Harlequin Special Edition November 2014 - Box Set 2 of 2: The Maverick's Thanksgiving Baby\A Celebration Christmas\Dr. Daddy's Perfect Christmas (44 page)

Chapter Nine

S
aturday morning came with beautiful sunshine, melting some of the accumulated snow. Of course, when the temps dropped again tonight all that melting would be in vain as the watery mixture turned to ice. Strange weather for this small town, but she was actually enjoying the extra layer of wintery ambience for the Christmas season.

Nora couldn't wait to see what Eli had in store for her today. And, as promised, he'd been the perfect gentleman the other night when he'd prepared dinner for her. So what did he have planned that was such a surprise?

She slid her feet into her knee boots and grabbed her purse. She assumed casual was the way to go since he was picking her up at ten in the morning.

What on earth could he have planned? Hopefully not too much alone time because the other night in her kitchen nearly caused her to cross every boundary she'd put up for herself. The way his hands had slid inside her robe as his mouth assaulted hers—the image they made kept rolling through her mind, arousing her even more.

Nora knew with certainty that the emotions she felt toward Eli had nothing to do with old memories jumbling up her mind. She was starting to have very strong feelings for the man he was now, the man who dropped everything to take over his father's practice for a few months, the man who made sure to check in on her. He'd done so much with his life, just like he'd wanted, yet here he was putting that life on hold to care for those he loved.

And she knew he loved her, even if just on a friendship level. Eli loved her just as she did him. But they couldn't cross over into the intimate territory. Never again.

As she came down the steps, her doorbell rang. Through the sidelight she could see more than one person.

Had he planned a party?

Crap. A party. She still hadn't talked to him about an anniversary party for his parents. She seriously had to do that soon. Days were slipping away so fast lately.

When she opened the door and saw Bev standing beside him, Nora couldn't help but smile. “Okay, now you've got me intrigued.”

“What would you say to going shopping for baby furniture?” he asked with a wide grin. “My treat. No arguing. It's my gift to you and the baby, but I figured you'd want a woman's perspective so I brought Mom along. Drake is babysitting dad for a few hours before his shift.”

Joy filled her and Nora had no clue how to even respond to such a generous gift. “I don't know what to say,” she told him.

Bev reached out, patted Nora's arm. “You say thank you and hop in the truck.”

Laughing, Nora met Eli's dark eyes. “Thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

As much as she wanted to refuse such an overwhelming offer, Nora knew she'd be a fool to turn him down. Besides, Eli had gone to the trouble of getting someone to sit with his father and asking his mother to come. He obviously wanted to do this.

But was the gesture out of guilt or pity? Part of her wondered, but the other part of her prayed Eli's kindness came out of their years of friendship. Actually, if his actions stemmed from anything akin to what they shared in her kitchen the other night, that was definitely not pity.

When they arrived at the store, Bev walked on ahead and Eli waited on Nora. Wet snow had started earlier in the morning and Nora's foot slid on the pavement as she started to get out of the car.

“Easy,” he said, grabbing her elbow to assist. “Let me hold on to you until you get inside.”

“You're not holding on to your mother.”

Eli laughed. “My mother isn't pregnant.”

Nora laid a hand on his arm and stopped just inside the entrance to the store. “I meant what I said earlier, Eli. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

The tenderness in his eyes melted her heart. “I know what this means to you, Nora. I also know you'd never ask for help or let anyone know what you need. I don't want you to worry about cost. Go get whatever you want for your baby girl.”

Unable to resist the moment, she reached out, wrapping her arms around his waist. “I don't know what I did to deserve you in my life,” she whispered, trying to hold back the tears that seemed to accompany breathing lately. One day she'd break. An emotional meltdown was inevitable at this point.

“I'm the lucky one, Nora.”

His soft voice murmured against her ear, sending shivers down her spine. Another time, another place, flashed in her mind of him holding her, whispering promises of forever. But that was a lifetime and plenty of heartache ago.

Eli pulled back, smiled and tugged on her hand. “Come on. I'm sure Mom already has a buggy full of frilly things by now. We'd better get in there and control her.”

* * *

Eli stood back and examined all the pieces scattered across the hardwood floor. There was a reason he wasn't an architect or engineer. He was used to fixing people, not inanimate objects.

He refused to be intimidated by something as simple as a baby crib. He had a PhD, for crying out loud. How could he not understand these directions written in plain English?

“What are you doing?”

He turned toward the door where Nora stood, arms crossed over her rounded belly.

“I'm putting the crib together.”

“Eli, you bought everything I'd ever need. I didn't expect you to put the crib together.”

With her scrubs on and her hair pulled back in a low bun, she looked adorable...as usual. Lately everything about her set off some level of hormones with him.

“Not that I'm not grateful, but isn't this your night to cook?” she asked, a smile flirting over her unpainted lips.

“It's in the Crock-Pot. I put it on at Mom's this morning and brought it over after work so I could concentrate on this crib.”

“Why don't you leave it and let's go eat.”

He glanced at the neatly separated piles of various sizes of screws, slats and bolts. The directions—printed in what he was sure was three-point font—crinkled in his hands and he tossed it down.

“You're right. This could be a while and I need sustenance.”

Before he could walk out, Nora laid a hand on his arm and looked up at him. That gentle touch never failed to send a high dose of sensations through him. Nora may be delicate, but she held all the power where he was concerned.

He'd still not gotten that very heated kiss and make-out session out of his head. How could he go on like he hadn't tasted her, felt her? Nora was a very passionate woman and he wanted to rediscover that passion more than anything.

But this was not his place. Another man later down the road would steal her heart and Eli would have to stand back and watch.

“Please don't feel like you need to do everything, Eli.” Her big blue eyes studied him. “I know Todd was your friend, but that doesn't mean you have to take over where he left off.”

Eli gripped Nora's shoulders, easing his face closer to hers. “You think I'm doing this for Todd? I'm doing this for you, because I care about you.”

Nora shook her head. “Eli—”

“No, Nora.” He made sure to keep his touch light, even though he wanted to shake some sense in her. “Everything I do for you is because I can't stand back and
not
do it. I can't help the feelings I have for you. I've tried to ignore them, but...damn it, Nora, I can't.”

Her mouth parted as she gasped. “You can't have feelings for me, Eli. If you do, they're just old ones.”

Taking his hands and framing her face, Eli stroked her jawline. “These aren't old feelings.”

Her lids dipped down for a moment before she met his gaze again. “There's too much I want, Eli. Too much that you can't give, and right now I have to concentrate on this baby and the very real possibility of moving. I can't face these emotions I have for you.”

The selfish side of him was thrilled she'd admitted she actually had feelings for him. But the other side of him cursed himself for making her feel torn.

Eli placed a gentle kiss on her lips and rested his forehead against hers.

“Nora, I'm here. Whether you need a friend, or anything else, I don't want you to be afraid to come to me.”

She nodded, gripping his wrists. “I've missed you, Eli.”

That soft statement packed a punch right to his gut. Damn, he'd missed her, too. Missed her so much he'd been ready to forget reenlisting in the army, especially since he'd finished his degree. He'd been ready to come home and see if they still had a chance.

But then she and Todd had gotten married.

After the wedding, he'd been afraid to visit too often when he was actually in the States, been afraid he'd see all that he'd let go in order to travel the world and enjoy his freedom.

“Let's go get some dinner,” he suggested, pulling away. “I'm going to need a supervisor, putting this crib together.”

He linked his hand in hers and led her toward the kitchen. The seed had been planted. Nora was very well aware of where he stood right now, and if she wanted to do anything about it, the proverbial ball was in her court.

Eli didn't know what scared him more—if Nora didn't act on her feelings...or if she did.

Chapter Ten

F
riday morning meant another week closer to getting back to Atlanta and another week closer to leaving Nora and her baby. In some weird, twisted way he'd come to think of himself as the expectant daddy. He'd felt the little life move beneath his palm, had put together the nursery furniture and had even helped Nora research diapers and formula.

And he'd found himself Christmas shopping for Nora after he'd gone home last night. A Christmas present, for pity's sake. He needed to chill out and stop letting his hormones override common sense.

Eli picked up the chart from the door holder and glanced at the name. With a sigh he pushed the door open, ready to get this day behind him because he had a terrible feeling he was coming down with something. The headache and sore throat were one thing, but he was worried he was running a low-grade fever.

“Maddie, how are you feeling today?” he asked as he entered the exam room.

The elderly woman, who'd now donned some type of velour zebra-striped sweat suit, merely shrugged her shoulders. “Not much different than when I was in here a couple weeks ago.”

Eli set the file down on the edge of the counter and leaned back against the edge, crossing his arms over his chest. “So you're really just checking up on me?”

“Now, Eli, I have better things to do with my time than to check up on you.” She pursed her bright red lips together and let out a big sigh. “I want you to look at my wrist.”

His eyes darted down to her hands in her lap. “What did you do to your wrist?”

Shoving her sleeve partway up her forearm, she held out her frail-looking wrist for his inspection. “I was exercising on my pole and one hand slipped. I landed on this one.”

Exercising on my pole
were words he really didn't need to hear coming from a senior citizen who used to threaten his life with her rolling pin.

Eli examined her wrist, careful of his touch as he rotated it, had her wiggle her fingers and apply pressure to his.

“This looks like a sprain, but I'd like to send you over for an X-ray just in case. The swelling isn't too bad. Have you been putting ice on it?”

Maddie shook her head. “I didn't have time. I baked some bread for you before I came in.”

Eli resisted the urge to groan because who knew what flavor she'd concocted this time. “You need to take care of yourself, Maddie.”

Reaching over with her good hand, she took a loaf from her purse. “I hope you like pumpernickel banana. Until you tell me what you like, I'll keep making up my own blend.”

Eli took the loaf, laughed and nodded. “Maddie, I won't be here long enough for you to worry about my favorite kind.”

She harrumphed before taking her cane and sliding off the table. “I've heard you've been spending time at a certain vet's house.”

Of course she'd heard. This town was too small, the people too nosy, for anything to remain private. Reason number four hundred and eighty-two for him to get back to Atlanta.

“Stonerock is an addicting town,” she went on. “You're back now and I bet if you think about it, you'll agree that fate has handed you a second chance at where you should actually be.”

Eli studied her. “Are you getting philosophical on me?”

“Just stating a fact. Your father will retire soon. This surgery might be just the eye-opener you both needed.”

Eli wrote out her order for an X-ray and waited until she shuffled out of the room. He eyed the bread and started to toss it in the trash like he did the last one, but that seemed cruel.

The first time he'd been skeptical, but she was obviously extending the proverbial olive branch to him.

Still, pumpernickel and banana? He chuckled. He picked up the loaf and headed to the front desk where Lulu was typing away on the computer, doing actual work on insurance claims. He tossed the foil-wrapped surprise onto the desk and smiled.

“From Maddie.”

Lulu glanced over at him, looking over the top of her rhinestone-rimmed glasses. “Oh, honey, I can't eat that. Too many carbs. I like to save my carbs for my margaritas.”

Eli shrugged. “I won't eat it, either. Just the combination sounds disgusting.”

Lulu took a sip from the plastic cup she'd brought from home. That cup was always on her desk and Eli knew his father had never asked what was in it—Eli flat out didn't want to know. But as flighty as she seemed with the whole bimbo facade going, she really did run this office smoothly. He didn't catch her working often, but everything was always done on time and in an orderly manner.

Lulu set her cup down and slid off her glasses as she smiled. “Maddie always brought your dad cinnamon raisin bread. You might as well tell her your favorite or she'll keep giving you odd mixtures for spite.”

Eli laughed, shaking his head. “So she told me. What's your favorite? I'll tell her that because I'm not sticking around long enough for it to matter.”

“Give it to Sarah. That girl can use a few added pounds. But if Maddie can do a vodka-flavored bread, I'll take it.” Lulu donned her sparkly glasses and went back to typing. “Such a shame you're not staying, though. I think you're fitting in nicely here.”

No, he wasn't. He was merely filling in for his father and then Eli would be back to Atlanta, hopefully heading up the trauma unit. He couldn't wait.

As he walked back down the hall, Sarah had just put another file into the slot. “Rooms one and two have patients,” the young girl told him.

“Thanks, Sarah.”

His father's newest nurse was straight from school, quiet, and one rarely knew she was around. Quite the opposite from Lulu.

When Eli pulled the chart from the slot, he paused. Maybe he couldn't wait to get back to the job he'd trained for, but that meant leaving Nora...again. He'd known this would be hard, and that's the main reason he'd stayed out of her bed. Well, that and because she was beyond vulnerable.

Coughing into his arm, Eli flipped open the chart, recognizing the name of the elderly gentleman waiting on the other side of the door. That was something else he wouldn't have in Atlanta. He rarely knew a patient in a town of that size.

And that was how he liked it, right? Eli shook off the questions swirling around in his mind. He couldn't stay. It wasn't an option. That didn't mean he didn't care for Nora and her child, though.

Caring for someone didn't mean you had to give up your goals and forget everything you'd worked for. He could still care for her from a distance; they could still remain friends. And when the time came for her to remarry...

A heavy weight settled into his chest. The last thing Eli wanted was to see Nora fall in love and marry again. The first time had nearly killed him. But who was he to ask for more? The last thing she needed was for him to express that he may be falling for her again.

* * *

The sound that greeted Eli when he came in the door really made his day. Nora's laughter filtered through the house, as did that of his brother's. Lord help him, his mind immediately went back to when they were all teens.

After the morning with Maddie and her questionable bread, he'd treated three positive cases of the flu. That made ten total since he'd arrived home.

And he refused to believe his lethargic state had anything to do with that dreaded bug. He could not, would not, get sick. He'd actually tested himself before he left and the swab came back negative. Thank God.

This is precisely why he preferred traumas. Besides the fact the work environment was fast paced and ever changing, he wouldn't contract any and all viruses.

Still wearing his coat, Eli went into the family room in the back of the house. Nora's feet were propped up on Cam's lap and Eli had to clench his fists. They were friends, this meant nothing. Besides, what claim did Eli have over Nora? None whatsoever.

“That house is not even an option,” Nora said, still laughing. “I can't believe the agent considered that one. Seriously?”

Eli leaned his shoulder against the doorframe. “You're already looking at another house?”

Nora snapped her head around and glanced up him, her smile still in place. “It's time I started.”

“I just put that crib together the other day. Does that mean I'm going to have to disassemble it to get it out of the room?”

Her smile faded. “Well, I haven't found a house yet and I've no doubt this baby will come before I actually move.”

“Eli, are you all right?” his mother asked from the other side of the room where she sat next to his father. “You seem...grouchy.”

He raked a hand over his face. “I'm just... I'll be out in the apartment if anyone needs me.”

The questioning gazes annoyed him. He hated the fact that he was obviously the mood spoiler, but seeing Nora so cozied up with his brother, plus the fact she was looking for another house when he knew damn well she loved the one she was in, just got to him. Besides, he'd told her he'd find a way to help her keep her house.

How many times over the years had Nora made herself at home exactly like the scene he'd just witnessed? She truly was part of his family whether he was comfortable with it or not. Hell, she'd spent more time with his family in the past several years than he had.

Eli made his way out to the garage and up to the apartment. Obviously his father was being taken care of for the evening, but he'd check on his parents again before he turned in for the night. First things first, he needed to get something to eat. Maybe that would help him feel better. Eli moved through the open floor plan and into the kitchen. Before he could fully study the contents in his fridge, the garage door closed below and footsteps sounded on the stairs.

Watching the door to the living area, he wasn't at all surprised to see Nora step through the door. Worry filled her eyes as she stared across the room.

“Did you have a bad day?” she asked, still holding on to the doorknob and standing in the doorway as if she didn't know if she'd be invited in or not.

“Just busy. I didn't mean to snap at you. You're the last person I would ever be mean to.” He rested his palms on the edge of the counter and dropped his head between his shoulders. “I was caught off guard with everyone here, more caught off guard that you'd gone and talked to a Realtor.”

“I told you I needed to,” she informed him.

“You love the house you're in,” he told her, pushing off the counter and crossing the room. “I hate that you feel you need to move because you don't have Todd to help anymore.”

Nora shrugged. “It's okay. Life happens and I just have to make the most of what I'm dealing with.”

He took her hand off the knob and closed the door behind her. How easy would it be to throw away everything and just stay here with her? How easy would a life with this breath of fresh air be? But what right did he have to think he could be included in anything regarding her life? He'd thrown it away once before.

Nora reached up, touched his face and frowned. “Eli, you're pretty warm.”

“I'm not feeling too good actually.”

“Why didn't you say something sooner?” she demanded.

Eli shrugged and moved back into the kitchen. “It's no big deal.”

“Get back in here and lie down. I'll make your dinner. And you're having soup.”

Eli chuckled, heading back into the living area. “I'm not arguing.”

Her hard gaze softened as she looked down at him. “Now I know you must feel bad.”

Resting his head against the back of the couch, Eli groaned. “This isn't how this works. I'm the doctor.”

“Looks like you're the patient to me.”

Before she moved away, Eli grabbed her arm. “Go home, Nora. I can't let you catch whatever bug I've got. I tested negative for the flu earlier, but who knows what this is. Could just be a quick twenty-four-hour thing, but still. I won't be responsible for you getting sick.”

“I'll wash my hands and make sure to stay back from your face.” Nora's beautiful smile spread across her face. “You honestly think I'm just going to leave you when you have no energy and you feel this bad? What kind of friend do you think I am?”

“The best kind.”

Her eyes held his a little longer before she pulled from his grasp and went into the kitchen. If he'd felt better he would have ventured to explore the heat, the friction, that had been bouncing back and forth between them for weeks.

“You need to get out of all those layers and try to get that temp down,” she called to him. Eli hated that she was right, but he was starting to shiver and the thought of taking any clothes off made him colder. But he had to get this fever down. Of all times to be sick, he couldn't afford to be out of commission now.

After shrugging out of his shirt, he toed off his shoes, letting them thump to the floor between the sofa and the small table. His jeans went next, leaving him in his black boxer briefs and socks. Not the way he'd imagined stripping down when being with Nora again.

“Do you even feel like eating?” she called from the kitchen. “Maybe just some crackers for now?”

“That might be best.”

He heard her opening and closing cabinets, then the rattle of a bag. When she came around the couch to hand him the package, her eyes fixed on his bare chest.

“If I felt better I'd take you up on the offer of that look in your eyes,” he muttered.

She thrust the crackers at him and quirked a brow. “If you felt better your shirt wouldn't be off.”

Eli nibbled on a cracker, praying that he'd feel himself by morning. When Nora rustled around more in his kitchen, then in his bathroom, he wondered what she was doing, but she came back with some medicine and sat on the coffee table directly in front of him.

“Take this,” she told him. “We need to get that fever down.”

Feeling ridiculous shivering in his underwear and socks—could this moment get more humiliating?—he eyed her over the meds. “Please, Nora. Go on home. I'll take this, crawl into bed and hopefully sleep it off.”