but she doubted that would ever happen. They were permanently etched in her mind. When she looked down at the baby she was carrying, she’d be forever reminded of their time together.
Now he was a colleague and she didn’t want to date someone at work. She didn’t want there to be any more gossip than there already was.
She wasn’t going to raise a child in a loveless marriage. One that would drive him away and cause him to abandon her child, like her mother had done to her.
Other than an explosive physical connection with Clint, she didn’t know him. He was a stranger.
“I’d better go.” Ingrid wanted to put distance between the two of them. She ran her fingers through her hair, trying to distract him from the blush that burned her cheeks.
“That’s a good idea.”
Ingrid stood, but as she did so her belly tightened and a horrible cramp struck her. She cried out and doubled over as she sat back down on the mattress. It was hard to catch her breath, everything felt pressurized, like she was going to explode.
“Ingrid, are you okay?”
“Braxton … Hicks … contraction.” The words came out in a staccato succession as she tried to breathe. She closed her eyes and tried to work her way through it, but she couldn’t remember her breathing technique. It was too hard to focus and she was so uncomfortable.
Oh. God. If this was just a practice contraction, how was she going to get through the real thing?
It terrified her.
This was unknown.
Yes, she was a doctor and understood how the human body worked, but she was a human. A woman. One who was alone.
I don’t want to be alone. And her weakness made her mad at herself.
“Just breathe.” Clint’s voice was calming as she worked her way through more contraction. When they had passed she glanced at up at him and noticed the dark circles under his eyes. He looked haggard. Even worse than when she’d seen him before.
“Are you okay now?” he asked, rubbing her shoulders.
“I’m good, but you’re looking pretty tired yourself.” She reached out and touched his face.
“Well, I was sleeping until someone came barging in and turned on the lights.”
“Sorry.” Ingrid stood with Clint. “I honestly didn’t think anyone was in here. I’ll go home. What’re you doing?”
Clint pulled on his shirt. “Going home with you.”
“Pardon?”
“The only way I’m going to make sure you’ll stay at home is if I take you there myself.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
Clint chuckled. “It’s not a case of me being a nice guy. It’s a case of having to get you there so that I know you’re safely tucked into bed. Give me your keys, I’ll drive.”
Ingrid rolled her eyes. “And if you’re going to drive me in my car, how do you plan to get back here?”
“Taxi. I think I can splurge on a cab.” Clint held out his hand. “Now, hand over your keys.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Don’t make me pick you up and carry you out of here.”
“You wouldn’t dare!”
Clint grinned in a way that made Ingrid think she shouldn’t push him. “Wouldn’t I?”
She rolled her eyes and handed him her keys. He was a persistent guy, she’d give him that, but of course she wouldn’t expect anything less from a trauma attending and former soldier.
This time when they walked out of the on-call room, she wasn’t in his arms, but the eyes of everyone were still on them. She kept her head held high as if she had nothing to hide, but could still feel their curious gazes boring into the back of her neck.
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