A/N: Nice to know y'all are enjoying this Season 2 rewrite so far - thanks to those who left reviews :) Zade had such a rocky road in canon, but we can fix it, I promise ;)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 3

Zoe wasn't sure she had ever been so busy. Not that she hated having so many people in town relying on her, choosing to turn to her for every medical need and more besides. She was becoming beloved, the way she heard her biological father described, more than once. For the longest time, she had felt like an outsider among the broader populus of Bluebell, but now they really appreciated her, comparing her to Harley Wilkes and finding they saw similarities between the two. So much for a general panic over the flu epidemic, it had actually worked out pretty well for Zoe, awful as that seemed.

"And I have you to thank for this whole thing," she told Wade, keeping her voice low and leaning as far as she could over the bar, her feet almost coming off the floor when she did so.

"Yeah, well, I don't exactly feel very thanked," he said pointedly. "Amazing as you are, sweetheart, as a doctor and otherwise, it's gettin' a little lonely spendin' so many nights without you. I didn't mind so much when I was still recovering from the flu myself, since I was hardly in a fit state to be gettin' athletic in the bedroom, but now..."

"I know, I know," Zoe told him with a sigh. "I'm neglecting you and I am sorry," she insisted, "but I promise, I will make it up to you. Tonight, okay? Tonight, we will have a quiet night in, just you and me. Sound good?"

"Sounds great, doc." Wade grinned at her, leaning over the bar to kiss her lips. "Seven o'clock at your place?"

"It is a date," she promised, before rushing for the door.

With thoughts of a wonderful evening and an even better night in her mind, Zoe practically skipped back to work, sure the afternoon would pass swiftly. Unfortunately, she was wrong on that last part. Just about every person in town seemed to want to see her, one after the other, some for follow-ups from the flu, others with new issues to discuss. Many of them just seemed to want to drop in and say hello, some even bearing gifts along with their thanks for successfully helping them through the last couple of weeks.

There was a smile on every face, so even though Zoe was feeling somewhat overwhelmed, she couldn't exactly complain about being run off her feet by all the visitors. Finally, she checked the appointment book and found she had no-one left to see.

She had hoped that if anybody else happened to walk in, maybe Brick would take them. After all, he had been kind of lacking in patients for most of the day, so many of them having adjusted to seeing Zoe instead. When Annabeth suddenly came in the door, insisting she needed to talk with a female doctor, Zoe knew she had no choice but to take her into her exam room.

Of course, she had hoped that whatever was bothering AB would be a simple medical complaint, an easy fix, maybe even something and nothing that could be explained away without the need for real medical intervention. Unfortunately, it was not that simple. Before Zoe knew it, she was taking confessional, hearing from Annabeth that she and Lavon had made the beast with two-backs, and that she now needed help in figuring out how she should tell Lemon.

"Could you maybe roleplay some scenarios with me?" Annabeth all-but begged.

She was close to tears and so very shaken up about this whole thing. Zoe didn't have the heart to tell her no.

"Sure, I just need to let Wade know I'm going to be a little late," she said, forcing a smile as she pulled out her cell and fired off a text.

A couple of seconds later, his reply came through, promising her he would keep everything warm for her, but not to be too long. That brought a genuine smile to Zoe's lips, even if it didn't last long. Poor AB really needed somebody and it was up to Zoe to be there for her, not just because she was her doctor, but because she was her friend too.

Unfortunately, the whole roleplaying thing took an awful lot longer than Zoe ever could have anticipated. Maybe it was her own fault. Her Lemon Breeland impression wasn't as polished as it used to be, not to mention the fact she was entirely distracted, thinking about Wade and what she could have been doing instead.

It was so late when she finally left the practice, she probably drove home a little recklessly, and still, when she arrived back at the carriagehouse, she was too late. The candles had all burned out, the romantic meal was cold, and Wade, bless his heart, was asleep on the bed, completely out for the count.

"Remember how you said you wanted to make it up to me, you know, the whole being so late for our romantic night in that I actually fell asleep waiting on you?" asked Wade with a look, trying not to smirk when Zoe squirmed under his gaze.

"Trust me, you can't make me feel any worse about that than I already do," she insisted, hitting him in the chest with the medical records in her hand, "but yes, I did say I would absolutely make it up to you, and I'm pretty sure you told me the way you wanted me to do it was with sex... and then more sex," she quoted with a look of her own.

"Can't deny, that is what I said," he agreed easily, "but now, I got an even better idea. Instead of one romantic night at your place or mine, how about a whole romantic weekend at my buddy's cabin, far away from Bluebell and your ever-devoted patients?"

That got her attention easy enough and Wade couldn't be at all sorry that he managed it. It was always a win when he could get her to take her eyes off some medical text or other, and he figured he ought to get bonus points for the way she was smiling at him right then.

"A cabin?" she checked. "So, someplace all warm and cosy and secluded?"

"Yes, ma'am," he told her, moving closer and attempting to pull her into his arms. "You, me, a roaring fire, a four-poster bed, and a whole weekend of F-U-"

"Wade!" she squeaked awkwardly.

"Hey, I was just gonna spell out 'fun'," he told her, smirking terribly. "What were you thinkin' of?"

"I would take it as a kindness if you did not answer that," said a new voice.

Zoe sprang out of Wade's arms as if she had been burned, immediately apologising to Brick for being inappropriate in the workplace. Wade didn't even bother, since he couldn't care less what Dr Breeland thought about the conversation he overheard or the almost-kissing he might have seen either.

"Apology accepted," Brick told Zoe as he came closer to the reception desk, "but if the weekend I just heard you talking about is this one, I hope you realise that you will be right here workin' the whole time. After all, it is my birthday and I certainly don't intend to be anywhere but at home with my girls on such an occasion."

"Come on, Brick." Wade rolled his eyes. "You just got back from your trip. Zoe has been covering here all by herself, right through an outbreak of the flu and-"

"Oh, I'm sorry, did you think your opinion counted for anything here, Wade Kinsella? Because I am happy to inform you that it absolutely does not."

Slamming the drawer he had been rifling in a moment before, Brick turned around and headed to his office, slamming the door there too, the second he was through it.

"He's a real ornery old ass when he wants to be," Wade muttered.

"I know, but it is his birthday." Zoe sighed. "I'm so sorry, Wade. I really do want to go to the cabin with you, but if I have to work..."

"But what if you didn't?" he asked her, getting a bright idea.

It didn't happen often, Wade would be honest enough to admit that, but right in that moment, he was damn sure he had just had a real amazing thought that would ensure that Zoe and Brick could both take the weekend off without any problem at all.

"What are you going to do? Wave your magic wand and make another doctor appear? Okay, bad choice of words," Zoe realised aloud when Wade shot her a salacious smile.

"You just leave it all up to me, doc. We will be at that cabin this weekend, just like we planned, and you can do all the making up to me that your little heart desires. I promise, I won't complain, not once," he said, pulling her close in his arms again.

"I'll bet you won't," she agreed, grinning right before they kissed. "But I still don't-"

It was as far as she got with her doubting and questioning before he covered her mouth with his own.

"Like I said, you just leave it all up to me," he reminded her, stealing one more quick kiss, then releasing her, heading on out the door before she could argue anymore.

Zoe was sad not to get the chance to spend the weekend with Wade, but she really did not know how he expected to change the situation. Brick wanted to spend his birthday with Lemon and Magnolia, which was completely understandable, and that meant Zoe had to work. There were no other doctors around town, and she doubted Wade knew any from further afield that he could bring in at short notice. It was unlikely the townsfolk would appreciate such a thing, even if it were possible.

"Hey, Zoe?" Wade suddenly called, rousing her from her desk to come out into reception.

She was glad Brick had gone home a short while ago. No doubt he wouldn't approve of yelling in the practice any more than he liked to see public displays of affection.

"Sweetheart, say hello to the good doctor who is goin' to step in and hold the fort for you this weekend. Somebody that even the great Brick Breeland himself can't argue with - Dr Jonah Breeland."

Wade presented the guy as if he were a prize on The Price Is Right, but Zoe was more stunned by the name than the man himself. Jonah Breeland. She hadn't realised there were more Breelands around town, but as the young doctor soon explained, he was Brick's nephew who had graduated Duke and was currently completing a residency. He was, without question, fully qualified, and apparently, more than willing to take on covering at the practice, on one condition.

"And that condition would be?" she asked, looking between Jonah and Wade, neither of which seemed eager to tell her. "Come on, what's the condition?"

"Ol' Jonah here had some trouble believin' me when I told him I had a girlfriend, much less that she was the new town doctor," said Wade then, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. "Come on, doc, I didn't exactly have the best reputation with girls last time Jonah was around. Not even when you first came blowin' into town a year or more ago."

"That is true," she agreed, because it was the absolute truth, "but I can confirm that Wade is my boyfriend, meaning I am also his girlfriend, and I am a fully qualified doctor."

"I will take your word on that, Dr Hart." Jonah nodded once, smiling just a little too much for her taste. "And so, with that confirmation fulfilling the one and only outstanding condition of our agreement," he said, holding out his hand to Wade, "you have yourself a deal. I will cover at the practice for the whole weekend, so you two can go spend it however it is you plan on spending it."

The look in his eyes told Zoe he knew exactly how, but she was glad he didn't say as much. Honestly, she was mostly just thrilled to know she and Wade could spend some quality time together. Sure, the idea of a lot of sex and such wasn't exactly unappealing all on its own, but just to get away from town and be alone with her man, comfortable and warm and cosy in a cute little cabin somewhere, that really appealed too. Zoe could hardly wait to go!

To Be Continued...