“It is what it is,” she says with a sigh, and I hate the disappointment in her voice. I don’t want to let her down. I just need to get settled at work, and then I can shift my focus to Joy.
It shouldn’t take long to get caught up.
A tiny voice whispers “liar” in the back of my head, but I ignore it and tuck her under me, sinking into her for the first time in weeks.
She’s everything good in my world.
She’s home.
Dear Jace, this is your long-lost fiancée, Joy. I haven’t had a conversation with you in weeks. Call me.
I smile at the text from Joy and sigh. It’s been a week since I slipped into her bed and made love to her. I just couldn’t stay away another moment.
Time is flying. Every minute of my day is full of surgery, questions, issues to resolve, and battles to settle. Sometimes, I feel like a babysitter.
But it’s important, and I love it.
Just not as much as I love Joy.
“You look deep in thought.”
I glance up to find Maria Sanchez standing in my doorway. She’s in her white coat and dark slacks, a stethoscope around her neck, her lips painted that signature deep red she favors.
She’s a beautiful woman, and once upon a time, we had a lot of fun together.
Those days are over.
“I’m busy,” I reply, but can’t send her away because I’m her boss now. “What can I do for you?”
Her eyes roam up and down my body, setting me on edge. Looks like that weren’t appropriate before I was her boss, but I was single, and she’s beautiful.
They’re beyond out of line now.
“Well, aside from the obvious, I need to discuss my surgery schedule next week.”
“Come in,” I reply with a sigh, tucking my phone away and making a mental note to call Joy as soon as Maria leaves my office.
“I need to ask someone to cover for me next Thursday and Friday,” she begins. “I have travel plans.”
“Then you should have had the days covered weeks ago,” I reply with a frown. “I don’t know who will pick it up for you on this short notice.”
“Someone will,” she says with a shrug. “Either way, I won’t be here.”
I blow out a breath, trying to keep my irritation under control. Has this always been Maria’s work ethic?
If so, I wouldn’t have known. She’s an orthopedic surgeon, so I never would have been asked to cover for her.
I make a mental note to ask Mick about it later.
“If we can’t find someone to take your surgeries, you’ll have to stay.”
She scowls. “No, if no one takes them, we will reschedule them. This isn’t heart surgery, no one will die if they have to wait a week.”
“Maria, some of the people on your schedule have been there for months. You can’t just move them around because you want to go away for the weekend. They have schedules and lives, too.”
“Well, I’m the one doing the surgery, so I make the rules.”
“Actually, no. I make the rules, and I’m telling you that if I can’t find a replacement for those days, and you don’t show up, you’ll be fired.”
Her eyes flare with temper. “I’ll sue you so fast your head will spin.”
“Do it,” I challenge her. “The policy is written in your contract.”
She presses her lips together, knowing that she’s been outsmarted. She narrows her eyes. “So, how’s your girlfriend?”
“My fiancée is fine, thank you.”
This makes her tilt her head in surprise. She watches me with calculation.
“Jace, this is silly.” She stands and paces my office, then walks to where I’m sitting behind my desk and drags her fingers along my shoulders, making my skin crawl. “You know we can work this out. I’ll do just about anything to have those days off.”
“Surely, you’re not implying that I would give you the time off in exchange for fucking you.”
Her brown eyes turn cold. “Why not?”
I grab her hand and push it away from me. “I didn’t give you permission to touch me. I told you before, this isn’t going to happen. If you touch me again or make another offer like the one you just did, I’ll file a sexual harassment suit.”
She snorts out a laugh. “Oh, that’s rich. Who’s going to believe that I’m the one harassing you? Maybe you raped me.”
“You’re fired,” Mick says from the doorway of my office, his nostrils flaring with rage. “Get your shit and get the fuck out of my hospital.”
“Dr. Leamon,” she says, blinking rapidly and shaking her head. “You misunderstood, Jace and I were just joking around.”
“I heard the whole conversation,” he says. “And threatening the chief of surgery is grounds for dismissal. No second chances.”
“I need this job.”
“You should have thought of that before.” He dismisses her with a flick of the wrist. “Now leave, before I have you removed.”
She stomps out of my office and slams the door behind her. I sigh deeply.
“If you fuck another doctor on staff, you’ll be fired, as well,” he says.
I cringe. “It was before I was chief. Way before. She wouldn’t let it go.”
“I’m not kidding,” he says.
“I’m engaged, and happily, it’s not with another physician on staff,” I inform him.
“That’s concerning, as well,” he replies. “We talked about this when you were appointed chief.”
“I know. And I’ll make it work.”
He narrows his eyes at me.
“You’re married,” I remind him.
“And it was a miracle that I didn’t get divorced,” he retorts. “It’s a miracle she didn’t throw me out on my ass. I was never home, Jace. For years. You sacrifice a lot for this job.”
“I can make it work,” I insist again. “I’m not saying it’ll be easy, but it’ll be worth it.”
He’s quiet for a moment, watching me through his glasses. “I’ll be checking in with you to make sure you’re not burning out.”
I’m already burning out.
But I just smile and nod. “So noted. What did you come in here for?” I ask before he can walk out the door.
“Just checking in, and I’m glad I did. Now we need to get to work finding a new orthopedic surgeon.”
“Great,” I mutter after he leaves. “One more thing to do.”
I pick up my phone and dial Joy’s number, but it goes to voicemail.
“Hey, baby,” I say into the phone. “I know I’ve been bad at communication this week. And, well, every week. I was just thinking about you and wanted to say hi. I hope you’re having a good day. Love you.”
I hang up and sigh.
I miss her.
~Joy~
“I can’t even wear my engagement ring,” I say to my doctor. “My fingers are too swollen. I’ve been nauseated off and on for more than a month.”
“And you’re just now coming to see me?” she asks with a scowl.
“The flu has made the rounds through my clinic, and I assume I’m still getting over that.”
“Not a month later,” she says, shaking her head. “Are you dizzy?”
“No.”
“Diarrhea?”
“Thankfully, no. I am achy. Especially in my hips.”
She looks up at me and narrows her eyes. “First things first, I’m going to have you pee in a cup. We’ll take a look at things, and then if I think we need a blood test, we’ll do that. I have a hunch on something.”
“On what?”
“Just pee in the cup, and I’ll be back in a few. The bathroom is around the corner.”
She takes her laptop out of the room, points at the bathroom, and leaves me to my own devices.
I finally had to break down and come to the doctor. My hips are killing me. I can’t lay on my back at all anymore, and I am constantly shifting in my sleep, trying to find a comfortable position.
The naus
ea comes in waves now. Some days, I’m completely fine. Other days, I can’t keep anything down.
It’s ridiculously frustrating.
I do my business, write my name on the cup, and put it in the mysterious two-sided door, then wash my hands and return to the exam room.
Less than ten minutes later, Dr. Nixon returns with a smile on her pretty face.
“It’s just as I suspected.”
“I have malaria.”
She laughs and shakes her head. “No, you’re pregnant.”
I blink at her, sure I’ve misheard her.
“I have the flu?”
“Pregnant,” she repeats, enunciating each syllable. “You, my friend, are going to have a baby.”
I squint my eyes at her, blinking as if I don’t understand the words coming out of her mouth. “A baby.”
“A baby,” she confirms with a nod. “Now, let’s do an ultrasound and find out how far along you are.”
“An ultrasound.”
“Are you just going to repeat everything I say?”
I nod slowly. “Yeah, I think I am because I am not having a baby.”
“Your pregnancy test was positive,” she says gently. “I take it you’ve not been trying to get pregnant.”
“Well, now that I think about it, I haven’t been trying not to get pregnant. We were great about protection in the beginning and then it just sort of fizzled out. I’m a horrible person.”
“Is he in the picture for the long haul?”
I hold up my hand, then remember that I can’t wear my ring right now because of my fat sausage fingers. “Yes. He proposed a month ago.”
“Well, congratulations,” she says as her nurse rolls an ultrasound machine into the room. I remove my pants, not shy enough to need them to leave the room, and lie back on the table, my feet in the stirrups.
This is a vaginal ultrasound, so it’s not particularly comfortable, but with some maneuvering, Dr. Nixon smiles and points to a black blob on the screen. “There it is.”
“It’s tiny.”
“I’d say you’re about eight weeks along.”
I frown. “We were still using condoms then.”
“They don’t always work,” she says with a shrug. “I see more than my share of women who swear they used condoms.”
“Well, that feels like false advertising on the condoms’ behalf,” I reply, my eyes glued to the screen. “Is that . . . ?”
“Yep, that’s a heartbeat.” She pushes buttons and moves the wand again. The blip moves in and out of sight, but the heartbeat is strong and steady. “It looks to me like things are healthy, and right where they should be. You’ll need to make an appointment with your OB, of course.”
“Of course,” I mutter, still shocked. The doctor removes the wand and backs away.
“You can get dressed. I can prescribe some anti-nausea meds for you for the bad days, but this should pass in another month or so.”
“Thanks,” I reply.
“Let me know if you need anything. Congrats again.”
She pats my shoulder, and then she’s gone. I clean myself up and get dressed, check out at the front desk, and hurry out to my car where I sit and stare at the cars driving back and forth on the road in front of me.
I’m going to have a baby.
Holy shit.
My first reaction is happiness. A baby is something to be excited about. But I also feel nervous and worried.
I have reservations about Jace. Are we even getting married at this point? I haven’t seen him since the night he slipped into my bed. He left before I woke up the next morning. I’ve received exactly one call and three texts since then.
It’s been a month since he went back to work. I knew he’d be busy. I knew.
But I also believed him when he said he’d make me a priority.
So, I don’t know what’s going to happen, and it makes my heart ache.
I reach for my phone and dial Jace, hoping that a miracle will happen and he’ll answer. I know one thing for sure, I have to talk to him.
“Hey,” he says, his smooth voice coming through the phone.
“Wow, I caught you.”
“I know. I’m sorry, Joy.”
All he does is apologize these days.
“I’d really love to see you,” I say, unable to hide the desperation in my voice. “Jace, I haven’t seen you in weeks.”
“You have impeccable timing,” he says. “I’m getting out of here by four. Let’s have dinner. I’ll pick you up and take you to the Palomino.”
“That actually sounds really good,” I reply, relief pouring through me. We can have dinner at our favorite place, and I can tell him about the baby.
“Great, I’ll come to your place at five. That’ll give me time to swing by home and clean up.”
“Perfect. I’ll see you soon. And, Jace, if you stand me up, so help me God—”
“I won’t,” he assures me. “I’m going to see you in exactly two hours and thirty-four minutes.”
“Okay. Love you.”
“I love you, too, sweetheart.”
I hang up and drive home, hope blooming in my heart for the first time in a while. I don’t even feel sick to my stomach, which is a blessing in and of itself.
Everything is going to be okay. This baby isn’t a horrible thing. Jace told me when he proposed that he wants a family, and we’re both established in our careers, at the perfect time to add a little human.
We’re going to make it work.
The house is quiet when I walk inside. It’s been particularly quiet since I found all six of Angela’s puppies new homes. It wasn’t easy to say goodbye, but they each have wonderful families to love them. And, I think Angela is relieved, too.
She greets me at the door, whining with happiness to see me.
“Hi, special girl.” I kiss the top of her snout. “Jace is coming to get me soon. You have to come help me decide what to wear. That’s right, come on.”
We climb the stairs to my bedroom, and I open the closet. I want to look nice. Scratch that. I want to blow him the fuck away.
Remind him what he’s been missing out on.
With a decisive nod, I pull a shift dress out that will look great with a belt. It has long sleeves, appropriate for the fall weather, but if I leave a button undone, I can show off a little cleavage.
Perfect.
After taking the time to relax in a bath, wash my hair, and then buff and polish myself into something that resembles sexy, it’s five-oh-five, and Jace isn’t here.
I scowl at the time on my phone, and it coincidentally rings.
“Hello.”
“Babe, I’m so sorry. I’m not cancelling, I just got hung up on an emergency. Go ahead and go to the restaurant. I’ll meet you there.”
“Jace.”
“I swear, I’ll meet you there in just a little while. Get a glass of wine and save me a seat. I’ll see you soon, and I’ll make it up to you.”
“Trust me, you’ll be making it up to me.”
“In spades,” he promises. “See you soon.”
I blow out a breath and look over at Carl, who stares at me with narrowed eyes.
“I know, he’s in trouble.”
He continues staring at me.
“Stop judging me. He’ll make it up to me.”
I grab my handbag and keys and leave for the restaurant. I’m a good thirty minutes away with traffic, and once I park and walk inside, it’s almost an hour after I left my house.
Surely, he’ll be right behind me.
“More sparkling water?” the waiter asks me two hours later. I’m in the middle of eating my steak and potatoes. I finally decided to go ahead and order some food since I was here and starving.
But Jace hasn’t shown.
“Please,” I say with a nod.
“Dr. Thompson?”
I glance up and smile at Alec, the owner of the sock-eating Great Dane.
“Hi, Alec.”
“I th
ought that was you. Are you waiting for someone, or can I sit and chat for a minute?”
“Please,” I say, gesturing to Jace’s empty seat, burying my fury so I don’t take it out on an innocent bystander. “What are you up to?”
“I’m here with my parents and sister, celebrating my dad’s birthday, but I saw you sitting here on my way back from the restroom. Do you come here by yourself often?”
“No, actually. I was supposed to meet someone, but they got hung up, and I was hungry.”
“I see.” He nods. “Well, you look lovely.”
“Thank you.” I smile, enjoying the company and the compliment. “So do you.”
Alec is a handsome man, with jet-black hair, brown eyes, and an athletic body. He’s tall, and he’s always been kind to me.
“How is the dog?” I ask and take a bite of my steak.
“She’s good,” he replies with a chuckle. “She’s stopped eating socks and is slowly starting to calm down a bit.”
“I’m glad. I think she’ll be a great dog once she outgrows her puppyhood.”
“You’re right. And the kids adore her.”
“Are they with you tonight?”
A shadow drifts over his face. “No. Their mom wouldn’t let me bring them tonight because it’s not my scheduled time with them.”
“Divorce sucks,” I say with a cringe, and I inwardly hope against hope that this won’t be Jace and me someday, fighting over custody and when each of us gets to see our child. “It’s not getting any better with time?”
“No,” he says, shaking his head. “And it doesn’t help that she started dating someone else. I think she thinks that she and this new guy can pick up where our family left off, and just squeeze me right out of the picture.”
“Oh, Alec, I’m sure that’s not the case.”
“Feels that way,” he says with a sigh.
“This new guy is shiny and new,” I reply reasonably. “Of course, she’s preoccupied with him. But she shouldn’t try to use him as an excuse for you to not see your children.”
“It’s something different all the time,” he says. “Tim wants to take us to Portland for the weekend. Tim wants to take us all to the movies. Tim this and Tim that.”
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