“So you got out of that room looking heroic in his eyes and left me swinging in the wind,” she accused.
To her exasperation, he laughed. “That’s one way to look at it, I suppose.”
“You are shameless. You tried to turn my own grandfather against me.”
“Not against you,” he corrected. “I doubt I could do that if I wanted to. He obviously adores you. He also recognizes how stubborn you are.”
“Because I take after him,” she muttered, suddenly regretting that. Up till now she’d always considered that hardheaded O’Brien determination to be a positive. It had given her the self-confidence and will to go after what she wanted. Her grandfather had respected that. Now he was likely to see it as an impediment to getting his own way and redouble his efforts to get her down the aisle.
“He trusts you to make the right decision,” Noah said.
She shook her head. “No, he trusts me to make the decision he thinks is right. And if I don’t, he’ll be knocking on our door to try to change my mind.”
She put down her fork, resignation settling over her. “I’d better call him back.”
“Now?”
“I’ve ignored a lot of calls,” she said. “He doesn’t like being ignored. Trust me, I’d better get to him before he turns up here.”
She braced herself for her grandfather’s brand of pressure, which could start with subtle coaxing, but could easily lead from there to stern lectures and sneaky manipulation if his family didn’t fulfill his expectations. He’d never used any of those tactics on her before. He hadn’t had to. Which meant she had no idea if she could bring herself to tell him to butt out or not.
“Maybe you should forget about making that call until we’ve had a chance to talk about what we want,” Noah suggested. “I know you think I’ve been evasive, but you haven’t exactly been forthcoming about what you thought about while you were visiting your family. Let’s have that discussion.”
She wasn’t crazy about his reasonable tone or the suggestion. “Are you thinking you can persuade me to fall into line with your plan in the next half hour?”
“I’d like the chance to try,” he replied without hesitation.
She shook her head. “I’m not going to let you bully me into making a hasty decision we’ll both come to regret,” she told him. “And that’s exactly what I intend to tell my grandfather.”
A frown settled on Noah’s face. “Since when have I ever tried to bully you into doing anything my way?” he demanded.
“Never before,” she conceded, to be fair. “But there’s never been a situation quite like this one.”
“Which is exactly why we need to talk and work things out,” Noah said. “We’re in uncharted territory. I know this isn’t what we planned, Cait, but the baby’s going to be a reality in a few months. Pretending otherwise isn’t going to change anything.”
“Believe me, I’m well aware that the pregnancy is real. I’m the one who had to hightail it out of rounds today because of morning sickness.”
He immediately regarded her with worry. “Are you feeling okay now?”
“Perfectly fine,” she said, then gestured toward her empty bowl. “I’ve eaten every bite of stew and may have seconds.”
“That’s good, then,” he said, his voice filled with relief. “Did you tell Dr. Davis you’re pregnant so she can cut you some slack while you’re on your pediatrics rotation?”
“Absolutely not,” she said, horrified by the thought. “I’m having a baby. I’m not an invalid. Things are competitive enough in med school without me suggesting I be treated differently because I’m going to have a baby.”
“I’m just saying it might be helpful if she knew,” Noah said.
“So everyone at the hospital will know and can voice an opinion about what we ought to do? Do you really want the whole world to gang up on me? Trust me, it’s not the way to get me to see things your way.”
He sighed. “That is not what I was suggesting and, believe me, I know all about how perverse you can be. If too many people start trying to push you into doing anything, you’ll do exactly the opposite.”
She gave a nod of satisfaction. “Something you definitely need to keep in mind.”
Noah met her gaze and held it. “There’s something you need to keep in mind,” he said evenly. “I love you, Cait. And I won’t stop fighting for us to be a family.”
She regarded him with puzzlement. “I don’t understand how you can be so sure that marriage is the answer. You have dreams on the line, too, Noah. I’m not the only one who had the future mapped out.”
“That’s true,” he said without hesitation. “But for me, you’ve been a part of that future practically from the moment we met. This baby?” A smile lit his eyes. “It’s just an unanticipated blessing. I’ll do whatever it takes to make everything work out for us.”
She shuddered a little at the determination in his voice. If she knew little else about Noah, she knew this. He might bide his time, he might use subtle tactics, but he was a man who usually got his way. He’d won her heart against all odds, after all.
* * *
After Noah’s quiet declaration a few nights before, Caitlyn never did get around to making that call to her grandfather. Therefore she wasn’t all that surprised when she looked up from a patient chart at the hospital and saw him standing there, a frown on his face.
“It’s a relief to see you’re still alive,” Mick O’Brien commented dryly.
She winced. “Sorry I haven’t gotten back to you. I’ve been busy.” She came out from behind the desk and kissed his cheek. “I hope you didn’t make a special trip up to Baltimore. I’m on duty.”
“But you can take a break,” he said with certainty. “I spoke with that lovely Dr. Davis and she assured me it would be fine.”
“You spoke to my boss?” she said incredulously. “What were you thinking?”
“That I need to have a conversation with my granddaughter, who’s about to have my first great-grandchild,” he retorted unrepentantly. “You slipped away from the house before we could talk and you’ve been avoiding my calls.”
When she was about to protest, he held up a hand. “Don’t bother trying to tell me how busy you’ve been. You’ve never been too busy to talk to me before. I imagine you’ve been giving that caller ID thing a real workout lately.”
Since she could hardly deny it, she opted to go on offense. Scowling at him, she said, “I hope you didn’t say anything about your great-grandchild to Dr. Davis,” she said. “My pregnancy is not your news to share, especially around here.”
“Of course not. I know there are boundaries at work. Though she did seem to think you might have something on your mind.”
Alarm flowed through Caitlyn. “She said that?”
He nodded. “She said you’re one of the best students she’s ever worked with, but you’ve been off your game for the past couple of weeks.”
“Oh, God,” Caitlyn murmured. Maybe Noah had been right. Perhaps she did need to fill the doctor in before the head of pediatrics drew her own conclusions about what was going on with Caitlyn. Speculation could be a whole lot worse than the facts.
Grandpa Mick clearly saw her distress, because he put an arm around her shoulders. “Don’t look so anxious. I told you, didn’t I, that she thinks you’re an excellent doctor.”
“Who’s messing up,” Caitlyn reminded him.
“I didn’t say a thing about you messing up.”
“You told me she thinks I’ve been ‘off my game.’ Isn’t that the same thing?”
“Absolutely not. She’s a doctor, after all. I imagine she knows why someone might turn a little green around the gills from time to time.”
“She actually told you that she thinks I’m pregnant?” Now she truly was horrified. How
many other people had guessed? Were there whispers all over the hospital? Had Noah been protecting her from that? And why had she thought for a single second that an entire hospital of physicians might not recognize the signs? Apparently there were a whole lot of things about which she wasn’t thinking too clearly these days.
“Pregnancy wasn’t mentioned,” her grandfather said. “Not by me, anyway. And she would hardly speculate to me, even if I am family. Do you really want to debate who said what to whom right here in the middle of the pediatrics wing?”
“Do you think the cafeteria will be any more private?” she asked.
“I guess we’ll see,” he said, steering her toward the elevator.
They rode to the first floor in silence. In the cafeteria, her grandfather got himself a cup of coffee and put two pastries—one with a blueberry center, the other cheese—on his tray, along with a hefty serving of scrambled eggs. “You want decaf, juice or water?” he asked.
“Water’s fine. And I don’t need a pastry or eggs.”
“Who said anything on this tray was for you?” he replied, a spark of amusement in his eyes. “Your grandmother’s had me on a diet of oatmeal and fake eggs. Since she’s not here to challenge me, I thought I’d treat myself.”
Caitlyn laughed. “So I get to hold this over your head?”
“You can try, but I guarantee she’ll have it figured out before you do. That woman knows my every move. I haven’t gotten away with a thing since we got back together. I’ll enjoy my eggs and pastry now, but believe me, I’ll pay later.”
When they’d found a table with some privacy, she looked her grandfather in the eye. “You and Grandma Megan are happy now, aren’t you?”
“Of course we are. Winning her back was the biggest blessing of my life.” He glanced longingly at his second pastry, then shoved it in her direction. “Which is why you probably need to save me from myself. Eat this.”
She absentmindedly tore off a piece and popped it into her mouth, then regarded him with suspicion. “This is what you intended all along, isn’t it? For me to eat this cheese Danish?”
“You think I’m that sneaky?” he asked with a straight face.
“I know you are,” she replied, laughing. “And now that I think about it, you’ve never liked cheese Danish, but you know I do.”
He grinned. “Okay, you caught me.”
She gave a little nod of satisfaction at having won the admission. “Since we’ve established that I’m on to you, you might as well just tell me why you’re here, instead of trying to be subtle about it. You’ve never been any good at subtlety.”
“Okay, then, I want to know why you haven’t said yes to Noah’s proposal yet.”
“What makes you think he’s proposed?”
He waved off the question. “Of course he has. The man’s in love with you. You’re having his baby. He all but guaranteed me he’d have this matter settled in no time.”
“Did he now? Or was the timetable just wishful thinking on your part? It’s only been a little over a week since we were in Chesapeake Shores, after all.”
“Why are you being so stubborn about this?” he grumbled impatiently.
“I’m an O’Brien. It’s in my genes,” she retorted glibly, then decided a more serious reply was called for. “I don’t want to make a mistake.”
“You think it would be a mistake to marry the father of your child?”
“Not because Noah’s not an amazing man,” she said quickly. She wanted to be very clear about that. If and when she and Noah did marry, she wanted the family to like him, to have faith that she’d made a good choice. She didn’t want them to be holding on to any lingering resentment or judging him for not stepping up, when, in fact, he had.
Her grandfather gave her a penetrating look. “Is he the right man for you?”
“I thought so.”
He frowned at that. “If he’s not, say the word and I’ll back off. You can have this baby on your own. You have an entire family who’ll be there to support you.”
“I’m grateful for that,” she said, touched. “But my hesitance isn’t about Noah, not exactly, anyway.”
“Then it’s all about this crazy idea you have that you’re more needed over in Africa than you are right here?”
She bristled at his question and his dismissive tone. “That is not some crazy idea,” she said heatedly. “You were all in favor of it not that long ago. You said you were proud of me for wanting to do work that could make a difference.”
“That’s before you got pregnant,” he said. “Now you have another priority, unless you’re telling me that those other children are more important than your own.”
“I’m certainly not saying that,” she said defensively. Or was she? Surely it wasn’t what she intended to imply.
“Do I need to remind you what a mistake I made by running all over the world building houses and whole communities, instead of being right here for my family?” Mick asked.
“I know the story.” It had been a cautionary tale for every O’Brien, a warning to put family first. With Nell preaching that on a regular basis, Caitlyn had no idea why her grandfather hadn’t gotten the message. Most likely, he’d simply chosen to ignore it because it didn’t mesh with his ambitions. Was she doing the same thing? Quite possibly.
He held up a hand. “Just hear me out. I lied to myself all those years, Caitlyn. I told myself I was doing it for my wife and children, that it was important work that would be financially rewarding and make our lives easier. That was true as far as it went, but the real truth is I was feeding my own ego. I liked being a big-time, world-renowned architect.”
His eyes grew misty. “But you know what?” he said. “When your grandmother had had enough and left me, it wasn’t so much fun being the loneliest man on the planet. The accolades and money couldn’t make up for that so I worked even harder and lost time with your mother and her sisters and brothers, too. The decisions I made back then nearly cost me everything that truly mattered.”
Caitlyn blinked back her own tears at the real pain she heard in his voice. She didn’t want that for herself, but she wasn’t ready to give up everything she’d worked for. Not yet, anyway. Not if a compromise was possible. Didn’t she owe it to herself to find a better solution? Didn’t she owe it to Noah, for that matter, so she didn’t wind up resenting him or their baby for robbing her of her dream? Was she really so selfish to want it all?
And what about Noah? She’d meant what she’d said to him. His dream of going into practice in some underserved rural area of the country was in jeopardy, too. Sure, he sounded certain that it was a sacrifice he might be willing to make, but would he be so sure if the right opportunity presented itself? And then what?
She pushed aside all her doubts and said, “I’m not going to lose Noah, Grandpa Mick.” She wasn’t entirely sure if the reassurance was meant for him or herself.
“I hope not,” he said quietly. “But no matter what I think is best, if you do lose him, I’ll be around to pick up the pieces, same as always.”
More tears stung Caitlyn’s eyes, then spilled down her cheeks. She covered his hand and held on tight. “Thank you.”
“No need to thank me,” he said gruffly. “But just so you know, I’m not giving up on seeing you walk down the aisle before this baby gets here.”
She smiled through her tears. “Never thought you would.”
* * *
Noah looked up when Mick O’Brien stepped into his office. “Well, did you have any better luck getting through to her than I’ve had?”
Even before Mick settled into the chair opposite his desk and spoke, Noah could read the answer on his face.
“She’s not listening, is she?”
Mick shook his head. “I do think I gave her some food for thought, though. I suppose we
have to acknowledge this will be a marathon, not a sprint. How’s your patience?”
Noah smiled. “Better than yours, I imagine.”
“Little question about that,” Mick acknowledged ruefully. “I had the church on hold for the first Saturday in June.”
“Even I wasn’t that optimistic,” Noah revealed.
“So, what’s your next step?” Mick asked. Before Noah could reply, the older man got a worrisome gleam in his eyes. “There are a lot of pretty nurses around. You could try making her jealous.”
“That’s a terrible idea,” Noah said at once. “If nothing else, Cait needs to know I’m committed to her and to the baby. I don’t want her to think I’m the kind of man who’d turn to another woman just because things with her aren’t going my way.”
Mick nodded, though there was no mistaking his disappointment. “That makes sense,” he acknowledged. “You don’t want her thinking you’re a cheater. That would just be another hurdle for you to overcome.”
Noah had to hide a smile as Mick wrestled with the dilemma. He clearly hated not being able to control the situation.
Eventually, though, his expression turned thoughtful as he seemed to be pondering a new strategy. Since Noah was fresh out of ideas himself, he waited to see if Mick reached any conclusions.
“It might take something dramatic to shake her up,” Mick said slowly. “You said this residency of yours ends June 30. What does she think you’re going to do after that?”
“We haven’t discussed the specifics, but I’m sure she knows I want to go into practice for myself at that point.”
Mick leveled a look at him. “But you still haven’t mentioned that you’re thinking about opening an office in Chesapeake Shores? That might get the ball rolling.”
Noah shook his head. “To be honest, I’m not sure she’ll consider that a plus right now. She’s going to think I’m trying to manipulate her. I have a hunch she’s going to see it as me joining forces with her family.”
“Could be,” Mick agreed. “And she’ll probably assume I’m behind it. It’s exactly the sort of tactic I might have come up with if I’d had a little more time to think things through.” He gave Noah an approving look. “You and I think alike, son.”
The Christmas Bouquet Page 7