Page 35 of Wishes on Wildflowers
He grinned, that lopsided grin she’d once loved. “We were having a business meeting when he got the call, and his truck is in the shop. I couldn’t leave the guy stranded.”
“Of course not.” This era’s version of Nathan was an improvement over the old one. Where he’d been selfish, now he was altruistic. Kind, even. Always willing to help. Maybe it was merely his marketing edge, endearing him to clients.
“You?”
Jasmine blinked. Her... what?
Her confusion must have shown, because he waved his hand in a circle. “I told you whyI’mhere, but why are you?”
“Oh!” She swung her purse to her back. “We’re here to pick up the kids. Dixie’s mom called Linnea. She wants to stay with her daughter while she’s in labor.” She shook her head. “Not sure how I got roped into this. Because Linnea’s my friend, I guess. Those two are more than a handful.”
He frowned. “I got the impression this was Dan’s first.”
Jasmine laughed. “Yes, but not Dixie’s. She’s basically a serial monogamist. Third kid, third father.”
Her phone buzzed, and she glanced at the screen to find a text from her roommate.Where are you?
“Sorry, Linnea needs me.”
Then why did Nathan fall into step beside her as she strode for the walkway? “Tell me about the kids.”
Why would he even care? “Um, Mandy just turned four, and Buddy’s two, I think.”
Nathan quirked an eyebrow at her, not that she was looking. “Buddy? That’s his real name?”
“As far as I know. I haven’t heard anyone say differently, unless it was accompanied by a few nasty adjectives.”
“Aw, poor kid. I know what it’s like to be cursed at with every second breath.”
The hospital doors swooshed open at their approach. Jasmine slid her sunglasses to the top of her head as she looked around. A kiosk pointed the way to Labor and Delivery and she started off toward the elevators. Nathan stuck to her side like glue.
What would it be like if they were married and were here for the arrival of their own little one? The thought punched her in the gut and nearly doubled her over. Why couldn’t he have stuck with her back then? Why did he have to go wild and ruin his prospects then return more devastatingly handsome than ever, apparently trying to win her back despite everything?
She couldn’t condone what she surmised of his intervening years. Basil had made sure she was informed, but could Basil have lied? She wouldn’t put it past him. The Nathan she knew now wouldn’t go from woman to womanlike a flitting butterfly or buzzing bee. Could a man change back and forth so often and be trusted? He’d grown up rough, stabilized while they dated, then gone wild again. Now he seemed desperate to prove all that was behind him. More likely this was just another phase he’d soon pass through.
He wouldn’t leave her heart ground into the dirt again. No matter if he wanted to dance in the moonlight and dared to kiss her. No, she was stronger than that. Let him toy with some other woman, not her.
His sleeve brushed against her arm as he reached for the elevator button, and she winced away. Even that small touch, not even skin-on-skin, drove her awareness up ten notches. And then he turned to look at her.
She shouldn’t gaze into his eyes. Danger lurked there, but so did a plea. So did something deeper, something that told her the awareness was mutual. That he wasn’t the Nathan who’d left her long ago.
No. Please, God, no.
The elevator purred to a stop. A bell chimed as the doors slid open, and several people hurried out. She and Nathan stepped in, and he pushed the button for the third floor.
Why was he still here? Could she ask him? But no words came to mind when he trapped her eyes once again. Her skin grew clammy, sucking all the moisture out of her mouth.
“Jasmine.” His hand moved toward her then fell away. “You look gorgeous today.”
She shook her head. Not in an ordinary blue T-shirt and jean shorts. She hadn’t done anything with her hair except braid it back. She and Linnea had planned on kicking back after work, not rushing to Deaconess Hospital.
Nathan’s grin quirked to one side and his gray eyes warmed. “You always do. Trust me.”
Trust him.No other words could fill her heart with the same amount of panic. She once had trusted him. Believed everything he said. Believed his whispered words of love. Could he possibly be worthy of renewed trust?
The elevator fluttered to a stop. Jasmine could barely get out of the enclosed space quickly enough, but then screaming assaulted her ears from down the wide corridor.
Two-year-old Buddy lay on the faux wood floor in a full-on tantrum while Mandy stood to the side yelling at him to stop. Linnea knelt beside the child, soothing his sweat-soaked curls. Nurses glared from behind the desk, and disapproval oozed from the older couple in the waiting room.
