Praise for Susan Carlisle:

‘Susan Carlisle pens her romances beautifully … HOT-SHOT DOC COMES TO TOWN is a book that I would recommend not only to Medical Romance fans but to anyone looking to curl up with an angst-free romance about taking chances and following your heart.’

—HarlequinJunkie.com on HOT-SHOT DOC COMES TO TOWN

Dear Reader

Small beach towns have always held a fascination for me. I’ve often wondered what it would be like to live in one year-round, to watch the crowds come and go, or to have seventy-degree weather when others are living in zero during the winter months. What I haven’t wanted to experience is a hurricane, which is also part of residing along the Gulf coast. Still, people choose to live and love in these towns where they might lose everything to Mother Nature.

My characters, Jordon and Kelsey, are a couple of these people. Kelsey has lived in the same tiny town all her life. She wants out. In fact that’s all she can think about. Jordon has moved back to town after being gone for a number of years. It’s the one place where he feels at home. Each sees living in Golden Shores from a vastly different perspective. Only through adversity do they manage to understand how the other feels and find happiness together.

I hope you enjoy Jordon and Kelsey’s story, and the touch of sunshine the Gulf coast brings to it.

I love to hear from my readers. You can contact me at www.SusanCarlisle.com

Susan

The Maverick Who Ruled Her Heart
Susan Carlisle

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Dedication

To Nick

Your mother loves you.

Table of Contents

Cover

Praise for Susan Carlisle

Dear Reader

Title Page

Dedication

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

EPILOGUE

Copyright

CHAPTER ONE

JORDON KING COULDN’T decide if he was repulsed or fascinated by the tall, blonde woman with the spiked hair flitting from one table to the next.

She greeted, smiled at and hugged each man as she worked her way around the tables surrounding the dance floor of the Beach Hut Bar and Grill in Golden Shores, Mississippi. Maybe his issue was that she hadn’t given any attention to him. No, that wouldn’t be the reason. Women just weren’t on his agenda right now. Getting his professional life back in order was.

Taking another draw on his drink, he placed the bottle on the bar. What had it been? Fifteen years since he’d been in the Beach Hut? Then he’d been underage and sneaking in with a fake ID. He surveyed the rustic room with high wooden beams darkened from cigarette smoke before the no-smoking ban had been instituted. Very little had changed, bringing back both good and bad memories of the place.

Mark, one of his new colleagues at Golden Shores Regional Hospital, remarked as he looked toward the woman, “Well, it looks like she’s having a good time tonight.”

“Yeah, it looks that way,” Jordon said on a droll note.

“So, how do you like working and living in Golden Shores?” Mark asked.

Jordon chuckled. “Well, I’ve not been here but two days, but so far so good. Thanks for the invite out tonight.”

“No problem. I thought it might be a good way for you to meet a few people from the hospital.”

That was the only reason Jordon had agreed to attend. Even in a small hospital there were people in departments he would never meet if it wasn’t for some event like this. He watched as the blonde made a graceful movement, shifting one hip this way and then another as she made her way through the tight spaces between chairs toward the bar. There was something about her …

“Okay, everyone,” the man on the stage said into the microphone. “It’s time to get this party really started.”

“For this next song I want you to find someone you either don’t know well or don’t know at all and bring them to the dance floor. Let’s mix things up.”

The blonde had been coming toward the bar and made a detour around a group, talking. It brought her out of the last set of chairs directly in front of him as the last of the instructions was given. Her gaze met his.

Never breaking their connection, she stepped up to him and said, “I don’t know you. Want to dance?”

Even in the din her voice sounded low and raspy, like that of one of those old-time movie stars. Her eyes, which were almost too large for her face, watched him with an intensity that made him feel uncomfortable, as if daring him to turn her down.

Jordon shook his head.

She gave him a come-hither smile, crooked her index finger and beckoned him on. Had he met her before?

“No, thank you.”

She stepped closer. “Oh, come on. It’s impolite not to accept someone’s invitation to dance. Besides, you’re the only guy in the place I don’t know.”

Maybe not. She didn’t seem to know him. The woman really was a tease. Maybe the only way to get rid of her was to agree. He took another swig from his bottle and set it down, then nodded. Her smile turned brilliant, as if he’d given her the greatest gift. She headed for the dance floor and he followed.

This time he had an up-close view of her moving among the tangle of chairs and people. Her jeans fitted her perfectly, clinging to every single curve.

By the time he’d reached the dance floor, she was already turning to face him and starting to dance. Jordon joined her as she backed into the crowd and they were swallowed up. He was definitely more fascinated than repulsed when her hands went over her head and her eyes closed as she moved to the beat of the music. The woman was enjoying herself. She didn’t need him there but he couldn’t seem to turn away.

Dancing wasn’t generally his thing but he did what he could not to embarrass himself. At one point she came out of her trance long enough to open her eyes and move into the light. He managed to catch a glimpse of her deep brown eyes. She jumped, startled for a second, then she gave him a weak smile. Where had all the earlier brightness gone?

One song died and the next one was building when she thrust out her hand and said, “I’m Kelsey.”

She said the name as if she expected him to recognize it. He’d live in Golden Shores once for a short time as a teenager so maybe he should know her. He took her hand in his. It was warm, soft and small. Seconds later it slipped from his when a tall guy about the same age as him caught her attention. She turned to speak to him.

Jordon was forgotten just that quickly.

Who was that guy?

Kelsey had been racking her brains all night, trying to figure out why he looked so familiar. He leaned casually against the bar. With a solid appearance, trim hips and thick hair, he was by far the best-looking man in the place. She noticed him a number of times looking her direction with a censorious glare. One so familiar during her youth.

Dying of thirst, she’d managed to make her way to the bar. As the party planner and therefore designated hostess of the event, she’d spent most of her time making sure everyone was having a good time, especially the honoree and retiring employee, Patrice.

As if fate had taken her by the hand and led her astray, she arrived at the bar just as the emcee announced the dance. Her gaze locked with Mr. Handsome Glare.

She blurted out, “Do you want to dance?”

What had she been thinking? That was just it, she hadn’t been thinking. To her surprise, and after major coaxing on her part, he’d agreed. She always loved to dance and, as if someone above was smiling down on her, they were playing her favorite song.

Out on the dance floor, where the light was brighter, she turned and looked at him. Her breath caught.

J-man.

That’s all she knew him as. As a kid the name had sounded cool, maybe a little dangerous.

A ripple of nervousness went through her. Grateful she was dancing so that it didn’t show, she kept moving after her initial falter. She’d never expected to see him again. Had grieved for him for months when he’d left without saying goodbye. In the middle of many lonely nights she’d fantasized about him returning to Golden Shores. Those had been preteen dreams. Long given up and forgotten. Still, the yellow plastic ring he’d given her lay in her jewelry box. What was he doing back here?

When she’d last seen him he’d been a thin seventeen-year-old with long hair that he’d pulled back at the nape of his neck. He had been her brother Chad’s best friend, the one he’d gotten into trouble with.

For one stunned moment she looked into his eyes. A ripple of disappointment ran through her. He didn’t recognize her. How could he not? He been everything to her at one time. But she’d only been one of his friends’ little sisters. Someone they had to shoo out of the room when they got ready to talk. Still, it hurt that he didn’t know her.

Kelsey glanced at him a couple of times. He wasn’t the best dancer on the floor but he was making an effort. He wore a conservative shirt and khaki slacks. His jaw held a hint of five o’clock shadow that disrupted the perfect appearance.

As the song ended, Luke from the business office grabbed her arm and asked her a question. When she turned around J-man was gone.

Was he still going by that name? She couldn’t imagine that he was. That label didn’t suit him anymore. Searching the room, she saw his back as he headed out the door. Well, that was that, she probably wouldn’t see him again. Maybe he was just a late summer tourist or, better yet, a figment of her imagination. Still, a sadness she didn’t want to examine came over her.

On Monday morning Kelsey entered her office on the second floor of the hospital.

“Great party,” Molly said.

Molly had been Kelsey’s office colleague, roommate, and best friend since the eighth grade. “Thanks. It was a good one. I’ll miss Patrice but I’m proud she has this chance.”

“Yeah, she’s been wanting to leave town since her divorce. The new job is perfect for her.”

Kelsey wished she was the one leaving. She’d been trying to get out of Golden Shores for what seemed like forever. Away from her parents and the youthful reputation she couldn’t quit shake clear of. If she landed the job at the hospital in Atlanta then they would be throwing her a party, hopefully in the next few weeks. She’d be free, with a clean slate.

“Hey, Kelsey.” Marsha, a floor nurse, stuck her head in the door. “You’re still doing the diabetic class this morning, aren’t you? We’ve had a couple of calls about it.”

“I am.”

“The new hospitalist is going to stop by and introduce himself.”

Kelsey wrinkled up her nose. “Who is it again?”

“Dr. King.”

“Okay. I’ll be on the lookout for him.”

When Marsha left Kelsey said, “I guess a good nutritionist’s work is never done.”

Molly laughed. “I guess you’re right.”

Kelsey settled into the chair behind her desk and reviewed the patients she needed to speak to before they were discharged that day. She didn’t have the most popular job with the patients but it was a necessary one. No one liked being told what they could or couldn’t eat.

“Have you heard anything about this new doctor?” Kelsey asked. Not that it really mattered. She planned on being gone soon enough that it wouldn’t affect her one way or another what type of person he was.

“All I’ve heard is that he’s supposed to be excellent. I do know they didn’t have to hunt him, he came looking for the position.”

“Here? I wonder why? We certainly aren’t a hotbed of cutting-edge medical care.”

Molly looked at her. “Not everyone feels a need to live somewhere else, be at the cutting edge. Some of us are perfectly fine living with the sand, sea, and surf.”

As a child Kelsey had been also. Now all she wanted was to put the ugly memories behind her. But she couldn’t do that if she stayed in Golden Shores. She’d tried. She acted out to forget. “Still mad at me about applying for the job?”

“Yeah, can’t you tell?”

“I may not get it.”

“You’ll get it and I’ll be stuck with another office mate, be looking for a new roommate.” Molly looked at her. “But I won’t be finding a new best friend.”

“I love you too, Moll.”

“It’s mutual.” A second later she whirled round again. “Oh, I forgot to mention the word around the hospital is that the new doc is gorgeous. There’s already a betting pool started on who he’ll ask out first. Nancy in the business office, Charlotte in the lab, or you.”

“Really?” Kelsey couldn’t seem to live down the good-time-girl rep she’d gained as a high-school and college student. It was hard to convince people who had known her during those times to take her seriously now. She wanted to go somewhere she could start afresh.

“Yeah. I’m putting my money on you. I need a new bathing suit so do what you can to help me out.”

“I don’t think so.” Both woman mentioned were very attractive and seemed to make a point of meeting and dating the newest and most attractive men at the hospital, from the emergency crew to the administration office to the latest unattached doctor. Kelsey had moved past those fun and games.

Kelsey checked the large round clock on the wall and picked up the folder she’d laid out the night before that included pamphlets and handouts for the diabetes class.

“Got to go. We going to meet for lunch?”

“Sure. Whichever one of us gets to the table under the tree first claims it.”

“Will do.”

Late September beside the coast made it pleasant to eat outside. She and Molly, along with other staff members, fought over the coveted table under the large oak tree where the sun wouldn’t beam down on them at noon. The other tables and chairs placed around the area weren’t always as lucky.

Kelsey gathered her folder to her chest and went out the door. “Later.”

Jordon drove up Main Street on his way to the hospital. He remembered the road well. He’d traveled it hundreds of times with his parents. As an only child he’d done almost everything with them.

Golden Shores hadn’t changed much through the years. It was still a sleepy beach town that grew even more relaxed after the summer crowd had gone home. The storefronts were neat and in good repair. Baskets of late summer flowers, blooming yellow, red and blue, hung from the light poles at each intersection. This small insignificant town had been the last place he’d felt like he’d had a real home.

Pulling his SUV into the palm-lined drive of the hospital and following the signs to the designated doctors’ parking lot, he found an open spot. Stepping out of the vehicle, he inhaled deeply. The spicy scent of salt filled his nostrils. After spending so many years in snow during the winter, it was going to be nice to live here.

Jordon rolled his wrist and checked his watch. He was due for a meeting in twenty minutes. Last week he’d spent an entire day in Personnel, being issued his ID and getting acquainted with hospital procedures. Thank goodness he had no plans to ever leave so he’d not have to sit through one of those again.

With a quirk to his lips he punched in the number he’d been given for the doctors’ entrance. He’d left the high-tech world of a large northern Virginia hospital where swiping a card for entry was the norm to the simple but effective push-button code.

Twenty minutes and two wrong turns later, he found the education classroom he was looking for. He stopped and double-checked the plaque by the door. This was the correct place.

Inside, a soft raspy voice said, “Today I’m going to be sharing some tips on how to eat well and at the same time tasty.”

Looking into the room through the open door, he saw a dozen or so people sitting in chairs arranged in rows.

A man almost as round as he was tall said in a gruff voice. “All I can tell is that I can have a half a head of lettuce and nothing about that is tasty.”

Everyone in the room laughed.

The voice responded, “Now, Mr. Franklin. You know that should only be a quarter of a head.”

Again everyone chuckled.

Jordon stepped into the room and came to a jerking halt. The woman from the party was standing in front of the room. It was her voice he’d heard.

They stared at each other. She looked very familiar for some reason. He’d thought about her a couple of times since their meeting, trying to figure out where he knew her from. Could she be one of Chad’s sisters? What if she was? Would she recognize him?

What he could remember of the youngest was that she had been around all the time. She’d been sweet, cute even, but way too young. He’d thought then, if you were just a little older …

Today her hair lay along her head in a boyish cut. And she wore bangs, pink and black glasses with polka dots on them, a simple hot-pink shirt and black slacks. Above her shoulders she seemed to come from a more unconventional world and below them from a conservative one.

So Miss Goodtime was the nutritionist. She seemed to recover from her surprise quicker than he did. “Uh, can I help you? If you’re looking for the dietetic class, this is the place.”

“Then I’m in the right place.”

She waved a hand in the direction of an empty seat. “Then please join us.” Her words sounded calm but from the slight tremor of her hand he could tell his appearance had flustered her.

“Thanks. I’m Dr. Jordon King.”

At the sound of her hiss his head jerked up to meet her gaze. Her face had paled. What was going on?

He looked out at the group, hoping to give her time to recover from whatever the problem was. “I’m the hospitalist who will be caring for you if you’re ever admitted. I hope that doesn’t happen but I’ll be here if you need me. I’m going to stay for the class so if you have any questions just let me know.”

He took a chair behind the last person in the room and settled in. It had been a long time since he’d had time to sit through a presentation on diet and nutrition. It would be a nice refresher.

Despite having been put off by the demeanor of the woman at the front of the room’s at the Beach Hut the other night, he found her professional and competent during her presentation of what to eat and portion control. She asked if there were any questions. A number of hands shot up.

She pointed to a balding man about halfway back and said, “Mr. Rawlins.”

“Can I ever have cake?”

“In moderation only. Think birthdays and special occasions. Not nightly with ice cream.”

There were groans around the room but she smiled. “Look, I’m not the bad guy here. Diabetes is. We’re talking about a lifestyle change.”

That’s just what Jordon was doing. He would never have dreamt that he’d be back in Golden Shores. He had been on the fast track up the professional ladder. Had even been touted as possibly the youngest chief of staff, but backing his girlfriend and partner hadn’t only cost Jordon his job but his credibility, his self-respect and his confidence in his ability to judge character. He planned to regain all of that in Golden Shores. This was his chance to start over with a clean slate. The woman’s chuckle brought him back to the present. He didn’t even know her full name. As soon as the class was over he was going to find out.

“Maybe that’s a better question for Dr. King.”

He jerked his gaze to hers. “I’m sorry, I missed that.”

“Daydreaming in my class, Doc?”

All the class turned to look at him.

“Just for a sec. My apologies. Now, what was the question?” He stood and looked around the room expectantly.

“I would like to know,” a woman of about thirty asked in a quiet voice, “if there’s a chance that I might come off insulin.”

“It depends on what type of diabetes you have. Some people can control the disease with weight, others can take a pill and others require injections. Speak to your doctor and let him or her know that you would like to try.”

The woman smiled at him and said, “Thanks, Doctor.”

The speaker drew the group’s attention again.

“That’s all for today unless someone else has a question.” No one said anything. “Then I’ll see you all next week. Please bring your list of what you ate for review. Thanks for coming.”

Everyone stood and gathered their belongings. Jordon moved to the front as people headed toward the rear. When he reached the woman she was speaking to one of the attendees and he waited. When the final person was out the door he said, “This is the second time we’ve met and I still don’t know your full name.”

A look he would have called disappointment if he didn’t know better flashed through her eyes. Should he know her? He’d not kept in touch with anyone who still lived in Golden Shores except Chad, and he no longer lived here.

“I’m Kelsey Davis. Hospital nutritionist.” She started picking up the papers on the podium in front of her.

Davis. Maybe she was one of Chad’s sisters? But which one? Then again, Davis was a common name: there were a lot of them in the world. Surely more than one family in Golden Shores had the name Davis.

“Nice to meet you, Kelsey. I look forward to working with you.”

“Hey, Kelsey.” A man stuck his head inside the door.

He and Kelsey looked at him.

“Hey, Mike,” Kelsey said with a smile.

“I’m sorry to interrupt,” the young man, who had blond hair and the build of a weight lifter, said.

“Not a problem. I’m on my way out.”

The man stepped into the room. As Jordon left he heard the man say, “Are we still on for tonight?”

Kelsey had never been more surprised than when the man from the party turned up in her classroom. More startling than that was the fact that J-man was the doctor she’d be working with regularly. She gotten over being nervous around boys along ago, but for some reason J-man, uh, Jordon made her stomach queasy. He’d been her first love. Now he didn’t even remember her!

She’d not seen him since her brother and he had gotten arrested. Right before they had both disappeared. Jordon had been part of the reason her brother, Chad, had issues with their father. Only Chad had never come home. Part of the blame for why her family had become so screwed up was rooted in that long-ago night.

Where Chad was concerned she had a love/hate relationship with him. She’d adored him. He’d been the oldest to her youngest and she’d idolized him. When he’d left without saying anything to her she’d been devastated. As the years had gone by she’d grown to resent him too. Because of him her once happy life had crumbled and she couldn’t seem to get all the pieces back into place. At least with China that was starting to happen. She wasn’t even sure she ever wanted to make the effort with regards to her parents. Getting out of Golden Shores, closing the door on the past had always sounded like the best answer.

Now J-man was back as a doctor. Life really was crazy. If it hadn’t been time for her to leave town before, it surely was now. Until the new job came through, she’d stay out of his way as much as possible.

At noon Kelsey carried her tray from the cafeteria to the table where Molly waited under the tree. She slid into the open spot next to her.

“Hey, how’d it go this morning? Did you meet the new doctor? He’s the talk of the hospital.” Molly picked up her sandwich.

“That’s not a hard thing to be. This hospital isn’t that big and most of the people who work here have known each other most of their lives.” Except Jordon, who had no idea who she was or the part he’d played in her young life.

“So are you going to tell me what you think about him?” Molly studied her.

Kelsey was well aware of who Dr. King was. Too aware. She didn’t want Molly to know everything she thought about him. “He’s nice enough and seems to know his medicine.”

Molly put down her fork and looked at Kelsey like she had two heads. “That’s all you’ve got to say? Kelsey Davis, I’ve known you since middle school and that’s the least I’ve ever heard you say about a male. He must have really done something wrong.”

Molly had no idea. She’d moved to town the next summer. About Chad and how she’d felt about J-man were the only secrets she’d ever kept from Kelsey. “Okay, okay. What do you want? That he’s the best-looking man I’ve seen. Dark hair, hazel eyes, shoulders from here to eternity and a butt to die for!”

Molly giggled. “That’s more like it but I detect a note of cynicism. Problem?”

“No. He just reminds me of someone I used to know.”

“Someone you didn’t like.”

She’d liked him too well. “I liked the person just fine but it was during a bad time in my life.”

“Hello, beautiful ladies. Mind if I join you.”

Kelsey looked up to see Adam standing there. He worked in X-ray and had gone to school with her and Molly.

“Sure,” Molly said. She nodded toward the other bench.

Jordon followed Mark to the only outside table available. He took a spot opposite him, gave the food on his tray a dubious look and made a mental note to remember to bring his lunch as often as he could.

A loud burst of laughter came from the table to their left. Jordon knew without looking that Kelsey Davis was there. He’d noticed her along with another blonde with long hair, and he wasn’t surprised to see a man sitting with them. Was every man drawn to her?

His mother had the same personality. People gravitated toward her, especially men. His father had proudly said more than once that “his Margaret was the life of any party.” Jordon had loved to hear her laugh. It had always made him smile. Until that night when the sound had woken him. Her tinkling lilt had drawn him to her until he’d realized she’d been talking suggestively on the phone to a man other than his father.

He glared in the direction of the other table.

“Kelsey and Molly seem to be having a good time. They must be up to something.”

“Up to something?” Jordon took a bite of his oven-baked chicken.

“Yeah, they’re always planning a party or some outing or something.”

Jordon grunted acknowledgement.

“You’ll like working with Kelsey. She’s a lot of fun.”

“What’s her story?”

Mark shrugged. “I don’t know. The usual, I guess. Grew up here, lives here and will die here.”

“You knew her before you started working here?”

“Yeah. We went to high school together. She has a bit of a reputation as a party girl. She enjoys having a good time but I never hear anyone saying anything but good things about her now.”

“Does her family still live around here?”

“I don’t know. Why?”

“She looks so familiar. I used to know some Davises, I just thought she might be kin to them.”

“Why don’t you ask her?”

“Maybe I will.” He glanced at Kelsey’s table again. But this woman couldn’t be the young girl he’d once known. She giggled at something that had been said then turned, meeting his gaze. Time ground to a halt as they stared at each other before he forced his attention back to his unimpressive meal.

Either way, she wasn’t someone he needed to get involved with.

That evening he was walking toward his car when he saw Kelsey getting into an aging small compact that didn’t fit the persona he’d seen so far. It was nothing flashy, as he would’ve expected. She pulled out of her spot and passed him with little more than a glance. How could he be so aware of her when she didn’t seem to even notice him?

CHAPTER TWO

MIDMORNING THE NEXT day Jordon’s cell phone rang while he was familiarizing himself with some paperwork. Tapping the icon, he said, “Dr. King here.”

“This is the E.R. clerk. You’re needed here.”

“On my way.”

Rushing down the stairs, he made one turn and headed along a short hallway. He grinned as he walked. The last hospital he’d been affiliated with had been so large it had taken him five minutes to go from his office to the E.R.

He stepped up to the circular desk and said to the person sitting there, “I’m Dr. King. You paged me.”

“You’re needed in exam room three.”

He look around.

The clerk pointed and said, “Down that way.”

“Thanks.”

Voices came from behind the closed curtain that hung across a metal rod. This was another reminder that he’d left a more modern facility behind. There the patient examination rooms would have had been enclosed. Golden Shores might not be up to date on their buildings but by all accounts the hospital provided excellent medical care and had a clean report as far as any medical malfeasance was concerned. He had no intention of letting what had happened in Washington occur again. He’d been embarrassed and publicly humiliated on too many levels for one lifetime. He’d make sure this time not to get involved with anyone or anything looking remotely illegal.

One of the voices coming from the other side of the curtain sounded familiar. Pulling the striped material back, he saw a woman who looked to be in her late seventies lying on the gurney. Kelsey sat next to the bed and held the older woman’s hand.

Was she destined to turn up everywhere he went?

He raised a brow in her direction and made an effort to concentrate on the patient. Before he could ask a question a nurse rushed in.

“Dr. King, here’s the chart.”

He looked at the front page and said, “So what seems to be the problem Mrs.?” He glanced at the chart again. “Ritch.”

“Young man, you may call me Martha.”

He raised a brow. “Okay, Martha, what brought you in today?”

“I was playing bridge, as I always do over at Edith Hutchinson’s house, and I just blacked out.”

“Did you fall out of the chair?” he asked, concerned the she might have a concussion.

“More like slipped, Myrtice said as I was being put into the ambulance. Which is going to cost me my entire war pension.”

Kelsey patted the woman’s arm. “Now, Martha, that isn’t the important thing. We’ll take care of it.”

Jordon cringed. That was what his lover and partner had said just before they’d arrested her for insurance fraud. He wouldn’t take a chance on being involved in anything like that again. Jordon gave Kelsey a questioning look. Why was she here? She returned an unwavering gaze. Had she seen him wince at her words?

“Martha is one of my diabetic patients. She asked the nurse to call me.”

He nodded. “So did you feel like your blood sugar had dropped?”

The woman hung her head. “I knew when I ate Sally’s petits fours that I’d be in trouble.”

“Martha! We’ve talked about this!” Kelsey exclaimed.

“I know, hon. But there’s nothing like Sally’s petits fours. You can’t eat just one.”

Jordon cleared his throat. “Well, then, young lady …”

Martha giggled. Kelsey smiled, which captivated him.

A few seconds later Martha made a huffing noise. “You do know I’m the patient, don’t you?”

Jordon blinked and looked at her. “I’m well aware you are my patient. And apparently you don’t follow doctor’s orders. I’d like to keep you overnight and give you a good checkup just to make sure we have your blood-sugar level back in line.” He looked at Kelsey. “I also would like Ms. Davis to give you a refresher course on what to eat and not eat. Just in case there’s something that wasn’t covered.”

He noticed Kelsey stiffen but he wasn’t sure why.

“I understand,” Marsha said, with just enough humility to make him believe she might be more cautious about the number of petits fours she ate in the future.

“All right, I’ll get the paperwork started to have you admitted.”

“At least that isn’t committed,” Martha said.

Jordon chuckled. Martha reminded him of Ms. Olson, one of the patients he’d had to leave behind in DC. He’d miss her and what he’d worked so hard to build.

“I don’t think your infraction was that serious but you can’t keep eating petits fours. The nurse will be in to see about getting you admitted to the floor. I’ll check in on you this evening before I leave.”

Jordon pushed the curtain back and stepped out into the large open space of the ER. Before the curtain fell back into place Kelsey joined him.

“May I speak to you a moment, Doctor? In private.”

She didn’t wait for him to respond before she started out the double doors of the E.R. Left little choice, he followed her. She glanced back as she rounded a corner but continued on. He had a nice view of her high tight behind incased in blue pants that defined it to perfection. When he saw her again, she was standing beside a door. She pushed it open and entered as he approached.

Kelsey had no idea what she’d been thinking when Jordon had entered the small consultation room. Suddenly there hadn’t been enough space or air. She hadn’t been rational, she’d been too angry. She couldn’t afford anyone to imply she didn’t do her job well. He had inferred just that.

The chance of getting the job in Atlanta was far too important. If that got back to the administration of the new hospital she’d never have a chance at the position. It was hard enough to overcome the past, she didn’t need anything else to stand in her way. Some of the administration staff had known her as a kid and still had a hard time seeing her as a responsible employee.

The second the door clicked closed Kelsey turned to face him and took a step closer, putting only a foot between them. Looking up at the tall and rather large man, she questioned her decision-making. He gazed at her with complete innocence, which fueled her ire to the point she gritted her teeth to stop herself from doing something far more stupid and unethical.

“Back there it sounded as if you might be implying that I hadn’t done my job,” she hissed. “That I am responsible when a patient doesn’t follow dietary directions outside this hospital. I assure you that I instruct to the best of my ability but I cannot make anyone do what they don’t want to do.”

To her amazement, he looked surprised, maybe slightly annoyed.

“I didn’t mean to imply—”

“Whether you did or didn’t, it came out that way. You’ve not been here long enough to make any assumptions about my work. I don’t need there to be any insinuations or suggestions that I don’t do my job well.”

“I didn’t do either!”

“Just know I don’t appreciate what you said. You’re the new guy here and I’m going to let it go this time. If this happens again, just know we will be having another discussion. We have to work together and I’ll be professional and I expect you to be the same.”

He stepped toward her.

She’d made an uncalculated mistake. He stood squarely between her and the door. She wanted out and he was as formidable as a Stonehenge boulder.

“Are you finished?” he growled, his eyes narrowing.

Kelsey forced herself not to gulp.

“I don’t know what you think I did,” he continued, “but I assure you I didn’t say that you were responsible. I know how rumors and unsubstantiated statements can damage a career. I would never do that to anyone. As for not appreciating something, I haven’t allowed someone to harangue me in this manner since my mother caught me stealing money out of her purse when I was a kid. So, Ms. Davis, you can give it a rest.”

He turned, jerked the door open and was gone before Kelsey could form a parting word. She scowled at the closed door.

Jordon drove home down Bay Road toward the house he’d rented in a “snowbird” deal. He would live there through the winter months while he looked for a place to buy. As a kid, his house had been a part of a subdivision located further inland. He’d always envied his friends at school who lived on the water so that was where he planned to get a place. When he’d returned to town he’d decided against one of the large condos on the ocean side and had opted for a place on the bay.

Pulling the SUV into the white crushed-shell drive and beside the one-floor bungalow, he turned the engine off and looked out at the water beyond. The sea grass waved gently in the wind. Yes, he’d done the right thing by coming back here. Not all the memories were great but the ones before his parents’ divorce outnumbered those afterwards.

Hardy, his chocolate Labrador, barked his welcome as he climbed out. The dog already had a stick in his mouth, waiting for Jordon to play.

“Hey, boy.” He leaned down and gave the dog a good pat on the side. “Let me change and we’ll go to the water.”

Opening the door to the house, he stepped straight into the kitchen area. The place had been built in the sixties and little had changed. Dark paneling, overstuffed furniture with wooden armrests and laminated floors in an unappealing green didn’t deviate from the traditional décor of the times. The house wasn’t attractive but it was clean and functional. The only concession made to change was the large TV on a stand in the corner. Jordon didn’t plan to miss a single Washington Redskins’ football game if he could help it.

He pulled his knit shirt over his head as he went down the hall to the larger of the two bedrooms. Throwing his shirt in the corner, he pulled on a well-worn T-shirt. It was nice not to have to wear a dress shirt and tie to work. The causal, more laid-back coastal lifestyle suited him just fine. Best of all, no white lab coat was required. Shucking his tan slacks and stepping into his favorite jeans, he pulled them into place, zipped and buttoned them.

Not bothering with shoes, he’d take his chance on not getting sand spears in his feet just to feel grass between his toes. He walked across the cool floor back to the kitchen to pour himself glass of tea. He’d always like sugar sweet tea and that was something he couldn’t get north of the Mason-Dixon line. Back in the Deep South, if he asked for tea, it came sweet. One more perk about moving home, and that was just what he’d done—come home. He didn’t plan to ever move again.

With glass in hand he called, “Come on, boy, let’s go play fetch.”

Despite it being late September, the weather was still plenty warm. Hardy pranced at Jordon’s heels as he strolled to the dock where an Adirondack chair waited. Sitting facing west with a sigh of pleasure, he waited for the sun to set. Hardy dropped his stick to the wooden planks of the pier beside the chair and whimpered.

“Okay, boy. I’ll play with you if you promise to watch the sunset with me.” Jordon threw the stick out into the water. In a flash, Hardy sprang off the dock. Paddling, he reached the stick, grasped it in his mouth and headed back. Once on shore again, he shook himself and came running back to Jordon.

“Good boy.” He patted the wet, wiggling dog and willingly took the shower of water when the dog shook himself again.

Hardy barked and Jordon sent the wood out over the water again. Hardy didn’t hesitate before jumping from the dock and swimming toward his stick. A blaze of color caught Jordon’s eye, pulling his attention away from the dog. A woman in a large pink-brimmed hat on her head strolled out onto a pier a couple of doors away. Jordon forgot the sunset and Hardy as he watched the woman pull off her cover-up and let the mesh jacket drop to the planks.

Yes, undeniably he was going to enjoy living here.

The hand with his drink in it stopped in midair as he studied her. She had smooth curves in all the right places. The tiny blue bikini she wore accented them perfectly. As she turned, then bent to adjust the lounge downward, he caught a glimpse of her face.

Kelsey Davis. How had he not recognized those curves from earlier? Maybe he’d been distracted by all that golden skin.

Did she live two doors down? Surely she was just visiting a friend.

As if she’d become aware of someone watching her, she glanced around. Her body stiffened the second she realized his gaze was on her. She hurriedly sat in the chair.

To his horror, Hardy came out of the water and didn’t look right or left before making a beeline toward Kelsey’s pier. As if in slow motion, Jordon stood and started moving as Hardy ran the length of the dock, dropped the stick beside Kelsey and shook himself. Water droplets filled the air, glistening in the early evening sunlight, to fall over Kelsey like rain.

Jordon ran and called Hardy, to no avail. He had made it to the entrance of her dock in time to hear Kelsey squeal then yelped when Hardy’s wet tail ran across her thigh and up over her belly. In her effort to roll away from the dog, she toppled the lounge and fell to the pier. By the time he’d sprinted to the end of her dock, Kelsey lay on her side on the rough planks, pushing Hardy away, while the dog tried to poke his nose in her face.

“Hardy,” he snapped.

The dog looked at him as if to say, Get your own girl.

Jordon chuckled.

“Are you laughing at me?” Kelsey’s eyes had turned cavern dark in her anger. That emotion was familiar. He seemed to elicit it from her with little trouble.

“No, I’m just laughing at the picture you two make.” Jordon grabbed Hardy’s collar.

“It figures this monster would be yours.”

He looked pointedly at her. “You don’t like dogs?”

“I like dogs fine. I’m just not wild about showers given by them or sloppy kisses.”

“I’ll remember that.”

Her eyes grew wide. Why had he said something so suggestive? He had no intention of sharing a shower with her, much less kissing her. She wasn’t his type. Even if she had been, the sting of betrayal still smarted. It was best she remain on her dock and he on his.

Kelsey started to rise.

Jordon offered her a hand. “Here, let me help you.”

After a second she took it and he tugged her upwards.

He sucked in a breath. As amazing as she’d looked from his dock, she was breathtaking up close. The bikini showed off most of her body but he still wanted to see more. Her breasts were full and high. His fingers itched to stroke them, just once.

“Can’t you handle your dog?” Her eyes snapped as she glared at him.

“I guess he appreciates a pretty woman as well as the next male.”

She squared her shoulders, which thrust her barely covered breasts upward. He couldn’t help but stare.

“Surely you aren’t flirting with me?”

Jordon couldn’t pull his gaze away from the beauty before him. “What if I was?” he muttered. What had made him ask that? A half-naked woman had never made him lose his mind before. For heaven’s sake, he was a doctor. Was his thirty-seconds-ago vow to keep his distance already going by the wayside?

Kelsey picked up the cover-up from the dock, giving him a fine view of her behind before she pulled the jacket on and tied it. “Don’t.”

Hardy bumped her leg. She leaned down and took his face in her hands. “So what’s this guy’s name?”

Jordon had to give her points for being a good sport. No other woman he’d known in the past or present would’ve taken Hardy’s antics so well. “Hardy. As in Laurel and Hardy. Mr. Personality he is.”

“You have beautiful eyes,” she cooed.

How ridiculous was it to be jealous of his dog? Hardy seemed to melt like chocolate on a warm day under her ministrations. Jordon might have too, except he couldn’t seem to get any positive attention from Kelsey.

“I had a dog almost just like you when I was a kid.”

She stopped petting Hardy and straightened. It was as if her enthusiasm had suddenly waned. There was a sad note in her voice as if she’d remembered something she didn’t want to. Had something happened to her dog when she’d been a kid? Wanting to change the subject, he asked, “So, do you live here?”

“Yeah.”

“We’re neighbors. I’ve got the place a couple houses over.”

“Great,” she said, with less gusto than he would have liked to hear. Why did it matter what she thought?

“Well, I guess we’ll let you get back to your sunbathing or whatever you were doing. Come on, Hardy.”

The dog looked from one to the other then sat beside Kelsey.

She said with a smirk on her lips, “I guess your dog likes me better.”

Jordon picked up Hardy’s stick and threw it in the direction of his dock. The dog jumped into the water.

“See you later, Kelsey,” Jordon tossed over his shoulder smugly, as he walked up the dock toward the shore.

Back on his own dock, he threw the piece of wood two additional times for Hardy, in an effort to forget Kelsey only yards away. It didn’t work. His attention kept slipping back to her. It wasn’t just that she was a beautiful half-dressed woman within eyesight but Kelsey intrigued him on a number of levels. She was plain old-fashioned interesting. Something that women he was acquainted with weren’t.

Hardy, finally worn out, lay down beside him. Jordon absently rubbed his ear. “Thank you for being such a turncoat.”

The dog said nothing and Jordon continued to watch Kelsey as she read a book, the sunset no longer of interest. At dusk Kelsey folded her chair down, gathered her belongings and headed toward the house.

“Good night, Kelsey,” Jordon said softly.

He stayed until the night swallowed up the last ray of light then made his way inside with Hardy at his heels. “I hope the view is as good every night,” he said to Hardy, not sure if he meant of Kelsey or the sunset.

The next morning Kelsey tried her ignition switch one more time. Nothing. Was it just a dead battery or something more?

How was she going to get to work? Molly had a doctor’s appointment and had left earlier. Great. It wouldn’t look or sound good when her superiors were contacted by someone in Atlanta and they had her being late to work fresh in their memory. She needed a ride quickly. Looking two driveways over, she confirmed that the blue SUV was still sitting in the drive.

She grabbed her purse from the passenger seat, stuffed it under her arm and started in the direction of Jordon’s bungalow. It would have been nice if one of the other houses around them was occupied but they were only used seasonally so she had no choice but to ask Jordon for help. She wasn’t looking forward to asking him for a ride, but she had little choice unless she walked, and she would be late for sure if she did that.

She stepped up to Jordon’s door. Her hand faltered before she knocked. Barking preceded the door being pulled open. Behind the screen door, wearing no shirt, stood Jordon.

“Well, good morning,” he drawled in an exaggerated tone.

Why did the man manage to set her teeth on edge? Taking a deep breath, she said, “My car won’t start. Can I get a ride with you?”

He grinned, “So what you’re staying is you’re not angry with me anymore.”

“I knew you wouldn’t be a gentleman about this.”

Jordon clasped his hands over his heart. “That hurt. Of course I’ll be glad to give you a ride.” His grin grew and he pushed the screen door open and used his leg to block Hardy from exiting the house. “I’m almost ready. Want to come in and wait?”

Her gaze found his chest. “I’ll just wait out by your SUV.”

He shrugged and let the door slam. “Suit yourself.”

The guy was so smug. What was it about her that made him so rude?

She’d been acutely aware of him behind her while she’d sat on the pier the previous evening. It had taken all her willpower not to glance behind her to see if he was watching her. She’d read the same three pages of her book five times and she still couldn’t have told anyone what they’d been about. All she’d been able to think about had been what Jordon had been doing.

Refusing to give him the satisfaction of him knowing that he’d rattled her, she’d acted as unaffected by him as she’d been able. He’d completely ruined her plans for a relaxing evening. Wishing he would leave, she’d given up at dusk and packed her belongs. She had been grateful that he hadn’t been sitting close enough to see her hands shake when she’d risen.

Had she heard “Good night, Kelsey” drift on the wind?

“Hey, you going to get in or daydream all morning?”

She blinked then focused on him. “I’m going to get in.”

At the beep of the door being unlocked, she climbed into the vehicle and settled into the large comfortable seat. Jordon effortlessly took his spot behind the wheel. They didn’t speak as he backed out of the drive and drove toward town. As they passed the blue house about a mile up the road Jordon commented, “I used to know a family that lived there. They were the Davises. Are you any kin to them?”

A sick feeling went through her. So he did remember. But there was no point in lying. “Yeah. Their daughter.”

He jerked his head around to look at her.

“You might want to watch the road,” she said.

“So you’re one of Chad’s sisters.” He sounded utterly amazed.

“I am.”

He nodded as if in thought. “Which one are you?”

She’d hung on his every word as a kid. She’d thought he’d been the be-all and end-all and he couldn’t remember which one she was. That stung. “I’m the youngest one,” she made herself say in a strong voice.

He pulled to the side of the road and turned to look at her. “So have you known all along who I was?”

“I recognized you while we were dancing.”

“Why didn’t you say something?”

She suddenly felt the need to defend herself. “I didn’t even know your real name until you came into my class. You were always J-man to me. We need to get going or we’ll be late.”

He pulled the SUV back onto the road. “J-man. I’ve not been called that for years.”

“Why did you move back?” Kelsey asked. There had to be something in particular to make anyone want to come back to Golden Shores.

The only indication he gave that her question might have disturbed him was the tightening of his hands on the steering wheel.

“It was time to make a change.”

“But why here, of all places?”

“Because this is the last place I remember feeling like I belong,” he said matter-of-factly.

Kelsey huffed. “And it’s the one place I wish I didn’t belong.”

This conversation had gone way past a simple ride to the hospital. Kelsey was relieved when Jordon pulled the SUV into the hospital parking lot. She had to get out of there.

“Thanks for the ride,” she said, opening the door of the SUV before Jordon had turned the engine off.

“Kelsey—”

She closed the door and headed for the employees’ entrance, refusing to look back.

Answering questions about her family wasn’t how she wanted to start her day. Jordon couldn’t help but bring back unhappy memories. She missed Chad as much today as she had then. If she only knew if he was still alive.

Jordon watched as Kelsey entered the hospital and disappeared behind the metal outside door as if she’d pulled up the drawbridge. So she was Chad’s sister. That sister. The one that he had wished he’d be around to see when she got older. Did she remember him as fondly as he remembered her?

Did she know where Chad was? Kelsey acted as if she didn’t want to talk about anything having to do with her family. She’d not even looked at her parents’ house when he’d driven by. He and Chad had been two unhappy teens who’d bonded and fueled each other’s frustration. Leading up to his parents’ divorce and afterward, he had been angry. Whatever his father had said, he’d done the opposite.

He’d started hanging out at the park with the wrong crowd, more to irritate his father than liking the kids who had been there. One night Chad Davis had shown up. He was a year younger but they’d seemed to hit it off. They’d started hanging around with each other at school, ditching classes together and otherwise becoming best friends. That had been until the night they’d been caught by the police, smoking dope.

Jordon climbed out of the SUV and slowly made his way inside. Did Kelsey know her brother was in the state prison not an hour away? When he’d visited Chad on the way to Golden Shores and told him about moving here, Chad had made Jordon promise that if he ever saw any of his family he wouldn’t tell them where he was. At the time it was no big deal to make that promise. But now how long would he be able to honor that request? But trust, giving his word meant everything. Jordon wouldn’t break his.

He’d certainly not wanted to discuss way he’d decided to move back to Golden Shores, with Kelsey or anyone else for that matter. Those events had been too painful. Shown how easily he’d been duped by someone he’d cared about. That had happened one too many times in his life. He would be careful about who he let his guard down to from now on.

In his office, he checked his messages. He was asked to be at a staff meeting at ten in the cafeteria. What was going on? Was some dignitary coming to town? He’d find out soon enough. There was just enough time to make rounds.

It was five minutes past ten when he entered the cafeteria. The room was packed so he stood against the wall. He hadn’t been able to get there any sooner because Martha had kept asking him questions and telling him stories when he’d checked on her.

The CEO stood at the front of the room. “Most of you have been through this before, many of you more than once. Still, I want you to review your emergency procedures. In a few minutes you can get with your teams and update your contact numbers. The weather service isn’t calling for the storm to hit here but we need to be prepared if it takes a turn our way. It’s our job to work calmly and efficiently. Our community expects us to be here for them and we will be.”

So they were preparing for a hurricane. Maybe he should have been watching the news instead of Kelsey last night.

“Dr. King?” He looked around the room.

Jordon gave the CEO a wave. “Here.”

The CEO nodded in Jordon’s direction. “I hate to put you on the ground running so quickly but you’re to take over Dr. Richards’s team. Everyone previously on Dr. Richards’s team, please get together with Dr. King when we adjourn. I think that’s all, folks. Check in with each other and keep your phones charged. On a positive closing note, we are going ahead with the hospital-wide low country boil picnic Saturday, unless the weather says something different.”

Hospital picnic? He’d never been to one. The hospitals he’d trained in had been in metropolitan areas and far too large for such things. Another perk of living in a small town. A low country boil did sound good. He’d not been to one of those in a long time.

Having no idea who was on his team, he waited until he was approached by someone. Talk about being a fish out of water.

“Dr. King?” a balding man wearing a tie asked.

Jordon nodded. “Please, make it Jordon.”

“I’m Jim. I work in the business office. I’ll be handling the paperwork, communication and be your runner.”

Jordon offered his hand. “Nice to meet you, Jim. So we are preparing for a hurricane?”

“Yeah, around here it isn’t if we will have a hurricane but when.”

“How many more are on our team?”

“Two more. Josh Little and Kelsey Davis.”

Jordon almost groaned. She wouldn’t like that any more than he did.

A tall man, dressed in nursing scrubs with golden hair and biceps that said he spent time in the gym daily, joined them.

“Hey, I’m Josh Little. I’ll be your nurse.”

The two men shook hands.

“I’m going to depend on you to keep me straight. I’ve never done this type of thing before,” Jordon said.

“Nothing to it. Kelsey will be the boss,” Josh said with a smile.

“Sorry I’m late. I was all the way across the room.”

Jordon knew the voice that came from behind him.

He turned to look at her. She didn’t appear any more enthusiastic about seeing him than he was to see her. “Glad you could join us, Kelsey. I understand you’re the one who will tell me what to do.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Our team does triage. You tell me which ones are the most urgent and I tag them. Josh handles care until you can see them. Jim will record everything.”

“So where does this all happen?” Jordon looked at the group but the question was addressed to Kelsey.

“Our designated area is in the hospital lobby.”

“What about supplies?” he asked.

“All that is taken care of. Housekeeping sets up and has the space ready to go if or when needed,” Josh offered.

Jordon nodded his understanding. “Great. So all we need to do is exchange numbers?”

Kelsey said, “That’s it.” They all went through the process of telling each other their phone numbers.

“Who is responsible for doing all the calling?” Jordon asked.

“I do that,” Jim stated.

Jordon looked at him and grinned. “So the plan here is to hope that I don’t hear from you.”

Jim smiled back. “That’s the plan.”

There was a buzz. “I’ve got to go. E.R. is paging me,” Josh said.

“I’ve got to go too,” Jim added.

As Kelsey turned to leave Jordon said, “Hey, Kelsey, will you tell me about the hospital picnic?”

She didn’t look like she wanted to but she stopped. “It’s held at the state park down on the beach. Food is provided and there are games. You know, the regular family stuff.”

“You planning to attend?”

“I usually do.”

“That didn’t answer my question.”

She looked at him for a second then said, “I haven’t missed one in five years so I don’t think I’ll be missing this one.”

“Mind if I tag along with you? I don’t really know anyone.”

It took her so long to answer he started to think she wasn’t going to. Suddenly there was a look of triumph on her face.

“I have to be there early to set up. I’m on the committee.”

“I don’t mind going along and helping out.”

“Good. I’m going to take you at your word. I’ll pick you up a seven a.m. on Saturday. No, let me change that. You drive. You’ve got a bigger vehicle.”

“Why do I think I’ve just been had?”

Kelsey grinned then walked off.

The weatherman had said the storm had stalled in the Gulf and wouldn’t be coming ashore until early the next week. Saturday dawned sunny with a light breeze. The picnic was still on. Jordon pulled up into Kelsey’s drive promptly at seven in the morning. He and Kelsey hadn’t had much interaction in the last few days other than brief encounters over patients.

The door to her place opened. She stepped out and waved, indicating she needed him to come inside. He climbed out of the SUV and she called, “Hey, did you plan to sit there while I do all the work?”

“Sorry, I didn’t know I was needed.” He strolled toward the door. Kelsey had already disappeared inside again.

She pushed the door open and handed him a large box. “This needs to go, then come back and help me with the ice chests.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Having stowed the box, he returned. The door wasn’t open so he knocked and called through the screen door, “Kelsey?”

“Come on in.”

She didn’t wait for him to respond, disappearing down the hall.

Jordon entered. The interior was arranged very much like his place. The only thing different was that this bungalow had a feminine feel to it. Candles were arranged on the counter, bright throw blankets lay over the furniture and pictures of flowers adorned the walls.

“The coolers are next to the bar in the kitchen. I’ll be there to help in a sec.”

True to her word, she stepped into the room a few minutes later, wearing a tight T-shirt with something sparkling around the scooped neckline that gave him a hint of cleavage and cutoff jeans that showed off her legs to their best advantage. There was something raw and inviting about her. A woman who stood out in a crowd. He could see a touch of the young girl there too that he known so many years before.

Kelsey reached for a handle on one end of a large box cooler and he took the other. Together they carried it out. When they got to the rear of the SUV, they set it down while Jordon opened the doors.

“I’ll take it from here.” He lifted the cooler into the vehicle. “What have you got in this thing? Rocks?”

“Water balloons.”

“Water balloons!”

“I’m in charge of the water-balloon fight.”

“I’m glad I’m not signed up for that.”

“You’re too old,” she quipped.

“How’s that? My hair’s not even gray yet.”

“It’s for the teenagers. That’s how we get them to come to the picnic each year.”

Jordon pushed the cooler further into the SUV. “Makes sense. Is that it?”

She turned toward the house. “Nope. There’s another cooler.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

Together they brought another cooler out to the SUV. “Just how were you planning to get these to the park if I hadn’t come along?”

“Aw, I would have gotten one of the guys at work to help me.”

That he wasn’t shocked to hear. She seemed to always have some guy hanging around. Right now he wasn’t much different but he’d keep his distance, if not in the physical sense the at least on an emotional level.

“Anything else?”

“I just have to get one more small cooler and a couple of bags. And my cake.”

“Was I supposed to bring something?”

“No. Someone suggested we have a cake auction to raise money to help redecorate the children’s wing. I was roped into baking one.”

“I’ll help you with the bags and you can handle the cake.”

Ten minutes later they were in the SUV, headed toward town.

“Do you know where the park is?”

He gave her an incredulous look. “Yes. Remember I used to live here.”

“That’s right. I keep forgetting.”

Something about the way she made that statement made him believe that wasn’t true.

As he drove past her parents’ home he watched out of the corner of his eye to see if she looked. Her focus remained straight ahead. He wanted to ask her if she knew where Chad was, what had happened after he’d left town, but today wasn’t the right time. It would wait.

CHAPTER THREE

THE PARKING LOT already had a number of cars in it when they arrived.

Kelsey pointed. “See the white tent over there. If you could back up to it, we can unload easier.”

Jordon did as instructed. Kelsey was out of the SUV and opening the back door before he moved the gearshift into park. A couple of guys he recognized came to help them. After unloading, Kelsey was still busy issuing orders as Jordon moved the SUV to a parking spot out of the way. He was locking up when he saw Kelsey’s cake sitting on the floor of the passenger seat. She must have forgotten it. He picked it up and walked back across the parking lot to where she was helping set up tables.

“Kelsey,” he called, “where do I need to put your cake?”

More than one person stopped what they were doing and looked at her.

A red hue covered her face and by the thrust of her chin she left no doubt she was not pleased with his question.

“Kelsey, you baked a cake?” one woman asked.

“The last one you put salt in instead of sugar,” another commented with a grin.

“I thought you’d just buy one and put your name on it,” the guy helping Kelsey put chairs around a table said with a chuckle.

Kelsey took a proud stance. “Hey, look, I can bake with the best of them I just choose not to on most occasions.” She tossed her head and went back to work.

“I think we need all the cakes we can get for the auction,” another woman offered. “Maybe the fact that the winner of the cake gets to share it with the baker will make Kelsey’s the highest earner.”

“Thank you, Carolyn. You’re a true friend.” Kelsey said, then looked around at the crowd. “Unlike everyone else.” Kelsey put the last chair around the table, stalked over to Jordon and all but snatched the cake out of his hands. “Thanks,” she hissed.

“I didn’t know you were hiding it,” he said, for her ears only. “Sorry.”

“Forget it.”

Jordon had no idea her baking was such a sore point. Where she was concerned, he kept making mistakes. “Can I help with something?”

“We still need to put up the tables for the games.” She pointed toward a woman with a blue ball cap on her head. “Pam over there will tell you what to do.”

Jordon was a little disappointed she was fobbing him off on another person, but he didn’t need to be spending any more time with her than he presently had. He’d had to fight the urge to jump in and defend her baking skills. She wouldn’t have appreciated that and he was even more perplexed by the idea that he thought he should.

The hours flew by as he helped first Pam then Max and finally Roger to get the large burner and pots ready to cook the meal. At around ten, cars began arriving one after another. It was a family event, so kids showed up in all shapes and sizes. As the morning went on he only caught glimpses of Kelsey from a distance but he seemed to search her out every so often as if she was his to watch over. Which she certainly wasn’t.

One time he saw her hugging a petite woman with shoulder-length brown hair. Kelsey smiled at the tall man who had a possessive arm around the woman’s waist. Something about the interaction indicated these people were important to Kelsey. Who were they?

“Hey Jordon, how about helping us with the cooking? We need some muscle,” Roger, who Jordon had learned worked in the lab, asked.

“Sure.” Jordon knew nothing about cooking a low country boil but it was nice to be asked and included. Plus it kept his wandering mind off Kelsey.

At around twelve-thirty he, along with half a dozen people, helped pour buckets of corn, new potatoes, onions and shrimp over newspaper-covered tables. There were plenty of paper towel rolls available and everyone took their places at the picnic tables and dug in. With his job done, he looked for Kelsey. She was sandwiched between Josh and some other guy Jordon hadn’t seen before.

One of the nurses from the E.R. called to him and moved down enough that he could join her table. The food was excellent and the conversation lively. He was glad he’d attended.

Before the first table could finish their meal and leave, the CEO stood and said through a bullhorn, “I’m glad you all could make it today. I’d like to say thanks to the picnic committee headed by Kelsey Davis for this fine event.”

Kelsey had said nothing about being in charge. She’d implied she was only helping.

The CEO continued, “The games are about to begin. Please don’t forget to go by and check out the silent cake auction. As an added bonus you get to share the cake with the cook. And the money goes to a good cause.”

Jordon spent the next half hour making a circle around the area to see what was happening. There was apple bobbing, bingo and three-legged racing through the sand that brought smiles and laughter from everyone. A beach volleyball game was beginning when he walked up.

One of the nurses from the geriatric unit called his name and waved him over. “Come on, Jordon, we need another player.”

“Sure.” He took his place on her side of the net. He’d played some volleyball in the early years of high school and had been pretty good at it but his skills were rusty. What he might lack in ability he more than made up with height. Two volleys later he was able to return the ball over the net for a point, which built his confidence.

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