I’d wanted her every moment of every day since.
Sam was disappointed that I didn’t immediately fall back into her bed when I returned to Nairobi, and she wasn’t going to give up easily. She and Claire had obviously planned for the two of us to get together again, and when I showed up with Kate, they didn’t give up on that plan.
Frankly, it shocked me that Claire had been so manipulative. I had only ever known her as a friendly and motherly woman. I had never realized how deeply she was invested in my life, that she would be willing to try to get between Kate and me in order to break up our relationship–all in the hopes that I’d turn to Sam instead.
I thought about Michael and wondered how a good-natured and gentle man like him could be involved with such a woman. Then I realized that Michael was so invested in his career, his hospital, the medical college, that he was rarely home until late at night, slept at the hospital on many occasions, and seemed unconnected to Claire except for their children, who were now grown and out of the home.
Perhaps Claire turned to Michael’s residents as a way of keeping involved in his life. A former pediatrician who now worked as a part-time department head, she had become manipulative as a way to feel relevant. If that was the case, and I was beginning to think it was, she was sadly mistaken.
I sighed and turned back to my files, searching out the last remaining consults I had on my plate for the day – the very last day I would spend at Aga Khan before leaving for Manhattan next Tuesday. So it was with a touch of sadness that I sat in my office and sorted through the piles of files on my desk. I’d be leaving Michael and saying goodbye to colleagues whose camaraderie and fellowship I’d enjoyed for the past six months. I was excited about returning to Manhattan to start a new life with Kate , but a part of me felt disappointed that I’d lost a friend in Claire and that Sam had been a problem.
I didn’t like loose ends and unfinished business and would have much preferred if I were leaving on good terms with all my former colleagues. Sadly, that wouldn’t be the case. Finally, I finished boxing up my files and left the hospital, on my way to Kate and the farther away I got from the hospital, the better I felt. I sighed and pushed thoughts of Sam and Claire out of my head. The delicious Ms. Bennet awaited…
CHAPTER FOUR
Kate
Saturday night arrived all too soon.
I’d been busy packing the bedroom, and was now finishing up in my studio, sorting through the tubes of acrylic paint and brushes, deciding which ones to keep for shipping or discard. I wrapped up my canvases and finished taping boxes shut when Drake arrived home from the hospital after spending time signing papers and seeing the last of his patients.
He popped his head in the doorway.
“Hey,” he said, his gaze moving around the room, taking in the emptiness of it, and the boxes piled in the center of the room. “Time to get ready.”
I exhaled heavily, unable to hide the reluctance I felt about going to Michael and Claire’s house for the going away party.
Drake heard me and forced a smile. “I know, I know…” He came over to where I stood surrounded by packing boxes and put his hands on my shoulders. “You don’t have to come if you don’t want to. I’ll understand.”
“It doesn’t matter to you?”
He shook his head. “I’d like to be with you, I’d like you beside me, but I understand if you’d rather not have to face Claire. And Sam.”
“Sam, too?” I said and made a face. Of course I knew Sam would be there along with all the other residents and staff who worked with Drake, as well as faculty from the medical college and some of Drake’s senior students.
“Unfortunately.” Drake bent down and looked in my eyes. “If you come, I promise to keep your hand in mine the entire time we’re there. You won’t have to deal with either of them alone, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
I shook my head. “No, it’s fine. Before the safari, I could have spent time with Claire while you did your rounds with your students and the staff, saying goodbye, but now…”
“Michael promised Claire would be on her best behavior.”
I laughed ruefully at that. What was Claire’s best behavior? I had visions of her standing off to the side of the room, whispering with Sam. It didn’t make me feel like going to the party. It felt more like I would be going to an inquisition.
I had to tell myself that I would be leaving with Drake for Manhattan on Tuesday morning. Soon, Claire and Sam would be far away.
“I’ll be fine,” I said and forced a smile. “I’m a big girl. I’ll hold a drink in my hand and smile, listen to conversations, and try to avoid them both.”
“I’ll have your arm hooked through mine. You’ll be my arm candy.”
“Arm candy?” I said with a laugh. “If you put it that way…”
He pulled me into his arms and rocked me gently back and forth. “Arm candy. Brain candy. Heart candy. All three.”
“When you put it like that, how can I refuse?”
I had a quick shower and dressed, putting on the sundress that Drake liked so much, despite it being informal, but he wanted me to wear it so I complied. Drake came into the bathroom while I was standing in front of the mirror curling my hair and he sat on the edge of the tub, watching me get ready as he liked to do.
“Are you sure this dress is appropriate for tonight?” I asked, catching his eye in the mirror.