Free Million Dollar Marriage by MAGGIE SHAYNE Page B

better it sounds.”
    She closed her eyes, exhaled slowly. “No. Look, I’ve barely had three hours to think
     about this. I just need time to work it all out in my mind, okay?”
    “So, I should stop pressing.”
    She nodded.
    “And I shouldn’t have shown up early.”
    “No,” she said. “You shouldn’t. You can see I’m not ready.”
    He looked her over, from her head to her toes, and then he smiled. “You’re barefoot,”
     he observed. “You have cute feet.”
    “Flattery isn’t going to convince me, either.”
    He gave his head a shake and met her eyes again. “Look, I was going to go over to
     the main house to check on Matthew and Claudia, and I thought you might want to come
     along. Do you?”
    “Yes, very much.”
    “Good. And, um…that wasn’t flattery. You really do have cute feet.”
    “Right. I think I’ll put some shoes on, anyway, if it’s all the same to you. And I
     need to be back here by three. I have an, uh, appointment.”
    Holden frowned. “A date?”
    “Of course not. I need to see someone at the hospital. It won’t take long.”
    “So then, you’ll be free for dinner afterward?”
    She sighed. “I’ll let you know.”
    “Good enough.” He settled into a chair, and Cleo was on his lap a second later. “So,
     go finish getting ready,” he said, stroking the cat and looking perfectly content
     to sit and wait.
    Holden had certainly put on a good show. Ever the gentleman, anyone would think he
     was just the opposite of the man she knew him to be. An uncaring womanizer. Instead
     he seemed friendly, attentive, even kind. His concern for his family…well, that part
     was real. She had, she realized in surprise, actually enjoyed the time she’d spent
     with him today. And she adored his mother, Mary Ellen. The woman was everything Lucinda
     had ever wanted to be. Strong, sure of herself, graceful.
    At her doctor’s appointment that afternoon, though, all of those thoughts fled her
     mind, replaced by onenew revelation. One she’d hoped and prayed she would never have to face.
    Lucinda sat very still, absorbing the blow. “You’re absolutely sure the ovary is going
     to have to come out.”
    “I’m afraid so,” Karen Flemming replied. “Look, it can wait…a few months, maybe even
     a year, but not a minute longer. It’s going to have to go, and I wouldn’t push it
     any further.” She shook her head slowly. “You’ve seen the test results. You can interpret
     them as well as I can.”
    “Yeah.” Lucinda eyed the detestable manila folder and tried to blink back tears.
    “It’s for your own health,” Karen went on. “Precancerous cysts are bad in and of themselves,
     but with your family history….”
    “I know. My mother died of ovarian cancer. I’m a doctor, Karen, I know what that means
     as well as you do.”
    Karen nodded slowly. “I know how desperately you want a baby, Lucinda. I suppose if
     you were to get pregnant right away…”
    “Oh, come on, Karen, stop talking to me like I’m a layman. We both know that I only
     have one ovary, and that cuts my chances of conceiving a child in two. It could take
     me months to get pregnant, even if I could find a willing man to help out.”
    Karen lowered her head. “There’s artificial insemination. You don’t need to wait for
     a man to start trying. Like you said, you know what you’re looking at here just as
     well as I do. And I think you also know what advice you would give to one of your
     patients in this same situation. Don’t you?”
    Lucinda looked up slowly. “Yes. I’d tell them to have the ovary removed right away.
     I’d tell them that to wait too long would be taking an unnecessary risk. I’d tell
     them to adopt.” She lowered her head. “But, unfortunately, I’m not smart enough to
     take my own advice.”
    “Then what are you going to do?”
    Lucinda lifted her chin. “I’m going to get pregnant just as soon as possible. Because
     the longer I wait, the less chance