Читать книгу Nyc Angels & Gold Coast Angels Collection - Lynne Marshall - Страница 54

MOLLY TRIED TO HIDE HER uncertainty about agreeing to come over to pinch-hit for Josh’s nanny. Deep down, she’d figured this was a bad idea, but she hadn’t been able to refuse Gemma, as the nanny’s daughter had been taken to the hospital with suspected appendicitis.

She sat on the corner of Josh’s bed, listening as Dan read Josh a bedtime story. Dan was doing a pretty good job, changing his voice to match the characters.

After the story, Josh wanted to hug and kiss both of them good-night. Dan went first, and then she stepped forward. As she bent over, giving him a hug and a kiss, and receiving the same in return, she couldn’t help remembering how she’d often done the same thing with James’s boys. She tried to tell herself this was different, but at the moment she had an undeniable sense of déjà vu.

“Molly, I don’t know how to thank you for coming over on the spur of the moment like this,” Dan said huskily, after he’d closed the door for Josh’s room and led the way into the living room. “I owe you, big-time.”

She forced herself to relax and smile. “It’s no problem. Gemma was so upset about her daughter needing emergency surgery, there was no way I could turn her down. Besides, you know I care about Josh.”

“Something I’m very grateful for,” he said humbly.

She was secretly relieved he didn’t seem to think she was chasing after him, considering the night they’d spent together. It had been her biggest fear in agreeing to cover for Gemma. Fortunately, the moment Dan had realized she was there, he’d looked happy to see her.

Still, she couldn’t help wondering why Dan had left her name and number to use in case of an emergency in the first place. She didn’t want to think that he was taking advantage of her.

She smiled, determined to leave on a friendly note. “Well, now that you’re here, I’ll head home. Good night, Dan.”

“No, wait.” He stepped forward and took her arm. “I’m sorry, Molly, but I was planning on Gemma spending the night in the guest room, in case I’m called back to the hospital.”

She tried to hide her dismay. Of course, Gemma hadn’t mentioned that small detail. “Even after working all day, you’re still on call?”

“I have to be available in case Erica needs to be taken back to surgery,” he explained patiently. “She’s still in a very critical condition, after being taken to surgery mere moments after she was born.”

Her eyes widened in shock. “Really? I had no idea that was even possible.”

“It’s not something we have to do often, but her case was very complicated. Only a few pediatric cardiothoracic surgeons in the country do this particular procedure.”

And Dan Morris was one of them, she thought with a tiny thrill of pride. But then reality sank in and she glanced around with a sigh. “I didn’t pack an overnight bag.”

“There’s plenty of extra toiletries here.” he said gent ly. Before she could respond, he surprised her by coming forward to pull her into his arms. “I’ve missed you, Molly,” he murmured before taking possession of her mouth in a deep kiss.

Her ability to think was severely hampered by the way he kissed her so thoroughly. She soon became lost in his embrace. He’d actually started tugging her toward the bedroom and, heaven help her, she wasn’t resisting when his phone rang.

“Dammit,” he muttered, pulling away from her to fumble for his phone. “Yeah? Hi, Rebecca, what’s going on?”

Molly took several deep breaths and smoothed her hair, trying to calm her erratic pulse, as she listened to the one-sided conversation. She’d managed to convince herself that a relationship between them was impossible, yet one kiss and she’d been ready to toss her fears and insecurities aside.

She must be going crazy. Granted, he’d called her on Sunday, but by the time they’d talked, she’d already convinced herself she must get over him.

Now she wasn’t sure what to do.

“Okay, give her ten ccs of blood to run over an hour and I’ll be there in ten—fifteen minutes tops.”

She tried to hide her dismay. “Has the baby taken a turn for the worse?” she asked when he’d hung up.

“Not terrible, but she has been bleeding, so I really need to go in to see how she’s doing.” His dark brown eyes were full of regret. “I’m sorry, Molly.”

“That’s okay, I understand,” she said lightly. And she truly did understand. Clearly a tiny life hung in the balance. She would do a lot for her patients, too.

He came over and gave her another hard kiss, before turning back toward the door. But then he paused and glanced over his shoulder at her. “I don’t expect you to wait up for me, because I don’t know when I’ll be back.” He hesitated, and then added, “Make yourself at home, either in my bed or in the guest room. Wherever you’re most comfortable.” He said the last few words in a rush, and then left without waiting for a response.

She stared at the door long after he’d gone. Did he really mean what she thought he’d meant? That if she wanted to pick up their relationship where they’d left off on the weekend, she could sleep in his bed? Or if she wanted privacy and or distance she could use the guest room?

And what about Josh? He was old enough that he probably wouldn’t wake up in the middle of the night and his inability to walk meant he wouldn’t wander into Dan’s room. Still, Josh could get up early and use the wheelchair to come in. Or would Dan expect her to sneak out in the morning before Josh was up?

She collapsed on the sofa and stared at the ceiling, her thoughts in turmoil. What was the right answer? What should she do?

No matter how badly she wanted to, she couldn’t come to terms with the idea of crawling into Dan’s bed. Not while Josh was so close.

But she didn’t go into the guest room, either, worried that she might send the wrong message. Instead, she took her book and settled in the corner of the sofa, using a quilt for warmth. Soon the book slipped from her grasp, falling to the floor with a soft thud as she drifted into sleep.

“Daddy, shouldn’t we wake her up?” Josh asked in a loud whisper.

Molly shifted and let out a low moan at the shaft of pain that shot through her neck from sleeping at an awkward angle. She prised her eyes open and found Josh’s face scant inches from hers.

“Good morning,” she murmured as she tried to unwrap herself from the quilt cocoon. She lifted her gaze to Dan, who stared at her with an enigmatic expression that she couldn’t interpret. “Hi. How’s your patient?”

A smile curved his mouth, softening his expression. “She’s a true champ. Thankfully, she stabilized enough that I didn’t have to take her back to the O.R.”

“I’m so glad,” she said, truly happy that the tiny newborn was doing so well. “Um, what time is it?”

“Six forty-five. I wasn’t sure how long to let you sleep, because I didn’t know if you had an eight o’clock patient or not.”

“Six forty-five?” She shot up to her feet, having momentarily forgotten that today was Wednesday, a work day. “I don’t—you’re my first appointment of the day, but I still have to get ready.”

“I’ll make breakfast while you shower,” Dan offered. She belatedly noticed that he must have already done that as his short hair gleamed with dampness.

“Thanks.” She didn’t like the thought of putting her same clothes back on, but at least she had a spare set of scrubs at work for emergencies like when a patient threw up or bled all over the place. She would have to make do with what she had.

But as she washed her hair in the shower, she couldn’t help wondering what time Dan had gotten home, and if he’d been disappointed when he’d noticed she hadn’t chosen the option of sleeping in his bed.

And why she cared so much in wanting to know.

Dan suppressed a yawn as he drank more coffee, trying to compensate for fewer than three hours of sleep. He couldn’t deny having been sorely disappointed to come home at two-thirty in the morning to find Molly asleep on the sofa. Fantasies of coming home to nuzzle her awake for some gentle lovemaking had instantly dissolved in a puff of smoke.

He’d stared at her for several seconds, tempted to lift her up and carry her to the guest bedroom, but then worried he’d only wake her up. So he’d left her alone, the way she’d apparently preferred, and gone to bed.

Where he’d wasted a precious thirty minutes he could have been sleeping, with tossing and turning and missing her.

Josh had woken him up at six, which was good because he hadn’t been sure what time Molly needed to be at Angel’s. And he’d taken time to do a quick check on Erica.

It wasn’t until he’d started making breakfast that he’d realized that if Molly had slept with him, Josh would have come in to see them together. Not exactly something that would make him a candidate for father of the year.

The knot of tension between his shoulder blades eased, as he convinced himself that obviously that possibility had been what had caused Molly to avoid making herself comfortable in his room. Once again she’d proved she knew more than he did about kids, as he hadn’t even considered that possibility until now.

And, worse, he suspected she might think less of him for even suggesting it.

For a moment he braced his hands on the counter and stretched the kinks from his neck. Being a single father in a relationship was much harder than he’d anticipated. Thankfully, Molly seemed to roll with the punches.

“I’ll give you a back rub if you return the favor,” she said from behind him. “My neck is killing me.”

He swung round to face her. “I’ll take you up on that offer any time,” he said in a low voice. Just the thought of her hands on him made him tighten with need.

“What’s for breakfast?” The way she shied away from the subject helped cool his desire.

“Just cereal today, hot or cold. Josh wants maple and brown sugar oatmeal.”

“Sounds good to me. Make that a double.”

“I’ll make it a triple, since that’s easiest all the way around. Just give me a few minutes to heat it up.”

“I’ll get the brown sugar, if you tell me where to find it,” she offered.

“Third cupboard on your left.” Within ten minutes they all sat down at the table and he was struck by the fact that even that first year, when Josh had just been a baby, he and Suzy had rarely shared breakfast.

Maybe an indication their marriage had been doomed from the start.

“If you want to drop me and Josh off at the physical therapy gym, we can start the session while you check on your patient,” she offered.

“That would be great, thanks.” As they finished their meal and then worked together to take care of the dishes, he wondered if this was how other families lived.

Or if this was just another of his fantasies that had no basis in reality?

Dan left Molly and Josh in the therapy gym and headed up to the NNICU to see Erica.

He found Erica’s parents wrapped tightly in each other’s arms, gazing at their tiny daughter in the isolette.

For a moment he had to look away. The love in their gazes was so intensely private, he felt like the worst kind of intruder. But he couldn’t stand here forever, he had to check on their daughter’s progress, so he cleared his throat and stepped forward.

“Dr. Morris,” Jennifer greeted him tearfully, breaking away from her soldier husband. “Thank you for saving our daughter’s life. This is my husband, Sergeant Eric Thompson.”

Her husband was still wearing the fatigues he must have worn on the flight home. Dan stepped forward and offered his hand. “Pleased to meet you, Sergeant.”

“I’m the lucky one,” the young man said, shaking his hand. “I have you to thank for saving my family.”

Uncomfortable with the praise, Dan brushed it aside. “Your daughter is a fighter. She’s doing great. If she stays this good over the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours, we’ll be able to get that breathing tube out.”

“That would be wonderful,” Jennifer said. “I want to hold her in my arms.”

He understood. Obviously putting gloved hands through the windows of the isolette to touch their baby wasn’t nearly as satisfying. “Soon,” he promised. It was on the tip of his tongue to remind them that Erica would need more surgery down the road, but he decided there was plenty of time to broach that subject after they’d successfully gotten through this crisis.

According to the electronic medical record, Erica’s vital signs were stable. She hadn’t lost any more blood and the rest of her labwork was good. He used his pediatric stethoscope and reached through the windows of the isolette to listen to Erica’s heart and lungs.

Satisfied the baby girl was holding her own, he stepped away. “She’s doing fine,” he said to reassure her parents. “I’m going to order some weaning parameters later on this afternoon, to see if we can turn the ventilator down a few notches.”

“Thank you,” Eric murmured, hugging his wife close.

Dan wrote the orders, chatted with Rebecca’s replacement and then looked for Erica’s nurse. He scowled a bit when he didn’t recognize her and glanced at the nametag she wore on her scrubs. “Scarlet?” he asked. “Are you new here?”

“Yes, I’m the new head nurse, but I’m taking care of patients today.” She wore her chocolate-brown hair pulled back from her face, and jutted her chin stubbornly. “Why, do you have a problem with that?”

“Depends on how well you do your job,” he said, refusing to back down. “Marcus is covering for me, but if Erica takes a turn for the worse, I want you to call me directly, okay?”

“No problem. And don’t worry—I have a lot of experience with neonates. I promise Erica is in good hands.”

He gave a terse nod and turned away because he believed her. And it was time to pick up Josh.

As he left he glanced back at the young couple at Erica’s isolette, impressed once again at how they physically and emotionally supported each other through this difficult time.

Would they make it over the long haul? Or would the endless toil and stress of life with a sick child eventually force them to part?

Cynically, he assumed the latter.

Then he stopped and turned back one more time to watch the young couple. Maybe, just maybe he needed to give them the benefit of the doubt. Just because he’d never experienced the type of love that lasted forever, it didn’t mean that type of love didn’t exist.

Molly was just finishing up with Josh’s therapy when Dan arrived. She glanced up at him while she was running the ultrasound machine. “How’s your patient?”

He was touched by her concern. Suzy had resented his pediatric patients, treating them like annoying inconveniences. “Much better. Should be able to start weaning her off the ventilator soon.”

“That’s wonderful. I’m sure her parents are relieved.”

They were, so he nodded, but he didn’t say anything more as he couldn’t really talk about his patients much. All those privacy rules tended to get in the way. “How are you doing, Josh?” he asked, turning his attention to his son.

“We had fun. And I stood up again, right, Molly?”

“Yes, you did,” she agreed with a soft smile. It struck him in that moment how much she’d bonded with his son. “Your muscles are getting stronger every day.”

“I’m glad.” He took a seat on a stool next to Josh. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be here this morning, Josh.”

“That’s okay,” Josh said pragmatically. “Molly told me there’s a baby with a sick heart that you need to take care of. That’s way more important.”

His chest tightened and he slowly shook his head. “No, that’s not true. I do have to take care of kids that have sick hearts, but they’re not more important than you, Josh. You’re the most important thing in my life. But sometimes I do have to take care of sick kids, like today. Especially because I knew that you’d be okay here with Molly for a little while. But I want you to know that I’ll always love you best.”

“All finished,” she said, and then shut off the ultrasound machine. “I, um, have to check on something. Excuse me.” She hurried out of the room, without even wiping the gooey gel off Josh’s legs.

Dan took the towel and did the task himself. “You’re not mad at me, are you, Josh?” he finally asked, breaking the silence.

“No. I think I understand.”

He was tempted to spring the news about the surprise birthday party on Saturday, but forced himself to keep silent. The look on Josh’s face would be well worth the wait.

“What flavor lollipop do you want today?” he asked, reaching for the candy jar.

For a moment Josh simply stared at the various flavors. Then he turned his head up to face him. “What’s your favorite flavor, Daddy?”

He was touched that his son cared enough to ask. “Lime. The green ones are my favorite.”

“Then I’m going to have a green one,” Josh said, digging his little fist in the jar until he grabbed a lime sucker. He ripped off the wrapper and stuck the candy into his mouth.

Dan glanced toward the doorway and saw Molly hovering there. He realized she’d purposefully left them alone to give them time to talk.

“So I’ll see you tomorrow, then,” she said lightly, as Josh levered himself into his wheelchair.

“Don’t forget about Friday night,” Dan said, following her out into the hallway so Josh couldn’t overhear.

She froze and then shook her head. “Look, Dan, I don’t think Friday is a good idea,” she said, avoiding his gaze.

He frowned and glanced back to make sure Josh was still preoccupied. “Why not?”

She took a deep breath. “I came over last night to help out because you and Josh needed me, but I don’t want to be a convenient surrogate nanny. Been there, done that, don’t want to do it again.”

He was startled by her revelation. “I want to see you, alone, Molly. Certainly not as a surrogate nanny. And I had no idea Gemma was planning to call you.”

“Yet she did, because you left my name and number to be used in case of an emergency.”

He couldn’t quite hide the flash of guilt, but he wanted to know more about this previous relationship of hers. “What do you mean, been there, done that?”

“The last guy I dated was also a single father, and he used me as a surrogate mother for his boys all the time. Yet when I thought he was going to propose, he told me he loved someone else. He never cared about me the way he should have.”

That guy was just plain stupid, he thought, but managed to keep it to himself. “But I haven’t been doing that with you, Molly. I do care about you. I want to take you to dinner so we can spend some time alone. I swear to you, making you a surrogate nanny was never my intention.”

But she shook her head, not giving an inch. “Dan, I’ll help you with … Saturday’s plans because I promised I would, but that’s all. I have to go, my next patient is waiting.”

And before he could protest or ask anything more, she turned and walked away.