The Texan's Royal M.D. by Merline Lovelace

Author:Merline Lovelace
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2014-01-09T16:00:00+00:00

Eight

Despite her unrelenting schedule, Zia was thrilled when the duchess and Maria finally returned from their Texas sojourn the last week in January. She’d rattled around in the empty apartment during her hours off for well over a month. The week in Galveston and Mike’s brief visit had provided welcome diversions. She’d also had lunch or dinner with her brother and Natalie several times during the interval. But she was ready for the companionable presence of the duchess.

Thankfully, the vicious Arctic cold and damp that had caused Charlotte’s bones to ache so badly had loosened its grip on the city. The temperature hovered at a balmy forty degrees the evening Charlotte, Maria, Gina and the twins arrived home. Jack was in Paris for some high-level diplomatic meeting, while Sarah and Dev had flown back to LA.

That left Dom and Natalie and Zia to greet the remainder of the Texas contingent when they drove in from the airport. The three St. Sebastians waited in the lobby with Jerome, who’d lingered an additional forty minutes after his shift ended to greet the travelers.

“We can’t stay,” Gina said as she hopped out of the limo to distribute hugs all around, including a big one for the delighted doorman. “The girls are tired and cranky. I need to get them home to bed. I’ll see you this weekend, Grandmama, after you’ve rested and recovered.”

She hopped back in and left it to the welcoming committee to escort the duchess inside. Zia noted with some concern that Charlotte leaned heavily on her cane as they crossed the lobby. So did Jerome. The doorman and Zia exchanged a speaking glance but neither wanted to spoil the homecoming by commenting on her uneven gait.

Yet after everyone else had dispersed and it was just the duchess and Zia settling in for a chat before the fire, Charlotte’s first concern was for her great-niece. When Zia delivered the aperitif her aunt insisted on, the duchess’s paper-thin skin of her palm stoked her cheek.

“I hoped to find the shadows under your eyes gone, Anastazia.”

“It’s been crazy here, Aunt Charlotte. I’ve been so busy.”

“I can imagine.” She accepted the snifter Zia handed her. “How did your presentation to the faculty go?”

“Great! Fantastic! Really, really good!”

Chuckling, the duchess hefted her glass in a salute. “Tell me.”

Trying not to sound too self-congratulatory, Zia gave a quick recap of the nerve-racking session in front of the faculty and her fellow residents.

“They all found the statistics detailing the increase in Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections in neonatal facilities sobering.”

“I should think so!”

“And no one challenged my correlation between the increasing number of MRSA incidents and staffing levels in neonatal intensive care units. Or,” she added with deliberate nonchalance, “the need for more intensive study of MRSA in controlled environments similar to NIC units.”

“Such as crew compartments on seagoing vessels?”

She shot the duchess an incredulous look. Charlotte chuckled and took a sip of her brandy. “Don’t look so astonished. Mike Brennan paid me several visits after you left.

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