Page 116 of The Doctor's Irreplaceable Love

Travis laughed, and Trip and Shelley exchanged a smile.He couldn’t believe he hadn’t noticed until now just how similar Trav and Harper were.

"You know, it would probably make sense for me to take Fridays," he said."I’m in town anyway.At work."

"I thought you said you were going to start taking Friday afternoons off?"said Travis.

"Only every other Friday," he said.

He and Harper exchanged a smile.

"So how about you take the Fridays that youarein town?And me and Harper can take the other two.That way we can figure out Tuesdays — that’s my day — and Wednesdays are covered between us."

Shelley laughed."I’m totally confused now about who’s supposed to be covering which day.How about between the four of us, we agree that we have Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays covered — and I’ll keep tabs on who’s doing which day each week?"

Trip moved his chair closer to hers and reached for her hand, feeling like he'd finally found his place in the world.He'd had a loving family, a beautiful home, and the best friends a man could ask for his whole life.But Shelley?She was like the capstone piece that brought it all together.Or maybe it was more accurate to say that his relationship with her was.

Travis was the first to bring the afternoon to a close, and Trip completely understood why.He wanted to go and pick Retta up from Callie's—and get some time with baby Levi himself.

Something inside Trip clicked into place as he watched Shelley hug Travis and say, "Trav, I'm sorry I've been taking up so much of his time lately."

"Don't ever apologize for that, darling.You make him happy, and that makes me happy.That's all I need from you."

Shelley tucked her hair behind her ear and said, "That might be all you need, but I need to do more.I feel like you got left out in the cold since I arrived."

Travis hugged her again."I get what you're saying, Shelley.I do—but there's no need to worry.I've been giving you both the time and space you need."He chuckled."But I won't always."He glanced over at Trip."I've been missing my buddy.And today, when I figured out that everyone else was hanging out with their peeps, there was no way I was going to miss out on the chance to come and see my peep."

He laughed as he tackled Trip, and Trip could only laugh with him as Travis slung him over his shoulder.Back when they were little kids, Travis had been the tallest and strongest of all their friends.He used to protect Trip from the rougher kids in school.They’d probably been nine years old the first time Trav had thrown him over his shoulder and run, claiming it was the quickest way to get them out of brewing trouble.

As Trav set him back on his feet, emotion clogged Trip’s throat.They’d served in the Navy together—and he wouldn’t be standing here today if Trav had refused to give up on him on a mission gone wrong.Even Trip hadn’t thought he was going to make it, but Trav had thrown him over his shoulder and carried his ass out of there.

Trav slung his arm around Trip’s shoulders and hugged him to his side."Gotta run, bud.I’ll see you soon, okay?"

He tipped his hat at Shelley and Harper."It’s been a pleasure, ladies.I’ll see you soon, too."

"You should bring Retta," said Trip.He smiled as he remembered Anita’s offer."I may have promised Anita that she can throw another dinner party."

"I’m sure Retta will love that," Trav said with a wry smile.

Trip laughed."Maybe we should start our own Sunday afternoon thing, too—grilling burgers and drinking beer with whoever’s not over at the MacFarland place."

Travis grinned."Speaking of the MacFarlands, I think there might be an extra two of them around next weekend—but I’ll give you a call in the week and tell you about it."

"Ooh, does that mean Cash is coming?"asked Harper.

Trip could only laugh.

"It does," Travis told her."But if you’re looking to find a man of your own, I don’t think that’s the place to start."

Harper waved a hand at him."The only looking I’m doing is for the sake of looking."She laughed."And it seems to me that around here, there’s no wrong place to look."

Chapter Twenty-Five

Shelley looked up from her laptop when she heard Trip’s office door open.She checked her watch and was surprised to see that it was already time for him to leave for the hospital.She glanced over at Brooke; she was doing great.She’d handled the patients and the phones all morning while Shelley worked on Jim’s estate planning.

The girl was a perfect fit for the job.She’d come in for a few hours yesterday afternoon, excited to tell them that Stan, who owned the gas station, had told her that he didn’t mind if she started at the clinic straight away.His nephew had just moved back to the valley and he needed work.Better yet, Stan was going to pay her for the next two weeks, even though she was only an hourly employee.

Shelley hadn’t told her that Stan had called just before she arrived.He wanted to assure Trip that Brooke was the best employee he’d ever had and he was only letting her go so easily because she could do so much more in life, and he didn’t want to hold her back.

Brooke had proven his point when she’d shown up at the clinic this morning, arriving even before Shelley and Trip.