Chapter Seventy-One

“Isn’t that a beautiful sunset?” asked Leah who was wrapped in Trapper’s arms as he stood behind her on the deck of the guest house while the two took in the unobstructed view over the Pacific Ocean.   A light wind blew up the cliff bringing with it the smell of salt water.

Taking a deep, cleansing breath, Trapper said, “And peaceful…finally.”

“You’re not disappointed that I wanted to stay in tonight, are you?” she asked, leaning her cheek into his.

“Whatever gave you that idea?” he responded softly as he placed small, light kisses upon her neck.

“You said you wanted to celebrate.  This isn’t exactly what I’d call a celebration.”

Turning her and holding her tightly against him, he looked into her eyes, and then moved a stray hair that had blown across her face.  “And why can’t two people celebrate alone?   We’ve got dinner on the grill, good wine, soft music playing in the background, a view of the sunset all to ourselves, and best of all, no pagers to interrupt our evening.”  As he bent to kiss her, he said, “Maybe we can finish what we started when this whole mess began.”

Leah’s hands found their way to his back where she stroked his muscles as they enjoyed a long, deep kiss.  In the midst of a second, hungrier kiss, the wind shifted, sending smoke from the grill their way.

“Mm.  Wait,” said Leah, attempting to extract herself only to find that Trapper had hold of her lower lip and was hesitant to let it go.  “Trap…”  She giggled at his nibble.  “Something’s…burning.”

He raised his head and looked toward the grill.  “Duty calls, my dear,” he said, releasing his hold, but grasping her chin for one more quick kiss.  While Trapper tended their dinner, Leah went to the kitchen and retrieved their wine, handing a glass to Trapper as he settled on one of the chaise lounges.  He held Leah’s glass while she maneuvered her cast to a comfortable position on the chaise beside him.

After sitting quietly enjoying the fading oranges and pinks in the sky, Trapper asked, “Have you thought about what you’re going to do with the money?”

“I have.  The only place in this area for children who need long term care besides the cancer centers is the Children’s Hospital at the University, and they’re overcrowded.  The cancer centers don’t have a separate facility for children, so children who go there are mixed in with the adults, and the kids get lonely and scared because of all the noise associated with caring for dying people…the machines, the codes being called, and the staff running through the halls to get to the rooms.   That’s no place for a kid who doesn’t even understand what’s happening to himself.”  She took a sip of wine, and then took a deep breath.  “I haven’t even been to Peds at the hospital.  Gloria was telling my why the ward children were there; that most of them were admitted by Child Protective Services.”

Taking her hand, Trapper said, “I don’t think you should visit the Peds ward.   The children there are very accepting of a smiling face, but I think going to see them will do you more harm than good.  It’s one thing for a child to have an illness where there’s no fault to place, but I don’t believe your heart…not the physical one…could handle seeing kids abused by their relatives.”

“There’s no place at the hospital, except in the general population, for children who need long term care.  All the area hospitals send them to Children’s and sometimes they miss the extra attention they need because it’s so crowded.  So I’d like to find out what it would cost to fund a new wing at San Francisco Memorial as a long term care ward for children.”

Smiling, Trapper set his wine down on a side table and turned, moving her hand to his lips.  “Are you sure this is what you want to do with it?”

Returning a warm smile, she answered, “I’m sure.  I just don’t know where to start.  Will you help me?”

Trapper got up from his chaise and walked back to the grill, turning their dinner and checking it for doneness.  “First, you have to figure out how you want it set up.  Do you want it to be under the hospital’s non-profit umbrella or do you want its own separate designation.  Do you want it to be an outright gift or do you want to set up a foundation for endowments?”

“I didn’t know it was going to be that complicated,” she said, biting her lip.  “I have no idea what would be the better way to make sure it maintains adequate funding.  I don’t even know if one and a half million is adequate funding to start.”

Trapper prepared two plates from the food on the grill and took the plates to a small table further down on the narrow deck.  Then he went back to the chaise, offering his hand to help Leah up.  When they were seated, he refilled their wine glasses.  “I assume Albert has financial advisors he consults regarding your investments.  If Albert could set up a meeting when them, I think you’ll get your questions answered about the best way to set it up.  And I think I can help you find an architect who can help you with a conceptual drawing.  Of course, you’ll have to present it to the board, but I don’t think they’ve ever turned down a paid addition to the hospital.  You’ll have to have all the information together before you talk to them.”

“So you think it’s a good idea?”

“You earned that money the hard way.  You deserve it.  Don’t let anyone try to tell you what to do with it.”  He split his grilled potato and added sour cream.  “And yes, I think it’s a wonderful idea,” he said, winking.

Once the dinner dishes were cleaned and put away, the two wandered back out to the deck, listening to the music from Leah’s stereo and slowly dancing in a small circle.

“How’s your foot?”

“What foot?” she answered, smiling as she moved her hand to the back of his neck and guided him down into a light kiss.  As they spoke, their lips frequently met in light touches.

“The one with the cast.  You’re supposed to be propping it up.”

“Oh yeah.  That foot.  I’d rather dance.”

“I have a better idea.  Why don’t we go to bed early so we can get up early and take a drive up the coast tomorrow?”

“But I’m not sleepy.”

“I can take care of that.”

“Dr. Gates will not be happy with you.  You’re supposed to avoid strenuous activity.”

“I don’t plan on telling Dr. Gates.  And besides, there’s something to be said for slow and easy.”

She giggled.  “I hate to kill the moment, but I have to go to work tomorrow.”

“Dr. Gates will not be happy with you either.  You’re supposed to be resting.”

“Well, I have to make sure David is sound in his new position before I leave.  And I’ll be interviewing someone for the new project manager position tomorrow.  After that, I will rest.”

“Then how about tomorrow afternoon?”

“For what?”

“A drive up the coast.  I know this little inn in Albion with rooms that look over the cliffs to the ocean.  We could stop in the little towns, take a look around…relax.”

“Sounds like a plan,” she said, wrapping both arms around his neck and accepting a long, deep kiss that set the mood for the rest of the evening.

***

With the Jeep packed, Trapper helped Leah into the passenger seat, then climbed behind the wheel and pulled out of the driveway.  “Did Gonzo clear you to drive?”  asked Leah.

Glancing over and smiling, he answered, “I am a doctor…a more experienced doctor.  I don’t need to ask Gonzo if I can drive.”

“It’s said that doctors make the worst patients.”

“We do have the Jeep, and you know where I got it.”

Laughing, she asked, “Was he disappointed?”

“Devastated,” he chuckled.  “I thought we’d take our time going up Highway 1, stay the night at Albion, and then go up into the coastal redwoods.  We’ll get a cabin for a few nights and wander through the groves.”

“Sounds delightful,” she said with a wide grin before she put on her sunglasses and lay her head back on the headrest, enjoying the ride.

“How did your morning go?”

“David’s going to do fine while I’m gone.  He has a good understanding of the system.  I went ahead and made out the work schedules for the next week for the tape library and the console operator.  Some of the programmers will be manning those positions until I can get people hired for that.   And I went to see Mike.  He’s coming back as a full time hire, so I’ll probably make him supervisor over the data center folks.”

“What about the interview?”

She hesitated answering until he glanced at her with raised brows.  “Frieda always interviews well.  She knows her stuff, and she knows the health care industry.  She’s ambitious.   I think I’m going to have to rein her in some.”

He arched an eyebrow and wore a mischievous smile that she couldn’t see.  “Am I hearing you’ll have some competition for your job?”

“Oh, most definitely.   She’s quite capable, except that she sometimes pushes too hard and puts people off.   The bad part is that it’s personal for her, and she doesn’t hesitate to let you know it’s personal either.”

“If she’s that difficult, why are you considering her?”

“Because, I would say, though it’s hard…I mean, I do have an ego…she’s as technically capable as me.  And if I can work with her for awhile, maybe I can work that bad part out of her.  I’ve only worked with her for a few months in the past before she’s moved on.”   Leah looked over at him, but then bowed her head.  “If I decide I don’t like the politics, I’m going to look for something else.   I don’t know what I’ll find after the fiasco with Doug, but I’m sure there’s something out there where he has no influence.”

“You mean in San Francisco.”

She raised her head from the headrest and removed her sunglasses, turning to him. “San Francisco is the first place I’ll look, but Trapper, if I don’t find something, I’ll have to look further out…like San Jose…maybe even Sacramento.”

“San Jose isn’t that far away.  Sacramento…”

Moving her hand to his thigh, she said, “There’s no reason to worry about it at the moment.  I haven’t had to worry about the politics just yet, and I have something else that will probably keep me here for awhile, and that’s the children’s wing.”

Trapper smiled and lifted her hand to his lips.  Leah leaned back against the headrest again, and went back to enjoying the views.  For the next hour, Trapper pondered his options if she did decide to leave her job at the hospital.  San Jose was doable, but he didn’t want her as far away as Sacramento.  The fact was he didn’t want her to leave the hospital at all.  He began to consider permanence in their relationship.