Have Bouquet, Need Boyfriend

“You could talk her up to Thomas.”

Hannah laughed. “I suppose I could.”

“We need to figure out a way to get them together.”

Hannah finished scribbling on Maggie’s chart and closed it. “What are you scheming, Mimi?”

“Nothing much.” Mimi grinned and surveyed the exam room. “Didn’t you say you planned to hire someone to remodel the exam rooms?”

Hannah nodded.

“Well, I have an idea.” Mimi wiggled her finger. “Let’s go find Doc Emerson.”

Hannah gave her a suspicious look. “I don’t think we should interfere.”

“Nonsense. Rebecca needs us.” Mimi winked. “Just follow my lead, and wedding bells will be ringing for our cousin in no time.”

“MY HUSBAND LEFT ME,” Dorothy Parker wailed. “And I don’t know what to do, Doc.”

Thomas placed a comforting hand on Dorothy’s back and slowly stroked, trying to calm her. She’d been crying for close to a half hour, which had sent her six-week-old infant into a fit, which had upset Dorothy even more. The two hysterical females had turned his routine follow-up exam into such a stressful ordeal he’d developed a raging headache.

At least now the high-strung woman was dressed and in his office.

Dorothy cradled the baby and leaned against him. “Harold left me for a waitress over at Crooked Neck Holler. Can you believe that? Just because I have a little baby fat left around my midriff.”

Thomas refrained from commenting. “It takes time to lose weight after giving birth,” he said softly.

“That’s what I told him,” Dorothy said, sniffing loudly. “But he said I’m not attractive anymore. Do you think he’s right?”

A loaded question from a woman. Thomas pressed a finger to his temple. “New mothers are always beautiful, Dorothy, but stressed. I’m sure Harold will realize his mistake and come home soon. He’ll be begging you to take him back.”

Her eyebrows lifted. “Maybe I won’t take him back this time.”

He stifled a comment; she and her husband split at least once a month. Harold had almost missed the delivery, because they’d had a whopping fight and he’d taken off to Ted’s Tavern and gotten drunk. Cabs took a while to get from Atlanta to Sugar Hill.

“Maybe I’ll just find someone else.” Her tears dried, her eyes glinting with what he knew could be trouble. He moved aside to escape her clutches when a knock sounded at the door. Thankfully Hannah poked her head in and he slid from Dorothy’s desperate grip.

“I…I was just leaving, Dr. Hartwell.” Dorothy pulled herself together as Hannah and Mimi appeared in the doorway.

“Take care of that little one. I’ll see you next year.” At least, he hoped she wouldn’t be back before her yearly exam. By then he would be gone.

Hannah raised a curious eyebrow, and Mimi giggled. “Got your hands full?” Hannah asked.

“You could say that. Did someone spray pheromones in the air?”

Mimi laughed. “Now, there’s a thought.”

“Do you have a minute?” Hannah asked.

He nodded, although he’d planned to spend the next few minutes racking his brain on some way to approach Rebecca about her father.

“When I moved into the practice,” Hannah said, “I didn’t have time to finish all the renovations. The exam rooms really need painting.”

“I can’t argue with you there.”

“Mimi and I were talking, and she had a wonderful idea.”

He glanced at Mimi and the sleeping baby in her arms and smiled. Motherhood hadn’t tamed the feisty redhead at all. In fact, she still wore gutsy clothes and kept the town talking, but Mimi was impossible not to like. “I’m all ears.”

“I think you should have some pretty murals painted on the walls. Something calming to help patients relax.”

He nodded. “You know someone who does that kind of work?”

“Yes, I do. She painted the sweetest mural of dancing teddy bears on the playroom wall for Maggie Rose.”

“She would be perfect,” Hannah said.

“All right, you sold me. I hope she’s local.”

“As a matter of fact she is,” Mimi said excitedly. “It’s our cousin Rebecca.”

Thomas coughed. “Rebecca’s an artist?”