Jacqueline Diamond - Prognosis - A Baby? Maybe

“It’s up to you.” Surely that was studied indifference on Jason’s handsome face, not the real thing, she thought, then wondered why she cared.

They stepped through an anteroom into his future office, which consisted of bare walls, rough wooden flooring and a curtainless window. From against the baseboards, Jason hoisted a couple of sketches washed with pastels.

“Dr. Barr asked what I thought of his commissioning a mural for the hall, a motif that would carry through the examining rooms.” He handed her the samples. “Here’s what the designer is proposing. What do you think?”

The artist had a clever touch with babies, Heather mused as she examined the drawings. Each sketch showed a lively youngster, its face alight with precocious emotions. Rounded and full of life, the infants nearly leaped off the paper and into her arms. They reminded her of some photographs her friend Amy Ravenna Ladd, Doctors Circle’s resident psychologist, had installed in her office.

“From your expression, I gather you like them,” Jason said.

“They’re marvelous.” Heather held them up, trying to imagine how they might figure into a mural. “Still, some patients find it painful to be constantly reminded of the babies they can’t have.”

“Maybe we should post drawings of ancient fertility symbols,” he teased.

“I suspect they’d prefer male movie stars,” she said drily. “That ought to put them in a fertile mood.” Although she didn’t intend to tell him so, she doubted anyone was going to need pictures of movie stars with Dr. Jason Carmichael around.

“Some of our patients are men,” he pointed out.

“I’ll allow a few photos of beautiful women,” Heather said, adding, “In the men’s bathroom.”

“Whatever you’ve been doing until now, I was impressed by the statistics on your success rate,” Jason said. “Of course, even if I hadn’t read the documents, I could tell just by looking around Doctors Circle. There seem to be a lot of pregnant staff members.”

Heather handed the sketches back to him. “I don’t deserve all the credit. Some women manage fine by themselves.”

“I noticed that your nurse is pregnant,” Jason said. “Isn’t she uncomfortable, working so close to her due date?”

“She wants to save as much leave as possible for after the twins are born,” Heather admitted. “Since she’s a single mom…” She stopped, not wanting to reveal more of Cynthia’s situation than necessary.

“I see.” Jason frowned. “As the single mother of two infants, she could have a hard time keeping up with your schedule. Perhaps she and the father will prefer that she switch to a less rigorous schedule.”

“The father’s out of the picture entirely.” She pressed her lips together, not wanting to say anything further.

“I’m sorry to hear it, for everyone’s sake.” He shook his head. “She’s going to be exhausted and distracted. If she starts making mistakes that affect patient care, she’ll have to be transferred.”

“She’ll be fine.” Heather wasn’t sure why she bristled at his tone, since she shared the same concerns. But after providing excellent assistance for several years, Cynthia had earned her loyalty. “She loves working with me. She doesn’t want any other position.”

“Then she should have thought things out more carefully in advance,” Jason said.

How dare he blame the pregnancy on Cynthia when she already had enough problems? “Are you blaming her for having an accident?”

“No, but…” Jason seemed briefly at a loss for words. Finally, he said, “As an obstetrical nurse, she surely has the knowledge to prevent this kind of situation.”

“People have been known to get carried away by their passions,” Heather said. “Not that I need to mention any names.”

She saw by the way his eyes widened that she’d hit her target. “You’re changing your story? It’s no longer that nothing happened. Now it’s that we got carried away by our impulses?”

“We went part of the way before you fell asleep,” Heather said. “That’s all.”

“I’m willing to believe that in my less-than-optimal condition, my memory lost what must have been a delicious experience.” Jason moved closer, looming over her. Heather had to fight the impulse to take a step backward. “But you’re saying that I fell asleep in the middle of making love to you? That’s going a bit far. I’m thirty-six, not ninety-six.”

“What difference does it make?” she snapped. “Whatever we did, it’s over.”

“I’d like to know where I stand.”

“A little too close for comfort, frankly.”

Deliberately, he shifted toward her. “Let me know when you’re ready to run screaming into the woods.”

“I should warn you, I know karate.” And several other Japanese words.

“That won’t do any good. The highest you could kick would be my kneecap.” He grinned. “You know, the two of us really should spend more time together. Maybe my memories will flood back.”

“My memory doesn’t need refreshing.” Heather had to tilt her head to meet his gaze. “Anything you want to know, you’re free to ask. But since you made it clear the next morning that you had no interest in pursuing the matter, I’m surprised you keep harping on it now.”

Jason reached out and brushed an errant curl off her temple. His touch shivered straight into parts of Heather that she considered off-limits to him or anybody else. “In my hungover condition, I may have muttered something less than gallant. For that, I apologize.”

“Your exact words, as I recall, were, ‘Whatever happened last night, I trust I’ll hear nothing further about it.” A slight tremor undermined Heather’s tone. Darn it, she didn’t want to show any vulnerability around Jason.

He had no right to know how much he’d wounded her. For the first time in years, she’d begun to open up to a man, only to have him throw it in her face.

If she’d had different life experiences, she might have found his attitude merely churlish and dismissed it from her mind. To a woman who’d been abandoned as a teenager by the man she’d loved and trusted, however, his rejection had struck her like a physical blow.

“Did I really say that?” Jason asked. “Ouch.”

“Those were your exact words. I already explained that there’s nothing wrong with my memory.” Heather was preparing a few more sharp remarks when she saw him focus on a spot behind her and realized someone had come into the room.

She turned, already knowing there was only one person at Doctors Circle who could approach that quietly on bare floors. Coral Liu possessed an inner calm that had impressed Heather from the moment the young woman started work in January. Even now, when she was probably quaking inside at facing her boss, her smooth, intelligent face showed only respect.

“I hope I’m not interrupting.” Coral held up a catalog of office furniture. “Mrs. Barr asked me to show you this. I thought it might be helpful to make your selections while you’re in the new office, so you can picture how things would fit.”

With an impatient expulsion of breath, Jason took the catalog. “I don’t have much of an eye for interior decorating.”

Coral bit her lip. Jason’s slight sign of impatience bothered her, Heather could tell. It was too bad such a rough-edged man had been paired with a sensitive secretary, although she knew Natalie had interviewed a number of applicants before recommending Coral.

“I took the liberty of drawing a floor plan, if you’d care to look at it,” the secretary said.

“Sure.” Jason didn’t lift his eyes from the catalog as he flipped through.

Coral handed Heather a sheet of paper. Although the markings had been sketched with a tentative hand, the young woman had done a careful job of arranging the desk, a couch, chairs and filing cabinets. “Looks good to me.”