Diagnosis: Daddy (Doctors in Training 1)

On Thursday night he sat at the kitchen table, having decided to study at home that evening because of the thunderstorm raging outside. Lightning flashed outside and booms of thunder rattled the windows, interfering with his concentration, but he forced himself to keep his eyes on the material.

February had certainly been a turbulent month, weather-wise, he thought with a deep sigh. Not to mention his personal life.

Mia was keeping Alexis entertained and diverted from the storm. They were playing games back in Alexis’s room. Connor could hear their voices drifting toward him between claps of thunder. Maybe because of the storm, Alexis seemed to be uncharacteristically wound up. She was talking more loudly, laughing more shrilly than usual. Twice she dashed through the living room and into the kitchen for drinks of water, followed by Mia, who looked apologetically at Connor and admonished Alexis to settle down a little.

A hard gust of wind made the house creak around him. He hoped the storm didn’t cause any damage to the house or the roof. Lightning flashed through the windows, followed by a clap of thunder so loud that Connor could almost hear his ears ring. Alexis squealed in the back, followed by soothing words from Mia. He couldn’t hear what she said, but her tone was obviously intended to reassure the child.

He could feel the tension knotting the muscles in his neck and shoulders. Between the storm and his housemates, he was finding it harder and harder to concentrate. Maybe he should have studied in the library that evening, but then he’d have felt guilty leaving Mia to deal with the storm and any potential damage on her own.

Fortunately, the storm had abated somewhat by Alexis’s bedtime. Rain still pounded the roof, but the lightning had moved farther away, leaving only a low rumble of thunder in its wake.

“I’m going to bed now, Daddy.” Alexis darted into the kitchen with her Valentine bear—now named Bob, for some reason—clutched in one arm and Pete dangling over her other arm. “Good night. Oof—”

She’d been running toward him, and her feet had slipped on the glossy wooden floor. She made hard contact with the table where he sat, knocking his laptop computer off the edge, scattering books and papers all around them.

“Darn it, Alexis!” Connor made a frantic grab for his computer, catching it just before it crashed to the floor.

That could have been a disaster, he thought with a gulp. He didn’t even want to think about losing all his files, trying to replace his computer and reload everything less than a week before his final exam. “Now I’ve got to try to get all this stuff back in order. How many times has Mia told you not to run in the house?”

Setting the computer carefully back on the table, he frowned at Alexis, then swallowed a groan.

Her big navy eyes had filled with tears that were already leaking down her cheeks. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “It was an accident.”

He drew a deep breath, struggling for patience.

“I know it was an accident,” he said, trying to use a more gentle tone. “But you still have to be more careful. You could have broken something. Or even worse, you could have been hurt yourself. There’s a reason Mia tells you not to run inside.”

“Okay.” Subdued, she hung her head. “Good night.”

“Good night, princess. Sleep well, okay?” He gave her an awkward hug that she didn’t return, then watched as she shuffled away.

Mia stood in the doorway, her expression solemn. She placed a hand on Alexis’s shoulder and turned to walk her toward the bedrooms, leaving Connor cursing beneath his breath.

Great, he thought savagely. He’d yelled at his kid and made her cry. They probably both hated him now.

He really should have studied at the library.

Mia stood quietly in the doorway to the kitchen a little while later, watching Connor as he shuffled and stacked papers and arranged open textbooks. He didn’t know she was there, so she had a moment to study him. His jaw was set, his shoulders tensed. He looked tired and frustrated and dejected.

As if he’d suddenly sensed her standing there, he looked around, meeting her eyes with a stormy expression in his own. “She’s not still crying, is she?”

“No. She’s already sound asleep. I assured her you weren’t really angry with her, and then I stayed with her until she fell asleep, which didn’t take long. She was tired. And she knows, by the way, that she shouldn’t have been running in the house. She promised she wouldn’t do so again—although I expect she’ll forget again, eventually.”

A muscle rippled in his jaw as he swallowed. “I shouldn’t have yelled at her.”

She gave a little shrug and moved toward him. “It probably won’t be the last time. My dad chewed me out a few times when I misbehaved, and I turned out well enough.”

“Yeah, but your circumstances were different. You weren’t still just getting to know him at Alexis’s age.”

He really was beating himself up about this. Stopping beside his chair, she rested a hand on his taut shoulder. “It’s okay, Connor. I promise you, Alexis has not been permanently traumatized. Is your computer okay?”

“Yeah. I caught it before it hit the floor.”

“Is there anything I can do to help you put your things back in order? Or maybe to help you study? I’d be happy to quiz you for a while if it would help.”

She was relieved to see his expression lighten a little now that she’d given him some reassurance. Had he really expected her to be angry with him for snapping at Alexis? That was the impression she’d gotten when he’d first spotted her standing there.

She had to admit that she hadn’t liked seeing the child’s tears and had inwardly cringed during the brief incident, and maybe she thought he could have handled it a little better, but she figured he was angry enough with himself. There was no need for her to ladle on the guilt. Alexis really shouldn’t have been running through the house. As Connor had pointed out, and Mia had reiterated afterward, rules were made for a reason. They had to enforce them now or risk having Alexis turn into an out-of-control adolescent later.