Her Real Family Christmas by Kate Hardy

Author:Kate Hardy [Hardy, Kate]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2013-11-01T07:00:00+00:00

Seems I was wrong about rickets. Nothing on the prenatal scans, either.

Five minutes later, his name flashed up on the screen of her phone. ‘Are you OK?’ he asked when she answered.

‘Yes,’ she lied.

‘You don’t sound it.’

‘I’ll live.’

‘Do you want me to come over?’ he asked softly.

Yes. Right now, she could really do with a hug. But she also knew she was being totally selfish. ‘I can’t ask you to do that. You have Mia to think about.’

‘You could come here,’ he suggested.

‘No—that’s not fair to her. What if she wakes up, comes downstairs and sees me in the house? She’s going to ask questions, and neither of us is ready to give those answers yet.’

‘You’re right,’ he said, and sighed. ‘Stephanie, try not to brood about it. You’ve done what you can.’

‘I know, I know—and professional detachment is important.’ Though it was easier said than done. Some cases just stayed with you and you couldn’t ignore them. ‘Thanks for listening, Dan.’

‘Any time.’

* * *

An hour later, Stephanie’s doorbell rang. She frowned. Who would call at this time of night? She picked up the entryphone. ‘Hello?’

‘Stephanie? It’s Dan. Can I come up?’

Dan? What was he doing here? ‘What about Mia?’

‘Don’t worry. My sister’s babysitting. That’s why I was so long; I needed to wait for Lucy to come over, first.’

She pressed the buzzer to let him in, and met him at her front door.

He handed her a tub of premium ice cream. ‘I think you might need this.’

‘Thank you.’ She gave him a rueful smile. ‘I didn’t mean for you to come rushing over.’

‘Think nothing of it. You’re concerned about your patient. It always help to talk it out.’ He gave her a hug.

And how much better that made her feel.

‘I hope you were intending to share this with me,’ she said.

He grinned. ‘That was the plan.’

She fetched two spoons, and enjoyed sharing the entire tub with him.

Afterwards, they lay together on her sofa, their arms wrapped round each other. She looked up at him. Was he going to kiss her? And, given that this time they weren’t in a public place, would the kiss turn hotter? Would he touch her?

The tips of her fingers tingled; right now, she really wanted to touch him.

On every date they’d been on, he’d been dressed for work in a suit and tie. She’d seen him in scrubs in Theatre, but tonight was the first time she’d seen him in jeans and a T-shirt. And he was utterly gorgeous.

She looked at his mouth. There was the tiniest smear of ice cream against his lips, and couldn’t resist reaching up and touching it with the tip of her tongue.

He shivered. ‘Stephanie.’

‘Ice cream,’ she said.

He ran the tip of his forefinger along her mouth. ‘I can’t see any ice cream here.’

‘Oh, there is,’ she said with a grin. ‘You’re using the wrong sense.’

‘Am I, now?’ he asked, his pupils growing larger.

‘Yes,’ she whispered.

Then he bent his head to kiss her. Tiny, teasing kisses that brushed against her mouth and made every nerve end sing into life.

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