“I repeat that Em is one of the good guys,” Jake said. “And the fact that you’re thinking in terms of personal time management means that if not off the market, you’re at least embracing the spirit of it—being a father, I mean.”
“Congratulations,” Mitch said. “I can’t believe you beat me to it.”
And Cal couldn’t believe his friends hadn’t exhibited manly outrage on his behalf. He’d been lied to, but they seemed genuinely pleased that Em was back in his life. He was struggling with that himself because of some rogue gene that made him want her so badly, in spite of everything she’d done.
* * *
What to do with an ailing, aging parent was a social service that fell into Em’s sphere of expertise. She left the E.R. where she’d met with the patient and family, giving them information on skilled nursing and hospice facilities, as well as facts about finances and programs available to offset some of the cost.
It seemed like the eighty-eight-year-old’s son and his wife were more at peace than when Em had first entered the room and they hadn’t any idea where to turn for help. Knowledge was power and she knew from firsthand experience that having no power over a situation could be a black pit of despair.
Walking down a long, tiled corridor away from the E.R. toward the elevator, she heard footsteps behind her.
Then a man’s questioning voice. “Emily?”
She slowed her step and turned, recognizing the doctor instantly. That’s when she braced herself. “Jake. Hi.”
He stopped in front of her. “It’s been a while.”
“Yeah.” Had he stopped her to tell her off? Cal’s partners were protective of each other. Did Jake know she’d kept the information about Cal’s child from him? His expression gave no clue to his state of mind.
Jake Andrews had Hollywood looks and could play a doctor on TV if he wasn’t the real thing in real life. He was tall, dark and handsome with eyes that were both serious and mysterious. Most physicians dressed casually when making rounds at the hospital, but not Jake. He was wearing a dark charcoal suit, gray shirt that matched his eyes and a black and silver silk tie. Em had always wondered what his story was. He was too nice, too good-looking, too perfect. And too alone.
She knew something about isolating oneself to keep secrets. The same instincts that made her a good social worker told her that Dr. Incredible was hiding something.
“How long have you been back to work at Mercy Medical Center?” he asked.
“Just a couple weeks.” Since not having to avoid Cal any longer.
“Cal, Mitch and I were just talking about you.”
“Oh?”
She shouldn’t mind what Cal’s friends thought, but that didn’t stop her. During the time they’d been together, she’d spent a lot of time with Mitch Tenney and Jake Andrews, long enough to like and respect the two dedicated docs. Long enough to talk herself into believing that a man who hung out with the good guys could be one himself. One who could care about her. Learning she’d been wrong had been a bitter pill to swallow.
Jake slid his hands into his slacks’ pockets. “I hear congratulations are in order for you and Cal. So… Belated congrats on your daughter.”
“Thank you.” Defensive words marched through her mind, but she managed not to let any of them out. “Annie is a blessing and a joy.”
“One you didn’t see fit to share with her father. Until now.” Disapproval hardened his jaw and mouth. “What the hell were you thinking, Em? That’s something a guy needs to know.”
“I understand that. Now.” She drew in a shuddering breath. “But when I tried to tell him I was pregnant, everything he said convinced me that he didn’t want kids. The words stuck in my throat.”
“How come now?”
Obviously Cal hadn’t told his partners about her health concerns. It was her information to share and she did. “I have a lump in my breast. Something like that makes you realize stuff happens and if I wasn’t around, Annie would be alone.”
“I see.” He was quiet for several moments, processing her words, deciding what to say. “Have you had it checked out?”
She nodded. “I’m scheduled for an ultrasound this Friday.”
“Good.”
“Look, Jake, I know now that it was a bad idea to keep Annie from Cal. I have my reasons, but that doesn’t justify not telling him he was going to be a father. All I can do is my best to right the wrong.”
“Okay.”
“It’s hard not to judge, I know.” She shook her head. “But put yourself in my shoes.”
One corner of his mouth quirked up. “Anatomically speaking, I can never walk in your shoes.”
“Right. Let me elaborate. I was drowning in hormones, morning sickness lasted twenty-four hours a day, all of which made me an emotional wreck.” She sighed. “Anyway, I handled it badly and Cal is resentful. Great with his daughter, but not so much with me. Although I can’t really blame him.”
“Look, Em—” Jake touched a hand to his impeccably knotted tie. “I’ll deny saying this if anyone asks, but Cal isn’t as tough as he pretends.”
“What do you mean?”
“I can’t give you specifics partly because he’s my friend. Mostly because I don’t know any.”
She folded her arms over her chest as she looked up at him. “He’s your friend and you have no details?”
“I’m a guy.” He shrugged. “We don’t talk about everything or pry into each other’s lives. I just know that he was going through a rough time when I first met him.”
“What kind of a rough time?”
“Like I said, I have no details and wouldn’t give them up if I did. But when he started his residency at the county hospital, his wife was brought into the E.R.—”
“Wife?” she interrupted. What his dad said had been the first she’d heard about Cal’s previous marriage. Since then curiosity about it had been her new best friend.
“Look, all I know is that he had personal problems before the divorce. So don’t be too hard on him.”
“Maybe you should do the same and not be too hard on me?” she asked. “For the record I want to be a guy and not talk about stuff.”
He grinned. “Fair enough. It’s really good to have you back, Em.”
“Thanks. I’ve missed Mercy Medical Center.”
“The feeling is mutual.” For the first time, warmth crept into his eyes. “And you’re a mom.”
“Yeah. Can you believe it?”
“Absolutely. What’s hard to wrap my head around is Cal Westen being a dad.”
Tenderness welled up inside her. “He’s so wonderful with Annie. She was standoffish at first, but persistence is his middle name.”
“I’ve noticed that about him.”
“He bought out the toy store and that got his daughter’s attention in a big way.”
Jake laughed. “I bet it did.”
“He was very up front about spoiling her rotten in his campaign to win her affections.”
“Good for him.” He glanced at the TAG Heuer watch on his wrist and frowned. “I have to get going. A meeting—”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to talk your ear off.”
“I’m glad I ran into you and cleared the air. There are two sides to every story.” He took a step forward and gave her a hug. “I’ll look forward to seeing you—”
“Seeing her when?”
Em disengaged from Jake and turned toward the familiar deep voice. “Cal, I was—”
“Saying hi to my partner,” he said.
Em wasn’t sure why the hostility in his tone should make her feel guilty, but it did and the explanation came pouring out. “I was in the E.R. talking to some clients and ran into Jake on the way back to my office.”
“Really?” Cal crossed his arms over his chest, and the sleeves of his scrubs pulled tight around the muscles in his upper arms.
The attitude and posture made her heart sing, which was crazy. But true.
“Yeah,” Jake
said. “Em was just telling me about your daughter.”
“Was she?” He glanced down at her.
“And I was telling Jake what a terrific father you are,” she said.
“I see.” The tone said he didn’t see at all.
Jake frowned. “Someone’s having a bad day. People aren’t playing nice?”
“Maybe too nice,” Cal muttered, glaring at his friend.
“If you’d gone into surgery instead of the medical end, the people you interact with would be anesthetized,” Jake pointed out.
“So you’ve mentioned more than once.”
“My advice is an attitude adjustment,” Jake said, grinning at his friend. Apparently he was accustomed to Cal’s rotten moods. “Call me if surgery is required, but right now I’m late for a meeting with the hospital board. Bye, Em.”
“Good to see you, Jake.” She watched him walk down the hallway and turn right at the next corridor. Then she looked up at Cal and tried to think of something innocuous to say. “Annie had a good time at your house on Sunday.”
“I’m glad.” He ran his fingers through his hair, then met her gaze. “My folks are pretty happy about being grandparents.”
“They’re really great with her.” Which must be where their son acquired the skill. “She really likes the toy tea cart they gave her.”
“Oh?”
Em smiled up at him. “She loves pushing the thing around. It helps with her balance and walking. Just a little girly girl.”
He hadn’t smiled once since seeing her with Jake and in fact frowned harder. “Where is Annie, by the way?”
“Nooks and Nannies, the day-care center.”
“What do you know about that place?”
“I already told you.” She stared at him, wondering what set of circumstances had inoculated him against trusting.
“Are there security cameras on premises?”
She blinked at him. “What? For a hidden-camera investigation? Breaking news on Channel three?”
“Better safe than sorry.”
“As a matter of fact, better than a camera, I have Lucy and Patty. I already told you they work there in exchange for child care while they’re in classes.”
“Busy girls.”
“Busy moms,” she said pointedly. “For your information, I found the place through my friend Sophia Green who also works there. We’ve been through this already. I thought you were convinced that I’d never put Annie anywhere that I wasn’t absolutely certain is a safe environment.”
She didn’t know whether to strangle him for being unreasonable, or kiss him for caring so much about his child.
The angry expression on his face didn’t budge. “Did Jake ask you out?”
“What?”
“When I walked up I heard him say that he was looking forward to seeing you. Did he ask you out?”
“You’re jealous?”
“Of course not,” he said, just a little too forcefully. “But I know him. So many women, so little time.”
He was jealous, Em realized, understanding why her heart had started to sing. But what did it mean? Surely jealousy was a good thing given that she couldn’t seem to get him out of her mind.
But this wasn’t the time or place.
“Look, Cal, I have to go. I have an appointment.”
“The same one Jake has?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Mine is personal. I’ll tell you about it later.”
He had that stubborn look. “Em—”
She held up a hand to stop the questions. “Are you coming by to see Annie after work?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll tell you about it then.”
She turned away before he could interrogate her further and found that distance didn’t snuff out the sparklers going off inside her.
She’d struggled not to let hope in. She’d fretted about setting herself up for a fall. But herself had seen the evidence that Cal was jealous and no warning in the world could douse the radiance shining inside her.
Chapter Seven
Cal couldn’t believe his partner had hit on Emily. What was up with that? One minute he was moaning about the axis of attraction falling apart, the next he was flexing those axis muscles in the hospital hallway. Every time he got a mental picture of her in Jake’s arms, he wanted to deck Dr. GQ.
He pulled “the princess” to a stop in front of the empty field across from Em’s apartment. He said when he got off work he’d see her later. Not her. Annie. And here he was to see his daughter. The only other car parked there was an old SUV that he knew belonged to Patty’s boyfriend. Jake Andrews’s expensive Lexus sedan was nowhere in sight.
Not that Cal was checking up. Em had a right to see whoever she wanted. But damn it to hell, he hated that the thought of her with another man tied him in knots.
He walked across the street and knocked on the door instead of ringing the bell in case Annie was asleep. Funny how such a little person could make so big a change in his life. Make him feel responsible and not care that he did. Make him feel protective—about his daughter’s mother, too. But he preferred to believe his over-the-top reaction about Em dating had more to do with another guy being around his little girl. Part of him actually believed that. The other part recognized the lie because he’d never been able to get Em out of his system.
The door opened and there she was, wearing white shorts that made her shapely, tanned legs look amazing. Her hot pink cropped top revealed a line of skin that winked in and out when she moved. Pulling his self-control into place with an effort, he forced his gaze away from her tempting bare skin and up to her eyes.
“Hi.” His voice sounded as rusty as an ancient garden gate and he hoped she didn’t notice.
She lifted a hand, then put a finger to her lips for quiet. “Annie just fell asleep,” she whispered, an erotic sound to his pent-up sexual frustration.
The pitch shouldn’t have been seductive, but it made his hands tingle and the blood roared in his ears. Fortunately it wasn’t a sound that would wake his daughter. “Is she okay?”
“Yeah. A day at day care always wears her out.”
“I’m sorry I missed seeing her.” In part because now there was no reason to stay. No cover story for hanging out with Em. And every cell in his body was begging him to hang out with her because he was aching to get her naked. “I’ll just go—”
“Wait—There’s something I need to talk to you about. It’s serious and I’m glad she’s asleep so we won’t be interrupted.”
“Okay.” He swallowed hard as he walked in and she shut the door behind him. “What’s up?”
“I wanted to tell you not to be jealous of Jake.”
“I’m not jealous,” he lied. And her words didn’t begin to unknot the knot in his gut. “But okay.”
“He’s just a friend,” she explained.
Not the time for him to mention Jake saying he’d always liked her. “Got it.”
“Even if he was interested in me, which he’s not, I could never think of him as anything but a friend.”
“Good to know. And the thought never crossed my mind.”
“I know that’s a lie. Mostly because of your question about whether or not he’d asked me out. I’d never cause a problem between you and Jake. Just wanted you to know that there’s absolutely no reason for you to be jealous of him.”
“Okay, then.” This conversation wasn’t helping his frame of mind. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll just hit the road—” He cocked his thumb in the general direction of the front door behind him.
“Actually, that isn’t all I wanted to say.” She looked up at him and ran her tongue over her full, plump lips.
Cal held in a groan. Just barely. But there wasn’t a guy on the planet who wouldn’t be turned on. That was the sexiest damn thing he’d ever seen.
“What else is on your mind?” he managed to ask.
“About my appointment today?”
She’d told him about that, and
he’d accused her of meeting Jake. He’d made an ass of himself earlier and she was going to make him regret it. “What about it?”
“I went to see an attorney.”
That’s not what he’d expected her to say. “Why? Is there a problem?”
“No. I just wanted you to know that I’m taking legal steps to ensure that you’re recognized as her father and guardian. When the DNA test is back, we’ll make sure he has the results.”
“It’s not necessary. No one has any doubt anymore that she’s mine.”
“I know. But I want to be certain that there are no loopholes. I want every I dotted and every T crossed.” She twisted her fingers together. “He’s going to handle the paperwork necessary to put your name on her birth certificate. We’ll have to go to court and appear before a judge to finalize our joint custody of Annie.”
“I can’t believe you did that.”
“It’s true.” She lifted one slender shoulder in a shrug. “I misjudged you. It doesn’t matter that I was scared and seriously hormonal. No excuses. I’m just trying to make it right. For our daughter.”
Cal had been wondering how to bring up the legalities of all this with her and was surprised, in a good way, that she’d acted without pressure from him. And so quickly. He was really happy.
For a couple of seconds, he grinned like a fool, then put his arms around her, lifted and swung her around. “That’s pretty awesome,” he said.
They laughed together and the thought crossed his mind that he might have reacted like this at the news that she was having his baby. But probably not. A woman had once told him that and it was a lie.
But wanting Em wasn’t.
With her arms around his neck and her curves pressed against him, he couldn’t deny that she felt good and right, like she belonged there. And always had. He’d missed her and having her back in his arms made him realize just how much.
He slowed the circling and stopped, staring into her dark eyes. Their mouths were too close and hers looked soft and sexy with her full lips slightly parted, as if she were waiting for him to taste her. The small, firm breasts that he’d loved loving a lifetime ago were burning into his chest. His breathing grew labored, but not from turning with the weight of her in his arms. The weight of her was a turn on, plain and simple.
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