A Perfect Homecoming. Lisa Dyson

The middle-aged receptionist, Kathy something, gave her anything but a warm welcome.

      Another convert to the Kyle camp.

      The woman’s flowery perfume battled with the hospital’s unforgettable smell. But the nasty combination of illness, medications and antiseptic made her nostalgic nonetheless.

      “How are you, Kathy?” Ashleigh realized how much she’d missed this place, no matter what kind of reception she received. Would this punch in the gut happen every time she ran into someone she once knew?

      After exchanging cool pleasantries, Kathy’s attention turned to Ryan. “Oh, dear! Let me put this poor boy into the system.”

      She returned to her computer and took down his information, including the insurance info Paula had sent along. She ushered them right back into a curtained area. “Dr. Phillips should be in to see Ryan shortly,” she said before leaving them alone.

      Not more than two minutes went by before the curtain was pulled back, but it wasn’t Dr. Phillips. Ashleigh’s heart leaped into her throat.

      Kyle.

      Her ex-husband looked even better than she remembered. His thick, dark hair was matted, a product of his longtime habit of moving his protective eyewear to his head when not in use. He had a healthy tan and the corners of his deep blue eyes crinkled ever so slightly. Rather than make him look older, they made him more attractive. Even when those gorgeous eyes barely glanced at her before landing on Ryan.

      She blanched at Kyle’s insolence. Not that she blamed him. She’d been out of his life long enough for him to go on without her.

      He did his customary tug at the neck of the T-shirt he wore under his blue scrubs and cleared his throat. Kyle was the only man she’d ever known who looked hot in scrubs.

      “Hey, buddy.” Kyle bypassed Ashleigh and spoke directly to his nephew, who sat cross-legged on the gurney. “What happened?” He gently removed the scarf from the boy’s arm and handed it to Ashleigh without taking his eyes from Ryan.

      As their nephew related the tale, Ashleigh took a mental inventory of Kyle, searching for battle scars, perhaps, that matched her own. She saw none.

      Hers weren’t visible on the outside, either.

      CHAPTER TWO

      IF ASHLEIGH HAD THRIVED without him, Kyle didn’t want to know. He purposely kept his eyes and attention averted, unprepared for his inevitable physical reaction whenever she was near. Instead, he concentrated on Ryan as the boy explained how he got injured.

      “I thought we talked about that wheelie stuff,” Kyle admonished gently.

      Ryan hung his head, the expression on his face reminiscent of his father back when Scott and Kyle had been young and adventurous.

      “At least wait until your training wheels are off before you try any of those tricks,” Kyle reminded him.

      Ashleigh drew in an audible breath, probably upset that he would approve what she would consider dangerous behavior. He turned his head partway in her direction. “Better a wheelie than something worse.” He paused and made the mistake of catching her eye. She’d always been a stickler for safety and rules, even though she used to flip backward off someone’s shoulders onto a hardwood floor as a high school cheerleader.

      “I was told you weren’t working today.” Ashleigh’s comment was more of an accusation than a question.

      “Multicar accident on Hamilton.” He’d been about to go home when Paula called him about Ryan. Thankfully, she’d given him a heads-up that Ashleigh was in town and was bringing the boy in.

      Ashleigh turned back to Ryan. “Maybe you should wait until there’s an adult with you before you try a wheelie.”

      Ryan looked to Kyle for confirmation, but the emergency room doctor on duty interrupted them.

      “Hey, Hank.” Kyle turned from the gurney and greeted him, shaking the older man’s hand when he came through the curtain before making the proper introductions. “Dr. Ashleigh Wilson, this is Dr. Hank Phillips. He joined the staff about a year ago.”

      While the two shook hands, Hank ran his other hand through his thinning gray hair. “Are you Paula’s sister? The resemblance is remarkable.”

      Kyle should have mentioned Ashleigh was Ryan’s aunt. Even if she hadn’t kept in contact with the boy.

      “You’ve met my sister?” Ashleigh’s eyebrows rose.

      “Oh, yes.” Hank chuckled. “She’s included me in several of their holiday gatherings since my kids all live a few time zones away.”

      The color drained from Ashleigh’s face.

      Kyle wondered how she liked hearing that this stranger played a bigger role in her family’s lives than she had.

      Ashleigh changed the subject back to Ryan. “From the way Ryan’s holding his arm and the radial pain on contact, I’m pretty sure it’s a simple break.”

      Hank turned to examine Ryan. “How you doin’, buddy?”

      Meanwhile, Kyle went against his better judgment and scrutinized a preoccupied Ashleigh.

      Dr. Ashleigh Wilson. He’d never minded that she’d kept her maiden name when they’d married. An homage to her father, Dr. Clayton Wilson—a man Kyle had been proud to know.

      Ashleigh was a little thinner since the last time he’d seen her, pounds she couldn’t afford to lose. Other than that, she looked even more beautiful than he remembered. His fingers itched to touch the loose tendril that escaped from her casually knotted hair. He longed to place his lips on the skin beneath it, to taste the sensitive spot on her neck that never failed to make her suck in her breath....

      “Kyle?” From Hank’s tone, it wasn’t the first time the man had addressed him. All three of them stared at him.

      He blinked twice. “Yes?”

      “Do you want to go to Radiology with Ryan?” Hank narrowed his gaze and cocked his head in puzzlement.

      “Of course.” Kyle then said to Ryan, “Let’s get you a wheelchair to ride in. Dr. Hank wants to take a picture of your arm.” Ryan’s eyes lit up as expected.

      “Can we do a wheelie in it?” Ryan asked.

      “We’ll see.” Kyle avoided Ashleigh’s gaze.

      “But you and Aunt Ashleigh will both be there,” Ryan said. “Didn’t she say I needed an adult? Now I have two.”

      “Aunt Ashleigh is going to wait for you here.” Kyle needed a break from her after that barely controlled fantasy.

      “No,” Ashleigh countered. “I’m going with you.”

      Kyle shrugged. “You’ll have to wait in the Radiology waiting room.”

      Ashleigh’s cheek muscles tensed and she narrowed her eyes at Kyle. The daggers were locked and loaded.

      “Hospital regulations,” he said pleasantly before she could argue. “You no longer have privileges at this hospital.” Her choice, but he didn’t say it aloud.

      “You’re a pediatrician, as I recall.” Hank appeared oblivious to the tension in the room. “Where are you practicing now?”

      Ashleigh’s color heightened. “I’m no longer practicing medicine. I work out of Richmond as a hospital fund-raiser.”

      The reality of Ashleigh’s words hit Kyle in the pit of his stomach. Ashleigh had given up the career she adored because she could no longer bear to be around children.

      * * *

      ASHLEIGH FUMED AS she sat on the thinly padded vinyl chair in the radiology department waiting room. How dare Kyle exclude her? She was every bit the doctor he