A flash of heat went through Whitney at the thought.
Boldly cupping her breast, Tanner said next to her lips in a voice that had turned rough with desire, “Then it’ll be time for us to shower for dinner. I’ll be glad to scrub your back.”
* * *
Tanner took Whitney’s hand and held it as they waited to fill their plates at the buffet dinner arranged in the grassy area surrounding the pool. She’d picked out a flowing blue-and-gray dress to wear and Tanner didn’t even think to complain. He knew well what was under it. A satisfied smile he couldn’t control came to his lips. They had celebrated just as he had suggested, to the point of exhaustion. Still he looked forward to taking her to bed later that night. Whitney was weaving a web around him that he wasn’t sure he could find a way out of.
With plates filled, they were on their way to a table when his cell phone rang.
“I’ll take that,” Whitney said, reaching for his plate, “while you answer that.”
Tanner gave her his plate and walked off so he could talk privately. “Locke.”
“Williams here.”
Tanner knew the minute he heard his physician assistant’s voice that the call was important.
“We believe we have a heart for Mr. Wilcox,” Williams said. “Won’t know for sure for a few more hours but things look good. Thought you might want to do this one.”
“I’ll be there in an hour and a half. Keep me posted.” Tanner rang off. As he walked back toward where Whitney was already sitting at a table, she turned and looked at him with concern.
She excused herself and met him. “Is everything okay?”
“No, but it will be, I hope. They think we have a heart for Mr. Wilcox. I’ve got to go back to town.”
“Of course you do. Let’s say our goodbyes to Malcolm and Marie. I can be packed in five minutes.”
That’s one of the many things he liked about Whitney—she didn’t require convincing that his work was important. She understood and supported it. Other women he had dated had resented his job when it had interrupted their plans. His mother had certainly resented his father’s job.
Less than ten minutes later he and Whitney were packed and going out the door of their room. Tanner stopped and looked back at the bed.
“Did you forget something?” Whitney asked.
“No, I was just thinking I had other plans for tonight.” For once he was the one hating the interruption.
Whitney turned an appealing deep shade of red and headed down the hall.
Marie saw to it that his car was waiting outside the front door. As a bellboy loaded their baggage Tanner said to Whitney, “I’m sorry but this time I think I should drive. I promise you next time. If one of us gets a ticket, I want it to be me.”
“I understand.”
They were pulling out onto the main road when Tanner’s phone rang. “I’ve got to get this.” He put in his earbuds, not waiting for Whitney’s response before he clicked the button.
Over the next few minutes he listened and gave instructions as they sped through the countryside and then onto the four-lane road back to San Francisco. He drove fast but not carelessly.
He rang off and glanced at Whitney. “I hope I’m not scaring you.”
“No.” And she appeared at ease.
“I hate it but I won’t have time to take you home. I’ll see that one of the security guards drives you.”
“Would you mind if I stayed for the transplant? I think Mr. Wilcox needs someone in his corner. Maybe I could visit with him before he goes in.”
Tanner glanced at her. “I think he’d like that.”
A mile farther on his phone rang again and he spent the rest of the time on it with his team. Almost to the minute of the time he’d said he would arrive he eased into his parking space beneath the hospital. Whitney didn’t wait on him to come around and open her door. She was at the trunk when he opened it to remove her bags.
“I’ll put these in my office so that you can get them before you go home. I won’t be leaving the hospital until I know that Mr. Wilcox is stable.”
“I understand.”
She walked beside him as they took the elevator up from the parking garage. They entered the hospital through a door that required him to swipe a card for it to open and rode another elevator up to the fifth floor. There they went down a couple of hallways and arrived at his office. Whitney waited outside as he set her bags inside the door and grabbed his lab coat.
“Now we’ll go see Mr. Wilcox. He’ll be in his room for a little while longer. I’ll need to examine him then you may visit until I send someone to bring him to surgery.”
“Will he be awake or will he have already taken some presurgery medicine?”
“He might be groggy from premeds but he should be awake enough to know who you are.” Tanner started down the hall at a brisk pace. The retrieval team was on their way to get the heart. The clock was already ticking.
“Either way, I’ll stay with him.” Whitney hurried along beside him.
Soon they turned a corner and Tanner scanned his card again. Double doors opened. She followed him to the door of Mr. Wilcox’s room. Tanner donned a mask and pulled his stethoscope from his pocket. Without looking at her or saying anything, he entered the room and closed the door. Now wasn’t the time to think about what was happening between him and Whitney. He had a life to save.
Whitney was leaning against the wall opposite the room when he came out. He pulled off the mask and dropped it into a garbage can. “You can go in now. I told him I had brought someone to keep him company. I’ve got to go.”
“I know.”
He hated to leave her this way but if he kissed her... His focus had to remain on what was going to happen over the next few hours.
* * *
Whitney watched Tanner’s long stride toward the double doors. He was a man on a mission. His shoulders were broad enough to carry the world. And he was about to do so with Mr. Wilcox’s life. What would it be like to have Tanner watching over her with such single-mindedness?
They had shared far more than she had ever expected or anticipated. Tanner had opened up to her about his past. She was confident he didn’t make a habit of telling people about his parents. Whitney felt honored he trusted her that much. No wonder Tanner felt the way he did about relationships. He’d never seen a healthy one up close.
But she knew what one looked like and that’s what she wanted. To love and be loved. To have that closeness that came from understanding and caring. They were fundamentally different. Tanner wanted a business deal and she wanted happily-ever-after.
Whitney put on a mask then knocked lightly on Mr. Wilcox’s door. Unsure if he was strong enough to call to her to come in, Whitney pushed the door open slightly. The lights were low in the room and the only sound came from the oxygen machine. Mr. Wilcox’s eyes were closed. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. She started to back out the door.
“Come in, young lady. It’s nice to see you again.”
Whitney smiled and said softly, “It’s nice to see you too.” She entered and closed the door before going to his bedside. She stood so he could see her without straining his neck. “I hear you have a big evening planned.”
“That’s what they’re telling me. What brings you around at this time of night and on a weekend?”
“I was with Dr. Locke when he got the call about your heart.” That made it sound like she and Tanner were a couple. That was the furthest thing from the truth. They’d enjoyed each other’s bodies but there was no emotional attachment. “I thought you might like some company while you’re waiting to go to the operating room.”
“That’s mighty nice of you. Pull up a chair.”
Whitney tugged one of the bulky chairs around so she faced Mr. Wilcox and sat.
“So what were you and Dr. Locke doing this evening that I interrupted?”
Whitney was glad for the dim light to cover her blush. Making love everywhere they could. She couldn’t say that. Making love? That’s what she had been doing. Emotion was involved on her side. She was in love with Tanner. In love with a man who had no desire to love or be loved. She’d known better but there it was.
Whitney finally managed to get out, “We were in Napa for the weekend.” One she would never forget.
“I’m sorry that I messed it up.”
“Hey, getting a new heart is a big deal. Well worth messing a weekend up for.”
“You’re sweet. You remind me of my Milly. She always thought of others first. If she was here she would be holding my hand, telling me everything was going to be all right. She always saw the good side to everything.”
“She sounds like a great person.”
“She was.” He said it as if he were thinking back over the years.
“Would you like me to hold your hand?” Whitney asked.
“That would be nice. I know it isn’t very macho, but I’m a little scared.”