Watson by Kathi Barton (ebook reader txt) 📕

a great deal, Rayne. Not sexually—not until now—but how it would feel to kiss you. To take you on a date and have some— Would you go out with me?”

“Yes.” When Wats turned from her and looked in the doorway, she did as well. It was difficult, she thought, to pull her glance from the man. When he asked his cousin what he wanted, the laughter set off her temper, and she found herself standing in front of the big man poking him in the chest. “What did you want that was so important that you had to interrupt our conversation? Was it that important?”

“No, not really.” He laughed again. “Wats, I like her. She’s a keeper. If I’m right on this, and I think I am, she’ll fit right in with the rest of the group. I was just asking Wats here if he wanted to get some lunch on the way over to the new place. I missed my breakfast, and he’s had me running him around all morning.”

“Oh.” Again her face heated up, and she felt herself feeling stupid and awkward. Instead of letting her mouth get herself into more trouble, she looked at Wats again. “I’m not sure what’s going on here. I don’t have any idea why I want you to take me into your arms and make me feel like I’m something special. I’ve never felt that way with anyone before. I don’t know you well enough to have those feelings for you. I just find myself feeling stupid all the time.”

Instead of telling her she was being stupid, Wats pulled her into his arms and held her tightly. Every insecurity she had about herself, all the doubts that anyone would or could love her, seemed to just melt away. Closing her eyes against all the emotions that were pinging all over her mind and body, Rayne just let herself enjoy being held. It might well never happen for her again.

“I’ve been thinking that you could come and work for me. Answer the phone, let me help you with your education into becoming a nurse. But right now, all I can think about is chasing you around my office and having my way with you.” She pulled back enough to look up at him. “We’d never get anything accomplished, I’m afraid.”

“This is really strange for me.” He said it was for him as well. “I haven’t dated all that much. Rarely a second one if I do go out with someone. I’m probably the world’s oldest virgin at twenty-six.”

He laughed. It didn’t feel like he was making fun of her, nor did he tell her that her being a virgin was shocking to him. No, it felt like he was laughing because he was enjoying himself. Smiling at him, she asked him if he was as loony as he seemed.

“More than likely, I think. But I would love for you to come by my offices and see if you could perhaps work for me. I don’t have a great many patients as yet. Just enough to keep me on my toes. I seem to take care of the family injuries more than I do anyone coming into the offices.” She asked him about the filing. “I do have a sort of system in mind, but if you could figure out something, I’d be glad to have it. I just came from a large practice with about a dozen other doctors and nurses, and this part is all new for me.”

He picked up her bags when Mars asked him from the other room if they were ready. She took the smaller bag that was her grandda’s and took it out to the truck too. There, sitting in the driveway, was a brand new car. It even had a large bow on it. She dropped everything and wanted to get a closer look at it.

“North bought it for you and your grandda. He said he noticed that you didn’t have a very reliable vehicle, and he didn’t want to make you unable to go to class or take James to the doctor—us, I would guess—if your car didn’t start.” She told Mars that was just too much. “Not to him, it’s not. He feels terrible that you had to live in that other house. I do as well. Someone should have fixed it for you rather than just blowing you off when you needed at least a new furnace. Those are necessities, and the bank should have made sure they were in good working order.”

“I’ll be ever so careful with it. And I won’t put any more miles on it than necessary.” Wats asked her why she thought she had to not put miles on it. “I don’t know. To resell it, I suppose.”

“I’m sure he means for you to use it as much as you want. There isn’t any reason that he’d not want you to be doing that.” Wats kissed her on the mouth as he handed her the car keys. “You drive it over to the new house to see if it’s something you can get used to. It has a full tank of gas, and there is a standing order at the local gas stations for you to fill it up whenever you need to.” She started to complain that it was too much. “Before you say something like you’re not going to do that, it’s not just for you, Rayne, but for your grandda as well. We’ve all gone to college, so we know how tight things can be when you’re trying to get an education. Just think of this as we’re helping you graduate without any worries.”

It was too much. Not just the car and the house, but her feelings for Wats. Instead of saying something else about it all, she got into the car and waited for them to do the same. Rayne’s emotions were too new, too everything right now, and she didn’t want to do or say