Food for the Soul Read Online Free Page B

edge of the mattress and stood on his tiptoes to get a good look at Harper. “Hit your head?”
    “Yup.”
    “Does it hurt?”
    “Nope.”
    “Is your head made of stone?”
    “What?”
    “Grandpa always says Daddy’s head is made of stone, that he has a hard head. Maybe you have a hard head.”
    Harper was charmed by the small creature but worried that perhaps he’d run away from his parents to go exploring.
    “I think you may be right about Harper’s head, and it’s a good thing too. Speaking of your daddy, where is he?” Theo asked, ruffling the boy’s delightfully kinky hair.
    “Sorry. His grandfather couldn’t watch him today, but I still wanted to stop by and check on you,” Flynn said, running in after the small child.
    The charge of delight and attraction in the room amplified. Breathing became a struggle, and she was thankful the little boy and Flynn were currently holding Theo’s attention. In fact, the good doctor looked as confounded as she felt by Flynn’s sudden appearance. There was something between the three of them, and it wasn’t brought on by her messed-up brain, she was sure of it.
    “You were here all night.” Harper’s bruised brain finally registered what he had said. “Is he…?”
    “Mine?” Flynn crouched behind the boy and tickled his ribs. “Yes, though I firmly believe he is part monkey.”
    “Daddy!” The little boy giggled at his father’s outrageous claim.
    Not for the first time since meeting him, Harper checked Flynn’s left ring finger for any sign he was taken. The finger was bare, and there wasn’t a tan line or indentation from a former ring. She glanced up to find he’d caught her looking. She was too inquisitive about his marital state to feel any proper shame for snooping.
    “His mom is out of the picture, has never been in the picture beyond giving birth to him, actually.” Flynn shrugged, smiling down at the small boy who currently was tugging on Dr. Backstrom’s pant leg.
    “Yes?” the doctor asked, leaving the bed to kneel in front of the kid.
    “What’s yer name?”
    “Theo. What’s yours?” Dr. Theo reached his hand out for the small boy to shake. The kid took Theo’s index finger and shook it enthusiastically, looking up at his dad for approval.
    “Very good. Now introduce yourself. He asked what your name was.”
    “I’m Ben.”
    “It’s nice to meet you, Ben.” Dr. Theo looked bewildered by the small rambunctious Ben, but at the same time, Harper could see the boy leaning in and giving himself over to the doctor’s care. There was something achingly powerful in Theo’s bearing, a force of nature that compelled her to trust him; she couldn’t blame the little boy for grinning up at the doctor as he was.
    “Dr. Backstrom?” A male nurse popped into the room, a sour look on his face. “A word, please?”
    In an instant that felt something like a black hole sucking the life out of the room, the warmth retreated from Theo Backstrom’s face and he donned a mask. Harper couldn’t reconcile the cold man who stood to greet the nurse with the happy man from a moment ago. He nodded at them to excuse himself, as though they were strangers, as if he hadn’t spent the last day diligently watching over her when a nurse could have done it all.
    Harper glanced at Flynn to see if he’d noticed the dramatic change. He faced the doorway, but she could still see his profile. His eyebrows turned down, and his mouth had thinned to a slim line of dissatisfaction. It seemed she wasn’t the only one taken aback by Dr. Backstrom’s abrupt shift in character. Perhaps he was like this with all his patients, and the warmth she’d felt was part and parcel with the job. A wave of nausea crested in her stomach, and Harper knew it had nothing to do with her concussion. She glanced over at Flynn again, the unease within increasing. She’d been content with living a solitary life for a long time, dedicating herself to serving others. How could that