Unbuttoning the Bachelor Doc, page 8
“And there are a lot of people that would love him if that is what you want. Allowing someone to adopt your baby isn’t something to be ashamed of. It’s not selfish. It’s one of the bravest things someone can do.” Sky had been through that struggle before. “You know my sister, the one who’s a lawyer?”
“You said she practices family law,” Jasmine said as she wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her pajama top.
“She had a baby when she was just a little younger than you. She decided she wasn’t ready to raise a child too. Her doctor put her in touch with an adoption agency and she found the perfect couple for her baby. They’re very open about the adoption and my sister gets pictures and cards from them.”
“My parents would never agree to that. They want me to keep the baby. They keep promising they’ll help, but that isn’t the problem. I’m just not ready to be someone’s mom. I know that makes me a bad person.”
“You’re not a bad person. It takes a lot of courage to admit that you can’t do something. And you’re thinking about what is best for your baby.” Sky hugged the young girl to her. Jasmine was being forced to make an adult decision about her baby when she was not much more than a child herself. She wanted to offer to speak to Jasmine’s parents herself, but she knew it wouldn’t help. Whether it was fair or not, Jasmine had to make that move herself.
“How about I get my sister to call you? She won’t try to push you either way. It’s a personal decision, not hers or your parents. She’ll be honest with you about the process and how it has affected her life.”
“That would be good. Did your parents try to talk her out of the adoption?”
“No. They weren’t in our lives then. They left us with our grandmother when we were young. But my grandmother was ready to support her no matter what decision she made. Your parents might not agree with you, but I have the feeling that they will support your decision once you explain how you feel. They love you and want you to be happy. Just talk to them. Be honest with them.”
Jasmine sighed and had just begun to stand when Maggie and Lori came back into the room. Sky had figured they were outside the door listening.
Maggie started fixing lunch. Jasmine volunteered to help, then Sky and Lori got up to join them. The girl still looked worn to the bone. It would take more than a talk with Sky to help her get back on track, however moving around and working instead of staying in bed and worrying was a first step.
CHAPTER EIGHT
SKY OPENED THE back office door and let Mindy inside. Dressed in a plain black hoodie that covered her hair, the country music star had none of the glamour that she was known for. In a worn pair of jeans and a pair of sneakers, she could have been any other patient in the practice. As Sky led her down the hall to her exam room, members of the staff walked by them without anyone looking twice.
She shut the door as Mindy pulled off the hoodie. “That’s a pretty good disguise.”
“Trey agreed to let me come by myself if I wore one of his old sweatshirts,” Mindy said. “It actually was kind of fun sneaking in the back. Not that I want my life to always be like this.”
Sky had a feeling Mindy hadn’t accepted all the changes stardom was going to make for the rest of her life.
“Speaking of sneaking around, I didn’t see you leave the party,” Mindy said.
“I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you we were leaving. It was kind of sudden.”
“That wasn’t a complaint. After watching you and Jared on the dance floor, I understand why you’d want to leave so fast. Though I’m confused about why you told me there wasn’t anything happening between the two of you. That dance made it pretty plain that there’s something between you.”
“There wasn’t. I mean, there isn’t anything. We’re just colleagues.” Sky felt the flush of embarrassment flood her face. Now she definitely would look like she was lying. “Seriously, Mindy, we aren’t dating.”
“Honey, I know what I saw. The two of you were into each other. Even Trey said something about it after you left.” Mindy’s smile turned mischievous. “Though apparently Nick Thomas had his head in a barrel—either that or he needs glasses. He asked me for your phone number after you left.”
Sky didn’t know what to say to that bit of news. “We talked about Legacy House. He probably just wants some more information.”
Nick seemed like a nice enough guy. There just hadn’t been that connection she felt with Jared. That attraction that drew her to him whenever he entered the room. Of course, that same attraction made him push her away every time they got close.
“I’m going to let Jared know you’re here, then I want to get your vital signs and measurements,” Sky said as she pulled out her phone to text Jared. “Have you had any new issues this week? Any cramping? Swelling?”
She was hoping to change the subject from her and Jared quickly. The last thing she wanted was for Mindy to say something in front of him.
“No. I feel perfectly healthy. I just wish Trey wasn’t such a worrier. By the time I have this baby he’ll have me swaddled in bubble wrap,” Mindy complained as Sky helped her up onto the examination table.
Glad that Mindy was willing to let the subject go, Sky went through the exam quickly. When Jared knocked on the door, she already had Mindy draped and the ultrasound machine positioned.
“Okay, let’s see how this little one is growing,” Jared said as he moved the ultrasound wand over Mindy’s abdomen. Within minutes he had all the measurements. And when the baby decided to give them that perfect view that would let them know its sex, Sky quickly changed the screen’s direction.
“Everything looks perfect. The baby measures right at thirty weeks, which almost perfectly matches your due date,” Jared said. “Would you like me to get a picture to send home for Trey?”
“I’d love that. He had planned to come, but there was some problem with the production of this week’s show that he wanted to clear up. He and Joe get along well, don’t get me wrong, but Trey knows Joe’s job is to hype up the show with as much drama as possible. Sometimes he has to reel him in.”
Jared handed Mindy a towel so she could wipe off all the ultrasound goo. “Joe’s coming in Monday to interview the two of us here in the office after hours.”
Sky looked over at him. She’d known that the interview was coming up. But Monday? She just hoped that Joe wouldn’t ask any personal questions. The show was named Carters’ Way, so she assumed they’d just be asked a couple questions in general about the care they gave their patients and maybe a question concerning the way the two of them were working together.
She was still thinking about the interview as she walked Mindy to the office’s back entrance.
“I feel I should give you a heads-up about the interview,” Mindy said as she adjusted the hood over her head. “Trey and I weren’t the only ones who saw what was happening between you and Jared at the party. Trey was with Marjorie when you were dancing together.”
“It was just a dance,” Sky said as she opened the back door for her.
“You better keep practicing that line. Maybe Marjorie will believe it.” Mindy grinned, then sprinted out the door toward her car.
As Sky stood and watched the country star get in her car, she repeated the words over and over, practicing putting emphasis on different words. “It was just a dance. It was just a dance. It was just a dance.”
By the time she’d gotten back to her office, she had even almost convinced herself.
* * *
When Jared had agreed to a one-on-one interview, this wasn’t what he was expecting. He’d assumed that the producer had meant to interview them himself. Instead it was Marjorie, wearing another red suit, sitting across from them. Her first couple of questions concerning their education and qualifications he had been prepared for. They each talked about the colleges they’d attended and where they had done residency. Sky managed to get in a few comments about Legacy House and the work they did there, but then something about Marjorie changed. There was a gleam in her eyes that put him on guard. This must be what a poor mouse felt like right before a snake went in for the killing strike.
“I can’t tell you how happy Mindy and Trey are to have you and Sky taking care of Mindy and the baby. They’ve made several comments about how well the two of you get along.” Marjorie’s eyes took on a predatory look as her hands with their metallic red finger nails clasped together and she leaned in toward him. “And after seeing the way you were together at the party, I can see why. The two of you on a dance floor can really heat up a room.”
He was stunned. This wasn’t the type of question he had been expecting.
“Jared does look good on a dance floor, doesn’t he? And we did enjoy the party.” Sky’s smile was perfect and there was sincerity in every word she said. “I can’t thank Mindy and Trey enough for inviting us.”
For a moment he thought Sky had shut down Marjorie on the subject of the party. Then the woman turned back to him and he suddenly felt like the weakest link.
“Jared, what about you? Sky seems to think you look good on the dance floor. How about her? What was it like to dance with this beautiful woman? It was plain to see that she was the hit of the party. Nick Thomas sure seemed to think so.”
Why did the mention of that man’s name bother him so much? It was time to get this interview back on track. “Sky is a beautiful woman inside and out. Her patients love her.”
“I’m sure they do.” Marjorie’s eyes bounced between the two of them.
She was looking for another angle to go at him. He had to cut her off. “I just want to assure the audience that Mindy is in the best of hands with Sky. Working together, I know that we will be able to give the Carter family the best care in the country.”
“I’m sure you will,” Marjorie said, her eyes narrowing in warning that she’d come after them if they didn’t take care of Mindy and her baby. Then she smiled. “You know, right now the two of you are almost the only people who know the sex of Mindy and Trey’s baby. It seems that all of Nashville is wondering whether it will be a girl or a boy. Someone has even started an online betting pool. How does it feel to have such exclusive information?”
The woman seemed determined to find some kind of drama for this interview. “Actually, it’s something we are very familiar with handling. Some of our patients want to wait till their baby is born to discover the sex.”
“But I have to tell you, Marjorie, it is exciting having a secret that big,” Sky said. Then leaning in to Marjorie, she whispered just loud enough for the camera to hear her, “But I’m still not telling.”
The cameraman stopped filming. Marjorie clapped her hands together. “That was perfect, Sky. The sponsors will love it.”
Jared had no idea why Marjorie was so excited, but if it kept her away from trying to hype up some type of romantic connection between him and Sky he was glad to go along with it.
As soon as he’d shown Marjorie and her cameraman out the door, he hunted down Sky in her office.
“Please explain to me what just happened,” Jared muttered.
Sky gave him a smile then slung a bag over her shoulder as she headed for the door. “Marjorie wasn’t going to let us go without getting something more exciting than the name of what colleges we attended. I watched this season’s opener this weekend. It’s a nice enough show, but there isn’t a lot of drama because they are basically a happy couple. Happy couples don’t draw ratings. I could tell that Marjorie and Joe wanted us to hype up the pregnancy. I just added a dramatic flair to the truth. We might know the sex of Mindy and Trey’s baby, but we aren’t going to tell anyone.”
“So the questions about the party weren’t just because Marjorie was being nosy? She was looking for some dirt to spread around?” Sky nodded, but it still didn’t make sense to him. No one cared about two unimportant health care providers. It wasn’t a glamorous job like being a country music star.
Which reminded him of Nick. “And I guess she was just trying to tie you and Nick together for ratings too?”
“Maybe,” she said as he followed her down the hallway.
“I’ll have to tell him about it the next time I talk to him.” Sky opened the back door and when she turned to face him, he recognized that impish smile of hers.
Then after a wink that made his heart skip a beat, she walked away, leaving him wanting to follow her. And not for the first time that week, he regretted that he couldn’t do just that.
CHAPTER NINE
SKY HAD PLANNED a nice quiet Saturday. Instead she found herself sitting next to Jared on the Carters’ band bus on the way to a concert in Knoxville.
“You didn’t have to come,” Sky said, before she spun herself around in the swivel chair set up at one of the tables in the bus.
“You’re going to make yourself sick if you keep doing that,” Jared pointed out. “And I did have to come. We’re in this together. Remember?”
When Sky had received the phone call from Mindy asking if she could tag along for the tour stop, she’d been too excited to go to ask many questions. But after seeing Jared there and finding out that Trey’s worry had caused Mindy to call Sky because she hadn’t been feeling good, the trip had changed from fun to one of professional concern. Still, if you had to work on a Saturday night, you might as well enjoy yourself. And with a bus designed for comfort, this wasn’t a bad trip.
“Of course, I remember,” Sky answered. “But Mindy is fine now. I checked her blood pressure and she denied having any contractions. You could have stayed at home.”
Not that she really minded him being there. He’d dressed the part tonight in jeans and a chambray buttoned-up shirt. His black boots had been shined to perfection. If she gave him a cowboy hat, he would have looked like another member of the band. With her own short, denim skirt and her brown, knee high boots, they both looked like part of the band, which worked out well since Mindy was adamant that no one suspect there were any worries about her health.
A couple of the band members came out of a back area, carrying their instruments. In minutes they were playing one of their new hits that had just come out. Sky smiled and tapped her bootheel to the rhythm. This was so much better than sitting around her house and doing her laundry.
She looked over at Jared and was surprised to see that he was enjoying the music just as much as she had. When she smiled at him and he smiled back at her, she thought her chest would burst open. Was this the real Jared? The one she’d caught a glimpse of while dancing with him, the one who’d opened up to her about his birth mom? She’d always known that he was holding back something. Hiding some part of him away from everyone. Was he so afraid of letting someone in that he hid that smile, those emotions of happiness and the joy of living, from everyone?
Then to her surprise, he picked up a guitar that had been lying on the table and began to play along with the band members.
Sky didn’t move, afraid she’d break the spell that the music had wrapped around Jared. She listened with awe as the band changed the song, flowing into another one, an older song about loss and pain. It was a drinking song that had been redone by many music stars and it only took a few seconds for Jared to catch up with the rest of the group. They played for half an hour before the musicians set down their instruments and, after shaking Jared’s hand and inviting him to play with them again, they disappeared into the back of the bus to change for the concert.
“That was amazing,” she said when they were once more alone. “Why didn’t I know that you could play?”
“I have my secrets,” He said. His face was flushed with color. Embarrassment? He’d always had a confidence that Sky had admired, but she’d really only spent time with him at work until the last two weeks.
“Tell me one?” She loved seeing this side of him. Maybe if she kept him talking he wouldn’t notice how much of himself he was allowing her to see.
“Like what?” he asked, his hands still strumming over the strings of the guitar.
“I don’t know, just something you don’t share. Like the fact that you can hold your own with a professional country band. It doesn’t have to be something big. I’ll even tell you some of my own secrets.”
Jared looked up from the guitar he’d been studying. “Okay, but you go first. Tell me some more of those deep, dark secrets you are hiding behind that smile you always wear.”
“First, I didn’t say it would be that kind of secret. You already know most of my story anyhow. I mean more like something we don’t know about each other. Like...” She searched for something insignificant to share. “I know. I hide chocolate bars around my house so that I have to look for them.”
“Okay, that’s just weird,” Jared said. “Why don’t you put them in the kitchen like everyone else?”
“Because then I’d eat them. If I hide them I have to make a point of looking for them. It gives me a few moments to decide if it’s really worth the trouble.”
“So it keeps you from eating chocolate?” The corners of his lips rose in a small, knowing smirk.
“That’s a secret for another time,” she said, returning his smirk. “Now it’s your turn.”
He leaned in, copying the way she’d leaned in to Marjorie when they’d taped their interview for the reality show. “Every week, even though I know I shouldn’t...”
Sky leaned in closer, his lips so close she could feel his breath against her own. For a moment she forgot what he was saying, and then his eyes met hers and something flashed between the two of them. Her breath caught and her lips parted. She wanted him to move closer. She wanted him to kiss her. It wouldn’t take much. Their lips were only a few inches apart.
Jared pushed back from the table, leaving her straining toward him. “I make a really big homemade pizza and I eat the whole thing by myself.”
