Mendoza's Miracle

by Judy Duarte

  For a woman who’d sat on this very bench on more than one occasion, wondering if she’d ever meet a special man, she’d certainly botched things up with Javier.

  Not that he was the kind of man she ought to date. But he was definitely appealing in more ways than one.

  She couldn’t let him go without explaining herself and her hesitation. So she got to her feet and started toward him. “Javier? Wait up.”

  He stopped and turned. “What is it?”

  She nearly froze for a moment, then pressed on.

  “I’m sorry for not speaking up sooner. I guess the whole idea was a little surprising. But I’d like to go out to dinner with you. That is, if you’re serious about it.”

  He studied her for a moment, as if she might be lying, as if she might be stringing him along. “It was just a thought I’d had.”

  And one she found irresistible.

  “I probably should have called ahead and let you know I was going to stop by,” he added. “My visit had to throw you off stride, especially since we haven’t seen each other in a week or so.”

  “I was surprised to see you,” she admitted.

  “I’m not sure why you didn’t come back to my house—unless you’re trying to avoid me. And if you’d rather we not see each other again, that’s fine, too. Just say the word.”

  “I made it a point to stay away, but not because I’d been trying to avoid you.”

  Okay, so that wasn’t entirely true. She’d been trying to forget him, although it hadn’t worked. No matter how many books she picked up or how many TV movies she’d tried to watch, Javier had remained on her mind.

  “You don’t have to explain, Florence. No harm, no foul.”

  “I think you’re missing the point.”

  He stood there, as if daring her to explain. So she finally admitted what she’d been fighting for weeks on end.

  “I care about you, Javier. Probably more than I should. And I’m not sure it would be in either of our best interests if we dated.”

  His eye twitched ever so slightly.

  “You lead an active social life, and I’m pretty much a work and homebody.”

  “Yeah, well, my life has been curtailed as of late, and I’m not sure if that’s going to ever change.”

  “Of course it will. You’ll be back to your old self in no time at all.”

  He nodded as if he agreed. But something in his eye, in the way he tensed his lips, said, Yeah, right.

  “For whatever it’s worth,” she added, “I’d like to go to dinner with you whenever you’re up for it. And I doubt I’ll be married by then.”

  As much as she worried that they were both making a big mistake, that he would be better off with a classier woman, that he ran in a different social circle than she did, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a small notepad and pen she kept handy.

  “I’ll give you my number, and you can do whatever you want with it.” She looked up, caught his eye, then gave him a little wink. “Well, other than give it to someone else.”

  “You don’t have to do that,” he said.

  What? Give him her number?

  Even with the many doubts she had, she still had to admit that she felt something for him. And that it might be a bigger mistake not to give it to him.

  What if she could trust her feelings? What if the two of them were better suited than she thought?

  No closer to an answer, she scratched out her telephone number on a blank sheet, then tore it from the pad and handed it to him.

  Javier took the paper from Leah, glad to have a way of contacting her outside the hospital, yet realizing she hadn’t given it freely to him.

  “I’m not looking for your pity,” he said.

  “Pity is the last thing I feel for you.”

  He searched her gaze, her expression, looking for a sign of truth. “So you admit to feeling something?”

  “Yes, but I’m not sure what it is. There’s some definite attraction, but I’m afraid it might only be a case of transference on one or both of our parts.”

  “What’s that?”

  “It’s a psychological phenomenon that occurs when a medical professional finds himself or herself attracted to a patient and vice versa. And it’s way more common than you might think… Some patients actually think that they’re falling for their doctors or nurses but the feeling isn’t lasting. And it’s not real.” She took a moment to catch her breath, then continued, the words flowing from her mouth in a nervous rush. “It’s not ethical for medical professionals to get involved with their patients, so I thought it was best to let those feelings run their course. And so I stayed away for a week.... But it’s still a struggle. And I’m not sure why that is.”

  Javier took a step closer, reached out with his free hand and gripped her shoulder. “You’re rambling, Florence. And I’ve never seen you like this. What’s going on?”

  She took a deep breath, then slowly blew it out as though she could banish her nervousness and reel in her jabbering. “Being around you is making me this way. I’m attracted to you. And I’m struggling with it, okay? I want to do the right thing, and I’m not sure what that is. And so I’m…”

  Javier had no idea what had set her off like that. But the one thing he did gather was that she was attracted to him and fighting it for some reason. Although she was blaming it on transference or some crazy thing, rather than taking it for what it was.

  She was flat-out flustered by their conversation—and so damn cute—that he couldn’t help but grin.

  Nor could he keep from removing his hand from her shoulder, cupping her jaw and drawing her mouth to his.

  Chapter Eight

  Leah’s heart skipped a beat the moment Javier touched her shoulder, let alone her cheek. And she nearly flatlined as their lips met, as their breaths mingled. She reached out for his waist to steady herself, even though he was the one who held a cane.

  The kiss, which had started out both sweet and sensual, deepened, their mouths opening just as though they’d been lovers for years. Just as though the dreams she’d been having about him every night for the past two weeks had decided to come true right this moment.

  Still, she continued to kiss him—to brush her tongue against his, to dip, to taste. For a moment, she forgot who she was, let alone where she was—outside the hospital, where any one of her colleagues might glance out a window and see her. But having witnesses didn’t seem to matter one little bit right now. Not while she was making note of the fact that Javier Mendoza was the most talented kisser she’d ever known.

  Not that she was an expert in the art of foreplay by any means, but just the same, she knew what she liked and how it affected her. And this one?

  Oh, wow. What a kiss. Talk about fireworks—and it wasn’t anywhere near July.

  She leaned into him, knowing better yet yearning for more of the wet and wild heated assault of her mouth.

  As he slipped his arms around her, drawing her close, his cane slammed onto the ground, bringing her to her senses.

  Bringing them both to their senses.

  She slowly pulled her mouth from his, placing her hands on his chest and gripping his shirt as if she could push him away and hold him close at the same time.

  What was she doing?

  Her cheeks flushed warm with embarrassment—or maybe as a result of raw desire. She had no idea what it was, but she had to gain control of herself. Goodness gracious. She’d have to go back to work in a matter of minutes.

  Ignoring the awkward now-what discussion that was bound to come up, she bent to pick up his cane. After all, what if he fell? What if he hurt himself all over again?

  She tried to brace herself and Javier at the same time as she dropped down in fro
nt of him, past his belt, over his…

  Of for Pete’s sake. As she made eye contact with his fly, as she grew aware of a stirring erection, she swallowed—hard. Her heart began to pound like a jackhammer and she didn’t know what to do, what to say.

  For the second time in minutes the man had left her speechless and nearly brain-dead.

  She reached for his cane, then rose to her feet and handed it to him, this time focusing on anything but the man in front of her. Yet her head was still spinning.

  “Well, I guess that answers one question,” he said.

  She had no idea what he was talking about because, when it came to questions, she had a ton of them herself and didn’t know where to begin.

  “What’s that?” she asked, finally making eye contact and hoping her cheeks weren’t flushed as deeply as she suspected they were.

  “You were right, Florence. You are feeling more than pity for me.”

  “I don’t know what I’m feeling, remember?” She took a step back and crossed her arms.

  “Well, there’s definitely some chemistry brewing between us.”

  She couldn’t argue that point.

  “Maybe we should try kissing again, just to make sure it was the real thing.”

  Her cheeks heated even more, setting off a rosy flush. no doubt. But it had all been real—the kiss, the arousal, the desire for more. Yet now it was her turn to shrug off the feelings, the magic.

  “We’ll see about that. But not here.”

  He scanned the rose garden. “What’s wrong with this place?”

  “Nothing. It’s actually a special place.” And now, each time she came back out here, she would think of him and the best kiss she’d ever had.

  He cocked his head slightly. “Do you come out here very often?”

  She nodded. “Sometimes during my breaks I’ll come out here to read, to eat lunch and to reflect.” She turned and scanned the bushes that were just starting to bud and show a bit of color. “A few months ago, I had a patient who reminded me of my mother. She had cancer, too. And after we had to tell her that the treatments weren’t working, that she was going to die in a matter of weeks, I came out here to keep from bawling my eyes out in front of her.”

  “Did it help?”

  She nodded. “Yes, some.”

  “So it’s a sacred place.”

  “No, it’s not that. I’ve had a lot of quiet times out here, lost in my thoughts and dreams.” And now those dreams were going to include Javier, whether she wanted them to or not.

  And even if she never saw him again, every time she walked out to the rose garden, she’d relive that kiss again in her memory.

  “I’m not the only one who takes refuge out here,” she said, hoping to steer the conversation away from what the rose garden was going to mean to her from here on out. “And it can be seen from the windows of half the rooms in the hospital.”

  “So you’re concerned that someone may have seen us?”

  She didn’t know what concerned her the most. She just needed to get her thoughts back on track. So she glanced at her wristwatch, noting the time. “We’re going to have to talk about all of this later. I have to go back to work now.”

  “I don’t suppose you’d like a kiss goodbye.” He cracked a boyish grin.

  “To be honest?” A smile crept across her face, matching the one on his. “I’d like that—a lot. But that’s not going to happen. I’m going to have a hard time keeping my mind on my patients as it is. And that’s not good.”

  “Okay, I’ll tell you what. Go on back to work and do your best to put it out of your mind. We can talk about it tonight over dinner at my place. Nothing fancy.”

  She didn’t know what to say, which was bothersome in itself. She’d never felt so indecisive in her life.

  “I’ll see you around seven,” he added, clearly assuming that she would say yes.

  And maybe he knew her better than she thought, because she found herself nodding in agreement as she turned around and walked back to the hospital.

  Javier had never planned to kiss Leah—at least, not yet. He’d wanted to wait until she met the man he once was. And while kissing her had complicated things, it had also convinced him that he needed to resort to Plan B, an option he hadn’t come up with before.

  As much as he’d wanted to be one hundred percent when he asked her out, he couldn’t put that off any longer. No way did he want to risk her hooking up with someone else in the meantime. And the kiss—as mind-blowing as it had been—had convinced him to alter his plans.

  So he’d asked her to come to his house for dinner tonight, hoping to buy some time to figure out what he wanted to do about her. And kissing her again was definitely on the top of his list.

  Damn. He’d known it would be good between them, he just hadn’t realized how good. They’d definitely be sexually compatible if things progressed that far. And right now, he couldn’t see any reason they wouldn’t—as long as he kept improving.

  So after she’d gone back to work, he’d made the trek from the rose garden to the rehab unit, where he’d had one heck of a workout session, pushing himself hard, wanting to get better as fast as he could.

  And then he’d gone home and crashed for a while.

  He hadn’t given dinner much thought when he’d invited her. If he’d been steadier on his feet, he might have thought about grilling something.

  Too bad Margarita had taken the afternoon off to visit her sister, who was visiting from Guadalajara. He would have asked her to whip up one of her specialties before going home and leaving him and Leah alone.

  As it was, he decided to drive to Red and order takeout. After getting out of his car, he limped to the entry of the family-owned restaurant his brother Marcos managed. He’d barely reached the hostess desk when Marcos spotted him and broke out in a smile.

  “It’s good to see you up and around, Javier. We’re going to have to schedule a golf match soon.”

  “I don’t know about that. The only thing I’ve been able to swing these days is my cane.”

  “That may be the case, but it’s great to see you standing upright. You’re looking good.” Marcos reached for a menu. “Are you meeting anyone? Or is it just you?”

  “Actually, I just want to order some takeout.”

  “We can do that. What’ll you have?”

  As Marcos handed over the menu, he said, “By the way, Wendy and I are having a little party next Friday night. Now that Mary Anne is home, we’re inviting everyone to stop by for an open house. I hope you can make it.”

  “I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Would you mind if I brought a friend?”

  “Not at all. Who is she?”

  “What makes you think I’m bringing a woman?”

  “Because you’d never bring one of your golf buddies or your business partners to a family gathering. In fact, you’d never bring a regular date, either. This woman must be special. Who is she?”

  Javier wasn’t sure how to address the idea that Leah was special, even though she was. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to let his family know that he’d found someone worth dating for a while exclusively.

  “It’s Leah Roberts, my nurse.”

  Marcos grinned. “I had a feeling something was going on between you two, but I kept quiet so I didn’t jinx it. Now that I’m happily married, I’d like to see all my brothers find what I’ve found with Wendy.”

  “I don’t know if things are going in that direction,” Javier admitted. “We’re really just…tiptoeing around the idea of a relationship. But she knows most of you anyway. And—”

  Marcos gave Javier a little jab. “Don’t stumble over an explanation on my account. We’d love to see Leah, so feel free to bring her along. I won’t mention an
ything to anyone about you guys dating, although I’m not the only one who noticed the way you looked at each other.”

  Javier ought to object, but the truth was, he’d looked at Leah differently than he had the other nurses. And she’d been looking at him in the same way.

  He had no idea what would become of them as a couple, he just knew that being with her felt right.

  Leah couldn’t explain why she’d agreed to have dinner with Javier, since she had good reason not to get any further involved with him than she was. But the simple fact of the matter was their kiss had changed things.

  So after getting off work, she quickly stopped by her house to change into street clothes.

  If she’d listened to her head instead of her hormones, she wouldn’t have gone to the trouble. As it was, after she’d freshened up, she chose a pair of low-waisted khaki slacks and a green top, as well as a lightweight sweater. Then she drove to his house, arriving a minute or two before seven.

  Javier must have been watching for her because he opened the door before she had a chance to ring the bell.

  He cast an appreciative gaze over her, then smiled. “You look great, Leah.”

  “Thanks.” As much as she’d wanted to claim that kiss hadn’t affected her as deeply as it had, that she was immune to his charm and that dazzling smile, she warmed at his praise, which she’d secretly been seeking all along.

  “Come on in,” he said, stepping aside for her, then closing the door once she’d gotten inside.

  “You must be hungry.” He led her to the dining room table, with the large bay window providing a romantic view of the city lights. “And since I picked up food for us, it’s probably best if we eat first. We can talk over dinner.”

  Minutes later, they sat across the candlelit table with a Mexican feast spread before them. Javier had chosen grilled chicken, lightly seasoned, along with Spanish rice and a salad with what appeared to be a light sprinkle of cotija cheese over an avocado-cilantro dressing.

  “This looks delicious,” she said.

  “I hope you like it.”