Page 46 of The Seal's Promise

“Alright, I support whatever you say is best, but if you want to talk it through, I’m game.” He needed to spend more time with Wes and figure out how they were going to keep their family estate.

Wes eyed him. “I’m off tomorrow.”

He flinched inwardly. Wednesday was his day with Brooke, but he’d put off this conversation with Wes for too long.

“I’ll swing by your place after my shift,” Dalton said. That way he could control how long he stayed and still have time with Brooke.

The rest of the day was filled with minor injuries and a few odd visitors that seemed more interested in finding out details about the car crash than having actual medical treatment.

“Is it just me or are some of our patients in need of gossip, not medical care?” Dalton asked Nora and Brooke, who were both typing away at tablets.

“You’ve been away from small-town living for too long. Everyone knows the best gossip can be found here or the coffee shop,” Brooke said.

“Huh, I would have thought the diner or maybe this beach club everyone is talking about.”

“Well, you’d be wrong, but you can do some recon for us when one of your fans finally convinces you to play a game of tennis,” Brooke said.

As if on cue, a woman dressed in all white walked in with her wrist wrapped. But this time the woman was his grandmother’s age, and he suspected she had a real injury.

“Nora, can you please introduce me to this fine doctor so he can tell me if I’ve broken my wrist and destroyed my summer tennis season?”

“Hello, Mrs. Banks, this is Dr. Dalton Hart, he’s our newest attending physician.”

The woman looked him up and down with her lips pursed as if he didn’t quite look like the doctor he claimed to be. “Mm-hmm, you’re Barbara’s grandson, the Navy man. Well, I won’t hold that against you, although your grandmother is one of my oldest competitors.”

“Dr. Hart, this is Max’s grandmother, Mrs. Penelope Banks,” Brooke said.

The woman’s mouth was pursed tight but then a small smile touched her lips. “Oh, Max is a very sweet boy. I wish you would bring him to see us more often, Brooke.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Banks, why don’t you head right over here to bay two and I’ll take a look at your injury.” Dalton wanted to protect Brooke from any more pressure from the Banks family on how to raise Max.

“Just like your father, grandfather, and brothers, easy on the eyes and probably a sweet talker too,” the woman said, shooting Brooke a side look, but then walking ahead to the now-open bay.

He could hear Brooke’s and Nora’s stifled laughs.

“You knew my grandfather?” Dalton asked.

“I dated your grandfather before Barbara stole him from me,” she sighed. “The women in my family have always had a hard time resisting the Hart men, but that trouble ended when my girls all had boys,” she laughed.

He couldn’t help but be surprised. “Well, that doesn’t mean we can’t be cordial, right?” he teased.

“No it doesn’t, it all worked out in the end. I was sorry about what happened with your parents. That was a terrible loss for you boys and Barbara.”

He grimaced. Living in small towns meant everyone knew your family and your business.

“Now, tell me what happened and where it hurts,” Dalton said, cutting off the small talk and gently taking her wrist in his hands.

Finally, at a quarter to six he was done with all the patients and paperwork. The driver had agreed to stay for observation when it was clear he couldn’t get his truck out of the impound until his company paid the tab. He was now asleep in the surgery room.

“I have to get to the ballfield and check in on Max. But the diner will deliver dinner to us when we have overnight patients,” Brooke said, holding her bag and stopping at the front desk to say good night.

“Thanks. Tell Max and the kids I’m sorry I had to miss practice but that I’ll make it up to them tomorrow.”

“I’ll let him know,” she said, and met his eyes. It looked like there was something else she wanted to say, but then Nora joined her, and that was the end of their unspoken conversation. Once they walked out together, he was left alone at the hospital to think about how he was going to tell his brother why he’d left Sandy Point and wondering what Mrs. Banks meant when she said the women in her family could never resist a Hart man.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Brooke

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