His Best Friend's Wife

Annie looked up and found Emily smiling at her. “I’ve been hoping to get you alone so I could ask you something.”

“Ask away.”

“I know the three of us had this thing worked out where I was your bridesmaid when you married Eric, and then CJ would be mine and you would be hers. That way everyone gets a turn.”

“That’s right. I’d forgotten all about that.”

“Me too, until CJ reminded me. The thing is, though, I’d really like you to be my maid of honor. It just feels right somehow. And then maybe CJ could be yours when...if you get married again.”

Taken aback, Annie stared at her sister. “That is not likely to happen.”

“Don’t be silly. Not right away, but you’re young and gorgeous and you’re sure to meet another man someday who’ll fall madly in love with you and your apple strudel.”

Annie’s thoughts inexplicably turned to Paul.

Emily reached across the island, took her hand and squeezed it. “It would mean the world to me if you would do this.”

“Of course I will. I’ll be honored.”

“Thank you.” Her sister sat back and smiled, seeming to look a little more smug than necessary.

Then, too late, Annie realized she might have landed herself in a bit of a sticky situation. “Who has Jack asked to be his best man?”

“Oh. Paul, of course. Have you heard? He’s back in Riverton now.”

The sound of CJ’s footsteps on the back veranda saved Annie from having to answer. For once, her little sister’s timing was impeccable.

CHAPTER SIX (#ulink_07600bca-5f42-5078-b0de-f32613f0ef99)

PAUL ARRIVED AT the clinic in time to see his first patient of the morning and to find out the next two had called to cancel. Feeling at loose ends, and not wanting to return to the house to hear his father’s newest complaints, he fired off a quick text message to Jack.

Morning schedule has been cleared. Any chance you have time for coffee?

His friend’s response arrived a moment later.

Sure do. Meet you at the café.

Café was shorthand for the Riverton Bar & Grill. As he pulled out of the clinic parking lot and drove downtown, he considered all of the positive aspects of living in his hometown. He hadn’t expected there to be so many, he thought, as he passed the old town hall that was now home to the library and county museum, the Big River Theater, Baxter’s Pharmacy and Henderson’s Hardware before he angled into a parking space in front of Morris’s Barbershop.

Initially he had balked at the idea of having to take care of his father. The old man had always been difficult to live with but his forgetfulness had made him surprisingly easy to manage. He still tested Paul’s patience, although in a different way.

Paul had also worried about seeing Annie again, about having her nearby and yet completely out of reach. This morning’s coffee date now topped the list of pluses. Getting together with his long-time friend Jack was a close second.

He stepped out of his car and crossed the street to the Riverton Bar & Grill. This was one of those timeless places that never seemed to change. Not even after the name had changed from the Riverton Café and the menu had been updated to include salads made with organic greens—no one called it lettuce anymore—and topped with things like dried cranberries and candied pecans. He was pretty sure dried cranberries hadn’t even been invented when he was a kid.

Jack was already there and sitting in a booth near the window. Paul slid onto the opposite bench. They bumped fists across the table.

Jack already had a cup of coffee in front of him. “Good to see you,” he said. “All settled in?”

“Pretty much, thanks. How are things with you?” Strangely enough, he and Jack were both living in their childhood homes. They had kept in touch but seldom saw one another while they’d both been living and working in Chicago. Paul expected that to change now that they were here.

“The new job’s keeping me on my toes,” Jack said.

“So...you’ve taken up ballet.”

His friend laughed. “Feels like it some days.”

“How’s Emily?”

“Amazing, brilliant, stubborn. She’s got this book deal, the blog, her job at the Gazette. I keep saying she should slow down, take things easy.” Jack shrugged.

“How far along is she?”

“Five and a half months, give or take.”

Since they knew exactly when this baby was conceived—the night of Eric’s funeral—there wasn’t much giving or taking. Paul figured it would be wise to keep that observation to himself.

“Does she still have her own apartment?”

“Until the wedding, she does. Annie suggested she move out to the farm, take some of the pressure off, but she likes being in town, where she’s close to the office. Did I mention stubborn?”

“You’d almost think she was a Finnegan sister.” Paul glanced around, hoping to catch the eye of a server. “What does a guy have to do to get a cup of coffee around here?”

Jack waved at the waitress, who was engaged in a conversation with a customer who was sitting on a stool. “Rose? Could we get another coffee here, please?”

She shot him a look before she slowly reached for the coffeepot.

“Is that the Finnegans’ other sister? The half sister?” Paul asked, although he already knew the answer to his question.

“Yes, that’s Rose Daniels. How did you know?”

“Just a guess,” he said, wishing he hadn’t let that slip.

Jack appeared to consider that. “Or maybe you’ve already met her? Treated her at the clinic?”

“That I can’t say.”

“I get it. Doctor-patent confidentiality. Rose has a nasty cough. Annie and Emily both told her she needed to see a doctor. I’m hoping maybe she took their advice, for once.”

Paul shrugged. “You know I can’t discuss patients.”

“Fair enough.”

Rose appeared and set a cup of coffee on the table. “Can I get you anything else?”

“Thanks but no, this is good.”

She looked from Paul to Jack and back to Paul. “You’re the doctor I saw at the clinic.”