Unexpectedly Expecting!. Susan Mallery

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ teenager just to get attention.”

      “You mistake my meaning,” she said coolly. “I’m not interested in attention. At least not from you.”

      She was aware of their interested audience. In the small storm cellar everyone heard every word. Nora wished she’d kept her mouth shut. She’d been stupid enough to stand on the steps, staring at the approaching storm. The doctor had simply dragged her inside so they wouldn’t all be killed.

      Not knowing how else to end their conversation, she turned her back on him and checked with her elderly clients. The shelter was about twenty feet square, with benches along three of the four walls. There were enough supplies to last a couple of dozen people for two days, and a portable toilet was tucked into a curtained alcove. Everyone from the Snip ’n Clip had made it into the shelter safely. Her staff circled among their clients, offering hugs and words of comfort.

      Mrs. McDirmity touched the curls of her new perm. “At least Jill had already rinsed out the solution,” she said with a slight smile that trembled at the corners. “I hope my cats are going to be safe.”

      Nora settled next to her and took her bent fingers in her own. “You know how they love to hide under beds and sofas when they get scared,” she told the older woman. “That’s the best place for them right now. Instinct will keep them safe.”

      Mrs. McDirmity nodded. “I know. I just worry. They’re all I have.”

      Nora talked to each of her customers, then chatted with several patrons from the diner. She was careful to avoid Dr. Remington. She often felt his gaze on her, but she didn’t return the attention. As she’d told him before, she wasn’t interested. Not in him or any man. She’d learned her lesson a long time ago.

      The noise outside grew worse as the storm passed overhead. Crashes and the sound of breaking glass competed with the roaring of the wind.

      In the corner, Mrs. Arnold began to wheeze. She reached for her handbag, but couldn’t catch her breath enough to open it and pull out her inhaler.

      “Asthma,” Nora told the doctor as he moved to the woman.

      Stephen Remington gave her a quick nod. “I know. She’s my patient.”

      Nora gritted her teeth. “Well, excuse me for trying to help,” she muttered under her breath, and hoped the storm would be over soon. If she had to spend much more time trapped with that horrible man, fur was going to fly.

      

      Nearly twenty minutes later, they emerged from the cellar. Nora was one of the last to step out into the murky darkness that was just beginning to clear. The main street had been spared, so her shop was still standing. But two side streets looked as if they’d been crushed by a giant. Debris lay scattered everywhere, and there was a bright red pickup truck parked on the sidewalk by the hardware store. A bright red pickup truck that hadn’t been there before the storm.

      The first light drops of rain fell, making her jog toward her shop. The storm was moving northeast, which meant the ranch had already been hit. She wanted to call and see if everything was all right with her family.

      She caught up with a couple of her clients as everyone hurried to cover. She offered assistance in the way of a sturdy arm. As she and the last stragglers entered the salon, Jill put down the phone.

      “It’s dead,” her stylist said. “No real surprise there. We don’t have electricity, either.”

      Nora grinned. “I can fix one of those problems, if not the other.” She walked over to her purse and pulled out her cell phone. “Welcome to the new century. If the cell towers survived we should have service this way.”

      She turned on the small phone, then handed it to Jill. “You’ve got kids. Check on them first. I’m sure they’re fine, though. Judging from the direction the storm is heading, I’ll bet it missed your place by several miles.”

      Her stylist gave her a grateful smile, then began pushing numbers. Nora saw that Mary and Kathy had already helped their clients collect purses and coats. Everyone was instructed to stay home until power was restored, then return to get the rest of their hair treatment.

      Mrs. Arnold, her asthma under control and her hair still tightly rolled in curlers, slipped a scarf over her head. “This will probably dry on its own,” she said cheerfully. “I’ll come back when it does and you can comb it out.”

      “Absolutely,” Nora promised. She was about to say something else when she noticed Rosie running toward the medical office across the street.

      Nora stepped outside. “Are there injuries?” she yelled.

      Rosie paused to catch her breath. “About a dozen or more. Orchard Park is completely gone. There were young kids at home with their moms, plus the construction workers at the new places. Dr. Remington is assessing the injuries now, and we’re going to call in a helicopter for the worst ones. I need to bring supplies.”

      Orchard Park was a new residential subdivision in Lone Star Canyon. It was only about half-completed with dozens of houses in various stages of construction. The homes were smaller and less expensive—perfect starter places, which meant plenty of families with young children.

      “Do you need another pair of hands?” Nora asked. “Everyone here is fine. I don’t know first aid but I can follow directions.”

      Rosie gave her a grateful smile. “Absolutely. Come help me carry stuff back, then we’ll put you to work.”

      Nora quickly made arrangements for the salon. Jill was going home to check on her kids. Mary would walk a couple of their clients home while Kathy stayed at the salon. That taken care of, Nora hurried toward the medical offices and prayed that the injuries were minor. For herself she also prayed that she didn’t have to see too much blood. She could verbally take down any man anywhere, but the sight of blood sent her to her knees.

      

      The helicopter lifted off with a rush of wind that reminded Stephen of the tornado. When the pilot had turned west, toward the county hospital, Stephen shifted mental gears, releasing that patient to the care of the Medi-Vac team and focusing on the few people he had left to treat. Nurse Rosie, efficient as always, had helped him evaluate injuries. She’d collected supplies, found family members and had generally acted like the professional he knew her to be. What was surprising was her assistant.

      When Rosie had run back to the office for more supplies, she’d returned with an armful of necessities and Nora Darby. The beautiful twenty-something brunette didn’t know squat about being a nurse, but she pitched in wherever Rosie said, applying pressure, irrigating cuts, holding hands, offering words of comfort. She’d gone pale a few times, but otherwise had been a trouper. She might have a dangerous mouth on her, but she also had plenty of backbone and compassion.

      He walked to the makeshift first aid station he and Rosie had set up in the parking lot of Kroger’s market. The long awning provided cover from the rain that continued to fall. Stephen checked stitches in the index finger of a sobbing four-year-old, then removed glass from a young man’s eye.

      “You’ll need to come back in the morning,” he told the carpenter. “I’ll take off the patch and we’ll do a quick vision test. But from what I can see, you’re going to be just fine.”

      “Thanks, Doc.”

      The СКАЧАТЬ