A/N: I really appreciate everyone's comments on chapter 1. I'm so glad that it's being so well-received.

Thanks again to Leiasky for the beta and story direction and to Kaynara for the consult.

Eli rounded the corner into the ER, hoping to track down the wayward Doctor Tam, and found Kaylee instead, pacing the length of the small waiting room, her hands clenched tightly before her.

Pausing for a moment to regard the young woman who he very much considered a daughter, Eli put one of his biggest grins on his face and said, “Kaylee, my dear. Whatever are you doing here?”

Turning at the sound of her name, Kaylee gave him a nervous smile, before meeting the older doctor halfway and embracing him. Stepping back she answered, “Oh, one of the lil’ ones had a fall. Needed to bring him for a cast.”

“Ah, so that’s where Simon went in such a hurry?” Eli’s eyes held their requisite twinkle of good humor. “I should have guessed you were involved. The boy never moves that fast for me.” As Kaylee smiled a bit more widely and a bit more genuinely at this comment, Eli took her hands in his and asked, “So, is everything else all right?”

The wide-eyed look that flashed across Kaylee’s face lasted for only a second, but Eli caught it. The girl was far too cheerful, Eli and his family had long ago determined that. But her good nature was also contagious and given the alternative, Eli would rather spend all his days with a bright light like Kaylee than a sour puss. But her behavior now, nervous and edgy was quite unlike her and Eli, concerned as a friend and physician, was determined to discover its cause.

Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he guided her to a nearby chair and teased lightly, “I know. You’ve finally decided to leave Simon for a somewhat older and far wiser man.”

Kaylee laughed outright at the statement, playfully swatting at his arm. “I’m gonna tell Evelyn you said that.”

Hol