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Lachlan stood there with his hands tucked in his jean pockets, thumbs out, and gave me a teasing wink.
My mom turned her attention back to Lachlan. “I didn’t know Laurel had made friends already. It’s so unlike her. You should have seen her in high school. I think she was allergic to friendship.”
Lachlan got an argumentative look on his face. He opened his mouth to answer just as I opened my mouth to prevent him from saying whatever embarrassing thing he was about to conjure, but Calla beat us both to it.
“Mom, look at this!” Calla ran back into the living room, and I caught her by the arms, barely dodging an attack from the fluffiest monstrosity of a pink creature I’d ever seen. It immediately started to dance and make mind-numbing sounds. “It’s a purse pet!”
“Gee,” I laughed nervously. “Look at that.”
Lachlan snorted.
“I couldn’t say no,” Mom said with a sniff. “Laurel, half her toys are broken, you know.”
I gave my mom a withering glare. “I mean, she’s five. That tends to happen.”
Calla bounced on the sofa next to me. “Do I have to go home?”
“Well, yeah. Grandma said you’re sick, and I brought a friend to help,” I said, gesturing to Lachlan.
Calla gave him a curious head tilt.
“Hey Calla,” Lachlan said, coming to sit on the couch next to me. “Your mom told me you’re not feeling the best.”
Her brown eyes went wide. “I know you. You’re the doctor.”
“Yep,” he said, and held out his hand for her to shake with her little one. “Dr. Cade. How is your cut?”
Calla frowned, and her eyes looked up, like she could actually see the cut. “I forgot about it.”
Lachlan covered a laugh with his hand. “Well, purse pets tend to do that,” Lachlan said. “They’re kind of awesome.”
Calla looked at him with worship in her eyes. “They super are.”
“Well, hey, can I take a look at your throat and ears and see if you need some medicine?” Lachlan asked.
“Sure,” she smiled. It vanished quickly. “Do I need a shot?”
“Not at Grandma’s house,” Lachlan said in mock horror. Calla giggled. My heart melted like hot wax.
Lachlan had her sit on the coffee table in front of us, and with my mom hovering in the doorway of her kitchen, watching us with a suspicious squint to her eyes, he used his otoscope to look at her throat, eyes, and then ears. Calla chattered about her magical visit with Grandma while he listened to her heart and somehow managed to figure out what was going on with her lungs while she kept up a continuous stream of anecdotes. He took a few notes in the same black notebook he’d used for me, and then, he ran a thermometer over her forehead.
She watched it beep with curious eyes. “Does it say I’m sick?”
Lachlan peered at the thermometer like it was a crystal ball. “Hmmm, it says… you have strep.” He gave her an apologetic face. “But just a tiny bit. The good news is your medicine will taste pretty good. What flavor do you like?”
Calla and I answered at the same time. “Bubblegum.”
He gave me a shrewd look. “That’s yours, too, isn’t it?”
“I’m twelve,” I said solemnly.
Lachlan shook his head as he pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll just step outside really quick and order some cephalexin for her.” He unfolded his long body from the couch and spoke with someone on the phone with a professional, “Hey, Dr. Cade here,” and then he was out the door.
Calla made her toy dance on her lap, and I made eye contact with my mom. She gave me a wide-eyed “WTF” look.
“Uh, so, I ran into Dr. Cade in the grocery store yesterday. I was in pretty rough shape, so he helped me out.”
“Where,though?” Mom demanded, approaching with curiosity so sharp, I could taste it in the air. She sat on the adjacent sofa and waited expectantly.
