Marrying the Playboy Doctor (3 page)

Seconds later Leila Ross, one of the general surgeons who’d cross-trained as a trauma surgeon, walked in. “Hear you have a peds patient on the way?”

“We do.” Seth glanced at Leila, smiling at the petite surgeon who was lucky enough to be carrying the trauma pager for the day. “His vitals are stable, though.”

“Good.” Leila headed over to the sink to wash her hands and he watched for a moment, admiring her silky
straight black hair, pulled back into a long braid. Leila was beautiful in an ethereal way, but as much as he’d enjoyed her company on the few dates they’d had, there hadn’t really been a spark of attraction between them. Since they shared a mutual respect of each other’s abilities, though, they’d decided they were better off remaining friends.

Besides, he’d often sensed Leila’s dark troubled gaze held secrets she wasn’t willing to share.

The doors to the trauma bay burst open and their newest arrival was wheeled in. It took him only two seconds to recognize Kylie, although she wasn’t in her usual paramedic uniform. She wore a soft butter-yellow sweater smeared with blood and a pair of figure-hugging jeans.

“Six-year-old hit by a car while riding his bike. He has a laceration over his left eye and a minor concussion. His pupils are unequal but react to light.” A tall male paramedic rattled off the detailed information. “He also has a possible fracture in his left arm.”

Seth stepped forward to lift the blood-soaked towels to see the laceration, and winced when he saw the gap was large enough that he could see all the way into the child’s orbital eye socket. “Back or neck pain?”

“Ben denies back or neck pain,” Kylie said.

The paramedic glanced at her, and then added, “Ben has some minor scrapes on his left leg, but no other obvious signs of injury. The vehicle was backing up, so it wasn’t going very fast.”

He noticed the way Kylie clung to the boy’s hand. “We’ll need to get a stat CT of his head, and X-rays of his extremities, but I want to stitch up that head wound first.”

Kylie paled at his words, but didn’t let go as she met Seth’s gaze. “I’m staying.”

“Are you his mother?” he asked.

When she nodded, he didn’t show his surprise, but took her arm to draw her away from the bedside. She reluctantly let go of Ben’s hand.

“Is Ben’s father on his way, too?” he asked, thinking that Kylie could use some support.

“No. His father left a long time ago.” Her tone was matter-of-fact, with no sign of bitterness.

“Is there someone else I can call for you?” he persisted. “A friend? Anyone to be here so you don’t have to go through this alone?”

“No, there isn’t anyone to call. We just moved here a few weeks ago.” She was barely paying attention to him, her gaze going back to her son. “I’m fine,” she insisted, tugging to free herself from his grip. “But I’d really like to be there while you stitch him up.”

Sometimes parents didn’t do well when they stayed to watch, but knowing Kylie’s paramedic background he quickly relented. “All right,” he agreed, releasing her arm.

Kylie didn’t hesitate, but went straight back to Ben’s bedside, taking his hand and leaning down to press a soft kiss on her son’s forehead.

Seth knew Kylie was distraught. She hadn’t caught her slip-up, but he had.

She didn’t have a man in her life.

But she did have a son.

Seth let out a sigh. He loved women, and loved having fun, but a family—especially a single mother with a young son—wasn’t a part of his future.

He strode to Ben’s bedside, calling for the facial suture tray, realizing Kylie was very much off-limits.

At least for him.

W
ATCHING
Seth suture the laceration in Ben’s eyebrow was the hardest thing she’d ever had to do.

But she hadn’t made a fool of herself by passing out, although she’d definitely felt woozy for a few bad moments. Which was odd, since she’d seen her fair share of blood while on duty. No wonder they always asked family members to leave for these types of procedures. She’d felt every one of those five tiny stitches Seth had placed more than Ben had, since he’d been given lidocaine to numb the area.

Fighting nausea, she took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Seth had deemed Ben stable enough to be moved out of the trauma bay, and after the CT scan of his head they’d ended up in a small private room in the ED area. It felt strange to be sitting at his bedside, watching the activity all around, instead of being the one bringing patients in.

Now they were simply waiting for the CT scan results, and for the orthopedic surgeon to cast Ben’s left arm. The break was actually fairly minor, not complex at all, but Ben would need to wear a cast for the next four to six weeks.

She closed her eyes and tried not to succumb to the overwhelming wave of guilt. Ben was okay. He wasn’t hurt badly. He knew the rules—knew he shouldn’t have been riding his bike on the road. She didn’t blame Missy Clairmont, because the real fault was hers. If she hadn’t been trying to impress Seth with having a hypothermia protocol finished in record time maybe she would have stayed outside to watch the boys herself, instead of depending on Joey’s mother to do it.

“Kylie?” Seth called from the doorway.

She lifted her head and struggled to smile. “Hi. Do you have the CT results yet?”

He shook his head. “No, but I would like to put the cast on Ben’s arm, if you don’t object. The orthopedic surgeon is pretty far behind. He’s telling me it’ll be another couple of hours before he can break away to come down here.”

Hours? Good grief—she and Ben had already been here for two and a half hours. At this rate it was amazing Cedar Bluff
ever
got patients out of the ED.

“I don’t mind.” The break was simple, and she didn’t doubt that Seth wouldn’t have offered to place the cast if he didn’t know what he was doing. He might have an ego where women were concerned, but so far, from what she’d seen, his medical skills were solid.

“Great, I’ll be right back.” When he returned, he was pushing a bulky cart into Ben’s room. “Hey, Ben. How are you feeling?”

Her son glanced over at Seth with his good eye. His
left eye was swollen and partially covered by the dressing over his incision. “Better,” Ben answered, although his voice was a little slurred.

She sent Seth a wry look. “They gave him something for the pain and he’s been a little loopy.”

Seth grinned. “Hey, there’s nothing wrong with being a little loopy.” He turned his attention back to Ben. “So, Ben, tell me your favorite color. You get to pick what you want for your cast. Or—” he paused dramatically “—we can put this special Green Bay Packers gauze on. What do you think? Pretty cool, huh?”

Ben’s brow puckered as he solemnly surveyed the options on the cast cart. “Doncha have Chicago Bears gauze?”

“Chicago Bears?
What?
You’re kidding me, right? Chicago Bears?” Seth clasped his chest dramatically, staggering back a few steps as he stared at Ben in mock horror. “This is Wisconsin, son. What are you
thinking?
The Chicago Bears are the archenemy.”

Ben giggled, as Seth had meant him to. “I
like
the Chicago Bears.”

“You do realize Green Bay is only seventy-five miles north of here, don’t you? Heck, the stadium is practically in our backyard.”

Ben shrugged. Kylie doubted her son even understood how far seventy-five miles was. “I don’t care.”

“A Bears fan living in Cedar Bluff.” Seth shook his head from side to side, pretending to be upset. “What is the world coming to? Sorry, Ben, we don’t have any Chicago Bears gauze. But we do have navy blue and we do have orange.”

“Yeah?” Ben’s eyes lit up. “Blue and orange, the Bears colors.
That’s
what I want on my cast.”

“Okay.” Seth let out a dramatic sigh. “But you’re lucky I like you, Ben, because it’s not going to be easy for me to help out a Chicago Bears fan.” Seth went to work, setting the blue and orange gauze off to the side before slipping the stocking over Ben’s small arm. “You have to promise not to tell anyone I did this for you, all right?”

Ben giggled again, and nodded earnestly. Watching Seth interact with her son made Kylie realize how much Ben missed having a father figure around. She hated to admit it, but she hadn’t even known Ben
had
a favorite football team. It must be something they talked about at day care, because it wasn’t as if she watched sports on TV on a regular basis.

Seth kept up a running commentary as he made the cast on Ben’s arm. She could only watch helplessly as Ben reveled in Seth’s male attention. Since his father had left before he was born, Ben didn’t have
any
male role models in his life.

Guilt returned full force. Along with an edgy wariness. She didn’t have a good track record as far as her choices in men went. She and Ben’s father had dated for over a year, and had actually been just starting to talk about the future when she’d discovered she was pregnant. Tristan had completely changed during her pregnancy—seemingly overnight. Once charming and sweet, he turned sullen and resentful. When Tristan had finally left she’d felt lost, and alone, but also somewhat relieved. She’d thought he might change his mind once the baby was born, but he hadn’t.

So she’d borne the stigma of having a child out of wedlock with her chin held high, refusing to think of Ben as a mistake.

Her son was the highlight of her life. The best thing to ever happen to her. He could
never
be a mistake.

And she didn’t need a man in her life to be happy.

Seth finished the cast, telling Ben how he could use a permanent marker to write on the outside if he wanted, then joking that if he wanted to write the word “Bears” he’d have to ask for his mother’s help, because he wasn’t sure how to spell it and might accidentally write “Packers” instead. Then he rolled the cast cart back out of the room, promising to return soon.

Ben’s eyelids drifted closed, so Kylie took advantage of the moment to rest her head on his bed, still holding on to his non-casted hand. Now that the adrenaline rush had faded, she felt as if she’d gone ten rounds in the ring with a boxer and lost every one.

She must have dozed a bit, because suddenly she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. “Wake up, Kylie.”

Prying her eyes open, she blinked, focusing on Seth’s face. His kindness was like a balm to her wounded soul. “I’m awake. Sorry. Do you have the results?”

He nodded and gave a reassuring smile. “Yes, and you’ll be glad to know Ben’s CT is clear. He’s suffered a minor concussion, but there isn’t any sign of a bleed.”

“Thank heavens,” she whispered. Glancing at her son, she noticed Ben was still asleep. The pain meds were no doubt making him drowsy.

“I’d still like Ben to see an ophthalmologist.” Seth
frowned, his expression turning serious. “The cut over his eye is very deep, and once the swelling goes down he should see a specialist to make sure there isn’t any damage to the eye—particularly the retina.”

“All right.” She stared at her son for a moment, before lifting her gaze to Seth’s. “Thank you for everything. You did a wonderful job with him.”

He smiled gently. “No problem. That’s what I’m here for. Besides, he’s a great kid.”

“Yes, he is. When I saw his bike mangled beneath that car…” She swallowed hard and shook her head. “I was so scared.”

“I can only imagine how awful that must have been.”

His hand tightened on her shoulder for a moment, and she had the insane urge to rest her cheek against his arm, drawing from his seemingly endless strength.

“I’ll get a nurse in here to go through the discharge paperwork.”

Seth’s hand dropped from her shoulder and she immediately felt the loss of his touch. “Take care of yourself, and follow up with Ben’s pediatrician in a week.”

“I will.” She watched Seth leave, noting how serious he’d been since they’d arrived. There was no sign of the flirty charm he’d displayed with they’d first met.

Which was exactly what she wanted—for him to treat her as an equal. As a professional.

There was no reason to feel this sense of desolation at the change in Seth’s demeanor.

It struck him, as Seth watched Kylie prepare to leave, packing up the supplies they’d given her for Ben’s
dressing changes, that since she’d come in on the ambulance with Ben she probably needed a ride home.

Cedar Bluff was a fairly small town. They didn’t have a regular or reliable cab service. People always tended to help each other out when needed.

He glanced at the clock, thinking that he hadn’t taken a lunch break yet. If Simon Carter, one of the other ED physicians, would cover for him,
he
could drive Kylie home.

He walked into the room while Kylie was asking a nurse about local bus routes.

“I’ll drive you home,” he said. “It’s well past time for my lunch break anyway.”

She hesitated, but then glanced at Ben, and he could practically see her weighing the options before she nodded. “If you don’t mind, that would be great.”

“I don’t mind.” He gathered up the bright Cedar Bluff Hospital bag stuffed with dressings, leaving her to carry Ben. “I’m in the employee lot, though, so why don’t you wait here for a minute? I’ll swing past the front doors to pick you up.”

Somewhat dazed, she nodded, and he hustled off. A few minutes later he pulled up at the front door, hurrying out to give her a hand.

“You drive a cherry-red Corvette with a white leather interior?” she asked, half in awe, half exasperated. “Are you crazy? We can’t ride in that. What if Ben gets sick or something?”

He hadn’t even realized his car might not be suitable. “It doesn’t matter. But you’ll have to hold him on your
lap, since Charlene doesn’t have a backseat.” Seth was used to disparaging comments about his penchant for fast cars, but he figured it was better than going bungee jumping or skydiving, like he’d been tempted to do for his twenty-eighth birthday last year. He intended to live life to the fullest, no matter what.

“It’s illegal,” she protested, hanging back. “And I’m worried. What if something happens to Ben?”

He mentally kicked himself for not thinking ahead about how Kylie might feel. Especially so soon after Ben’s accident. “Do you want me to borrow a car?” He knew Leila drove a sedan.

“No, that’s all right,” she said slowly. “I guess we don’t have a booster seat for him anyway. I’m sure we’ll be fine.”

He hesitated, but when she climbed in he simply closed the door behind her. He hurried around and slid into the driver’s seat. “Don’t worry. We’ll be home before you know it.”

“Okay, but don’t speed.” She clutched Ben tighter.

“I promise we’ll go slow.”

“I doubt your slow is the same as my slow,” she muttered. “And I can’t believe you named your car Charlene.”

Seth flashed an unrepentant grin. “Why not? I name all my cars.”

She rolled her eyes. “Figures. And I bet they’re all female names, too.”

“Of course.” Did she really think a guy would name a car after another guy? Hello? No way, no how.

She shook her head, as if not understanding the male
psyche one bit. “I live off Ryerson and Birch, in a small subdivision off Highway 22.”

He nodded, vaguely familiar with the area. She didn’t say much as he drove, and before he knew it she was directing him to her house.

“Fourth on the north side of the street—the blue-gray ranch. I’m renting until I have enough for a down payment.”

Smart not to overextend herself. He saw the mangled red bicycle off to the side of her driveway before he saw anything else. Geez, the kid had been lucky. If the car had been going faster, the boy’s injuries would have been far more serious. He could only imagine how terrified Kylie must have been.

He could remember all too clearly the night the police had come to their house to tell them about the accident that had claimed his father’s life. They’d all been teenagers, he the youngest of three. His older sister and older brother now lived in other parts of the country. His father’s death had hit them all hard, but together they’d managed to weather the storm.

Kylie was alone, though. Who would have helped her if something awful had happened to her son?

No one. Losing the people you loved was difficult at any time, but he couldn’t imagine anything worse than losing a child. All the more reason to keep his distance. Kylie and her son were a family, and he wasn’t in the market for a family. He didn’t know if he’d be a good father to his own kids, let alone someone else’s son.

He’d offer friendship, nothing more.

“Do you need help?” he asked, when she awkwardly got out of the car.

“I can manage.” She held Ben close, avoiding his gaze.

He went ahead, opening the front door for her, not surprised to find it unlocked. She would have been more concerned over Ben’s welfare than about insignificant details.

“Thanks,” she murmured, slipping past him to gently set Ben on the sofa.

He took a moment to glance around her cozy house, noticing one whole wall was dedicated to pictures of Kylie and Ben—mostly Ben.

None of the pictures included a father.

“Is there anything else you need?” He felt bad, just leaving her alone.

“Seth, I’ve raised Ben on my own for the past six years. Trust me, I’ll be fine.”

She’d raised Ben alone since he was born? The idea troubled him. Especially since she didn’t seem to have a lot of money. Didn’t the guy pay child support? Obviously not. He didn’t really doubt Kylie was more than capable of raising Ben on her own, but it didn’t make leaving any easier. “Don’t forget to make that appointment for Ben to see an ophthalmologist.”