When Rebekah woke up the next morning, it took a second for her to realize where she was. She could hear her sisters’ voices in the other room, and that made her smile as she threw back her blankets and walked out to join them.
“Did you get enough sleep?” Candice asked, turning from the stove with a spatula in her hand. “I’m making eggs and pancakes—hope that’s okay.”
“That’s more than okay.” Rebekah looked around at all the blankets draped on the couches and the floor. “Where did you all fit, anyway? This place isn’t exactly huge.”
“We made it work. I’m never sharing a bed with Marti again, though—I forgot how much she kicks.” Tracy made a show of rubbing her shins.
“I don’t kick. I assert my presence,” Marti retorted.
“How are you feeling?” Gaylynn asked, looking at Rebekah with concern. “Do you have any residual side effects from last night?”
“I’m still really tired, but it’s a normal tired now,” Rebekah replied. “Last night, I was tired down to my soul.”
“Eat some pancakes. Your soul will feel better.” Candice set a plate in front of Rebekah, who didn’t argue.
“Did . . . did you put mini marshmallows in my pancakes?” Rebekah asked, poking at them with her fork.
“Yes, I did. Everyone needs mini marshmallows in their lives from time to time.” Candice grinned, then turned back to her task.
A soft knock sounded at the door, and Tracy stood up to peer through the curtains. “It’s a man,” she whispered dramatically. “Is everyone decent?”
“No, but I’m dressed,” Gaylynn replied, and they all laughed. Rebekah was still in the pajamas she’d borrowed from Tracy, but they were flannel, and she didn’t think she was too scandalous.
Tracy opened the door. “Morning, Jeremy,” she said. “Come in—have some breakfast with us.”
Rebekah’s hand immediately went to her hair. When Tracy said it was a man, she was expecting the UPS driver or the mailman or something. She wasn’t expecting to see Jeremy—not when she hadn’t showered and her hair was sticking up everywhere.
“Morning, everyone,” Jeremy said as he came inside. “Looks like you had fun last night.”
“I don’t know if I’d call it fun,” Jessica replied. “There was snoring and blanket stealing and kicking.”
“Sounds like fun to me.” Jeremy crossed the floor and gave Rebekah a quick hug. “How are you?”
“I’m all right. I’m more worried about you than I am about me—you did all the heavy lifting last night.”
He shrugged. “Goes with the territory. Hey, are those mini marshmallows in your pancakes?”
He’d barely said the words before Candice slid a plate in front of him as well. “Now that’s what I call service.”
They ate side by side, a pretty normal morning thing to do, but Rebekah was still uptight. She should have hopped in the shower as soon as she woke up. He was all shaved and looking nice, and she looked like she’d just woken up in borrowed pajamas.
He seemed to read her thoughts because when they were done eating, he said, “Would you like me to drive you home so you can change? Or should we go to the hospital and pick up your car first? Or you might want one of your sisters to take you—I should have asked that. Sorry.”
“There’s no way I’m showing up at the hospital like this even if it’s just to get my car, so yes, going home is great,” Rebekah replied. “And I think all my sisters need to get to work—am I right?”
They each nodded. “I’ve already missed one class today,” Marti said. “I’m going to tell them it was a family emergency, though—they can’t get too mad at me about that.”
Rebekah smiled and shook her head. Marti never did let things like missing a class bother her too much. “So, to answer your question, yes, Jeremy. I’d appreciate a ride home, and then a ride to the hospital. Do you work today?”
He shook his head. “We’re on a skeleton crew today to rest up from everything that happened yesterday. I’m on call if anything big happens, but other than that, I’m yours.”
“What do you think, Marti?” Rebekah asked. “Is anything big going to happen today?”
“You know that’s not how it works,” Marti protested. “I don’t get to pick and choose like that.”
Jeremy watched the exchange with a smile on his face. “Remind me which one she is,” he said in a low voice.
“She’s the precog,” Rebekah replied. She’d rattled off all the sisters and their gifts when she told him about herself, but there was no way he could remember them all that easily. Seven sisters and seven powers—that was a lot to track.
“That’s right. I’ll get it eventually.”
Rebekah hugged her sisters goodbye and thanked them for rallying to her cause, then tied Tracy’s robe a little tighter around her waist and walked out to Jeremy’s car with him, her dirty clothes in a plastic sack. “You’re the best for doing this for me,” she said as they drove away from Tracy’s.
“I debated about coming because I didn’t want to interrupt your time with your sisters, but I wanted to be sure you were all right,” he explained. “I would have left if you wanted me to—I know you’re tight with your family.”
That was so sweet. Her mind flashed back to the conversation she’d had with her dad about all the things a guy would do if he really cared about a girl, and Jeremy seemed to be hitting them all right down the line. Especially one . . .
“We’ve never kissed,” she said aloud.
He glanced at her. “Well, no, we haven’t,” he replied.
She felt ridiculous that she’d blurted that out. “I’m sorry—that was really lame of me,” she said. “It’s just . . . my dad says I’ll know if you really like me if you want to spend time with me even if we aren’t making out, and it just occurred to me that we haven’t made out at all. We haven’t even kissed.”
“And yet I still like spending time with you,” Jeremy said with a grin. “That must mean I really like you.”
“Yeah, I think it does,” she replied. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t ever kiss. It just means that we haven’t yet.”
“So, there’s hope for this to occur at some point in the future?”
“There’s hope, but not in the immediate future. I haven’t brushed my teeth since I left for work yesterday, and there’s no way I’m kissing anyone until that’s been resolved.”
“I appreciate your diligence and devotion to proper dental hygiene,” Jeremy replied. “You are a credit to nurses everywhere. And to those who kiss.”
“And to kissing nurses?”
“Absolutely.” He looked over at her and grinned again, and her heart gave that little thump. Suddenly, kissing him was about all she could think about.
She invited him to sit and choose a TV show, then she raced down the hall and into her bedroom. Shower, brushing her teeth, putting on something cute . . . She’d never been so nervous about choosing an outfit before, or about how well she brushed her teeth. Now that they’d discussed dental hygiene, it seemed more important than it ever had before.
When she finally came back into the living room, she felt much more herself, and Jeremy gave a low whistle when he saw her. “You clean up great.”
“You aren’t so bad yourself.”
He used the remote to flip off the TV, then crossed the room and took both of her hands in his. “I’m assuming that you brushed your teeth,” he said, his voice low.
Never before had a question about toothbrushes made a tingle race down her spine.
“I brushed, and I flossed, and I used mouthwash,” she replied, not able to look away from his gaze. His eyes held her in place like she’d been rooted to the spot.
“Mouthwash too? You’re taking this very seriously.”
“I wouldn’t joke about something like mouthwash.”
He smiled, a long, slow smile. “I see. And I agree that it’s important to know when to joke and when not to joke.”
The chemistry between them was building by the second, and Rebekah could almost feel it crackling in the air. She took the tiniest step toward him, studying his eyes, and he let go of her hand.
He cupped her cheek, then tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Do you remember me telling you how incredible you are?”
“I seem to recall that conversation.” Her cheek was still tingling from his touch.
“Well, it was true. Every word of it. I’m falling in love with you, Rebekah, and I didn’t want to kiss you until you knew that—maybe it’s my turn to make sure you know what you’re getting into. I’m not the kiss-and-run type, and if I’m kissing you, that means I’m all in.”
She glanced down at his lips, then back up to his eyes. “I like the sound of that,” she said, her voice barely coming out above a whisper.
“I was sure hoping you’d say that.” He slid his arms around her waist and brought her in close, then kissed her just like she’d been dreaming about for the last hour. He slid one hand up her back and threaded his fingers through her hair, cradling her neck, and she had the fleeting thought that it was so thoughtful of him to support her cervical vertebrae while they kissed. He really was a very nice man.
He let go and stepped back, taking her hand again. “Shall we go get your car?”
“My car?” She blinked. “What car? Do I have a car?”
He threw his head back and laughed. “Yes, you have a car, and it’s at the hospital.”
“Oh, that car. You’ll have to forgive me. You see, I was just kissed, and it seems that just about every other thought got wiped clean out of my head.”
“That sounds like a rather serious problem. It’s a good thing we’re on our way to a hospital.”
Jeremy held her hand as he drove except for those times when he actually needed to use his hand for something driving related because driving is generally considered to be a two-handed pursuit. When he pulled into the hospital parking lot, he said, “Do you know your next shift?”
She shook her head. “I thought I had today off, but I want to go in and make sure—they might be so swamped in there, I could be needed.” She knew she’d recommended several people for surgery, and she had no idea how that had all come about. She wished she’d checked in at the hospital before going to Tracy’s, but in reality, she would have been worthless—she’d given everything she had.
“Let’s go find out.”
They walked into the emergency room together, and Rebekah looked around for Dr. Hunsaker. She found him at the nurses’ station, filling out a chart.
“Nurse McClain,” he greeted her. “I didn’t expect to see you today.”
“I wasn’t sure if I was needed, so I thought I’d better check.”
“I’m glad you did, but not for the reasons you think.” He held out his arm and motioned for her to join him in one of the empty cubicles. “You did an amazing job yesterday,” he said, lowering his voice. “When those patients came in already diagnosed, we were able to treat them immediately, and I’m convinced lives were saved. You did this community a tremendous service, and I only wish we could thank you publicly.”
She shook her head. “Even if you were vague about my contribution, I wouldn’t want that kind of recognition. I just want to do my job.”
“I know that, and I appreciate it. That’s what makes the next thing I’m going to say even harder.” He looked her in the eye. “I’m prepared to offer you a job here at the hospital as head of nursing. You’d oversee every nurse in this building from the ER to the surgical floors, and your salary would increase by thirty percent. What this means, though, is that you’d have to withdraw your application for medical school.”
“I don’t know what to say.” Head of nursing? She’d had the thought once or twice that she’d like that job, but it had seemed completely out of reach. Now it was being offered to her, but at a cost she hadn’t anticipated. “I’m honored—I really am. I just wonder if I could have some time to think about it.”
“Yes, of course. And I realize I’m being selfish in wanting to keep your skills close to home, but I’ve never claimed to be unselfish. I want you on my team, Nurse McClain. Please think it over carefully.”
“I will. I promise.”
“Good. Now, take the rest of the day off, if you please. I’m told you almost looked like a patient yourself by the time you went home last night.”
“I was pretty tired.”
“I’m sure that’s an understatement. We’ll see you tomorrow for the afternoon shift, and not a moment sooner.”
Rebekah left the cubicle and went to find Jeremy, who was at the nurses’ station chatting with Harriet. “I have the rest of the day off, and I don’t come in until tomorrow afternoon,” she told him.
“Perfect. I see lots of good things in your future—things like a good lunch and then a nap.”
“A nap? That’s kind of a weird thing to do on a date, isn’t it?”
He smiled. “The lunch part is a date, but then you’re going home for a nap. I’m not a nurse, but I’m a paramedic, and I know exhaustion when I see it.”
She was about to argue with him and tell him she was fine, but that wasn’t the truth. She’d gotten a few hours of sleep the night before, but not nearly as much as she needed. “All right,” she replied. “Lunch and then a nap. And after that?”
“If you’re up to it, what would you think about a drive out to San Antonio to meet my family?”
“I’d love it,” she replied without hesitation.
“But only if you’re up to it,” he repeated.
“I’m pretty sure I will be, but I promise I’ll let you know if I change my mind.”
He put his arm around her shoulders and walked her to her car. “Sounds like a deal. Here’s your chariot, m’lady, and I’ll meet you at Comida in a few minutes. That is, if Mexican sounds good.”
“I’m a McClain from Texas, sir. I believe we’ve had this conversation before.”
He grinned. “I’ll see you there.”