Nash Brothers Box Set - Carrie Aarons Page 0,34

wrap and plain old water.

Once she leaves, he looks out the window, concentrating on Main Street.

“My dad was the ultimate family and community man. Loved my mom, raised four boys with a strong but gentle hand. Attended church every Sunday. Did pro bono work for a lot of the farms around here. Started his own business and built it from the ground up. He was healthy, never complained, and had this sense about him … it was like he could see right through every answer you gave him. I swear I used to think he was psychic or something.”

“Did you always want to follow in his footsteps?” I suck some iced tea through the straw immediately after Jaime sets our drinks down.

“Yes, although he may have groomed me for it as his oldest, I have always loved animals. My dad wanted out, he’d done his time and the minute I graduated from my medical program, he had one foot out the door. His stipulations were six months of us working the practice together, and then he was gone. I mean, I’d been working in the office, and with animals, since I was twelve. It wasn’t as if I was unequipped to take it over … but I guess I didn’t realize how quickly I’d be running my own business, let alone be a solo doctor in a practice. And then, six months later, he died. Left so suddenly that I couldn’t ask him all of the questions I had about our profession. All of the questions I had about life.”

He might be a grown man, one who acts unflappable and is the picture of a jovial guy, but I can see the sad little boy grieving in there.

I squeeze his hand. “I’m so sorry, Keaton. I have no idea how hard that must have been for you, how hard it still is.”

Finally, he pulls his eyes away from the window and back to me. “That’s why I work as hard as I do. It’s why I try to stay on top of my brothers and help my mom out whenever she needs it. That’s what he would have wanted from me, the oldest son, you know?”

This upstanding, responsible man sent my world into a tizzy. How the heck was someone so noble … interested in me? I was in awe of his strength.

The conversation fizzled into surface level talk when our food was set down, plus I didn’t want to push him. Keaton had decided to open the door that I suspected he kept locked up tight even if it was only a crack. I was grateful, and if I played it right, maybe he’d feel comfortable enough to tell me exactly what went on in that gorgeous head of his.

“Don’t you need to get back to the office?” I look at the clock hanging on the wall with a cut-out to see right into the kitchen.

It’s been nearly two hours, and it’s the middle of a workday. This is so unlike the Keaton I’ve known so far.

He shrugs. “I told Dierdra to shuffle some patients around. It’s no big deal … I wanted to spend a long lunch with you. Are you trying to get rid of me?”

This makes me chuckle. “Maybe … no, I’m not. I’m kind of flattered that the upstanding Dr. Nash changed his schedule around for me.”

“Only for you. And, just to be fair, I’ve done a mental checklist of what I need to get done by the end of the day about fifteen times since we’ve been sitting here.” Keaton’s smile lights up his face.

“I’d expect nothing less.”

20

Keaton

Presley and I spend most of the week together.

We see each other for lunch, either spending it at Kip’s or with brown bags on a park bench. I teach her about the butcher shop’s deli meat, and she brings me bread that Hattie buys from the Amish market half an hour away. She tells me about her life in New York, and I listen intently, trying to gain insight into what makes this woman tick.

What I’ve learned so far? Presley is independent but seeks affirmation. She’s also one of the kindest and most open-minded people I’ve ever met. She hates mustard but likes to put pickles on any kind of sandwich and even told me that peanut butter and the sour vegetable isn’t a bad combination. Even though she doesn’t hear from them a lot, and I have a feeling there is more of a backstory to