Mendoza's Miracle. Judy Duarte

the dark shadow came the urge to throw the remote across the room, even though he’d never been prone to displays of temper. Instead, he placed his index finger over the red power button, shutting off the TV.

      As the screen faded to black, Leah entered the room. Just the sight of his pretty nurse was enough to make his frustration ease and his mood take flight.

      Talk about a nice diversion…

      A grin tugged at his lips, softening what had been a grimace only moments ago.

      At first glance, Leah, who stood about five foot four, wasn’t what Javier would call a striking woman. After all, he’d never seen her wearing anything other than hospital scrubs and a matching pair of Crocs on her feet. But with each passing day, as he looked beyond the loose-fitting clothing that masked her femininity, he’d found a lot to admire.

      Her long, straight hair was a pretty shade of auburn, although she usually kept it pulled back with a clip or woven in a single braid. She wore very little makeup—if any. But she had such a wholesome beauty that she really didn’t need any of the usual female props.

      He wondered what she looked like on her days off or when she spent a night on the town. In fact, he’d like to know a lot of things about her, like what her life was like outside the hospital.

      Was she married?

      He certainly hoped not.

      As she moved through his room, he wondered if she was dating someone special. It was difficult to imagine men not clamoring to be her one and only. How many women were as comforting, as gentle, as sweet?

      A couple of times he’d been tempted to ask if she was single and unattached, but he hadn’t, and he wasn’t sure why. He supposed he hadn’t wanted his nurse to know that he found her that attractive. If he hadn’t been laid up—and barely able to walk—it might be a different story. In fact, the old Javier wouldn’t have thought twice about asking her out. But he was a far cry from the man he used to be.

      “I take it there’s nothing good on television,” she said.

      “Nope.” He set the remote aside.

      “The dinner cart will be here shortly,” she added.

      “I can hardly wait.”

      Catching his sarcastic tone, she turned to him and smiled. “You’re lucky. The food at San Antonio General is actually pretty good.”

      Maybe it was, but his appetite had yet to return. In fact, the only reason he even looked forward to mealtime was because it helped to pass the time from morning to night, making him come one day closer to discharge.

      But why focus on all that mundane reality when he had Leah with him?

      “Hey, Florence,” he said, using the nickname he’d dubbed her with when he’d first began to see her as a woman and not as his nurse. “I have a question for you.”

      “What’s that?” She neared his bed, checking the ice and water level in the small plastic pitcher that sat on his portable tray.

      “What does your husband do for a living? Is he in the medical field, too?”

      She paused as if his comment had thrown her for a loop. “My husband? I’m not married.”

      Javier fought the urge to smile at that news. “Oh, no? I just assumed that a woman like you would have a man in her life.”

      Her hand lifted to the boxy pink top she wore and she fingered the stitching along the V-neck.

      Was she nervous? Off balance? Flattered maybe?

      He liked to think so, even though he wasn’t in a position to follow through at this point.

      Before either of them could speak, a woman’s voice sounded in the doorway.

      At the cheery “Hello,” both Javier and Leah turned to see a tall, willowy blonde walk into the room carrying an arrangement of spring flowers that hid her face.

      Savannah Bennett?

      As the blonde lowered the multicolored blooms, he realized that’s exactly who’d come to visit.

      “I hope you don’t mind me stopping by,” Savannah said. “I’d been wanting to see you for weeks, but I’d heard that your visitors had been limited to family members.”

      No one had told Javier that only his relatives were allowed to see him, although he hadn’t much cared either way. In fact, he’d rather not deal with visitors at all—whether they be family or friends.

      “But then I ran into Rafe at the grocery store this afternoon,” Savannah said. “He told me you were eager to have company. So here I am.”

      Eager? That was a crock, and Rafe knew it.

      More irritated at his brother’s interference than Savannah’s surprise visit, he forced himself to be polite. “Thanks for stopping by.”

      He wondered if Savannah noticed that his tone lacked sincerity. After all, they hadn’t dated in a couple of months—well, make that four or five, since they’d split up way before the tornado had struck Red Rock.

      Savannah had wanted more from him than he’d been able to give her—like a commitment. And while he’d made no bones about being a happy bachelor, she seemed to think that she was the one woman who would eventually change his mind. So there’d been a few tears on her part, but he’d suspected she would have been a lot more hurt and disappointed if he’d strung her along.

      Of course, Rafe had no way of knowing any of that. Javier had never been one to kiss and tell—or to break up and vent.

      Leah, who’d been standing by his bed, took a step back, as though trying to bow out graciously.

      She wasn’t going to leave him alone with Savannah, was she? Not that it mattered, he supposed. It’s just that he… Well, he didn’t want Leah to go. Not when she provided the only upbeat moments in his day.

      “Hey, Florence,” he said, trying to recapture the playful moment they’d been having—or that they’d been about to have before Savannah’s arrival.

      Leah paused, her expression unreadable. “Yes?”

      For a moment he was at a loss for words. But he wanted to let both women know he and the blonde weren’t romantically involved, at least not any longer.

      “I’d like to introduce you to a friend of mine,” he told his nurse. “Savannah’s a paralegal at a local law firm. Or she was, the last time we talked.” He turned to his unexpected visitor. “Are you still working for Higgins and Lamphier?”

      Savannah nodded, her demeanor a bit stiff and a frown creasing her brow.

      “It’s nice to meet you,” Leah said with a casual smile. Then she nodded toward the doorway. “I’d better get back to work and let you two chat.”

      Javier could have argued, asked her not to leave. But then what? His obvious attraction to his nurse would have only complicated any future discussion he had with Savannah.

      And his life was complicated enough as it was.

       Chapter Two

      As Leah slipped into the hall, a whisper of uneasiness breezed through her. She could have sworn that Javier had been about to ask whether she was single and maybe even… Available?

      Okay. So maybe she’d only imagined that’s what he’d been getting at.

      When it came right down to it, she wasn’t sure why he’d asked those questions or what he’d meant by them. The minute Savannah what’s-her-name had entered the room, their conversation had ended before it even had a chance to take off, so all bets were off.

      And really, wasn’t she better off not knowing what Javier had planned to say next? The last thing she needed to