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“No, but thanks.” He smiled but seemed distracted.
“Hey, Monroe, that army medic training of yours has been coming in handy.”
Jillian glanced in surprise at the officer behind the desk.
Alec shrugged. “Thank the government. Your tax dollars paid for my training.” He handed him the driver's license. “Pull up this address for me kind of see if we have anything on this family.”
Alec had been trained as a medic. No wonder he was so good at jumping into medical situations in the field. She helped the paramedics lift the woman onto their gurney. “I'm sure you two can take it from here.”
“You bet, Dr. Davis.” One of the paramedics flashed a cocky grin as they wheeled their patient away.
She lingered, watching as Alec continued speaking in a low tone to the officer behind the desk. Obviously, she wasn't needed here. As she turned to make her way towards the door though, he caught up with her.
“Jillian, I have to run, but I'd like to talk later.”
“Sure. I'll give you pager number.” She was about to rattle it off, but he shook his head.
“No need, I have it memorized. I'll call you,” he said as they parted ways.
She lifted a hand to wave, unable to voice a response. Her insides had gone all soft and mushy, like a popsicle sitting in the sun on a hot summer day. Hearing that Alec had taken the time to memorize her number temporarily rendered her speechless.
CHAPTERFIVE
“Daddy?” A small soft palm gently but insistently patted his cheek. “Daddy? Are you awake?”
Not even close, but obviously his daughter was. Early mornings wouldn't have been a problem except for the fact that he worked second shift. And last night he hadn't gotten home until much later than usual, well after midnight. Thankfully, Megan, the college girl he'd hired to stay with Shannon while he was working, didn't mind. Alec pried one eye open in a vain attempt to focus on his surroundings. The clock on his dresser indicated the time was seven o’clock in the morning.
“Daddy? Did you forget my birthday?”
What? He bolted upright from the bed, abruptly wide awake. He brought her a present, but had he wrapped it? Had he really forgotten? His mind frantically pinpointed the date. Tuesday. It was Tuesday, July fifteenth.
Shannon collapsed into a fit of giggles, making him realize he'd been had. The little minx. He scrunched his face into a mock frown. “Young lady, your birthday isn't until Saturday. Today is only Tuesday.”
“I got you, Daddy. You should have seen your face.” She dissolved into another fit of giggles.
“Yeah, you got me,” he agreed, a mischievous glint in his eye. “And do you know what that means?”
The giggles abruptly ceased. Shannon gasped in her beautiful brown eyes rounded comically. “What?”
“The Tickle Monster is going to get you.” He gave her a fair warning before he pounced. She shrieked, and the sound brought their dog Daisy, a white Westie terrier, galloping to the rescue. Alec kept his touch gentle, but tickled her belly until her giggles filled his head.
There was no better music than the sound of his daughter's laughter.
Daisy, their dog, jumped onto his bed and barked, sticking her nose between them as if trying to figure out how to join the fun as her tail wagged madly.
“Daddy, stop it!” Shannon said between giggles. “You're making Daisy bark.”
He nuzzled her neck, paused to press a kiss to her cute little nose and then threw himself back on the bed, his arms outstretched. He grimaced when Daisy licked his face. “He's gone. Daisy scared the Tickle Monster away.”
Shannon climbed up to sit on his chest. Her shiny brown hair was tangled from their tussle and he reached up to smooth it back from her face, struck by how Shannon had somehow gotten the best of his and Jenny’s genes. “Are you gonna take me and Daisy to the park this morning? You promised.”
“Yep.” He smiled when she patted his cheek again, apparently fascinated with his bristles. “I think you should probably let me shower and shave first.”
She rolled her eyes. “That will take too long. Me and Daisy want to gonow.”
With a chuckle he nodded, unwilling to cause the light to dim from her eyes. Why not? There was plenty of time for him to shave before the start of his shift. “Okay, munchkin. Let's eat something really fast for breakfast and then we'll go to the park.”
“I already ate cereal,” Shannon said as he padded into the kitchen. He pursed his lips as he surveyed the room. Sure enough, there was an empty bowl surrounded by splashes of milk and other remnants of her breakfast stuck to the table.
