Page 32 of He Saved My Boy
Kicking my shoes off, I rest my feet on the ottoman.
When my phone rings, I scramble to dig it out of my pocket.
Please let it be Teagan.
I gave her my card hours ago, but I haven’t heard anything.
Nope—just my brother Damien.
“Hey, Dame, what’s up?”
“I should be asking you, shouldn’t I? Are you liking the fact that as an attending, you no longer have to work the grunt hours at the hospital?”
“It’s a change, that’s for sure. I think it will be nice to be able to schedule time away from the hospital each day. Hell, I only work one weekend a month, so I can’t complain.”
“No, you’ve earned it, man. You’ve worked your ass off since school. I would have given up years ago—so you’re a better man than me. I was happy to get out of school with my master’s degree.”
“I’m only twenty-eight… so I took the long route,” I tease. I know he’s proud of me, but it’s been a running joke that I’d never be out of school for years. As a pediatric orthopedic surgeon, it was bound to take longer than most to specialize in my field.
“Will we see you at the game in two weeks?”
“Yep! I can’t wait to see Jules and the twins.” His boys just turned four and keep him and Vanessa on their toes. Vanessa and Dame handle it like pros—though with Jules being nearly six years older, she’s a huge help.
“Jasper and Jordan will be higher than kites to see you. They’re already talking about piggyback rides and ice cream—watch out.”
“How else will I stay their favorite uncle? Vince may see them most, but they know who’s number one.”
“It’s a good thing you don’t have an ego or anything.”
When an unknown number rings in and flashes across my screen, I make my excuse to get off. “Listen, man, I have another call. I’ll catch up with you later.”
“This is Davis Fallon,” I say out of habit.
“Well, hello to you, Davis Fallon. If we’re being formal, it’s me—Teagan Frost. Is this a bad time?”
My heart pounds in my chest as relief of finally hearing her voice flows through me. “No. I just got home. How are you doing?”
“Well… is it bad I couldn’t wait for Connor’s bedtime to call you?”
“You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to hear your voice,” I admit. “I’ve been kicking myself for weeks that I didn’t get your number.”
“I felt so bad leaving so abruptly.”
“Teagan—Connor will always come first. Though I guess I should thank Jamison because without his wife going into labor, I wouldn’t have seen you again.”
Her beautiful laughter comes through the phone. “I hadn’t thought of that. I was so stuck in my head, I couldn’t see beyond getting Connor the help he needed.”
“I’m glad it all worked out.”
Needing to change the subject, I try to think of something to say. “Uh… I just realized we missed a few steps when we met in Deacon. Maybe this moratorium on dating will make it so we can back up and get to know one another.”
“That’s one way to look at it.” I can hear the smile in her voice when she adds, “I’m Teagan Renee Frost. I’ll be twenty-five in March. I’m a software developer—and sometimes my inner nerd shows. I don’t get a lot of free time because I have an adorable four-year-old who’s smart, witty, and adventurous.”
“March what?”
“Thirteenth. What’s your story? I just gave you the dime version, so you can do the same.”
I certainly hope I get to know her much better than a dime’s worth. “Let’s see… I’m twenty-eight, apart from living in Austin for the past two years, I’ve also lived in Washington my entire life—though I did a short stint in Portland when I attended school at OHSU. You already know I’m the youngest of four, and I am the proud uncle to six nieces and nephews. I take that job seriously as I have to compete with my brothers, Luke, and Vanessa’s brother Vince.”
