Fragile Hearts (Poplar Falls #4) - Amber Kelly Page 0,15

Stoney Ridge Ranch T-shirt and finished off with gray hiking sandals. Her blue eyes are dancing underneath a fan of long, dark lashes. She’s makeup-free, and yet her face is absolutely glowing.

I catch Ms. Krause’s eye as she watches me watching Bellamy.

“Well?” she asks me.

“Well?” I say.

“Dear, Bellamy asked if you were busy at the moment,” she says and nods encouragement for me to answer.

I clear my throat and speak, flustered that I was caught staring, “No, not busy. We’re done here for the day. I’m heading out to make a house call.” I avoid Ms. Krause’s curious expression and direct my response to Bellamy. “How can we help you today, Miss Wilson?”

“I was just on my way out to Rustic Peak and thought I’d drop in, so your mom could give me a quick office tutorial, if she has the time,” she says as she blinks up at me.

“Are you working here now, Bellamy?” Ms. Krause interrupts.

“I’m just going to fill in for a couple of weeks while Doc’s mom is on vacation.”

“How lovely. Oh, there is my ride. Give Winston and Beverly my regards, won’t you, dear?” she says as Bellamy holds the door open for her.

“Yes, ma’am.”

She waits until Ms. Krause is safely in the minivan that pulled up to the curb, waves good-bye, and then shuts the door, turning back to me.

“So, where do we start?”

“Mom’s in the break room. Follow me,” I say and then lead her to the small break room in the back of the clinic.

When we walk in, Mom is sitting at the table in the center of the room, watching one of her daytime soaps while stirring cream into her coffee.

“Bellamy,” she greets.

“Hi, Miss Elaine. Is this a good time to go over your procedures?”

“Oh, yes. We just finished with our last in-clinic patient of the day, so I’m free—after I find out who the John Doe who just checked into General Hospital actually is. Come sit. Would you like a cup of coffee?” Mom asks.

“No, thank you, but please enjoy yours. I can wait. Besides, I’m willing to bet money that patient is a long-lost Cassadine,” Bellamy says as she takes a seat.

Mom’s eyes go round. “You think so?” she asks, excited at the prospect.

“Um, I’ll leave you two to it, then. It was good to see you again, Bellamy,” I say before excusing myself.

“You too, Brandt,” she says on a smile.

I make it all the way back to my office before I realize I have a goofy grin on my face.

Bellamy

After Miss Elaine gives me a brief rundown of the clinic’s day-to-day operation, I head out to Rustic Peak to meet with Elle, Sonia, and Sophie. They are in cahoots to plan a surprise sixty-fifth birthday party for Doreen. Sophie doesn’t want her aunt’s big day to be lost in the chaos of her pregnancy and Elle’s engagement, and she knows Doreen will insist they don’t make a big fuss over her, so we have to run a covert operation. Which isn’t easy. The Lancaster women are all-knowing, and to surprise one of them with anything is nearly impossible.

I walk into the ranch’s office above the barn, and the summit is already in progress.

“There’s no way to have it here. We’d never be able to get her gone long enough to set up without her asking too many questions. Besides, as soon as she pulled up the driveway and saw everyone’s vehicles, she’d figure it out. I want us to actually be able to hide and jump out and yell, Surprise,” Sophie says as I take a seat on the sofa next to Sonia.

“You could have it at the church recreation hall. Lie to her and say it’s a ladies’ meeting or something. Then, she would be expecting a parking lot full of cars,” Sonia offers what sounds like a solid plan.

“We can’t dance or drink at the church, and I want to be able to do both,” Elle mumbles.

“I agree,” Sophie says. “I kind of want to do a fifties theme. You know, like Grease-esque. Poodle skirts and saddle shoes. That sort of thing.”

“Oh, I love that idea,” I agree.

“I bet Momma could make the poodle skirts,” Sonia adds.

“And Dallas’s dad has that old jukebox out on his back porch. I bet it still works if we can gather together a bunch of forty-five vinyl records,” I inform them.

“Doreen and Ria have a ton of them up in the attic. They used to listen to them all the