Raising his hand to drag it through his hair, he realized once again that he was filthy. The clothes, damp and dirty, were uncomfortable. If he left now, he could go home, clean up, and get into some fresh clothes.
Looking at Lauren once more, and knew he couldn’t leave her alone.Not now.
You don’t have to stay here. The midwife is here, along with the pastor and his sister.
When his eyes touched on her figure, he knew he would stay, no matter how uncomfortable he was. “I’m an animal doctor.”
Lauren turned back around. “Are you? I’d no idea.”
Now that he’d said it aloud, he felt silly. Why would she care about that when she’d just gone through a harrowing experience? He waited for her to ridicule him. Everyone did at some point. When she did nothing more than look expectantly at him, he swallowed and pushed on. “I say that because I work at making animals feel better. They talk to me sometimes.”
Her lips lifted into a half smile. “Do they?”
“Yes. They tell me many things. And I keep their secrets for them.”
A look of comprehension entered her face. “I see what you mean.”
Christopher could tell that she caught his meaning. He was glad she didn’t laugh when he said animals could talk to him. “If you ever want to talk, I’m right here.”
Now her mouth lifted in a full smile. His breath caught. The woman was truly a beauty. He couldn’t tell earlier when she was in turmoil.
“Thank you, Dr. Spaulding.”
Clearing his throat and tugging on the collar of his shirt, he said, “I’ll wait outside until you’re ready to go.”
Hastily, he went toward the door and opened it.
“There’s no need for that.”
He left the room, closing the door without answering her.
Outside the room, he saw Heather talking quietly to Pastor Collins’s sister. When she saw him come out of the room, she excused herself.
“Dr. Spaulding, I want you to tell me something. Is there anything about what happened at the river that I need to know?”
Shaking his head, he answered, “Everything that was said is what happened.”
Heather gave him a shrewd look. “I find it interesting that Lauren was with Esther at the riverbank for no reason. She would not be visiting anyone. She was just at the riverbank with her daughter. Can you understand why I would feel suspicious about such a detail?”
Christopher thought back to the vulnerability he saw on Lauren’s face. It was that sadness that evoked something inside of himself. When she stood on the riverbank ready to throw herself in, he knew he could not allow that to happen. He would have done the same for anyone he saw in that predicament. What he didn’t understand was his own protective instincts coming forward.
It had been some time since he cared about his fellow man. Or in this case, fellow woman. His life had been spent working with the animals who were more forgiving and loving than people. Even when Millie had rejected him as a husband, he hadn’t cared too much about that.
But he cared about that vulnerable woman in the room. He wanted to know why she thought that was the answer. She was too lovely to throw herself away.
He pulled out of his musings to see Heather was waiting for his answer. From the knowing look in her eye, he gathered she perceived he was holding something back.
And he was.
Lauren Hale was mysterious, and the secret he carried seemed to connect them. Which made no lick of sense as they had just met today. Still, he stuck by his word. If Lauren wanted anyone to know about what she almost did down at the river, then it was up to her to tell them. He knew Heather wouldn’t be satisfied until she had an answer. He didn’t want to lie, so he told her the truth.
“She mentioned she was going to see you. Perhaps the walk by the river was more scenic.” Heather tilted her head as if weighing his words. Christopher cleared his throat. “How’s the child?” he asked.
“She’s doing well. Sleeping now after all the excitement.”
Going on to where the child was lying, he studied the babe’s face. She slept peacefully, her tiny fist resting against her cheek.
Straightening up, he said, “Miss Heather, I’m going to wait here until Mrs. Hale wakes up from her nap.”
