“He did a video of my workout today,” he said enthusiastically. “And then he showed me a video of when I first arrived. And it wasn’t even so much what he said as much as I couldseethe progress for myself.”
She beamed. “See? That’s even better. Not only do you no longer have to worry about being kicked out, but you’re also doing so well that you can see that progress yourself.”
“It’s kind of weird that I didn’t see it.”
“Does there have to be a why?”
“I don’t know. I guess I was just too close to the trees to see the forest.”
“That works for me,” she said quietly. “It happens to all of us, you know? Even on a new job, you do the best you can, and it seems like, for a couple weeks or so, everything’s fine. Then absolutely everything possible goes wrong, and you think,Oh, I’m doing the worst I could ever do, and I’ll get fired at any moment. Then, as things calm down, you realize that really you’re doing okay. It’s just you had a couple bad days.”
“I always figured it took a good six weeks to get used to a new job anyway,” Ryatt murmured. “And you’re right. After everything goes wrong in that time period, you’re sure, absolutely positive, that you’ll get fired.”
She grinned. “Yep, that’s just life. The important thing is that you talked to Shane. You went and did something about that fear.”
“But I didn’t,” he said ruefully. “Not until you brought it up.”
“And I’m proud of the fact that you listened to what somebody else had to offer, and you saw the value in it and followed through,” she replied.
“Are you always so”—he shrugged—“nice?” She laughed out loud, the beautiful sound pealing across the deck. He saw other people turning to wonder what was going on in Ryatt’s and Lana’s world, as if maybe those onlookers wanted to have some of that same sunshine themselves.
Ryatt grinned. “I didn’t think my question was that funny.”
“Oh, it was.” She nodded, still chuckling. “And I’m not always like this. As you well know, I also have bad days.”
“Well, if anytime you’ve had a bad day since I’ve been here,” Ryatt noted, “I never noticed it.” She shrugged. “Just because it’s a tougher day doesn’t mean I get to bring down everybody else’s day because of it.”
He winced. “Ouch, that feels like another direct hit.”
“Not at all,” she said firmly. “I’m not the kind of person to send out direct hits.”
“No, but your words are a whole lot more effective because of it.” Ryatt stared at her, fascinated. “It makes me feel like I have to step up to the plate. Otherwise I’ll disappoint you,” he murmured.
She looked at him. “Well, here’s the thing. It’s not like you should try to avoid disappointing me,” she noted, “because that’s not what our relationship’s all about.” She smiled. “You have todo what you need to do so you don’t disappoint yourself.” And, with that, her phone rang. She held up her cell. “I’ve got to get back to work. I’ve been expecting this call.” And she quickly dashed off.
Leaving him wondering, once again, at the wisdom that seemed to be so profound and so plentiful in this place.
Chapter 6
When Lana arrivedat work the next morning, Dani was waiting for her. “Problems?” Lana asked.
“Always.” Dani gave her an eye roll. “Yet nothing more than usual.”
“Oh, good. You had me worried, when I saw you standing there.”
“Worried about what?”
“Getting fired,” she said, with a big grin. “It’s always a concern.”
“Not here. If there was ever a problem, I’d give you a warning. You know that, right?”
“Thanks, and I would assume that.” Lana nodded. “But not everybody is as kind as you are.”
Dani laughed. “Kind or not, I’ve still had to move out people sometimes. However, with you? I need that fresh eye you offer.”
“Have you ever had to ask patients to leave?”
“Yes, just not very often.”