A twinge of something that might be considered envy tapped at Evie’s heart. Not that Molly didn’t deserve every happiness, but wow. She had every happiness.
“I can see why. And, uh, Yiayia’s quite the character, isn’t she?” Evie added on a whisper.
“You have no idea.” Molly gave an exaggerated eye roll.
“I think I do.” She laughed and stroked Danny’s sweet little cheek. “Look up the word sledgehammer, and there she is, ready to smash.”
Molly laughed. “Subtlety is not her strong suit.”
“Ya think?”
“I guess you’ve figured out they’re matchmakers.”
“Not much figuring out involved. Yiayia mentioned Declan before she said hello to me.”
Molly laughed. “It’s kind of hard not to have the whole family rooting for you and Dec, Evie. You’ve known each other forever. Aunt Colleen said she always thought you two would get married.”
Declan’s mother thought that? “The whole family?” she whispered playfully to the baby. “Even you, little man?”
He replied with another drool-filled giggle, then dropped his head onto her shoulder and stuck his thumb in his mouth, his fine hair tickling Evie’s jaw.
“Oh!” she exclaimed as they started up the stairs. “My poor heart.”
“Your poor ovaries,” Molly volleyed back. “My sister-in-law Beck is four months pregnant and totally blames Danny and my nieces, baby Annabelle and Fiona. We’re pretty sure Darcy, Cassie, and Grace are hard at work on the next Kilcannon-Mahoney baby boom.”
A Mahoney baby boom. Something slipped inside Evie’s chest. Something that had been slipping around an awful lot lately.
“You sure look like a natural with him,” Molly whispered with a jab of her elbow. “You know it’s not too late for you. You and someone…right out there in the garage.”
“Ouch. That sledgehammer hurts, Yiayia Jr.”
“Come on, Evie. It’s so nice to see you and Declan together again.”
“We’re not together. He’s fixing my warped windows…” She narrowed her eyes. “Which is not a euphemism for what you’re thinking. So, can we talk about the MRIs I emailed you, Dr. Bancroft?”
“Only because that topic is easier for you, and you’re holding my baby.”
“Much easier, and don’t worry, I won’t drop him.”
Molly smiled. “Okay, yes, I did get the images, and is it wrong to be excited about standing next to you while you perform a ventral slot? Because this is probably a career highlight for little old small-town vet me.”
On far more comfortable turf now, Evie shared the surgery plan, with Molly asking all the right questions. By the time they reached Granddaddy’s room, Evie was certain she’d made the perfect decision asking for Molly’s assistance.
“Hey, Judah,” Molly whispered as they walked in quietly, both noticing that Granddaddy was sound asleep. “How you feeling, buddy?”
Judah lifted his head from where it rested on Granddaddy’s arm.
“He looks comfortable,” Molly said. “Are you hanging with your pal, Judah?”
Evie stayed a few feet away with the baby, giving Molly a chance to establish herself with the dog who watched her warily.
“He’s protective,” Molly mused.
Danny’s head suddenly popped up from Evie’s shoulder. “Mmmbah! Mmmbah!”
The sound made Judah get right up on all fours, his gaze shifting to Danny with one quick bark.
“Not all dogs are named Meatball,” Molly told Danny.
Evie laughed. “How do you get Meatball from that?”
“I speak Danny.”
“Mmmbah!” He hit a higher, louder note, his hand outstretched to the dog, who immediately forgot Granddaddy. Judah took a few steps to the edge of the bed, tail flipping excitedly.
Granddaddy stirred at the disruption, then slowly opened his eyes, bringing them to focus on Evie and Danny. “Did I die and go to heaven?”
The dog reacted by putting his head back and letting out a monstrous howl, making Danny shriek in response.
“I couldn’t agree more!” Granddaddy exclaimed. “Our prayers have been answered.”
“Granddaddy, don’t get Judah excited,” Evie said with a light warning in her voice. “It can hurt him to move that way. You remember my friend from vet school, Molly? And this is her little boy, Danny.”
“Hi, Mr. Hewitt,” Molly said cheerfully.
But disappointment registered on every crinkled feature of his face. “Not yours?” he asked Evie.
“Nope. Did not go out and buy a baby while you napped. Sorry.” She came a little closer to the bed while Judah stared at Danny with wonder and maybe a little uncertainty, then started to sniff his tiny sneaker.
“Let him smell you, Danny,” Molly said. “Like all new dogs.”
As the dog came a little bit closer, Danny’s little fists grabbed at Evie’s T-shirt, and his eyes widened in trepidation. “Mmmbah.”
“This doggy is Judah,” Evie said, vaguely aware she was rocking side to side to keep Danny calm. “Molly’s going to help me in surgery with Judah,” Evie reminded her grandfather. “So she needs to do a quick exam on him again.”
He nodded, unconcerned about the dog, riveted on the baby. “He looks good on you, Evie.”
She laughed. “He’s not the latest accessory, Granddaddy, but I cannot tell a lie. He feels good, too.”
Molly guided the dog to the other side of the big bed where she could look at him, starting the exam with a gentle hand on Judah’s back.
While she did that, Evie bounced the baby and moved closer to her grandfather. “This is Granddaddy Max. Can you say Max, Danny?”
“Maaaaa.”
Her grandfather laughed and clapped his hands. “Oh, this one does my heart good.”
Molly smiled at the exchange, but her concentration was clearly on Judah’s spine. “We had a Great Dane with Wobblers come in a few months ago,” she said. “Didn’t need surgery, but acupuncture worked really well, along with laser therapy, but as usual, we had to bring physical therapists in from Asheville and Charlotte.”
“There’s no PT here?”
“Oh, there is at the college, but they’re booked solid. They’re available for their vet patients, so Judah will get one for post-op, but the regular old vets?” She shrugged. “Really hard for us to get access to a lot of services.”
“No mobile services?”
“I wish.” She eased Judah’s snout up to look into his eyes. “And you can forget a neurologist. I can never find one within twenty miles for
