City Surgeon, Small Town Miracle

elderly woman. ‘If you’ll excuse me, I need an urgent word with Terri, with Dr Mitchell.’

‘Of course, dear. We’ll chat another time.’

‘Absolutely.’ He nodded. A muscle rippled in his jaw as though he was keeping his emotions on a tight leash while he chatted with Edith. He stood aside so she could move through the door. ‘You can count on it.’

As soon as the patient had gone, he shut the door. The latch snicked loudly in the silence and he stood for a moment with his hand on the doorknob.

Terri’s mouth went dry. ‘Luke. Is there a problem with Allie?’

‘No. No. Just the opposite.’ His voice was gruff as he turned.

Terri found herself scooped into a tight hug. For a split second she froze as sensations tumbled into her brain. The feeling of his solid body aligned with hers, the heat and strength of his arms wrapped around her. The fresh essence of him, faintly tangy, masculine and clean. She flattened her hands on his back, feeling the hard ridge of muscle on either side of his spine.

She shut her eyes, savouring the contact as her knees turned rubbery. The embrace felt wonderful and for a magical instant his touch erased her sorrow and filled empty places in her spirit. In his arms, she felt more whole than she had for a long, long time.

After a moment, he held her at arm’s length, his eyes burning down into hers.

‘Thank you.’ His throat worked as he struggled to speak. ‘I owe you more than I can ever repay.’

‘Oh, Luke.’ This glimpse into his vulnerability was wrenching. Terri ached for him. She reached up to cup his cheek.

He brought his hand up, held her fingers more firmly to his face. The very faint roughness of his clean-shaven jaw tingled on her skin. Her heart squeezed.

‘You saved my daughter’s life and you’ve performed a miracle by getting her talking to me.’ His head dipped and his lips touched her palm for a tiny thrilling moment.

She sucked in a quick breath at the caress, reminding herself that it meant nothing. Luke was naturally demonstrative and this moment was an emotional one for him. His love for his daughter and his relief at their reunion was spilling over into his actions. But her stubborn heart somersaulted wildly, refusing to listen to common sense.

‘You’ve given her back to me, Terri.’

With her senses so overloaded with physical awareness, she struggled to bring her mind back to their discussion. Allie. ‘You never lost her, Luke. She loves you very much. You know she does. She’s just confused right now. You were the person she asked for when she was brought in today.’

‘Was I? Thank you.’ His grip tightened on her hand briefly when she tried to withdraw her fingers. After a moment he released her and a grin lit up his face. ‘She hugged me.’

‘Yeah, she did.’ Terri’s smile felt quivery. ‘I saw.’

He sobered. ‘My poor baby. Thinking her mother’s death was her fault. I didn’t see it. I still don’t know how she could have believed it.’

‘Children have their own view of the way the world works.’ She curled her fingers into her palm, as though by holding tight she could lock the sensory memory of his skin on hers. Maybe part of the reason she had been able to tap into Allie’s feelings was because of her hyper-sensitivity to the girl’s father. ‘They sometimes feel responsible for things in a way that an adult wouldn’t consider.’

‘Yes.’ He paced away from her, lifting one hand to his forehead. His fingers furrowed through his hair, leaving endearing tufts standing in their wake.

Terri allowed her gaze to stray over his broad shoulders. The soft woven fabric of his white shirt showed off his powerful torso to perfection. With the sleeves rolled up to elbow level, she could appreciate his muscular forearms. She smiled wryly. She’d always had a weakness for nice arms and hands.

And firm thighs and posteriors. She sighed. The navy denim of Luke’s jeans fitted him very well indeed.

He spun around and his eyes drilled into hers. Heat crawled into her face as though she’d been caught doing something she shouldn’t.

‘No wonder I couldn’t reach her. I should have listened to you the other day when you suggested she was punishing herself.’ He moved restlessly to the side again and Terri released the breath caught in her lungs. ‘She was so ill. I can’t get the picture of her struggling for breath out of my mind.’

‘Luke-’

He looked back at her fiercely. ‘I nearly lost it in the emergency room.’

‘But you didn’t.’

‘Only thanks to you treating me like a raw intern.’

‘Allie is your daughter. Of course it was difficult for you.’

‘I don’t know what I’d have done if-’

‘Stop this. Right now.’ She knew too well how he’d have felt. She might not be a parent in the full sense of the word but she knew what it was like to lose a child. The guilt could be paralysing. ‘Stop torturing yourself. Allie has recovered and she needs her father. All of him. Not someone fractured by guilt. It’s a pointless emotion when you should be concentrating on each other.’

‘Yes. You’re right.’ He dragged a hand down his face then gave her a gorgeous, lopsided smile. ‘Thank you. For everything. Including the pep talk. You see things beyond the physical. It makes you an extraordinary doctor, Terri.’

Terri swallowed and looked away. She shoved her hands into her coat pockets. His praise was almost more than she could bear because she knew exactly how limited her abilities were.

He trusted her.

It was priceless.

It was an almost intolerable burden.

She wanted to warn him not to think too highly of her. Warn him how very flawed her judgement could be.

‘Luke, please…’ Her voice was croaky. She cleared her throat before continuing. ‘I was just doing-’

‘Don’t say you were just doing your job. It was much more than that. We’re lucky to have you here at Port Cavill.’ He looked deeply into her eyes and there was no doubting his sincerity. ‘I’m lucky to have you here.’

The warm approval was too much. She needed to shrug it off, find a way to keep him at a distance, to quash this intimacy that seemed to have sprung up between them.

‘Well,’ she said, struggling for a light note, ‘I’m glad you think so. Please remember this when I do something to blot my copy book.’

Her smile felt ghastly as she blinked back the urge to cry. She needed to go, find somewhere private to pull herself back together. She cast unseeing eyes in the direction of her watch and said, ‘I must catch the lab tech before she goes for the day.’

She all but fled, not caring what he thought. As the barrier of the door clicked shut behind her, she sagged with relief.

Too much, too soon. Being close to him showed her how very flimsy the shell of her carefully mended persona was. She wasn’t ready for the powerful, conflicting emotions that Luke awakened. She wondered if she ever would be. She shivered. How long would she be able to hold the facade together under the pressure?

Luke stared at the door after Terri had gone.

He frowned. She’d seemed embarrassed by his thanks. More than that, she’d seemed ashamed, as though she was somehow undeserving of them. But that was ridiculous-she’d saved his daughter’s life today.

He’d been there, he’d seen how hard she’d worked, seen her skill and determination. He couldn’t praise her highly enough for what she’d done.

He owed her. He respected her.

And he wanted her.

Needy hunger that clawed at him. He’d held her in his arms twice now-embraces that had started out with the very best platonic intentions. But he’d felt the heat grow in his lower abdomen on both occasions, giving the contact with her a sizzling, inappropriate energy.

Familiarity wasn’t kicking in as quickly as he’d hoped. He just had to keep holding himself in check until it did.

He huffed out a breath. An armful of Terri Mitchell would test the restraint of a saint. All he had was the very