“Nice to see you again.” Ken held out his hand, and she put hers into it. The man’s hair was completely silver but only made him look more distinguished. He was probably in his late fifties but looked far younger and still handsome, a glimpse of how gracefully Cal would age. Probably his brother, too.
Brad cleared his throat. “Em,” he said.
“Hi.” She couldn’t go wrong being succinct and polite.
She’d met Cal’s family on numerous occasions. She knew how warm they could be and keenly felt the absence of it now.
“This is Annie,” Cal said, grinning proudly.
“She’s beautiful.” Carol’s blue eyes grew soft, tender and teary. “Cal says you named her after me and your mother.”
Em nodded. “That’s right. Ann Marie.”
“Do you think she’ll come to me?” Carol asked.
“She’s a little shy at first,” Cal said. “I had to bribe her. My daughter has a definite materialistic streak.”
Em glanced around the room and its expensive furnishings. “And who do you think she gets it from?”
Brad laughed. “She’s got you there, bro.”
Carol held out her arms to her granddaughter and smiled warmly. “Hi, sweetheart. Will you let Grandma hold you?” Annie went to her without hesitation and the older woman cuddled her close. “She’s completely adorable.”
Cal looked puzzled. “How come she didn’t cry for you?”
“I think it’s a guy thing,” Em said. “She’s a little standoffish with men.”
“Way to go, Annie,” Cal said. Uncle Brad and his father nodded approvingly.
“Do you think she’d like to go in the pool?” Carol asked.
“She loves her bath,” Emily said, noticing for the first time that everyone was dressed for swimming, the older woman wearing a cover-up over her one-piece suit. “I brought her bathing suit and sunscreen and a hat.”
Cal handed his mother the diaper bag. “Go for it, Mom.”
“Is it all right with you, Emily?”
“Of course.”
After getting Annie ready, Carol carried her outside followed by Cal and his brother. From where she stood, Em could see the crystal-clear pool, wrought-iron fence and the golf course with lake beyond. She followed more slowly to give them some space and took a padded chair in the shade of the patio cover complete with misters.
Ken offered her a cold drink, then sat beside her. “How’ve you been, Emily?”
“Fine. And you?”
“Good. Carol’s been after me to slow down. She wants to do some traveling so I’ve added another doctor to my practice.”
She knew his specialty was internal medicine. Both of his sons were doctors, but each had chosen different fields. “Do you have any trips planned?”
“We’re taking a cruise to Alaska. Always said we wanted to go where it was cold when Vegas was hotter than the face of the sun.”
Em wouldn’t have thought it possible, but she laughed. “When are you going?”
“In September. We’re flying to Juneau, catching the boat for a repositioning cruise that goes to San Diego and winds up in L.A.”
He was watching his wife bounce the laughing baby in the pool while Cal and Brad stood by like vigilant guardians. Em had to admit that Annie’s father was really something. Tall, tan, fit and fine. His broad shoulders tapered to a trim waist and flat belly. The dusting of hair on his chest brought back memories of twisted sheets and tantalizing touches. Her heart skipped once, then speeded up and suddenly she was hotter than the face of the sun.
She swallowed and pushed the image from her mind. Focus, she told herself. “The trip sounds wonderful.”
“Not as wonderful as finding out we have a grandchild.”
She glanced at him and didn’t see hostility. “Yes, sir, about that. If you’ll let me explain—”
“Cal told us.”
“Everything?”
“He said you raised the subject of children and he cut you off with a speech about going it alone.”
“That’s the truth, Mr. Westen.”
“You sound surprised.”
“I guess I am. I wouldn’t blame Cal if he embellished and painted me in a bad light.”
“Cal’s a stickler for the truth, even if he doesn’t get the sympathy vote on this one. And you used to call me Ken,” he reminded her.
“That was before I didn’t tell your son he was a father. But,” she added, “I had my reasons.” She glanced at him. “In my past, there are some things I—I’d rather not talk about.”
“I understand.” He nodded. “And you’ll understand that Cal has a past, too.”
Em held the soda can tightly in her hands and felt the aluminum give way. “Doesn’t everyone?”
“Some more than others.” He met her gaze. “Did he tell you about his marriage?”
Cal married? Mercy Medical’s playboy had once taken the plunge? He’d only told her he wasn’t married and she’d assumed that meant he’d never tied the knot. “No. He never mentioned it.”
Ken took a sip of his soda. “That doesn’t surprise me.”
“Why?”
“Since he’s no longer married, you can assume it didn’t go well,” he said wryly.
“What happened?” She wanted to ask what the woman had done to him that made him avoid commitment like radioactive fallout. It would explain a lot about why he’d shut her down tight as a high-rise during a bomb threat.
“The fact that he didn’t say anything to you would imply that it’s still too painful for him to talk about.” Ken met her gaze. “I’ve probably said too much already. It’s Cal’s story to tell. Or not.”
She nodded even though curiosity was clawing through her. She looked at Cal, taking Annie from his mom and lifting her high to make her giggle, then lowering her slowly into the water where she splashed happily. Clearly when he’d said nothing could compel him to commit, he hadn’t meant a child.
“I should have told him anyway,” she said softly. “I—I didn’t mean to hurt him. Or you. And Mrs. Westen.”
“We were surprised. And hurt that we missed her beginning.” Ken looked over and his expression was filled with gentle censure. “But for Annie’s sake we all need to put that behind us and move forward.”
“Can you?” she asked.
“Time will tell.”
“Fair enough.”
And she sincerely meant that.
Em had expected animosity and accusation but Cal’s family was trying. And she could tell by the way they looked at Annie that it was love at first sight with the little girl. Cal’s little girl. The child of their child.
A peace swept over her for the first time since she’d found the lump. If anything happened to her she knew Annie would be loved and cared for. No matter what happened, her little girl would have the family that Emily had only ever been able to dream about.
Among other dreams. One of which was kissing Cal again even though it was a red-flag warning of fire danger. Telling him the truth had eliminated her worry about Annie’s future. Unfortunately it was replaced by concern about her own and how in the world she would handle him being in her life again.
Chapter Six
The day after his daughter’s first birthday party, Cal sat across from his two medical practice partners—Mitch Tenney and Jake Andrews. Once a month they got together for a status meeting and normally he looked forward to it. Not today. The problem was, his mind was working less on the professional and more on the personal.
After Em had left his house with Annie, he and his dad had a long talk. Ken had told him he needed to put the past away for good and concentrate on his daughter. Forgive and forget.
“Not happening,” Cal mumbled.
“Are you paying attention?” Mitch Tenney demanded.
Cal sat up straighter. “Yes.”
“You’re lying,” his partner accused, dark blue eyes intense. But that wasn’t cause for alarm. Mitch was always intense so it wa
s situation normal. “Otherwise you’d be on board with holding up your end of responsibility in this practice when Mercy Medical Center opens the third hospital campus next year.”
“What are you talking about?” Cal asked.
He looked across the mahogany table at Jake Andrews, his other friend and the man responsible for pulling he and Mitch into this trauma group. The three of them were more than partners. They’d met when Cal and Mitch began their residency in trauma intervention at the county hospital in Las Vegas. Jake had been finishing up his surgical residency at the facility and they all clicked.
Jake came up with the idea of pooling their talents for the practice and their business association began. Cal and Mitch contracted their services to Mercy Medical Center to staff the E.R. and Jake was called in when surgical intervention was necessary to save a life.
Mitch pointed to the typed agendas on the table. “Pay attention. We have things to discuss.”
“Yes, Mother,” Cal said, saluting sharply.
Not so long ago Mitch Tenney had been a bullet point on the monthly agenda, in hot water for his no-holds-barred, straightforward, take-no-prisoners style of practicing medicine. He said what he thought and let the chips fall where they may. Arnold Ryan, Mercy Medical’s hospital administrator, had made a lot of noise about not renewing their contract. The situation had since been resolved with conflict-resolution counseling.
“Stand down, guys,” Jake said, gray eyes serious.
They called him Dr. GQ, and not just because of his beach-resort tan and tautly toned abs. You could fry an egg on the sidewalk outside, but Jake Andrews didn’t know the meaning of casual. He wore a crisp white dress shirt, an expensive red silk tie and black slacks that could be Armani. Every dark brown hair was in place thanks to haircuts in the four-hundred-dollars-a-pop range.
“We’ve got business to discuss,” he added. “And the next order of business is recruiting for the practice. With the new Mercy Medical campus opening, we need to find a couple of quality docs or kiss a personal life goodbye.”
Cal’s personal life wasn’t in the best shape anyway and a kiss goodbye could be a good thing. Then again, time with Annie was a priority now. “The county hospital where we trained is a good place to start looking.”
Jake nodded. “I agree. So who’s going to take the lead on that?”
“I thought you were.” Mitch pulled his pager out of his blue scrubs shirt pocket and checked the display, then replaced it. “After all, you showed impeccable judgment with Cal and I.”
“And it’s a good thing humility wasn’t the decisive factor.” Jake tapped his Mont Blanc pen on the legal pad in front of him. “Maybe one of you could step up and take point on personnel? Mitch? You’re not on probation anymore.”
“Oh, for Pete’s sake. Am I ever going to live that down?”
“No,” his two friends said together. Jake added, “It’s carved in stone on our agenda.”
“Look,” Mitch said, resting his forearms on the table. “That particular problem is old news. I’m making nice with everyone at the hospital from staff to the administrator.”
“It helps,” Cal pointed out, “when the administrator in question is your father-in-law.”
Mitch grinned the grin that made women far and wide regret that he was off the dating market. “He isn’t such a bad guy.”
“Since when?” Jake wanted to know.
“Since he’s going to be a grandfather any day now. Sam put him on notice. If he wants a relationship with his daughter and grandchild, he has to be on his best behavior.”
“So you’re hiding behind a woman’s skirts?” Cal clarified.
“As long as my wife is wearing it, you bet I am,” Mitch declared. “I’m going on record here—impending grandfatherhood has mellowed Arnold Ryan.”
Samantha Ryan Tenney had been Mitch’s conflict-resolution counselor and during those first few weeks they did more than discuss his attitude. The two had only been married a couple of months, but were expecting their baby any day now.
“How is Sam?” Cal asked.
“She’s retaining enough water in her ankles to float the largest aircraft carrier in the Pacific fleet,” he answered. “Her words, not mine.”
“Wow.” Cal stared in amazement. “She’s really good at her job, isn’t she? There’s no other explanation for this diplomatic streak you’ve got going.”
“Bite me,” Mitch said grinning. “Seriously, she’s healthy and Rebecca—”
“Rebecca Hamilton? The ob-gyn?” Cal wanted to know.
“Yeah. She says the baby is fine and will come in his own good time.”
“It’s a boy?” Jake asked.
“Of course.”
Cal looked at him. “Do you know for sure?”
“Sam wants to be surprised. But I know,” he said.
“Because?” Cal pushed.
“I want a boy.”
“What’s wrong with a girl?” Cal demanded.
“Absolutely nothing. But Sam knows that my preference is a boy first.”
“And when you say jump, Sam asks how high?” Jake wanted to know.
“Hardly.” Mitch laughed ruefully. “But we’ve talked about a boy first who can look after a little sister.”
Interesting, Cal thought. “You want more kids?”
“We have to get through this one,” Mitch said, intensity sneaking back into his eyes.
“You’re a nervous father-to-be,” Jake commented, sounding surprised.
“What’s there to be nervous about? I’m a doctor and childbirth is the most natural thing in the world.” Mitch checked his pager again. “Hell, yes, I’m nervous. I’ve never done this before—expecting a baby, I mean. I’ve delivered them. I treat patients who come into the emergency room and I’m pretty darn good at that. But the situation is different when you’re emotionally invested. Training, intelligence and common sense go right out the window when someone you love is involved.”
Cal knew exactly what he meant. His medical specialty was pediatric emergency intervention, but when it came to Annie, training didn’t take away the tightness in his chest. He wondered how he would have felt if he’d known Emily was pregnant with Annie. He’d have been there when his child was born. That much he knew. But Em had cheated him out of the chance to be excited ahead of time and he never had the opportunity to hand out cigars along with the news of his firstborn. The option of whether or not to find out if she was a boy or a girl had been stolen along with the experience of being surprised. Would he have been nervous? He’d never know.
“So,” Jake said to their partner, “you’re going to be a father soon. I guess you’ll be a little too busy to take on the project of adding docs to the practice.” He looked at Cal. “That leaves you.”
Cal nodded. “I’ll help out with that. But—”
“What?” Jake asked, eyes narrowing.
“You’re the heart and soul of this medical practice,” Cal said. “I’m a little surprised that you’re delegating.”
“Funny you should say that. I’ll be campaigning for the position of Trauma Medical Director at the new Mercy Medical campus.” Jake put the pricey pen down and looked at them, waiting for a reaction.
Cal grinned at him. “You’re the best trauma surgeon in the valley. The medical board would be crazy not to appoint you.”
“I’m not the only candidate. There’s some talented competition,” Jake said.
“You’ll get it,” Mitch predicted. “And when you do this group’s standing in the medical community will do some serious kick-ass upward mobility.”
“Not bad for a boy from the wrong side of the tracks.”
Jake’s softly spoken comment probably wasn’t meant to be heard, and both Mitch and Cal didn’t question him. None of them talked much about what happened before they met. There was something about life-and-death trauma that made you live in the now.
“So,” Jake said, “you’ll both help with recruiting as much as poss
ible?” When they agreed to that, he looked down at the notes in front of him. “Then I guess that about covers this meeting. Is there any other business?”
“Yeah.”
Cal looked at his friends. He hadn’t planned to talk about what was going on with him, but he had a child to think about and that would impact his available time for the “as much as possible” part of recruiting for the practice. His partners had a right to know. “I need to tell you why I’m reluctant to commit a lot of time for vetting new doctors.”
“You mean other than cutting into your time with the ladies?” Mitch said.
“One lady in particular,” Cal clarified.
“One? You’re abandoning the ‘axis of attraction’?” Jake asked, referring to their nickname at Mercy Medical Center. At least it had been.
“Technically, Mitch already deserted the bachelor ranks,” Cal reminded him. “And the female I’m talking about isn’t a lady yet. She’s my daughter and just turned one.”
It wasn’t often his partners were rendered speechless, but they were now.
Jake tugged on his ear. “I’m sorry. It sounded like you just said you have a one-year-old.”
“I do. Her name is Annie.”
“Does she have a mother?” Mitch asked.
“Emily Summers.”
The two of them speechless twice in less than a minute must be some kind of a world record.
“I always liked Emily,” Jake finally said.
“Me, too.” Mitch looked at his pager, then slid it back into his pocket. “And when things didn’t work out with the two of you, I wondered what you did to scare her off.”
“What makes you think it was me?” Cal demanded.
“Because you’re you. And Em is one of the good ones.” Jake leaned back in his chair. “Now that the two of you are together and you’re off the market, I’m the lone holdout. Single and—”
“Sassy,” Cal said sarcastically. “But here’s the thing—Em and I aren’t together. She came to me a couple weeks ago and told me that she had my baby.” Her medical reasons for doing it were private and not something he would share without her permission. “I’m waiting for DNA confirmation, but the resemblance to my side of the family is pretty convincing evidence.”
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