by Molly Evans
Reluctantly, she brought her gaze to meet his intense stare and gasped at the open, unmasked desire there. The thread inside her that had once been tightly coiled completely unraveled.
“You are beautiful, Gina. Beautiful,” he whispered.
Groaning with unleashed desire, she fisted her hands in his hair. She wanted more, wanted all of it. Now. Consequences be damned.
The microwave pinged.
Thomas pulled away with a groan. Bracing his arms on either side of her hips on the counter, he tried to gain control of himself. Gina didn’t touch him, afraid that if she did neither one of them would be able to let go.
Gina blew out a breath and dragged her hand through her hair, pulling it back from her face. “Wow.”
Thomas laughed and looked up at her. “Wow is right.” Finally, he stood upright and stepped a few paces away. He poured a glass of water, took a few gulps and handed it to Gina. She pressed the cool glass to her cheek and then drank, wanting to pour it right over her head.
“Let me see if I can rescue our steaks,” Thomas said, and busied himself at the grill.
Gina jumped down from the counter. “I can help with the other stuff,” she said, and took the bowl of salad to the table. “This looks really great. Thanks for doing all the work.” Nerves made her hands slippery with sweat, and she clutched the bowl, hoping she wouldn’t drop it.
Steering the conversation away from the heat that sparked between them seemed to calm them both, though the electricity of attraction only faded into the background. They chatted about work and patients, telling stories to each other about unusual cases they had both encountered. By the end of the evening Gina had completely forgotten to be nervous. Any anxiety about her past or new rumors about to begin were forgotten.
“So, your turn. Tell me about you,” she said.
“Me, huh?” He speared a piece of steak but didn’t eat. He sighed. “Divorced.”
“That was your big derailment last year, wasn’t it?” Gina felt sad for him. Only a great love could turn into such a great hurt.
“It was. I came here to try to understand what happened.”
“What did happen?” It sounded like he needed to talk, too.
“I wasn’t enough.” He shrugged.
“Are you kidding?” A man like him with looks, charm, came from a great family, kissed like a fantasy, and smelled like heaven wasn’t enough for the woman? “She’s nuts.”
Thomas leaned back in his chair and roared with laughter.
“Oh, God. I can’t believe I said that out loud,” Gina said, and buried her face in her hands. “That was so lame.”
“Yes, it was. But you’re right. Nothing pleased her. She was more interested in what being married to my name meant than being married to me. There was nothing I could do to change that, so I gave her a settlement and walked away. It was best for both of us.”
The tiniest bit of pleasure flared in Gina’s chest. She was glad the woman was gone from his life. Even if nothing came from her budding relationship with him, he deserved better than that.
He shrugged. “I’m just glad we didn’t have children to drag through that mess.”
“Do you want them?”
“Sure. Someday.” Thomas finished his wine and stared at her.
“What is it?” she asked, resisting the urge to reach up and pat her hair into place.
“Nothing. I just like looking at you,” he said.
“Oh.” The nervousness that she’d forgotten surged back to her stomach, and a bright flush warmed her cheeks.
“I’ve made you uncomfortable now. I didn’t mean to.” He reached over and took her hand in his. “I was just really enjoying the company.”
She shrugged. “It’s OK.” She brought her gaze up and met his. “I like looking at you, too.”
He stood and assisted her to her feet. “On that note, I think I’d better get you home.”
Gina looked at the clock and was surprised to see it was nearly ten. “I’ve overstayed my welcome. I’m so sorry, Thomas. Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I enjoyed myself, and you have not overstayed your welcome at all. You are welcome here anytime,” he said, and grabbed the car keys off the counter. “But the reality is that tomorrow is Monday morning, and we’ve both got to be at work.”
“Though I hate reality, it’s where we live, isn’t it?” she said. “I don’t work until the afternoon, but you have to get up early, don’t you?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
As Thomas drove to her cottage a comfortable silence filled the space between them.
“Thank you for an unexpectedly lovely day,” she said as he parked the car in the driveway.
“You are quite welcome, Gina,” he said, and got out of the car.
“You don’t have to walk me up, it’s OK,” she said as they walked round the car. “I’m used to doing for myself, and it won’t be any trouble.”
“No trouble at all,” he said as he escorted her up the walk to the front door. “I always walk my dates to the door.”
“This wasn’t really a date,” she replied, and fished in her pocket for her keys, her hands trembling.
With his gentle hands on her shoulders he turned her to face him. “If tonight wasn’t really a date, then this isn’t really a kiss, is it?” Slowly, he bent down to her.
Unable to even think of resisting, Gina lifted her face and parted her lips for his kiss. Something about the softness of his mouth against hers, the way he pressed her against the door and stroked his tongue over hers made her want to abandon all caution and invite him inside. As his mouth explored hers, her pulse sang in her ears. When at last he released her, Gina felt every heartbeat rock through her system.
“What is going on between us, Doc?” she asked. “What is this?” She had to know if he felt the same way she did. Was it real or was she just having a great fantasy?
“I think this is called a serious attraction,” he said, and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’d like to see you again.”
“You’ll be seeing me again. We work—”
“I mean like this.” He cupped her face and brought her mouth to meet his again. Nodding, Gina closed her eyes and rubbed her face against his neck, savoring the feel, the smell and the taste of him. The anticipation of what it could all mean. “I’d like that.”
“I know we’ll see each other at work, but I’ll pick you up on Saturday evening at six for the fund-raiser.”
“You really want me to go with you?” she asked, her insides twisting at the thought. Another thing she’d forgotten about in Thomas’s presence.
Looking into her eyes, he said, “I really want you to go with me. I want to hold you on the dance floor and make every man in the room jealous.”
Gina laughed and pressed the back of her hand to her nose to control the snort that threatened to disgrace her. “Oh, I doubt that will happen. But I’ll go with you. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Thomas grinned and kissed her knuckles. “It’s a date. See you tomorrow.”
Thomas couldn’t concentrate on the discharge planning meeting or any of the other meetings he attended. Why did these meetings always have to be scheduled on Mondays? Despite his best efforts, nothing held his attention for more than a few minutes. His mind was on the surprising events of yesterday.
“What do you think, Dr Ferguson?” Marge, the discharge planner, asked him.
Damn. “Could you repeat that, please?” he asked and shuffled the paperwork to at least appear as if he was interested.
“Discharge tomorrow planned for Harold Jones, with a recommendation of hospice care at home. I can send the referral information today and get it set up.” Marge looked at him, expecting an intelligent response.
“Good idea. He hasn’t changed his mind to bypass any form of treatment, has he?”
“No, no treatment,” Marge said. “He’s opting for palliative care only.”
“Having read the oncologis
t’s note, it seems the best course,” Thomas replied, and they moved on to the next patient.
Monday was a non-stop circus of meetings that sucked the life out of him, and Thomas couldn’t wait for the end of the day. Shutting himself into his office after lunch, he made an attempt at the charts in front of him. The formerly mundane task now became a source of irritation he didn’t want to deal with. By three o’clock he was ready to tear his hair out in anticipation of Gina’s arrival on shift. But that time came and went without her.
“Where’s Gina?” he asked Rhonda. “Isn’t she due on shift?”
“Yes, but she switched with someone else for today.” Rhonda showed him the staffing book and the approved swapping of shifts. “Is that a problem? Since it was an equal switch, I didn’t see any reason to involve you.”
He frowned. Was Gina trying to avoid him after last night? “No problem. Is she OK?”
“Yes, but her mother fell and broke her hip last night. She’s upstairs on the ward. Room 332.”
Without a word, Thomas strode to the elevator, concerned for Gina and her mother. A serious fall for an Alzheimer’s patient could be devastating. He hoped that Gina was OK and wasn’t worrying too much.
He left the elevators, took the chart from the rack and approached the room. Gina sat clutching her mother’s hand, her head on the edge of the bed. She was asleep. Looking at the circles beneath Gina’s eyes, Thomas felt his heart contract. She was exhausted. Thomas stood in the doorway and read the chart.
“So, what do you think, Doc?” Gina’s soft, sleepy voice interrupted him as she sat up and scraped the hair back from her face, revealing marks from the bedding imprinted on one cheek.
“Looks like a serious break. The orthopod has been here, seems to think she’ll survive the surgery OK. Psych has a different story. So does Anesthesia.” Didn’t they always? But hospital care was about finding the balance between too much and not enough, what you could do and what you should do.
“Yes, she’s been very agitated. She was just getting used to the routine at the shelter care, now she’s in another environment, lots of strangers, and in pain.” Gina fingered a well-worn rag doll that lay on the bed beside her. “I brought her doll over. She calls it Dina. It used to be mine.” She half-smiled and her watery gaze sought out Thomas’s. “I like to pretend it’s me. That somehow in her mixed-up mind she remembers me in some way. At least, that’s what I tell myself.”
Thomas entered the room and stooped beside Gina. “She may. It may be the only way she can communicate now. Sometimes a trauma can cause the communication to decrease or stop altogether. You have to be prepared for that.”
Gina placed her hand on Thomas’s cheek and nodded. “I know. I know. Doesn’t make it any easier, though. Thanks for coming.”
“You could have called me. I wouldn’t have minded.” He took her hand in his and kissed her palm.
“Gina, honey? Is that you?” Martha asked, her eyes bright and, for once, clear, staring straight at Gina.
“Mama!” Gina gasped and her heart pounded. “It’s me, Mama. It’s me.” Please, oh, please, let her talk to me just this one time. Just once, that’s all I want.
“Where have you been? I’ve been worried about you,” Martha said, and Gina’s heart broke all over again. For just one moment she’d thought… “I promise I’ll come see you every day, Mama.” Tears pricked Gina’s eyes. For the last two days it seemed as if all she’d done had been cry. Was it ever going to stop?
“Hello, Martha. My name is Thomas,” he said in a soft voice.
“Do you know my Gina?” Martha asked, as if Gina weren’t sitting beside her, the moment of clarity gone.
“Yes, I know your Gina. She’s a wonderful daughter, isn’t she?” Thomas asked, trying to wring every ounce of conversation out of this one brief moment.
“Yes. My Gina is a good girl.” Martha reached out to him, and Thomas took her hand. “Can you tell her to come and see me? She doesn’t see me anymore.”
Sobbing, Gina leaned over in the chair and buried her face in her lap.
“I’ll do my best, Martha. Do you want me to tell her anything?” He cleared his throat as Gina’s muffled tears tore at his heart.
Martha picked up the doll and examined it as if she didn’t know what it was. “I love her. She’s a good girl. I miss her.”
“I’ll tell her. Why don’t you try to get some rest now?” His throat was tight, and he pulled the blanket up to her chin and tucked her in.
“I don’t like it here. Come here, my Dina,” Martha said, and hugged the doll to her chest and closed her eyes with the contented sigh of a small child. “I’m going home.”
Thomas drew Gina to her feet and escorted her to the back stairs and down to the physicians’ parking lot. Sobbing the entire way, Gina didn’t ask any questions but let Thomas lead her along. Once they were on the road, Thomas called the hospital. “Rhonda, I’m leaving early today. Something urgent came up. I’ll be on my cell if you need me.” He flipped the phone shut and drove home.
After tucking Gina into his bed, he lay next to her and held her until she slept.
CHAPTER FIVE
GINA opened her eyes and came face-to-face with Thomas. His eyes were closed and his long eyelashes almost touched his cheeks. He was beautiful. She started to reach out to him, then paused.
The memory of the past two days came rushing back to her. She sucked in a breath and Thomas opened his eyes, blinked, then focused on her.
“How are you?” he asked.
“I was having the most wonderful dream,” she said, still trying to shake herself from it.
“What was it about?”
Though he hadn’t moved, she felt his energy, his compassion reach out to her, and something in her heart reacted.
“I was up in the mountains. Alone. I don’t know where I was, but it was beautiful and peaceful. I’ve been up in the mountains many times, but this place was a slice of heaven.” Oh, to be able to go back there and recapture the essence of that dream would be wonderful.
“It sounds lovely.” His hand cupped her face and his thumb stroked over her lower lip, his gaze dropping to her mouth. “So, how are you really?”
“I’ve had better times,” she said, and stroked his face. “Thank you.”
“What for?” He pressed a kiss to her palm.
“Being there for me. I’m not good at needing anyone, or asking for help,” Gina said. “But I wanted to thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I know you’re strong and are self-reliant, but sometimes we all need to lean on someone.” A stray tear escaped from her eye, and he wiped it away with his thumb. “I’m here if you need to lean on me. My shoulders can take it.”
“Thomas…I do need you. I just don’t know…how to ask you, what to say, how to feel right now. Everything is happening so fast.” God, she didn’t want to want him so much, but right now he was the only solid thing in her rapidly changing world.
“No matter what else happens between us, you can trust me,” Thomas said, his voice a soft whisper that echoed in her heart.
Gina wished that time would stop right now. That she could live in this moment for ever and never have to worry about anything again. Being this close to a man was very unusual for her. But there was something about Thomas that kept drawing her back to him. Could she trust him, as he’d said? Could she reach out and take what he seemed to offer her?
Falling for him wasn’t a good idea. In fact, it was a really bad idea. But right now she didn’t care. She needed him. She had nothing, and no one else, except what was right in front of her.
“What time is it?” she asked.
“About eight.”
“Eight?” She sat bolt upright and flung off the covers. “I can’t believe I slept so long. I need to call the hospital and check on my mother.”
“I called an hour ago, and she’s been sedated again. She’ll rest through the night.”
“Thank you, Thomas.” Gina set
tled back on the bed and pressed a hand to her forehead as dizziness assailed her. She hadn’t eaten all day. But nothing was as important as doing everything she could for her mother, even if all she could do was check on her by phone.
“Why don’t I get you something to eat? You must be hungry by now.” Thomas sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the bed.
“If you’ve got peanut butter, just a sandwich will do.”
“What bachelor worth his salt doesn’t have a jar of peanut butter?” Thomas held out his hand to her and pulled her upright. “Come on.”
Gina allowed him to lead her to the kitchen for a glass of milk and a sandwich. She ate in silence.
“By the way, I took you off the schedule for a few days until the situation with your mother is sorted.”
“You did what? Thomas, I’m on a contract, and I have to work a certain—” How could he make a decision like that without even asking her? The peanut butter stuck in her throat.
“Wait. Just wait. I called your company, explained that there was a family emergency. They’ve agreed to add the days onto the end of your contract without any penalty.” He gave her a lopsided smile. “No worries, OK.”
Sighing, the relief she experienced was enormous. “Thomas, you’re getting me more indebted to you all the time. I’ll never be able to repay your kindness,” Gina said. What would happen when she took another assignment and left Hidden Valley? They were both destined to get hurt if they kept this up. There was no way around it. He was firmly entrenched here, and she was rooted…nowhere. Wouldn’t it be nice to come home to this every night? Peanut butter sandwiches when you need them.
“You don’t have to. I’m doing this because I want to, not so you owe me something.” Thomas searched her eyes for answers to questions he didn’t even know how to ask. He reached out and cupped her cheek with his hand. Her skin was so soft that he wanted to touch her more and more. “Did he hurt you that badly?”
