Page 40 of Love Me Sweet

“Thanks, Amber.” Cole studied Andrew for a moment. “Got big plans for the afternoon?”

“Not really,” Andrew said, embarrassed by the admission.

“Interested in checking out the clinic?” Cole asked. “I was going to stop over there for a few minutes and make sure everything is ready for tomorrow’s Grand Opening.”

“I’d like to see it.” Andrew accepted the sandwich, ordered an iced tea to go with it. But when he pulled out his credit card he was surprised when Cole waved away payment.

“It’s on me.” Cole grinned. “I’m feeling generous today.”

Cole pulled up a chair and kept Andrew company while he ate, then they rode together out to the highway.

“I see you’ve got Ethel today,” Cole commented as he climbed into the van.

“Ethel?”

“Mary Karen Fisher, she’s the one hosting the luncheon today, she gave this very same van that name years ago.” Cole sniffed the air. “Sure does smell good in here.”

Andrew nodded and fastened his seat belt. The van might be on its last legs but because of all the bakery products it hauled every day, he doubted there was a sweeter smelling car in all of Jackson Hole. “Back to Ethel.”

“Oh, yea. Well, when Mary Karen was expecting baby number five, or was it six? Anyway, they traded in Ethel and got a new Odyssey.” Cole grinned. “It went through a couple of owners in the meantime, but when Sylvie showed up driving it, we recognized Ethel immediately.”

“You seem to know everyone in Jackson Hole,” Andrew commented.

“I grew up here, run a business here as does my wife.” Cole’s tone was matter-of-fact. “I’d say between us, we know a considerable number of people.”

“Sylvie likes it here.” There was a hint of bitterness in Andrew’s tone he didn’t quite understand.

“What’s not to like?” The coffee magnet grinned then pointed. “Turn at the next light to the left. We can park around back.”

Andrew maneuvered the van into the turn lane and stopped, waiting for the green. Though the traffic appeared heavier than it had the past few days, it was nothing compared to I-93. Oddly, while he’d always enjoyed the fast pace, he found he didn’t miss it. Or hadn’t, he qualified. Give him three weeks and he might be yearning for a good, old-fashioned traffic snarl.

The light changed and in seconds he wheeled the van around back, pulling in between two recently painted white lines. The building was attractive with its cream-colored stucco and beltline stone façade. Bushes and flowers flanked the perimeter.

As he strolled up, Andrew took note of the quality construction. Whoever built it hadn’t gone overboard but neither had they scrimped. The result was a building built to last, one that would survive the harsh winters, the driving rains and vicious winds off the Tetons. “Who was the builder?”

He wasn’t sure why he asked, it wasn’t like he was in the market for a contractor, but he was curious.

“Joel Dennes.” Cole pulled out a ring of keys from his pocket. “You met him at Ben and Poppy’s barbecue.”

Andrew was this close to telling Cole he’d met a lot of people at that party, when an image of a rugged man with a deep voice and stern features popped into his head. “Was he the one whose wife is the pediatrician?”

“That’d be Kate. Yep, that’s the one.” Cole stuck the key he’d been searching for into the lock then pulled the door open, motioning Andrew inside.

That everything was new and shiny was his first impression. Even the linoleum floor had been polished to a high sheen. Though Andrew preferred the look of wood, he understood the choice of floor tile. Bodily fluids would be easy to clean up on such a surface.

“You were a personal doctor to the rich, Cole commented, flipping on the lights.

“I was a concierge physician,” Andrew qualified, refusing to become defensive. “My patients wanted a doctor they could call anytime. They knew when they went into the hospital that I’d be the one they’d see, not some hospitalist.”

“That’s what I said,” Cole said with a grin, “Doctor to the rich.”

Andrew shook his head and laughed.

“Do you miss the variety?”

Following Cole down the hall, looking into exam rooms and conference rooms, admiring the new radiology equipment and treatment rooms, he gave the question more consideration than his guide likely expected.

“Sometimes,” Andrew admitted. “Although my practice gave me the flexibility to also be involved in the family business.”

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