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Because of her heart condition, Emily wasn’t as big as other girls her age. The operation made her seem even smaller, frail, vulnerable. Wade finger-combed golden locks from her forehead. “Say goodbye to Mort,” he said gently, “’cause we need to close the curtain.”
She shook the monkey’s tiny, hairy hand. “G’bye, Mort. See you later?”
“You betcha!” The puppet waved at Emily, at the child in the next bed, at Mrs. Kirkpatrick, then at Wade. “See yas later, ’gators!”
As Patrice started for the door, Wade grabbed her elbow. “Mind hanging around a minute? I have something to ask you.”
Her dark brows rose slightly, as if to say, What could you possibly want to ask me?
“Okay,” Mort answered in Patrice’s stead, “but it’s gonna cost ya, Doc.”
For a reason he couldn’t explain, Wade abandoned his all-business demeanor. “Name your price, monkey face.”
The kids and Mrs. Kirkpatrick laughed as Mort slapped both fuzzy hands over his mouth. “Monkey face? Well, I never!” He shook a furry finger at the doctor. “It was gonna be just a cup of coffee, but after that remark, you’ll hafta throw in a slice of pie, too!”
Small price to pay, Wade thought, for a private session with Mortimer Mohammad Mastriani McMonkey…and his handler.
“I’ll be in my office,” Patrice said.
For the second time in as many minutes, she’d used her own voice. Like everything else about her, it was adorable.
But wait—had she said her office? “Since when do hospital volunteers have offices?”
Patrice laughed, the sound reminding him of the small copper bells that used to hang on his mom’s back porch.
“Technically I’m not a volunteer,” she explained, walking backward toward the hall, “But I am the person who makes sure there are volunteers for the children. I’m the pediatric social worker who heads up Child Services.” She opened the door. “You know where the Zoo Lobby is?”
Wade didn’t like admitting that he hadn’t a clue. “Ellicott General is like a small city, and I’ve spent most of my time in the ‘heart’ of town, if you’ll pardon the pun.”
Mort came to life again. “I get it, Doc,” the monkey said. “Cardiologist…heart…. Ha-ha-ha.” Mort patted Wade’s shoulder. “First-floor elevators to the giant stuffed animal cages, left down the hall, office on the right.” Clapping, the monkey added, “The sign above the door says Child Services. Got it?”
Wade was about to echo “Got it,” when Patrice winked and ducked into the hall.
“She spreads such joy wherever she goes,” Mrs. Kirkpatrick said as Wade pulled the curtain around her daughter’s bed. “And isn’t she just the cutest thing?”
“Yeah, cute,” he muttered halfheartedly, opening Emily’s file. He’d never been a big advocate of non-family members meandering in and out of the hospital, overstaying their welcome, leaving behind their germs. And Patrice McKenzie had built a career of inviting them to do just that.
He wondered how much joy she’d feel like spreading if he gave her his two cents worth on the subject.
He pictured the long-lashed, dark eyes, heard her lilting voice in his memory, and found himself fighting an urge to rush through Emily’s examination so he could make his way past the Zoo Lobby to the Child Services office…
…and the lovely lady who’d breathed life into Mortimer Mohammad Mastriani McMonkey.
She caught sight of her reflection in the silver frame that held a photo of her father, taken before the fiery car crash. Instinctively, she fluffed her hair, effectively hiding the scar. The hideous, horrible welt coiled from just below her right earlobe to the corner of her eye, like a rope that tied her, permanently, to the accident that had paralyzed her father.
Patrice sat back and squeezed her eyes shut. It wasn’t until her knuckles began to ache that she realized how tightly she’d been gripping the chair’s wooden armrests. It had taken several sessions with her pastor to realize why she refused to get rid of the picture…and the scar. Flexing her fingers, she sighed. “Someday,” Pete Phillips had counseled, “you’ll give them both to God. Until then—”
Footsteps, just outside her office door, cut short the memory. Grabbing a pen, she hunched over the papers piled high on her desk and feigned hard work.
“Knock, knock….”
She recognized the charming baritone: Dr. Wade Cameron.
Patrice looked up and smiled. “Hi,” she said, standing. “Come on in.”
He placed a partitioned cardboard tray on one of the chrome-and-blue upholstered chairs in front of her desk, then sat in the other. “All they had was cherry,” he said, handing her a plastic-wrapped slice of pie. “Hope that’s okay.”
A nervous giggle popped from her lips. “Oh. Wow. I, um, I was only kidding,” she said, as he put a disposable cup on the corner of her desk. “About the pie, I mean.”
He held up one hand. “We had a deal.” Grinning, he glanced at the puppet, leaning on the silver picture frame. “Well, the monkey and I had a deal, anyway.”
She liked his smile. Liked his eyes, too. There was something familiar about him. No big surprise; thousands of medical professionals made up the Ellicott staff. She’d probably passed him in the halls, or shared an elevator, or stood in the cafeteria line with—
“Your directions were great,” he said. “I found your office just like that.” He snapped his fingers, then glanced around the room. “Kinda dim in here. You want me to hit the lights?”
She lifted her chin. “No. Thank you. Fluorescent light…” Pausing, Patrice folded both hands on the file folders stacked on the blotter. “It’s…it’s hard on my eyes.” Not quite a lie, but not exactly the truth, either. She found the incandescent glow of the sixty-watt light-bulb in her desk lamp more than adequate to work by, and it prevented people from seeing her scar.
“Well,” Wade said, pointing at the mess on her desk, “I can see you’re busy, so I’ll get right to the point.” He leaned forward, balancing both elbows on his knees. “I think we’ve met before.”
She put her hands in her lap. “Really?”
He nodded. “Fifteen years ago, in the ER at University Hospital.”
Patrice swallowed. Hard. Because fifteen years ago today, her brother had died. She felt her mouth drop open. “So that’s why you look so familiar. You’re the nice boy who bought me chocolate milk.”
One shoulder lifted in a slight shrug. “I didn’t buy it—the nurse at the reception desk gave it to me.”
“I stand corrected. You’re the nice boy who brought me chocolate milk.”
Wade stared at his clenched fists.
Patrice peeled the lid off her cup of coffee. When the puff of steam evaporated, she realized it wasn’t coffee, after all, but hot chocolate. Smiling, she said, “So you’re still a nice boy, I see.”
Even in the dim light, she could see him flush, reminding her of an innocent boy.
“So how’re your folks?” he asked. “I remember seeing them, too, that night.”
She swallowed again. “They’re…” Shaking her head, she cleared her throat. Since it wasn’t likely she’d be seeing him again, except maybe in passing, Patrice saw no point in telling him all the gory details. “We never quite got around to talking about why you were in the ER that night.”
His gaze darting from her face to Mort to his own clasped hands, Wade frowned. “I was checking on the condition of a—” his frown deepened “—a friend.”
“How’d he make out?”
He looked up. “Huh?”
“Your, uh, friend. How is he?”
“He, um, he died that night.”
Patrice leaned forward. “Oh, Dr. Cameron—”
“Hey, we’re old pals, so call me Wade, okay?”
“Sorry to hear about your friend,” she said. “Guess that was a pretty dismal night for both of us, wasn’t it.”
Something was happening behind those sparkling, hazel eyes. Something that made Patrice wish she had the ability to read minds.
Wade got to his feet. “Anyway,” he said, neatly sidestepping the question, “you’re busy, so…”
Patrice stood, too. Somewhere deep in her heart, she’d hoped that maybe the handsome Dr. Cameron’s interest in her was inspired by more than mere curiosity. She checked to make sure her scar was still hidden. Thankfully, it was. But maybe he’d seen it in Emily’s hospital room, where the lights were much brighter than in her office. “Thanks for the hot chocolate,” she said. “And the pie.”
He waved her thanks away. “Well…”
Well, what? she wanted to demand. He’d gotten the information he’d wanted. If he had more to say…or ask…why didn’t he just come out with it?
Wade clapped one hand to the back of his neck. “I, um, I was wondering if, uh, maybe you’d, um, like to have dinner with me sometime.” He pocketed both hands and stood there, a half grin on his face, waiting for her answer.
“Um, well, sure,” she began, “I, uh, I guess so.”
Wade began to laugh. It started slow and quiet, and escalated to a pleasant rumble. Soon, Patrice was laughing with him.
“Maybe we oughta join Toastmasters,” he joked.
“Oh, sure. Like anybody would hire the Um-Uh-Er-Uh Duo to give a speech!”
His smile and laughter dulled. “I’d rather hear you stutter and stammer than listen to…just about anything.”
In the seconds that followed, Patrice stood in silence, unsure what to make of his probing, penetrating gaze.
“So what do you say?”
About their mutual stuttering? she wondered. Or his dinner invitation? Suddenly aware that she was clasping and unclasping her hands, Patrice stuffed her fingertips into the back pockets of her jean skirt. “I—”
“What’s your preference? Italian? French? Asian?”
Her cheeks were hot, and she hugged herself, hoping the low lighting had kept him from seeing her blush. “I’m not fussy,” she said, shrugging. “Food’s food.”
“How do you feel about tacos, enchiladas, chimichangas, quesadillas?”
“Long as lima beans aren’t part of the recipe, I’ll eat just about anything.”
His eyes lit up. “Great, ’cause I know this terrific little Mexican place and—”
“Tonight?”
He shrugged. “Well, sure.” The sparkle dimmed as he exhaled. “Aw, man…I should’ve known you’d already have a date.”
Another nervous giggle popped from her. “Now, really, how could you have known a thing like—”
He interrupted with “You’re gorgeous, for starters!”
When he slapped the back of his neck again, Patrice realized Wade probably regretted the compliment.
Well, she didn’t; it was nice to hear, even if she didn’t believe a word of it.
“I’m not busy tonight,” Patrice blurted.
The glint returned to his eyes and he said, “How about scribbling your address and phone number for me on one of those business cards, there.” He pointed at the plastic holder on her desk.
After grabbing a card and a pen, she printed the information he’d requested. Their fingers touched when he took the card from her extended hand, sending a tremor of warm tingles up her arm and straight to her heart. He was everything she’d ever dreamed about—tall and handsome, with muscles in all the right places and a dimple beside his generous mouth.
Uh-oh, she thought, it was happening already.
Every time she allowed herself to fall boots over bonnet for some good-looking hunk, all she ended up with was another heartache. Well, not this time! she decided, straightening her back.
Wade tucked the card into the side pocket of his white lab coat. “I’ll pick you up at six, okay?”
Patrice nodded. He sounded slightly uncertain, which only added to his charm.
“Dress casual,” he said, “’cause this isn’t a fancy place.”
Another nod. Most guys wouldn’t have thought to share a thing like that, meaning that in addition to everything else, Wade was considerate. “Casual,” she echoed. “Thanks.”
Grinning, Wade snapped off a smart salute and headed for the elevators, whistling an off-key rendition of West Side Story’s “Tonight.”
Not knowing what to make of any of it, Patrice flopped onto the seat of her chair, leaned her elbows on the desk and pressed both palms to her face. “Not this time, Lord,” she prayed aloud, “’cause I don’t think I can survive another heartbreak.”
Wade frowned at a black-framed photo hanging on his office wall, taken when he was voted Baltimore’s Bachelor of the Year by The City Magazine readers last year. On its left, another picture, snapped when he won a similar award at the Heart Association Ball two years ago; on the right, a certificate naming him this year’s Most Loveable Doctor.
His participation in the contests and events helped to raise money for one worthy cause or another—the only reason Wade agreed to accept the invites. When the awards arrived, Wade gave them the attention he thought they deserved…by stuffing each into the trash can. If his secretary, Tara, hadn’t fished them out to mat and frame as Christmas gifts, they’d be buried deep in a Maryland landfill by now.
He pushed back from his desk, swiveled the chair around so that it faced the windows and propped his shoes on the credenza. Here, where other doctors kept pictures of their wives, their children and grandchildren, were more reminders of Wade’s bachelor-for-life status.
Wade stared past his certificates and awards, across the sea of cars in the parking lot below his window. Was it his imagination, or were there colorful baby seats and booster chairs in nearly half of them?
What would it be like, he wondered, hearing the words his best friend had so recently heard: “Honey, we’re going to have a baby!”? He’d never seen Adam that happy, and he’d known him nearly twenty years. Well, that wasn’t entirely true; the guy had practically done handstands on the day he married Kasey. If Adam Thorne, of all people, could make his life over, find lasting love and a life mate and the whole ball of wax, might there be hope for Wade, too?
He let out a bitter snicker. Not likely, Cameron, since you seem incapable of getting past a second date. Not that he didn’t want a lasting relationship….
“And what do you want?” he whispered to himself.
Moments passed, but no answer came. Not surprising. He’d failed to puzzle this one out, though he’d tried, dozens of times before.
Dropping both feet to the floor, Wade stood and grabbed the miniblind’s wand. After several angry twists, he effectively shut out the parking lot…and every child-toting vehicle.
His office door creaked open, and Tara said, “See you Monday, Wade.”
“You bet,” he answered. “Say hi to Matt and the kids for me.”
“Sure thing.” She started out the door, then poked her head back in. “Do me a favor?”
“If I can.”
“Get some sleep this weekend, will ya? You’re beginning to worry me.”
“Careful, or I’ll move in so you can mother me full time.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Tara said, waving away the comment. “Just what a guy like you wants—an infant and a toddler and mountains of diapers to come home to every night.”
He was about to say better than my one-room apartment, when he replayed what she’d said: A guy like him?
“If you’re gonna stay much longer, you might want to turn on a light in here. Eyestrain, y’know.”
He forced a grin. “Old wives’ tale,” he said, grabbing his sports jacket. “Besides, I’m right behind you.”
They walked side by side to the elevator. “Hot date?” Tara asked, pressing the down button.
He pictured Patrice, with her mop of auburn curls, doe eyes, sweet smile…. “Yeah, I guess you could say that.”
The car whooshed them to the garage level. “Well, don’t burn yourself.” She patted his hand. “’Cause those babies are miracle workers.”
He resisted the impulse to pocket both hands. “You have one of those baby-carrying gizmos?”
“An infant seat, you mean?”
Nodding, he said, “Yeah. Infant seat. You have one in your car?”
“As a matter of fact, I have two of them. One for each of the kids. What kind of mother would I be if I—” She stopped talking mid-sentence and narrowed one eye. “Why?”
Wade pretended he hadn’t heard the suspicion in her voice. Truth was, he had no earthly idea why he’d asked the question. “Just wondering, is all.”
“Boy-oh-boy,” she said, giggling, “I’d give anything to meet the woman who has Dr. Nevermarry thinkin’ about baby seats!” She hopped out of the elevator.
And she was still giggling when the doors hissed shut.
Patrice stood in front of the foyer mirror and adjusted the earrings dangling from her lobes. “You sure you’ll be okay for a couple of hours?”
“Sure I’m sure.” Gus fiddled with the controls of his wheelchair. “I’m okay while you’re at work all day, aren’t I?”
Hands on her hips, she faced him. “Yes, Dad, but Molly is here with you while I’m at work.”
“Yeah, well, I’d go hoarse trying to convince you I don’t need her.”
“Save the tough-guy routine for somebody who’ll fall for it,” she teased. “Molly, for instance.” She winked. “I know you like having her around.”
He shrugged. “She’s okay.”
“Okay? Who else would let you beat them at board games the way she does!”
Gus grinned. “You make a good point.” He sniffed the air. “You smell pretty.”
“It’s the perfume you gave me last Christmas.” She leaned closer. “He said casual. I didn’t go overboard, did I?”
Gus inspected her outfit: black flats, blue jeans, a pale pink turtleneck. “So who’s ‘he’ and where’s ‘he’ taking you?”
She went back to fussing with her hair. “To a Mexican restaurant, somewhere here in Ellicott City.”
“And where’d you meet him?”
“His name is Wade Cameron, and I met him at the hospital.” She paused, wishing she didn’t have to say it. “He’s a cardiologist.”
“Oh-h-h, no-o-o,” Gus groaned. “Not another doctor!” He shook his head. “Every time you get involved with one of those pompous know-it-alls, you get your teeth kicked in. When are you gonna learn, Treecie?”
Patrice couldn’t very well argue with him. But she didn’t have to agree with him, either. “It’s a meal, Dad.” Besides, she added silently, it’s going to be different this time. This time I’m not going to fall crazy in love on the first date. “So please, when he gets here, be nice?”
Gus raised both eyebrows and feigned innocence. “I’m always nice.”
“True.” Bending, she kissed his cheek. “So be extra nice, then, for me, okay?”
“Well, I’ll—” The doorbell rang, interrupting his promise.
Patrice took a deep breath, then opened the door. Earlier, Wade had looked incredible in his lab coat and stethoscope. He looked even better now in khaki trousers and a fisherman’s knit sweater.
“Hey,” he said, smiling. “How goes it?”
“It goes pretty well. Come in. I’d like you to meet my father.” Patrice watched carefully, studying his reaction to the man in the wheelchair. If she’d learned this trick years ago, she might have spared herself a heartache…or two. “Dad, this is—”
“Wade Cameron,” he broke in, grasping Gus’s hand. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. McKenzie.”
“Good to meet you, too,” Gus said. “Treecie, here, tells me you’re a cardiologist.”
He shrugged as if to say “no big deal,” then glanced around. “Nice place.”
“Awright, enough with the pleasantries,” Gus said. “Get on out of here, you two.”
Wade chuckled and Patrice smiled. “Honestly, Dad, if I didn’t know better, I’d say you had a hot date planned for tonight.”
“Matter of fact, I do have a hot date—with the television set.”
“Well,” Wade said, “are you ready, Patrice?”
She grabbed her jacket from the hall tree, hung it over her forearm. “I’ll have my cell phone on,” she said, patting her purse, “in case—”
“I won’t need you. There’s a boxing match on cable.” He winked. “That oughta keep me out of trouble for a couple of hours.”
She kissed his other cheek. “All right, but if you get hungry—”
“Are you kidding? You fed me enough supper to last till tomorrow night!” He laughed. “Now get a move on, or I’ll miss the first round.”
“We won’t be long,” Wade told Gus.
“Take your time…please.” And snickering over his shoulder, he rolled into the family room.
“He’s quite a guy,” Wade said as she locked up.
She nodded. “Did you have any trouble finding the place?”
“Nah. I was a volunteer firefighter during my senior year in high school.” He opened the car door for her. “Got to know the area pretty well.”
She slid onto the passenger seat. “So doing good deeds and saving lives has always been in your blood?”
He slammed the door, hard. Routine? she wondered. Or in response to what she’d asked? Something told her it was the latter. But why would the question bother him?
“How long has your dad been in the wheelchair?” he asked, revving the motor.
She sighed. It was his turn, it seemed, to ask hard-to-answer questions. “Long time.”
“Accident?”
Nodding, she whispered, “Yes.”
“Automobile? Or work related?”
Patrice forced a sigh. “You’re off duty, Doc, so just relax, okay?”
He shot a glance her way, and she could see by the puzzlement in his eyes that he didn’t understand her reluctance to talk about her father’s condition. She didn’t mind talking about that, exactly…it was how he got into the chair in the first place that she minded talking about.
“So do you live near the hospital?”
He shook his head. “I live a few minutes from here. Plumtree Apartments.”
“How long?”
“Little over a year.”
“Wow. Amazing.”
“That I live nearby?”
“Well, that, and the fact that we haven’t run into one another in the grocery story, or at the pharmacy.”
“So how’d it happen?”
“That we haven’t run into one another?” Maybe playing dumb would get him off track.
“Okay, I can take a hint.” He looked at her again. “Not your favorite subject, I take it.”
She breathed a sigh of relief—
“So what’s your mom up to tonight?”
—and the breath caught in her throat. She hadn’t prepared for this eventuality.
“Is she a boxing fan, too?”
“Mom hated boxing,” Patrice blurted.
“Hated? Past tense?” He shot a stunned look in her direction. “Oh, man. I’m sorry, Patrice. I had no idea….”
She leaned against the headrest and closed her eyes. “Some fun date this is starting out to be, huh?”
Wade reached over and took her hand. “If it was fun I wanted, I wouldn’t have asked you out.”
That snapped her to attention! “Excuse me?”
“Oh, wow. Oh, man. I, uh, I didn’t mean it that way. I only meant—”
Laughing, she squeezed his hand. “It’s okay, Wade. I know what you meant.” She paused. “I think—”
“After that crack, I feel I owe you something better than the dinner I’d planned.”
“Don’t be silly. The Mexican place is just fine.” She smacked her lips. “In fact, I’ve been craving soft tacos all evening.”
“Soft tacos? No foolin’?”
She nodded.
“My favorite,” they said in unison.
This time, Wade squeezed Patrice’s hand. “Say, maybe this night is gonna turn out all right, after all.”
Maybe, she thought. And maybe I’d better be real careful with this one.
Because already, she felt the oh-so-familiar tugs at her heartstrings.
Chapter Two
His hand on the small of her back, Wade led her into the restaurant. She seemed so small, so vulnerable beside him. If he had to guess, he would’ve said Patrice was five feet tall, not a fraction of an inch more.
The instant they stepped into the restaurant, an elderly woman hollered, “Dr. Cameron!” She hurried toward them, arms outstretched. “It’s been too long. We’ve missed you!”
“Nice to see you, too, Mrs. Gomez,” he said as she wrapped him in a grandmotherly hug. “How are you?”
She pressed a hand to his cheek. “Fine, thanks to you.”
“And where is Mr. Gomez?”
Her eyes twinkled with mischief when she released him. “In the kitchen,” she whispered, “telling Juan how to do his job.”