The mower roared by the window again, making Ella whine; Elizabeth shushed her gently. "Not too much longer, honey. It had to be done, the lawn was ghastly."

Pouting, the child turned back to coloring her picture. Elizabeth glanced out the window; indeed, the mower was nearly on its last circuit.

Abby Lockhart followed her gaze, mildly curious as to which of the surgeon's swains had gotten roped into the chore. After a moment, however, her eyes widened. "Is that -"

"Dr. Kovac, yes," Elizabeth confirmed with a chuckle, sipping her tea. "He still owed me for scrubbing in on that operation." Not to mention forcing her into surgery with Dorset. In hindsight, that was the far greater imposition. The wanker, she thought, echoing Abby's words.

Really, the friendship they'd developed after that was the only good bit of the incident. Even after Abby finished her rotation, she'd stop by now and then to visit.

"Right, Ante," Abby laughed now. "Poor Luka's still paying off favors for that. You should have seen what he went through to get those cubs tickets."

"I suppose he thought faking his death was the only way to get out of debt," Elizabeth returned. "Too bad for him Carter called his bluff."

Abby's smile became a bit forced, and Elizabeth winced. It was hard to muster any more levity over the incident, remembering the walking ghost the younger woman had been. Whatever she and Luka still were to each other, believing him dead had ripped her apart.

Silence fell as the mower's engine cut out, breaking them out of their morbidity. Both pairs of eyes were turned to the door when Luka entered, giving Elizabeth a mock-petulant look. "Mowed as ordered, Dr. Cor - oh."

His startled gaze met Abby's for a second before they both looked away. "Hi."

Taking pity on them both, Elizabeth rose and herded him towards the kitchen. "You're welcome to join us, but I'll fetch you a cola first. I doubt tea's what you want at the moment."

Gratefully, he took a long draught, looking over when Abby laughed.

"Root beer? You're still drinking that stuff?" she inquired.

The tension was broken, and Luka smiled as he settled back down on the couch. "And still drinking my coffee."

"Hopeless."

Elizabeth briefly considered slipping out the back door, but put the notion aside for now. "So, how was graduation?"

Abby looked a bit flustered, and it was Luka who answered. "Medical science," he raised his can in a toast, "Welcomed to its ranks one Dr. Lockhart."

"Still have to pass my boards," she put in stubbornly.

The older woman rolled her eyes. "You'll do fine. Remember the law of Laplace?"

Luka glanced over, confused; briefly, Elizabeth summarized the 'nurse- slapping' incident.

This time, it was Ella who rescued Abby, starting to fuss once more. The surgeon shook her head. "Blast. She wants her nap."

Swallowing the last of her tea, she rose. "I'll get out of your way, then. Thanks for having me over, Dr. Corday."

Luka nodded and followed her. "And I'd best get walking."

Startled, Abby paused against the doorframe. "You walked here?"

He shrugged. "I live close."

Rolling her eyes, she smacked his arm. "It's blistering outside. I shouldn't have to talk to a doctor about heat exhaustion. C'mon, I'll give you a ride."

Elizabeth watched with a chuckle as the pair left. "That, dear," she adressed Ella, "Is what you call a match well made."