It Takes A Village

Chapter 4: Physician, Heal Thyself

After Sam had finished his tea and a second slice of cake, he excused himself. As much as he would like to stay in the sanctuary of the Grey House kitchen, he knew it was time to get going. George would be fine after some relaxation and some TLC from Cassie, so there was really no reason for him to stay. Well, except for the bewitching woman before him, but that was in the past. At least for now.

Sam got up and put his empty mug and plate in the dishwasher, just as casually as he would have done in his own kitchen.

"I should be getting back," He hovered a little awkwardly by the kitchen door. "Please call me if anything changes with George."

"Thanks Sam," she smiled a little sadly.

"George is practically family to me, but he's going to be fine Cassie, please don't worry."

"I'll try not to. Now, off you go, I've already taken up enough of your Sunday!"

"Cassie," Damn it, he wanted to kiss her. Really and truly, properly kiss her until they were both breathless and dishevelled. Imagining it was making him want to do more than just kiss her. He needed to leave before he embarrassed himself. "I'll see you around." He finished lamely.

Cassie nodded and watched him go. When she was alone again, she sat at the kitchen table opposite the place that Sam had just vacated. She knew she needed to tell Brandon and Lori about their grandpa, but she just needed a few minutes to herself first. At least Sam would be able to reassure Grace in person, and Cassie had already sent her several text messages to update and comfort her.

Cassie wondered if it would have been easier on her if Sam and Nick had gone back to New York with Linda after the accident. Seeing him and having to act friendly and neighbourly when she was still in love with him as an exquisite ache. He seemed to be feeling it too, and that didn't help either. Maybe if she saw him in the bistro with another woman she would feel like she could move on too. But Cassie had already had two great loves in her life; first with Jake and then with Sam, so she thought it would be greedy to expect it to happen for a third time.

She sighed and pulled herself together, typing out texts to both of her step-children to let them know about George but reassure them that he seemed fine now. She had just hit sent when Grace came in throwing her arms around her Mom. It was just the comfort Cassie needed.

Linda wandered around the city of Aurora. It hadn't taken her long to drive there from Middleton and although it most definitely wasn't New York City, it was good to be back in civilisation again. Linda knew she wasn't really built for small town life, but it helped to know there was somewhere nearby that sold designer labels and where she could get her hair cut and coloured in a professional salon.

Perhaps she could settle for this kind of lifestyle after all. She was still able to continue with her job, mostly working from Sam's kitchen table and joining in on conference calls and video meetings with her co-workers. She did miss going for drinks in the city, and nights at the theatre or the ballet, but even for a small town Middleton was far from quiet. Linda had turned down one invitation after another since she had been in town, knowing they were mostly offered out of politeness. Especially in town where everyone worshipped Cassie Nightingale.

The problem was, Linda couldn't even bring herself to hate the woman, even when Sam still looked at her in a way he had never looked at his ex-wife even in the height of their romance before they were married and Nick came along. But Sam had loved her once, maybe he could again. Not that Linda had any illusions that they could have some epic romance, but they knew each other, faults and all. And they knew where it had all gone wrong before. Nick would be moving on, maybe off to college before too much longer, so there was limited time for them to be a family unit.

Linda exhaled forcefully enough to make her new hair cut flutter around her face and stepped into the high end lingerie boutique. If she was going to go through with this, she might as well go all the way.

Exiting the boutique twenty minutes later, with a heavier bag and a lighter credit card balance, Linda headed for her car and the drive back to Middleton.

As she pulled into the parking space between Sam's place and Grey House to make it easier to unload her shopping, she saw Sam come out of the back door that led into the B&B's kitchen. She sighed, even though she wasn't really surprised. She hadn't even been away a whole day and Sam was already at Cassie's. Of course he was.

Sam didn't sleep well at all that night. Whenever he drifted off he would dream of Cassie, but not happy dreams. They would be cold and unfeeling to each other, and he would wake up reaching for her only to find the other side of the bed was empty. Of course it was, they had only spent a handful of nights together and never here, even though they had made love in this bed before everything went to hell.

He dragged himself out of bed long before his alarm sounded and went for a run to clear his head. Middleton was beautiful and quiet as the sun began to rise. Sam realised how much he loved it here, and was pleased that Nick did too after resisting the move so much in the beginning. Sam could imagine spending the rest of his life there, he just needed someone to share it with. He still hoped it would be Cassie.

When he arrived back home, he stripped off his sweaty running gear and stepped into the shower cubicle. He enjoyed the peace of his quiet house while the other occupants were still asleep, as far as Sam could tell Linda kept her own hours now that she worked from home. He wished she had taken up Cassie's offer of staying at Grey House but maybe that would have been even more awkward.

He turned off the water and reached for a towel to dry off. He had the towel slung around his still-trim hips and a smaller one in his hand to dry his hair when he exited the bathroom. As he opened the door, he saw Linda on the other side with her dark hair tousled and tangled from sleep. Sam gripped the towel more tightly and quickly returned to the safety of his bedroom. He was shaken, not because of a potentially embarrassing moment he could have avoided but because for a second he had been sure he had seen hunger and lust in Linda's eyes.

Sam was in such a distracted and confused mood when he arrived at the practice that he didn't' notice there were two blondes in the waiting room rather than one.

"Morning Eve," He greeted, barely looking up.

"Morning Sam," He heard two voices chorus and his head snapped up.

Tara Russell smiled apologetically. "I hope I'm not too early, you said I could pop by any time for a pre-natal check up?"

Sam nodded, he hadn't expected her to come by quite so soon though and not when he wasn't prepared for her visit. He knew that was what happened when you lived in a small town, but he didn't seem to be able to escape Cassie's extended family.

"Of course Tara, bear with me for five minutes and then you can come on through." Sam closed the door to his office and sighed. He cared about all of Cassie's relatives, almost felt like they were his family too but he just needed a break. He finished off the coffee in his travel mug, put on his white coat and decided that he was as ready to start the day as he would ever be.

Tara was chatty, excitable and nervous as Sam talked her through the appointments and tests she would need during her pregnancy. Before he carried out a routine examination, Sam asked her if she wanted Brandon to be present. Tara paused before she replied.

"He was going to come, but he got called into work at the last minute. There'll be plenty more appointments for him to be at."

Sam nodded. "Of course."

They finished up the appointment and Sam handed Tara a sheaf of leaflets. She took them with a grateful smile, even though she already had copies of all of them at home from the OBGYM appointment she had already been too, with Brandon.

"Sam, can I…would you?"

"What is it, Tara?"

"Can I call you if I need anything, maybe have you be present for the birth if I don't make it to the hospital in time or if Brandon and I decide to have a home birth?"

"Of course Tara, I'm your doctor and I'd like to think we are friends so of course I'll be there!"

"Thank you, I just wasn't sure if it would be okay because of things between you and Cassie…"

Sam swallowed a lump in his throat. It still caught him unaware sometimes when he was wrapped up in work or taking care of Nick, and then suddenly he remember that he and Cassie were no longer together.

"I still care about you all very much, and as your doctor I'd put aside any personal feelings I have to make sure you and your baby have the very best care."

Tara blinked back tears. "Thank you Sam, I really appreciate that."

She slung her back over her shoulder and left the clinic. She felt guilty for making Sam think that this was her first appointment when she and Brandon had already been for a check up as soon as Tara had realised she was pregnant. But she was also glad that she and Sam had been able to talk so openly. Sam was such a good man, and he and Cassie deserved each other's love so much. She was even more determined now to help them get back together for good.