“We heard about what happened to your house. We were worried,” Beatrice confessed contritely. “We haven’t seen you around town, and you didn’t play for senior bingo. You’re always there.” Beatrice sounded genuinely concerned, her eyes wide and troubled.
Sarah’s heart melted. These two might be trouble, but their concern touched her. Not even Elsie could fake the alarm Sarah could see in her sharp eyes. “I’m fine. I’ve just been busy taking care of things for the house. I’m staying with a friend.” She couldn’t tell them the truth. It was best if nobody else learned about her stalker and started talking.
“I don’t understand why someone would do something like that. Amesport is usually a safe town,” Elsie commented, her tone almost frightened.
Sarah put her arm around the elderly woman. “It is safe here, Elsie. Nothing else has happened. It was probably just a drunk tourist.” The last thing Sarah wanted was for either of these women to be afraid. They both lived alone, and she didn’t want them to be scared in their own homes. The attacker was after her and her alone.
“I’m not worried,” Beatrice said ferociously. “If I knew who did it, I’d knee him in the balls for what he did to you, just like they taught us at that self-defense class at the center.”
“Beatrice, the correct term is ‘testicles,’” Elsie corrected her friend. “Sarah’s a sweet girl. Let’s not be crude.”
It had been a while since Sarah had been called a girl, and she found it amusing that Elsie actually thought using the term “balls” was vulgar. She’d worked in a big-city hospital with a lot of gang-related incidents. There probably weren’t any really crude words that she hadn’t heard at least hundreds of times. “I appreciate that you were both concerned, but you can see that I’m fine. Next time, don’t make up a story to see me. Just stop in.” Sarah opened the exam room door, and the two women rose to leave.
“I heard you weren’t doctoring that Dante Sinclair anymore. Too bad. He’s one hot tamale,” Beatrice informed Sarah as she walked out the door. “You could have burned up the sheets with him.”
“After they get married, Beatrice,” Elsie said adamantly.
“Really, Elsie, you need to become a modern woman. Nobody waits until they’re married anymore,” Beatrice muttered informatively.
Sarah watched the interplay between the two women and almost burst into laughter.
“I thought he was the one,” Beatrice remarked, disgruntled, as she stepped into the hallway. “I was so certain. But there’s always that nice Jared Sinclair. He always stops and chats with us when we see him. I really like that boy.”
That surprised Sarah, and she wondered if Jared just couldn’t manage to get away from them when he saw them and didn’t want to be impolite. She was really wondering how he’d react to being called a boy. “I’m—”
“She’s already with me,” Dante’s low voice sounded from the doorway of the exam room across the hall. “I had to stop seeing her as a doctor.”
Sarah gawked at Dante as he joined them in the hallway and proceeded to charm the two elderly women.
“So you understand that I couldn’t see her anymore as a doctor because we’re together,” Dante told the two women, grinning charismatically at both of them.
“I knew I was right,” Beatrice chattered. “I knew you two would end up together. I told Sarah that before you even got here.”
“Did you?” Dante turned his head and raised an eyebrow at Sarah.
Sarah knew her face was flushed, and she wasn’t sure if she was flustered or angry. She’d asked Dante to stay hidden in the exam room across the hall so he didn’t make the patients uncomfortable. That had become their daily routine. She saw her patients while Dante sat across the hall with a gun and his computer to kill time.
Most of Dante’s superficial wounds were nearly healed, but his ribs had to still be tender—not that he ever complained. She might not be his physician, but at least he was in a doctor’s office in case he had any problems.
Sarah sighed as she watched Dante charm his way into the two venerable women’s hearts. She could tell by the way Beatrice and Elsie were looking at Dante that he was finagling his way into their good graces. She knew he wasn’t doing it intentionally. Not really. He was just being the Dante who was used to working in public service, and he actually chatted with them naturally and appeared to be genuinely interested in Elsie’s work at the paper and Beatrice’s self-proclaimed talent of matchmaking.
Another reason to like him! He spoils my dog and is nice to old ladies.
“Are you the friend that Sarah’s staying with?” Elsie asked stealthily, obviously hoping to get even more of a scoop.
Sarah wanted to laugh at the pseudo-affronted look on Dante’s face. “Of course not,” he answered, trying to sound insulted. “That would be highly inappropriate, and I respect Sarah,” he said emphatically.