Playboy Surgeon, Top-Notch Dad

Blair pulled out her cell phone to call Oz.

“She’s fine,” Reesee insisted before Blair had punched the first number. “Oz said to leave her with him rather than dragging her out in the middle of the night. Do it.”

Blair shook her head. She’d never spent the night away from her daughter. Never.

“I don’t want her to be a bother.”

Her sister snorted. “Most likely she’s been asleep for hours. You’ll only wake her and Oz if you call. Besides, she’s not a bother. Dr Talbot adores her and apparently Oz does, too.” Reesee looked at her from the passenger seat. “What gives? You two an item?”

Careful to keep her eyes on the road, Blair shook her head. “We’re just friends.”

“Right,” Reesee responded with a healthy dose of sisterly sarcasm. “Friends.”

“We are.”

“Uh-huh. Sure you are,” Reesee teased. “Have you kissed him?”

Blair stared straight ahead.

Scooting forward in her seat as far as her safety belt would allow, Reesee squealed in glee. “Omigosh, you have. You’ve kissed Oz. That’s wonderful.”

“No,” Blair denied, wanting to tell her sister everything and yet afraid to give voice to the burgeoning emotions threatening to burst her chest when she thought of Oz. “It isn’t.”

“Why not? You’ve been single too long and Oz seems like a nice enough guy.”

“How can you say that? Before tonight, you’d never even met him.”

“If you’d invite him over we could fix my not knowing him very well.” Reesee twisted farther in her seat to stare at Blair. “You have to admit he’s great with Dr Talbot, great with Addy, and it’s obvious you like him.”

Reesee was right. Blair did like him.

After all her huff and puff, she’d fallen for him.

Fallen in a not just friends way.

Which scared her.

If she was going to fall, Oz wasn’t the kind of man she should fall for. A known heartbreaker. A man who women threw themselves at. A man who was a natural flirt. A man who’d be the first to admit he was commitment-phobic and enjoyed playing the field.

“There’s nothing between us.”

“Maybe you should remedy that, too, because there should be.”

Blair shot her sister a scowl.

“It’s been six years since Chris died. You’ve locked your heart away and I understand that. Sort of. But if you like Oz, why not give the guy a chance?”

“Oz isn’t the kind of man who goes for relationships,” Blair admitted, knowing she spoke the truth.

Her sister shrugged as if it were a no-brainer. “Then why not have a whatever he does go for?”

“Reesee Pendergrass!” Blair almost swerved the car off the road. “I can’t believe you said that.”

Her sister snickered. “Why? Because I’m still a child in your eyes? Sorry, sis, but nineteen is old enough to know you’re lonely.”

“I’m not lonely. I have you and Addy. And Dr Talbot.”

“It’s not the same as having a man in your life. You’re young, Blair. Gorgeous, smart, witty. You’re a fabulous mom to Addy, but it’s okay for you to live a little, too.”