Her baby. What had happened to her baby, and what could she do?
Lexi’s nephews were at the top of the stairs looking ill and babbling, both with tears in their eyes. “We’re so sorry. It was the cat. She got out and Bailey went after her. We shouldn’t have let him go. Bailey ran and tripped.” Mel continued to shake and noticed there were arms around her. Lexi’s. She looked down at her baby. Nolan was there, but where was the help? Where were the sirens?
Nolan lifted Bailey’s eyelids and touched her neck. Someone was handing him towels and then bags of ice as he leaned down close over Bailey’s body, but Mel couldn’t quite comprehend what was going on. She just wanted Bailey to get up. Wanted to hear her laugh. Wanted to see her eyes and know she would be all right.
After what seemed an eternity, Nolan stood and took Mel firmly by the shoulders, leaning down and looking her straight in the eyes, forcing her out of her trance.
“She’s asking for you, Mel. Do you understand? She’s asking for you. Don’t worry. She’ll be fine. I’ve checked her out. She’ll need to be looked over but nothing is broken and the cut looks worse than it is. We can fix it without a scar. I promise. Now, go tell your daughter everything is okay.”
Mel blinked and nodded. Bailey needed her. Nolan said so, and she had to get it together. He moved back and guided her to her daughter while still holding her as he helped her kneel down, his strong arms the perfect support in her time of need.
“I’m sorry, Mommy. I shouldn’t have let the cat out, but I just wanted to play with him. Are you mad?”
Mel choked back the cry of joy that bubbled up as relief washed over her at the sound of her child’s voice and the clear look in her beautiful eyes. “No, baby, I’m not mad at all. Are you hurting?”
“A little, but the doctor says he’s your friend, and he says I’ll be okay.”
Mel felt tears come to her eyes and this time she didn’t pause to wash them away. She was so grateful in that moment for Nolan’s solid form at her back holding her up. “Yes, honey that’s what he says, and he is my friend, so I’m thinking he’s right. You’ll be just fine.”
As the ambulance came to take Bailey away, Mel rode along, holding her daughter’s hand with Nolan pulling rank as a doctor on-call holding her other hand, reminding her she was not in this alone and didn’t have to be anymore.
Later, as Bailey dozed peacefully after being stitched up, Nolan pulled Mel into his reassuring embrace. “So, what do you say, boss lady? You think I can hang around a while? Maybe score an invite to Lexi’s next anti-holiday party?” His lips were quirked into a playful smile but his eyes were full of hopeful anticipation as they searched hers.
Mel looked up at him. All at once seeing the boy she’d crushed on all those years before and the steady man she’d somehow grown to trust like she’d never trusted any man in her life. Her smile bloomed from deep within. “I think you’d better. Turns out having a doctor on call is a sound business decision.”
Nolan threw back his head and laughed, taking her hand and putting it over his heart. “I’ve got your business decision right here.”
His lips came down on hers, and once again he set those sparks on fire. So much so they threatened to send her rocketing over the skyline of New York.
Yeah, it’s good to be the boss, but sometimes letting go does have its perks.
About the Author
A native New Yorker, K.M. Jackson had two dreams: 1. to be a fashion designer, and 2. to be a writer. After studying fashion design and graduating from FIT, she then spent ten years designing for various fashion houses. But after having twins and juggling that and fashion, Kwana took the leap of faith and decided to pursue her other dream of being a writer. Since then she’s won RWA NYC’s Golden Apple Author of the Year Award and is a daily advocate for #WeNeedDiverseRomance. She currently lives in a suburb of New York with her husband, twins, and a precocious terrier named Jack that keeps her on her toes. Visit her online at www.kwana.com or follow her on Twitter @kwanawrites.
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> This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
11821 Mason Montgomery Road Suite 4B
Cincinnati OH 45249
Romancing the Fashionista
Copyright © 2016 by Kwana Jackson
ISBN: 978-1-61923-305-8
Edited by Latoya Smith
Cover by Angela Waters
All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
First Samhain Publishing, Ltd. electronic publication: May 2016
www.samhainpublishing.com
Romancing the Fashionista: The Flirty Fashionistas, Book 1 Page 10