Page 103 of Savior

It was him, down on his knees, worshiping the life we’d created.

* * *

“Fuck,” Nate cursed from the bedroom.

I looked up from my laptop with a frown. “What? What happened?”

“Oh, the hospital just called me in for a case.” He walked out to where I was sitting on the couch, already in his scrubs and cowboy boots.

I discreetly minimized the nursery furniture website I’d been browsing and pulled up a psychological study on the link between empathy and sexual harassment. “That’s okay—”

“No, it’s not. I wanted to spend the day with you. We just found out you’re pregnant.” He laughed and ran a hand through his hair as if he still couldn’t believe it. That made two of us. “Tell you what, I want you to take it easy today, and tonight, we’ll celebrate. Dinner, anywhere you want to go. How’s that sound?”

“Okay, deal.” I tried and failed to keep a straight face. “But you better be careful, Doctor, a girl could get used to this kind of attention.”

His suddenly heated gaze dropped to my mouth. “I forgot to mention that after dinner, I plan on bringing you back here and giving you a thorough examination, Mrs. Davis. It could be physically exhausting, so you’ll want to rest up.”

Red-hot need flared up within me, but instead of saying something clever or sexy, I just nodded dumbly, my mind already tangled up in the sheets.

Nate leaned down for a quick kiss. “You make me so fucking happy, Katy.”

I locked my arms behind his neck, enjoying the rough feel of his stubble against my cheek. I managed to regain control of my speech center even as my brain helpfully reminded me of other places I enjoyed feeling it too. “I love you,” I sighed against his lips. “Are you sure someone else can’t do the surgery for you?”

He pulled away with a reluctant groan. “I wish. I’ll let you know if I can get out of there early. In the meantime, relax… browse every baby website—yeah, I saw that. I’ll be home soon.”

The door closed behind him, and I caught sight of my reflection in the screen of my laptop as it switched over to screensaver mode. My lips curved, and while I wasn’t glowing, it was impossible to miss the excitement in my eyes.

I continued grinning at the screen, imagining how Nate was going to be as a dad. My smile wavered when thoughts of Mike filtered in, and I realized that I’d gone almost the entire morning without the memory of that night at the forefront of my mind.

It felt like cheating, finding joy in the middle of tragedy.

At the sound of the doorbell, I set my laptop and thoughts of Mike aside, suddenly grateful for a distraction. When I saw who it was, grateful suddenly wasn’t the right word. “What are you doing here?”

“Before you call in the firing squad…” Jeremy held up a paper cup. “I come with a peace offering. Earl Grey with two packets of honey… just like you like it.”

Reluctantly, I took it from his hand. “Why?”

He looked down, scuffing the toe of his boot against the welcome mat. “I heard about Mike… and I’m an asshole who owes you an apology. Is Nate here? I owe him one too.”

“He got called into work—”

“Can we talk? Out here, I mean. I don’t want to cross any lines.” Jeremy moved his hand protectively over his groin with an easy laugh. “I’d like to keep my balls intact.”

I pointed toward the small bistro set tucked into the corner of the porch. “We can talk over here.”

He sat down with a heavy sigh. “First of all, I just want to say that I’m sorry about your brother.”

My nose burned with the threat of tears, but I managed to keep them at bay by sipping the hot tea. “Thank you,” I finally said, studying his face. Maybe it was the fact that we were sitting on the front porch in broad daylight, but the feelings of fear were gone.

“And the shit between us. I fucked up, Kate. I never should’ve pushed you for something that you weren’t ready to give—”

I held up a hand. “I’m married, Jeremy. You say not ready like it’s some temporary thing—”

He glanced up and down the sidewalk before leaning in with a wince. “I meant the night you lost your virginity. I shouldn’t have pressured you into going home with me. It only complicated things.”

“Oh.” I took a long drink, more to keep myself from blurting out that I’d pushed for him to take me home that night, knowing the conversation would only lead to trouble.

A young mother waved as she walked by, pulling her toddler in a little red wagon. I lifted a hand in return, watching the leaves rustling on the trees lining the street. Someday, they’d be tall enough to provide shade.

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