Their Divine Doctor(Divine Creek Ranch 9)(54)
Emma pointed at one of two separate groups of flower arrangements. “All of those I plan to donate to other patient rooms. I have all the cards from them. I’m only taking home your arrangement of roses and the lilies Dad sent me.”
Her parents and sister had come immediately from Dallas when Duke had called them. Emma remembered waking up groggy in the hospital and feeling so relieved to see the people she cared for most in the world all gathered around her bed. She’d previously confided in her sister, Desiree, about Gage and Duke. Desiree’s reaction to finally meeting them had been entertaining to say the least. Emma’s mother and father had been a little more reserved in their opinions of the situation but not any less loving toward her because of her men.
On the last day of their stay, her father had spoken privately with her and told her that he didn’t understand how Duke and Gage could share and not get into a competition for her attention. She had done her best to reassure him.
The day after they’d returned home, her dad had sent her a gorgeous arrangement of lilies. The card had stated that her happiness mattered more than anything else and he had been able to tell that Duke and Gage felt the same way.
Gage carefully lifted the two arrangements from the shelf. “I’ll be right back.”
Once he was gone, Emma turned to Duke. “How is he doing?”
Duke sat beside her on the bed and lifted her hand into his. As he stroked her fingers one at a time, he said, “The nightmares are not happening every night anymore but he’s still having trouble sleeping. I hear him up and moving around sometimes at night. He blames himself for you being hurt.”
Emma shook her head at that thought. Gage had no control over what one obsessed woman had planned to do. “And you?”
“Bad dreams here and there. It’s just going to take time for those memories to fade,” he said, looking at his hands as if he could still see her blood on them. “How about you? You seem to have bounced back with hardly any trouble at all, and you were the one who got shot and nearly died.”
Emma knew they probably both thought that. “I process trauma a little differently than most people. I suppose it’s because of the training I’ve received as a doctor. My residency was at one of the busiest hospitals in the Dallas area. Dealing with gunshot wounds and other intentionally inflicted injuries were a daily, sometimes hourly occurrence. So was dealing with mentally unstable patients. I’ve dealt with people like Amy Patterson before.
“I gained great experience working in that environment but it also trained some of the normal stress-like reactions out of me. Those traumas were a fact of life for me. I dealt with them and moved on. My reaction to what happened may make me seem sort of callous, but I’m not hung up with questioning why this all happened, so it’s a little easier for me to move on than it would be for someone not used to dealing with trauma on a daily basis. Don’t get me wrong, it was terrifying being on the receiving end of her plan to do away with me and have Gage, but I know there’s no point in trying to reason through why it happened. I’m mostly just grateful I’m still alive.”
She recalled Amy Patterson’s furious, ice-cold eyes staring at her as she pulled the trigger. Emma pushed the memory away. “I’m ready to be out of here and back home, and anxious to get back to work.”
“Not too fast, Tiger,” Duke commented as he helped her from the hospital bed. “When we get home, we’re just going to put you right back into bed so don’t get any ideas.”
“Bed. I’ve had enough of bed. I’ve got a bucket list to work on.”
* * * *
Thanksgiving Day, the Rivers home in San Angelo, Texas…
Duke couldn’t help the undoubtedly sappy smile on his face when Emma crowed proudly as she removed the sweet potato pie from the oven. “See? There is one thing I can cook!”
Dressed in her clingy russet-colored sweater and snug, shin-length black skirt, Emma was flushed and beautiful and more precious to Duke each day. She had progressed well in her recovery, balking at times when they’d made her rest.
He sat on one of the barstools pretending to watch the football game when most of his time was actually spent watching her. They’d come so close to losing her, and at times he found himself wondering what his life would’ve been like if she were no longer in it. The thought always brought a painful burning to his chest.
The turkey sat in its roasting pan on the stove, waiting to be sliced. The scent of baked sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, and freshly baked rolls filled the air, reminiscent of all the past Thanksgivings they’d enjoyed in this house he’d grown up in.