Page 2 of Ice Cold Hearts

“Grayson’s my best friend.” She smiles. “You already like him.”

The image of a freckle-faced boy with a lopsided grin pops into my head, and I smile.

“You’re right. I do like him. His parents are nice too, so you have my full approval. So, why can’t I come?” I ask again.

“Are you allowed to go if you’re not married?” Audrey wonders.

“You don’t have to be married to go to a wedding.”

“But you weren’t at Nana and Pop’s wedding,” she says.

“I wasn’t born. I wasn’t even in Nana’s tummy yet.”

Audrey purses her lips. “Well, you weren’t at Teacher’s wedding.”

“Neither were you,” I challenge.

“I’m not married yet. That’s why I couldn’t go," she asserts.

I groan and rub my temples. Why am I trying to reason with a toddler? It’s about as effective as cutting grass with safety scissors.

“Why aren’t you married? Did you ask my daddy and he said no? Did he go away before you could ask him?” She gasps. “Did you say no?”

Before I can even begin thinking about how to answer those questions, my phone starts ringing. It’s Jenna’s ringtone. Normally, I dread these after-hours calls, but right now, I’m ready to cry with relief.

“Excuse me, Your Highness. I have an urgent summons from my boss.” I smile apologetically at Audrey.

She waves me off regally and turns to chat with Mr. Teddy, who had also joined us for tea.

“Emily, thank goodness,” a raspy voice greets me. “I was worried you’d send me straight to voicemail.”

“Jenna, you sound horrible. Please tell me you’re not at work.”

She coughs wetly for a moment then answers, “I wasn't supposed to be there at all today, but?—”

“So you need me to handle your patients tomorrow?” I ask, cutting her off.

“No. I've got everyone covered except one patient who was supposed to see me today.” Jenna stops to catch her breath. “I tried rescheduling, but he insisted he could only come today.”

“Who does this jerk think he is, the president or something?” I huff in annoyance.

The length of her silence makes me anxious. Either she's just died or my snarky comment was right.

“Jenna, please tell me it's not the president. I don't think I can handle that responsibility.”

“Don't make me laugh. It’ll make me cough more. I'm in line at the pharmacy so I can't say much, but they're a silver sticker patient and the director's on my ass about rolling out the red carpet.”

“Are you sure it's actually a celebrity this time? Because the last time he said that it ended up being his future father-in-law,” I say dryly.

Her chuckle turns into a cough, making me feel extremely guilty.

“It's the real deal this time,” Jenna insists.

I glance over at Audrey and bite my lip. This could be a good contact to have if I'm ever going to be able to start my own practice, but it's also about an hour or so away from bedtime. It's difficult enough getting her to bed on a normal day. Trying to get her to sleep after a disruption to our routine will be impossible. If I say yes, I'm kissing any chance of sleep tonight goodbye.

Jenna must sense my indecision because she says, “If you do this for me, I'll file your reports for an entire week.”

“Throw in my requisition forms and you have a deal,” I say, pushing my luck.

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