Page 37 of Love for a Lifetime

Olivia headed toward the bathroom, and Dawson pulled out the boxes and tubs in the kitchen, sampling onion rings and pickles as he went.

Olivia returned from the bathroom a few minutes later and walked behind him. He held out an onion ring toward her, and she bit off a piece and kept walking toward the cabinets where she pulled out a couple of paper plates.

“You figure out what to do for Barry?” Dawson asked as soon as he blessed the food.

“Oh, we’re doing a car wash. Next Saturday at the church.”

“I’m off work that day. What time do I need to be there?” Dawson asked.

“Whenever you want to bring your truck by. The youth are doing the work.”

“I’ll help wash cars. More hands mean quicker service.”

“If you could ask everyone at the station to bring their vehicles by, that would be great.”

“Consider it done,” Dawson said as he tore into another bite of his sandwich. “How are the kids?”

Olivia rolled her eyes. “Giving me fits. Herbert was in the coop-ula this morning with Genella. She didn’t seem to mind, but the other hens were bothered.”

“He’s just looking for friends,” Dawson said.

“He’s also stressing my laying hens. There’s a reason we have the best eggs around, and it isn’t because I let my ladies get terrorized.”

“I’ll have a talk with Herbert. And I’ll issue a formal apology to the chicks.”

Licking the barbecue sauce from her fingertips, Olivia eyed him warily. “I’ll believe it when I see it. Herbert is a menace.”

“He loves you. Just embrace it.”

Olivia scooted her chair away from the table and looked down at Dawson’s leg. “How are your bandages?”

He pulled up the leg of his sweatpants to show her the small bandage on the side of his calf. It covered the broken skin that hadn’t required stitches. “Perfect.”

“Does it need changing?” she asked.

“Probably, but I can take care of it.”

Olivia stood and headed for the box she’d bought and filled with bandaging supplies. “I’ll change it.”

Dawson wasn’t about to protest. Olivia loved taking care of people, and it was always nice to be on the receiving end of her attention.

Maybe one day she’d let him take care of her.

She gathered the supplies she needed and arranged them on the table.

“Do the patients at work know how lucky they are?” he asked.

Olivia rolled her eyes. “I’m the lucky one. I get to do what I love every day.”

Dawson pulled another chair up beside him and rested his leg on the seat. “You know, not many people think your job is fabulous.”

She currently worked as a geriatric nurse at an assisted living facility, but she’d been through the emergency department and a private practice since getting her degree. She made it clear she had no plans to leave geriatric care.

Dawson’s chest warmed every time he heard about something Olivia did. Her caring heart was one of the many things he loved about her. She’d been that way since they were kids.

Olivia washed her hands and slipped them into a pair of gloves. “Some people say the same thing about your job.”

“Fair enough. But the people I work with don’t usually care for me much.”

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