Cherished Beginnings Read Online Free PDF

hint of trepidation in her voice.
    "Ours," he said immediately. "Hey, don't you understand I'm not going to make trouble for you? You did a fine job. Why don't you continue to care for Annie and her baby if it will make you happy?"
    Maura suddenly saw clearly that she was going to have to revise her opinion of Dr. Copeland's lackadaisical attitude. It was plain to see that Xan Copeland was a warm, caring physician, as dedicated as they come. Never mind the machismo, never mind the overwhelming sensuality. Underneath the perfect packaging, he was exactly the kind of doctor she would choose to supervise her practice. Ah, but if only he would!
    How could she work around to that question? And even if he would, did she want him to? It would mean close contact with him from time to time, and she wasn't sure she could handle that.
    But first things first. "If I'm going to continue to care for Annie and the baby, I won't be able to leave for a while," she said. "I'll need to watch them for a couple of hours to make sure everything's okay with both of them. In fact," she said, "I'd better look in on them now and take Annie a cup of that tea I brewed. Would you care for some?"
    Xan would have rather had a cold beer, but looking straight into Maura's level brown eyes—and he hadn't seen too many brown-eyed redheads in his time—he surprised himself by saying, "Sure."
    After she took Annie the tea, Maura poured a cup for herself and one for Xan. "I had to sweeten the tea with sugar because that's all there is," she apologized as she handed him the cup. "I would have preferred honey."
    "Oh? Are you one of these health-food freaks, into alfalfa sprouts and things like that?"
    "Do you have something against alfalfa sprouts?"
    "Only that I can't eat them without getting them caught between my teeth," he said.
    She stared at him, deflected from her defensive stance by his humor. Then she started to laugh. "Well, try the tea. It's a special herbal blend and very relaxing."
    "If I relax any more, I may fall out of this rocking chair," he said.
    "In California, we'd call you laid-back," said Maura before realizing that she'd revealed too much.
    "In South Carolina, it's called lazy," Xan shot back. "Anyway, is that where you're from? California?"
    "Yes," she said in a tone that precluded any further inquiry about her past. She stood so abruptly that the rocking chair tipped forward and smacked her against the back of her knees. In obvious agitation, she walked to the end of the porch and stared out into the dark woods.
    Xan sipped the tea slowly. So she was from California, and she didn't want to talk about it, he thought. Interesting.
    "I've been thinking," he said carefully. "I can check your car for you, see what's wrong. Maybe I can get it running again."
    She turned toward him quickly, relieved at the change of subject almost as much as at his suggestion that he investigate the minivan's mechanical problem. "Would you? I—I don't understand much about automobiles, and I'd be so grateful."
    "Be glad to." He stood and set the cup of tea on a window ledge. Tension hung in the air between them. It had started when she mentioned California and then had immediately become so skittish.
    "Here, you'll need my keys," she said, fishing them out of her skirt pocket. She handed him her key ring.
    "I'll check it out and see what I can do for you," he said before wheeling and stepping off the porch without using the stairs.
    In a moment, his motorcycle sputtered to life. Xan switched on the headlight, throwing a strong bright beam against the trees at the edge of the clearing. Then with a jaunty wave he was gone, a rooster tail of dust spurting out behind him.
    Good, Maura thought to herself. She'd wondered how she was going to get her car repaired.
    Maura sat back down and wearily rested her head against the high back. Why had she said anything about California? That part of her life was over. She'd hopped in the minivan and set out blindly for the