Under Alaskan Skies by Grace Carol Read Free Book Online Page B

be feeling better in a few days,” Matt said.
    “What if I don’t?” Stan asked, standing in the doorway, pulling on his dark beard.
    Matt reached into the black bag for a pad of paper. On it he wrote his name and phone number. “You can call me,” he said. “I won’t be back this way, but maybe I can help you, anyway.”
    “Thanks, Doc,” he said. “How much do I owe you?”
    “It’s on the house,” Matt said with a smile.
    Stan thanked him again, but instead of leaving, he hesitated, glancing shyly at Carrie. “I’ve got the pine boards for that bookcase I’m making for you,” he said. “You should come by and tell me how wide you want the shelves.”
    “I will. Thanks, Stan. I’d almost forgotten about it.”
    “I didn’t,” he said. “I remember the day you came by and we talked about my building it for you. You were wearing jeans and a yellow sweater. All this time I’ve been looking for just the right wood. Old growth, not too many knots…you know.”
    “I appreciate that. Matt, Stan is not just a logger, but also the best carpenter in the whole area. I’ll drop by your shop just as soon as I can.”

    Stan nodded and closed the door behind him, his medicine clutched in his hand.
    “Friend of yours?” Matt asked.
    “Everyone in town is a friend of mine,” she said.
    “Everyone as fond of you as he is?” he asked.
    “Let’s just say there aren’t many young unmarried people around, so we’ve been thrown together by people who naturally think we ought to be a couple, but…”
    “He probably wouldn’t object.”
    “He’s a sweet guy. That was very nice of you to take care of him,” Carrie said, turning off the desk light. She’d done everything she could to discourage Stan’s attentions, but it was hard to avoid him in such a small town. And hard to avoid the gossip that was better than hard currency in their little pocket of civilization.
    “How could I say no?” Matt asked. “I certainly don’t mind at all. It reminds me of a rotation I did in general practice in a rural area of northern California. We saw everything and anything. I got to know the patients and their families. I almost wished… But by then I had my sights set on plastic surgery. It’s a tradition in the family. My grandfather, my father and now me. Like you and flying. You’re taking over the family business. So am I.”
    “Did you have a choice?” she asked, sitting on the couch.
    He sat next to her and put his arm around her shoulders. It felt so right, so natural, she leaned back against his arm and sighed with contentment. How easy it would be to forget that tomorrow or the next day he’d most certainly be gone. He would leave herwith a piece of paper with his name and number on it just like he gave Stan. And he’d tell her she could call him if she needed advice, but that it wasn’t likely he’d be back this way. As if she didn’t know.
    “A choice? Of course. But my father’s health isn’t good. He’s had two heart attacks. Now more than ever he’s counting on me to take over his practice for him. Not today or tomorrow. I need more training, a long internship. But after that—” Matt cut himself off, suddenly depressed at the years ahead of sleepless nights, of being on call, endless rounds and memorizing details. Yet he was ready to be a doctor. He wanted to treat patients.
    “Plastic surgery? Isn’t that doing face-lifts and tummy tucks?” Carrie asked.
    “Some plastic surgeons do that,” he said. “I don’t find that kind of work interesting. I intend to do reconstruction, like for example, cleft palates. But enough about the future,” he said. “I don’t want to think about it now. I still have so much work ahead of me it gets to be daunting. It’s the present I’m interested in.”
    Matt sifted his hands through her hair and buried his face in her auburn curls. He wanted to bury himself in her body. He shocked himself at the strength of his feelings. He didn’t