Chapter 9

Michaela had only taken Maud Bray's invitation because she knew she couldn't expect the older woman to spend the night at her apartment. Since Sully was away longer than just a few days, she wasn't able to avoid late or even night shifts during his absence, which meant she needed someone who watched her daughters when they slept. Finding a good babysitter for such unusual hours wasn't easy and thus she had no choice but followed Maud's suggestion that the children sleep at her and Loren's home the few times she would have to work late. Yet for that, Hannah and Katie needed to feel comfortable with Abigail's parents. That was why they were standing before their house now.

Michaela was nervous, wondering how Mr. Bray would take her presence in Sully and Hannah's life. Adding to her anxiety was that Maude had warned her and the little girls to be prepared that her husband might look a bit grumpy. She had assured though that behind his gruff exterior he was really very kind-hearted.

"Shall we?" Michaela asked her daughters who looked up at her expectantly.

"Yep," Hannah was sincere and Katie nodded affirmatively. They had talked it through before they fell asleep last night. They had liked the grandpa they met in Boston and were sad that they had lost him so quickly. However, they looked forward to get to know the new one, determined to like him, too, no matter what.

Loren Bray had never known his wife to be adamant about anything. Of course he had the say at their store and thus he simply wasn't used to giving much of Maude's opinion. He was convinced that he knew what was right for his family and saw no need to discuss his decisions. Everything went well until his daughter met this man who ruined their life.

Loren had been devastated when Abigail died but of course never showed it, not even to his wife. Initially he even blamed the child for his terrible loss; that was why he refused to see the little girl and forbade Maude to visit her, too. Anyway, the first years he coped quite well, keeping himself busy with working at the drugstore even more than before. Yet he eventually had to acknowledge that he wasn't the youngest anymore, especially when he couldn't sleep because his back hurt too much. That was why he listened to his wife for the first time in his life when it came to something essential and agreed to retire.

Yet ever since they sold the drugstore, Loren felt quite useless and didn't know what to do with himself. Maude on the other hand seemed to blossom and he wasn't sure whether he liked that. But at least it brought some change to his daily grind. Preparing the room for the girls had been fun although he still didn't see the point why they had to include a strange child in their actions. He was, however, curious to meet the doctor, clearly remembering how upset Maude had first been after she met her.

The doorbell rang and interrupted his musing. Sighing, he left the room where he spent most of his day, watching TV, in order to join the others. Descending the stairs he heard the women talking and the clear voices of the children as well. Only at this moment did he realize that he would meet Abigail's daughter any moment and his heart made a curious jump. He took the last steps down slowly, still unnoticed though.

Katie was the first one who spotted the man, tugging at Hannah's hand instantly, making her turn towards him as well.

No one needed to tell Loren which of the girls was his grandchild. The resemblance to her mother when she was at the same age was striking and took his breath away for a moment. For a split second it was as if his little sunshine had never left him at all. Yet then he saw her eyes that were of a shining blue and he felt himself thrown back to reality. Feeling the absence of his Abigail even more painful now, tears were rising. Horrified that the others might notice, he grumbled, "It's about time that ya finally came. I bet the cocoa's already cold."

Not waiting for any response or introduction, he turned in order to enter the living room. His wife, however, held him back. She knew that Dr. Mike would only leave the children in her care when she would be sure they were welcome, both of them. "Loren," she said sternly, "Don't ya want to say hello to our guests?"

"Suppose so," he muttered, shuffling back to them. Without looking anyone in the eye, he proffered his hand first to Michaela, then to Katie murmuring, "Nice t' meet ya." Only when he took Hannah's hand he glanced at the small face, again overwhelmed by memories. "Hey," was all he said before he turned to finally go to the living room.

Maude looked at her guests apologetically, shrugging. "Sorry, but as I told you…"

"It's alright, don't worry, " Michaela tried to soothe her, suddenly unsure again if it had been a good idea to come here at all.

The little girls, however, seemed to be undeterred, and not only because they were still determined to gain a new grandfather. They had seen that the eyes of the old man had brimmed with tears and their compassionate hearts instantly felt sorry for him. They glanced at each other before rushing after him. As they caught up, Hannah softly touched his hand. "Are ya hurt? Our Mommy can fix ya, she's a real good doctor."

Feeling the small fingers and hearing his granddaughter refer to a stranger as her mother, Loren almost lost it. "Nah," he mumbled, "I'm fine. Just a bit sentimental, I guess."

However, sitting at the table he caught himself, getting used to the sight of Hannah. Actually, seeing her made him dream that it would be possible to get some happy times back in his life. Thus he finally started asking her about what she liked to do, growing a bit unnerved though when every other sentence included either the name Katie or the word Mommy. Obviously Maude had been right about Hannah seeing them as her family. Yet now that he had met his granddaughter, all he could think was that he didn't want her to vanish from his life again. Silently admitting this to himself he realized that whether he liked it or not, he had to get along with the other child as well. Finally deigning Katie more than a glance he was ashamed, seeing the innocence and eagerness to get to know him on her face. When she gave him a tentative smile, his heart melted and the adult women ceased to exist for now.

While listening to Maude, Michaela worriedly watched the scene at the other end of the table. She couldn't allow that her daughters would be treated differently. Only when she saw that Katie was finally included in the conversation did she relax somewhat. Thinking that it might be too soon to let the little girls spend the night with the Bray's, she considered other options. She still had two days to organize something else.

Knowing Dr. Mike a bit by now, Maude sensed her thoughts. In order to prevent the doctor from saying them out loud, she cheerfully addressed the little girls, "Would you like to see the house… and your room?"

Before they replied, both their eyes flew in their mother's direction. Seeing her smile and nod, they quickly slid from their chairs, eager to explore the surroundings.

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Sully had decided to go home earlier rather than later as he had planned. The reason was a picture he found one evening when he looked for a warm sweater in his bag. It was only a small piece of paper with a pencil drawing yet it showed something so precious to him that he wondered what had gotten to him that he contemplated prolonging his absence from home. Hannah had drawn a family: a mother and a father with two little girls between them and everyone was smiling. A strange pull on his heart made him gasp and Cloud Dancing, who was sitting with him by a fire like on the last ten nights, slowly nodded, stating, "You should go where you belong, my friend. The important part of your learning here is done."

As much as Sully had enjoyed the time alone with Cloud Dancing, living without the boundaries of civilization, as sincere he was about where he wanted to be. Of course the Cheyenne understood, and they talked about the next steps of their work together on their way back to Concho.

……………………………………………………….

Sully grinned to himself; although he was kind of dead after driving almost twenty hours with barely a break, he couldn't wait to see Michaela and the kids again. The closer he came to Colorado Springs, the more his anticipation grew. He hadn't called; being due in only two more days he wanted to surprise everyone. Actually, he had intended to go straight to Michaela's apartment yet passing his own on the way there, he changed the plan. Suddenly feeling the need for a shower and fresh clothes, he turned the van back.

Catherine was desperate. Everything went fine till five minutes before. The table was set for two, she wore the black dress that emphasized her body at the right places and made her look stunning. The food was prepared and there was only this dirty spot on the kitchen table she hadn't seen right away. Wanting to wet the dishcloth, she turned on the faucet at the sink. And then it happened. Without a warning she suddenly held the upper part of the faucet in her hand and the water shot out of the pipe as if she had hit an oil well. The untamed jet instantly soaked her and the only thing she could think of right now was to press her hand against the opening. Frantically looking around, hoping to find a solution for her misery, her devastation grew realizing that she had no idea what to do. Finally she bent forward as to look out of the window in front of her. Maybe Marc had already arrived, although this would mean he would be half an hour too early. She closed her eyes tightly with the childlike wish that when she opened them, he might hear her silent plea for him to appear.

As she allowed herself to look again, she knew that despite of her mishap, this was her lucky day. Spotting Sully approaching the entrance of their house, she knocked against the windowpane as to gain his attention. When he finally looked up, alerted by the noise, she gestured for him to come to her door.

First Sully frowned, seeing Catherine waving for him until he noticed that she was obviously in need for help. Not thinking twice, he hurried up the stairs, ringing at her door not even a minute later. As if she had waited behind her entrance, she threw it open. Without greeting him, she pulled on his arm, dragging him to the kitchen. "Ya gotta help me, Sully!" she blurted, forgetting to pay attention to her accent.

Taking in the mess in the room, Sully didn't waste time but rushed to the sink already giving orders, "In my right jeans pocket is my key. Go over to me and get my toolbox; it's right inside of the bathroom."

Calming down for she knew that Sully would take care of things, Catherine found some of her usual boldness when she fished in his pocket for the key, "Ya sure the doc doesn't mind that you let me so close to you?"

Yet Sully didn't think it funny. Glaring at her he growled, "Ya better hurry or ya can see how ya manage things here alone."

Rolling her eyes, Catherine still grinned but her tone was normal when she asked, "Can I first get rid of my wet dress?"

Seeing the state Catherine was in Sully responded raising his eyebrows, "Sure. As long as ya hurry and pull on somethin' else…"

……………………….

Michaela felt bad about leaving her daughters with the Bray's tonight, but she didn't have a choice. She had tried to exchange shifts yet since half of the staff was sick with the flu it had been impossible. She was seriously worried about Hannah; the normally cheerful child had grown unusually quiet. It wasn't because she and Katie were to sleep with her grandparents for the first time. Michaela was sure of that. The girls had a cell phone now so they could reach her anytime; if not herself right away because she might be at the operating room, a nurse would answer the call and inform her as soon as possible. Since tonight the nurse would be Becky, who had replaced Colleen, the children didn't mind sleeping in their new room. They had been delighted when they saw the bunk beds during their first visit and couldn't wait to try it. Actually, this was one of the rare occasions when the sisters couldn't find an agreement because each wanted to sleep on the top bed. In the end, they decided by lot. Much to Michaela's relief Hannah won and fortunately Katie didn't pout. However, Michaela knew that Sully's absence grew harder on Hannah with every new day.

As she helped the children to change for the night, Michaela finally had an idea. She excused herself, promising she would be back in time for the bedtime story. A memory had come back to her: when she was still a little girl, her father had once to leave town for several days. As to help her over the time without him, he gave her one of his old shirts, suggesting she wear it as a nightgown as to feel him close. She had done it and clearly remembered the comfort she felt every night, smelling his scent that lingered on the soft fabric.

Michaela hoped for Hannah it would work, too. That was why she had driven to Sully's house: to get one of his T-shirts. Putting the key into the lock she jumped though when suddenly the door was opened from inside of his apartment. Speechless, she stared at the person that was revealed to her, and Catherine looked back, equally startled. "Dr. Quinn… uhm Michaela… I only… I'll be right back," she finally stuttered and hurried towards her own rooms.

Only now did Michaela notice that the blond-haired wore nothing else but a bathrobe. Yet she was more disturbed by the thought that the other woman still had a key to Sully's apartment, and she decided to ask him for the reason when he was back. Catching herself, she quickly went to Sully's bedroom, taking a T-shirt from his wardrobe and was about to leave when Catherine came hurrying back.

"Dr. Mike, there is an easy explanation…" she began but was interrupted.

"Catherine, first look in my bedroom!" a male voice shouted.

Michaela didn't dare to believe her ears. "Sully?" She was in total bewilderment yet her heart already started to race with joy. "He's back?"

"Uhuh," Catherine affirmed, turning as to get what Sully had asked for. "He's in my kitchen."

Without hesitation, Michaela went to the other woman's apartment as to welcome her fiancé. Yet she stopped dead in her tracks at the picture before her. Sully's was stepping out of a room, his upper body naked. His head was buried under a towel and while rubbing his hair dry, he yelled, without seeing Michaela, "And get me a fresh shirt, too!"

Michaela's eyes grew wide because she was seeing something else behind Sully now. The door to the living room stood open and revealed a festive laid table for two. This was too much for her to take. She pivoted and left as if on the run.