She blew out a breath, shivering a little.Seattle’s temperatures never got truly cold, but things were feeling a little nippy for her today.She blasted on the heat, frowning.
Kyle had looked good.In obvious pain, but as Marcie had said, he was young, fit, and should make a full recovery soon.Which was good.People needed their sports stars to be well, seeing as they apparently existed on a different level to the rest of humankind.
She rolled her eyes at herself, but it was an attitude fairly prevalent in society.Certain people were esteemed as being more valuable than the poor, or those who didn’t have medical insurance.What was she to do?As a doctor, she was obliged to treat all those who needed assistance, rich, poor, and all those in between.She didn’t have the luxury of saying no.Even if the person was an obvious criminal her instinct was to help.She pressed the accelerator.
So why had her encounter with Kyle left her feeling so unsettled?He was supposed to be nothing to her.Hewasnothing to her.Except, apparently, from the way she’d been left feeling rattled he wasn’t as nothing as she’d prefer.
But there was a good reason to perhaps pay him more attention than she preferred.And no, not because of any quality of “hotness” despite what others might assume.
She steered into her suburb, her street, her driveway, parked and killed the engine.The house was dark, everyone inside asleep, except for Betsy the Cat.
Gen stroked Betsy’s soft black fur and dumped her keys, found her room, dropped her bag on the bed, then stole down the hall to the last room on the right.She opened the door, thankful she’d taken time last weekend to oil that persistent squeak, then stood in the doorway, gazing at the figure in the bed.
The little figure that bore the same color hair, possessed the same unusual eyes, as the man she’d tried so hard to forget.
Outside, a cat screech fluttered little eyelids wide.
“Go back to sleep, Bella,” Gen murmured.
“Is that you?”Bella whispered, her voice catching on a yawn.
She nodded, pushing away from her spot near the door to give the girl a hug.“Did you have a good day?”
“Yes.Did you?”
“It was busy, but okay.”She pressed her lips to the crown of Bella’s head.“Now go to sleep.”
“Okay.G’night.”
“Good night Bella.Love you.”
“Love you too, Mommy.”
Her heart twisted.
That word was exactly why she needed to tread carefully.No way was she going to admit the truth and blow her world up into what would surely be a million pieces.She’d done that once, and everything had changed, and she wouldn’t willingly go there again.Mom would never forgive her, for starters, and Bella was finally secure.
But still, guilt strummed as the decade-old question gnawed inside.What would Kyle do if he was to ever learn he had a child?
CHAPTER4
The persistent beep of machines stole into Kyle’s ears, prodding him to consciousness.He lifted weary lids, blinked at the crustiness, then felt a damp cloth wipe across his face.
“You’re awake.”
He blinked again, as the figures steadied into awareness.“Mom, Dad.”
“Hey Son.”Mom smiled, holding a washcloth in her hand.
Kyle found a smile.“Glad you could come.”
“I gotta admit it’s a little sooner than I wanted,” Dad said.
“Oh, don’t be like that David,” Mom chided.“It might not be the playoffs but we’re glad you’re okay.”
He shifted his head to see who else was here but Gerry had gone.It was only them.“Wh-what did they say?”
“About the surgery?”Kyle nodded and Mom smiled.“They said it was textbook, and that your kidney is going to take some time to fully heal.”
