what Bran wanted to say, but he also didn’t want to prolong the battle of the stare-downs.

What was it about that patient that bothered her? Surely, as a pediatric oncologist, she had seen much worse. So, why the negative reaction? Why freeze up?

It wasn’t so much the freezing up as it was that she refused to tell him why, after he had been so open with her. He hadn’t told anyone about his mother like he had done with Aubrie. Why was it hard for her to open up to him?

It led to one thought, a thought that last night had helped nurture. And that was how much she cared for him. He swore she kept eyeing him last night. Not really even him, but Macy. That she didn’t like him being together with Macy, despite her sitting next to her date.

Perhaps he read her all wrong. If she did care about him, beyond whatever level of friendship they’d call themselves at this point, she would open up.

The frustration kept the knot in his stomach tight, long past the end of clinic hours and well into the night.