His Leading Lady Read online

  “I should thank you.” Despite the words, her expression was closed off. All the softness and vulnerability he’d seen in her gaze the night of the emergency was gone. Her brilliant green eyes were shuttered. Her hands were filled with DVDs, the titles of which he couldn’t read, but she clutched them to her chest like a shield.

  “It was no problem,” he said. He mentally kicked himself for the too-blasé response. Her grandmother had nearly died, and it was no problem? He tried again. “I mean, I’m a doctor, it’s what I’m trained to do.”

  One of her eyebrows rose the tiniest fraction of an inch, but it sent a signal loud and clear. Oh shit, he’d come off like some egotistical doctor with a God-complex. He cleared his throat. “I mean—”

  “Thank you,” she cut in. “For everything. It meant a lot to my grandmother.” As she spoke she backed away and it was impossible to ignore the fact that her tone held no gratitude, only amusement.

  His dream woman was laughing at him. The thought was almost too shocking to comprehend. He found himself taking several steps toward her as she retreated. To the casual observer, it would look like he was chasing her—literally. He forced himself to stop, take a deep breath, and collect his thoughts. For the love of God, he was a grown man. A respected doctor. Hell, he’d been named on the city’s most eligible bachelors list. So why the hell was he coming across like a bumbling, egocentric asshole? Get it together, man.

  He took a deep breath. “Would you like to go out with me sometime?”

  Her eyes widened, but yet again he couldn’t tell if her obvious surprise was one of pleasure or horror. Whatever thoughts were going on in that pretty head of hers were locked away behind an impenetrable mask.

  Her lips parted, and Nicholas realized he was holding his breath, waiting for her answer.

  “No.”

  The word seemed to echo off the hallway tiles and through his skull. No. His brain refused to compute. “No? Just…no?”

  She turned then and started walking toward the exit, and without realizing he was doing it, he followed her. “Are you married? Seeing someone?”

  She sighed but didn’t break stride.

  “Look, if it’s something I said…” He let his words trail off when she spun around to face him. The smile she wore was horrifyingly nice. No, not nice—pitying.

  “It’s not something you said. You were fantastic the other night. Really. I owe you big time.”

  “You owe me?” he repeated. He couldn’t help it. She made it sound like she should go out with him because she was indebted to him. “You don’t owe me anything. I was just doing my job. But the other night…”

  He watched in confusion as she stiffened up at his mention of that night.

  “The other night,” he continued. “I thought maybe there was something there between us.”

  Her eyes flashed with something, some strong emotion that was there and gone so quickly he couldn’t put a name to it. But then the shutters fell once again, and he found himself speaking to a mannequin—a stunningly gorgeous, emotionless statue. “While I appreciate your help the other night, Doctor…”

  “Bale,” he provided. “Nicholas Bale.”

  “While I appreciate your help, I’m afraid I can’t go on a date with you.”

  He stood there speechless for quite possibly the first time in his life. This was so not going according to plan. A woman had never said no to him before. So despite the fact that some part of his brain knew he was humiliating himself by not letting this go, he couldn’t stop himself from asking. “Why not?”

  Her eyes flickered from him toward Ena’s hospital room. “I don’t live here.”

  Disappointment had him slumping over a bit as her words registered.

  “I’m just here visiting my grandmother,” she continued. Yet again she backed away from him so she was at the end of the hall. “Sorry. And thanks again.”

  With that, she turned and rounded the corner to walk out of the hospital…and out of his life.

  * * * *

  He wasn’t sure how long he stood there staring after her like a giant sap. What the hell just happened?

  It was unfair. He’d finally met someone with whom he felt it, and she’d run away. Worse, apparently she didn’t even live in town. He kicked himself for not learning more about her. Where she lived, what she did for a living. But when the head of pediatric surgery retired from the hospital’s Boston branch next year, he would be leaving the city himself—if he got the job. He wasn’t so committed to NYC that he couldn’t entertain the idea of leaving for a relationship. Or maybe doing the long-distance thing for a little while. There were ways they could make it work. Maybe if they’d had a chance to talk, to get to know one another….

  He turned back to head toward the pediatrics wing when he came to Ena’s door. He had wanted to check on his former patient, after all. And if she happened to give him some information on her granddaughter, all the better.

  With a new sense of hope, he let himself into her room and watched as the old lady’s eyes lit up at the sight of him.

  At least someone in the family is happy to see him.

  After asking about her health and her comfort, he tried to introduce the conversation as casually as possible. “I ran into your granddaughter as she was leaving.”

  Okay, not exactly subtle. But it worked.

  “My granddaughter?” Ena’s wrinkled face wrinkled even more as her eyes narrowed on him like he was speaking a different language. “I don’t have a granddaughter.”

  Before he could make sense of that, her eyes widened in sudden understanding. “Oh, you mean Alice.”

  Alice. So that was her name.

  “She’s not your granddaughter?”

  Ena’s laugh was husky and weak. “Oh no, she’s my friend. My neighbor, really. She lives in my apartment building.”

  Nicholas jerked back from the side of the bed as if she’d just thrown her glass of ice water in his face. And that was exactly how it felt. She lived here. In New York. And in his apartment building.

  Ena was watching him closely. “You like Alice, no?”

  “Hmm?” He reached toward her chart at the end of the bed in a clear-cut case of avoidance.

  Her laugh said that she saw right through him. “She’s single, you know.”

  Is she now? Now that the shock was starting to wear off, irritation took its place. She’d outright lied to him. And why? Because the idea of dating him was so horrible, apparently.

  “What about you?” Ena asked point blank. “Are you single?”

  Nicholas gave her the charming doctorly smile he’d perfected in medical school. “I’m not married, if that’s what you mean.”

  She laughed and added, “Oh, I’m sure you’re not at a loss for dates. Who would say no to a handsome doctor?”

  She stressed the word doctor, making it sound far more impressive than a career. Your friend Alice. He clenched his teeth to keep the words from spilling out.

  He was dimly aware that Ena was still talking about his career, telling him about how her first husband had wanted to go to medical school. Her words barely registered. All he could think about was what a fool he’d been. What a fool Alice had made him out to be.

  She could have just said, “Not interested, thanks,” but instead, she’d lied to him. Apparently the thought of going out on a date with him was so abhorrent that she didn’t want to leave anything to chance. Better to pretend to live in another state than risk another overture from him. The longer he stood there, the more her actions ate at him.

  He found himself backing away toward the door just as Alice had backed away from him. He couldn’t stand here much longer simmering with anger while keeping a pleasant, detached smile firmly planted on his face.

  “I’ll stop by tomorrow to check on your progress,” he said just as he reached the door.

  Chapter 3

  Nicholas sat across from Claudia a little while
later in the hospital’s cafeteria and watched with annoyance as she picked at her yogurt, seemingly unfazed by his news.

  “You don’t understand, Claud. She lied to me.”

  She glanced up. “I get it, Nicholas. Your dream woman blew you off.” She shrugged before diving back into her snack. “It sucks, but it happens.”

  He stared at her in stunned amazement. “I never said she was my dream woman.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Oh please, I’ve been hearing you wax poetic about her unparalleled beauty and this amazing connection you felt for the past twenty-four hours. Besides, you wouldn’t be this worked up if there hadn’t been the spark of something real there.”

  He scowled across the table and folded his arms across his chest. “I guess I was wrong about that.”

  She finally set down the yogurt, and for the first time since he’d told her about Alice’s rejection, she seemed to take his anger seriously. “Or maybe you were right,” she said. Leaning over the table, her eyes were bright with mischief. “And maybe I was, too.”

  “Right about what?” Even he could hear how wary he sounded. But really, he knew better than anyone how stubborn his best friend could be when she got a theory in her head.

  “Maybe you were right that you would ‘just know’ when the right woman came along,” she said, with only a hint of mockery in her tone. “And maybe I was right when I said that it wouldn’t be exactly how you planned.”

  She sat back and looked down her nose at him in that holier-than-though way she got whenever they were discussing a topic in which she had more knowledge—usually cardiology or relationships. “Plan all you want,” she said, “but love never comes the way you think it will.”

  He opened his mouth to argue, more out of habit than the fact that he actually had an argument. But she cut him off with a wave of her hand. “I know you want simple, you want the neat, orderly kind of love affair that you think is the ideal. But love is messy. It’s intense. It has its ups and downs.”

  Her use of the L-word had him sitting straight, temporarily frozen in disbelief. They were treading on sacred ground here—“love” was not something he threw around lightly. In fact, he’d never said it—not in the “in love” sense, at least. “Who said anything about love? I never said that I loved her.”

  “No, but what if it could be love?” Claudia shot back.

  He blinked at her in surprise. What if it could be—the real deal, the happy ending, the love of his life? All the things he was looking for to complete his plans. The future, the family, the supportive wife. What if his gut was right and there really had been a connection? Didn’t he have a responsibility to see it through? Or at least fight for a chance?

  A nagging voice told him he’d only humiliate himself further, but that was fear talking and he shoved it aside. His parents would never have gotten together if his father hadn’t chased after his mother and won her over—he’d heard that story more times than he could count. And Claudia was the first to admit that she and Frank would never have had a second date if she hadn’t made it happen through sheer force of will.

  “Maybe you’re right,” he said slowly.

  Claudia’s eyes lit up—most likely at the sheer rarity of hearing him admit that she was right more than anything. She leaned forward, her hands flying as she spoke, a sure sign that she was excited. “Of course I’m right. What do you have to lose, right?”

  My pride. My self-respect. My manhood. He took a sip of his water and kept silent.

  “This is what you wanted, isn’t it?” she continued. “A connection?”

  “I wanted simple,” he said. But she was right again. He’d been on an endless string of dates and hadn’t felt that spark he’d been looking for. Not until the other night.

  Claudia ignored his comment. “I mean, the girl lives in your building, for heaven’s sakes. She’s practically on your doorstep. You owe it to yourself to at least try.”

  He shoved his chair back with a little too much force and was aware of several pairs of eyes turning to stare. “You’re right,” he said. “If nothing else, I think I’m due an explanation.”

  Claudia gave a quick nod. “Absolutely.”

  “She could have just said no if she wasn’t interested. She didn’t have to outright lie.”

  He didn’t miss the fact that Claudia was stifling a laugh—one that was obviously at his expense. “What’s so funny?”

  She shook her head, but then a loud laugh escaped her, and she slapped a hand over her mouth to stifle it.

  He raised his brows in question.

  “It’s just… You’ve never had to chase a woman before….” She looked like she might start laughing again, but she pressed her lips together and seemed to recover. “It’s just so fitting that you find a woman who you feel you have a connection with and she wants nothing to do with you.”

  He shook his head with a scowl that was tempered with laughter. It wasn’t often his friend, the revered cardiologist, lost her shit in public. It was a little funny to witness, even if she was laughing at him. “I’m so glad I can amuse you.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said through a snort-like laugh. “I just…can’t wait to tell Frank.”

  Standing up from the table, he moved over so he could lean down and give his friend a quick peck on the cheek. “Thanks. I owe you one.”

  * * * *

  Maybe it was the adrenaline, but he found himself back at his Riverside apartment building a short time later, out of breath but filled with energy. He’d only moved in a few weeks before and hadn’t learned all the doormen’s names yet so he approached the short, balding fellow with what he hoped was an ingratiating smile.

  “Hi there. I don’t believe we’ve officially met,” he said, holding out a hand toward the doorman.

  He got a scowl in return and his narrowed eyes were watching him with suspicion. “I know who you are, Dr. Bale.”

  Nicholas nodded. “Right, right….” So he was the prick who hadn’t bothered to learn his doorman’s name. Point taken. “And you are?”

  The scowl deepened. “Carl.”

  Nicholas ignored the blatant hostility that Carl was throwing his way. He would kill the man with kindness, dammit. “Good to meet you, Carl, er, officially.”

  Silence. Carl was certainly not making this easy.

  “Look, Carl, I’m a doctor—” No, that was not the right way to go about this. Had he learned nothing from Alice’s mocking response earlier when he’d tried the doctor route?

  “I know that, Dr. Bale,” Carl said.

  Nicholas cleared his throat and tried again. “Right. Of course you do. What I meant was I helped one of the apartment buildings tenants the other night. You might have heard that the elderly woman in 11C had a heart attack the other night.”

  Carl gave a short nod. “Ena. Yeah, I heard. It was a crying shame.”

  “Indeed,” he murmured, hoping he conveyed enough sympathy in his impatience to get to the point. “The thing is there was another resident there that night. She accompanied Ena and myself to the hospital. I believe her name was Alice….” He trailed off hoping that Carl might fill in a last name, but the older man’s mouth was pressed together firmly.

  “Anyways, I know she lives in the building, and I’d like to check up on her, make sure she’s all right after being part of a traumatic event like that.”

  Carl’s expression was hard, his face unreadable as he stared at Nicholas in silence.

  Jesus, he was making this difficult. Shoving his hands into his pockets, he tried a more direct approach. “I was wondering if you could tell me which apartment is hers.”

  “I’m not allowed to give out apartment numbers.” The response was swift and firm.

  His smile didn’t falter, but he bit back a muttered curse. “Yes, but I’m a doctor,” he tried again, not entirely sure where he was going with this line of attack. But pulling the doctor card had been known to work in the p
ast, and he was flailing for a way in.

  Carl looked unfazed, most likely because they’d covered the doctor bit already, and stared blankly as he waited for Nicholas to continue.

  “And, uh, I want to make sure she is all right, you see.”

  Carl’s brows drew together. “Why wouldn’t she be all right?”

  He cleared his throat, buying time. Then he found himself repeating the same ineffective line. “She had quite a shock the other night and—”

  Carl dropped the newspaper he was holding and let out a weary sigh. “Look, Doc. You seem like a nice enough guy, but you’ve got to understand that I’m not allowed to give out Alice’s apartment number.” He leaned forward as if letting Nicholas in on a secret. “You’re not the first gentleman to come looking for her apartment, coming up with some excuse of why it’s imperative that you see her. Christ, if I gave her apartment number out to every guy that came calling—”

  “It’s okay, Carl.” The husky, sexy voice that came from the entryway behind him was unmistakable.

  He turned slowly, knowing what he would find but needing that bit of time to mentally prepare himself for the punch in the gut that seemed to go hand in hand with seeing her.

  There she was. Backlit by the front door, her auburn hair gleamed like a halo, giving her already mind-boggling beauty an unearthly air. It was her. Alice.

  His Alice.

  * * * *

  Alice stared at the doctor who appeared to be haunting her. Or maybe stalking her.

  It’s okay, Carl? She’d said that for Carl’s sake, to save him any more discomfort. But this man standing here in her apartment building? This was not okay. This was so far from okay.

  She’d frozen at the first sight of him, disbelief leaving her as still as a statue as her brain registered what she was seeing. For a second there she’d toyed with the idea of turning tail and running. Everything in her body urged her to flee.

  Shifting her eyes to the elevator, she stared straight ahead as she walked past him. She could feel the heat from his body as he joined her as if they’d planned this all along.