Free The M.D. Courts His Nurse by Meagan McKinney

who must heal thyself.”
    He ran his hands through his hair in exasperation. The Matriarch of Mystery was way too close to the truth. Rebecca was out of his scope. She was too unpredictable and dismissive for him to approach her. The shallow socialites he’d been involved with in the past few years were just his type. Mercenary. He knew all about that. Too many beatings from a bitter father obsessed with never failing had taught him nothing about love but more than he needed to know about mercenaries.
    â€œYoung man, I’ll tell you no lies,” Hazel said quietly. “What you see now as obstacles are really only speed bumps on the road to true love. You and Rebecca are a perfect couple.”
    â€œPerfect couple? Frankly, Hazel, that’s a little over the top for me. I can’t even begin to fathom her mind, what she—”
    Hazel waved his speech aside as if she were shooing a fly. “That’s all your college and medical training confusingyou. Don’t waste time analyzing Rebecca. Trying to figure out a woman’s mind is like trying to figure out what came before once-upon-a-time. Accept what she is and enjoy it. She’s an amazing creature.”
    He greeted this with a long, fluming sigh. “I don’t dispute you there. It’s just…I mean, I don’t…”
    â€œI know what the problem is,” Hazel insisted, “you look at her and see all that red in her hair and you think, Fire. All red blazing fire. But deep inside, you believe there’s nothing but ice inside you. She’s so different from you that you can’t even imagine the two of you ever getting along. Erotic fantasies, sure, but you can’t imagine actually coexisting outside of bed. Am I right?”
    He said nothing, damning himself with silence.
    â€œI’m used to being right,” she said shamelessly. “You just take it from an old rancher and equestrian. Love is no different from learning to ride a horse. First you walk, then you trot, then you lope, then you canter, and then you gallop. One step at a time, and before you know it, you’re there. ”
    Hazel rose.
    John rose, too, watching her with a look of baffled amazement. She had cut to the deepest matters of his heart with the same surgical speed and precision he prided himself on.
    â€œHang in there like the man I know you are, and she’ll crater,” Hazel insisted, using an old miner’s term for caving in. “And don’t ever worry about a woman being too ‘different’ from you. That’s why we’re called the opposite sex, get it?”
    He saw that she had pulled her checkbook out, and he waved it aside. “Put that back in your purse. If anything, you should send me the bill for today’s visit.”
    Hazel grinned. “No, I’ll pay. You want Rebecca to think we’re conspiring against her? You will have troubles then.Tell you what. Just give me a long ride in that beautiful car of yours sometime, and we’ll call it even.”
    â€œDeal,” he agreed.
    â€œHang in there,” she repeated. “And good luck. You know, Rebecca’s a little like a fine sports car herself. She’s temperamental and a little complicated. But, mister, once you get her purring, I’ll bet you’re in for the ride of your life.”

Six
    R ebecca’s interaction with her employer in the supply room left her in a foul mood for much of the day. At first, catching him staring at her had been flattering—even a little bit of a turn-on. But then it had all blown to kingdom come with their chilly exchange of words.
    Hazel’s frustrating secrecy hadn’t helped her mood any, either. As the disastrous date with Rick Collins proved, Hazel’s good intentions could become a major pain. Rebecca still suspected Hazel was behind the strange events of the date with Rick. No way could Hazel ever have believed she and Rick would get along.