The Doctor's Unexpected Family: (Inspirational Romance) (Port Provident: Hurricane Hope) by Kristen Ethridge Read Free Book Online Page A

hadn’t counted on and didn’t need.
    Too late now. She’d just have to trust Gloria’s skill in judging people and get a plan together to get out from under this roof as quickly as possible.
    As they walked in the door, Angela placed the bag on the kitchen counter. She followed a few paces behind Pete and watched as he transferred Celina to the guest bed. Her sweet girl didn’t even stir as the doctor laid her down with practiced skill.
    Angela breathed out and pushed the swirling threads of doubt from her mind.
    Celina. She’d done it all for Celina. Good or bad, she thought of Celina first and acted on what she knew her little girl needed.
    Just like she’d done for the past six years.
    Pete tiptoed across the doorway and closed the plain white door behind him so quietly it made only the softest of clicks. “Now, let’s get you taken care of. One more quick check of your sugar, okay?”
    Instinctively, Angela froze. No one ever took care of her.  As soon as she had this sugar mess straightened out, she could take care of her sick daughter—and herself.
    Just like always.
    Pete followed her lead and hesitated as well.  “Is something wrong, Angela?”
    Her response, again, was instinct. She shook her head and held out her finger. “No. Go ahead.”
    Pete quickly did all the prep, lanced her finger, and processed the test strip. The machine quickly went to work. His brow wrinkled a bit as he read the results.
    “Okay then, why don’t you just sit over there.” Pete pointed to an oversized chair that sat under a bank of windows. “You can put your feet up on the table. Whatever makes you comfortable.  I just want you to relax and take some of that load off your shoulders so your adrenaline can come down and we can help your body get your blood sugar stabilized.”
    Angela did as she was told, and sank into the corner of the faded blue chair. She leaned her head back just a little and realized she could see the edge of Provident Bay past the end of the street.
    “Really nice view you have here, even in the dark. I love the ripple of moonlight on the water there in the bay.” If she focused on the gentle roll of the water, maybe she could be on the way to following the doctor’s orders to lower the level of blood pounding in her veins and her head.
    “It’s the best.” Pete rummaged through a succession of cabinets in the small kitchen. “The house is about thirty-five years old. It’s not really much to look at, and the layout is a little wonky. I think the original owner built a little one-one camp house, and then other owners just added on as they wanted to. Clearly, there’s not much of a plan. Sometimes I feel like the rooms are stuck on like Legos. But the minute I realized I could be on my front porch and see across the way to the ocean or be on my back porch and watch the sun set over the bay at the end of the street, I was sold. When I bought it, I had grand plans to fix up the place, but I guess that won’t matter much now.”
    “What do you mean?” She pulled her gaze from the waving of the marshy grasses around the edge of the bay.
    Pete came into the living room. “Well, with the clinic closing, I’m hoping to get a position with Mercy Medical Mission and do some foreign medical work.”
    “So you’re looking to leave Port Provident and sell the house?”
    “Pretty much.” He nodded and held out half a banana and a canister of mixed nuts. “Your sugar dropped back since I checked you earlier today, so I want it to come up just a little bit more. The half a banana is a more simple carbohydrate to bring your levels up a little more. Once we get you where I need you to be, the nuts are some good dense protein that should help stabilize things. We don’t want you to go too high—slow and steady is the best prescription.”
    Angela put her phone on the small table beside her, reached for the banana and took a deliberate bite. Pete put the container of nuts on the table as well, and