Page 11 of A Doctor for Daisy

“It’s better to wait for the right person than to pick one to make us miserable.”

“That’s my thought,” he said. What else was he going to say? That those he found he was attracted to weren’t to him.

And why was it he couldn’t get his patient’s friend out of his mind? He knew it was a friend of Heather’s now. He’d been playing coy when he visited with Heather and made a comment about a sister and had been told they were roommates and best friends.

He’d been hoping to see the roommate before he discharged Heather this afternoon, but Daisy didn’t come in. Only Heather’s parents. That was the roommate’s name. Daisy. No last name was given. Just Daisy.

Like the bright and cheerful flower.

4

Good Hands

Daisy heard voices in the hallway the next day. She’d been waiting for Heather to come home and been told it’d be this afternoon.

She’d spent yesterday cleaning the condo more than normal. She was a neat person because her mother had trained her that way.

Could be the times she went with her mother to work on her second job cleaning houses and helping out too. Most of those homeowners didn’t care and it’s not like her mother could pay for daycare when she had the job under the table to earn more in the first place.

But after she’d cleaned, she’d gotten a bunch of food that she knew Heather liked and then was going to make some salads to have around.

She planned on feeding Heather’s family too so that they’d know their daughter and sister was in good hands.

She rushed forward and opened the door to see the whole family standing in the hallway, Heather bickering with her brothers in the humorous way she always did. She wished she’d had that in her life.

“Come in,” Daisy said, holding the door. Jill walked in first, Max next, then Heather’s brothers all but arguing about who was going to catch their sister if she fell.

“I’m not going to fall,” Heather snapped. “Not unless you two don’t get out of my way and trip me.”

Oh boy. She’d only ever heard that tone from Heather when she was done talking to her mother. She could tell Heather’s family wasn’t used to it though when everyone just stopped and stared at Heather. “They are only trying to help,” Jill said.

“They can help by not arguing and making my headache worse. And I need a shower. I’ve got to clean up. I feel gross.”

“I don’t know if that is wise,” Jill said all but clucking her tongue. “Do you want me to go in with you?”

“I bought one of those senior chairs for the shower,” Daisy said. “Since it’s your left leg, you can sit on it and hang your left leg out of the shower and it won’t get wet. Plus I put some garbage bags in your bathroom with twine I found to cover everything up so the spray doesn’t get on your leg.”

She’d walked around Heather’s room last night and tried to pretend she had one leg and what might be hard to do. Good thing no one was around to see what she was doing as she’d tripped and almost fallen a few times. At least it gave her some insight into what Heather would be going through.

“Thank you, Daisy,” Heather said, looking at her best friend and then her mother. “I told you I was going to be fine at home.”

She smiled. She’d told Heather last night she had this and she was doing everything she could to make sure it helped. “I bought some sandwich meat and was getting ready to make pasta salad and potato salad. Heather loves them both and it will be an easy thing for her to eat in bed if she is hungry.”

“I’m not going to be eating in bed.” Heather looked at her while she smirked. She could have a little fun picking on her roommate too.

“You will if you need to,” Jill said.

Heather moved past them, hobbling on her crutches. “Daisy, will you come with me to get some shorts and a shirt for me? You know where my things are.”

“I can do it, dear,” Jill said.

“I know you can, but Daisy knows where everything is and I won’t have to tell her. She’ll grab what she knows I like to wear and is easy and comfortable. I’ll be out soon.”

“It’s not a problem,” Daisy said, following Heather down the hall.

They got to Heather’s room while her roommate took her crutch and shut the door with it. “Shoot me now. I don’t know how I’m going to get through this with them here. They want me to go home with them.”

“I know,” she said, grinning. She didn’t want Heather to know that she was fearful of that happening. Heather didn’t need that stress. “You told me last night. And again this morning. I’m going to show them I can handle it.”

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