Lisa Bingham - The Miracle Twins

Pull yourself together, Lucy, she inwardly chided. She’d come to Nick to ask him for his help as a surgeon.

He could never be anything more to her than that.

NICK HAMMOND SLAMMED his bedroom door behind him, dropped the robe on the floor and cursed softly under his breath.

When he’d heard the doorbell through the drumming of the shower, Nick hadn’t dreamed that it would be anyone other than Max Garcia. Max was a fellow surgeon who’d wanted a second opinion on the results of some tests for a young patient. If Nick had even thought that Lucy might be waiting on his porch…

She was the last person Nick would’ve expected to see. Five years ago, he’d arrived at the Salt Lake City courthouse intent on marrying her. Lucy’s rejection had been an emotional blow. When he’d watched her disappear, he’d been so sure he’d never see her again.

Since then, he’d done his best to push the unpleasant episode into the vague corners of his memory—a task that had proved more difficult than he’d imagined. Within months of leaving him at the courthouse, Lucy had become one of the prime foreign correspondents with CNC. And for a news junkie like Nick, seeing her face on television had been inevitable.

But he’d never expected to find her here. In his own home.

Realizing that his thoughts were circling like a loop of bad audiotape, Nick dragged on underwear, a faded sweatshirt, jeans, socks and a pair of battered running shoes. Then, after raking his fingers through his short hair, he took a deep, calming breath.

Yes, he’d been stunned to see her, but the surprise was over. So there was no need for his body to maintain the tension it had adopted the moment he’d seen her cool green eyes and angular features. He wasn’t in love with Lucy anymore. In fact, he’d begun to wonder if he’d ever been in love with her. He’d been able to convince himself that his emotional involvement had been like too much wine—a brief, powerful intoxication that had worn off with time. So when his body had immediately slipped into the rush of attraction he’d once experienced in Lucy’s presence, he’d been momentarily taken aback. But he was in control of his thoughts and his emotions now.

Whipping open the door, he hurried down the staircase, only to stop halfway. Lucy stood in his living room, gazing out the window, obviously unaware of his arrival.

For a moment, he was struck by the droop of her shoulders and the protective way she hugged her arms to her chest. In the light streaming from the hall, she seemed pale and much too thin. Her green eyes dominated her face.

“You look like hell, Lucy.”

She started, and he watched as she donned an expression of hauteur.

“It’s nice to see you, too.”

He joined her in the living room. “What have you been doing with yourself?”

She shrugged. “I’m a reporter.”

“I know. I’ve seen you on television. You have a very impressive career.”

“As do you.”

Moving toward her, Nick had the distinct impression that his nearness bothered her. He sensed her tension as the space between them disappeared, but despite her discomfort, she held her ground.

Closer, Nick decided that she looked downright haggard. She was at least ten pounds underweight. Her skin was drawn tightly over her cheekbones, making her features seem that much more angular and exotic.

And vulnerable. Much too vulnerable for a thirty-six-year-old woman who had already been through more in her short career than others would be in a lifetime.

Shaking away the thought, Nick slid his hands into his pockets.

“Why are you here, Lucy?” he asked quietly.

Lucy assumed a look of bravado that she patently didn’t feel.

“I need help, Nick.”

The words were offered so grudgingly that he might have smiled if she’d been anyone else.

“From me?” he blurted in disbelief. A short bark of laughter escaped before he could stop it.

Lucy frowned. “You needn’t sound so shocked.”

She was so obviously wounded by his affront that he laughed again.

“And why not? As I recall, we didn’t exactly part on good terms. Let’s see, you told me you were choosing your job over me, then you ran for the exit.”

A flush spread up her neck and over her cheeks. “What happened in the past is hardly relevant.”

“It seemed damn relevant to me at the time,” he countered.

“A lot of years have passed since then.”

“Five, to be precise.”

She sighed. “I haven’t come here to rehash the past.”

“Then why are you here?”

She hesitated for an awkward beat of silence. Then she lifted her chin and announced, “I need a favor that only you can grant.”

His eyebrows rose. “What’s wrong? Couldn’t find a date for the Emmys so you’re falling back on an old relationship?”

Her cheeks burned even more and she clenched her fists, but her voice remained calm and even. “No. I need your help with a professional matter and you’re the only person I can trust.”

Nick snorted. He should have known. She’d come for a story, nothing more.

“I’m sorry, I don’t give interviews.”

“I haven’t come for an interview.”

He rocked back on his heels, eyeing her suspiciously. “Then what do you want?”

“I need your help with a…medical matter.”

For the first time, Nick was forced to acknowledge that Lucy’s pallor might be a result of something other than mere vanity. Was Lucy ill? The thought was more disturbing that he cared to admit.

Instantly, he was swamped by the urge to protect her, but he pushed the sensation away in self-disgust. He’d experienced those same emotions before, and look where they’d taken him.

“I’m a pediatric surgeon,” he said bluntly. “You’re a little old for my specialty.”

“I know.”

When she continued to watch him with pleading ice-green eyes, the full meaning of her response sank into his brain. “You have…a child with a problem?”

“Yes.”

She was married.

Or not. Women didn’t necessarily marry these days in order to have a baby.

Still, the image of Lucy with a child was unsettling. He’d assumed that she was single and unfettered by family ties. Call it hubris, but he’d believed that if she wouldn’t marry him, she wouldn’t marry anyone.

A baby. His hands curled into fists and he fought the tension gathering in his stomach.

“No.” His response was low and curt.

“No?” she echoed blankly.

“No, I can’t help you. It wouldn’t be a good idea.”

“Can’t or won’t?”

“I won’t help you,” he said firmly. Any prolonged contact he might have would only breed more trouble.

Nick turned, making his way toward the door.

“Wait!” She reached out, stopping him. “You haven’t even heard what I have to say.”

Her touch was like a firebrand and his reaction was visceral and complete. Damn it all, hadn’t he learned anything? The sexual attraction between them had always been intense and instantaneous. But there was no substance to their emotions, nothing other than passion. They’d never had what it took to make a truly lasting relationship. That had been the most painful truth he’d had to acknowledge five years earlier. Eventually he’d seen that it was better the two of them hadn’t married. They’d each been too independent and too self-absorbed to sustain anything but a passionate affair.

“You’ve got to hear me out,” Lucy said urgently, tugging on his arm. “Please.” She reached into her pocket and withdrew a photograph. “This is the reason I’ve come to you for help.”

It took a moment for Nick to absorb what he was seeing. The photo was of two children placed close enough together that their bodies touched and appeared to be entwined. No, not entwined.