A Man to Believe In. Kathleen Pickering

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СКАЧАТЬ breath, he rested, absorbing the sounds of his new workplace. A ringing phone. Call for a doctor over the intercom. The squeaking of sneaker-clad feet moving down the hall. Nurses chattering at their station. The E.R. seemed to be moving smoothly for a Tuesday.

      “So you’re a surfer.”

      The curiosity in her voice was as sexy as her mouth. He caught the tilt of her head, the friendliness in her eyes. Damn. She was sweet. He couldn’t believe his good luck.

      “Yeah. Love to surf. Do you?”

      “I ride a mean boogie board.”

      Oh, man, that smile! “I hear the waves are good here.”

      “The locals like to keep a low profile.” She leaned in conspiratorially. “One of our best secrets is that a very popular musician known for his songs about the tropics surfs his long board at Ditch Plains regularly.”

      He slowly sat up. Cassie reached to prop a pillow behind his back. She smelled great. Baby powder and something sweet like honeysuckle and incense. Made his chest tighten, so he inhaled deeper.

      “You have an excellent bedside manner.”

      She blushed and took a step back, giving him a chance to take in her slim, lithe body with curves in all the right places. Oh, yeah. Great curves in those biking clothes.

      “I think you’ve recovered, Nurse Chapman. Let’s get you released. I’ll introduce you to Dr. Bailey then we’ll get you to wherever you are staying.”

      He was naked under the hospital gown. “Not sure I want to meet my new boss undressed. Tips the balance of power from my favor.”

      Her grin grew wider. “You two have already met.”

      He glanced at the plastic bag on the chair holding his bloodstained clothes. “Who cut off my shirt and shorts?”

      “Doc Bailey. The other three nurses wanted to insure that you hadn’t sustained any further injuries.”

      A sense of humor. He liked that. He liked her. His new job already had its benefits. Carefully, he swung his feet over the side of the bed. He wondered what his new boss, John Bailey, thought about his odd arrival. He wanted to make himself more presentable as soon as possible.

      “I’ll need clothes.”

      She opened the small closet. His satchel stood on end in the narrow space. “Jack figured as much and brought this for you.”

      “That’s great. Gotta love the local police.”

      Feet on the floor, he stood to test his equilibrium before covering his exposed rear end. She didn’t seem to notice.

      “Dizzy?”

      He shook his head. “No. Hungry.”

      “Where are you staying?”

      “Booked a room at the Oceanside Resort.”

      She pulled his satchel from the closet. “That’s pretty close. Do you need help dressing?”

      All sorts of inappropriate answers flew through his mind. “I think I can handle it.”

      “I’ll be happy to drive you to the Oceanside.”

      * * *

      CASSIE WAS HALFWAY down the hall before she realized she was holding her breath. Oh. My. God. They sure knew how to grow men in California! Peter Chapman had rocked her balance from her first glance of him out on the road. Now that she’d seen him up close and personal, heard the deep timbre of his voice then had a chance to lose herself in those smoking dark eyes, her knees practically shook.

      It was bad enough his brief smile had practically knocked her off her bike this morning. One glance at the California license plates had her sending a small prayer skyward that maybe he’d be the new coworker they were expecting. Witnessing him crash his truck had been surreal. She’d seen him watching her in his side-view mirror and felt guilty for distracting him.

      His dark blond sun-bleached hair and tanned body, built and muscled like a man used to physical activity—and lots of it—had her wondering just how much work she could get done in close proximity to him. He was freaking hot and she couldn’t catch her breath.

      She hadn’t had a reaction to a man so deeply in over a decade. That thought turned off her come-on button like a flicked switch in a dark room.

      Kyle. She’d reacted to Kyle like that once. Then he was gone. Literally. He’d been swept off her father’s fishing boat during a late-summer squall. They never recovered his body, and his death had created a living hell that had lasted years for all concerned.

      Cassie hadn’t had the courage to give anyone her love since. Instead, she had plenty of casual dates. She broke hearts, unintentionally of course, but whether her emotions had shut down or she just hadn’t met anyone who invoked the same feelings she had for Kyle, she hadn’t settled with one man. At twenty-nine, Mercy Hospital’s E.R. was her life. She was happy here. She also had wonderful friends, both guys and gals, and her occasional dates seemed to be enough.

      “Cassie, you okay?” The charge nurse, Rachel, frowned as Cassie approached the nursing station. “You look flustered.”

      One of Cassie’s curses. Her thoughts always showed on her face. “Is John around? I’d like to take Peter Chapman home and can’t until John signs the release.”

      Rachel grinned, showing the small space between her front teeth. Her smile was her signature.

      “Doc is stitching up Lou Anderson again. You planning on hiding Chapman in your closet?”

      She waved a hand. “Not to my home, silly woman. To the Oceanside. Besides, our new coworker is off-limits for me.”

      Rachel smirked. “Are you sure? You took time from your day off just to attend to him.”

      “Hey, you’d do the same.”

      Rachel’s eyes narrowed. “Hmm. You looked pretty interested when Doc was cutting off his clothes.”

      “Can’t fault me there. Every woman present was.”

      Rachel’s gaze drifted in the direction of Peter’s room. “If I were single and younger, I’d take a chance with that one.”

      “Well, then, it’s a good thing you’re not. Don’t think Huey would be too happy.”

      Rachel laughed. “Huey wouldn’t take his eyes off a football game long enough to notice.”

      Cassie glanced at the clock on the wall behind the nurses’ station. “When Doc finishes, send him back. He wanted to meet Peter awake.”

      “Okay. I’ll cover for you if you get...delayed.”

      “You have an overactive imagination, girl!”

      Cassie headed for her locker, distressed by Rachel’s comment about Huey. Did she ever want to get married if long-term relationships grew stale? Definitely СКАЧАТЬ