Dr Daddy's Perfect Christmas

No, she needed to go ahead and prepare for the baby. Who knew if or when her house would sell?

Nora sighed. Just the thought of packing up everything and trying to move with a newborn sounded exhausting. But somehow she would trudge on; she had no other option.

If all of that wasn’t enough to send her rushing to her freezer for Rocky Road, she also needed to find a replacement vet to fill in for her while she was off.

Was it any wonder her BP had been high? Stress, anyone?

She’d indulged by going to the store and purchasing a ton of fruit...and whipped cream. A girl had to have some guilty pleasure and she really should cut back on the ice cream. But she did pick up another gallon. For emergencies.

Nora pulled into her driveway, resisting the urge to glance over to the St. John residence, all lit up with Christmas lights, wreaths hanging from each window. Their house had always been the picture of perfection. Some families presented only a facade of happiness and togetherness, but Nora knew from experience that even when those doors were closed, that family bond was rock solid.

That’s the family life she wanted to provide for her child. Maybe being a single mother wasn’t the way she’d envisioned life, but there was no reason she and her baby girl couldn’t have their own piece of family perfection.

Smiling, Nora realized she was still staring at the St. John house, daydreaming of the future. She didn’t see Eli’s truck in the drive, but he may have pulled around back into the garage. If Eli wasn’t around, he’d be there shortly if he kept his father’s usual office hours and left at six.

And speaking of the St. Johns, she still needed to pick up Christmas presents for her favorite family. With her lack of energy and motivation lately, more than likely she’d be ordering those gifts online.

Darkness had settled in for the night. Nora hated that about winter. It got dark so early, but at least the twinkling Christmas lights from the neighborhood lit up the street.

Of course, she hadn’t gotten around to putting up lights yet, but she had hung a pretty evergreen wreath with a bright red-and-white bow on her door and draped some garland over the railing that stretched across her porch. That would have to do for now.

The light snow they’d received the other day had all but melted, but the weatherman was calling for possibly an inch over the next couple days. Just enough to coat the ground and be pretty.

Because she was too tired to try to make multiple trips, Nora juggled her groceries toward the steps to her house.

“Seriously, Nora. Give me those.”

She turned to see Eli crossing her driveway. “Get your keys out and I’ll carry these in.”

“I’ve got them, Eli,” she argued. “I’ve been bringing in my own food for a while now.”

He jerked on the bags, giving her no choice but to relinquish her hold. Stubborn man. Did he honestly think she’d not been able to take care of herself?

“Well, I’m here and I’m cold so open the door.”

Nora resisted the urge to roll her eyes; that would be childish. But she did stomp up the steps to her door. Not the most mature behavior, but she couldn’t help it. This gorgeous man seemed to be everywhere lately...including her dreams.

What was he doing invading her subconscious? Nostalgia could only go so far. He wasn’t the man she’d loved years ago and she certainly wasn’t the same woman.

Good grief. As if she even had anything appealing to offer a man! A widowed pregnant lady with a meager income... Seriously, who wouldn’t want to get with that?

She unlocked the door and let Eli pass in ahead of her. After she flipped on the lights in the living room and kitchen, she shrugged out of her coat.

“Just throw the bags on the island,” she called over her shoulder as she went into the living room to plug in her Christmas tree. “I’ll put everything away.”

“I can help put stuff away,” he offered.

When she plugged in the tree, she spotted Kerfluffle lying on the red-and-white quilted tree skirt, napping. Her favorite spot this time of year.

She returned to the kitchen and hung her coat on the peg by the back door. She’d just started to hang her purse over the other peg when it slipped from her grasp and fell to the tile, spilling its contents.

She leveled her gaze across the room to Eli. “Really, I’ll get it all. But thanks for carrying those groceries in.”

Ignoring her subtle dismissal, Eli circled the island and squatted down to help her pick up her purse explosion.

“Eli, I can—”

She froze as he picked up the row of pictures she’d had in her purse from today’s ultrasound. The way he stared at each image, the way he slowly straightened his body to come to his full height and the way his eyes finally came to meet hers, Nora knew he wasn’t leaving anytime soon.

Chapter Five (#ulink_c3b8da4f-ffc0-522c-826c-78e87524f460)

Eli couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak.

A baby? How the hell did he not know this? He’d been home for five days now and nothing had ever been mentioned. Of course, his father had had heart surgery and his mother was busy with his care, but seriously, he was a doctor—how did he not recognize the fact this woman was pregnant? And far enough along that she knew the sex.

The sickness at his parents’, her always hiding beneath her coat, her pale, tired face...all the signs were there.

His eyes traveled from the pictures to her eyes to her belly. With the boxy scrubs she wore at the clinic and her height, she was able to hide her bump.

“Whatever you want to say, just say it,” she told him, taking the pictures from his hands and thrusting her chin up as if she dared him to say anything at all.