janet dailey- the healing touch by Janet Dailey Read Free Book Online Page B

denim shirt. Not exactly a fashion plate, but then, businesslike attire wouldn't have been practical for her line of work.
    Too bad she wasn't more pleasant.
    "Thank you, Dr. Barclay," he said, rising from his chair. "I appreciate what you did. May I see you out now?"
    There. That had been pretty blunt. Surely she would get the idea that he wanted her gone.
    "No, thank you," she said, standing up and collecting her things into the bag. "I can find my way out alone."
    "But I insist," he replied, following after her as she headed for the door.
    "Goodbye, Katie.'' She bent over the girl and placed a quick kiss on her forehead. "I'm sorry you got hurt, but you did a wonderful job with your swimming lesson. I'll drop by to give you another one soon."
    She nodded a goodbye to Bridget, then headed out the door. He followed at her heels.
    "Just a minute, Dr. Barclay," he called to her as she was about to climb into her pickup. "I'd like to have a word with you."
    "Well, I don't think that I want to have a word with you. Unless, of course, you're going to offer me an apology for your rudeness."
    "Not on your life! What do you mean 'apology'? You're the one who took off with my kid without asking me first. You're the one who got her hurt. And what"s this about you teaching her to swim? You've got a hell of a nerve, Doctor. But you'd just better back off when it comes to my daughter."
    "Mr. Stafford..." She drew a deep breath. "You are acting like a first-rate jerk. I haven't known you very long, so I can't tell if it's because you are a first-rate jerk, or maybe it's just a temporary lapse in your social skills due to indigestion, a painful hangnail or constipation. For Katie's sake, I'm going to assume the latter."
    She spun on her heel and climbed into the pickup. He tried to think of some great, smart-aleck retort, but he was so mad that his mind was blank.
    "I suggest," she said, "that you take a big healthy dose of castor oil and sleep with a coat hanger in your mouth. Maybe you'll wake up tomorrow morning with a load off your mind and a smile on your face."
    He sputtered. He fumed. He thought of a perfect rebuttal. Scathing, insulting, crude... almost vile. Absolutely perfect.
    But, unfortunately, by then Dr. Rebecca Barclay was five miles down the road and long out of sight.
    Chapter Four
     
    Are you mad at me, kiddo?" Michael studied his daughter's bent head as they helped themselves to the last two pieces of Double, Double, Cheese and Trouble pizza on the platter.
    He had taken Katie to her favorite eatery in an effort to cheer her up, but so far it wasn't working. She had been unnaturally quiet during the meal and had turned down an offer to play video games with him in the adjoining arcade.
    Something had to be wrong. And Michael had a sinking feeling that he knew what it was.
    "Well, are you?" he asked again when she didn't answer.
    He reached across the table and tweaked a lock of her hair.
    "No," she said, so softly he could hardly hear her.
    Her tone was anything but convincing.
    "I think you are. It's okay, Katie. We can talk about whatever is bothering you."
    She looked up at him with those beautiful blue eyes that constantly broke his heart, and he could see that she was much more than just angry; she was deeply hurt.
    "Is it about what happened this afternoon?"
    She nodded.
    "What did I do wrong?" he asked, dreading the answer. Why were the members of the male gender forever messing up with the females in their lives? If a man wasn't disappointing his mother, it was his girlfriend, sister, wife or daughter. A guy just couldn't win with a woman, no matter what age.
    "You were mean to Dr. Rebecca," she said, her lower lip quivering.
    He reached out and touched it with his fingertip. For the thousandth time he reflected on the fact that she was so soft, so sweet, and that he was so lucky to have her in his life.
    "Do you really think I was mean?" he asked.
    Again, she nodded.
    "I guess I came down on her pretty hard,