From Hawaii to Forever Page 17

  Had she met with another mishap in the ocean? If she had, he hadn’t been there to leap to her rescue.

  “Kat,” he said again. “Please wake up.”

  His eyes stung and he swallowed back tears, thinking about their last conversation. Now something was wrong, and he hadn’t been there, and it was his fault for not being willing to take a chance, to open his heart and give himself to someone who deserved love wholeheartedly.

  A wave of shame washed over him as he remembered how effortlessly Kat had leapt off the north shore cliff with him, how trustingly she’d clung to his hand. Kat had taken a leap of faith, but he’d been so scared to take a leap into a relationship that he’d pushed her away from him. And as a result he hadn’t been there when she needed him most.

  He felt for a pulse. It was there, strong, and that was a relief to him. But why wouldn’t she wake up?

  “I should have been there,” he said aloud. “Whatever happened, I should have been there.”

  And he would have been there if it hadn’t been for his stupid pride, his stupid unwillingness to trust someone who trusted him. If he’d lost her forever, it was his fault.

  But then, to his utter surprise, she began to move. He felt relief wash over him—she’d been lying so still he’d even worried about a spinal cord injury, but if she could move on her own it was nothing severe. This was confirmed as she arched her back and stretched, lifting her arms over her head languorously. Then she opened her eyes with slow, sleepy blinks, saw him at her side, and smiled.

  “Hey, Jack,” she said.

  “What’s wrong?” he said, trying to hide the terror in his voice. “Where are you hurt? Why are you all wet?”

  He looked out through the back of the ambulance, his eyes stormy with anger. Why had the paramedics left Kat alone? Why weren’t they helping?

  “Relax... I’m fine,” she said. “I’m learning to surf.”

  “You’re learning to surf?” He couldn’t hide his confusion. What did surfing have to do with anything?

  “I still need a lot of practice. Maybe we can do that together, though? It’ll be fun. Did you know that dogs and babies can surf?”

  Dogs and...? What?

  She wasn’t making any sense. He checked her pupils to see if they were dilated. Could she have gotten a head injury?

  Your fault, your fault, your fault, the voice in the back of his head intoned.

  She put her arms around his neck. “Jack, I’m fine. You know, you were right about my needing a thrill, but that was only half of it. I needed some serenity, too. And you know what? I found it! For the first time in my life I went to the beach and I was actually able to relax.”

  “That’s great,” he said distractedly. “But where have you been hurt?”

  “I haven’t been hurt,” she said, less sleepily than before. “Well, I got knocked over by a rogue wave, and that was pretty frightening, but I just relaxed and let myself float back to the surface. I’m getting a lot better at relaxing, thanks to you. Well, thanks to you and thanks to all the practice I’ve been putting in, of course. And thanks to the surfing lessons. Do you want to learn? I could teach you. I feel like I should teach you something after all you’ve taught me.”

  He gazed at her, baffled. She could sit up, and she was mobile enough that she could put her arms around his neck. As Jack’s fear subsided he began to take in that maybe Kat hadn’t suffered any serious injury.

  “You’re really fine?” he said.

  “All body parts intact.” She smiled. “Not even a scrape or a bruise.”

  “Then why...?”

  “Why am I being hauled into work in an ambulance? There actually was a medical emergency on the beach near my apartment this morning—it just didn’t involve me. Well, not as the patient, anyway. There was a child on the beach having an asthma attack, and the family had left his inhaler at the hotel. I swear, we need to give every tourist on this island a firm lecture about leaving important medical devices at their hotels. What good is an inhaler if you don’t bring it with you when you go exploring?”

  He smoothed her hair. “Sounds like your typical medical emergency. But you still haven’t answered the question I’m most interested in: why have you been brought to the hospital in an ambulance?”

  “After helping the EMTs out with the child on the beach I hitched a ride with them to work. And I got up so early this morning that I thought I’d take a little nap in the back while they drove.” She frowned at the concern in his face. “I must have been sleeping pretty soundly... Jack, you weren’t...worried about me, were you?”

  He was so exasperated with her. “Worried? That doesn’t cover half of it. Do you have any idea how scared I was when I saw you lying there?”

  She gazed at him soberly. “I’m sorry, Jack. I didn’t mean to alarm you. It was careless of me not to think about how it might look to you, me lying here asleep on a gurney. In fact, I’ve been careless about a lot of things. And I need to tell you something.”

  “I have something to tell you, too,” he said.

  “Actually—” she started.

  “No, let me go first,” he said. “I know you’ve only been here a short time, but I don’t need more time to understand everything I already know I feel about you. I don’t ever want to stand in the way of your career. I know that’s what makes you happy. So I would never, in a million years, ask anything of you that would be too much for you to give. But someone I trust has told me something I firmly believe: secrets only hurt. So, in the interests of being honest with you, and with myself, I hope you’ll let me explain how I feel about you.”

  She looked as if she was about to say something, but he laid a finger on her lips.

  “Kat Murphy,” he continued, “from the moment I lay eyes on you I thought you were one of the most obnoxious, bossy, self-assured women I’ve ever met.”

  “Wow,” said Kat. “Tell me how you really feel.”

  “Hold on,” he said. “I’m getting to the important part. Matt was right—I need to tell you. Getting to know you, letting myself get close to you, was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I don’t regret any of our time together—not one single minute—and even though it was a short time, it’s impacted my life more than any relationship I’ve ever had. I love you. And I’m saying that without any expectations, not because I want anything from you, but because you deserve to know how I feel and—”

  “Jack, I’m staying,” she said, as though she couldn’t hold it in any longer, and a smile appeared on her face.

  “What—? But no!” he said, dismayed. “Why on earth would you do that?”

  “Oh, Jack,” she said. “Isn’t it obvious?”

  “No, it isn’t!”

  She laughed. “No? Okay, I’ll explain it, then. I’m in love.”

  “Kat, you can’t give up an opportunity like this just for me,” he sputtered.

  No matter what Matt had said, Jack would not be the reason that Kat slowed down in her career. They could do long distance. They could Skype. He could visit Chicago. Hell, he’d move to Chicago if he had to.

  “My, aren’t we arrogant?” she said, but she was smiling gently. “I didn’t mean with you. I meant with Hawaii! Although,” she said, and the look on her face was tender, “it’s not as though you aren’t a very nice perk as well.”

  “A nice perk?” he said, taking her into his arms. “I suppose I’ll have to settle for being a small footnote in your tempestuous love affair with the island.”

  She laughed, but then grew serious. “Jack. Let me be clear. I do love it here, but there’s an even more important reason that I’m staying.”

  “And what might that be?”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” she asked again.

  And as she leaned against his chest and put her hands around his neck his heart melted.

  “I lo
ve you,” she said. “I’m happy here, but I’m happiest of all when I’m with you. I don’t need to be working at some prestigious hospital to be happy. I can do exactly the kind of work I love right here. In fact, I think I’ve done some of my best work here. Because I’m working right beside someone I love.”

  He kissed her then—deeply, passionately, trying to put all the things he hadn’t been able to say until now into the kiss. When they finally came up for air she rested her head against his chest, and he twined a curl of her hair around his fingers.

  “So you’re really staying?” he asked, still trying to believe it.

  It was so much to take in: that she was here and that she really loved him. Somehow, against all the odds, it seemed as though his dreams really were going to come true.

  He’d have to call Matt later, tell him about it...

  “I really am,” she said. “When I thought about going back to Chicago Grace I didn’t feel excited about it. I have to admit that the idea of showing Christopher that he was wrong was appealing. But none of it felt as though it’d be worth what I’d be giving up.”

  “And what would that be, exactly?”

  She grew thoughtful. “A chance to get what I want, rather than what other people expect of me. A chance to be happy.” She snuggled closer to him and looked into his eyes. “And a chance at love.”

  “So, after everything that’s happened, you believe in love, do you?”

  “Oh, Jack, I do. I really do.”

  He held her close to him, breathed in the smell of her hair and smiled. “I do too,” he said.

  He pulled her toward him and was about to kiss her again when she placed a hand on his chest to stop him.

  “Wait a minute,” she said. “What did you mean earlier, when you said, ‘Matt was right’?”

  “I guess I haven’t had a chance to tell you yet,” he said. “I called my brother and we had a long talk about...about everything. I wouldn’t say that things are back to normal between the two of us. I don’t think they ever can be. But...we’re talking again.”

  “Wow...” Kat said, and he saw that once again her eyes were wet with tears. “That must have been some conversation.”

  He let out a long, slow breath. “It was. But it’s really thanks to you that I was able to have it in the first place.”

  “Thanks to me? How so?”

  “You were the first person besides Matt who I felt I could actually be real with. It reminded me of what it felt like to have someone to rely on. It reminded me that that was something I’d missed.”

  She smiled shyly. “I think you might have reminded me of that too.”

  She leaned toward him, her mouth inches from his, and Jack had a sense of déjà-vu. He remembered another moment, months ago, when he and Kat had almost kissed in this very ambulance. What had stopped them? What on earth had they been waiting for? Looking at Kat now, he couldn’t imagine ever hesitating to kiss her—not even for a second.

  They leaned in to kiss, and then, occupied as they were, there was a lengthy silence.

  Finally Jack murmured, “Just so you know...there’s a surprise farewell party going on for you in the hospital.”

  “A farewell party? Don’t tell me I’ve been fired again.”

  “Are you kidding? No, the staff will seize any chance they can get to throw a luau. I’m sure it’ll immediately turn into a welcome back party the moment you go in there and share the good news. Should we go and tell everyone now?”

  “Maybe not right now,” said Kat. “I was actually thinking that this might be a good time for another impulsive decision...”

  * * *

  Kat let her fingers work their way down Jack’s chest, opening the buttons on his paramedic’s uniform.

  “Are you sure about this?” he murmured, even as he began to unbutton her blouse. “You don’t want to make a pro-con list first?”

  “Hmm, let me think about that...” she said.

  She pressed her mouth against his, tasting the salty sweetness of his lips. And as she let the kiss linger, she felt the deep feeling in her gut that was going to guide her from now on—the feeling deep in her body that told her she was home.

  That settled it.

  She pulled off Jack’s shirt.

  “Nah,” she said. “No lists necessary. Let’s be spontaneous.”

  * * *

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Reunion with His Surgeon Princess by Karin Baine.

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  Reunion with His Surgeon Princess

  by Karin Baine

  CHAPTER ONE

  ‘I NEED YOU.’ Apparently, that was all Kaja had to say after five years apart to get Seth Davenport back in her life.

  Now here he was striding through the airport in his short-sleeved, blue cotton shirt and linen trousers, wrinkled from the flight. Time and distance melted away as she watched him walk towards her, her heart beating that little bit faster the way it always had when he was around. He hadn’t seen her yet, distracted by his travel companion. It gave her time to study this older version of the man she’d loved when they were both very different people. A world away from where she truly belonged.

  His hair was longer than she remembered but remained as unruly as ever. His sun-kissed brown locks refused to be tamed, curling behind his ears and framing his tanned face. The dark scruff of his beard roughened the smooth jaw line hiding in the bristles and when those unfathomable brown eyes met hers she had to swallow down the sudden thirst she’d worked up. The physical changes were minimal but there was one huge difference in his life that would take some getting used to.

  ‘Seth, Amy, welcome to Belle Crepuscolo.’ She advanced towards them the way she would when meeting any foreign dignitaries or people of importance arriving in her country. With her arms raised in welcome, she kissed him on both cheeks, telling herself this was nothing out of the ordinary. She knew she was lying to herself when his beard rasped against her skin and the mere touch of him caused a total blood rush to her head.

  ‘Thank you for the VIP treatment, Kaja. It is Kaja, isn’t it? Or should I address you as Your Majesty?’ There was a twinkle in his eye as he said it but also an underlying tang of bitterness in his tone. Understandable in the circumstances.

  ‘Kaja’s fine.’ She kept the smile painted on her face as the small hint at her betrayal hit its mark on her conscience. There was so much she had to apologise for, to explain, but nothing would take away the hurt she’d undeniably caused him five years ago. The best she could do was make this stay as comfortable as possible for her visitors.

  ‘Well, Kaja, we’ve had a lovely trip so far. Haven’t we, Amy?’ Seth turned his attention to the munchkin clinging onto his hand.

  ‘I’m glad they took good care of you. Now, if you’re ready, you’ll be escorted to the palace. Would you like that, Amy?’ Kaja hunched down to talk to the little girl, trying to make a friend but understanding that
this must be overwhelming for her. She’d been dragged away from the only place she’d ever known and flown halfway across the world. It was natural the child should be wary.

  Amy looked to her father for guidance on the matter and when he nodded his head, she copied him, her brown curls bobbing in agreement.

  When Kaja extended her hand, the child accepted it, her little fingers curling around the stranger she was being urged to trust. Amy smiled up at her with eyes so much like Seth’s, Kaja’s heart felt as though it were being torn into tiny pieces. The four-year-old was a walking reminder that Seth had moved on from their relationship all too quickly.

  Within a couple of months of her leaving he’d married and started a family. A life he’d offered to Kaja first, so it was her own fault he’d found someone else. When he’d proposed, he’d been offering her a commitment she’d realised too late she couldn’t give in return. It had been the wake-up call she’d needed to snap out of the dream she’d been living in England with him. She wasn’t anything like the woman she’d pretended to be to Seth or their work colleagues. Princess in her own country, she had responsibilities and duties she’d been avoiding in her quest for a normal life. As much as she’d wanted it, it was beyond her grasp. None of it real when she hadn’t even confided her true identity to Seth. A betrayal so great she couldn’t bring herself to tell him she’d lied to him from the moment they’d met.

  She had no right to be jealous now when she’d fled England without giving him an explanation. She was lucky he’d been willing to even speak to her again. Never mind come all this way to do her a favour.

  ‘I’m sorry to hear about your father...and your mother, of course.’ It was Seth who addressed the reason for this reunion first. Although, it wasn’t a conversation she particularly wanted to have in front of her security team, who were shadowing their journey to the exit.

  Her mother’s death from a heart attack soon after Kaja’s return to her homeland was one more layer of guilt heaped upon her shoulders. She’d been so intent on living a ‘normal’ life she’d distanced herself from her family and lost precious time she could have spent with her mother. A regret she’d thought she could make up for by falling into line with the rest of the family and throwing herself into what was expected of her as a princess. Including marrying someone out of duty rather than love.