Mending the Single Dad's Heart

by Susanne Hampton

  Jessica shook her head. ‘I don’t know what to say. I don’t understand how she could not want her baby and then use him to manipulate the situation.’

  ‘She believed that having a child would hold her back. She kept reminding me that she was a city girl, born and bred in Los Angeles, and this town could never compete with that. She belittled everything about it and made no effort to fit in. None. Life here with me, with our son, it was never going to be enough. She wanted to keep moving and not waste her life as the wife of a country doctor. She didn’t want the whole picket fence.’

  Jessica’s eyes widened. It was all falling into place and making sense to her. ‘And I said the same to you.’

  ‘And you have every right to want more than this town. I would never want you to stay where you don’t want to be.’

  ‘That’s not why I said what I did. It was nothing to do with this town...or you. It was someone else. Someone I trusted and loved, who lied to me in the worst possible way. He made me believe that we had a future when all along he knew we didn’t. He destroyed my belief in men, marriage and commitment. I thought I had my happily ever after and it all fell apart.’

  Harrison turned to face her. ‘Is that why you don’t want to settle in one place for too long?’

  Jessica nodded. ‘I didn’t want to be lied to again. He was married and never told me. I was clueless but discovered he had a family already. A wife and children. Everything I thought we would have, he already had. So I guess I gave up on believing in that dream pretty darn quickly.’

  ‘I’m so sorry that happened to you.’

  ‘I am too because it has scarred me.’

  ‘I hope the bastard pays one day for what he did to you.’

  ‘Not just me, his family as well. His wife knows; she’s the one who called me and told me to walk away.’

  Harrison shook his head. His expression was filled with compassion she wasn’t expecting.

  ‘You deserve better than that, Jessica. So does his wife. Two innocent women were hurt at the hands of one calculating man. He should rot in hell for his actions. What he did is unforgivable and I’m not surprised it made you feel the way you did.’

  Jessica was thrown by his words. There was no hint of judgement and she suddenly felt as if a weight lifted. The guilt she had been carrying had flowed into every aspect of her life and this man was somehow taking that away, just by the way he looked at her.

  ‘I felt...responsible. I thought I didn’t deserve love after that. I didn’t want to get close to someone and have my heart broken because I knew I wouldn’t survive it again.’

  ‘And that’s what I did. I pulled you close and then I pushed you away,’ Harrison said with remorse colouring his voice. ‘I’m so sorry. I was a fool.’

  ‘We both had our reasons for what we did and said.’

  ‘I shouldn’t have rushed us into what we did that night.’ He paused. ‘But I couldn’t stop myself and, while I’m sorry beyond words for how I hurt you afterwards, I don’t regret a minute of it. I was the happiest I have ever been.’

  Jessica had to agree with everything he had said. She regretted rushing too, but it was the best night of her life. Suddenly she felt that she finally understood the man sitting beside her. He was the man her heart had led her to believe. Not the man that her past had made her want to think he was.

  ‘After everything I did, everything I put you through, I can’t believe you’re here—shouldn’t you be on a plane, Jessica?’

  ‘I should, but some things are more important than a job.’

  ‘You missed your flight to come back to check up on Bryce?’

  ‘And you.’

  ‘But why? You didn’t know any of what I just told you,’ he said, not taking his eyes away from her beautiful face. ‘You compromised your new role without being sure of anything.’

  ‘I guess I took a leap of faith. I saw the depth of your love for your son; I thought that there had to be a reason for your actions. I thought perhaps you needed your heart to be mended too. And if I was wrong, then I’d have learnt another hard lesson about myself.’

  ‘And here I was thinking that if I kept seeing you I would be the one who would get hurt when you packed up and moved on.’

  ‘I don’t want to move on, Harrison. I never thought I would say it, but I feel at home here...’

  ‘With me?’ he cut in.

  ‘Yes, with you.’

  The ICU nurse appeared though the swing doors, pulling free her mask. ‘I have wonderful news. Bryce has stabilised. His temperature’s back down to thirty-six point five. He’s breathing unassisted. Your little boy is going to be just fine.’

  Harrison jumped to his feet like a man who had been given a new lease on life. But before he raced in to see his son he reached for Jessica’s hand. ‘Please come in with me. I want to introduce my son to the most amazing woman in the world and the doctor who saved his life.’

  ‘We did it together, Harrison.’

  ‘Yes, we did and I hope it’s just the beginning. I want to spend the rest of my life here with you. I want to fall asleep every night with you wrapped in my arms and wake up the same way.’

  Jessica didn’t try to hide the smile that was born of her uncontained happiness.

  ‘But it’s a big ask, Jessica. I’m a country boy at heart and I want my son to grow up here with his grandparents. But I could commute to see you in Adelaide and you could do the same some weeks maybe, because I don’t want you to give up on your dream of being the Head of Paediatrics in Adelaide. That’s not fair on you. And I never want you to have to give up something for me and regret that decision...’

  ‘I wouldn’t regret anything. I would willingly walk away from that role to be here with you if you’re asking me to stay.’

  ‘I am, but...’ he said, holding her hand so tightly as if she were his lifeline and he would be hers.

  ‘But nothing—if you want me here then I want to be here more than anything I’ve ever wanted. And I’d never regret anything,’ she promised with tears of happiness welling in her eyes. ‘Besides, who says I have to give up on a dream for ever? As the hospital grows I have a feeling there might just be a need for a Head of Paediatrics right here in Armidale.’

  Harrison pulled her into his arms and kissed her as passionately as he had that fateful night when their worlds changed for ever.

  ‘I love you, Jessica.’

  ‘And I love you, Dr Harrison Wainwright.’

  EPILOGUE

  ‘WHAT A STUNNING VIEW.’

  ‘Yes, it is,’ Harrison said as he looked across at the silhouette of his beautiful bride.

  Her blonde hair was swept to one side with an antique clasp his mother had gifted her new daughter-in-law. It was the something old. The neckline of the stunning white satin wedding gown with a lace bodice skimmed her bare shoulders. It was the something new. On the table nearby was a small white satin purse that Harrison had recognised the moment he’d seen it. It was the one that Rachel had carried on the day she’d married Harrison’s best friend, Sam. He knew it because he had bought it for Rachel as a gift. It was the something borrowed. Harrison’s gaze dropped to the bracelet that caught the light and sparkled as Jessica moved her wrist. It was a gift from Bryce. With help from his grandfather, he had made a bracelet of azure glass beads for his new mummy. It was the something blue.

  Harrison did not see the Sydney cityscape; he only had eyes for Jessica. She was everything he could ask for and more and he knew he was the luckiest man in the world. And he was not the only one to consider himself lucky. His family adored her and they’d quickly and warmly welcomed Jessica with open arms.

  She turned to face him. ‘I guess for that much money you would hope it would be nice,’ she laughed.

  ‘Oh, you’re talking about what’s outside the window,’ he said as he crossed the room and
pulled her into his arms. ‘It was all for a good cause. That auction raised enough for two new dialysis units and will go a long way towards a new wing for the hospital.’

  ‘Well, now we have a baby on the way, you might want to cut back on extravagances like a fifteen-thousand-dollar stay in the big smoke.’

  Harrison dropped to his knees and kissed the barely visible bump that would in six months be a new Wainwright.

  ‘I know medical school fees for four of them will cripple us.’

  ‘Four?’ she gasped.

  ‘You’re right. Between Bryce and this one on the way, we’re good for now,’ he said, smiling. He loved how easily Jessica had slipped into their lives, how quickly she had formed a bond with Bryce, earning his love and trust in a way that had melted Harrison’s heart further.

  ‘Besides,’ he said, resuming the thread of their conversation, ‘if we have four, maybe not all of them will want to be doctors.’

  Jessica laughed as she leant into the strength of her husband’s embrace. ‘I love you, Harrison Wainwright.’

  ‘I’m glad to hear it because I’m crazy in love with you, Dr Wainwright, and I will spend the rest of my life showing you just how much.’

  * * *

  If you enjoyed this story, check out these other great reads from Susanne Hampton

  The Doctor’s Cinderella

  White Christmas for the Single Mom

  Twin Surprise for the Single Doc

  A Mommy to Make Christmas

  All available now!

  Keep reading for an excerpt from The Sheikh Doc’s Marriage Bargain by Susan Carlisle.

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  The Sheikh Doc’s Marriage Bargain

  by Susan Carlisle

  CHAPTER ONE

  DR. LAUREL MARTIN placed the test tube into the rack with great care, her pulse racing in anticipation. This could be it. The breakthrough she’d devoted her career to finding. The process to stop the mutation in the factor IX gene in the X chromosome. If it could be tested for during pregnancy and corrected then thousands of lives could be changed, in some cases even saved. The key was discovering that link.

  To find the answer she had to have funding. That money was difficult to come by. She’d already been put on notice that hers was running out. Still she held out hope that would change. She’d submitted another grant application and should hear about it any day.

  The study of hemophilia had become her life’s calling. In medical school it hadn’t taken her long to realize her comfort zone didn’t include interacting with patients and their loved ones. She didn’t like to tell them bad news. Being an introvert further hindered her ability to do so. Research had become her safe spot.

  A tap on her lab window drew her attention. She pushed up her goggles in an effort to adjust them on her nose. Stewart, the director of the lab, stood on the other side of the glass. His medium height was dwarfed by the tall, lean man standing beside him.

  Oh, my. Laurel’s heart jumped then adjusted. She stared. The stranger was gorgeous. She hadn’t had that type of reaction to a man in years. Not since college when she’d first seen her ex-boyfriend, Larry. A college football player, he’d been shockingly good looking as well. She’d learned the hard way that good looks didn’t always equate with being a kind person.

  The man beside Stewart looked as if he might be of Middle Eastern decent. His skin had a warm pecan tint as if he spent a great amount of time in the sun. His proud bearing gave him an aura of authority, as if he knew his place in the world and had no trouble holding it. The black tailored suit jacket covering his broad shoulders matched his hair and his equally dark, meticulously groomed beard screamed wealth and power. His gaze locked with hers.

  To her surprise his eyes weren’t like ink. Instead they were chestnut, reminding her of the color of a racing stallion she’d seen once as a girl. One of his well-shaped brows rose slightly as if he suspected the effect he had on women and wasn’t surprised by her reaction.

  His look bored into hers, making her feel like one of her petri dish specimens under a microscope. The devil of it was, he was the kind of man she’d always been attracted to. The type of male who had always looked past her mousy, too-serious and impossibly intelligent personality in favor of a tall blonde, with perky breasts, long legs and an engaging giggle that stood just behind her. Laurel was wallpaper and his sort was interested in the chandeliers.

  Men like him didn’t seriously consider her worth noticing. The one time someone had, she’d been traumatized. Larry had damaged her that much. So much so she’d sworn off men and had stuck to that vow for ten years. Long enough to become so absorbed in her work she had little life outside it. Laurel mentally shook her head. None of that had anything to do with the man before her.

  The wave of Stewart’s hand, indicating he wanted her to come out of the lab, drew her attention away from the arresting stranger. Laurel checked her test tubes again and pushed the rack further away from the edge of the table before rolling her chair back. She exited the room door with a swish of the airlock seal behind her. In the outer room she removed her goggles and adjusted her glasses. She pulled her mask, gloves and gown off, leaving her in a simple round neck T-shirt and jeans.

  Shrugging into her starched lab coat, she touched the bun at the back of her head, making sure it was in place. She glanced over her shoulder. The stranger’s intense gaze remained on her. A ripple of heat went through her, disconcerting her even more. What was he seeing? Thinking?

  Shaking off the response, she moved with cool proficiency into the main lab. It wasn’t until she’d almost reached the men that she noticed the two larger ones standing a few paces behind the man. How had she missed those intimidating figures? Because she’d been so absorbed by her reaction to the man front and center. These guys were larger, with bulkier shoulders and had even grimmer faces, if that was possible. Their hands were clasped in front of them and legs apart as if ready to move into action. Who were these people and what did they want with her?

  Laurel’s hands trembled. She shoved them in the pockets of her lab coat. Had she done something wrong? Her eyes narrowed and she gave Stewart a questioning look, relieved to have an excuse to break off eye contact with the others there.

  Stewart’s voice shook slightly as he said, “Laurel, this is Prince Tariq Al Marktum, and he would like to speak to you.” Stewart enunciated the man’s unusual name carefully, as if he’d been practicing in order not to stumble over it.

  Prince? What would a prince want with her? A “lab rat”, according to her siblings. Astonishment made her blurt, �
��About what?”

  “I’ll be glad to share that in private,” Prince Tariq answered in a deep smooth voice like velvet with a thread of steel running through it. His accent made Laurel want to hear him say more.

  She wrinkled her nose as alarm washed through her. “Stewart, what’s this about?”

  “I’ll let the Prince explain. Why don’t we go to my office?” Stewart turned and started toward the swinging doors separating the main lab from the offices. The Prince stepped aside, allowing her to precede him. Acutely aware of him and his security men, she walked stiffly. At the doors, he quickly stepped ahead of her and held one open. Laurel gave him a quick glance as she passed. His inscrutable look revealed nothing. She wouldn’t want to deal with him on a daily basis. How could she ever discern what he was thinking? Feeling?

  As they walked down the tiled hall her low sensible clogs made a tap-tap but there was no sound behind her. How did such immense men move with such agility? That thought didn’t comfort her.

  Stewart swiped his card and pushed the office door open. She entered, expecting him to follow, but instead Prince Tariq joined her and closed the door behind him. The already small space shrank in proportion to his large presence. She faced him and shoved her hands into her lab coat pockets, bracing herself.

  “Please, Dr. Martin, have a seat.” He indicated the chairs in front of Stewart’s desk.

  “No, thank you. I need get back to my lab as soon as possible.” She wanted to return to her safe place. “How can I help you?” Laurel couldn’t imagine how but it seemed like the right thing to say to hurry this along.

  “Sit, please.” The Prince’s tone implied she had no choice.

  She hesitated but eased into a chair, noting too late that it put her into closer proximity to him. To her surprise he took the other chair. At this point she fully expected he might try to lord it over her. After all, he acted as if he owned the place. Stewart didn’t allow just anyone to take over his office. She clasped her hands in her lap and waited for the Prince to speak.