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  “Yeah, you just watch what happens if you keep eating that junk and smoking those nasty cigarettes. You’re going to be right here alongside me, only I’ll be the one running after that sexy, hot doctor,” Bernice said to Toots right before the elevator doors opened.

  “Did I hear someone say ‘sexy, hot doctor’?” Dr. Phil Becker asked as he entered the physical therapy room.

  “You did, but you just missed her.” Bernice nodded toward the elevator. “She’s going to the cafeteria. And then I’m sure she’ll run outside to huff a smoke or two.”

  At sixty-eight, Dr. Phil Becker could’ve passed himself off as ten years younger if he were of a mind to do so. More than six feet tall, with the lean build of a runner, a thick mop of curly brown hair, and eyes so blue that one noticed them from a distance, he was far from the public’s image of a cardiologist. Some might mistake him for a college professor. That day, he wore a pale blue polo shirt, khaki slacks, and Sperry deck shoes. To distinguish himself, he wore the obligatory white jacket with DR. PHILLIP J. BECKER, M.D. F.A.C.C., embroidered in thick black letters above the upper left pocket.

  Dr. Becker glanced at the closing elevator doors. “I’ll catch her later. Now, my friend, let’s see how you’re progressing.”

  A pretty blond physical therapist made a few notes on Bernice’s chart before handing it over to the doctor. He scanned the information and signed his name at the bottom of the chart before giving it back to the physical therapist.

  “Looks like you’ve more than surpassed the normal expectations. This is good. Now, I know the answer to this, but I have to ask, anyway. Are you prepared to continue to follow a strict diet and exercise regimen when I formally release you?”

  Walking on the treadmill, Bernice nodded. “You ask this every week, and my answer is still the same. Yes. I want to live a while longer, so I will follow the rules. Now, can you leave me alone for a while? I want to listen to my music.” Toots had given Bernice an iPod. She had learned to download music and books and brought this with her for her required sixty minutes on the treadmill.

  Dr. Becker laughed. “Yes, all right. But remember, you still have two more sessions here at the hospital before I can allow you to start working out on your own.”

  Bernice took a deep breath and nodded. She had her earbuds in place and clicked the START button. She waved the doctor away and began her stint on the treadmill.

  Seeing that he wasn’t needed to assist or advise, Dr. Becker raced to the elevator, where he pressed C for cafeteria. He was going to find Ms. Loudenberry before she made an excuse to leave. He’d tried to corner her on several occasions, and each time she’d raced off to some urgent errand. Not today, she won’t.

  As soon as the elevator doors swished open, he raced down the short hall to the cafeteria. Midmorning, and it was already packed with medical staff, a few ambulatory patients, and several visitors. The hum of voices and the clatter of dishes, along with the smell of baking bread and burnt coffee, greeted him as he stood on the threshold, searching for her. He spied her sitting alone at a table against the back wall, farthest from the exit. Perfect, he thought as he made his way across the cafeteria. It wouldn’t be so easy for her to avoid him this time. He would follow her if he had to. That sounded scary even to him. He laughed to himself. A stalker he was not.

  He strode over to her table. He saw three opened mini-boxes of Froot Loops scattered on her tray, plus two empty cartons of whole milk. “You keep eating that junk, you’re gonna wind up on my table sooner than you think.”

  Toots was too surprised to do more than nod, and she needed a few seconds to compose herself. Swallowing the last bite of her Froot Loops, she wiped her mouth with the small square of rough paper disguised as a napkin. “Dr. Becker, I presume.” She wasn’t going to say more, nor was she going to stand up and invite him to join her.

  “Ms. Loudenberry,” he said. Then, without waiting for an invitation, he sat down in the chair across from her.

  Toots suddenly remembered why she was at the hospital. “Is Bernice all right?”

  “She’s better than all right. I just left her. She really doesn’t need to come back for therapy. She’s progressed enough to move on to the next phase.”

  Toots’s heart lurched, then slowed to a steady beat. Figures Bernice would recover quickly. Not that she didn’t want her to, it was just that she thought she might have a chance to . . . Never mind. It is what it is. She cleared her throat. “Well, that’s the best news I’ve heard all day.” And it was. Really.

  His full lips twisted into a cynical smile. “Then why, I cannot help but wonder, do you not look very happy?”

  No way was she going to allow him to get under her skin. “And what is that supposed to mean? You don’t know me. I don’t see how you can make such a statement. It isn’t like we’re . . . friends or anything. You haven’t even . . .”

  He reached across the small table and took her hand in his. “I haven’t even what? Had the opportunity to ask you out? Hold your exquisite hand in mine?” His gaze went to their clasped hands. Toots yanked her hand away.

  His smile turned into a chuckle. “I see. You want to play hard to get. Okay. I’m game. It’s not like I’m going anywhere. Nope, just staying right here in Charleston. I don’t have a home in Los Angeles, or anywhere else, for that matter. So you see, I have all the time in the world.”

  Toots’s eyebrows rose in amazement at his gutsiness. In spite of herself, she smiled. She liked this man. He had . . . chutzpah. She was thinking of something else when she had the sudden thought that she really didn’t know if he had . . . those, what she thought of instead of nerve. Just the thought forced her to laugh out loud.

  “You think this is funny? I’ve been trying to corner you for weeks, and now that I have, you’re laughing at me?”

  Totally unaware of the captivating picture she made when she smiled, Toots waited, sure the good doctor was about to say something she wanted to hear. She raised her brow, inquiringly. “No, I’m not laughing at you.” He was going to work for this, she thought as she waited for him to spit out whatever it was he had to say. She liked playing hard to get. Was actually surprised at how much she’d missed the chase, playing the game of cat and mouse.

  The noise in the background stilled to a low drone. Toots felt the blood gush to her head, and her ears felt like they had when, as a child, she’d held a seashell next to her ear. She was sixty-six years old. This was not supposed to happen at her age. Nope. Not at all. She’d been there, done that. Eight times. Seven times too many. No way. It was not going to happen again. She was finally in complete control of her life. The last thing she wanted was a man to complicate things. Her life was nearly perfect—she could come and go as she pleased, answering to no one but herself. She was not going to be like Ida. Just comparing herself to her man-hungry friend had the power to frighten her.

  “Then you must be afraid of me,” Dr. Becker said.

  Toots shook her head. “No, not at all.”

  “Your red face says otherwise.”

  Good grief! She was actually blushing. Trying to think of a quick comeback, she said, “I have . . . rosacea.”

  Phil Becker laughed so loud that several patrons in the cafeteria turned to stare at him. Toots felt her face . . . her rosacea . . . turn crimson. Damn him for making her feel like she was a . . . a kid! She was anything but, and was just getting ready to tell Becker a thing or two when a young woman in her early thirties approached their table. She wore green scrubs and a light blue cover over her head. Her shoes also sported the protective covers.

  “I’m sorry to interrupt, but Dr. Miller has a patient in ER he wants you to examine. He said you’d be here.”

  Toots wondered why he hadn’t been paged over the intercom system, beeped on his pager, or called on the cell phone she knew he kept strapped to his hip.

  “Of course. Tell him I’m on my way.”

  The young woman nodded before racing out of the cafeteria.
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br />   “Ms. Loudenberry, you have been saved by the bell once again, but before I let you off the hook, just so you know, I know what rosacea is, and trust me, you do not have rosacea. What you do have, I think we doctors refer to as blushing.” He stood up, grabbed her tray, and motioned for her to stand as well. “I would really like to discuss something very important with you. Since I’m needed in the ER, would it be too much to ask you to walk with me?”

  Shit! He was not going to leave her alone, and frankly, Toots admired a man with persistence. Given her rosacea lie, the least she could do was listen to what he had to say.

  “I’ll walk with you,” she replied, following him to the area where garbage and trays were disposed of. “Of course, if this is an emergency, please don’t wait for me.”

  He raked the cereal and milk boxes into the garbage, then stacked the tray on top of the others. “No, I knew Miller was going to ask me to have a look at his patient. They’ve been there for a while. It’s not a real emergency.”

  Out in the hall, Toots walked beside him but was careful not to get too close. She didn’t want to give him any ideas.

  “A person is in the emergency room, waiting for you, and you say it’s not an emergency?” The disbelief in her voice was obvious, but she didn’t care.

  “I know what you’re thinking. I really can’t divulge patient information, but let’s just say this ‘emergency’ is here at least three times a week. I believe this emergency was diagnosed with panic attacks. It seems a cardiologist is needed in order to reassure the patient that he or she is not having a heart attack. Now, forget I told you that, okay?”

  They were in front of the bank of elevators. Toots knew that the emergency room was farther down the hall and around several corners ahead, but he’d stopped here, and she wasn’t going to ask any questions.

  “Forget what?” she asked with a smile.

  “I like smart women. Did I ever tell you that?” he asked as they proceeded around a corner.

  Smiling inwardly, Toots thought about how she really liked this guy. Really. And that was not a good thing. No way could she even think about going down that path again. Eight times, and she’d worn it out. Nope, she did not see Dr. Becker in her future. She slowed her pace at the next turn. “Look, I really should go. Bernice is probably finishing up and wondering what happened to me. I have her handbag.” She touched the strap to the large white purse hanging from her shoulder.

  He glanced at his wristwatch. “No, she has at least another hour. According to what her physical therapist wrote in her chart, Bernice is going to learn the fine art of weight lifting today. It’s all part of the usual process.”

  Toots didn’t know what to say, so she said nothing. Dr. Becker picked up his pace, and she decided to follow him. They turned two more corners and walked down another long hall. Neither spoke, but Toots knew they were close to the emergency room. She heard a blue page code over the main speaker, and before she had a chance to comment, Dr. Phil Becker was gone.

  Not wanting to stand out, but curious, Toots slowly made her way down the remaining connecting hallways that led to the emergency room. Rushed footsteps, beeping sounds from the many lifesaving machines, and firm commands greeted her as she rounded the corner. From a distance, she spied a curtained-off area, where she viewed several sets of protective-covered feet as they raced around the small space. Sure this was the room in which the code blue patient was being treated, Toots gave a quick prayer that whoever it was, Dr. Becker could save their life. Knowing what bad shape Bernice was in when they’d admitted her, she had high hopes that the patient would survive with the help of the good doctor. Understanding that it was useless to remain lurking in the hallway of the emergency room, Toots decided she’d best return to the third floor. She could watch television while Bernice did her weight lifting.

  The second she decided to leave, she heard her name. “Teresa, wait!”

  Only those who didn’t know her called her by her given name. She smiled. It sounded much better than Ms. Loudenberry.

  She stopped but didn’t turn around. Toots felt a hand touch her shoulder, giving her a warm, tingling sensation. She wanted to push his arm away but knew that if she did, either he would think her incredibly rude or—and this was what she feared most—he would think his touch had an effect on her. Slowly, she turned around, making sure her features were completely normal. Hopefully, she wouldn’t blush again.

  “Sorry to take off like that, but I hear a code blue, and, well, you know what that means?” he asked, a grin on his handsome face.

  She could’ve played dumb and said no, but after burying eight husbands, she would look totally stupid if she did. “I take it the emergency is under control?”

  “There wasn’t an emergency. That patient I told you about? Seems that he or she initiated the code blue when messing with the instruments above the bed. I calmed the patient down, and now that patient is ready to be released.” He raked a hand through his thick curls. “At least until next week. He took her hand in his and followed the same route as before. “Now, I have to say this before I’m interrupted again. For weeks, I’ve been dying . . . No, forget I said that. I’ve wanted to invite you to dinner. Either you’re off and running, or I am. So, now that that’s out of the way, will you have dinner with me? Tonight?”

  Toots felt her heart rate increase, and for a moment she feared she might wind up next to the patient he’d just left. With her hand in his, she called up every power in her not to tremble, not to blush like a teenager. She took a deep, cleansing breath.

  Why not? It wasn’t as if he was going to ask her to marry him. She could have dinner with a man without it leading to marriage or anything more. She was not like Ida, who hopped into the sack on the first date and wanted a lifetime commitment. No, she thought, I just marry them as soon as they ask. Then I bury them. Marry and bury. Could I be a jinx to men?

  “Dinner would be nice,” she answered. Had she just doomed Dr. Becker to becoming number nine? Unlucky number nine. No! She was just suspicious of everything these days. She’d have Sophie read for her; maybe she’d reassure her that she wasn’t bad luck when it came to men.

  Dr. Becker squeezed her hand. “Where would you like to go?”

  She thought for a moment, then recalled a new restaurant that had recently opened three doors down from The Sweetest Things. She couldn’t recall its name but gave Dr. Becker, Phil, the location.

  “Okay. I’d like to pick you up and drive you there.” He let go of her hand then. “I’m an old-fashioned kinda guy.”

  Of course he is, she thought. She liked a man with old-fashioned manners. As independent as she was, it was still nice to know there were a few men left who still followed society’s unwritten rules. Sophie would croak if he knew her thoughts.

  The idea of an evening alone with the good doctor sent her spirits soaring. “That would be wonderful, but I want you to stop calling me Ms. Loudenberry. My friends call me Toots.” There was a trace of laughter in her voice.

  He threw back his head and chuckled. “I love it! Toots, huh? How’d you end up with that?”

  Coming from anyone else, Toots would’ve been insulted, but seeing the merriment on Dr. Becker’s, Phil’s, face, she was anything but. “Toots. My father started calling me Toots when I was an infant. Said Teresa was a mouthful for such a small girl.” Wistful, Toots smiled at the memory. “I was very young when my father died. He was a great man.” Not wanting to get too personal, she blinked several times in order to keep her happy tears at bay.

  “It suits you much more than Teresa.”

  They continued down the hall, stopping when they reached the bank of elevators. The doors opened, and they stepped inside. Confined in the elevator for the short ride to the third floor, they both remained silent. The air was electric, so much so that Toots had a brief flash of what it might be like to crawl beneath the sheets with the handsome doctor. Luckily, before she had time to pursue that thought further, the doors swished
open.

  By then, she knew she was in deep brown stuff.

  The buzz of activity on the third floor brought her back to the present. She clung to Bernice’s purse strap like to a lifeline. Was she biting off more than she could chew? What would Abby think if she knew her mother was in the throes of having a major case of the hots for Phil Becker? Toots answered her own question: Abby would be thrilled.

  “I hope I’m the reason for that gorgeous smile lighting up your face.”

  If he only knew. “Oh . . . well, I’m just happy Bernice is finished with her therapy. She’s convinced that something terrible is going to happen in the empty house next door. Despite all the evidence to the contrary, she believes that some sort of celestial being said she had to remain on earth to watch that house. Now she can devote all of her time to her ‘project,’ as she calls it.” Toots made air quotes with her index fingers.

  “She’s got a couple more rounds of therapy before I release her. Just make sure she doesn’t overdo things. She’s come a long way. We wouldn’t want her to have a setback.”

  Toots stopped in the middle of the hallway. “Could you tell that to her? If I say a word about her doing too much, she tells me to kiss her wrinkled old . . .” She paused. Did she really want Dr. Becker, Phil, to see this side of her? Yes, she did. What you see is what you get. Nothing phony about her. “Ass.”

  He laughed, drawing the attention of two nurses walking past. They both smiled at Toots. Was Phil a ladies’ man?

  “I’ll make sure to tell her to take it easy. I wouldn’t want to . . . Well, let’s just say I wouldn’t want to be subjected to kissing anything that’s not visible.”

  The visual made Toots giggle. “I understand. I haven’t had to view her . . . derriere, and with luck, I’ll never have to. Bernice is a good soul, though. She’s like a sister to me. I couldn’t imagine life without her. She’s been with me for almost twenty-five years. If not for Bernice, I don’t know where I’d be now.” What she wanted to tell Phil was that Bernice had been with her through eight husbands, but she figured since she had yet to go out with him on their first date, it probably wasn’t a good idea to bring that up. Maybe later, if and when she got to know him better, but for now, she’d keep her past to herself.