First Real Kiss

“What were you going to say?”

She lowered her voice. “I shouldn’t, but … okay. I was going to say, Sheridan Chandler, the woman who finally made Dr. Hotwell fall in love.” She glowed. “He’s been so different since he came back. More jolly with everyone, and the patients are loving it. I mean, he’s only been back a couple of days, but everyone’s talking about how he’s so friendly and hopeful and warm. Thanks, Sheridan. I mean, Ms. Chandler.” She winked. “We owe you. Don’t ever leave him.”

Uh, what? I stood stock still, the information barely penetrating my consciousness. “Thanks.” It was an awkward response.

Then, the door to the back area burst open and Luke emerged. “Sheridan!” He rushed toward me, ignoring the shocked stares of the waiting room patients. “You’re here! I hoped you’d come. I was waiting. Come on back.” Then he turned to the receptionist. “Arlene, can you call Dr. Christine Chortall and ask her to come to my office right away?”

Then, Luke took my hand and pulled me into the inner sanctum of his medical offices, led me to his office and shut the door. There, he took me in his arms and held me close.

“You can’t imagine how many times I’ve wanted to be notified that you’d walked through the door and wanted to see me.”

“You’ve only been back at work a couple of days.”

“Yeah, but it’s been multiple times per second that I’ve wanted it. That I’ve wanted to see you.” He placed his hands on my lower back and pulled me close. “That I’ve wanted to hold you.”

I wrapped my arms up his back and rested them on his shoulders. He smelled deliciously masculine, and his embrace was like being somewhere safe after nearly falling off a cliff.

“Roland didn’t die of a heart attack.”

“I know.” Luke rubbed circles on my lower back. “He died in a skiing accident. He hit a tree.”

I pulled back and looked up at him. “You knew that?” I gasped. “Why did you put up with all my accusations? You must have thought I was a lunatic.”

“Yeah, but a gorgeous one. And then, as you know, I dreamed I was married to the world’s sexiest, most beautiful lunatic with the worst singing voice crooning the best classic rock song, and I didn’t care anymore. As long as you were suing me, I was going to run into you.”

“Luke.” I stared at him like he was joshing me. “You’re just flattering me.” In a weird, non-flattering way. But then again, he wasn’t one to sugarcoat things. “I think I’m in love with you.”

“Good.”

“What do you mean, good? That’s not how you respond to a woman who confesses her love to you.”

“Oh, what am I supposed to say instead? You’re the life coach. Coach me on how I should spend the rest of my life telling you that I’m yours, body and spirit. Coach me on how I can best show you that I’m devoted to adoring you. Coach me into getting the best response when I ask you to do the same for me.”

And then, Luke kissed me. As he did, a heart-quake occurred, one so powerful that it destroyed everything I’d ever built up as reality, leaving my expectations of love prior to this moment as nothing but smoking rubble, and replacing it with cities of glittering glass and grandeur. Agates, pearls, opals on every wall, gates of pearl and silver. A new civilization born in me forever.

Let me tell you, the guy didn’t need any coaching at all.