paced back and forth, clearly undecided.
“I’ll just go upstairs and lie down. It’s about time for Cricket’s nap, anyway,” Letty said calmly, although her heart was racing. She really did feel terrible. Dizzy. Disoriented. Nauseous.
Chase wasn’t pleased about Letty’s proposal, but he nodded. “I’ll stay here in case you need me later.”
“That really isn’t necessary,” she said again.
He turned and glared at her. “Don’t argue with me. I’m not in the mood.”
That
was obvious. With some effort, although she struggled to conceal it, Letty stood and walked up the stairs. Chase followed her as though he suspected she might not make it. Letty was exhausted by the time she entered her bedroom.
“I’ll take a nap and feel totally refreshed in a couple of hours. You wait and see.”
“Right,” Chase said tersely. As soon as she was lying down, he left.
—
Letty sat across the desk from Dr. Faraday the next afternoon. He’d wanted to talk to her after the examination.
“I haven’t received your records from your physician in California yet, but I’m expecting them any day,” he said.
Letty nodded, making an effort to disguise her uneasiness. As she’d promised Chase, she’d contacted the heart specialist in Rock Springs first thing Monday morning. She’d seen Dr. Faraday the week before and he’d asked that she come in right away. His brooding look troubled her.
“Generally speaking, how are you?”
“Fine.” That was a slight exaggeration, but other than being excessively tired and the one fainting spell, she
had
felt healthy most of the time.
Dr. Faraday nodded and made a notation in her file. It was all Letty could do not to stand up and try to read what he’d written. He was a large man, his face dominated by a bushy mustache that reminded Letty of an umbrella. His eyes were piercing, and Letty doubted that much got past him.
“The results from the tests we did last week are in, and I’ve had a chance to review them. My opinion is that we shouldn’t delay surgery much longer. I’ll confer with my colleague, Dr. Frederickson, and make my report to the state. I’m going to ask that they put a rush on their approval.”
Letty nodded and watched as he lifted his prescription pad from the corner of his desk. “I want you to start taking these pills right away.”
“Okay,” Letty agreed. “How long will I be in the hospital, Doctor?” Although she tried to appear calm, Letty was frightened. She’d never felt more alone. Her sense of humor, which had helped her earlier, seemed to have deserted her.
“You should plan on being in the hospital and then the convalescent center for up to two weeks,” he replied absently, writing out a second prescription.
“Two weeks?” Letty cried. That was far longer than she’d expected.
His eyes met hers. “Is that a problem?”
“Not…exactly.” It seemed foolish now, but Letty had automatically assumed that Lonny would be able to watch Cricket for her. He’d be happy to do that, she was confident, if her hospital stay was going to be only a few days. Even with the responsibilities of the ranch, he’d have found a way to look after the five-year-old, maybe hiring a part-time babysitter. True, it would have been an inconvenience for him, but Lonny was family. Yet two weeks was too long for Letty to even consider asking him.
Lonny and Cricket were just beginning to find their footing with each other. Cricket had accepted him, and Lonny seemed to think that as kids went, his niece was all right. Letty smiled to herself—she didn’t want to do anything that would threaten their budding relationship.
A list of people who could possibly watch Cricket flashed through Letty’s mind. There were several older women from church who’d been her mother’s friends, women Letty would feel comfortable asking. Any one of them would take excellent care of her daughter. Whoever Letty found would have her hands full, though.
“I’ll just go upstairs and lie down. It’s about time for Cricket’s nap, anyway,” Letty said calmly, although her heart was racing. She really did feel terrible. Dizzy. Disoriented. Nauseous.
Chase wasn’t pleased about Letty’s proposal, but he nodded. “I’ll stay here in case you need me later.”
“That really isn’t necessary,” she said again.
He turned and glared at her. “Don’t argue with me. I’m not in the mood.”
That
was obvious. With some effort, although she struggled to conceal it, Letty stood and walked up the stairs. Chase followed her as though he suspected she might not make it. Letty was exhausted by the time she entered her bedroom.
“I’ll take a nap and feel totally refreshed in a couple of hours. You wait and see.”
“Right,” Chase said tersely. As soon as she was lying down, he left.
—
Letty sat across the desk from Dr. Faraday the next afternoon. He’d wanted to talk to her after the examination.
“I haven’t received your records from your physician in California yet, but I’m expecting them any day,” he said.
Letty nodded, making an effort to disguise her uneasiness. As she’d promised Chase, she’d contacted the heart specialist in Rock Springs first thing Monday morning. She’d seen Dr. Faraday the week before and he’d asked that she come in right away. His brooding look troubled her.
“Generally speaking, how are you?”
“Fine.” That was a slight exaggeration, but other than being excessively tired and the one fainting spell, she
had
felt healthy most of the time.
Dr. Faraday nodded and made a notation in her file. It was all Letty could do not to stand up and try to read what he’d written. He was a large man, his face dominated by a bushy mustache that reminded Letty of an umbrella. His eyes were piercing, and Letty doubted that much got past him.
“The results from the tests we did last week are in, and I’ve had a chance to review them. My opinion is that we shouldn’t delay surgery much longer. I’ll confer with my colleague, Dr. Frederickson, and make my report to the state. I’m going to ask that they put a rush on their approval.”
Letty nodded and watched as he lifted his prescription pad from the corner of his desk. “I want you to start taking these pills right away.”
“Okay,” Letty agreed. “How long will I be in the hospital, Doctor?” Although she tried to appear calm, Letty was frightened. She’d never felt more alone. Her sense of humor, which had helped her earlier, seemed to have deserted her.
“You should plan on being in the hospital and then the convalescent center for up to two weeks,” he replied absently, writing out a second prescription.
“Two weeks?” Letty cried. That was far longer than she’d expected.
His eyes met hers. “Is that a problem?”
“Not…exactly.” It seemed foolish now, but Letty had automatically assumed that Lonny would be able to watch Cricket for her. He’d be happy to do that, she was confident, if her hospital stay was going to be only a few days. Even with the responsibilities of the ranch, he’d have found a way to look after the five-year-old, maybe hiring a part-time babysitter. True, it would have been an inconvenience for him, but Lonny was family. Yet two weeks was too long for Letty to even consider asking him.
Lonny and Cricket were just beginning to find their footing with each other. Cricket had accepted him, and Lonny seemed to think that as kids went, his niece was all right. Letty smiled to herself—she didn’t want to do anything that would threaten their budding relationship.
A list of people who could possibly watch Cricket flashed through Letty’s mind. There were several older women from church who’d been her mother’s friends, women Letty would feel comfortable asking. Any one of them would take excellent care of her daughter. Whoever Letty found would have her hands full, though.
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