“So tell us, Lieutenant, did you always want to be in the Special Forces?” Miss Sadie asked.
Interested in the answer, too, Nora parked the stroller in a distant corner of the room and took a seat next to her son.
Zane lounged against the mantel and shot her a surprisingly intimate look, which caused her to blush in return. “I definitely wanted to do something adventurous.”
“Because your grandfather was career military?” Miss Mim pressed.
Several people turned to see what had so thoroughly captured Zane’s attention.
He let his gaze drift over Nora one last time, before turning back to the crowd. “That, and the fact I had so many conditions put on me while I was growing up. For example—” one half of his sensual lips crooked up ruefully “—I was permitted to jump out of an airplane, but only once, on my eighteenth birthday, and only with a skydiving instructor of my parents’ choosing. After much instruction.”
Miss Patricia scoffed. “Sounds kind of reasonable.”
Zane frowned, the way he always did when he felt boxed in. “From their point of view, maybe. Not mine. By the time I was sixteen, I was already visiting a recruiter.”
Nora remembered. Even as a kid, Zane had been determined to one day be the kind of person who made a real difference in this world. He still was, she thought admiringly.
“The sergeant took one look at my grades and convinced me I had what it took to be in the officer corps and lined me up with a ROTC scholarship at the college of my choice, which happened to be the University of Hawaii Warrior Battalion.”
Grins all around. Kurtis Kelley mimed the hula. “Because of all the pretty island girls?”
Nora rolled her eyes, recalling how jealous she had been then. For no reason, it had turned out. Zane only had eyes for her, and she him.
“Well...” Zane drawled with a flirtatious wink that had the ladies tittering. “That, and it seemed like one of the most challenging programs to get into and graduate from. And I thought it might be fun to learn to surf while I was in college.”
Everyone chuckled again.
Moving to stand closer to Nora, Zane related casually, “And then of course, once I was in, I had to go for the maximum challenge, the Special Forces.”
The former town librarian, who’d known them both as kids, looked from Nora to Zane. “Any regrets?” she asked him.
Getting Miss Mim’s point, Zane’s eyes briefly met Nora’s. He knelt down to protectively survey the sleeping Liam. “Not about my chosen career, no.”
Silence fell.
She had the feeling Zane was about to ask if she needed any help getting Liam home, when the vivacious and no-nonsense Betty Blair asked, “Nora, why did you go into the Army Nurse Corps?”
“To please my mother and honor my late father.”
“And...?” Miss Sadie pressed.
Nora shrugged. Determined to lighten the mood, she quipped, “Ah...take care of the men who love danger?”
Everyone laughed again.
“How come you didn’t marry one of them while you were in the corps?” Kurtis Kelley asked.
Dear Lord, how had they gotten into this? “It’s complicated,” she said, squirming uncomfortably.
Zane tilted his head to one side, amusement curving his lips. He aimed a thumb at the center of his chest. “I’d like to hear more,” he said, a wickedly sexy gleam in his dark silver eyes.
Not surprisingly, from the women in the room, there were swoons all around.
Figuring if she didn’t put a stop to the matchmaking now, they’d be producing strands of mistletoe at any minute, Nora drew a breath and set everyone straight. “The truth is, I’ve never wanted to date anyone who was actively serving in the military, because I grew up with two parents who were always deployed, and I don’t like being left behind all the time.”
The quizzical regard in the room deepened.
“I find it difficult to believe a woman like you didn’t revere your fellow soldiers’ commitment to country, honor and duty,” Buck Franklin scolded.
That was the hell of it.
Nora nodded, accepting the criticism. “The noble part of me did value that then, and I still do.” She turned to look at Zane, wanting him to understand this much, even if it hurt his opinion of her.
“It was the selfish side of me that felt abandoned and distraught every time someone I cared about was deployed. And believe me—” she held up a staying hand, confessing, even as guilt racked her soul “—I know that’s wrong. And that in turn makes me feel like I’ve hurt and betrayed them way more than they’ve ever hurt me by leaving.”
There was a murmur of understanding from the women in the room. The men, however, seemed to struggle with her candid revelations.
Turning away from Zane, and the sharp rebuke in his expression, Nora pushed on, “Plus, I knew those kinds of emotions weren’t something any couple could build a life on. So I tended not to go there in the first place.”
Or at least she had tried not to go there.
Zane had managed to cut through her barriers time after time after time.
Often to their mutual regret.
Which was why they had been off-again as much as they had been on-again.
“Surely, some of the men must have asked you out anyway,” the hopelessly romantic Miss Sadie persisted.
All eyes turned expectantly to Zane.
“I won’t say she wasn’t chased. And chased with enthusiasm.” Zane comically waggled his brows. “But she was hard to get.”
Recalling exactly what he was talking about, Nora flushed.
“I bet you could have won her over if you tried,” Betty Blair insisted.
Zane shrugged and reached out to affectionately pat Nora’s shoulder. “Actually,” he conceded playfully, to all, “I’m still trying.”
* * *
“WHY DID YOU have to say that in there?” Nora chided, the moment they retired to her office.
Zane shrugged, refusing to apologize for publicly staking his claim on her. “First, it’s true.” Hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans, he ambled closer. “Second, everybody here knows I have a thing for you. And vice versa.”
Her heart skittering in her chest, Nora drew in another whiff of his tantalizing aftershave. “How could they know that?” she demanded as she set the brake on the stroller.
He flashed a mischievous grin. “The way you look at me and the way I look at you.”
Heavens! Nora knelt down to remove her son from his stroller. She handed Liam to Zane to hold, then went to get the diaper bag. She moved to set up a changing pad on the love seat. “You are incorrigible—you know that?”
Zane pressed his cheek against the top of Liam’s downy soft head. “This little guy doesn’t seem to think so.”
The sight of her son cuddling contently against Zane’s broad chest generated a wave of warmth.
“You’re right,” she admitted softly, watching Liam gaze adoringly up at the lieutenant. And Zane return the affection tenfold.
If only the two had been father and son! How wonderful would that be?
But they weren’t, so...
It was time she came back to Earth.
Nora cleared her throat. Fresh diaper out and ready, she reached for her son.
As Zane carefully handed him over, Nora looked into his eyes, serious now. “Thank you for involving our residents in the charity work today. It really helps them to feel needed and appreciated.”
He lingered close by while she changed her son. “It was my pleasure. So what next? When do you get off work?”
“Two and a half hours ago,” Nora admitted ruefully, putting her baby boy in his fleece jacket and matching powder blue cap.
Although she could have left, she’d
wanted to stay and lend a helping hand with Zane’s charity project, too.
He sent her an admiring glance. “Got any plans for dinner?”
“Not yet.” Nora stood and handed off Liam once again, so she could put her own coat on. “I’ll figure something out after I get this little guy fed and in bed.”
He shifted his gaze to her lips. “Want to figure something out together?”
She felt herself floundering. “Um...I can’t go out tonight.”
He came closer. “I’ll bring something in.”
The idea of not having to cook was almost as irresistible as the notion of spending the evening with him. Yet there were inherent dangers in doing so, too.
She could fall for him all over again.
Be tempted into making love with him again.
Thereby paving the way for even more brokenheartedness than they had already suffered at each other’s hands.
They could also become strictly platonic friends.
Learning how to enjoy each other’s company without passionate complications.
The amorous look on his face indicated that was a long shot.
She grinned and shook her head. “You are persistent.”
He winked flirtatiously. “And you’re resistant.”
Nora groaned at his play on words.
Brushing the back of his hand across her cheek, he bent to kiss the top of her head. “That doesn’t mean we can’t have a good time together, sharing a meal.”
He seemed serious now, in the way that meant he wanted the two of them to get closer. The heck of it was she wanted that, too.
Zane held the door for her. He accompanied her and Liam as they walked through the foyer and out into the fading light. “So is that a yes, or a maybe, or a...?” His voice cut off abruptly.
Nora paused at what they saw, too. Mr. Pierce wandering through the cars, before stopping next to her minivan, one hand on his thinning silver hair, the other rested on his waist. To her dismay, the older gentleman wasn’t wearing his leather jacket or his fedora. He also looked perplexed, and then some.
“Problem?” Zane guessed.
“I don’t know.” She handed her son over to him. “Would you mind coming with me, just in case...?”
“Sure.”
“Hi, Mr. Pierce!”
The older gentleman turned. “Nurse Nora!”
Nora sighed with relief. Thank goodness he knew who she was! She strode cheerfully toward him. “What are you doing out here?”
“Actually—” Russell Pierce massaged the back of his neck thoughtfully, watching as she removed her car keys from the outside zipper pocket on her bag “—I’m not sure. I know I came out here for something...I just can’t recall what.”
“That happens to me all the time,” she said lightly. With the keypad, she electronically unlocked and opened up the side door.
She paused to put her purse and Liam’s diaper bag inside the cargo area. “I run up the stairs at home looking for something, then get up there and can’t for the life of me recall what I was going to get and run back down the stairs, only to remember what I was going to get.”
Mr. Pierce chuckled.
Zane chimed in, “I think it happens to all of us.”
“I imagine so.” Mr. Pierce turned back to her vehicle and ran his hand over the gleaming red surface. “Is this your minivan?”
“Yes, it is.”
“It’s a beauty. Esther and I had one just like it. We got it a couple of years before she passed.” He paused affectionately, reminiscing, “She used to really love driving it, and so did I.”
“I can see why.” Nora and Zane both smiled. “I love mine, too.” Aware the elderly resident was shivering without his coat, she slipped her arm through his.
“I still can’t figure out why I came outside, though,” he said, perturbed.
Nora patted his arm gently. “I’m sure it will come to you later. The way it always does me. Usually when I least expect it!”
They all chuckled.
She regarded Mr. Pierce intently. “In the meantime, they’ve started serving dinner in the dining hall. And I know you don’t want to miss that.”
“No, I do not,” Russell Pierce said with enthusiasm. “Fried chicken, isn’t it?”
“With all the trimmings. Is it okay if I walk in with you?” Nora asked, still holding on to his arm. “I think I left something in my office.”
She handed her minivan keys over to Zane, suggesting cheerfully, “If you want to get the heater running...”
He nodded at her, looking completely natural with her baby boy in his arms. “No problem.”
By the time she returned, Zane had Liam strapped into his car seat, the minivan snug and warm. Her son had Zane’s little finger clasped tight in his little fist and was staring up at him adoringly, as Zane sat next to him in the back seat and sang “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” in a soft mellow baritone.
She opened the driver side and stuck her head in. “Hey, thanks for doing this.”
Reluctantly, he disentangled his hand from Liam’s, and stepped out of the rear passenger seat. “Glad to help out.” He waited as she climbed behind the wheel. “Mr. Pierce okay?”
“He is.” Loving the way she could always count on Zane to help out, whenever he was needed, she asked, “So, did you still want to do dinner?” After that false alarm, and the even-longer day, she could use the company.
He looked over at her, as protective as ever. “As long as you let me provide it.”
Nora exhaled. Sometimes it was good to be taken care of. Especially by an incredibly kind and sexy man. And it was Christmas, after all.
The season for giving. And taking. And giving...
“You’re not going to get any argument there.”
His gaze swept over her, lingering briefly on her lips before returning to her eyes. “Meet you in an hour, then?”
“Sounds good.” Really good, she thought, as another spiral of heat swept through her.
Attempting to keep her mind on the mundane, instead of the sizzling chemistry between them, she asked, “What are we having?”
He flashed a mysterious smile. “That, Nurse Nora, is a surprise.”
* * *
NORA HAD JUST gotten Liam to sleep and into bed for the night when the doorbell rang. She walked back downstairs.
Wishing she’d had time to change, spruce up her hair. Something. But then that would have made it feel like a date, and it wasn’t a date. It was just dinner between two old friends.
She opened the door.
Zane strode in, dressed as he had been before, in a crew neck sweater and jeans, a large take-out bag from the Dairy Barn in his arms. She gazed at him, refusing to be taken in by the blatant desire in his gaze. “You didn’t...”
His grin widened. “Our favorite craving when we were overseas.”
She set the bag on the dining room table and pulled out the various containers with all the delighted surprise of a kid on Christmas morning. “Chili dogs, root beer and onion rings.”
“And dark-chocolate peppermint ice cream!”
Wow.
“I gather you’re pleased?”
Was this what it would be like to be taken care of by him, all the time? “Very.”
Her heart fluttering in her chest, she stashed the ice cream in the freezer and got out the plates and utensils. He looked so darn good here.
So right.
Together, they loaded their plates with hot, fresh food. “What do you think they put in their chili anyway, that makes it so damned good?” Zane asked, as they began to eat.
Nora shook her head. She was no slouch in the kitchen, thanks to the many lessons her grandmother had given her when she was growing up. Zane
was pretty competent, too. But the recipe for this stymied them both.
She savored the spicy, cheesy goodness. The crisp crunch of an onion ring. “No clue.” She met his intent gaze and smiled. “All I know is that no matter how we tried to duplicate it when we were deployed overseas we could never really get close. It was always missing something.”
He nodded, looking relaxed. Happy. Powerfully masculine... “I remember.”
Nora remembered, too. So much. Their happy reunions. The worry she’d had whenever he had been hurt on a mission. The joy they’d experienced when they were together. The heartbreak and loneliness they’d felt when they were apart.
She wasn’t sure she could go back to that kind of topsy-turvy life. But the truth was, Zane filled up her heart and her soul the way no one else ever had. Or ever would.
And much as she might want to discount that, she couldn’t.
Gratitude for all he’d done for her that day increasing even more, she rose to clear the table. “Thank you. This really hit the spot.”
He moved to help her, his gaze moving over her lingeringly, as if he were already mentally ending this evening by making love to her. “What can I say?” he drawled, as he joined her at the sink. “I aim to please.”
Her phone rang. The caller ID said Laramie Gardens. “I’m sorry... I have to take this.” She picked it up to answer, but to her dismay, the report was not good. “You’re sure you can handle it?” she asked the night supervisor. “Call me if you need my help. Thanks.”
“Problem with Mr. Pierce again?” Zane asked when she joined him at the sink.
“No.” Nora bent to put their dishes in the dishwasher. “He’s fine. Another resident just got news her daughter’s family is not going to be able to be with her for Christmas or New Year’s this year—they are going to see the son-in-law’s parents.” She sighed, her heart going out to the wonderful senior citizen. “So she’s very upset.”
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