Nursing the Soldier's Heart. Merrillee Whren

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      “He has an office in the main building near the front gate.” Cora waved one hand toward the door. “But you’d better do it soon. He’s getting married in ten days. Then he’ll be gone on his honeymoon.”

      Brady nodded. “I’ll do it tomorrow.”

      “Good, because I want out of here so I can go to Ian and Annie’s wedding. In fact, if they don’t let me out, I’ll escape.”

      “Gram, you aren’t in jail.”

      “Well, it sure seems like it.”

      “I heard that. They’ll be no escaping.”

      The familiar voice made Brady turn toward the door. He wasn’t sure what to say as Kirsten pushed a cart into the room.

      “Kirsten, have you met my grandson?” Cora saved him from having to say a thing.

      Kirsten nodded. “We met earlier when he was looking for something to eat.”

      Cora looked at Brady. “She’s the one who was calling you.”

      Brady gave Kirsten a wry smile. “Yeah, I know.”

      When Kirsten returned his smile, he almost fell out of his chair. Had the touchy nurse suddenly become friendly? There was a hint of humor behind her prickles. Maybe he had her wrong. She’d only done what his grandmother had asked.

      Kirsten brought a little cup to Cora’s bedside. “Time for your pain medication.”

      Cora frowned. “Do I need that stuff?”

      Kirsten waved a finger at Cora. “You know if you don’t take it now, you’ll be waking up in the middle of the night in pain.”

      Cora poured herself a glass of water, then took the little cup. “I hate taking these pills.”

      “Gram, you need to stay ahead of the pain. You’ll get better much sooner if you do.”

      “Listen to your grandson. He’s right.” Kirsten retrieved the empty cup after Cora took her medications. “And as for going to the wedding. If you work hard at your therapy and can walk the entire corridor with your walker, you can attend the wedding.”

      “And the reception, too.”

      Kirsten hesitated. “Why don’t we leave that decision up to the doctor and the physical therapist?”

      “But you’ll put in a good word for me, right?”

      Shaking her head, Kirsten laughed. “No promises from this corner. You have ten days to improve.”

      Cora released a heavy sigh. “That therapist is a slave driver.”

      “That’s because she’s on your side. She wants to help you get out of here, so you don’t have to plan an escape.” Kirsten looked at Brady. “I hope you’re not assisting in any way with her intention to break out of here.”

      Brady held up his hands, trying to hide a smirk. “Not me. I wouldn’t dream of it.”

      “I don’t know why that doesn’t comfort me.” Kirsten took hold of the cart. “Take care, Cora. I’m off to finish delivering these meds.”

      As Kirsten wheeled the cart into the hallway, Brady looked over at Cora. “I’ll be back in a minute. I want to ask her something.”

      “Out for a date?” Cora’s eyes twinkled.

      Brady frowned at her. “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

      “You should think about it,” Cora called after him.

      Brady stepped into the hallway, hoping Kirsten hadn’t heard his grandmother’s remark. A date. He could barely remember the last time he’d been on one. Or maybe he’d chosen not to remember because it had probably been a drunken one-night stand. He didn’t want to remember those. Since he’d discovered his newfound faith in God, he’d been too busy working on oil rigs or catching salmon to bother with dates.

      Besides, he doubted a date with Kirsten would be that great, or would it? He liked challenges. He liked adventure. He liked pretty women, even if they were a little on the hypersensitive side. What was he thinking? He’d only met the woman a half hour ago. She was likely to turn him down if he asked, but give him a few days and she would look at him through a different lens. That was the plan.

      He looked both ways down the hall but didn’t see Kirsten. She’d probably already gone into another room. He stood there for a moment, and she reappeared. “Hey, Kirsten.”

      She turned, a little frown puckering her eyebrows. “Yes?”

      He went down the hallway in her direction. “You have a minute to talk?”

      She hesitated. “Not now. If there’s something you’d like to discuss, I can do it after I finish delivering the meds. I can stop by Cora’s room after I’m done.”

      “Sure.” Brady watched her push the cart to the next room and forced himself not to think of her as just another attractive woman who’d caught his eye.

      For a few minutes he leaned against the wall in the hallway and took in the sights and sounds of the place. He tried to put himself in Cora’s shoes. Everything was clean and the nurses and assistants seemed very attentive to the patients here. But there was no denying the place had the feel and smell of a nursing home—a place from which patients often didn’t go home. Was that what was worrying his grandmother? He supposed Kirsten couldn’t really tell him anything until he got the medical power of attorney, but maybe she could at least put his mind at ease concerning Cora’s condition.

      With a heavy sigh, Brady returned to Cora’s room. Her roommate sat in the chair with her eyes fixed on the blaring TV. No wonder Cora wanted to escape. He would, too.

      “While you were out asking our pretty nurse for a date, I got ready for bed.”

      “By yourself?”

      “Do you think I’m helpless?”

      “Well, no, but I don’t want you falling down again.”

      Cora waved a hand at him. “I have to learn to get around on my own.”

      “Okay, I guess, and for the record, I wasn’t asking anyone for a date.” Brady hoped his grandmother wouldn’t embarrass him with this date business when Kirsten came to the room.

      For the next half hour, Brady answered Cora’s battery of questions about what he’d been doing since he’d gotten out of the army. He filled in the gaps between the postcards he’d sent and the infrequent phone calls he’d made to her. Her questions reminded him of his inattentiveness and made him feel more and more guilty that he’d neglected to keep in touch. “Alaska is too beautiful to describe, especially compared to Texas and North Dakota.”

      “How nice that you could travel and see so many places. That’s one thing I wished I could’ve done, but I never had the money to travel.” Cora picked up a СКАЧАТЬ