Harlequin American Romance May 2014 Bundle: One Night in Texas\The Cowboy's Destiny\A Baby for the Doctor\The Bull Rider's Family (36 page)
Authors: Linda Warren,Marin Thomas,Jacqueline Diamond,Leigh Duncan
Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #Romance, #Contemporary, #Series, #Harlequin American Romance
“That isn’t a park—it’s wetlands. Mosquito central,” Anya responded, setting her tray on a clear spot. “What happened to the two guys who’d signed on?”
“Ned Norwalk decided he prefers living alone.” Ned was a fellow nurse. “I wish he’d told me sooner.” Karen scowled at Lucky.
“I had nothing to do with that.” Turning a chair backward, he sat at the other open space. “I like him.”
“But you hate Laird,” Melissa noted.
Lucky shrugged. “Karen, I’m sorry, but you know how he is. A few drinks and he’s making passes at random women.” Catching Karen’s eye roll, he added, “
Unwelcome
passes.”
“So you chased him off,” Karen grumbled.
“Once you come to your senses, you’ll thank me,” Lucky replied.
Quietly eating her sandwich, Anya conceded that she didn’t like Laird either. He might be a psychologist and family counselor, but in her opinion, he could use some counseling of his own.
“How’d you get rid of him?” Zora asked.
Lucky addressed his response to the others, ignoring Zora, as usual. “I may have implied that I’d make his life miserable if he moved in. That’s all.”
Karen smacked the table. Anya had to grab her iced tea to prevent a spill. “This may be a game to you, Lucky, but I can’t make the payments by myself. Now that the renovations are finished, I need a full house. Otherwise, I either have to raise everyone’s rent sky-high or sell.”
For years, Karen—now in her early forties—had cared for her ailing mom while medical expenses ate up their savings. They’d had to defer all but the most essential maintenance on their five-bedroom home. A few months ago, though, following her mother’s death, the counselor had taken out a loan to upgrade the electrical, plumbing and appliances. Then she’d solicited her friends and coworkers to move in for what Anya had to admit was a very reasonable monthly rent.
“It’s perfect timing. I understand Anya’s lease is up for renewal.” Lucky didn’t mention Zora. Anya wondered how the two of them expected to share a house. The potential for conflict added to her distaste of the idea of moving in with them.
“You can have the bedroom on the side,” Zora wheedled. “I’ll take the noisy one in the front.”
Everyone stared at Anya. The combined pressure was so strong, she half expected her chair to tilt. Fortunately, she was used to resisting pressure. “Zora and I will discuss this in private,” she said.
“Coward,” Lucky teased.
“Sharing a kitchen shouldn’t be a big deal because you hardly ever cook,” Zora pointed out. As Anya had explained to her friend, she’d grown up shouldering more than her share of household duties in her large family. Heating a can of soup and eating a premade salad felt like a heavenly indulgence.
“And I gather the rent will be considerably lower than what you’re paying for your apartment,” Melissa added.
Anya calmly started on the second half of her sandwich.
She had
shared her objections with Zora, and the polite refusal she’d voiced several times previously ought to be enough for the others.
Karen drummed her fingers on the table. “Contrary to what you may believe, a wetland is not a swamp. It’s a vibrant ecosystem. A healthy wetland actually reduces the mosquito population thanks to the thriving birds, frogs and fish.”
“And other insects that feed on mosquito larvae,” added Lucky, who’d clearly heard this speech before.
“I just love frogs, fish and insects.” Anya’s irony didn’t extend to birds. She did enjoy those, except maybe pigeons in the vicinity of her car.
Zora widened her eyes in mute appeal. Fortunately, there was little danger of her jumping ship on Anya. Until recently, Zora, an ultrasound technician, had occupied a pariah-like status around the hospital because she’d stolen a popular nurse’s husband a few years back. Then, a year ago, Zora had needed a place to go after her husband cheated on her, too, and Anya had agreed to move in with her. Zora had burst into tears of gratitude and they’d had each other’s backs ever since.
“I can give you until Sunday night to decide,” Karen said. “Monday, I’m posting the vacancies on the bulletin board.”
“Oh, come on, Anya,” Lucky said. “You haven’t given us a good reason. My bedroom’s downstairs. You ladies will have plenty of privacy on the second floor, and I can do guard duty.”
Anya ignored him and moved on to her sweet-potato chips.
The others shifted to regard someone approaching, as if the short, uniformed woman with thick glasses might be their salvation. Instead, Eva Rogers zeroed in on Anya.
Smiling and holding up her phone, Eva said, “Just got a cancellation. Dr. Cavill-Hunter can fit you in at 6:45. How’s that?”
“Fine,” Anya replied, trying to keep the bite out of her voice. The other nurse should have more discretion than to approach a patient in front of others, but Anya was grateful for the appointment.
“See you then.” With a wave, Eva sauntered off.
Around the table, four very interested faces turned to Anya. “Is anything wrong?” Lucky asked.
“It can’t be routine or there’d be no reason to jump at a cancellation,” Karen observed.
“Need me to come along for moral support?” Zora asked.
Anya stood. “That’s the other reason.”
“The other reason for what?” asked her roommate.
“The other reason for not moving into the house.” Anya picked up her tray. “Gossip.”
She left without waiting for their reactions. Although she’d rather not offend anyone, she had bigger issues to deal with.
Copyright © 2014 by Jackie Hyman
ISBN-13: 9781460331903
THE COWBOY’S DESTINY
Copyright © 2014 by Brenda Smith-Beagley
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical,
now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
® and ™ are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and in other countries.
BABY STEPS
A baby is the last thing surgical nurse Anya Meeks expected from her passionate New Year’s Eve fling. Growing up, Anya shouldered more than her share of responsibility, even raising her three younger siblings. She isn’t ready to tackle a lifelong commitment to a child—or to a man—no matter how caring and attentive he seems.
A drop-dead-gorgeous doctor like Jack Ryder is used to the women of Safe Harbor Hospital vying for his attention. Too bad the only woman he wants is avoiding him. Jack longs for a family—he’ll do anything to persuade Anya not to put their baby up for adoption. But with her jaded views on relationships and family, it won’t be easy. Can he convince her that their love is no accident?
Jack indicated the three doorways. “Which one’s your room?”
“Back corner.”
“I’ll bet it has a great view.”
Taking the hint, Anya led him into the room. “Ignore the mess, okay?” She’d left a pile of clean laundry on the bed to be folded.
“You consider this a mess? It’s nice.” Hardly high praise, but then, her plain, inexpensive furnishings didn’t merit compliments.
She found Jack’s nearness even more enticing in these intimate quarters. Everything about him appealed to her, from his chest-hugging T-shirt to the light in his green eyes.
Longing shimmered through Anya. As a diversion, she hurried to the window. “It’s especially pretty at sunset.”
“It sure is.” When Jack approached, the air heated between them. His arm circled her waist, drawing her close.
Anya relaxed against him. When Jack turned her toward him, a rush of longing underscored how much she’d missed him. New Year’s Eve hadn’t been a tipsy aberration. She’d longed for him from the moment they’d met. And now she longed for even more….
Dear Reader,
Although each of the Safe Harbor Medical romances stands alone, I incorporate subplots that I hope will add to readers’ enjoyment and build anticipation for the next book.
A Baby for the Doctor
begins a three-book cycle that focuses on five hospital workers who share quarters in a large house. Three of the four women become pregnant—including one who chooses to undergo an embryo transfer—while the fifth occupant, a male nurse, provides an ironic perspective.
Nurse Anya Meeks, the heroine of this book, has a prickly relationship with handsome surgeon Jack Ryder and isn’t at all thrilled to discover that their impulsive New Year’s Eve encounter left her pregnant. Moving into the house surrounds her with caring friends, and the challenge falls to Jack to win her over. Sometimes this requires winning her housemates’ approval, too, as he learns when he volunteers to cook for her.
Both characters were fun to write about. I hope you’ll enjoy their verbal sparring and emotional journey as much as I did.
Also, please enjoy the recipe! Although we can only include one in the book, I’ve posted several more of Jack’s favorite recipes on my website,
www.jacquelinediamond.com
, along with a complete list of the Safe Harbor books.
Best,
Jacqueline Diamond
A BABY FOR
THE DOCTOR
Jacqueline Diamond
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Delivered at home by her physician father, Jacqueline Diamond came by her interest in medical issues at an early age. Later, during her career as a novelist, Jackie was inspired to follow medical news after successfully undergoing fertility treatment to have her two sons, now grown. Since then, she has written numerous romances involving medicine, as well as romantic intrigues, comedies and Regency historicals, for a total of more than ninety-five books. She and her husband of thirty-five years live in Orange County, California, where she’s active in Romance Writers of America. You can see an overview of the Safe Harbor Medical miniseries at
www.jacquelinediamond.com
and say hello to Jackie at her Facebook site,
www.facebook.com/JacquelineDiamondAuthor
.
Books by Jacqueline Diamond
HARLEQUIN AMERICAN ROMANCE
1101—NINE-MONTH SURPRISE‡
1109—A FAMILY AT LAST‡
1118—DAD BY DEFAULT‡
1130—THE DOCTOR + FOUR‡
1149—THE DOCTOR’S LITTLE SECRET
1163—DADDY PROTECTOR
1177—TWIN SURPRISE
1209—THE FAMILY NEXT DOOR*
1223—BABY IN WAITING*
1242—MILLION-DOLLAR NANNY*
1273—DOCTOR DADDY
1295—THE WOULD-BE MOMMY**
1320—HIS HIRED BABY**
1335—THE HOLIDAY TRIPLETS**
1344—OFFICER DADDY**
1358—FALLING FOR THE NANNY**
1375—THE SURGEON’S SURPRISE TWINS**
1392—THE DETECTIVE’S ACCIDENTAL BABY**
1400—THE BABY DILEMMA**
1420—THE M.D.’S SECRET DAUGHTER**
1443—THE BABY JACKPOT**
1454—HIS BABY DREAM**
1483—THE SURPRISE HOLIDAY DAD**
‡Downhome Doctors
*Harmony Circle
**Safe Harbor Medical
MYRNA’S SALMON
1–2 lbs of salmon
Marinate 2–3 hours in lime juice.
Mix together:
1/4 cup apricot preserves
1/3 tsp horseradish
garlic salt
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
Spread over salmon. Bake at 375ºF, uncovered, for about 20 minutes.