‘They only called me up this morning.’ He shrugged easily. ‘Some doc from Paediatrics was due to be playing the role, but they had to drop out when a major case came in overnight. I knew they had to be desperate to call me on my day off, so I said I’d stand in. It’s only for an hour or two.’
‘Nice of you.’
But not a surprise. She had no trouble imagining Logan volunteering on behalf of those kids who wouldn’t be able to go home for Christmas.
‘Reckon I’ll make a decent Santa.’ He grinned. ‘What do you think?’
‘Sure. Though not like any that I’ve ever seen.’
The words were out before she could clamp them back. Kat flushed hotly, but the fact remained that Logan would be the fittest, buffest Santa that Seattle General would have ever seen.
Or anybody would have ever seen, for that matter.
‘Is that so?’ Logan asked, as if he could read her every last lustful, terrible thought.
She didn’t dare look at him. The heat in his gaze was doing funny things to her body. Again.
Thrusting the indecent images out of her head, she plucked at the first neutral topic she could think of.
‘So, Jamie’s with your parents, then?’
Not exactly neutral, but enough of a distraction from X-rated thoughts of Logan as a naughty Santa.
‘No, he’s just over there, getting a hug and a selection box from one of the day-care assistants he saw as she headed off duty.’
Kat glanced over and recognised the young girl who she now realised was watching them a little too intently. Clearly, Jamie wasn’t the only Connors man the girl was pleased to see today.
‘You’ve brought Jamie with you?’ She fought to keep her tone bright.
Not to let Logan know that she’d noticed the girl or her interest in Logan.
‘Not by choice. Unfortunately this was the only day my parents couldn’t look after him. I’m hoping to keep him out of the way, though. He believes in the magic of Christmas so I don’t want him to recognise me dressed up as Santa and start questioning anything.’
‘No, of course not.’
A memory of Carrie swirled around her. This would have been the year when the little girl would have really begun to understand the magic of this time of year. Kat could feel herself starting to fall when Logan’s voice rescued her.
‘So, anyway, he’s going to be at the day care whilst I’m going around the wards.’
As if he’d realised where her mind had been headed.
‘And when you have to play Santa for day care?’ she managed thickly.
‘Ah, well...’ He cast her a wry smile. ‘Then I was hoping to talk someone into taking him for an ice cream or something.’
‘Is that your way of saying you were going to ask me?’
It was ridiculous how her heart thumped so heavily.
‘I wasn’t intending to,’ he told her, and she couldn’t tell whether he was telling the truth or not. ‘But it seems fortuitous that we should bump into each other, don’t you think?’
She didn’t want to think. It made her confuse notions as simple as coincidence for something far more romantic. Like fate.
‘You didn’t want to ask that day-care assistant?’ she couldn’t help asking, and was gratified when Logan pulled a face.
‘I think she might read a little too much into that, don’t you think?’
No doubt about it, Kat thought. Not that she was going to say as much. But then, before she could think of anything else to say, one of the other nurses poked her head around the atrium doors, relief smoothing her taut features as soon as she saw him.