Prognosis: Romance (Doctors in Training 4)

The football game was already playing on the TV in the den, and the adults assembled there kept an eye on the action as they sat and talked or milled around the table where an assortment of snacks and beverages were temptingly arranged. A birthday cake for Mia sat in the place of honor in the center of the table, uncut as of yet.

Setting his gift for Alexis and a smaller present for Mia on a side table with a few other wrapped packages, James greeted Liam, Anne’s globe-trotting adventurer husband, then exchanged hellos with Ron and Haley. They all encouraged him to fill a plate and join them to view the game. He didn’t share their enthusiasm for the sport, but he would enjoy watching with his friends, anyway. A few other friends of Mia and Connor’s were there. James acknowledged the ones he’d met in the past and introduced himself to the ones he hadn’t, working the room with the ease of a lifetime of experience with social situations.

He heard faint strains of music and children’s voices coming from beyond the kitchen door that led out to the backyard. For Alexis’s sake, he was glad the weather had cooperated with the outdoor party plans. It was a beautiful early September day, warm but not stiflingly so, a few small clouds drifting like puffy white birthday balloons across the rich blue sky.

Shannon was out there with that party. He hoped it was going well, for her sake and for Alexis. Maybe he could just peek out in a few minutes and see for himself.

Mia and Connor entered the room at that moment. Mia carried a small digital camera and both were smiling. Judging from their expressions, James decided the kids’ party was going well. He was the only one who had arrived while they were outside, so they greeted him with pleasure.

“Alexis gave us the sign that she wanted us to stop taking pictures and come inside to play with our own friends,” Connor said with a laugh. “Shannon has the ten girls busy with handcrafts. They’re having a great time.”

“Thank you for recommending her, James,” Mia added. “She’s delightful. The kids love her. I think she could handle three times as many as we have out there without any problems.”

“She’s very organized,” Connor agreed. “She and an assistant arrived this morning with decorations, folding tables, chairs and all the supplies needed for the activities. She supplied everything but the cake, and she would have arranged that, too, if we’d asked.”

“I wanted to make and decorate the cake,” Mia admitted with a self-conscious smile. “It made me feel like I was putting at least some effort into the party, even though I didn’t have time to do anything else.”

“It’s a beautiful cake,” Anne assured Mia. “I saw it when I arrived. You did such a nice job piping the purple accents onto the pink frosting.”

Anne glanced at James then. “One of those small-world things—Shannon’s assistant is a CNA at the hospital. Her name’s Devin Caswell. I saw her leaving just as I arrived and we recognized each other because I just rotated through the post-op wing. Do you know her?”

James shook his head. Shannon hadn’t mentioned even having an assistant, much less that she worked in his field. “No, as far as I know, I haven’t met her. But I haven’t spent much time in post-op.”

“I think I’ll hire Shannon for McKenzie’s party, too,” one of Mia’s friends said, overhearing the conversation. “McKenzie wants a karaoke party, of all things. A rock-star-diva theme. I bet Shannon could arrange that.”

“I’m sure she could,” Mia replied. “The girls would love that.”

“My nephew has a birthday coming up in a couple of months,” Anne mused aloud. “I’ll mention Shannon’s services to my sister-in-law next time I see her.”

James was pleased that Shannon was doing so well today. He’d like to think he’d helped her establish her business a bit more. Of course, had she not done a good job for Mia, there would be no enthusiastic endorsements to encourage the others.

He was even more tempted now to steal a peek at her at work.

Shannon loved the chattering and giggling of the little girls surrounding her in the Hayes’s tidy backyard. Kids having fun—that was the purpose of the business she’d put so much of her heart and soul into during the past months.

Devin had followed her here earlier to help set up before leaving to take care of other responsibilities that day. Together, they had decorated the area with pink and purple helium-filled balloons tied to every available anchor, and with a birthday banner Shannon had painted and hand-lettered stretched between two trees that shaded the Hayes family’s picnic table. Though simple, the bobbing balloons and glittering sign, along with cheery paper lanterns in the tree branches, provided a festive backdrop for the event. And the birthday girl’s parents hadn’t had to do a thing to help, leaving them free to prepare for their other guests inside.

A pink-and-purple birthday cake decorated by Alexis’s mom sat in the center of the picnic table, next to a bowl of frothy pink, fruit-flavored punch Shannon had brought with her. She had provided purple plastic dessert dishes and stemmed plastic goblets, arranged two big bouquets of inexpensive but colorful mixed flowers and scattered pink and purple faux gems across the frilly pink tablecloth. The table looked lovely, if she did say so herself, and the girls seemed suitably impressed. Shannon had even dressed to coordinate with the theme, wearing a rich purple top with nice jeans and purple ballet-style flats—casual and comfortable enough for her active role, but still flattering and stylish.

Alexis was a sweetheart. Bubbly and gregarious, she was generous with her guests, happily sharing the attention and the goodies. Shannon always began her parties with the gift-opening part. She liked the guests to leave with memories of fun and camaraderie rather than any natural jealousies over the birthday child’s presents.

Once the gifts were opened, it was time for the activities. Ten little girls, while noisy and excitable, cooperated eagerly with Shannon’s agenda. She had brought two folding crafts tables and ten small folding chairs. The girls squealed in anticipation when Shannon opened several boxes of crafts supplies they could use to decorate the ten unbleached muslin tote bags she’d brought along. She’d provided a colorful assortment of fabric markers, gingham bows, silk flowers, big buttons and glittering plastic “gems” to be attached with a rapid-drying fabric glue. The gems matched the princessy theme of the party, not too young for nine-year-olds, but just glam enough to spark their imaginations.

With a glitter

ing, faux-jewel-enhanced birthday tiara perched on her light brown hair, Alexis flitted around the crafts tables, admiring everyone else’s handiwork so much that she sometimes neglected her own. Twice Shannon guided her gently back to her chair, promising she would assist anyone who needed help while Alexis finished her own project.

Shannon supervised their work closely, but subtly, making sure the crafters weren’t so liberal in their application of the adhesive that it would take too long to dry. The glue would set while the girls ate birthday cake and played a few games afterward. She’d brought lots of fun, inexpensive trinkets for game prizes, and she would make sure everyone left with something in addition to the party favors Mrs. Hayes had requested.

Of all the jobs Shannon had sampled during the past ten years or so, since she was old enough to drive herself to fill out employment applications, this business was the one she enjoyed the most. She’d worked in childcare and banking, had considered teaching and designing, even tried her hand at landscaping—but this, she thought, was the best thing she’d found thus far.

For the first time in her life, she felt like an independent adult. Living on her own income, renting a house with her equally independent friend, not accountable to her parents or a bossy boyfriend for how she spent her time or money. And she was running her own business, doing something she enjoyed and was good at.

Too bad she couldn’t actually make a living at it. At least, not yet, she thought optimistically.

Standing to one side of the crafts tables, she laughed when one of the girls, Camryn, bragged over a particularly well-placed flower, which the other girls immediately copied on their own bags. There was a brief, tense moment when Camryn pouted over being copied, but Shannon quickly stepped in to congratulate her on providing such clever inspiration. Camryn decided to be flattered.

Shannon glanced at her watch. “Okay, everyone, five more minutes. We’ll let the bags dry while we have cake and ice cream and then play a few games.”