by Leann Harris
“Yeah, I can do it.”
Alex held out her hand. “Let’s shake on it.”
The edge of Sarah’s mouth tilted up and her eyes crinkled as she took Alex’s hand.
The scene unfolding before his eyes touched Derek. He’d heard the first part of the exchange and it had drawn him to the front door. When Alexandra took Sarah in her arms, something deep inside him eased. From this moment forward, he would never again see Alex in the same light. Sarah had needed her, and Alex hadn’t turned away, like Sarah’s mother had.
Maybe his confrontation with Alex yesterday had helped her conquer some of the demons that plagued her. Or at the very least, to face them.
But as grateful as he was, Derek was torn. On the one hand, he wanted Alex to comfort Sarah. Her reassurance as a doctor carried more weight than his as a father. He knew it had cost Alex plenty to share her time in Bosnia with Sarah, and he was grateful. But her actions made his dilemma even worse. The more Alex shared of herself, the stronger the bond between her and Sarah became. And the stronger the bond, then the greater the hurt Sarah would feel when Alex’s replacement showed up and Alex went back to Houston.
And what about him? How would Alex’s leaving affect him?
Maybe she won’t leave, a little hopeful voice in his head whispered. As soon as the thought came, Derek remembered Alex’s angry words to Michael this afternoon, informing him that as soon as they got a nurse out here, she was gone. Alex had never hidden her dislike of this part of Texas, so why all of a sudden did he think she would change her mind?
Love.
He jerked as if someone had punched him in the kidneys. Love? With what—or whom—was she supposed to be in love enough to hold her here in this part of Texas that she had so often said she hated?
Not wanting to answer the question, he pushed open the screen door. The sound drew Sarah’s and Alex’s attention as he casually strolled onto the porch. “The dishes are done.” He leaned against one of the columns supporting the porch roof. “If Alex is going to be staying with us for a while, I think we need to make up a schedule for doing dishes.”
Sarah’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “Dad, you’re going to make her do dishes?”
“The chores still need to be done even if we have company.”
“Your father’s right, Sarah,” Alex replied. “If I stay with you all, then I need to help around the house.”
Derek rubbed his chin. “I guess we could let Alexandra cook, but I don’t think we want that.” He turned to Alex. “Am I right? Do you want to cook or wash dishes?”
Her brow arched in surprise. “For all our health, I’ll do dishes. My reputation as a doctor might suffer if I gave everyone food poisoning. But I can do laundry, dust, sweep. I’ll even volunteer to do the bathroom.”
“Good,” Sarah said, clapping her hands. “You can have it.”
Derek looked at Alex. “You sure you want that job?”
“I don’t have a squeamish stomach, not working where I do.”
“All right, then.” He pushed away from the porch column. “Why don’t we go inside and make out a schedule for the next few weeks.”
* * *
“I’m going to need your help, Derek,” Alex said. She looked up from the tablet she had in her lap to where Derek sat in his recliner.
“Sure.” He set the remote control for the television on the coffee table.
Sarah had gone to bed and Alex had spent the time since planning her testing strategy. “Once I get the PPD tests from Alpine—which I hope will be tomorrow—I’ll need to start testing everyone in town who’s come in contact with Norma.”
He rested his elbows on his knees. “Yes?”
“How do you suggest I get the message out to everyone to come by the clinic and be tested?”
The corner of his mouth curled up and his dimple appeared in his cheek. Now that her outrage over Dr. Shelly’s actions had died down and she could think clearly, it occurred to Alex she was going to be stuck here in this house with Derek. And that was buying trouble by the peck as her daddy always said.
“This is a small town, Alexandra. Probably everyone knows about Norma having TB and that you will be testing the rest of us. I think they’ll show up on the clinic doorstep without any prodding.”
The sound of her name on his lips sent shivers of pleasure through her body. She’d never much cared for her full name, always preferring to be called Alex. But when Derek said her name, with the seductive roughness of his voice, it sounded right for the first time in her life.
The enticing pull this man had over her senses was growing at an exponential rate. She knew whenever he entered a room. She was always aware of his movements, even as she tried to ignore him. The wanting to be held by him, which she was trying to suppress, was growing. If she had to spend a couple of months here in close proximity to him, she didn’t know what would happen.
Oh, yes, you do, her conscience whispered. You know exactly what will happen. And the frightening part was that she didn’t find it scary.
He tilted his head to the side. “Is something wrong?”
Alex could’ve kicked herself for staring at him. “No.”
He nodded, but in the depths of his brown eyes Alex found an answering fascination. She was in big-time trouble here. She felt like a piece of flotsam caught in a whirlpool, unable to control any of the events swirling around her.
“I need more of a plan than just hoping everyone will show up. My med-school professor who taught epidemiology would have a cardiac arrest if I left my strategy to fate. It would be like you sitting in your office, hoping those smugglers turn themselves in.”
“Ouch,” he said with a mock frown on his face. “I guess you told me.”
“You deserved it.”
“You’re right. Tomorrow morning I’ll go with you to every business in town and we’ll explain the situation to them.”
Alex glanced at her notes. “Also, I’ll need to tell Lorraine to send anyone who picks up their mail to me for testing.”
“Those who come into town can alert the others on the ranches to drive in and be tested.”
“That follow-up can wait until I’ve read the contact person’s reaction and know if they’re positive or negative.”
“It’s not going to matter, Alexandra, because everyone on those ranches has been into town to pick up the mail, or get feed for their livestock, or pick up groceries.”
She heaved a deep sigh. “I know. That’s what makes this such a mess.”
She ran her hands through her hair several times. When she glanced up, she found Derek staring at her unbound hair. His gaze found hers, then drifted to her mouth. Her lips tingled and she leaned forward, wanting to taste his kiss again.
The sound of a shot from the drama on the TV broke the intimate moment. “The health department is going to want me to try to find the source of this outbreak.”
“How do you do that?”
“By process of elimination, which I’m sure as a cop you’ll appreciate. It’s like throwing a pebble into a lake and watching the outgoing concentric circles. Norma’s the first confirmed case we have. We test all of her immediate family or the household. If they turn up positive, we test their working associates, each time getting a bigger ring. When the number of positive cases is lower than ten percent, we know this is not the source of the germ. If it’s higher than thirty percent, we know we’ve found a contact point.”
“Do you think just one person is responsible for this or do you think there are several sources of the disease?”
“I don’t know. There was a shipbuilding town in Maine where one man infected everyone. CDC was able to track him down as the source. I hope I can do that here.” She stood. “I think I’ll go to bed. Tomorrow is going to be a long day.”
“Alexandra.” He rose to his feet.
She looked up into his handsome face, which was a definite mistake since she was trying to avoid further entanglements with him. He stole her breath away. What
was it about this man that caused that over-the-top reaction in her? Derek wasn’t the most handsome male she’d ever seen, or the smartest, or had the best body. So what was it?
Chemistry. That’s what it had to be. That and hormones. And yet, there seemed to be more.
She had never subscribed to the theory that there was just one special man for a woman. But here this man was shooting holes in her theory.
His hand came up and cupped the side of her head. The bolt of electricity that ran through her nearly brought her to her knees. His thumb ran over the line of her jaw.
“Thanks for helping Sarah. I know she’s frightened, and you eased her fears.”
Alex had to concentrate to make sense of what he said. “I was glad to do it. It’s part of being a doctor.”
His thumb stopped its movement and his eyes darkened. “I don’t think so. I can’t see Dr. Shelly doing for Sarah what you did.”
“He’s an idiot.”
“Granted.” His thumb found the corner of her mouth. “But I know some of your secrets, Alexandra. It cost you to tell her about Bosnia to get her mind off herself. And for that, you will have my eternal gratitude.”
She would’ve settled for his kiss. It wasn’t smart or wise, but at this point her brain wasn’t working.
As if he heard her, he leaned down and covered her mouth with his. Each time their lips met, it was sweeter and more drugging than the last. Alex moaned at the pleasure rippling through every part of her body. His tongue slipped past her teeth to duel with her tongue as more shivers of delight coursed through her. Beyond the ecstasy, Derek’s actions touched a part of her heart that Alex had kept hidden and protected since her husband’s death years before.
Derek’s free arm slipped around her waist and drew her to his body. Alex felt like warm butter, melting against him.
“Sweet,” Derek whispered as he tilted her head to the side and trailed kisses across her cheek. He lightly bit her ear, then laved it with his tongue. “You are so sweet,” he murmured before recapturing her mouth. His hand moved down her neck over her shoulder to settle on her breast. The heated contact made her gasp. Her breast grew heavy, and she longed to feel his hand on her naked skin.
Fumbling, he tried to pull her T-shirt from her jeans. After wrestling with the material, he succeeded in freeing her shirt and his warm palms on the skin of her back were like heated irons. Sliding his hands up her back, he unhooked her bra and his hands slipped around her sides to cover her breasts. The shock and joy of the contact shot through her. In an instant of blinding insight Alex knew if this went any further, that little part of her heart that still remained intact would be pierced. And when she returned home to Houston, it would shatter. Could she run that risk, to try to live with her heart in pieces the rest of her life?
Fear swamped the passion, snuffing it out. She stepped away from him and tugged down her shirt. Derek’s eyes sought hers, questioning her action.
She stuffed her T-shirt into her jeans. “I think I’d better go to bed.”
“Alexandra.”
“Derek, I’m not ready for this. I’m sorry.”
The jangle of the phone broke into the uncomfortable silence.
Derek answered it. “Hi, Fred. Yes, it’s true. The doc wants you and Carole to come by the clinic to be tested for TB, but come by late in the day to make sure the stuff has arrived from Alpine. Also, spread the word to your customers. Anyone who’s been in contact with Norma needs to be tested.”
Derek stared at Alex while he listened to Fred’s response.
“Dr. Courtland is going to stay here for a while to test everyone and help get things settled. She’s staying until county health can get a replacement.”
Derek smiled and Alex wondered what Fred had said to get that grin. “All right. Goodbye.” He hung up. “What did I tell you? Word spreads quickly in a small town.”
“What did Fred say that made you smile?”
“He pointed out that since you were staying here, he wouldn’t have to drive to Alpine to have his stitches taken out.”
“I’d say Fred’s a practical guy.”
He shifted his weight from one leg to the other, drawing her gaze to his hips. There wasn’t a spare ounce of fat on his lean frame.
Alex jerked her gaze and thoughts from that treacherous path. She gave him a forced smile. “Good night.”
She hurried down the hall, running away from the desire her heart wanted to embrace but her head rejected.
* * *
Derek punched his pillow, hoping to find a more comfortable position. He hadn’t had a decent night’s sleep since Billy Mayer had disabled Alex’s car. He ought to take out his frustration on Billy’s hide, but was it his friend’s fault that Derek was attracted to Alexandra Courtland in a way that he’d not been attracted to any other woman?
No, Billy wasn’t to blame for Derek’s hormones that had come back to life with a burning vengeance.
Turning onto his back, he stared up at the ceiling. The patch of plaster above his bed was becoming as familiar to him as the back of his hand.
As he was following the hairline crack around the room, an odd sound caught his attention. He closed his eyes and listened. The sound came again, and Derek recognized it as a muffled sob. Putting on his jeans, he went to investigate, worried that Sarah was still upset.
The instant he opened his door he heard the sound coming from the kitchen. With a frown he walked down the hall. When he reached the kitchen, he saw Alex, her back to the door. A pan of something was on the stove, but she wasn’t paying attention to it as it smoked. Instead, one of her arms was wrapped around her waist, the other across her chest, her hand covering her mouth.
He came up behind her, reached for the knob on the stove and turned off the burning milk. After removing the pan from the burner, he rested his hand on her back. “Since you’re in here burning milk, it’s my guess you had a bad dream.” He hoped his humor would ease the situation.
She hiccuped and he couldn’t tell if she laughed or was still crying.
He bent to get a look at her face. “Alexandra? Are you all right?”
Her hand trembled over her mouth and her eyes were bright with turmoil.
“Ah, sweetheart,” he said, reaching for her. He turned her in his arms and cradled her head on his shoulder, rocking her back and forth. “What is it, sweetheart? What’s wrong? Was it a dream?”
She shook her head.
“What, Alexandra? Tell me.”
“I couldn’t sleep.” She sniffled and Derek gently tucked several strands of hair behind her ear. “I got to thinking about Sarah. There were so many kids this last year I couldn’t save.” Her voice broke and her body shuddered with her grief.
“Sweetheart, although you’re a skilled doctor, you’re not God. There are things beyond your control.”
“But there’s this fear inside me that I could’ve done something else. Now, when I look at Sarah, I find myself doubting whether or not I’m the best person for this job.” She buried her face against his shoulder.
Derek felt her warm breath on his naked chest. “Alexandra, tell me about one of the people you think you could’ve saved.”
“There was a little boy. He’d just had his fifth birthday when a bomb hit a few feet from him. He lost a leg and several fingers.”
“You operated?”
“Yes.”
“Why did he die?”
“From the infection caused by the wounds. I didn’t have any antibiotics to give him.”
“Would you have given the child the medicine if you’d had it?”
Her head jerked up and she stared at him in amazement. “Of course.”
“Then you did all you could.”
As she considered his words, Derek read the guilt that crushed her heart. “Let go of it, Alexandra. The guilt will only hurt you.”
She searched his face, and he felt her reaching into his heart, seeking the assurance, acceptance and the love she needed. He d
idn’t draw back, didn’t try to hide the desire he had for her, but let her see all that was there.
A single tear rolled down her cheek. “I don’t know if I can.”
Her broken cry spurred him into action. He kissed the corner of her eye, tasting the salty wetness on her skin. “Yes, you can, sweetheart.” His mouth caught hers, and all he knew was that she needed him and that he would give her anything she needed. Even his heart.
His lips devoured hers, wanting to replace grief with passion. She came alive in his arms. Her hand roved over his back, then skimmed around to run through the hair on his chest. Her nails raked over his nipples, bringing a jolt of delight.
She wrenched her mouth away from his and kissed the pulsing column of his neck, then lower until her lips grazed his sensitized nipple.
“Ah, sweet, you don’t know what you’re doing to me.”
Her only response was to slide her hands into the waistband of his jeans. His hands clamped over hers.
“Alexandra, are you sure you want this?”
She looked up at him. The expression in her eyes was like a drowning victim pleading for a lifeline. And he couldn’t deny her.
Sweeping her up into his arms, he carried her to his bedroom. Tenderly he laid her on the bed, then slipped off his jeans before stretching out beside her. His desire for her was obvious, and he wanted her to see him, to make sure this was what she wanted.
When she reached for that part of him, he no longer doubted her decision.
“Whoa, sweetheart. I want you along with me when I experience that glimpse of heaven.”
He untied her robe and removed it from her shoulders. He kissed the smooth skin at the cap of her shoulder, then followed the material down her arm. The inside of her elbow seemed particularly sensitive, bringing a moan from her mouth as he licked and taunted the skin.
Once he had the robe off, he caught the hem of her nightgown and tugged it over her head. She squirmed, helping him get the nightgown from under her body. Her actions only brought her body closer to his, her feminine curves cradling his harder masculine ones.
Derek placed his hand on her abdomen to stop the motion. His control was quickly slipping away from him. If she wiggled one more time, it would be all over.
