A Nurse, a Surgeon, a Christmas Engagement

  “Are you asking me on a date, Lena?” The confusion on his face had cleared and in its place sat a self-satisfied smirk.

  And there it was.

  That unbearable arrogance that all the surgeons she’d ever met possessed.

  Was it issued to them along with their medical licenses?

  “Ugh!” Her hands flew up in irritation. “Why did I ever entertain this idea?”

  Annoyance flashed through her, white-hot and simmering on the cusp of anger. Dexter Henry frustrated her more than anyone had in a long time.

  “Because you know we’d be perfectly suited to take care of each other’s needs.” Not a question. There was an undercurrent to his words that took that phrase from simple statement to sensual promise. His gaze moved over her body before he made eye contact once more, making her 1,000 percent certain that he’d meant his words to have multiple meanings.

  Her skin heated under the scrutiny of his gaze and she swallowed hard.

  She couldn’t do this.

  “This is a bad idea.”

  Or a very good one...

  Dear Reader,

  One of the best things about writing romance is that I get to experience the fun of falling in love over and over. With each new couple comes new obstacles, new heartbreaks and the tendrils of fresh new love.

  Both distrustful of love, Dex and Lena find themselves in need of dates for holiday events, so they agree to help each other out for the holidays by pretending to be in a relationship. There’s a lot at stake—embarrassment if they are found out, heartache if their love is unrequited. Are they willing to risk it all by opening their hearts and trusting one another enough to fall in love?

  I had so much fun writing Dex and Lena’s story and I hope you enjoy their journey to their happily-ever-after.

  Best wishes,

  Allie

  A Nurse, a Surgeon, a Christmas Engagement

  Allie Kincheloe

  Allie Kincheloe has been writing stories as long as she can remember, and somehow, they always become romances. Always a Kentucky girl at heart, she now lives in Tennessee with her husband, children and a growing menagerie of pets. Visit her on Twitter: @alliekauthor.

  Books by Allie Kincheloe

  Harlequin Medical Romance

  Heart Surgeon’s Second Chance

  Visit the Author Profile page at Harlequin.com.

  To all the brave doctors, nurses and other medical personnel who risk it all each day.

  You’ve inspired me.

  Praise for Allie Kincheloe

  “I loved the couple, their history and the pacing of their romance which was pitched just right.... Allie Kincheloe is an author I’ll definitely be reading more from in the future.”

  —Goodreads on Heart Surgeon’s Second Chance

  Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  EXCERPT FROM THE BODYGUARD’S CHRISTMAS PROPOSAL BY CHARLOTTE HAWKES

  CHAPTER ONE

  SCALPEL IN HAND, Dr. Dexter Henry made his initial cut through the abdomen of his patient. As the skin parted, the ringtone he reserved for his mother began to play. His muscles tightened with dread, but before he could open his mouth to tell the nurse handling messages to ignore that one, she read it.

  Out loud.

  Where everyone in the operating room could hear.

  “Dr. Henry, your mother is texting. It says: The Wicked Witch of Westfield will be riding her broom back into town for your brother’s wedding. Thought you should know ahead of time. How would you like me to reply?”

  Hand frozen over the fresh incision, Dex struggled to maintain focus. The synapses in his brain blasted off like a Fourth of July fireworks display. Jessie had finally resurfaced. For some time now, Dex had managed to put the woman who’d quite literally left him standing at the altar out of his mind. Hearing that she’d returned opened a Pandora’s box of memories he’d rather not relive.

  Heart beating faster, negative thoughts flashed by one by one like an old film strip in his mind showing him the low points in his relationship with Jessie. It took more effort than he wanted to admit to shove down the moment of panic temporarily overwhelming him. Surgeons with a patient’s life in their hands could not afford to let their minds drift off in the middle of a procedure to times—and women—best left forgotten.

  “Dr. Henry?” the nurse questioned.

  “No reply yet. I’ll take care of it when I’m finished here.” Dex sighed. Why couldn’t his mother have waited until he was out of surgery to text that information?

  “Well, now I’m even more curious,” the nurse said as she laid his phone back down. “Is there more to you than we know, Dr. Henry?”

  Ignoring her question, Dex said, “Suction, please. I need better visualization.”

  While Dex was trying to put the text and the woman in question out of his mind, the overly eager young resident couldn’t seem to let the matter drop. Practically a prodigy when it came to medicine and surgery, the young man had no people skills, and his bedside manner needed work. With his lack of ability to read people squarely on display, the resident pushed for more information despite how Dex had clearly tried to shut the topic down. “Oh, come on, Dr. Henry, you can’t leave us hanging like that! Who is the Wicked Witch? Where is Westfield? And most intriguingly, why is it important that you know she’s coming to the wedding?”

  As the words left the resident’s lips, everyone in the room seemed to nod in unison. A chorus of “Mmm-hmm” and “That’s right” followed.

  Dex closed his eyes briefly. While snapping at the doctor in training might make him feel better temporarily, it certainly wouldn’t help this uncomfortable situation. Finally, he decided to give them a very clipped version of his past while keeping his tone ice-cold to discourage further discussion. Still, his secrets would be on the lips of every nurse and carried through the entire hospital on excited whispers by the end of the day. Gossip traveled through a hospital faster than a virus, and he’d rather it be the truth than let them draw their own conclusions from his mother’s words.

  “Her real name is Jessie. And it’s important because she hasn’t been back to our hometown since she disappeared on our wedding day.”

  Only the blips on the monitors and the occasional rustle of paper broke the silence in the OR. The familiar noises seeped into his soul, and he let them soothe the ragged edges that voicing his secrets had exposed. The quiet should have been unnerving, considering everyone in the OR was currently contemplating his confession, but instead he found it comforting. When the silence continued, Dex put his head down and got back to work.

  “You know, if you need a date, all you have to do is ask,” Belinda finally spoke up.

  Who else would make such an offer? Her support brought a smile to his face. Fifteen years his senior, Belinda had taken him under her wing when he’d first arrived at Metro Memorial Hospital with the cocky greenness of residency still permeating his every interaction. She’d taken him down a notch or two. There was no one else at the hospital who he respected more.

  “Ah, but, Bel
inda, I’m already in love with you. Taking you back home to Westfield would just tempt me for things I know I can’t have.” He winked at the older woman. He didn’t worry that his favorite scrub nurse would misunderstand his flirty words as an actual come-on. They didn’t have that kind of relationship, just a teasing dynamic that allowed them both to let their guards down with each other.

  Belinda stared at him over her mask. “If she’s coming, then you need a date.”

  “It’s you or no one, B.” Even as the words slipped past his lips, the truth in her words sank in. He did need someone to go home with him for the wedding. Not Belinda, but someone to get his mother off his back. From the moment his brother Tommy had announced to the world that Jill had accepted his proposal, their mother had been on a one-woman mission to find Dex a new love.

  His grip tightened around the scalpel in his hand. He’d rather stab himself with it than give Westfield something else to gossip about. He had only been home once since his ill-fated trip to the altar, and it had been awkward to say the least. In a single week at home, his mom had stuck every single woman in town under the age of forty in his path in hopes that he’d finally move on from Jessie. Awkward? Nah... What could be awkward about a parade of women he wasn’t remotely interested in?

  He had, though.

  Moved on, that is. Even if his mother was having trouble believing that.

  He dated. Quite frequently, even. But no one seriously enough to bring home. He only dated to have a little adult companionship on occasion. A physical release, not an emotional connection. No risk for either party. In fact, he told anyone he dated from day one just what he was willing to give, and he always made sure to end things before anyone got hurt. None of the women he’d dated recently would work for this half-hatched plan, either.

  He wouldn’t want to lead someone on, after all. Taking someone home for a family wedding during the holidays implied so many emotions that Dex almost shuddered in revulsion at the thought. Asking a woman to be his date to a family wedding at Christmas implied that a box with a diamond ring sat under the tree. And he’d never take that step again.

  No, he planned to stay single forever. He had zero interest in long-term commitment, and he’d hesitate to do anything that might give any impression otherwise. After his trip down Matrimony Lane had dead-ended with him standing at the altar alone, his entire hometown watching as he got dumped from afar, Dex could live the rest of his life without putting himself into that sort of situation again.

  “Taking a date would save me from more than a few matchmaking attempts and a fair bit of pointed stares. But finding someone on such short notice would be nearly impossible. It’s a Christmas wedding,” he added aloud, his thoughts running with how much more difficult the timing made things.

  Getting someone to pretend to be his new girlfriend in June would have been easy. He’d just spring for a few days at a luxury beach resort and voilà, instant girlfriend. But with the wedding planned for the holidays, it made it ten times trickier to find someone to go along with a fake relationship scheme.

  “Ah...so you need someone to go home with you, pretend to like you, and for the holidays no less. That will be hard to find.” Lena’s green eyes sparkled and he thought he might be able to see a hint of a smile behind her mask. “Who would have thought that a handsome young surgeon would have to resort to a fake Christmas girlfriend?”

  “Are you volunteering?” He eyed Lena. She would be perfect. Just his type—long brown hair, more than a few curves and enough sass to keep him on his toes. And even more, Lena intrigued him.

  He’d actually asked her out when she’d first started working at the hospital a few months back and she’d turned him down cold. Women didn’t tend to ignore him or say no to him. If anything, they usually came to him, leaving him to be the one to let them down easy. But not Lena. She’d looked him up and down, shook her head and said, “I’d rather empty bedpans.” Ever since that day, she’d dodged him outside a surgical suite whenever she could.

  When she didn’t immediately answer, Dex returned his gaze to his patient. “Can I get more suction?”

  For the next while, Dex gave his patient and the surgery his full attention. He ensured the patient was taken care of before he returned his attention to Lena.

  Making eye contact with her, he murmured, “You never answered me.”

  Word around the hospital called Lena an ice queen—a brilliant and reliable nurse, but cold and limited in her friendship. He didn’t know her story, had no clue why she had icicles in her eyes, but she’d certainly frozen him out. In his eyes, that made her a perfect candidate for a fake girlfriend. She’d never want or expect a proposal under the mistletoe.

  Lena tilted her head and stared at him for a moment, her eyes seeming to reach deep into his soul as she considered his question. Scrutinizing him for some time, she finally asked, “How close to Christmas is it?”

  “Christmas Eve.” He rolled his eyes. “My future sister-in-law is a nut for Christmas. I think she’d have gone with Christmas Day if the pastor at the church would have allowed it.”

  The smallest laugh came from Lena at his words. “Is she really that bad?”

  “You have no idea.” Jill lived and breathed Christmas year-round. It had come as no surprise to anyone in the family when the wedding date had been declared as Christmas Eve. No one had blinked an eye since it had been expected from the moment she’d said yes to his brother’s proposal. “When you meet her, you’ll see.”

  “When I meet her... When?” She raised an eyebrow and he had to actively force himself not to flinch under the intensity of her gaze. “You’re awfully sure of yourself, aren’t you? I haven’t agreed to anything yet.”

  “Wishful thinking?” He flashed her a hopeful smile. “It would really help me out.”

  “Are you willing to return the favor? I have a...thing in Los Angeles on New Year’s Eve that would go much more smoothly for me if I had a successful surgeon at my side.”

  “Are we talking New Year’s Eve party or decapitating the one who wronged you?”

  Hearty peals of laughter rang out at his dark joke, and an awareness shot up in him like he’d been injected. He shook it off and focused on her words.

  “The former. I might have to take you up on the latter, though. It’s a fundraiser gala, black tie, of course. My father runs a hospital out there, and lately my mother spends her time doing his bidding and raising money for various charities. If I tell them I’m coming alone, it will be, uh, very strongly suggested that I take my father’s current protégé as my date. And if there’s anything I want less than attending this gala in the first place, it’s attending it with that guy.”

  * * *

  “Well, I do happen to own a tux. I suppose we should coordinate the details sometime before then.” The dark-haired surgeon glanced over at her, and she thought he might be smiling beneath his mask. “It wouldn’t be good if my fake Christmas girlfriend missed the wedding because I didn’t give her the right directions.”

  Thank god for surgical masks that hid the blushes that her body seemed determined to produce any time he glanced her way. What was wrong with her? The man made her crazy. She couldn’t be in the same room with him without wanting to strangle him, so why did she find herself glancing in his direction every few minutes and growing warm whenever their eyes met?

  “So, who here is skipping the hospital Christmas party on Saturday?” the anesthesiologist asked. “I’m on call so I’ll have to be here even though I hate the Secret Santa crap. Who needs another Christmas candle or a gift card in a lesser denomination than you brought? Or worse, a polo shirt that’s three sizes too large, like I got last year.”

  “I’m skipping it,” Lena and Dex said at the same time.

  “Ooh... You two have a hot date?”

  “No.” Again, they spoke at the same time. Dex looked over at her and t
heir gazes locked over the patient. A hint of amusement crinkled the laugh lines at the corners of his eyes.

  When she met his eyes, though, her heart grew erratic. Dr. Dexter Henry had eyes a woman could spend the rest of her life lost in, with thick, dark lashes that framed them perfectly. But more than being captivating, those eyes held a level of emotion Lena wasn’t used to seeing. A hint of mirth sparkled over his little joke, but behind that lingered a shadow. Had the ex-fiancée put the darkness in his gaze? And what would it take to banish the ghosts of his past and brighten his eyes back to their true brilliance?

  “Uh-huh.” The anesthesiologist laughed. “It would be more convincing if the pair of you weren’t sneaking heated glances at each other every few seconds and practically finishing each other’s sentences.”

  Lena shook her head, unable to form words at that moment. If other people were noticing, she must have been looking at Dex far more than she’d realized. Embarrassed tears welled up in her eyes and she blinked rapidly, determined to keep them from spilling over. Crap.

  Gossip had been the motivating force behind her leaving LA, and she’d been in Nashville less than six months before finding herself right back in the middle of it. The one-year contract was supposed to give her the breathing room she needed to decide what to do with her life. Nashville had started to feel like home. Despite its lack of sand and ocean views, she could see herself making a life there. Away from California and her overbearing parents. She’d found a calm in Tennessee, but the anxiety and fears that the fresh start had quelled came rolling back in with a vengeance when she found herself the topic of conversation again. She swallowed hard. She hoped no one noticed the big, shaky breath she took while trying to gain control over her emotions.

  “Leave it alone, Jason,” Dex warned, his voice low and firm. “Worry about our patient, not my personal life.”

  “Come on, Dex, I’m just having a little fun. Don’t get your scrubs in a knot.”