Page 70 of The Doctor's Irreplaceable Love

Shelley rolled her eyes.“Yeah, like you’d consider moving out here to...What was it you called this place?Bumfluff, Montana?”

Harper shrugged.“I didn’t mean that in a derogatory way.And now that I’ve seen the place...”

“You’re not serious?”Shelley asked.

Her friend met her gaze.“I might be.I’m not talking about trying to step into the life you’ve created if you’re going to leave it behind.But...if you’re going to do what we both know you should and stay here, then how would you feel if I wanted to move here?To be closer to my oldest friend.”

Shelley set her glass down on the coffee table.“You’re kidding me.You have to be.”

Harper laughed.“No, I’m not.I know you only have eyes for Trip, but I’m telling you, Bells, there are plenty of hot cowboys around here.It’s not just the mountains that make this place easy on the eyes.”

Shelley narrowed her eyes.“I can’t disagree.There does seem to be a disproportionate number of good-looking men around here.But I know you; that wouldn’t be enough to make you even consider leaving New York.What’s going on, Harps?”

Harper set her glass down.“Don’t get mad at me.”

“Just from the way you said that, I’m already mad.What haven’t you told me?”Shelley asked, suddenly filled with concern for her friend.

“You know how I told you I was snowed under a couple of months ago, so not to worry if you didn’t hear from me?”

“Yes,” said Shelley slowly.“What was really going on?”

Harper gave her a guilty little smile.“It turned out that it wasn’t anything nearly as bad as I thought it might be.I just needed a little recovery time.”

Shelley folded her arms and gave her friend a stern look.“What from?”

“I started having stomachaches—bad ones.Well, I didn’t know if it was stomachache or some kind of pain.”She gave an embarrassed little laugh.“I convinced myself that I had some terrible disease and was on the edge of death.”

Normally, Shelley would have laughed at that confession, but this felt different.Her heart was pounding.“You don’t, do you?”she asked.“Have some terrible disease?”

“No, I don’t.What I had was appendicitis.Unfortunately, that didn’t occur to me—nor did it occur to the doctor.Although, in his defense, I probably had him so wound up looking for exotic diseases that he overlooked the much more mundane explanation.”

“So, you had your appendix removed?”Shelley asked.

Harper laughed.“Yes, but you know me—I had to make it much more dramatic than just routine surgery.I waited until it ruptured and ended up being rushed to the hospital for an emergency appendectomy.”

She sobered.“Anyway, I’m only telling you about it because I’m serious about maybe moving here.Only if you’d want me to, of course.And I know it wasn’t really a close call with death—I’m not as bad as I make out, not really.But it did make me rethink life—rethink my priorities, and how much time I have left.”

She held up her hand when Shelley started to protest.“I’m not getting morbid or anything.Not even saying that we’re old and over the hill.I’m just being realistic.I hope we’ll both live to a ripe old age—but even if we do, we’re already past the halfway mark, girl.”

She looked around Shelley’s small, cozy living room.“I feel like things would be different out here.”

Shelley nodded slowly.“I won’t disagree with you on that one.”

Harper raised her eyebrows.“Does that mean we’re staying, then?”

“I think it does.“What about work, though?Are you saying that you’re going to retire?”

“I thought about it, but no.I’m not ready to give it up—and I’m certainly not about to start working as somebody’s assistant or receptionist.Although … I can’t say it’s worked out badly for you.You might not have your dream job, but you got the man.”

“Yeah.I’ve been thinking the same thing—not that I got the man.Things are going well between Trip and me but … We’ll have to see how that goes.I meant about work.I didn’t mind helping him to get organized but if I stay –”

“You mean, now that we’re staying,” Harper interrupted.

“Okay,” Shelley smiled.“You know I was teetering on the brink.If you’re really going to stay too then it’s an easy decision for me.So, now that we’re staying I’m going to have to give some thought to what I’m going to do.”

“You’re not ready to retire, either,” said Harper.“And yes, that’s a statement not a question.”

Shelley’s conversation with Laney came back to her.“I was talking to one of the girls about maybe hanging out my shingle here—working for myself.I could work with a few select clients on my own terms."She picked up her glass again.“I think I might like that.”