by Ann Mcintosh
To make matters worse, she got a call from one of the administrators, who told her that Morgan Welk had filed a grievance against her, citing her “inability to allow specialists to do their jobs unhindered.”
“It’s not an official complaint,” the administrator said cheerfully, as though it was no big deal. “Just an internal matter that will be dealt with on the administrative level.”
“Send me a copy of the paperwork so I can file my answer,” she said, keeping her cool, although the urge to curse was strong. “I’ll only be here for another two weeks, so please do so immediately. I’d like to have the issue cleared up before I go.”
“There’s no need—”
“There’s every need,” she interrupted. “I will not have an unresolved complaint on my record.”
Seeing the cardiologist later, she went out of her way to treat him exactly the same way she always had, despite his smug, condescending manner. Obviously, he thought she should be cowering because of his grievance, but if so, she made it clear she was in no way concerned.
Although, of course, she was. Hers, to this point, was an exemplary record, and she’d be damned if the likes of Welk would spoil that.
The documentation came to her on Wednesday afternoon, and she read it through after she got home.
“He cited the Mignon case,” she told Mateo when he came by that evening. She was striving for calm, but inside she was seething. Pacing back and forth in her minuscule living room helped, but only marginally. “Saying I gave the patient a doubtful prognosis while refusing to allow him to properly treat her TIAs or schedule her for heart valve surgery.”
“But that case is still open,” he pointed out. “We won’t know for sure whether it’s Fabry’s or not until the genetic test results come back.”
“Exactly.” She jabbed a finger toward him in emphasis. “That’s what Welk is counting on—that I’ll be back in San Francisco by the time the results are in. And since I won’t be here to make sure the complaint is expunged, it’ll just remain on my record.”
“An internal complaint like that won’t hurt you,” Mateo said slowly, as though unsure of how she’d respond. “I mean, it’s not a malpractice situation, or something the medical board would have to investigate.”
She sighed, rolling her head, trying to ease the tension there.
“I know, but it still gets my goat that he’d do something so...so...”
“Underhanded? Ridiculous?”
“Either. Both. Ugh, that man just annoys me beyond reason.”
Mateo watched her pace back and forth a couple times more, then said, “Hey, why don’t you come to my place and stay the night. I have a heated pool, and we could swim, help you burn off some of that excess energy. I’ll drop you off in the morning, when I’m going to work.”
It was tempting. In all the time she’d been in Miami, and they’d been sleeping together, she hadn’t been to his home, and he hadn’t invited her again after she’d turned him down on the way back from the Keys.
She really was curious to see it, and would prefer to do so the first time without all of his siblings there.
“I’d like that,” she admitted. “A lot.”
“Go on, then,” he said. “Grab an overnight bag, and let’s go.”
The house was very nice, but not as luxurious as she half expected. And although it was silly, she was glad. While she’d gotten over her first hang-ups about Mateo being wealthy, it was nice to find his home to be comfortable and welcoming, rather than grand.
The lived-in atmosphere put her at ease as soon as they walked into the foyer.
“Make yourself at home,” Mateo said as he guided her along a corridor toward the family room. Regina paused, looking at the photographs lining the hallway, trying to figure out who was who.
“Those are my parents,” he said, pointing to a couple, arms around each other, laughing. “That was their twentieth wedding anniversary.”
“You look a lot like your mom,” she murmured, ridiculously moved to see his smile on his mother’s face. “But it looks like you got your dad’s eyes.”
“Yeah,” he said in that tender tone she’d come to recognize. “Cristóbal has Dad’s smile, and Lola is just like Mom.”
He pointed to pictures of his brother and then sister as he spoke.
“I can see that.”
“And here’s Ben, Micah and Serena,” he said, indicating a more formal portrait, taken at a graduation. The younger of the men was of Asian descent, while both the elder and Serena were African American.
“Ben’s the oldest of the three?” she asked, trying to get them straight in her head.
“Yes, he’s twenty-four now, and about to graduate from college with a bachelor-of-science degree. He’s going to do his master’s in chemical engineering. Micah is twenty-two, and he’s very into music production, so he took a year off college and went to LA. It was with the agreement that if he wasn’t making a living at the end of the year, he’d go back to school.”
“How’s he doing?” Regina already knew the answer to her question, just from Mateo’s rueful tone, but she asked it anyway.
“Far better than I expected,” he admitted. “I think I lost that round, but as long as he’s doing well, I can’t complain.”
She laughed softly. “And what does Serena plan to study?”
“She’s leaning toward medical research, which is why she picked University of Florida.”
She contemplated the photographs once more. There was an older picture, which must have been taken not long before Mateo’s parents died, since the entire family was together, and the three younger children were small. They were all smiling, Serena was in her father’s arms, and the love between them all was palpable.
“Beautiful family,” she said.
“My dad used to say we were a mini United Nations.” Amusement and sadness were mixed together in his tone. “And after they were gone, I worried about being able to raise three kids of different racial backgrounds, and do it justice. Then I figured all I could do was raise them with love and honesty. I think they’ve turned out pretty well.”
“I’m sure your parents would be proud—of them, and of you.”
He’d thrown an arm around her shoulders as they talked, and he gave her a squeeze.
“Thanks.”
As they continued down the hallway, she said, “I’m in awe of you, you know. I don’t think I could do what you did.”
“It’s the kind of situation where you can’t know what you’d do until you’re in it,” he said. “And it wasn’t an easy choice to make.” He hesitated for a moment, and then continued, “I’d planned to go into surgery. Renal transplant specialist was my goal. I had to modify that to make sure I was doing right by the kids.”
“I’d wondered about that—what you’d given up to be there for them—and I’m sorry.” She didn’t know why, but the thought of his truncated dreams made her ineffably sad.
He stopped and pulled her around to face him, and when he spoke, his voice was harsh and strong.
“There’s nothing to be sorry about, Regina. I’m no martyr. In the final analysis, I didn’t have to give up much of anything. My parents left trusts for all their kids, so I wasn’t strapped for cash. I was able to get help from my aunt, and could afford a housekeeper, too. We had a roof over our heads, and food enough for any occasion. I don’t need sympathy or accolades.”
There was no way to explain that his fierce statement only made her prouder, and sadder, so she just smiled and said, “I don’t care what you say. You’re wonderful, and that’s all there is to it.”
“I’m not—”
But she didn’t want to hear what he thought he was or wasn’t. Not when she knew with all certainty exactly who and what he was.
So she pulled his head down and stopped him with a kiss.
>
When they came back up for air, she said, “So where’s this pool? And more importantly, do I have to wear a swimsuit?”
“Do you honestly think I’m going to insist that you do?” he asked, nimble fingers already undoing her buttons, stripping her down.
And she laughed, desperately happy to move past a conversation that made her feel so many emotions she didn’t want to acknowledge.
She could handle Mateo in a carnal sense, but the tugs on her heartstrings were too much to deal with.
* * *
It had seemed so simple at the beginning. A chance to fulfil a fantasy.
Regina’s reentry into his sphere had seemed prescient. Just as he was getting his own life back, she’d appeared, seeming to offer an adventure destined to get him out of his slump.
Well, she’d definitely brought all the excitement into his life that he could possibly need, but along with that, she’d brought a different kind of reawakening.
She made him feel alive, hungry for things he hadn’t given much thought to.
Her passions reinvigorated his own; her ambition fired a corresponding desire to do well and do better than he had before.
Not that he wasn’t proud of what he’d achieved. Yet, he knew he could go higher, do more.
He wanted more.
The problem was, part of that more he now wanted was her.
In his life, in his bed, forever.
And there was no way he could think of to approach a conversation about it that wouldn’t have her running away.
She’d shared her parents’ story with him, and he knew it had left an indelible mark on her. Even if she hadn’t, Mateo had to admit to himself that one of her most attractive traits was her drive to be the best. The ambition that propelled her ever higher in her field.
There was no way he would ever stand in the way of her achieving her goals. Not when she’d worked so hard, and positioned herself so carefully.
Lying beside her in bed, her head on his chest and her even breathing soothing his soul, he dreamed, just for a minute or two, that he could follow her back to San Francisco. Woo her there and show her he was worth taking a chance on.
But that was just another fantasy.
When he’d taken up the mantle of raising his youngest siblings, he’d done so with the knowledge that it was, in a way, a forever job. Just because they’d gone to college, or in Micah’s case moved across the country, didn’t mean his part in their lives was over.
All of them, even he, needed the stability of their family home: a safe place, no matter what storms life threw at them. It had been over a decade, but they were nowhere near ready to give up what their parents had built and the security it afforded.
Even if all the others were ready to move on, Mateo knew Serena wasn’t.
And his responsibility to her was solid and enduring.
It was too late to renege on the trust his family had put in him, and that was all there was to it.
It was hard to swallow, but he’d learned a long time ago some of the bitterest pills were and, in the end, they also were the best medicine. He wouldn’t be the man he was today if he hadn’t stepped up after his parents’ deaths. Raising Ben, Micah and Serena had been tough, but in many ways he knew they’d done more to help him grow than he’d done for them. The trial and error of being a parent, the recognition that sometimes making a decision—even if it wasn’t the best one—was better than not making one at all, had helped him become a better doctor.
As had the patience and ability to listen without judgment, which he’d had to learn.
No.
No matter his feelings for Regina, his family had to come first.
But the knowledge that she would soon be gone rattled around in his head, stealing his peace, keeping him awake. So he savored the warm weight of her on his chest, and committed it all to memory.
After all, in a short time, the memories would be all he had.
The next morning, when he was driving her home, he said, “Why don’t you come by later for dinner? Lola, Micah and Cristóbal are flying in this afternoon.”
But Regina shook her head, and it seemed to him they were once again on the same wavelength when she said, “No. Spend time with your family, Mateo. I’ll meet them on Saturday night.”
She was right, and her refusal was probably for the best, but it didn’t stop it from hurting a lot more than he cared to admit.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
IT WAS RIDICULOUS to be nervous about a party, but as Regina pulled up outside the Herrera house, her palms were damp, and she had to stop herself from obsessively checking her hair.
She, who would take on any doctor and stare them down until they cried uncle, was apprehensive about meeting Mateo’s family.
Telling herself it didn’t matter whether they liked her or not, since she wouldn’t be around long enough for them to form a proper opinion, didn’t make her feel any better. For all her cool containment—which seemed to have gone out the window anyway, where Mateo was concerned—she wanted to make a good impression.
She was only human, and realistically, nobody wanted to be disliked.
Giving her reflection one last, quick look in the mirror behind the sun visor, she forced herself to get out of the car and approach the house.
The front door was open, and when she stepped through, she found the foyer ablaze with lights. Balloons covered the ceiling, and their colorful, curled ribbons hanging down added a festive touch. Beyond the formal living room, the patio doors were open, and people spilled from the inside of the house to out by the pool deck.
As she stood there, gift bag in hand, Serena came in from the hallway leading to the kitchen and, seeing Regina, came to greet her.
“Hi,” she said, smiling and holding out her hand. “I’m Serena.”
“Regina,” she replied, taking the outstretched hand to shake.
“Serena and Regina in the foyer.”
The sing-song male voice came from behind her, so Regina looked over her shoulder to see Micah standing there. When she looked back at Serena, the young woman rolled her eyes.
“That’s my brother Micah. Just ignore his attempts to turn everything into a rhyme. He can’t seem to help himself.”
“My rhymes mean money time,” he said, giving them a grin. “Let me put that gift on the table for you.”
When Regina held it out and thanked him, he took off with the bag, leaving her alone with Serena again.
Still nervous, Regina searched for something to say.
“Did you ever find your hoodie?”
Serena’s brow wrinkled. “My hoodie?”
“Yes, you called to ask Mateo if you’d left it here...”
“Oh.” Serena’s confused expression melted away, to be replaced with a speculative one. “You were with Mateo when I called.”
“Yes.” Way to keep a low profile, Regina! “Did you find it?”
“Yeah, I did.”
“Was it in the pile of clothes?”
Serena wrinkled her nose, and briefly pushed her lips to the side. “Yeah, it was.”
Regina shook her head. “Don’t you just hate it when they’re right?”
That made the younger girl laugh, and agree. “Yes, I absolutely do.” Looping her arm through Regina’s, she started for the patio doors. “Come and join everyone outside. What can I get you to drink?”
Outside was bright with strings of lights, and gorgeous floral arrangements in pots were placed at intervals around the pool. The gazebo at the far end of the pool deck was beautifully decorated, too, with the bar and a table with snacks placed there.
The partygoers were clustered in small groups, and as Regina and Serena walked out, it felt as though every gaze turned their way. Serena towed her right over to where Mateo was standing, and his smile had warmth fanning
out through her body, although she made certain to keep her smile neutral and polite.
Mateo greeted her with a chaste kiss on the cheek, which she returned.
“Glad you could make it,” he said, and to her his voice sounded way too intimate.
“Sorry I’m late,” she replied. She’d never let him know, but she’d dithered forever about what to wear, finally settling on a red sundress with a light cardigan.
“You’re not,” he replied, before turning to introduce her to the rest of his family.
She’d planned to stay in the background but found herself pulled right into the thick of things, not just by Mateo, but by his family, too.
It was evident how close they all were, as they teased and laughed, talking over each other in a way that made their bond easy to see. They’d sung a crazy rendition of “Happy Birthday,” which seemed to be a family tradition, while Mateo hung his head as if in shame, although he was laughing. Regina should have felt left out, but instead, she couldn’t help laughing, too, at their antics, enjoying the atmosphere.
And although she wandered away periodically to get a drink or some snacks, she kept finding herself gravitating back to Mateo’s side.
Or he would come over to hers.
They orbited each other like planets destined to collide, and she didn’t think their carefully casual attitude fooled any of his siblings.
They all sought her out at intervals, asking all kinds of questions, obviously trying to figure out exactly what kind of relationship she had with their brother.
She tried to make it clear that she was just in Miami for another couple of weeks, and then she’d be gone again, but that didn’t really seem to satisfy them.
“I’ve been telling him it’s time for him to get a life, now that the kids are out of the house,” Lola said, giving Regina a straightforward look that put her on guard. “He’s probably completely out of practice when it comes to dating.”
Regina could tell the younger woman that her brother was in no way lacking in that department, but decided on a noncommittal sound instead.
“He’s done so much to keep our family together, but he deserves the chance to get on with his life.”