Free Found: A Mother for His Son by Dianne Drake Page B

Jenna’s eyes, because what she thought of him mattered.
    Well, so much for that! And so much for the pleasant few moments they’d just spent.
    Without saying another word, Dermott spun around and marched into his office, his footsteps thudding heavily against the wooden ground. When he got there, he slammed the door so hard it knocked his medical diploma off the wall. He looked at it lying on the floor for a moment before he bent to pick it up, studying the writing on it, thinking about all it stood for. Dermott Maxwell Callahan, Doctor of Medicine. Graduated with honors, top of his class.
    He was a doctor, sworn to serve, to help, to heal. And he was a miserable failure right here in his office, where all that mattered most. Damn, where had he gone so wrong?
    The fit of anger and frustration in him boiled over so hard that after he picked it up Dermott threw the diploma at the wall, shattering its glass as it hit, and knocking over a pottery lamp on its way to the floor. That too fell, and broke.
    “Dermott?” Jenna called from outside in the hall. “Are you OK?”
    He didn’t answer. Should have, but he wasn’t OK. Nothing was OK.
    “Dermott. Just say something, will you?”
    Damn, he hated himself.
    “Dermott, please…”
    “I don’t talk about her,” he finally yelled. “OK? I just don’t talk about her.” Balling his fists, he wanted to punch the wall, but he didn’t. That would only injure his hand, then Jenna would have to fix him up which would lead to…more talk. But he was talked out on the subject. Emotionally drained. Tired. So, rather than doing something stupid, he slipped into his chair and turned to look out the window at the road, wondering, once again, what it would be like to take it. Just pack up his son and go somewhere where no one knew him.

CHAPTER FOUR
    “I T’S a lovely blue!” Jenna exclaimed, as Frank adjusted the bed rails. “How did you know that blue was my favorite color?”
    Max beamed. “I guessed. But I almost thought it was purple.”
    “Well, since purple is my second favorite color, I would have loved having a purple bed, too.”
    “And I’d have had a purple barn,” Frank said, laughing. He scooted the bedframe back into the corner of the room then stood back to appraise his handiwork. “Well, that should do it. I’ll have Dermott help me carry the mattress up and you’ll have a proper bed tonight instead of that old rollaway you’ve been using.”
    “I haven’t seen him yet today,” Jenna said. She hadn’t seen him last night, either. In fact, it had been a long, lonely night all by herself. She’d gone back to the diner for dinner, taken a walk then retired to…well, nothing. To be honest, she wasn’t used to such a lack of activity or stimulation, and that nursing journal she’d buried herself in, while informative, wasn’t stimulating. “He hasn’t come into the office.” And hadn’t told her why, but she had an idea it had something to do with the residual effects of last night. She’d hit a very raw nerve, and she did feel bad about that because Dermott seemed to be juggling so many things, including a fair share of guilt. She really didn’t want to make it worse for him.
    “He’s having a rough time of it now,” Frank said, then immediately glanced at Max, who’d climbed into the middle of the empty bedframe and was getting ready to roll one of his toy cars from one end to the other. Bending to pick up his tools, Frank huffed out an impatient sigh, but didn’t finish what he was saying.
    “We used to be friends,” she said, not sure why she felt compelled to. “Years ago.”
    “He mentioned that. Said you were a competent nurse, which is why he wanted you here.” He stood up and gave her a long, thoughtful appraisal. “Dermott’s life is his own business, Miss Lawson. I don’t interfere, I don’t express opinions. But let me tell you this much. He’s a good man. Most people wouldn’t let us have the involvement Dermott