Her Texas Rescue Doctor

by Caro Carson

  Wanted to? She had touched Alex. Very briefly, but the sensation was burned into her fingertips. Grace had fallen asleep believing he wanted her, too. He’d touched her hair, hadn’t he?

  Her hair. In the morning sunshine, she felt like an idiot. When a man desired a woman, really burned for her with passion, the only time he touched her hair was in some kind of a historical film, set in an era when a woman’s hair was the only part of her body not covered in an acre of cloth. Grace had read way too much into it. He’d just brushed his hand down her hair the same way one might soothe a dog or cat.

  Thank goodness she’d chickened out and run away. No harm done. He’d been able to serve her pancakes today with a friendly smile.

  She should have been able to take the plate from him the same way, with no embarrassment at all, but no. She’d babbled something about how Austin had such mild weather and then she’d run outside.

  Talk about a temporary solution. She couldn’t stay out here for a week. She couldn’t even stay for half an hour. Her sister needed her.

  She peeked over her shoulder into the house. Through the sliding glass door, she could see her sister sitting on the couch, her head bowed with grief. Alex hadn’t stayed to eat with her, after all. Grace felt guilty for leaving her alone. She should be there, helping her pick up the pieces. At least she and her sister wouldn’t constantly be at odds anymore, now that the Deezee phase was over. It was time to go back inside.

  Sophia didn’t look up as Grace shut the sliding glass door behind herself. Her posture was so abject, Grace’s guilt doubled. “How are you doing, Sophie?”

  Sophia shrugged.

  Grace came closer and saw the phone in Sophia’s hand. Irritation warred with guilt. Alex probably would have sat with her while they ate, if only Sophia had been polite enough to make conversation with a human.

  “Ready for more pancakes?” Alex called from the kitchen.

  Sophia ignored Alex totally. Not wanting to be rude, Grace pretended she had an appetite. “That would be great, thank you.”

  She carried her plate into the kitchen. Alex was eating as he leaned against the counter, plate in one hand, fork in the other, finishing off a short stack. He smiled at her. “Eat them while they’re hot, right?”

  Something was hot, all right. She’d changed into jeans and a beige blouse, but Alex was still wearing the loose-fitting plaid pants from last night, the same eyeglasses from the day before. He’d added a blue T-shirt that hugged his body. His hair and beard might be scruffy, but that body was tight.

  She’d dreamed about that body. What a surprise for her senses last night had been, walking into the kitchen to find him bare-chested in the light of the refrigerator. She’d already guessed in the truck that there was more muscle under those scrubs than met the eye, but she hadn’t been prepared for quite that athletic of a physique. Clearly, when a doctor’s white coat had to be big enough to fit a large chest size, the manufacturer assumed the coat needed to fit an even larger waist. He’d been hidden by an extra yard of white material yesterday. Not now.

  He popped the last forkful in his mouth, set down his plate and pushed away from the counter. “The pan’s already hot. They’ll be ready in just a minute.”

  There was definitely no flab on that waist. She’d touched those six-pack abs.

  “I like a girl with an appetite,” he said, and she forced herself to stop ogling his body and look at his face instead. He was smiling.

  What did he like? Oh—a girl with an appetite. She set her plate on the counter next to his. “I’ll go ask Sophia how many more she wants, then.”

  His smile dimmed and he turned back to his frying pan. “She’ll have to wait for the next batch. These are yours.”

  Once he shook them out of the pan and onto her plate, the weight of the iron skillet causing his biceps to flex in a rounded bulge, he didn’t pour any more batter. He set the pan down, pushed his glasses up with one knuckle and walked the few steps to the entrance to the living room.

  “Sophia, do you want any more pancakes?”

  No answer.

  “Sophia.” Alex sounded more like a father speaking to a child than a man wooing a woman.

  Grace hurried to smooth things over. “She probably didn’t hear you.”

  Alex shot her a look that made her feel how weak her excuse was for her sister’s rudeness. What had happened? Sophia had started the morning being nice to Alex while he’d iced her ankle. Usually, when her mood soured this suddenly, it meant she’d just gotten off the phone with Deezee. Surely, she hadn’t been texting Deezee just now.

  Sophia tossed her phone aside. “That screen is too small. Go get my iPad.”

  “Okay,” Grace said. She started to duck around Alex, but he stopped her with a hand on her arm.

  “Eat your pancakes first. They’ll get cold.”

  “Oh.” She looked from him to Sophia, not sure which one to listen to, but she’d been obeying Sophia far longer. “I know right where it is. Be back in one second.”

  She felt his disapproval when she returned with the iPad and handed it to her sister. She wished he hadn’t seen Sophia’s bossy side. Or maybe, she wished he hadn’t seen her being so...subservient. She was just being a good assistant, making sure her boss had her devices when she needed them and where she needed them. Honestly, she was only practicing common decency, doing a small favor for someone with a badly sprained ankle. It was no big deal, any way one looked at it.

  Then why did she feel like she’d been taken advantage of?

  Alex came into the living room and handed her the plate. She gave him a lukewarm smile and ate some equally lukewarm pancakes.

  Sophia could have phrased her request a little differently. Hey, Gracie, when you’re done eating, could you do me a favor and bring me my iPad? Grace probably still would’ve gotten her the iPad immediately, but at least she wouldn’t have looked like she was...inferior.

  Subservient. Inferior.

  She couldn’t eat another bite.

  “Martina will be here in a minute,” Sophia said without taking her eyes off her screen. “Do we have any vodka?”

  That snapped Grace out of her funk. She pulled her phone out of the back pocket of her jeans to check for messages from the publicist. “Martina’s in town? She didn’t call me to set up a meeting. What’s this about?”

  “Deezee. She’ll make him straighten up.”

  Grace was stunned into silence. The publicist could spin a lot of mistakes, but not this. Deezee had been caught in a hotel with another woman. The damage had been done.

  Grace knelt down to her sister’s level. “Why?”

  “She’s coming because I called her.”

  Sophia had to know that wasn’t what she’d been asking, but Grace didn’t know how to start a real conversation with her anymore. At any rate, it would be wise to have Martina write some kind of statement for the press announcing that Sophia and Deezee were no longer a couple. But...

  “Did Martina know he was going to be caught? Did she arrange it?”

  “Are you crazy? This makes Deezee look bad. This makes me look bad.”

  “How else could she get here so soon from California?”

  “She’s in town for that South-by thing. There’s a lot of people here.”

  Grace knew that people meant people who had power in the entertainment industry. I told you it was a big event, but you didn’t believe me.

  “So do we have vodka or what?”

  Grace didn’t look at Alex. She knew her cheeks were hot with embarrassment. “I don’t know, Sophia. This isn’t our house. Don’t you think we ought to meet Martina at a restaurant or something?”

  “No.” Sophia was indignant, but at least she looked up from her screen. “For the amount of money we’re paying her, she ought to come to
me.”

  “Yes, but you can’t host someone in a house that doesn’t belong to you. Alex might want to use his own house for something this morning. We might be in his way.”

  “I’ve got a cast on, for God’s sake. I’m not going anywhere. I don’t want to be photographed like this.” She looked up from her phone to fix teary eyes on Grace. “Besides, it really hurts to walk, even with the boot on.”

  It was no use. Sophia had too many points to back up her obstinacy, and it was Grace who had to be flexible. She turned to Alex, forced to apologize for Sophia. “I’m so sorry about this. It’s just one woman coming to talk business with Sophia, and she’s already on her way. We’ll try to keep it short. I didn’t mean to invade your house on your day off.”

  Alex looked at her with those blue eyes for a long moment. “I know you didn’t.”

  “Vodka,” Sophia said.

  I cannot believe I’m having to ask this.

  “And do you happen to have any vodka on hand?”

  Alex walked right past her and stood over Sophia. “I’m not serving you vodka. You’re on pain medicine and antibiotics. Neither one goes well with alcohol.”

  Sophia tossed her hair back and looked up at him. “It’s not for me. It’s for my publicist. That’s her trademark. She always has a vodka and tonic when she takes a meeting. And yes, before you say it, I know it’s only nine in the morning. That’s what makes it a memorable trademark.”

  Alex ran his hand over his bearded jaw in a move that looked like he was trying to restrain himself. Grace held her breath, afraid of the showdown that was surely coming.

  Sophia capitulated. “You know what? We’re not in public, so it’s not like anyone will see her. Don’t worry about the vodka.”

  “Thanks.”

  Grace could taste the sarcasm dripping from that one word. Alex turned his back on Sophia. Grace thought he was headed for her, but he only passed her on the way to the master bedroom.

  “I’ll be in the shower,” he muttered.

  The bedroom door slammed before she could offer to clear her things out of his way. Quickly, she pictured how she’d left the bedroom. She’d left it neat enough, only her white pajamas lying across the bed. That shouldn’t aggravate him any more than he already was.

  Her tote bag was under the coffee table. She retrieved her notepad just as the doorbell rang.

  “Get that.”

  Grace straightened abruptly. Did you think I expected you to jump off the couch and hobble over there yourself?

  But she swallowed the sarcastic question. Maybe Alex could get away with it, but she never could. There was no sense in confronting Sophia, anyway. Once the Deezee effect wore off, her sister would stop being so rude and bossy.

  The phase was over. It just didn’t feel like it yet. But if Sophia didn’t change her attitude soon, there would no longer be a question of whether or not Alex had a chance with her. Judging by this morning’s exchange, it was Sophia who wouldn’t have a chance with Alex.

  What kind of sister would feel so hopeful about that?

  Chapter Eleven

  “What do you mean, he isn’t going to apologize? He has to apologize.”

  Sophia’s tantrum was directed at her publicist, but it was loud enough that Grace feared Alex could hear it through the walls and over the sound of running water in his shower.

  “Don’t yell at Martina.” The words were out before Grace thought. Of course, Sophia would now do the opposite. It was rapidly becoming clear that Sophia was acting more like Deezee than ever, now that he’d cheated on her. Grace was baffled.

  On cue, Sophia shouted, “I’ll speak however I goddamned please.”

  Martina pointed at Sophia with her stylus. “Not when you are anywhere that anyone could possibly hit the record button on their cell phone. Your boyfriend could never get that through his thick head, and I’m washing my hands of him. You, I expect more from.”

  “You’re firing Deezee?” Sophia was so aghast, she only seemed to have enough air to whisper.

  “I fired him this morning. I don’t keep clients that refuse my advice.”

  Sophia sat up a little straighter and set her phone aside.

  Grace tried to keep a neutral expression on her face, a poker face like Alex, hoping no one could see how irritated she was with Martina’s tactics. The publicist’s ability to intimidate Sophia was useful, in its way. She’d kept Sophia from completely committing career suicide several times during the past three months, but Grace still didn’t trust Martina.

  Martina was the reason that Sophia had met Deezee this winter. Sophia and Grace had taken a week off in Telluride, a ski resort centered on a tiny Colorado mining town that was a haven for billionaires and A-list celebrities, one of whom had hired DJ Deezee Kalm to set up a rave in an old warehouse. Grace hadn’t been enthralled by the neon lights and electronic dance music, so she’d stayed off the dance floor. So had Martina.

  Within half an hour, Martina had found out for whom Grace was a personal assistant. The rest was history. Martina had introduced Sophia to the DJ that night, while he was in all his glory, standing on a stage and controlling a crowd with music. Martina had arranged for them to have an intimate lunch for two the next day in an excruciatingly expensive man-made snow cave. It had been money well spent. Now Martina was Sophia Jackson’s publicist, as well.

  That was Hollywood. Considering the way Grace had been befriended for an introduction and Deezee had practically been prostituted in order to achieve that goal, being Hollywood was awfully close to being Machiavellian.

  “Couldn’t you have released his apology before you fired him?” Sophia asked.

  “Darling, when I fire a man, I refuse to spend another moment on him.”

  Grace wanted to set the record straight. As his publicist, Martina couldn’t have fired Deezee: she was his employee. Martina might have decided not to work for him anymore, but that was quitting, and she’d quit when her client needed her most.

  The firing verbiage worked on Sophia, though. She was blinded by the way Martina conducted herself, unable to see that it was Sophia’s money, therefore it was Sophia’s power. That was Hollywood, too.

  “So what are we going to do?” When she didn’t know she was the boss, Sophia pouted and whined like a child to get her way. “I don’t wanna look like a loser. Everyone is laughing at me.”

  Thank goodness Alex wasn’t in the room to hear this. Whiney Sophia wasn’t necessarily preferable to Bossy Sophia.

  “We will do nothing,” Martina said. “Rumors die more quickly when you don’t respond.”

  “I have to say nothing?” Sophia sounded like a kid saying I have to eat broccoli? “It’s not a rumor when there are photos.”

  The sound of water running in the shower stopped. If they didn’t get a plan together and conclude this meeting, Alex was going to witness everything. Despite the modern feel of his house, the 1930s floor plan had been preserved, and houses hadn’t been built very large in the 1930s. The kitchen was separated from them by a wall, but there was a pass-through to the little dining area, which connected to this living room. He’d have to share this space with them, unless he stayed in the bathroom for a very, very long while.

  Sophia took up the entire couch to keep her cast boot elevated, of course. Martina had enthroned herself in the large armchair. That left Grace to use one of the little dinette chairs. She’d carried it over to the couch, so she could sit next to Sophia. She ought to bring one over for Alex soon. She didn’t think he was a man who’d hide in his own bedroom.

  “We have to come up with something for me to say,” Sophia said. “Have you read the comments on the photos? Everyone is wondering how bad I must be in bed if Deezee would cheat on someone who looks like me with someone who looks like her. Fix this.”

  Mart
ina, her dark red lips forming a displeased line at receiving an order, clipped her stylus to her tablet.

  Sophia froze, not even daring to cough, clearly afraid Martina was about to fire her. Grace held her breath, too, but she felt something closer to hope than fear. Sophia didn’t seem to be actually sad about losing Deezee, and if they could lose Martina, as well...

  “After all, you’re the best publicist in the industry.” Sophia spoke the hyperbole meekly, then lapsed into her anxious silence.

  With her audience suitably subdued, Martina spoke. “We can release a statement. You’ll say that of course you’ve seen the photos, but they don’t concern you. It was never serious between you and Deezee.”

  Grace’s patience ran out. She didn’t want to be abusing Alex’s hospitality with this meeting. She didn’t want Alex to hear her sister whining. Most of all, she didn’t want to stay silent while Martina gave her sister bad advice in return for good money.

  “No one will believe it was never serious,” Grace said. “Sophia and Deezee were photographed kissing at the beach the day before yesterday. You made sure of it.”

  Sophia looked at her like she was a table lamp that had suddenly offered an opinion.

  Remember when you used to ask my opinion on everything, Sophia?

  Sophia reached for Grace’s arm. “Remind me. Which outlets showed those beach photos?”

  Grace kept a list on her own tablet device, of course, along with screen shots whenever she spotted her sister on gossip blogs and entertainment media. With Martina glaring daggers at her, Grace dropped her gaze to her tote bag, which was still sitting under the coffee table. She’d have to literally bow down before Sophia and Martina to reach it and retrieve her tablet.

  She heard the bedroom door open. Alex would walk in as she was crawling. Subservient. Inferior.

  She made no move toward her tote bag. Instead, she looked back at Martina, and hoped her poker face wasn’t as nonexistent as Alex had said it was. “Let’s look at your list of the media outlets you were successful with.”