Unlocking the Surgeon's Heart. Jessica Matthews

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СКАЧАТЬ to send her as my assistant.”

      Theirs had been an office romance and after Derek had arrived, Gail had cut her work status to part time.

      “And the kids?” Christy thought of six-year-old Emma and eight-year-old Derek, who’d already been excused from the table to play outside with their friends. “What about them?”

      Gail’s expression turned hopeful. “That’s why you’re both here tonight. We wanted to ask a favor.”

      “Anything,” she promptly replied.

      “Would you and Linc be their guardians and take care of them while we’re gone?”

      CHAPTER TWO

      CHRISTY was overwhelmed by their request but in her mind she didn’t have any doubts as to her answer. She loved the Maguire children and she couldn’t wait to step into a temporary mom role. Because of her diagnosis and the resultant treatment, she’d already resigned herself to the possibility that Ria might be the closest thing to ever having a child of her own, so the idea of acting as a fill-in mother was exciting.

      She was also quite aware that Gail had chosen her out of all their friends and family to take on this responsibility. Okay, so they’d asked Linc, too, but he didn’t really count. His work was his life and by his own admission his schedule for the next few weeks was packed. For all intents and purposes, she’d be on her own.

      It was a heady thought.

      It was also quite daunting.

      She started to speak, but Gail forestalled her. “Christy, I know you’ll immediately agree because it’s in your nature to help out a friend. And, Linc, I know you’ll accept because you’re family, but before either of you commit yourselves, I want you to know exactly what you’d be letting yourselves in for. And if either of you have second thoughts, we won’t be hurt or upset.”

      “Okay,” Christy said, certain she wouldn’t change her mind no matter what Gail and Ty told them. “We’re listening.”

      “First, we’d expect you to live here because it will be best if Derek and Emma stick with the familiar.”

      Christy hadn’t considered that, but Gail’s plan made perfect sense. Living in their home wouldn’t pose any hardship whatsoever. What it would require, though, was coordination between her schedule and Linc’s to be sure they covered every hour of every day, and she was curious how Gail had ironed that small but important detail. No doubt, she’d learn the answer shortly.

      “What about Ria?” she asked. “I’d hate to board her for that length of time.”

      “She’s welcome, too,” Ty answered. “In fact, I know the kids would be thrilled. They’ve been asking for a dog for some time, and looking after Ria will give them a taste of what pet ownership is about.”

      Satisfied by how easily that potential problem had been averted, Christy relaxed. She imagined her Labrador and the kids playing Frisbee in the large Maguire back yard and could hear the children’s laughter interspersed with Ria’s excited woofs. They’d have a great time.

      “Second,” Gail continued, “the fall term starts next week so the kids will already be in a routine before we leave the week after that. On the days Christy doesn’t work, you’ll have to take them to school and pick them up at four, which shouldn’t pose a problem.

      “The days you both work are little trickier as there’s a two-hour window when Linc would be on his own. One of the neighborhood high-school girls—Heather— can come by around six-thirty to fix breakfast and take them to school. She’ll come sooner to cover that window if Linc’s on call, but you’ll have to let her know the night before.

      “Then, at the end of the day, the kids can walk across the street to the church’s after-school daycare until Christy’s shift ends at five. The daycare is open until seven, so that works out well.” She smiled. “Repeat as necessary.”

      “It sounds as if you’ve thought of everything,” Christy said.

      “We tried,” Gail answered.

      “Do Emma and Derek know you’re asking me?” As Linc stiffened beside her, she corrected herself. “I mean us?”

      “It was the only way they’d agree to being left behind,” Gail admitted ruefully. “I suspect they think you’ll cater to their every whim. I know what a pushover you are, Christy …” she softened her statement with a smile “… so I’m counting on you to be firm.”

      “Be firm,” she repeated. “Got it.”

      “Don’t kid yourself,” Ty warned. “They’ll push you to the max. You can’t be the benevolent aunt and uncle. This isn’t a weekend vacation.”

      “In other words, you expect us to give them a healthy breakfast, send them to bed on time, and eat dinner before dessert,” Linc said.

      His sidelong glance made Christy wonder if he’d mentioned those things purely for her benefit. Didn’t he think she had an ounce of common sense? He obviously suspected she’d offer cookies and cake for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and let them stay up as late as they pleased. While she didn’t consider herself a rule-breaker, she also knew that every moment should be lived to its fullest. If a few rules had to be broken on occasion, then so be it.

      Now that she’d raised the question in her mind, she took it a step further. Did he have the same lack of faith in her nursing skills as he obviously did in her parenting abilities? There hadn’t been a single incident when he’d questioned her patient care, but she’d ask him when they were alone.

      “We’re asking a lot from both of you,” Ty added, “but you were first on our list.”

      “I appreciate the vote of confidence,” Christy said. “Count me in.”

      “Me, too,” Linc added. “We only need to choose which days are yours and which are mine.”

      She nodded, although she would have preferred having Linc suggest that she be their sole caretaker while he filled in when his schedule allowed. Clearly, he wanted equal, or as near equal, time as possible.

      Darn the man!

      “Actually, we want you both to stay here,” Gail said. “Together.”

      Christy met Linc’s startled gaze and guessed that her own surprise mirrored his. “At the same time?” she asked redundantly.

      Gail nodded. “That way, if Linc gets called out for a patient in the middle of the night, he won’t have to worry about the kids because you’re just down the hall. You two won’t have to rearrange and juggle your own schedules, so it’ll be less disruptive for everyone.”

      They wanted her to stay here, in their house, with Linc? Christy had a difficult time wrapping her brain around that concept. While they were amicable enough to each other at the hospital, being together twenty-four seven meant they’d drive each other crazy within a week, and then where would the kids be? Most likely in the middle of a war zone.

      What concerned her even more, though, was the simple question of how would she handle being СКАЧАТЬ