Prognosis: Romance (Doctors in Training 4)

She motioned toward the couch. “Would you like to sit down? Can I get you anything?”

Maybe he really had come by just as a friendly gesture. After all, she was the one who had expressed a desire to remain friends. She’d even suggested they could get together sometime for dinner or something, hadn’t she? Of course, she hadn’t expected him to actually take her up on it. Nor for him to show up unannounced at her doorstep after he’d left in such umbrage the last time she’d seen him.

He glanced at the couch, but made no move toward it. “I won’t stay long. I’m sure you have things to do. I just wanted to tell you I saw the article and I’m very proud of what you’ve accomplished. And to give you this, if you’ll accept it,” he added, offering the small bag.

Mystified as to what she would find, she took the bag and dug into the tissue wrapping. Her heart clenched when she lifted out the gift.

She remembered this scarf. Remembered the way his hands had felt on her shoulders when he’d wrapped it around her, the way he had smiled when she stroked her own hands appreciatively down the colorful fabric that had been woven on a loom in Ecuador. “It’s the one we saw in the River Market store.”

“Yes. I bought it for you the next day because you seemed to like it, but the time never seemed quite right to offer it. I…well, this probably isn’t the right time, either, but I wanted you to have it. Call it a congratulations on your business success, if you like.”

“I don’t know what to say.”

“Just say you like it,” he suggested gently. “It’s too late for me to take it back now and it really doesn’t match any of my clothes.”

She forced a smile, deciding it would be ungracious to refuse the gift. Her fingers buried tightly in the fabric, she spoke a bit huskily, “I like it very much. Thank you, James.”

She would keep the scarf as a memento of the time they had spent together, she told herself. She suspected there would always be both pleasure and pain when she looked at it.

She thought he saw a flicker of relief in his expression when he nodded. “You’re welcome. I’ll go now, I just wanted to…”

“Wait.” She spoke quickly to stop him as he moved toward the door. “I…how did your interviews go?”

It was a lame attempt at stalling him, but she couldn’t bear to let him leave just yet. She wanted just a few more minutes with him, she thought longingly. Not nearly enough, but she would take what she could get.

“Fine. I saw some very interesting programs.”

“So you won’t know until March where you’ll end up?”

He shook his head. “I have to turn in my list, arranged by preference, in a couple of weeks. The match will be made from that list.”

“Have you decided on your first choice yet?”

“I’m still making up my mind.”

“I see.” She struggled to see any hint of his thoughts in his shuttered eyes. Was it hard for him to leave her this time? Was he hoping she would ask him to stay? Had he missed her at all during the past ten weeks and three days?

Growing frustrated with the futile effort, she finally decided to ask outright, “How are you, James? Is everything going well for you?”

A m

uscle clenched in his cheek, and her breath caught. There had definitely been…something in his expression.

Whatever it was didn’t affect his voice when he replied, “I’m fine. My rotations went well. I got pretty decent evaluations, actually—even in my communications skills.”

She wanted to believe she’d had at least a little to do with that, though she didn’t know if James would agree. “Congratulations.”

“Thanks. I did listen when you offered tips,” he surprised her by adding, as if he’d heard her thoughts. “I’ve been working on that ‘doctor face’ that people seem to find too intimidating.”

She took a step closer to him, her gaze locked with his. “That’s great. But there’s something else. Something that’s bothering you.”

She sensed it now in the same way she’d once guessed she’d hurt his feelings with a throwaway comment about him making her nervous. Something was causing James pain. He was trying to hide it, but she detected just a hint of a crack in his emotional veneer. “What’s wrong?”

He hesitated a few moments and she thought she might have surprised him with the insight—as she had startled him when she’d read him that first time. And then he glanced down at his empty hands and admitted, “I have been sort of down this week. My cousin died a couple of days after Christmas. Pneumonia. It took her very quickly.”

Her chest clenched painfully. “Oh, James. Kelly passed away? I’m so sorry—for you and for your poor aunt.”

He nodded. “We’d been braced for this for a while. Kelly’s health has been very fragile for the past year. But…well, it’s hard to say goodbye. Hard for a doctor to admit there was nothing more that could have been done.”