Without realizing it, her gaze stole over to the side fence and bare, pruned mulberry tree towering over Ethan’s backyard. She gulped her water and coughed.
If she was a betting woman, she’d lay money that he’d been avoiding her. His car was gone most afternoons and evenings, so she supposed he was at the hospital or shuttling Mateo to karate and friends’ houses. But, he’d made no effort to text, call, or lean out a window and smile as she walked past.
Monday night was the splash of icy waters on her drooping ego. She’d overheard Ethan telling Pipo that he’d lost a patient during the day, but his chill demeanor boded something deeper. Now it was Thursday, and all was silence.
She could be imagining things. The world didn’t revolve around her and how people felt about her, but she wasn’t completely dense. If a man was interested, he’d at least crack a smile. Or maybe touch her hand. Perhaps not in front of his son and father.
She cheered a fraction and grabbed her sweater from the peg by the back door and scooped up Copper’s leash as she called for him. Copper plopped his butt on the floor and quivered with anticipation as she latched the leash to his collar.
She wasn’t halfway down the front path when Ethan’s car rolled to stop in the driveway, and Copper’s tail hit wagging overdrive.
“I know how you feel, buddy,” she murmured under her breath. She waved at Ethan as soon as he looked her direction.
After the slightest of hesitations, he waved back. The thump of her heart slowed. Ethan didn’t seem as enthusiastic as he ought to. She’d done her best to ignore his coolness from the other night, but Ethan was making it hard.
“Where’s Mateo?” She met Ethan at the back of his car.
“I dropped him off at the movies with a friend. From his science class, I believe.” Sam detected an edge in his voice, but she shrugged it off. He could be nervous about Mat’s new friend or worried about a patient for all she knew. She didn’t press.
“I’m heading over toward the riverwalk if you’d like to join us.”
“I think that would be a good idea.”
“It’s not raining, so we’re taking advantage of the window of sunshine,” she added to fill the awkward pause.
Ethan pocketed his keys and fell into step. A quiet hung thickly between them. She wanted to slip her hand into Ethan’s, but his hands were curled into fists by his side. It was as if there was a dense steel wall separating them.
First at Pipo’s house and again today. Either Ethan was a grouchy or moody dude, or she was in for trouble. Time to probe. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, she supposed.
“You’re awfully quiet.”
Ethan grunted and guided them to a bench. Sam’s warning radar shrieked like a wailing banshee. He’d clearly been thinking. She doubted he wanted to discuss a medical case with her. Although maybe something had come up with Nana. No, everything with Nana seemed on track. It had to be her.
“I’ve been thinking.”
“Nothing good ever comes from that phrase.”
Ethan shifted to the edge of the bench. “This is awkward, with being family friends and neighbors and all that.” Ethan faced her. “But, we need to nip this in the bud.”
“Our walk or the fact that we’re having sex?”
“The sex.”
“Continue.” She laced her fingers together in her lap and studied the red leash looped around her hand. The temperature dipped, and the light dimmed. She glanced up at a thick, gray-edged cloud eclipsing the sun.
“This is the wrong time for me to pursue a relationship. I moved home to escape complications and a grinding work schedule to focus on Mateo. He is my sole priority. Mateo first, work second, and my father after that. There isn’t room for anything else.”
“You haven’t made a good start on your monk-like life. Shagging the neighbor girl is a bad beginning.” Dear heavens, where was her aplomb coming from? She sounded lighthearted. Almost amused. But, her heart crept closer to her toes.
“You’re not making this easy.”
“Why should I?”
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You’re turning this into a one-night stand. I’m not saying that we’ve become an exclusive item, but I rather thought that we had some kind of bond and connection.”
“We are connected.”
“Your tone says that you wish it were anything other than that.”
“Don’t take it personally.”
“Oh, it’s you not, me. Is that right?” Sam rolled her eyes.
“Yes. No.” Ethan groaned. “All I mean is that you’re a lovely woman. You’re Mateo’s teacher. You’re Austin’s sister. It can’t work.”
“I’m too boring and bland for you. I get it. You must be used to all sorts of glamorous women hanging all over you in Los Angeles. I’m just the high school teacher and girl next door. Too uninteresting.”
“Jesus. I wish we hadn’t made love.”
“Thank you. I’ll be sure to post that rave review.”
“Dammit. All I meant was that I shouldn’t have given in. I got carried away and didn’t use my head. That won’t happen again. Letting my emotions rule never ends well.”
Sam opened her mouth but shut it with a snap. She had no idea what to reply. She had no glib one-liner that would convince a man that he should reverse course and give their feelings a chance.
All at once it sank in. She wasn’t simply crushing on Ethan. She was falling for him. She wasn’t the starry-eyed teen suffering from a case of hero worship.
His laugh made her heart sing. His love for his son was heartwarming, and everything a woman wanted to see in her man. He seemed to have a solid relationship with his father. Oh yeah, and don’t forget bed. He was spectacular between the sheets.
A tingling slice of need and desire threaded its way from the apex between her legs, through her core, and blossomed into hardening nipples. Should she just try to lay a lip-lock on him and persuade him to give them a chance the old-fashioned way?
Ethan folded his arms across his chest, a forbidding grimace looming as if he could read her mind. Scratch that idea. Time to retreat. And perhaps salvage some dignity. Throwing herself at Ethan was only going to end in misery and humiliation.
“Don’t worry.” Sam assumed a cheerful smile that she prayed reached her eyes, but was sure it was brittle and fake. “We won’t mention any of this again. We’ll chalk it up to temporary insanity.”
“We’ll go back to being neighbors.” Relief flooded Ethan’s expression.
“Exactly.” Sam felt her lip quiver. No. She would not cry. “You won’t have to put up with me much longer anyway. Jami showed me a house yesterday that I love.” In a flash, Sam made up her mind. Nana was going to be fine, so it was high time she moved out. “I’ve decided to put an offer in on it.”
“That’s wonderful. Good luck.” His smile was all casual cheerfulness.
A spear of temper lanced through her. How dare he act all sunshiny and happy to get rid of her. Damn, she must really not be his type. Pink flooded to her cheeks. Fabulous. She’d thrown herself at him, and he couldn’t ditch her soon enough.
“That’s that then, isn’t it?” Sam rose from the bench, and Copper sprung to his paws. “We’ll stay out of your way.” She spun away with only a fleeting glimpse of Ethan’s discomfort.
“Wait.” Ethan snagged the elbow of her sweater, but she shook him off.
She studied him but flicked her head in denial. “I’m good. If you don’t mind and it’s not too intrusive, I think it would be good for Mateo to take Copper for walks and play with him. But I don’t want to impose.”
“You’re not imposing. All I want is what’s good for Mateo.” He softened with a conciliatory smile.
“I’m a decent friend, but nothing more,” Sam said. “I see how it is. Thanks for the clarity.” Damn. The heat in her cheeks turned to scalding. She pulled Copper’s leash close and hit a speed walk pace.
The sharp breeze cooled her face,
but her heart slammed against her ribs. And so endeth another botched attempt at a relationship. Why did she keep trying? It was clear that she wasn’t good mate material.
Let’s see...that was four failures in two years. This one was a record breaker in terms of speed of fatal implosion.
She swallowed against the raspy dryness of her tongue against the roof of her mouth. She wouldn’t think about it. Ethan was no more important or unimportant than the others.
She didn’t care about it. They’d only engaged in a fling. That was not her heart sinking into the pit of her stomach. She barely knew Ethan Cordero.
And apparently, that was the way it was going to be.
CHAPTER TWELVE
WITH ONE HAND in his pocket, Ethan stared at his reflection in the double glass doors of Regis Academy. He dreaded going in, but Sam’s message had been most insistent. She needed to talk to him about Mateo’s classwork.
He’d done his best to avoid Sam for the last month. He noticed that Mateo had set times to meet up with Sam for walks with Copper and that his son often took the pup out on walks on his own. He’d see them chatting over the fence as Copper shot between the two yards via the newly installed doggy door.
Ethan checked in at the administrative office and got directions to Sam’s classroom. He took a deep breath. He’d only seen her once since she’d stomped off from the park. She’d been with her sister, Jami, and Nana as they’d visited his office for Nana’s two-week checkup. Sam had been reserved while Jami and Nana had laughed and joked with him.
He’d been calm and worn his professionalism like a suit of armor. His gut clenched, and Ethan cursed under his breath. It must be nerves over Mateo’s schoolwork. He needed some of that poise now. He surely couldn’t be nervous about seeing Sam.
She’d be cool about everything. Hell, it was foolish to think she was anything but over him. They’d had a fling. One glorious night, but that had been it. He’d moved on. He barely thought about it. If every other thought was not thinking about it.
He reached Sam’s room and glanced in the long, rectangular window slicing down the middle of the door. She sat at her desk, head bowed and marking papers. Her mouth was pursed in a small bow of a frown, but her nose was still the same pert piece of cuteness.
As he tapped on the door, he thought of her mouth kissing him, sucking on him, curved in an O as she climaxed. He coughed.
Sam looked up from her desk with a narrow crease between her brows. He studied her mouth again and then met her gaze. The furrow of concern had disappeared, replaced by a careful smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“Thank you for coming to see me so quickly.” She motioned for him to pull up a chair from the corner of the room.
“You’ve got me wondering what’s up.” Ethan positioned the chair at the side of Sam’s desk. He could see her shapely legs in dark brown tights and a coffee-colored leather-like skirt. He blinked. “Is Mateo having trouble with your class? That’s not like him.”
She held up her hand. “He’s doing A work on his assignments, and he’s doing well with class interactions and participation.” Sam lifted a blue spiral binder and pulled out a thin stack of stapled papers. “I want you to read Mateo’s essay. It’s only two pages, so it’s a quick read. But, I need you to see it.”
Sam pushed it across the table and carefully withdrew her fingers before he reached for the essay. It seemed clear that she was avoiding contact with him.
He read the title out loud. “The Lonely Bully.”
“I invited each student to write a short story. A work of fiction. I got dragons, vampires, rampaging robots, and a few romantic comedies, but Mateo’s work stands out.”
Ethan skimmed his son’s story. Selfish, mean girls taunting a kid at his locker. A series of cruel texts and snaps. A popular boy who looked like a mule tailing him on the hero’s way home. The hero runs into a forest and hides at a cabin. At the end, all the boy has is his schoolwork and his music.
He flicked a look at Sam who shook her head. Ethan read it again and absorbed each line. He didn’t want to jump to any conclusions, but it seemed likely that Mateo was suffering at school. He wanted to strangle the little shits who were making his son miserable.
“Have you noticed any kids harassing Mateo?”
“I haven’t seen anything, but the details match up. There are several packs of stuck-up girls who tease and taunt a variety of kids. I’m afraid to say that the description of donkey ears and a long nose are a good match for one of the sophomores on the basketball team.”
“Do you think he’s getting bullied, or simply watching it happen to other kids.”
“I don’t know, but I want to give you a chance to intervene. Ask Mateo questions. See if you can get him to open up.”
Ethan drummed his fingers on the desk. He would get to the bottom of this. Mateo must know that he could tell his dad anything. That he always had Mateo’s back. Yeah, but...Mateo wouldn’t complain, and wouldn’t want to look weak. Like he couldn’t handle himself.
She pulled out another copy of the essay, but this one had a grade of A on it. She laced her fingers together and rested them on the desktop.
“At least he got a good grade.”
“It’s well written. It’s definitely more like a paper by a junior or a senior.”
“I’ll start off with the good news when I talk to him.” He reached over and covered Sam’s hand with his.
Need and wanting shot through his body. Their eyes locked. Her hand trembled. She looked away and snatched her hand down to her lap.
“Tell Mateo that I’m impressed with his work and that we’ll discuss it more the next time we walk Copper together.” Sam rose, and her chair squeaked on the linoleum floor.
Ethan stood. He knew when he was getting dismissed by the teacher.
“Go ahead and keep the copy. I made one for the records, too. Mateo will get his original back tomorrow in class.”
“Does the principal know?”
“She does, but she thinks it best that we keep this low-key until we know what’s going on. Mateo may just have a gift for detailed observation and a keen creative streak. Or he may be the victim here.”
“That’s where I come in.”
“Teachers can be an extra set of eyes and ears, but you’re the parent.”
“I can’t thank you enough for caring about what happens to Mateo.”
“I care for all of my students.”
“Of course you do.”
“You can expect a follow-up letter and call from Principal Sturlow by next week.”
Sam held the door. She was all business and precise kindness. As if she were ushering a herd of students out the door. Now that she’d done her duty, she couldn’t get rid of him fast enough.
Ethan ached. He deserved it. She hadn’t done anything to warrant his careless use of her. He’d played it off that they were consenting adults with mutual needs, but he’d been a jackass.
He yearned to fold her into his arms and erase the pain behind her eyes.
He turned back. “Thank you again.”
“It’s my job, Dr. Cordero.” Sam looked at a point above his shoulder with a tight smile. “Think nothing of it. Mateo is all that matters.”
Ethan flinched. He’d earned it. With the briefest of nods, Ethan passed Sam and trekked back down the long corridor. The heels of his leather shoes snapped and echoed. Thunk. A door thudded shut.
He looked back over his shoulder. She was gone.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“HEY, SWEETIE, I’M going upstairs for a bit.” Sam stepped into the kitchen as Nana stood over the stove and a steaming teapot.
“You look pale. You should rest.” Nana grabbed a hot pad and poured the bubbling water into a mug. “I don’t think you’re over that little tummy bug you picked up the other day.”
“I’m fine.” Please, let it only be a touch of the flu. She hadn’t felt well in more than a week. Sam plastered on a tight smile. “It’s my jo
b to fuss over you. I don’t want to catch you with a vacuum cleaner or anything. You know you need to take it easy.”
“I’m being quite good, and you know it. Dr. Ethan has convinced me that being a model patient will win me a clean bill of health.”
Sam studied her toes at the mention of Ethan’s name. Foolish twit that she was, she hated that twang in her belly when his name came up in conversation.
Nana walked past Sam with the steaming tea mug and the tea bag tag dangling in the breeze. Nana stopped and pecked Sam on the cheek.
“You go upstairs. What with looking after kids all day and then coming home to an old woman, you deserve a little peace and comfort.”
“You’re an angel, my sweet Nana. I’m so happy you’re getting better and stronger.”
Nana settled herself in front of the TV and clicked on her favorite home improvement channel.
Up in her room, Sam synced her phone and the wireless speaker and let the music wash over her. She sat on the edge of her bed with her eyes closed. She noticed her breath and slowed her heartbeat.
She picked up her backpack and marched into the bathroom. Terror warred with grim determination. Flu didn’t seem likely. It was something else.
Minutes later, the twin pack of pee sticks blared double pink, double bars. Two tests. Two positives. Those damned lines had popped into being within seconds of the test.
A baby. Motherhood. A shiny hope flared. She grinned, but it faded. Omigod. Single motherhood. No loving spouse. Piles of diapers. Half her salary to daycare. But, kissable baby toes. She bit back a laugh. Sweet lavender baby powder. A new life.
Oh shit. What would Ethan think? This clearly wasn’t in his current game plan. Or hers. Sam counted on her fingers, mumbled under her breath.
“The baby would be due in October.” Crap. She’d be big as a house for Jami’s wedding. Damn. She’d put an offer in on that house last weekend, and they’d accepted right away. Sam closed her eyes and swallowed against the wave of nausea piling up in her throat.
Tempting Doctor Forever (Barrett Ridge Book 2) Page 7