by Lee Taylor
"I had to drop off my niece, and the traffic was horrible."
"Yeah, yeah, save it for the boss." Maryanne shoved the bouquet into Vera's hands.
"Hey, I covered you yesterday after your long break. Jerry from Security said you saved a patient's life. What happened?"
"I'll tell you later." Maryanne went back to her computer and navigated to her patient schedule. Lucas Knight's booming laughter echoed from the day before. He hadn't respected her, thought she was easy. Jerk!
Priya tapped her shoulder. "Your first patient's here, and those flowers are for you. Vera took them to Bariatrics to hold them."
"Who are they from?"
"Ask Vera," Priya said. "But you better tell whoever it is to stop."
Maryanne thanked her. Priya was the one who convinced Maryanne and Vera to quit sex and wait for a marriage proposal. All that resulted were several men who went all out and lost interest when she wouldn't put out. Not that they had bodies worth compromising for. Not like an athlete's with firm, taut muscles. She shook off the image of Lucas' inviting chest and picked up Mrs. Soto's paperwork.
Greeting Mrs. Soto, Maryanne led the way to the examination room. She turned a corner and bumped into an open file drawer. Charts scattered on the floor. Maryanne grumbled under her breath and felt like punching the wall. Why was she so easily frustrated these days?
"Feeling okay?" Mrs. Soto said while Maryanne picked up the papers. The motherly-looking woman was a longtime patient and always gave the younger nurses advice. "Man trouble?"
Maryanne attached a blood pressure cuff and pressed the button to start the reading. "Just the usual jerks hitting on me."
Mrs. Soto's eyebrows bent in a quizzical angle. "Hold out for the one who's different. Remember what we talked about last time?"
"Yes, don't give in." Maryanne detached the cuff. "Normal, 125/76, you're doing great."
Mrs. Soto rubbed her arm. "There'll be someone who thinks you're special. Mark my words."
If only there were. Maryanne entered the data for the breathing test and encouraged Mrs. Soto while she took a deep breath and blew into the tube.
She left Mrs. Soto in the doctor's office and called another patient for a skin test. She had nonstop allergy shots the rest of the morning and used her break to catch up on patient e-mails. When lunchtime rolled around, she was the last one left.
Maryanne slung her purse over her shoulder and pushed the button to lower the rolling shutters to the waiting room. She swept scattered plant and flower fragments from the counter to the wastebasket. A light-brown hand slipped under the corrugated metal right before it hit the counter top. Maryanne tripped over the receptionist chair and missed the switch, but the shutters reversed automatically.
Lucas Knight flashed a sideways grin and rubbed his upper arm. "My arm's swollen, and I wonder if you could take a look at it."
Yeah, right. More like something else is swollen. She pushed the button to lower the shutters. "Sorry, I'm on lunch break. Don't try that again."
She locked the clinic and strode past him, keeping her eyes averted. His footsteps paced behind her. The automatic doors opened, and bright sunlight assaulted her. She fumbled in her purse for her sunglasses, and her EpiPen fell onto the ground.
Lucas picked it up. "Ever poke yourself with one of these?"
"Haven't had the pleasure." She put on her sunglasses.
His upper lip twitched. "Want me to try?"
She snatched the EpiPen and marched toward her car. Maybe if she ignored him, treated him like a pesky mosquito, he'd get the hint and leave. That fake-choking scene wasn't funny and neither were his pickup lines.
He tailed her to the side of her car. "Nice wheels, a Ford Focus Electric? I've never driven an electric."
"Dealer's down the street." She crossed her arms. This guy had the social skills of a gnat and the body of a stallion. Her eyes involuntarily settled on his too tight jeans. And why did he have to wear those stretchy racing jerseys? The kind with a single zipper down the front.
"I'd rather drive around with you. I'd feel safer with my own nurse." He put his hand out. "Miss Torres, I presume."
He tried too hard. And suave, he wasn't.
"You presume too much, Mr. Knight. I have thirty-five minutes left for lunch, so if you'll kindly return to the waiting room, or better yet, check yourself into the ER, I can have a bite in peace."
"Sure you don't want to bite me instead?"
Maryanne unlocked the car. "Where'd you learn those lines? Saturday night comedy? No, don't bother answering."
He opened the door, and she slid into the driver's seat. His eyes glinting, he bent toward her face. Maryanne held still, not backing away. Her insides tingled. She'd bite first and talk later.
"Call me Lucas, and I'm sorry." He stepped back, leaving Maryanne's lips high and dry.
Buy Hidden Under Her Heart
Click here if you are reading this on a Kindle.
Click here if you are reading this via a Kindle app on another device.
Michal's Window (A Novel: King David's First Wife), a powerful and emotional journey as lived through the eyes of Princess Michal, King David's first wife. Married as a prize, abandoned as a wife, Michal fights to claim her rightful spot next to King David, the man she loves with all her heart.
Excerpt Copyright (c) 2012 Rachelle Ayala
All Rights Reserved
CHAPTER ONE
"Your music displeased King Saul. Useless cur!" Soldiers shoved a man to the ground in front of David.
The man writhed and begged, "Have mercy. I've a family to feed."
A soldier grabbed the man's arm and lashed it to a wooden block. David prayed silently on the man's behalf. The man shrieked as the soldier raised an axe and dropped it on the block, severing the hand. An old man dabbed hot pitch to the bloody stump while the man howled. Another soldier threw a reed flute in the dust. "That's mercy enough for begging."
The king's steward jerked his thumb at David. "You know what you're here for."
David's fingers turned cold and his breath hitched. He entered the courtyard and pulled out his harp. A band of sweat prickled his forehead as he tuned it. Rumor told of a king out of control, unable to lead battles to defend Israel. His physicians had searched the kingdom looking for musicians to calm him and soothe his spirit.
David finished adjusting the pegs. The departing screams of the flutist scratched a chill down his back. How many others had been maimed? He swallowed to wet his dry throat. His playing had better be perfect. So help me, God.
Brisk footsteps crunched on the path, and a servant announced, "Behold, Prince Jonathan."
A tall man with perceptive eyes greeted him. "So, you're the son of Jesse. How was your journey?"
"Fine, my lord." David bowed, wary of the prince's pleasant demeanor. Jonathan wore fine clothing: Egyptian linen, a prayer shawl with blue and silver tassels, and a leather sleeve slung across his chest. A golden crown highlighted his chestnut curls.
David tugged at his tattered shawl to hide the patches on his robe and followed the prince through the garden. Lilies danced in the breeze and the fragrance of jasmine poured over a whitewashed ledge.
Jonathan stopped in front of a wooden door and knocked. "Father, the harpist is here."
"Tell him to wait," a powerful voice called back. "My daughter is reading scripture to me."
Jonathan pushed open the door. "This man sings scripture and weaves the words with music. I promise you'll be delighted."
David gulped back fear. The young prince was so bold. But it wasn't his head on the line.
The king grunted for them to enter. David clutched his harp and stepped into the overheated chamber. The pungent odor of burnt hemp tightened his chest. King Saul, as large a man as rumored, slouched on a gilded couch.
A young woman placed a scroll on the table and stood to leave. David closed his mouth and dropped to the floor. Her stunning beauty drained any trace of composure from his heart.
/>
"Michal, sit. You may stay," the king said.
Michal. David whispered her name. He closed his eyes and moistened his lips. "My king, I'm David, the son of Jesse, your servant."
Jonathan tapped David and pointed to a sheepskin-covered dais at the side of the couch. David took the seat and inhaled to quiet his speeding pulse. He forced his shoulders back and lifted his hands to strum, unable to keep from glancing at the princess. Her gaze drifted from his eyes, to his mouth, to his chest and hands. His throat tightened. How could he sing with her looking at him like that?
The king prodded his daughter, and she lowered her face. David willed his fingers to stretch and caress the taut strings. The harp responded with a sprinkling of chords, and he sang of God's glorious creation and marvelous works. Again, his eyes gravitated toward the princess. And he sang of beauty, grace, and God's loving-kindness.
The princess smiled, lifting an eyebrow. Her father looked at her and thumped his pipe on the table. David flinched, frozen in mid-strum. Panic speared his chest, and he pinpointed his gaze to the floor. The guards at the king's side did not move. Sweat trickled down the side of his face as he counted down the minutes of his life.
"Your music pleases me," the king said. "You're dismissed."
David bowed and backed out of the chamber. The princess stood, graceful and lithe. Her eyes were green and flecked with emotions he could not read. A cascade of rosewood-colored hair swept the challenging tilt of her face. She walked toward him. A thunderbolt slammed his heart, and he could hardly breathe. She belongs to me.
She shut the door.
* * *
My elder sister, Merab, stepped into my room and poked me with her spindle. "Well, Michal, what do you think of Father's new servant?"
I tightened the threads on the loom and adjusted the weights. I had hoped Merab wouldn't notice David. But as usual, she made it her business to inquire about every young man who frequented the palace.
"He's a servant." I lifted my chin and swept a thread off my sleeve. "And besides, I'm not supposed to talk to him."
She twirled her spindle. "All the better. He can't refuse to talk to you. I've always found serving boys very accommodating."
"Well, if you're so interested, why don't you--" I didn't want Merab to toy with David. She had a way of stripping her suitors of their dignity before she refused bride prices rich enough to buy the daughter of Pharaoh.
She tapped my shoulder. "Way below my sights. A shabby servant. And you? Blushing and stammering already. I dare you to kiss him, baby sister. Don't forget to pay Mother's maid to look the other way."
She walked away with a dismissive laugh.
I set my weaving aside. Unlike my sister, I had never spoken to a man alone nor been kissed. But I had observed her tactics. And I was no longer a baby.
Perhaps I would approach David. He appeared humble and kind--and oh, so handsome. And when he sang, he showed a tenderness that made me tremble. And his fingers, solid yet fluid, caressed over chords as delicate as the morning dew.
David. His name meant 'beloved.' Dah-veed. I clicked my tongue and pinched my lower lip with a wet bite. David and Michal. I rolled the words and imagined long walks in the woods and lingering evenings in the moonlight.
I changed into a delicate, rose-colored dress and twisted my hair with a golden comb. A necklace of fiery rubies and matching earrings completed my outfit. Satisfied with my appearance, I opened my door and peered down the corridor.
It was the quiet time right before the evening meal when Mother napped and Father held court. Merab sang love songs in her room, mooning over Adriel, a married friend of our family. What my parents didn't know could fill a book.
I meandered through the garden and slipped past the kitchen to the servants' quarters. What luck! David sat alone on a bench, reading. I stepped to his side, cast my shadow over his scroll and startled him.
"Walk with me." I presented my hand, and he took it. But before he could press it to his lips, I withdrew. "You'll have to catch me first. There's an abandoned guard shack right above the granary on the old section of the palace wall."
Not waiting for a reply, I walked across the storage yard and skipped up the wooden steps. A new set of walls extended a hundred yards beyond, leaving this part of the battlements isolated. Here, I often spied on my brothers while they exercised in the training yard below. I also had a view of my parents' separate bedchambers.
A veiled woman entered my father's chamber. A few years older than I, she was given to my father to promote her father's position. I would have pitied her if she weren't so haughty, although being bed toy to the king was hardly a laudable accomplishment.
"I found you." David appeared at the top of the steps.
"I knew you'd come." I pursed my lips to hide a smile of delight. This was easier than I thought.
"Are you alone?"
"Why no. You're here, aren't you?" I held out my hand. "We haven't been properly introduced. Michal, daughter of Saul, of Gibeah."
He clasped my hand. "David, son of Jesse, of Bethlehem."
His voice as unyielding as his grasp, he swept my palm to his lips. Warm tingles radiated from his kiss. His honey-colored eyes brightened before lowering under gold-tipped lashes.
I leaned toward him. "Have you ever courted a maiden?"
He straightened to release my hand, but I squeezed his fingers and trapped him with my other hand. A fierce blush colored his face. "I've never courted a princess."
"You didn't answer my question."
"Would it matter?" He cocked his head and turned up a corner of his mouth.
"How dare you! Of course, it matters."
"Would it matter that I'm a poor man? A servant of your father?"
I dropped his hand and leaned over the windowsill. The scent of night jasmine wafted from the garden below. "It depends on what you wish for in your heart."
"My wishes or yours?"
"Yours first. Tell me."
He gazed at the horizon. He seemed an intelligent man with a masculine face. Not broad, but angular--strong brows over deep set eyes, a distinctive nose, and a crown of copper-brown hair unruly like my goat-hair pillow. When he settled his eyes on me, I hardly dared to breathe.
"Peace for Israel," he said.
"Is that possible?" I drew closer.
"Yes, if we have peace with God first."
His profound statement stirred my pulse and kindled a flame, an aching, twisting pang. Unable to sustain his probing gaze, I turned toward the setting sun. Its burnished rays bathed the jagged walls of our palace, dappling the rugged hills with shadows of gold, crimson, and brown.
"So you're a man of peace. Very good. What about love? Do you wish for love?"
He took my hand and traced my palm with his thumb.
Oh, my soul. A thrill shot straight to my heart. A lone hawk screeched, banked and crested toward the tip of the disappearing light.
"Princess, how old are you?" His voice deepened.
I hovered into the warmth of his chest. "Ancient. As old as these hills."
"Have you ever been courted?"
I shook my head.
"As old as you say you are and a princess too. Tell me, Michal, have you ever been in love?" He raised my hand to his lips but dropped it without kissing it.
Crickets serenaded the darkening sky with scratchy chirps, accompanied by the throaty croak of a persistent toad. I trembled, and David wrapped his arms around me. His scent pulsed hot with sandalwood, raking me with a newborn sense of longing. And his hands, oh, so firm, tightened around my waist, and his prayer shawl entangled my fingers, and his body, oh, the press of his body. . . made me want. . .
Voices sounded from the courtyard below, and I pulled back from the window ledge.
David turned me into the shadow of the wall. He brushed my lips so lightly I couldn't tell if he had touched me with his breath or his mouth. The wind gusted, and he was gone.
I clung to my shawl, holding in his
warmth, the strength of his shoulders, the excitement of his chest. I had never allowed a man to hold me before. But David was different. He awoke strange and uncontrollable sensations. A tiny star shivered, wavered, and plummeted straight into my heart, mingling with my unspoken wish. And I knew at once why songs are sung and ballads told.
* * *
The sun broke through after a few days of rain. I donned a saffron gown trimmed with golden threads and pulled golden bracelets on my wrists. Mother braided my hair and insisted I wear a scarf. I pulled on a diaphanous one and headed for the wall to enjoy the sun. Unlike Merab, my olive complexioned skin did not burn easily. The small scroll of Ruth under my arm, I climbed the steps two at a time.
David looked up from the bench in the guard shack. His eyes widened, and a smile crept on his face. "Nice day, Princess."
I stopped at the top of the stairs. "I didn't expect to see you here."
"This is such a peaceful place. You don't mind sharing?" He moved his harp to make room.
"Not at all." I scooted next to him, slightly breathless, my body humming with an unsettling frisson. "What are you doing with your harp?"
"Changing strings. Wouldn't want them to break while I play for your father."
My father's temper had raged and thundered with the recent storm. I took David's hand and touched the blisters on the tips of his fingers. "Is my father feeling better?"
"Thankfully, he's settled down. I'm free for the rest of the day." His breath was a little too hot. I giggled and dropped his hand.
"What do you have there?" He pointed to my scroll.
"My favorite story. Ruth and Boaz."
He regarded me with a clandestine smile, shook his head, and pulled a new string onto his harp.
"What?" I shoved the scroll aside. "You know, David. You're on my bench." I removed my scarf and unbraided my hair. "I came here for some sun and quiet."
"Oh, excuse me for intruding." He gathered the loose strings and prepared to leave.
I pressed him down, one finger on his shoulder. "Since you're on my bench, you might as well show me a few things."
