“Did he mention any family?” asked Patrick as he got sandwich fixings out of the fridge.
“No. Said he had no ‘next of kin’ when I asked what I should do if he passed away. Asked to be cremated and left me the money for it. Gave me money for his keep too, but I don’t care about that. This place generates more than enough cash for me and Buster,” said Sam.
Patrick smiled. “Do you have any peanut butter cookies? Ginny asked for some,” he said.
“Sure do. Buster would howl if’n I didn’t keep plenty to hand,” Sam said. She reached into a cupboard and pulled out a container full of cookies. She put twelve on a plate and gave it to Patrick. “Four of those are for Buster. Word a warning, don’t get between him and his cookies,” she said with a wink.
“Never. Thanks Sam,” said Patrick. He headed up to the suite with the food and drinks on a large tray.
Ginny had dozed back off. The sound of the tray scuffing on the table woke her up. Buster was still sleeping on the foot of the bed. The bed canted from his weight.
“How long have you been gone?” she asked.
“About twenty minutes. Chatted a bit with Sam while I made the sandwiches. She said Buster here came from Montana and said he had no kin. Makes you wonder just how old he is,” said Patrick.
Ginny nodded as she took her plate from Patrick. She half expected Buster to wake up as the food scents wafted by, but he didn’t. She watched Patrick set four cookies on the table. “Are those for Buster?” she asked.
“Yes. Sam loves the old wolf, even though she’d never say it outright,” said Patrick. He took a big bite of his sandwich. The two of them sat in silence while they ate. Patrick took Ginny’s plate and placed it on the table with his own.
“I’ll take this downstairs and be back in a few minutes,” he said.
“Okay. I’ll be here,” said Ginny.
*
Patrick was just heading upstairs when Doc Rogers walked in. He waved and waited for the doctor.
“How’s my patient?” Doc asked.
“She’s doing well. We just ate,” said Patrick as they walked up the stairs. “We have company too.”
“Oh? Family?” asked Doc.
“Not exactly. Buster came up to watch Ginny so I could get our dinner,” said Patrick with a smile. They walked into the bedroom as Buster finished the last cookie and licked the table for crumbs.
“I see,” said Doc Rogers. “How ya doin’ Buster?” Doc said to the old wolf.
The wolf ignored Doc. He gave Ginny a glance and then walked slowly out of the room.
“Well, I guess I know how I rate,” said Doc. Patrick laughed and Ginny giggled.
Doc sat his bag down on the edge of the bed. “How are you feeling?” he asked Ginny as he started to check her over.
“Tired, stiff from being in bed all morning and my head and nose still feel like I got hit with a sledge hammer,” said Ginny.
“How’s the ankle?” asked Doc.
“It throbs, but I haven’t been out of bed, so I’m not sure how it’s working,” she said.
“Well, let’s give it a try,” suggested Doc. He held out his hand to Ginny. She scooted to the edge of the bed and stood up on her good foot. Patrick came up on the other side of Ginny and stood by as she put weight on her foot.
“Ow!” said Ginny and immediately took all the weight off the foot. “Nope, that isn’t ready for a romp around the room.”
“Didn’t think it would be. I’ve got some crutches in the car. I’ll be right back,” said Doc. He left the room.
“Patrick, would you carry me to the bathroom?” asked Ginny.
“Of course,” he said as he picked her up.
*
Patrick had just put Ginny down when Doc came back. Crutches under his arm and a brace of some sort in his hand.
“I figured you might need this too,” he explained. “Only for when you are up and about.”
“Okay,” said Ginny. She held still as Doc Rogers fitted it to her foot. Once he got it to where he thought it should be, he handed Ginny the crutches.
Ginny took them and then did a turn about the room. Clumsy, and awkward at first, she got the hang of it quickly.
“Haven’t been on crutches in years,” she said. “Sort of like riding a bike. Once you learn, you never forget.”
Doc laughed. “I brought you more aspirin and some cream for the scratches on your face,” he said. He put them on the table.
“Thanks Doc. What do we owe you” asked Patrick.
“Sam’s got your address. I’ll send you a bill when I get ’round to it,” said Doc. “Usually do my billing at the end of the month.”
“Okay Doc. Thanks,” said Ginny.
Doc nodded, packed up his bag and left.
Patrick sat down next to Ginny. “So, what do you want to do for the rest of the day?” he asked.
“Curl up and watch a movie, or take a nap,” said Ginny.
“What? No wild screaming sex?” teased Patrick.
“No, I’ll save that for tomorrow,” she said as she hit him with a pillow.
*
Luc closed the office early. Between him and Kevin, they’d gotten everything done by 2pm. Meg had stayed home today as the morning sickness had turned into afternoon sickness and was threatening to become all day sickness. Jeff had been by to check on her and said it was normal. Luc still wanted to get home and hold Meg in his arms. He stopped by the flower shop and got a bouquet of roses, daisies and baby’s breath.
When he went into the house half an hour later, there was no one in the living room. He didn’t hear anything, so he walked quietly to the bedroom and peeked in. Meg was curled up asleep on the bed. Her book had fallen to one side. Luc backed out quietly and went to find a vase for the flowers. He put the flowers in the vase and placed them on the dining room table. Then he headed for the bathroom to shower.