Читать книгу Finding Her Prince - Robyn Donald, Nancy Robards Thompson - Страница 17

Cindy was in the kitchen looking in the nearly empty refrigerator for dinner inspiration when she heard someone at the door. It was rare for her doorbell to ring, especially in the evening like this. Uneasiness crept over her. After peeking out the window to see who was there, her uneasy feeling was validated.

“Nathan,” she whispered.

For a nanosecond, she debated whether to answer, but her car was in the driveway. He knew she was there.

After a deep, bracing breath, she opened the door. “What part of ‘back off’ did you not get?”

Resting his hands on lean hips he answered, “And what part of ‘that doesn’t work for me’ did you not get?” One dark eyebrow lifted as he looked down at her. “Do you always answer the door like that? Hello to you, too.”

“Hi. Why are you here?”

“We need to talk.”

Cindy folded her arms over her chest and wished her hair didn’t look like rats had nested there and her cotton shorts weren’t quite so short. And quite so cotton. They were practically see-through.

“I have nothing to say.”

“Then you can just listen.”

She wished he didn’t look quite so yummy and tempting in his worn jeans and white cotton shirt. The long sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing wide wrists and strong forearms. Since when had cotton become the sexiest fabric on the planet? In his case, if it was just a little more see-through she might catch a glimpse of his broad chest, and that would be really nice.

Pulling herself together with an effort, she said, “I don’t want to listen. Go away. I’m looking for something to eat.”

She started to shut the door, but his hand shot out and he flattened his palm against it.

“Let me take you out,” he offered.

She glanced down at her no-one-should-see-this-in-public attire. “Do I look like I’m ready to go out?”

Something hot and primitive flashed through his eyes as his gaze lazily drifted over her. “Then we can stay here.”

“I’m not prepared to feed company.” Did her voice sound as breathless and needy to him as it did to her?

“That’s code for you’re broke, right?”

“It’s the week before payday.” Her whole life felt like the week before she got paid.

“So we’ll order pizza. I’ll buy,” he added.

That was a really bad idea. The last time he’d been in her house they’d had sex and now she was pregnant. She wasn’t sure if something worse could happen, but she wasn’t willing to take the risk.

Before she could figure out a way to turn him down, he said, “I can see the wheels in your head turning and before you use up any more mental energy, you should know that I’m not taking no for an answer. Just look at it as a meal you don’t have to pick up the tab for. My treat.”

He was a treat, all right. That’s what worried her the most. But it didn’t look like he was going away without getting what he wanted. She wasn’t sure if his persistence was endearing or annoying, but at least she’d get a free meal out of it.

“Okay. I’ll change my clothes and we’ll go out.”

“While you’re at it, how about changing your attitude?” he called after her.

She heard the humor in his voice and couldn’t help smiling. He wasn’t giving her much of a choice, so she might as well make the best of it. The prospect of not sitting home all by herself and fretting about how she was going to make this baby thing work did lift her spirits.

Besides, what could happen in public?

Nathan sat across from Cindy in a diner near the hospital and watched her hide behind a large menu the waitress had delivered when taking their drink orders. If it wasn’t the week before payday, there was a better than even chance Cindy would have told him to stuff a sock in his dinner invitation. He hadn’t worked that hard for anything since his internship.

Determination had served him well then, but he’d need more than that to deal with this woman. She had a chip on her shoulder as big as Nevada and somehow he had to separate her from it. The challenge got his juices going.

Sooner or later she would figure out that he wasn’t going away.

“Have you been here before?” he asked.

“No. Have you?”

“Yes.” It was handy when he was working.

The restaurant had a black and white tiled floor, red Formica tables and matching upholstery on the chrome stools at the counter. Waitresses wore red and white pinstriped uniforms to go with the retro look. It wasn’t Capriotti’s, which was kind of the point. That romantic atmosphere had landed him in this complicated mess. Now that he thought about it, he’d worked pretty hard to get her to have dinner with him that night, too.

And now she was pregnant.

Wrapping his head around the reality wasn’t easy, especially when she looked as slender as the night he’d held her in his arms. She’d changed into a pair of denim capris, but he really missed the shorts that left her legs bare. And the short, knit top that let him have flashes of the naked flesh beneath. Neither outfit gave a clue about her condition, yet he didn’t doubt that she was telling the truth. Funny, but her prickly attitude and the order to back off landed squarely in the confirmation column. She wouldn’t do that if she were trying to pull a fast one.

There was zero romance here in this diner, but he could still smell the intoxicating scent of her perfume, and that cranked up a yearning in his gut that had nothing to do with food.

He blew out a long breath. “So, what are you going to have?”

“I don’t see peanut butter and jelly,” she grumbled from behind the menu.

“How about a cobb salad?”

She peeked around the tall plastic and met his gaze. “Really? Salad? You promised me dinner, not gerbil food.”

“PB&J is dinner?”

“In my world.” She ducked back into hiding.

“Okay,” he said patiently. “What looks good to you?”

“Banana cream pie. With a pickle,” she added.

“If that’s representative of your current dietary choices, no wonder you’re nauseous.”

Again, she peeked out from behind the menu and gave him a sassy look. “Just wanted to see if you were paying attention.”

Ignoring her seemed to be a challenge he was unable to meet no matter how determined he might be. “I guess I passed the test.”

“Yeah. But I was serious about the pie.”

“That’s a lot of empty calories,” he warned.

“Don’t get your stethoscope in a twist.” She put the menu down on the table. “It just sounds good. That’s not what I’m getting. The doctor told me about the pregnancy weight parameters. Twenty-five pounds or so.”

The perky waitress—Jayne her name tag said—returned with their drinks. Coffee for him. Water for Cindy. “So what can I get for you two?”

“Club sandwich. Wheat bread. No cheese. Side salad with oil and vinegar.” She handed over her menu.

“Hamburger and fries,” Nathan ordered, doing the same.

“You’re going to hell,” Cindy muttered.

Jayne wrote on her pad and smiled brightly. “Coming right up. Let me know if there’s anything else you need.”

He needed to let Cindy know he had her back. Unlike his father, he was someone a woman could depend on. If the waitress could rustle up an order of trust, there’d be a really good tip in it for her.

When they were alone again, he looked across the table. “So, how do you like Rebecca Hamilton?”

“She seems like a good doctor.” Cindy removed the paper from her straw. “I like her a lot. She’s young, smart. Easy to talk to.”

He agreed. They had worked together from time to time. Every once in a while Rebecca called him in to consult when one of her patients delivered a baby too early.

“She’s thorough, too. So she probably told you that staying in shape is important for both you and the baby.”

“She did,” Cindy confirmed. “And isn’t it fortunate that I have a job that affords me the opportunity to move around a lot?”

And she couldn’t afford much else, he thought. Thanks to the jerk who used her and disappeared. Nathan was furious every time he thought about that. And he didn’t like the idea of her pushing around the housekeeping cart.

“Aren’t there exercise classes specifically for expectant mothers?” he asked.

“There are. And I’ll do that in my copious free time, right between my job and administrative internship responsibilities.”

“How about on the weekend?” he suggested.

“Right.” She took a sip of her water. “I can do that because money grows on trees.”

“I’ll pay for it.”

The words just came out of his mouth. What was it about this woman that made him want to fix things for her? It wasn’t the pregnancy because the protective feeling had simmered inside him from the moment he’d seen her cross that crowded ballroom.

“No, thanks.” She smiled, and for the first time since he’d asked her to dinner there was warmth in the expression.

“I’m only trying to help.”

“Believe me, I noticed.” She dragged her finger through the condensation on her glass. “And I appreciate the gesture. But I don’t care for feeling pathetic, that my life is a bad B movie. And if this were a romantic comedy, you’d have proposed to me by now. But we both know that kind of offer would be out of character for you.”

There was nothing wrong with his character. He paid his bills, didn’t use women and never made promises he didn’t intend to keep. “How do we know that?”

“It’s common knowledge,” she said with a knowing look.

Not to him. “It?”

“You’re a serial dater, which by definition means anti-matrimony.”

“So that’s the current rumor at the hospital?”

She nodded. “Is it wrong?”

Damn right. Partly. He dated because he hadn’t been very good at settling down.

“Yeah, it’s wrong. Imagine that. A rumor making the rounds at Mercy Medical Center that’s been twisted and sensationalized.”

“Which part?” Cindy asked.

“I’m not anti-matrimony. In fact, I was married once.” He saw her glance at his left ring finger, which was bare.

It always had been. After the formal ceremony when he and Felicia had taken their vows, he hadn’t worn a wedding band. He’d given his wife a host of excuses about it getting in the way when he was working. Gloving up. Sterile procedure. But she’d seen through all the crap and realized the truth about him.

“You said was.” Cindy frowned. “Past tense. You’re divorced?”

“No.” He saw the look of surprise and clarified. “My wife died in a car accident.”

Not long after she’d left him because he didn’t love her.

She’d been right, but it wasn’t about her. Love was something he couldn’t make himself believe in.

“Oh, Nathan—” Cindy’s eyes widened with distress. “I didn’t know.”

“Not many people do.”

“That’s awful. I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be.” The fault was his and so was the guilt.

“I can’t help it. That’s what happens when you hear rumors and believe them without question. I should know better than to listen to that stuff. There’s so much talk and every time a story is told it gets—”

The words stopped as she focused on something behind him.

“What’s wrong?”

“Two of the NICU nurses just walked in,” she whispered.

“So?”

“Isn’t it ironic that we were just talking about gossip?”

Her expression took on the same wariness the day he’d tried to help her out. She’d told him to back off or it could cost her job.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said.

“Rumors will spread like the plague. You. Me. Here. Alone.” She put her elbow on the table, then settled a hand on her forehead, trying to shield her face. “Where’s a really big menu when you need one?” she mumbled.

“It’s no one’s business but ours why we’re here.”

“In a perfect world that would be true. But, trust me on this, there will be talk.”

Nathan looked up when the two hospital employees walked by. He recognized the nurses—Barbara Kelly and Lenore Fusano. The first was pretty, blonde and blue eyed. The other woman had dark eyes and hair. Also attractive. He nodded a greeting and they both smiled and said hello, then kept moving without acknowledging Cindy in any way.

“This is just great,” she said. “And the timing couldn’t be worse. I told my supervisor that everything was under control.”

“What does this have to do with your boss?”

She met his gaze. “I met with her because there was a complaint about me. Anonymous. On the hospital’s hotline.”

Nathan glanced at the two nurses and saw them look quickly away. “What was the complaint?”

“Supposedly about my work.”

He remembered what she’d said about her life getting more difficult when word got out that he was “slumming” with one of the housekeepers. Then she’d told him to leave her alone because it could cost her job. That remark was one of the reasons he’d felt compelled to talk to her. To reassure her that she had nothing to worry about.

“Someone complained because you talked to me?” he asked.

“No. Because you talked to me.”

He hadn’t really bought into what she’d said about all the social hierarchy stuff affecting her employment. But someone had gone on record and the paperwork trail had started. “You should have told me.”

“Why? What can you do?” she protested. “I already asked you to leave me alone, and we can see how well that worked out.”

He wasn’t walking away and everyone should just get over it. Including Cindy. “Backing off isn’t exactly my style.”

“Then you’re the exception.”

“I take pride in staying friends with the women I’ve taken out,” he said.

Cindy blinked at him. “Don’t tell me. The serial dater rumors are true.”

“I object to the ‘serial’ label.” He rested his forearms on the table. “I go out. In fact, I went out with one of those nurses for a while. We’re still friends.”

Cindy glanced over her shoulder and tensed before meeting his gaze again. “Don’t tell me. You dated the one glaring a hole through my back.”

“I don’t see anyone scowling in your direction. Barbara Kelly and I went out a few times. No big deal.”

“For you,” she said pointedly. “But this is going to be trouble for me. And it’s not like I don’t have enough on my plate already.”

“You’re being overly dramatic.”

She shook her head. “Must be nice to live in fantasy land.”

On the contrary. He was a realist. The reality was that the child she carried was his responsibility and he would take care of it. And her.

Whether she wanted him to or not.

The day after dinner with Nathan, Cindy dreaded her work assignment in the NICU. Facing the two nurses after being caught “red-handed” with a doctor wasn’t something that would make for a relaxed atmosphere. There were no written rules, nothing in the employee handbook, but that didn’t make it any less true. Anyone who crossed the line did so at her own peril.

There was only one thing she could do. Her job. And she did it to the best of her ability, ignoring the hostile looks from Barbara, who watched like a prison guard from her nurse’s station fortress in the center of the large room. The unit was full of tiny babies, but all was normal and quiet. Nathan was nowhere in sight.

A small thread of disappointment told her she’d started to look forward to seeing him, which was a much-needed wake-up call. Her pregnancy was the only reason he acknowledged her at all. He’d all but confessed to being a serial dater. And to losing his wife, which could explain why he was a serial dater. Heartbreak could make a guy unwilling to commit.

But understanding didn’t change the facts. By definition, seeing a lot of women meant that he had a short attention span and sooner or later he would disappear.

One thing about having lots to think about was how fast she got her work finished. She glanced around to make sure everything was taken care of and all her paraphernalia was picked up. That was when she caught Barbara’s toxic look with the three Ds—disapproval, disdain and distaste.

“Ignore it,” she muttered, turning away. “Be Switzerland.”

The resentment would blow over when Nathan reverted to typical male behavior and showed more interest in a ventilator than her. Until then, she’d do her job and keep a low profile.

She walked out into the hall and replaced her supplies on the cart before unsnapping her “bunny suit.” Just as she was stepping out of it, the NICU door opened and Barbara walked out.

Cindy’s stomach knotted because her luck wasn’t good enough for this to be a coincidence. She turned away and set the disposable suit on the handle of her cart, then picked up her clipboard and pretended to study her next assignment.

“I want to talk to you.” The nurse’s voice vibrated with antagonism.

Cindy took a deep breath and faced the woman, faking a calm she didn’t feel. “Is there something you needed?”

“I need for you to concentrate on your job instead of your social life.”

She’d always thought the nurse was beautiful. Not anymore. The woman’s mouth pulled tight, making her chin, cheeks and nose sharper, more Wicked Witch of the West. The coldness rolling off her made Cindy wish for wool socks and a parka. But a confrontation required at least two, and she was determined not to take the bait. That meant bottling up a whole lot of outrage and indignation.

“I’m sorry. I thought I was thorough in the unit. Did I miss something?”

“Yeah.” Barbara folded her arms over her chest. “You missed the part where you keep your nose out of other people’s business.”

Cindy knew that “business” meant Nathan Steele. She decided to play as dumb as this woman desperately wanted her to be. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Oh, please. Since when does a neonatologist push a housekeeping cart?” she asked sarcastically. “And take you to dinner. Isn’t he a little out of your league?”

The knots in Cindy’s stomach tightened, then cramps started in her lower abdomen. She resisted giving in to it. Show no weakness.

“Dr. Steele and I are nothing more than friends.” And parents-to-be, she thought. But that “business” she was keeping to herself for as long as possible.

“Right. And next you’ll be trying to sell me beachfront property in Arizona.”

Cindy shrugged. “Ask him if you don’t believe me.”

Anger flared hot in the other woman’s eyes because they both knew she couldn’t and wouldn’t do that. Barbara jabbed her index finger in the air. “Look, just because you won a seat at the big table, don’t go shining up your glass slippers for a walk down the aisle with Nathan Steele.”

Cindy wanted so badly to ask if this was junior high and Barbara had dibs on him, but that would just prolong this awful scene and the pain in her stomach was getting worse.

“I’ve heard he goes through women at the speed of light. It’s really nice of you to warn me.”

Barbara’s fingers curled into her palms and the frustration seemed to roll off her in waves before she turned without another word and went back into the unit. Chalk one up for the peon, Cindy thought.

But the brief feeling of triumph was cut short by a cramping pain that had her sucking in air before leaning against the wall. She took deep breaths and waited for it to pass. The discomfort eased but didn’t disappear and she very much needed to sit down.

She made sure her cart was flush against the wall and not impeding the flow of traffic in the hall. Slowly she walked around the corner to the empty NICU waiting room and tentatively lowered herself into a chair, folding her arms protectively over her abdomen.

She’d never felt more alone or scared, not even after losing her father. Something wasn’t right, but she didn’t know what to do. Finally she took out her cell phone and called her supervisor. A few minutes later, Dina hurried around the corner.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“This is Mercy Medical Center. I figured by the time you got here you’d already know,” Cindy answered, trying to joke her way into being brave.

Dina sat down beside her. “Did something happen?”

“Before or after Barbara Kelly got on my case?”

The other woman angrily shook her head. “She’s not happy unless she’s complaining about something. Or someone.”

“Then she must be ecstatic right now.” Cindy winced.

Concern went up a notch in Dina’s eyes. “Tell me what’s going on. You’re white as a sheet.”

“I think—” Cindy’s voice caught and she bit her lip. “I have cramps. I’m just sitting here until they go away. I thought you should know in case someone says something about it.”

“How long?”

“Just until the pain stops.”

“No.” Dina shook her head impatiently. “When did the pains start?”

“About fifteen minutes ago.”

“It could be nothing,” Dina said. “And probably is. But that’s a chance you don’t want to take. You need to call your doctor.”

“I will,” she said, nodding. “But it’s getting better. When my shift is over, I’ll—”

“Don’t worry about that.” Dina waved a hand dismissively. “You need to find out right away whether or not there’s something to be concerned about. We’re talking about your child’s welfare.”

Her child.

Her baby.

Cindy rested her hand on her stomach. There was a life in there. A life that could be in jeopardy. Fear rolled through her and cleared away the doubts.

In that instant, what had been a surreal, intangible, complicated problem became crystal clear.

There was nothing more important than her child. There was nothing she wanted more than this baby.

Nothing.

She would do whatever was necessary and everything in her power to protect it.