She smelled like a lavender garden.
“Bad breath?”
“Not that I can tell.” He hadn’t gotten close enough to really know. Yet.
“Then you have some explaining to do, cuz, ‘cause she sounds fine to me. Why aren’t you interested in her?”
“She actually isn’t interested in me. She doesn’t date.”
Rey laughed out loud at that one. Duncan could hear the wheeze as he struggled for breath. “That’s a good one. Maybe she likes ladies instead.”
“No. She’s straight for sure, but she doesn’t date. Now someone who is as gorgeous as she is should have men standing in line for her, but she doesn’t, and isn’t interested.” He paused a moment. Rey was a cop and had finely tuned instincts. He definitely knew how to read people. “Does that make sense to you?”
“Not to me, but to her it does. Something probably happened to her she’s not over yet.” Rey snorted. “You’re the doctor, not me. Aren’t you supposed to know this stuff already?”
“Yes, but it just doesn’t make sense.” Seriously.
“Not to me either, but you know women, they can change on a dime. Maybe she just doesn’t like you.” He laughed that one up big time.
“What?” Seriously? He was nice, had a good job and—
“Come on, man, lighten up. I’m just kidding. What lady in her right mind wouldn’t like you?” He knew all about Duncan’s romantic escapades since they’d both discovered girls were cool.
“Sounds like you need to have a heart-to-heart with this lady. If she’s like you say, you can talk to her, right? And if you can’t talk to the woman you’re in love with, there’s something wrong.”
“Whoa. I’m not in love with her.” But he would admit to being intrigued by her. And very attracted to her.
“Maybe she just has a broken heart you need to fix. Some ladies have tender hearts, even the tough ones. You’re a doctor, so heal her.” There was mumbling on the phone and the sound of children giggling in the background. “I gotta go, bro’. The wife’s out with her lady friends tonight, and I have dad duty. Homework, baths, the works.”
“Sounds like fun.” Duncan knew Rey loved being a dad, and he hoped to be one someday, too. Having grown up surrounded by cousins, he wanted a big family of his own. He had wanted to marry Valerie and be a dad, too. That’s what had been the last straw in their relationship. They’d argued. She hadn’t wanted children. Period. She’d taken off in her car and crashed. He’d followed behind her and pulled her from the wreckage, but she’d died in his arms.
“So what’s your lady friend’s name?” More giggling in the background, and Duncan knew his time with Rey was just about up.
“Rebel Taylor.” Even as he said it, her name lingered in his mind, and he wanted to see her again. Soon.
“Okay, okay, wait. Her name is Rebel? Seriously? Maybe she was just born bad with a name like that.” In his culture superstitions were everywhere, so it wasn’t a surprise his cousin said that.
“She’s a perfectly nice woman, Rey. She has a proper name but it doesn’t suit her at all.” The thought of using her given name didn’t feel right.
“Then why don’t you just ask her? You’ve never been shy about getting what you want, even if it’s just information.”
“I don’t know.” He ran a hand through his hair. “There’s something with her. A vulnerability or something that’s deep. When I talked about Jamaica, she said it’s on her bucket list to do before she dies.”
“So?”
Was his cousin brain dead? “Seriously? Would you want to wait till you’re old to go to a place like that?”
“Good point. That’s messed up.”
“And she had never heard of green chili.”
Silence on the other end for a moment. “You’re serious?”
“Unbelievable, isn’t it?”
“You should marry that woman.”
Duncan blinked. “That’s a hell of a leap. From ‘This is green chili’ to ‘Will you marry me?’”
“Well, you know this lady isn’t out for your money if she’s never even heard of green chili, and she certainly doesn’t know about the family business.” There was a snort of indignation in the background. “Just need to find yourself a woman like my Julia. She’s the best.”
“Of course she is, but you’ve known her since we were kids.”
“True.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, should the occasion arise. For now, I’m just bringing a coworker to the ranch for the weekend. No big deal.”
After signing off with Rey, he did his best to settle down for the night. A pair of haunted green eyes kept appearing in his mind’s eye. There was something, some pain, some regret, some…something she couldn’t hide. He wanted to help, wanted to take her in his arms and hold her close.
Was it only curiosity holding him captive? Was it the shared experience of rescuing Eric bonding them when otherwise they’d have just been acquaintances? Or was he imagining something that wasn’t there, simply because he was lonely?
Flopping facedown onto his bed, he gave up for the night. He didn’t know what the answer was, maybe Saturday would tell, but right now he needed some shut-eye.
After a few more days of chaos in the ER and seeing Duncan only briefly, Rebel was ready for a weekend of peace and quiet, with a small side trip to meet Duncan’s elderly grandfather. Duncan had called and said he’d pick her up at eight a.m., so she was ready to go.
She flitted around her apartment, waiting for Duncan. Was she out of her mind? Had he really invited her to meet his grandfather? What had she been thinking to agree to that? She didn’t meet the families of people she worked with. She didn’t even socialize with people she worked with. She didn’t know how many invitations she’d turned down or avoided over the last six years of her travel nursing career that had been offered by coworkers.
The echo of their words rang in her mind.
Come on, it’ll be fun.
It’s just one cocktail.
You work too much.
Why don’t you want to come?
They were all well meaning, and she certainly could have made more friends, but people who extended offers like that expected something in return. They wanted something from her. Wanted to get to know her, and that was out of the question.
The doorbell rang, and Rebel’s pulse kicked into high gear. If she
