Where he needed to be; with Isabel and their child. He’d never been so sure of anything in his life. This all felt like a dream, but he hoped to God it wasn’t, for this had to be one the happiest days of his life.
For months he’d pursued her and tried to charm his way into her life, fearing that each rejection pulled them further apart. But all along the perfect tool for winning Isabel lay within her, growing stronger each day, just like his feelings for her.
A baby…wow. He was still waiting for it to sink in. His initial decision to not have kids had nothing to do with his love for them. In fact, he adored children. But the thought of having another human being—a tiny human being depend on him brought a terror he could not overcome.
Until now.
He looked at Isabel’s belly, seeing the soft rise that gave him a rush of pride. Beneath the surface lay a piece of him and her, joined together as one. Just as how he wanted them to be.
Reaching across, he caressed her belly, grateful when she did not push his hand away. “This is… unreal.”
“I should have told you, I know,” Isabel said, a clear contriteness on her face. “But I was so afraid it would ruin your life.”
Her words brought him fully to the present. “I don’t blame you for keeping it a secret, Isabel. If I were you, I would have done the same. But I’m telling you now that I’m not going anywhere. I’m in this for the long haul.”
Not just for the baby, he thought. If that’s what it takes, I’ll move heaven and earth to convince her that we belong together.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Isabel brushed Luke’s hand away impatiently. “Luke, I got this, okay? I can take the steps on my own.”
“I know, I’m just trying to help.”
“I’m pregnant, not crippled.” Five months along and she was still as fit as a fiddle. She had no need for a walker, human or otherwise. While she admired Luke’s consistency with ensuring she and the baby were okay, she wished he would give her some space.
Having him so close all the time, seeing the soft, caring side to him evoked feelings that she’d worked hard to bury. She did not want these emotions, no. Just a father for her son.
She wished Luke would get it. But he still remained hopeful that she would change her mind one day. His optimism did not help keep her feelings in check, not one bit. In fact, she was this close to giving in to him.
But the parts of her that suffered from Karim’s heartbreak were still in recovery, not fully healed and vulnerable to damage. If she had to face half of what she’d gone through before, there was no way she would get back her feet again.
For the sake of her son, she needed her head and heart in the game.
She didn’t know if she could trust Luke, and she had no intention of testing the waters. He seemed the type to break a woman’s heart. No telling how many he’d left in his wake.
And I don’t plan on being one of them.
“Isabel, slow down.” Luke’s hand braked her to a stop. “I’m sure Claudia won’t mind if you’re a few minutes late.”
If only he knew her hastened steps had nothing to do with getting back to work. She needed to breathe; being around him brought a suffocating feeling, one that made her heart race and her palms sweaty.
The hour they’d spent together in the birthing class downstairs did the opposite of what it was supposed to. There was no relaxation, just a tension that grew worse each time he touched her. She hated to admit it, but a part of her looked forward to those moments when they would connect at some point.
Oh, she wished for so much more than that. So much more…
With her hormones on the rise and her need for sex increasing, she kept going back to their night together. His touch, his hot demanding lips, his powerful strokes within her. If only she could lay her inhibitions aside for another taste. Just one more…
No.
Nothing would be more dangerous than sleeping with Luke. Putting her already fragile heart at risk was an emotional suicide. No way could she keep her emotions in check afterwards. She was already struggling without it.
“Isabel.”
Releasing a harsh breath, she tugged her hand from his grasp. “What, Luke?”
He recoiled, as if she’d slapped him. “Am I being a bother? If I am, you can just say—”
“I don’t need you following me around,” she snapped. “I’m perfectly capable of walking on my own. I’ve been taking care of our baby before you came along. You don’t need to be around all the time.”
“I’m his father, Isabel. I have a right to be around as much as I want.”
Isabel cast a glance upwards before looking back at him. “I know what you’re doing, and for the last time, Luke, it won’t work. You and I will never be together. I don’t know what it’ll take for you to get it, but I don’t want you.”
She wanted to close her eyes to block out the hurt on his face, but she summoned a cold gaze instead. Anything to get him to stop, so she could bury her feelings again.
Luke bit his lips and gave a slow nod. “I get it now. Finally.” He gave her a long stare before saying. “You’ll have your wish. Unless it’s about our son, I won’t bother you again.” And with that, he turned on his heels and walked away, leaving her with a lump in her throat. She wiped her eyes to stop the emerging tears.
There. It’s done. Now I can live my life in peace. She would focus on her pregnancy and her job without having to worry about falling for Luke. Her life was golden, and she wanted to keep it that way.
Then why do I feel so empty?
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“You’re one lucky bird,” Claudia said, slipping into the chair next to Isabel.
“Why, because you’re giving me an extra hour for lunch?” Isabel chuckled as she secured the lock on her computer. “You said I earned it.”
“I’m not talking about your lunch break, silly. I’m talking about Dr. Abrahams.”
At the mention of Luke, Isabel’s heart raced. He’d been true to his word and kept his distance. The result had brought conflicting feelings and she didn’t like them one bit. She detested the side of her that wanted him around.
He would call once a day, checking on the baby, but never asking how she was. And while it had been her request, it still hurt a little.
“Girl, you have no clue what you want,” Dana said, when she poured out her feelings to her. “He’s doing what you asked him to, isn’t he?”
“Yes, but—”
“No buts. The man is moving on. You should do the same.”
Dana was right, of course. The problem was, her feelings wouldn’t allow her to take the first step. They were still stuck on wanting Luke.
Oh, the torture…
“That man’s a pretty good catch,” Claudia was saying. “Women from every single floor; doctors, nurses, patients—you name it—fall head over heels in love with him. I bet they would sell their own mothers for a chance with him.”
“Well, they can have him,” Isabel said. “I’m not interested.”
Liar.
“But that’s the thing. Luke’s never given another woman in this hospital a minute of his time. He’s always been professional. And I should know; I’ve been here since you were in diapers.”
“I have no clue what that means.”
Claudia leaned in and gave her a direct stare. “I think you should cut him some slack, that’s what it means. I know Luke. He’s a tough guy, but he wears his heart on his sleeve. And he has genuine feelings for you.”
“How did you know—”
“The whole hospital knows, Isabel. There’s nothing hidden within these walls, believe me. You’ve managed to get what no other woman could; his affections. Don’t leave him hanging.”
Isabel nodded, but still not convicted. Flattered as she was, she still wasn’t ready for a relationship. But she would extend an olive branch of friendship. That was all she had to offer.
“Is this seat taken?”
Luke look
ed up from his lunch to find Isabel standing over him with a tray in her hand. He wasn’t surprised, but more mind-numbing shocked. She was the last person he expected to see today. After her cold response to him a few weeks ago, he’d given up on trying to win her over. He didn’t want to, but his pride had limits. He’d gotten the message; she did not feel the same way he did.
“Luke.”
“Yeah—uh—I mean, no, it’s not.” To create space, he shifted the tablet to his side of the table. She took the seat with her big brown eyes on him. “How’s the baby?”
Isabel rubbed her stomach with an affectionate smile. “He’s fine. Been kicking up a storm. Kept me up last night.”
The image of him lying next to her, his hand on her belly came strong and vivid. He struggled with the urge to move around the table to touch her.
“How have you been?” she asked.
He shrugged. “Never been better.” That was a lie. Though his head had gotten the message, his heart was still catching up. He didn’t know why she had such an effect on him, but she did, and he was having a hard time shaking it off.
The thought of co-parenting with Isabel while his feelings lingered brought no appeal, but for the sake of their child, he had to put his big boy pants on. There was no other way.
Isabel sighed. “I’m sorry for my response the last time we talked. It wasn’t fair to you.”
“It’s no biggie, ok? You were rude, but I get it. Trust me, I do.”
She swirled her finger around the apple on her tray. “Can we be friends, at least?”
Luke almost laughed. Almost. Isabel had no clue of the carnal thoughts of her that ran through his mind. She would never guess how many times he replayed their initial encounter, how, when his arousal surged to a painful point, he would’ve given a leg to be inside her again. Friends? Nah. He would never see her as a friend.
“I’ll pass,” he said, rising. “I’ll see you later, Isabel.”
“Luke—” she stood as he walked off, and he could hear her heels clicking on the tiles as she followed him. As soon as they were in the hallway she hissed, “now who’s being rude?”
He didn’t answer, just kept walking. Wishing she would stop and get away from him before he did something she would regret.
“Luke. I’m talking to you.”
He stopped near an on-call room and spun to face her. “What do you want?”
“Did I offend you? I said we could be friends.”
Luke scoffed and scanned the hallway traffic. With one swift movement, he clutched her arm and pulled her into the room.
Her protests halted when he braced her against the wall, giving her a look that he hoped communicated his intention. From her wide-eyed stare, she read it, all right.
“We can never be friends, Isabel, ever.” He raised her chin with his index finger and drew his thumb across her cheek. “Because I never want to do this with my friends.” He cupped her ass and pulled her against him, with the rise of her belly between them.
She gasped and closed her eyes with a soft sigh.
“Or this.” His lips grazed her neck, planting soft kisses downwards. Isabel shivered.
He took her arms and raised them overhead against the wall. She stared up at him, her chest rising and falling rapidly. “Or this…” He kissed her, hard, hungry, his strokes purposeful. Isabel moaned against his mouth.
With one hand he kept her arms raised, and with the other he undid the buttons of her blouse. Soon, it opened up to him, revealing a lacy bra that covered her generous mounds. His fingers stroked the delicate material until they found a hard nipple and he pinched it, earning another moan from her. He broke the kiss, released her hands and stepped back, watching her heavy-breathing, disheveled form.
“Still want to be friends?”
Isabel’s heated look lashed him, just before she tore her blouse away and stepped from her skirt. She stood before him in panties and bra and a pair of heels that made his dick hard at once. “I want you to make love to me.”
Luke’s breath paused. Just for a moment. Then with lightning speed, he stripped to the bone and reached for her. They moved to the bed, their lips joined, their hands exploring. Isabel draped her leg over him, her fingers combing his hair, her hips rolling forward.
He could feel the heat from her flesh and knew, even without touching, that she was primed and ready. This wasn’t how he wanted their second encounter to be; not in an on-call room where the pager on his phone could sound any moment. He wanted the intimacy of his own bedroom where he could take it slow. But he would not complain. He thanked the stars that he had this, at least.
He flipped her onto her back, spread her legs and with one deep groan, eased inside her. It was heaven and hell all at once, her sweet, tight sex torturing but giving him pleasure. He knifed through her, losing his mind with every stroke. It was too much, yet not enough. It was real, but out of this world. This was what he’d been waiting for; the undeniable connection.
It wasn’t just about the sex. With Isabel, it was way more than that. Way stronger and…right. He wished she could feel it too. Yes, a short time had passed since they met, but he knew a real thing when he saw it.
Isabel gripped the edge of the bed and arched her back with a wild cry. He kissed her to stifle the sound, and she bit his lip in return. Her body jerked beneath him, prompting his climax, and soon a welcome release took him over.
Just as he pulled her in his arms a beep on his phone sounded. With a heavy, frustrated groan, he raised himself up. For the first time, he didn’t want to answer the call. He wanted to stay and talk to Isabel, to see where her head was, to find some way to make her see that there could be a good thing between them.
“Can we talk, later?” he asked, donning his clothes again.
She hesitated, looking down on her feet. “I don’t know. We’ll see, ok?”
“Oh, come on.” Why were they taking two steps backward?
Isabel rose and reached for her clothes on the floor. “Luke… nothing’s changed, ok? This was amazing, but it can’t mean anything. Let’s just focus on co-parenting, please.”
Luke released a huge rush of air as his phone beeped again. “Have it your way, then.” He pulled the door open and joined the flow of doctors that ran towards the ER.
Anger, and the inevitable emergency pushed him forward. This was it. He was done trying to get to her.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“Earth to Isabel.”
Isabel looked up from her task to Dana’s puzzled frown. “Hey.”
“What are you thinking about?”
“Nothing.” She resumed scrubbing the kitchen sink, adding more liquid soap to an already soaped-up sponge.
Dana sidled up, leaning against the kitchen counter and stared in the sink. “It looks like something to me.”
“I’m just cleaning.”
“An already spotless sink.”
Isabel sighed and turned the tap, running her soapy hands under the flow. She twisted the faucet so the water flowed all around, washing the soap away.
“Come on, Iz. How long have we known each other? I know something’s on your mind. You’ve turned the kitchen upside down. I’ve never seen it so perfect.”
“I’m fine, Dana.” She wiped her hands on the apron around her waist and turned to look at her friend. “But I do have something on my mind—someone.”
“Ooh.” Dana rubbed her hands together. “Give me the tea.”
“Luke and I slept together.”
Dana’s blank expression lasted for a moment before she said, “oh, you mean, again?”
Isabel nodded.
“Hold up. When, where, how? You’ve been home early every night.”
“At work.” Her cheeks warmed as she recalled the heated moment in the on-call room. The memory was even stronger than the first, never leaving her mind. She thought it would have been easy to fuck him and move on; at least, that was all she wanted to do at the time. He’d been so hard to resist; ho
t and sexy, with his intense green eyes doing things to her body that she could not ignore. Just one more taste, she’d thought at the time, but it wasn’t enough. Her sleeplessness last night and the spontaneous cleaning this morning brought home the fact.
Oh, she wanted him. Bad.
Dana’s mouth gaped. “Hold up. Wait a freaking minute. You’ve been holding out on me!”
“There was nothing to tell.” She hung the apron on a rack and settled on a seat. It was late afternoon and she had been cleaning since mid-morning. Her ankles resembled small grapefruits. Exhaustion settled on her shoulders. Still, it wasn’t enough to kill her thoughts of Luke.
If only she’d met him before, when her heart was still intact and she was filled with sanguinity and positive vibes. Before Karim, she would have fallen head over heels with both eyes closed for Luke. He was just the kind of man to evoke such a reaction. It would have been so easy—it was so easy to give in to him. But she couldn’t; she had to remain strong.
“Of course, there’s a whole lot to tell.” Dana pulled up a chair before her and sat with one hand on her hip and the other on her knee. “Spill. Now. And you’re not leaving this seat until you give me the deets.”
“You’re a damn bully.” But she told Dana everything, from the run-in in the elevator to their lovemaking the day before. Dana listened with bright eyes, cupping her cheeks.
“He sounds like such a dream, Iz, and he likes you. Aww.”
Isabel shook her head. “It’s not an ‘aww’ moment, Dana. I’m still getting over what Karim did, and I’m not ready for another relationship. I just want us to get along for the baby’s sake; no sex, no emotions, nothing.”
“Nuh, huh. You’re using Karim’s asshole move as an excuse to wallow in heartbreak. Don’t give him that power. It’s time to move on. And who better to move on with than the father of your child?”
Doctor Love: A Medical Romance Series (Medical Heart Throb Series) Page 5
