Plain Jane and Doctor Dad. Kate Little
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was something more. Some deep hurt in his past, some painful loss. Doug had never spoken to her about his past, but she did know from Scott that he’d gone through a difficult divorce a few years back.
As the months passed, she and Doug always had so much to say to each other whenever they met. She’d run into him on her floor while he did rounds, in the hallways, in the cafeteria. He would ask her advice about his cases, and she enjoyed helping him figure out some knotty problem in a diagnosis or discuss a curious turn in a patient’s condition.
It was unusual for a doctor of his standing to take a nurse into his confidence in that way, and she was secretly pleased, even proud, of the way he seemed to value her observations. But they didn’t only talk about patients. They talked about all kinds of things, movies, books, traveling to exotic places, which they both planned on doing someday when they weren’t working so hard.
But Maura had to acknowledge that, for all their interesting conversations, she still knew very little about him. The staff at Chicago General was always brimming with gossip, and while she avoided discussing other people’s lives, she had overheard a few basic facts about Doug. He had been at the hospital since his residency and at one time had been married. He was divorced for almost two years, but no one seemed to know what had gone wrong. His ex-wife was now married to a prominent plastic surgeon, and some said she’d hurt Doug badly with an affair.
Even though she didn’t have romantic designs on him herself, Maura wondered why he wasn’t in a new relationship, or even married again, by now. But her knowledgeable co-workers answered that question, too. Many hopeful women had pursued the handsome doctor, but the relationship had always ended unhappily. Despite his giving, caring nature as a physician, it was reported that Dr. Douglas Connelly was distant and even difficult as a romantic partner. An emotional Mount Everest with wickedly icy heights to scale.
Maura suspected his single-minded focus on his work had been the real problem. She knew it would be one for her. Some people didn’t need a home life and family. Maybe Doug was that type, she concluded. But a home and family was something Maura had always longed for, because she’d known so little security growing up.
When she’d met Scott, back in November, she’d believed at last she’d found a man who shared her values and outlook and wanted the same kind of life that she did.
Her thoughts drifted as sleep overcame her weary mind. How devastating it had been to discover that Scott had only pretended to be that kind of man, saying just what she’d wanted to hear in order to get what he’d wanted from her.
And by the time she saw him clearly, it was too late.
Two
Maura woke to the sound of sharp knocking on her front door. Her bedroom was dark, and the clock on the night table showed it was nearly eight. She sat up and pushed her hair back with her hand as she walked toward the foyer.
She wondered who it could be. Maybe her friend Liza, who lived downstairs. Liza often stopped by at night just to chat, mostly about her problems with boyfriends.
But Maura wasn’t in the mood to see Liza. She walked toward the door and tightened the sash on her robe, wondering what excuse she could make.
Just as the knock sounded again, Maura turned the lock. “Just a second,” she said.
She pulled the door open a space. Then felt herself jolted to the core by the sight of Doug’s tall, imposing form.
“Doug. What are you doing here?”
She was rarely so blunt, but he was that last person she’d expected. He’d only been to her apartment once, when her car wouldn’t start and he’d given her a lift home from the hospital. She didn’t even realize he remembered where she lived.
“I was on my way home and thought I’d stop by. I went to your station after my rounds, but they said you’d left early,” he added. “I hope you’re all right.”
He smiled at her, yet his gaze looked serious, questioning, as if he wasn’t sure he’d done the right thing by surprising her like this.
“Another nurse came in early, so I was able to leave before the shift ended,” she explained. “I was just taking a nap.”
“Have you had dinner yet? We could get something at the café around the corner if you like.”
“Thanks, but I think I’d rather stay in tonight. I mean, I appreciate you stopping over—”
“That’s all right. But I did want to talk to you some more. You seemed so upset today. I’m not sure it’s good for you to be alone.”
“I-I’m okay,” she insisted. “Really.” But she wasn’t okay and they both knew it.
“Maura?” Doug moved up to the opening in the door, his tone firm but concerned. “Please, let me in. I’ll only stay a minute.”
She took a deep breath. Then, without saying anything more, she stepped back and let him in. He was probably right. It wasn’t good for her to be alone right now. She might feel better if she talked to him for a while. He knew Scott and he seemed so understanding about her problem. Maybe he could help her sort things out.
She closed the door and they stood facing each other. A small lamp on a side table cast the foyer in soft, golden light. Shadows emphasized his strong features, his wide, firm mouth and amber eyes.
She suddenly felt self-conscious dressed in just her bathrobe, but there was no help for it. She knew she looked a mess, her hair hanging in wild waves down past her shoulders and her eyes circled with shadows. She met his steady gaze, then looked away, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
“I know you’re tired. I won’t stay long,” he promised.
“It’s okay. I’m glad you’re here.” It was true, she realized. She met his gaze, then looked away. “Let’s go into the living room.”
She led the way and sat on the couch. Doug stood a short distance away, his brows drawn together in a frown. She suddenly wondered about the thoughts causing that dark look. Did he think badly of her, that she was not very particular or careful about her romantic partners? The irony was, if anything, it was her naiveté and lack of experience with men that had gotten her into this fix. But of course Doug wouldn’t know that, and she felt foolish trying to explain it to him, certain he’d think she was making excuses for herself.
Doug turned and sat down in the armchair across from her. “You never really told me what Scott said to you about the baby. Only that he reacted badly.”
She sighed and gripped her hands in her lap. “We didn’t part on the best terms. I basically haven’t spoken to him since he broke up with me and announced he was leaving for Minnesota. When I went to see him today, to tell him about the baby, he offered to pay for an abortion…but that was all.”
“That bastard.” Doug’s eyes glinted with anger. “Is that all he said to you? He didn’t say he’d help you through the pregnancy or support his own child?”
Maura had wanted to avoid relating the uglier details of the conversation, but now she decided to tell Doug all.
“No, just the opposite, actually. He said that if I had the child, it would be my responsibility and I’d have to take him to court before he’d share in any financial support. He also said he hoped I wouldn’t make a big deal out of this. It would be bad for my career and for his, and he hoped that I’d…I’d be smart and do the right thing.”
“He said that?” Doug rose to his feet, his fists balled as if he wanted to strike something or someone. “I’d like to do the right thing to him…that smug, self-righteous son of a—”
Maura had never seen Doug this angry. His powerful emotions frightened her. Was it due to some long-standing enmity or rivalry between him and Scott? A tension Scott had sometimes hinted about. Or was he simply angry on her behalf?
“Doug, please. I really don’t