Danielle Steel - The Cottage

“What are you two talking about?” Mark asked as they sat down.

“Work. What else?” Alex grinned.

“So were we.” And as they chatted, what seemed like a herd of teenagers got back in the pool. Alex was glad Coop hadn't come down. It would have driven him insane. It seemed fitting that the only child he had had stayed away until she was thirty-nine years old. It was about the right age child for him. She had said as much to Taryn the day before and they both laughed. Coop was incredibly vocal about his dislike of kids.

And five minutes later, the children in the pool started a lively game of Marco Polo and Mark and Jimmy got in with them.

“He's a good man,” Taryn said of Mark. “I gather he was pretty devastated when his wife left. It's lucky for him his kids decided to come back.”

“Coop wasn't quite as thrilled,” Alex commented and they both laughed. “They're lovely kids,” Alex vouched for them.

“What's Jimmy like?” Taryn asked with interest.

“Sad. He lost his wife almost five months ago. I think it's been pretty tough.”

“Another one?” It seemed like an epidemic, but Alex shook her head.

“No. Cancer. She was thirty-two years old,” she whispered as Jimmy moved closer to them in the pool. He had just scored a point for his team, and threw Jason the ball, who scored yet another point. It was a very loud game, and they were splashing all over the place. And as she watched them, she saw Coop wave. He wanted them to come back up. He was ready for lunch. “I think the master calls.” Alex pointed him out to Taryn, and she looked up and smiled. Even at this distance, Alex could see he was proud of her. Taryn had been a lovely addition to his life, and she was glad for him.

“Are you happy with him, Alex?” Taryn asked her. She had been wondering what the relationship meant to her. She had heard a lot about her from Coop.

“Yes, I am. It's a shame he hates kids so much. Otherwise, he's everything I want.”

“You don't mind the difference in your age?”

“I thought about it at first, but it doesn't seem to matter. He's like a kid sometimes.”

“But he's not,” she said wisely. It would matter more in time. A lot more one day.

“That's what my father says.”

“He doesn't approve?” She wasn't surprised. Having Cooper as a son-in-law was not every father's dream, unless they were starstruck, which seemed unlikely, knowing who her father was.

“To put it in context, he doesn't approve of anything I do. Or not much. And he's worried about Coop.”

“That makes sense. He's led quite a life. Do you care about this girl who says she's having his baby?”

“Actually, I don't. Mostly because he doesn't care about her. And we don't even know yet if it's his.”

“And if it is?”

Alex shrugged. “He'll send her a check every month. He says he doesn't want to see the child. He's pretty angry at her.”

“I can understand that. It's a shame she's not willing to have an abortion. It would be simpler for everyone.”

“It would. But if your mother had done that, you wouldn't be here. I'm glad she didn't, especially for Coop. This means a lot to him,” Alex said kindly. She thought it was a blessing for both of them.

“It means a lot to me too. I didn't realize it would. Or maybe I did, and that's why I came. I was curious initially. But now I really like him. I don't know what kind of father he'd have been when I was young, but he's a wonderful friend now.” Alex could see too what a positive effect Taryn had on Coop. It was as though he had found a missing piece of himself, a piece he never even knew was lost, but it was.

Taryn and Alex waved to the others, and walked slowly back up to the main house. Coop was waiting for them.

“They sure are loud,” he complained. He was feeling lousy with his cold.

“They'll get out of the pool pretty soon,” Alex reassured him. “They're going in for lunch.”

“What about the three of us going to the Ivy for lunch?” Coop suggested, and both women liked the idea. They went to change and came back twenty minutes later, dressed and ready to go out.

He drove them to North Robertson in the old Rolls, and the three of them chatted and laughed on the way. They sat on the terrace, and enjoyed each other's company. It was an easy, pleasant afternoon, and as Alex looked over at Coop, they exchanged a smile, and she knew that all was well in his world, and hers.

Chapter 19

It was nearly the end of May when Alex was working a two-day shift at the hospital, and the tech at the front desk told her she had a call. She'd had a relaxing weekend with Coop immediately before that, and things were relatively peaceful at work for a change.

“Who is it?” Alex asked, as she reached for the phone. She had just come back from lunch.

“I don't know,” the girl said, “it's in-house.” Alex figured it was probably another doc.

“Dr. Madison,” she said, in her official grown-up voice.

“I'm impressed.” She didn't recognize who it was.

“Who is this?”

“It's Jimmy. I had to come in for some lab work, and I thought I'd call. Too busy to talk?”

“No, it's fine. You picked a good time. I think everyone's asleep. I shouldn't say it out loud, but we haven't had a crisis all day. Where are you?” She was happy to hear him, she had enjoyed their most recent chat. He was such a nice guy, and he'd had such rotten luck. It always troubled her. If nothing else, he needed good friends, and she was more than willing to volunteer, if he needed a shoulder from time to time. And he and Mark had become good friends.

“I'm in the main lab.” He sounded kind of lost, and she wondered what was happening with his health. Stress probably. And grief.

“Do you want to come up? I can't leave the floor, but I can offer you a cup of our undrinkable coffee, if your stomach's up to it.”

“I'd like that,” he said. It was what he'd been hoping for when he took the chance and called. He'd felt a little guilty disturbing her. She told him where to go, and he said he'd be right up.

She was watching for him when he got off the elevator, and waved to him from the desk. She was on the phone, talking to a mom who had just taken her baby home, and everything seemed fine. The baby was doing great. It had taken them five months to get her home. She was one of Alex's stars.

“So this is where you do your thing,” he said admiringly as he looked around. There was a glass wall behind the desk, where he could see a maze of equipment and incubators and lights and people milling around in scrubs and masks. Alex had one around her neck too, with her stethoscope at a jaunty angle, and the same green scrubs she'd been wearing all day. He was impressed. It was impossible not to be. She was in her element here, and a star in her own right.

“It's good to see you, Jimmy,” she said comfortably as she walked him into her tiny office, with the unmade cot she slept on. She only saw parents in the waiting room. “What kind of work were you having done, if it's not rude to ask?” She was concerned about him, particularly here, in her official guise.

“It's just routine. I have to get checked out pretty thoroughly for work every year. Chest X-ray, TB, that kind of thing. I was overdue. They kept sending me notices, and I never had time to come in. They finally told me I couldn't report for work next week unless I did. So here I am. I had to take the afternoon off to do it, because you never know how long it'll take, which is why I've been putting it off. I'll probably have to work Saturday to make up for it.”

“Sounds like me,” she said, smiling at him. She was relieved to hear that there was nothing seriously wrong with him. And she found herself looking into his dark brown eyes, and as always her heart went out to him. You could still see how much he'd been through. “What exactly do you do?” she asked with interest as she handed him a Styrofoam cup filled with the poisonous brew. He took a sip and grinned instantly.