Saved by the Doctor

by Ivy Wonders

  “He talks about you every day,” she said with a hint of reluctance in her nasally voice. I walked away a bit from Eli as I listened to his mother, not wanting him to hear every part of our conversation. “I’m glad he has such a good time with the animals.”

  “Yeah.” I didn’t know how to go about things with the woman. And I knew Harman wouldn’t want me telling her anything personal. “Um, Eli’s really upset, Tara. May I call you that? Eli told me your name. He talks about you every day, too.” That wasn’t a lie. He’d told me how much he missed her every single day.

  “Yeah, you can call me that.” I heard her sighing. “So he talks about me all the time?”

  Maybe not all the time, but he talked about her enough. “He does. And he misses you so much. I’m sure you’re busy running your business, and I try to tell him that’s the only reason he doesn’t get to see you. But when can you make some time to see him?” I’d never even asked if she lived in Seattle. Maybe the distance was too far to make it feasible for her to come get him. “Where is it that you live, anyway? He’s never told me.”

  “In Seattle,” she said. I tried to hold back any sound trying to emerge from my throat, but I wanted to hiss at the woman. I really didn’t understand why she hadn’t seen her kid in a month when she lived in the same damn city. “I’ve opened this boutique and it’s taking more time than I thought it would. I want to sell it and try something else, but my ex doesn’t want to help me.”

  Good for Harman!

  “I’m sure your business does take up a lot of your time, but there’s got to be time after you close. When does your shop close?” Maybe if I asked the right questions she’d see just how easy it would be to fit her son into her life.

  “Six,” came her answer, and I tried not to snort.

  “That’s pretty early.” I shouldn’t have had to tell her that, but it seemed she needed to hear it. “That leaves a fair amount of time for you to pick Eli up and take him to dinner. He’d love that. I bet his father would even bring him to meet you anywhere you wanted. I bet he’d even wait around and bring him back home after you and Eli were done.”

  “Yeah, I’ve heard how much time you’ve been spending with my ex,” her tone was sharp. “I hope you’re not after his money.”

  “I’m not after anything,” I replied sternly. I was not about to let this woman lecture me. “I care about your son. I love this kid. And I’d like to see him happy. Every time you let your plans fall through, it tears this little man apart, and I think you should know that. I’m not your ex. I’m not trying to hurt you by telling you lies. Eli loves you, Tara. He misses you terribly. Do you know that it’s been a month since you’ve last seen your son?”

  “It hasn’t been that long.” She went quiet for a second or two. “Has it?”

  “It has.” I paused, letting that sink in. “I know because he counts the days.”

  “I really am out of town. I had to fly to Los Angeles to pick up items for the boutique here. It’s easier to make selections when I can feel the textures.” She paused then added, “I’m not lying.”

  “I never assumed you were.” I didn’t want the call to end without her making some firm plans to see her son. “What’s next weekend looking like for you?”

  “I don’t know if Harman will let me have him if it’s not my turn.” I found it hard to believe she’d even think such a thing.

  “I think he might.” I walked back to Eli and ran my head over the top of his head as he laid it on the table, looking miserable. “If Harman will let you have him next weekend, I’m sure Eli would love to spend some time with you. That’s a great suggestion—even it’s only for one night.” I tried to make it sound like it’d been Tara’s idea; Eli didn’t need to hear me trying to convince his mother to spend time with him. “You’re his mother, of course he’ll be overjoyed to spend even thirty minutes with you. He only has one mother in this whole world. Don’t take that for granted.”

  She sniffled. “Yeah, I’ll get him on Friday when I get back from my family’s place in Portland. They just moved, and their place is a wreck right now, otherwise I’d take him with me for Thanksgiving.”

  “Fair enough.” It was better than nothing. “So, he can count on you coming next Friday. What time should I tell him to be ready for?”

  “Five,” she said with a sigh. “I know you probably don’t believe me, but I really have lost track of time. I thought it had only been a week or so since I saw him last. I talk to him every day.”

  “Yeah, I know. Time can get away from anyone. The thing about time, though, is that you can’t get it back once it’s gone. Don’t let it slip by.” I patted Eli on the back. “Your mom will get you in one week, Slugger. How does that sound?”

  He lifted his head. “Really?”

  “I’ll let you tell him, Tara,” I said before handing Eli the phone.

  He talked excitedly to her about what they could do while she had him, and my heart finally felt a little fuller. It felt a little heavy too, as I worried that she wouldn’t come through again. Overall, I felt a lot of hope that she would.

  A knock on my front door had my pulse speeding up as I knew it had to be Harman on the other side. I rushed to open it, only to find a stranger. “Um, hello.”

  He handed me an envelope. “Your presence is required at the HOA meeting on the day before Thanksgiving.” And then he turned and started heading toward the next house—Harman’s.

  “Hey, I can take that for him.” I thought I’d save the man the long walk up the driveway. “Harman Hunter’s son is right here, and he’ll be here soon as well. I can give that to him.”

  He looked at me for a moment then handed one of the envelopes to me. “I guess that’ll be alright. Make sure he gets it. Every homeowner must be present at this meeting.”

  “He’ll get it.” I took the other envelope, then closed the door. When I turned around, I saw Eli had gotten off the phone and was glowing. He looked so happy. “It turned out good then?”

  “Great!” He wrapped his arms around me, hugging me tightly. “She’s sorry, Rebel. She’s really sorry. And she’s going to make things better. She told me so. And I believe her.”

  “I do, too.” I hugged him back.

  He let go of me as the front door opened and his father walked inside. “Dad!” He ran to Harman, who immediately scooped him up. “Mom’s not coming today, but she is coming next Friday, and she promises that things are going to change.”

  “Great?” Harman looked at me in confusion. “Last I heard she was still coming today.”

  I shook my head. “She’s in Los Angeles.”

  “Okay.” He put Eli down as he looked at me. “Well, Mom and Dad need to get back home.”

  I nodded. “I know. They’ve got a funeral to attend in the morning. And the following day there’s some kind of reunion for your father’s high school class. He said it might be the last one ever.”

  He nodded his head then look back down at his son. “I’m sorry I have to take you home now, bud.” He ran his hand over Eli’s head as the boy leaned against him.

  “Don’t be.” I moved forward then put my hand on Eli’s shoulder. “Because I thought I might join you two this evening for your swim. We can have cannonball contests in your pool.”

  Eli’s fist shot into the air. “Yes! I’m so gonna beat you guys.”

  “Thank you,” Harman whispered.

  “You’re welcome,” I whispered back.

  Sometime or another I would need to tell him what I’d done, but until then I could only hope that I wouldn’t be put into the doghouse over it.

  Chapter 11

  Harman

  Sitting at the side of the pool, Rebel and I moved our feet back and forth in the warm water as Eli showed off his diving skills. “And this one’s called the pencil.” Jumping up as high as he could, he landed in the water with barely any splash at all.

  “The pencil, huh?” Rebel mused. “Yeah, I can see that.”

 
; Nudging her shoulder with mine, I said quietly, so Eli wouldn’t hear, “Maybe you could sneak back over after Eli goes to bed.”

  Her blue eyes dropped. “I should come clean with you before we get any further into whatever this is between us.”

  “Come clean?” I had no idea what she was referring to, but I doubted there was anything she could say that would make me take back my invitation.

  “Yeah.” Looking at me, she chewed her lower lip before going on. “Eli was a real disaster when he got to my house. He told me about his mother cancelling on him again.”

  “And this one is the backsplash!” Eli shouted. He turned around with his back to the water then fell in, making a horrible slapping sound with his back.

  Rebel winced. “Ow.” She looked over at Moppy, who was snoozing on the floor by the door, far enough away that he wouldn’t get wet. “Did you see that? Even the dog flinched.”

  But Eli came up with a grin on his face. “That one always stings.” He climbed up the ladder to do another jump. “Now I’ll show you guys my dives. I’ve been practicing them a lot this week.”

  “That’s good to hear, Little Buddy.” I hoped he’d be so busy with those that he’d let us finish the conversation Rebel had begun. “We’ll watch. You don’t have to announce each dive.”

  “K.” Eli walked down the diving board, looking at the water.

  I looked back to Rebel, who was chewing her lip again. “You were saying?”

  “Um,” she mumbled. “Okay. So, my heart was aching for Eli and then his mother called, and I overheard what he said to her.”

  “What did he say to her?”

  “That he thinks she doesn’t love him.” Rebel’s eyes cut to the pool as Eli took another dive. “Great one!” She clapped then looked back at me. “Anyway, he wasn’t happy with her at all and was about to hang up on her. I asked if I could talk to her.”

  “Why?” I didn’t think my current love interest needed to be talking to my ex about anything.

  “Because I know she hasn’t listened to you about Eli.” She inched her fingers toward mine, barely touching my fingertips. “It just felt like the right thing to do at the time.”

  “What did you tell her?” I asked, feeling kind of prickly now. “About us?”

  “Nothing about us.” She looked away. “But I think she kind of knows we’ve got something going on; she mentioned that Eli has told her how much time we’ve spent together. She warned me that I better not to be after your money. I told her I wasn’t after anything.”

  “You’re not?” I leaned in, nudging my shoulder against hers. “Nothing at all?” Suddenly Rebel talking to Tara didn’t seem so important.

  Her grin made my heart skip a beat. “I think you’re the one who’s after me. So, it wasn’t a complete lie.”

  Nodding, I agreed. “Yeah, I am after you, Rebel Saxe. And I’m sorry about tonight. We made such big plans and all for nothing. This weekend was going to be about you and me, and now it can’t be.”

  “What’s this we’re doing now?” she asked, then laid her head on my shoulder. “This is nice. Just being with you is enough for me.”

  “Yeah?” Well, I wanted a bit more than what would be acceptable in front of my son. “So, you don’t feel like you’re missing out on those thousands of kisses I’ve promised you? I better step up my game.”

  Pulling her head off my shoulder, her eyes met mine. “Talking to you over the phone all week has made me feel closer to you than I’ve ever felt to anyone. And yes. I am missing those kisses you promised me each night when we ended our calls.”

  I couldn’t wait to get to that part, but we still had a few things that needed discussing. “So, what did you and Tara talk about, then?”

  “I just told her how much Eli missed her and how he needed her in his life.” Rebel watched Eli as he stepped up on the diving board again. “You’re doing great, Eli.”

  “Thanks,” he shouted back before diving off again.

  Her eyes came back to me. “She didn’t even realize how much time has passed since she’s seen him. When I pointed it out, she really seemed taken aback. And afterward, she told Eli things would be different. I hope she meant it.”

  “Me, too.” My hand inched closer until it took hers. I held it hidden between us, so Eli wouldn’t see. “On second thought, I don’t want you to sneak back over tonight. I don’t want it to be cheap like that. I want to spend the entire weekend with you. I want things to be memorable and perfect. The thought that you’d have to get up and leave me before Eli wakes up doesn’t sit well with me. You understand, right?”

  “I do.” She smiled, and it lit me up from the inside out. “I like that you want things to be so special. That’s never seemed to matter to anyone else.”

  “You matter to me more than any woman ever has.” I wanted to kiss her so damn badly, it hurt. “I don’t want to rush this. But I don’t want to wait so long that the fire dies out either.”

  I’d never done anything like this; I didn’t really know what I was doing. But I knew I wanted to build a foundation that would stand the test of time for us. The hours-long conversations we’d had during the week had sent me head-first into infatuation with the woman, and I couldn’t wait to make this thing with Rebel real.

  Arching one dark brow, she asked, “Do you think that’s possible, Harman? That taking our time could extinguish the fire?”

  I didn’t know for sure. “I don’t want to take that chance.” I knew that I was capable of living a life without love in it. The only love I’d ever had during my marriage was the love I had for my son. I would’ve done anything for that kid, but I was ready to experience a different kind of love now, too. And I was sure that Rebel was the right woman to build that with.

  Worn out, Eli swam up to the stairs. “I’m getting out. I’m getting tired.”

  “Time for me to go,” Rebel said as she let go of my hand and got up. She’d worn a red one-piece bathing, and as she walked away, she ran her slender fingers along the elastic that made the suit cling to her ass.

  Creamy skin, a round ass, hips that begged for my hands to grab hold and pull her close. The image of me grinding my hard cock against her wet mound made my mouth water. I got up, too, putting my hand against the small of her back as she walked in front of me. I heard her sharp intake of breath and loved the reaction my touch had on her.

  Eli wrapped a towel around himself. “Hey, tomorrow can we go see that new movie with the wizards and warlocks in it?”

  “I think so,” I said as we followed him to the door of the pool room. His dog got up, stretching to get ready to follow Eli anywhere.

  Rebel hadn’t said anything, and Eli stopped to turn around and look at her. “So, can we, Rebel?”

  “Oh, me, too?” she asked, seeming surprised.

  “Of course, you too.” Eli turned back around and continued walking.

  “Oh.” She looked at me with a smile. “If your dad doesn’t mind me tagging along, then I’d loved to go with you guys.”

  “Dad doesn’t mind at all, Rebel.” He kept walking without looking back at us. “Don’t you notice how much ‘tention he pays to you?”

  Reaching around, Rebel took my hand off her back, giving me a look that said we were skating on thin ice. “Do you mind, Harman? If I join you tomorrow?”

  “I’d mind it if you didn’t join us, Rebel.” I put my hand right back where it had been. Then leaned in close to whisper, “He can’t see what I’m doing.”

  She didn’t say a thing, just looked at me with worried eyes. I didn’t understand what she was concerned about.

  “Okay, I’m going to take a shower, then get into bed,” Eli said. “See you in fifteen minutes when you come to tuck me in, Dad. ’Night, Rebel. I’m glad you finally came swimming with us.”

  “Me, too.” Rebel ran her hand over his head. “See you tomorrow then. Have sweet dreams.” She headed toward the dressing room where she’d left her clothes.

  I caught up t
o her. “You seem a little edgy about Eli seeing anything untoward between us.”

  “I don’t want him to see his mother next weekend and tell her that something is going on between us.” Rebel stopped just outside the door. “This is their first weekend together in a long time, and I don’t want it spoiled by her feeling emotional about you dating me.”

  I hadn’t even thought about that. “I don’t think she gives a shit, to be honest with you. It’s not like she loved me.”

  “You know, you’ve told me that more than once. You two might not have openly expressed love for one another, but there’s no way two people can live together for six years and not have love for one another.” Her hand went to her hip as she pursed her red lips. “So, don’t be shocked if Tara gets a little jealous or hurt when she finds out about us. It would be perfectly natural. Didn’t you feel that way when you first found out about her seeing someone else? And don’t hide behind your male bravado and lie to me.”

  “No, I wouldn’t say it was jealousy that I felt when I found out about the first guy she dated after leaving me.” I paused, thinking of how best to describe what I’d felt back then. “It was more of just an uneasy feeling. And to be perfectly honest, it had a hell of a lot more to do with Eli and the thought that there’d be another man acting as a father figure to him than it had to do with Tara.”

  “I can see that.” Her hand moved off her hip, floating through the air to run through her damp hair. “But I also know what you’ve told me about letting her come back to live with you if she wanted to.”

  I winced, regretting for the hundredth time that I’d told her that. Reaching out, I put my hands on her shoulders and looked her dead in the eyes. “Can you forget I ever said that? I honestly don’t know that it’s true. I have no clue what I’d do if that situation were to occur.” The closer I got to Rebel, the more I doubted I’d allow Tara back in my life at all.

  A slight smile curved her lips to one side. “Harman, I know you said you didn’t love her, but I think you may have some feelings for her that you’ve hidden even from yourself. No one leaves an open door for someone they don’t care about.”