“My parents didn’t like animals. They wanted our house to look like a showplace.”
“My brother and I had a dog, three stray cats and uncounted hamsters,” Heather said in her soft, musical voice. “I never knew how lucky I was.”
“I was an only child and spent a lot of time with nannies.” Although he’d wished for a live-in playmate, Jason had accepted loneliness as a normal part of life. “My parents let me have a goldfish but after it died, I decided not to risk getting another one.”
In the kitchen, Frodo poked around the table, licking up crumbs that must have spilled at dinner. Jason imagined he could read Heather’s mind as she watched the scene. You moved in yesterday and you’ve already got food all over the floor? On the other hand, maybe she looked so severe because she was cold.
“I’ll fix hot chocolate.” Without waiting for a reply, he grabbed a box of mix from a grocery sack, which he hadn’t emptied after his shopping expedition, and found two mugs in the cabinet.
“I guess I’m not familiar with the nesting habits of the American bachelor,” Heather said. “Is it customary to leave your purchases in the bag until you use them?”
“Sure. Not the ice cream, though.” He was glad to hear that Heather didn’t hang out with a lot of bachelors.
“Aren’t you the same Dr. Carmichael who told me he’s a stickler for organization?” A freckle wrinkled on her nose as she spoke.
“That was different,” Jason said. “At work, I’m a scientist. At home, I like to take it easy.”
“In my town house complex.” Obviously, she still hadn’t gotten over her pique at his decision to rent nearby.
“It’s a nice area,” he said. “The place came furnished, too. And I’ll bet the puppy will enjoy my courtyard.”
The puppy. He’d bought a dog to keep in a rental. What on earth was he thinking? Yet already Jason looked forward to Sunday mornings with the two of them relaxing companionably on the couch.
Frodo chose that moment to approach the counter and squat. “Jason!” Heather cried.
“Get the sliding door!” He grabbed the puppy, she wrenched open the courtyard door and out went Frodo, barely in time. Had there been a moment’s hesitation on either person’s part, the result would have been a mess.
Jason chuckled as the dog initiated the ficus tree. “You and I make a great team. We should perform surgery together someday.”
“I’m sure we will, although I hope under more hygienic circumstances.” Heather gave a disbelieving headshake. “I do want to learn some of the newer surgical techniques from you, although I don’t consider today a good test of how well we perform together.” Once Frodo padded inside, she closed the glass door.
“Of course, this isn’t the first time we performed together.” Summoned by the microwave’s bell, Jason removed the two cups of steaming chocolate.
“Excuse me?” Despite her sternness, Heather had a cute way of cocking her head as she waited to pounce on his answer.
Jason handed her a mug. Although he suspected it might be risky to run afoul of Heather when she had a hot liquid handy, he couldn’t let her stand there freezing to death.
“I have a terrific visual memory,” he said.
“I’m sure that comes in handy when you’re learning a new procedure.” She sipped the cocoa and watched him suspiciously.
“It helps.” He leaned against the counter. In the utility bay, Frodo found a T-shirt that had fallen from atop the washing machine and flopped onto it, panting. “Seeing you in your bikini helped me remember what happened in Atlanta.”
“I told you, nothing happened.”
“Oh, really? Your body says otherwise.”
If he’d been worried about Heather catching a chill, his fears vanished as steam all but poured from her ears. Jason could have sworn her towel was starting to glow, too. “My body says nothing! Especially to you!”
“The butterfly,” he said.
“What butterfly?”
“The one tattooed right below your navel,” he said. “With the wings barely open.”
“It symbolizes rebirth. Second chances.” Despite Heather’s indifferent shrug, her fiery coloring betrayed an agitated state of mind. “So what?”
“I saw it before.” Jason made a low, suggestive humming noise. “If I’m not mistaken, I kissed it.”
“There’s one on my buttocks, too,” she snapped. “You can kiss that one if you want.”
“No, there isn’t.” Jason pretended not to notice the insult. “I’d remember if there were. Now, why don’t you come clean about what we did that night?”
A half-dozen expressions from embarrassment to outrage flitted across her face before her mouth twisted in resignation. “All right. It isn’t what you think.”
“Something tells me we’d better hold the rest of this conversation sitting down.” He gestured her into the living room, leaving behind the dozing dog and their empty mugs. After spreading a fresh towel on the couch to soak up the dampness from her swimsuit, he said, “Make yourself comfortable.”
“As if I could possibly be comfortable anywhere in your vicinity,” Heather muttered.
“I see we’re taking the gloves off.” Jason took the armchair. “Although, as I recall, you removed a lot more than gloves.”
“I’ll admit, I didn’t tell you the whole story.” Heather perched on the sofa with her legs curled beneath her, perhaps because she was so short they barely reached the floor. “I saw no point in going into detail, especially after your unfeeling comment the next morning.”
“I apologize for my crankiness,” Jason said. “Proceed.”
Heather wrapped her arms around herself. Since the towel had slipped, the gesture had the effect of plumping up her already ample breasts. “Which part don’t you remember?”
“If I knew that, it would mean I remembered,” he pointed out.
“Do you have to be so annoyingly logical?” Her full lips pursed. They ought to be kissed, Jason thought.
“That’s what I do best,” he said. “Start at the beginning. That way you’re less likely to skip anything.”
“I’ll run through it quickly.” As Heather shifted position, a bare leg appeared from beneath the towel. Slim and well-shaped, it had a light sprinkling of freckles that begged to be traced, like a sensuous connect-the-dots puzzle that led all the way up her thighs.
“No hurry.” Jason leaned back, arms folded behind his head. He hoped she wouldn’t examine his body too closely or she might spot a telltale bulge. On the other hand, if she were interested enough to focus her attention on that part of his anatomy, it might be a promising start.
She believed in second chances, after all. The butterfly testified to it.
“We met at registration in the lobby,” Heather said.
“I’m with you so far.”
“While we were waiting in line, we talked about one of the seminars we both planned to attend,” she said. “The speaker had written an article for the Medical Journal. As I recall, we were both skeptical about his methodology.”
“A truly romantic topic, one guaranteed to make two hearts beat as one,” Jason joked. “No wonder we hit it off.”
“I liked your indignation that the man would recommend a surgical procedure that you didn’t consider thoroughly tested.” She smiled wryly. “You said doctors shouldn’t treat women like guinea pigs.”
“It’s my best pickup line.”
“I’ll bet you try it on all the girls,” she shot back.
“I’m not kidding. It really is my best pickup line,” Jason said. “As it happens, though, you’re the only woman I’ve ever tried it on.”
“I’m honored.” Heather brushed a speck of lint off her arm. The movement loosened her towel enough to reveal a wink from her navel.
Jason’s body revved again. He stretched his legs in Heather’s direction. If she uncoiled, he could make contact with her ankles.
She closed the towel and drew herself up more tight
ly than ever. “We continued our discussion during the welcome reception.”
“Where I had a couple of drinks,” Jason filled in.
“At the time, they didn’t affect you, or so it appeared,” Heather said. “Since I’d never met you before, I didn’t realize your affable manner indicated you verged on becoming comatose.”
“I’m affable now,” he pointed out.
She looked away as if searching for a sharp answer. When none came, she continued, “We decided to order a late dinner from room service.”
“Steak and eggs.” Jason could still taste it. “You had salad and half my slice of chocolate cake.”
“I’ll bet that’s the only time in your life you ever shared your dessert,” Heather said.
She was right. “Score one for your side.”
“Am I ahead?”
“We’re tied.”
She didn’t argue. “The next thing I knew, our clothes were on the floor and we were on the bed.”
“All of our clothes?” Abandoning his casual pose, Jason leaned forward eagerly.
“Almost all.”
“Which ones weren’t?”
“Could we just get on with the story, please?” Heather asked.
He decided not to press the issue. “If you insist.”
“We reached a point at which we mutually decided that I should retrieve some birth control from my purse,” Heather said.
Although he knew he shouldn’t interrupt the flow of narrative, this statement raised several obvious questions. “You carry it around with you? So I wasn’t your first case of, er, spontaneous clothes-shedding?”
“I’m leaving.” Heather unfolded her legs. The exquisite view wasn’t enough to distract Jason from the realization that he’d offended her.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it the way it came out,” he said. “After your comment about not having much experience in bachelors’ kitchens, it surprises me that you carry birth control in your purse. That’s all.”
To his relief, Heather settled back against the cushions. “I believe in taking precautions. I should think you’d approve, after that comment you made about my nurse.”
“I do approve.” He deserved the rebuke, Jason acknowledged.
Heather appeared mollified. “Don’t forget that I work with teen mothers in the Moms in Training Program. I have to set a good example for them by being prepared, whether I expect to need it or not. Now, do you want to hear the rest of the story?”
“Avidly,” Jason said.
“It took me a minute to dig through my purse,” Heather went on. “When I travel, I carry a lot.”
“No surprise there.”
“By the time I got back, you were asleep.” Her eyebrows flicked upward in an end-of-story expression.
“That’s it?” He couldn’t believe he’d been such an oaf.
“More or less.”
“What’s the ‘more’ part?”
“The next morning,” she said.
“You’re referring to my rude comment about hoping I wouldn’t hear any more about it?” Jason said. “I apologize. My head was pounding, but that’s no excuse. I really am sorry.”
“You should be.”
He did his best to look ashamed, and succeeded for about five seconds. “Any chance of our picking up where we left off?”
“Jason!”
“I didn’t mean that. Well, yes, I did.” Deep inside, a voice warned that the last thing he needed was to get involved with a colleague. Especially one who wanted a yard filled with roses. Being a man, however, meant that certain parts of Jason’s brain were subject to whiteout on occasion.
“There’s only one thing I want from you,” Heather said.
He had a feeling it wasn’t mind-altering, bedroom-demolishing sex. “What’s that?”
“Closure.” Her fingers tapped impatiently on what appeared to be her knees, although he couldn’t be sure because they were hidden by the towel. “An acknowledgement that nothing ultimately happened, and an end to your questions.”
“Done.” In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, he saw no reason to doubt her word.
A tap on the door made them both start. In case it was the manager, Jason cast a quick glance toward the kitchen. No sign of Frodo, who was probably fast asleep.
“Do you want me to wait in the other room?” Heather asked in a low voice. “It could be embarrassing if someone saw me like this.”
“Or it could do wonders for my reputation,” he teased. “Don’t worry about it.”
As he opened the door, a young, dark-haired woman raised her fist to knock again. She nearly rapped on his chest. “Oops.”
“No harm done.” She must be one of his neighbors, Jason figured, spotting a baby stroller behind her. “What can I do for you?”
“I’m looking for…”
“Olive!” Heather hurried to the door. “Jason, this is my niece that I mentioned, the one who’s staying with me.”
“Hi, niece.” The two certainly had dissimilar coloring, he mused. If he hadn’t known she and Heather were related, he’d never have guessed.
“Jason?” The young woman examined him with interest. “Jason Carmichael?”
“That would be me,” he said.
“I mentioned you to her,” Heather explained. To Olive, she said, “I ran into him at the spa.”
The young woman held out a cell phone. “You left this at the house. I know you always carry it with you, so I took it to the pool. When I saw you weren’t there, I followed the trail.”
“Trail?” Heather said.
“You dripped all over the place.” Her niece shrugged. “Sorry I interrupted you.”
“I was just leaving.”
“Don’t hurry on my account,” Olive said.
“That’s all right.” Heather edged past Jason toward the door.
“At least let me provide a dry towel. I’ll be happy to launder that one for you and bring it over later.” He didn’t really expect her to accept his offer, but he’d love an excuse to drop by.
“You didn’t tell me he was such a gentleman, um, Aunt Heather,” said the young woman. Jason wondered why she stumbled over the word aunt.
“He isn’t a gentleman. However, we do have to work together,” Heather announced. “I’m afraid he and I may have gotten off on the wrong foot.”
If we’d stayed on our feet, there’d be nothing to argue about. Although Jason abstained from blurting out the tactless remark, he suspected from Heather’s quelling look that she had a good idea of what he was thinking. “Since I gather your aunt isn’t accepting my offer, I’ll just say that it was nice to meet you, Olive, and wish you both a pleasant walk home.”
From the stroller came a fussing noise. Heather hurried past the young woman and scooped up a baby warmly dressed in a blanket sleeper.
The infant, about five or six months old, peeked sleepily at Jason. She had a Little Orphan Annie tangle of curls the same shade as Heather’s.
The infant resembled her great-aunt more than her own mother. Heredity could certainly be unpredictable.
“Cute kid,” he said.
“Her name’s Ginger.” Olive smiled.
“It suits her.” It seemed to Jason that Ginger studied him at unusual length for so young a child. “She’s very bright.”
“Brilliant!” Heather said.
“Yes, well, gr…great-aunts tend to be partial,” Olive said. “It’s true, though.”
“Don’t keep her out in the cold. I mean your aunt.” Heather was shivering, Jason noticed. “She could catch a chill.”
“See you in the morning.” With that, his colleague turned and, still holding Ginger, left her niece to push the empty stroller behind her down the walkway.
Something didn’t ring right about that scenario, Jason reflected as he closed the door. Unable to put his finger on exactly what he suspected, however, he gave up and went to set out food and water for Frodo.
“YOUR NIECE?” Olive
demanded as Heather hurried into the warmth of the town house. “I understand that you don’t want people gossiping at work, but this pretense will be hard to maintain. The guy’s going to be our neighbor.”
“I didn’t know that when I lied to him.” Her arms bumpy from the cold, Heather climbed the stairs with Ginger in her arms. “Besides, you’ll only be here for another three weeks.”
“That’s true.” Her daughter followed. “You know something? I don’t know how you can deny that he likes you.”
“He likes to tease me,” Heather said. “I don’t understand why. At work, he’s got a reputation as a tyrant.” Going into the guest bedroom, she laid the baby in her portable crib. “I hope I didn’t get her damp. She looked so adorable, I couldn’t resist holding her.”
Olive ran her hands over the sleeper to check. “She’s fine. And it’s okay, Mom. I know you’re going through separation anxiety because we’re moving out.”
“Separation anxiety?” Heather hadn’t expected to hear such a technical term from her daughter. It was hard to remember that Olive had earned a degree in psychology. “I suppose so.”
From her bedroom, Heather fetched her robe and went into the bathroom to change. Olive waited outside, clearly not finished discussing Jason Carmichael. “I think a romance is what you need,” she called through the door. “It’ll help you forget that I’m leaving.”
“A romance?” Uh-oh. “Don’t get ideas. Jason is not husband material.”
“How do you know?”
“I’ve heard rumors.” Female physicians shared war stories at conventions, particularly when it came to a good-looking bachelor like Dr. Carmichael.
“What kind of rumors?” demanded Olive.
“He was engaged to a woman in Boston. A former colleague of his said he dumped the woman without warning.” Heather hadn’t found out about this until several months after her own encounter with the man. “He abruptly took another post and moved to England.”
Hearing how he’d abandoned his fiancée had made Heather so angry she’d wondered if she could ever speak to Jason again, even on business. She’d had to remind herself that he wasn’t Ned and that the woman, as far as she knew, hadn’t been pregnant.
Stripped of her wet clothes and warmly wrapped at last, she tried to restore some semblance of order to her hair. It sprang up defiantly. She hated to think what a witch she’d looked like in front of Jason, not that she cared what he thought of her.
Prognosis: A Baby? Maybe Page 6