Healing Hearts

Antonio let out a loud “Yes!” He jumped off the bed and pulled her into a hug that nearly crushed her. “Thanks, Doc.”

Then he and Antonio knocked knuckles in an elaborate handshake that Antonio made him learn the moment after the kid signed the contract to work with him. “We really dodged a bullet on this one, Zach.”

Antonio turned back to the doctor. “So I can go?” he asked. When she nodded, he walked out with hands raised high in triumph.

Dr. Sprader handed him some business cards. “He needs to follow up with a cardiologist, and I get the impression you’re going to have to be the one to convince him. This isn’t a dire condition, but he needs regular checkups so that things like collapsing on the field won’t happen again.”

“Understood.” Zach shrugged back into his suit coat and put the cards in his inside pocket.

As he walked by her, she reached out and touched his coat sleeve. “About what happened with Harley earlier.”

He turned to face her. He’d been waiting for this. “There’s no need to thank me.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I was going to tell you that it wasn’t necessary. That I had things under control before you jumped in.”

He pointed to her neck where the knife had cut her. “I can see that.”

“Harley is harmless. He wouldn’t have actually cut my throat.” She glared at him. “I don’t need a hero.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure about that, Dr. Sprader?”

“Perfectly.” She continued to stare at him and then exhaled. “You know my name, but I don’t know yours.”

He extended his hand. “Zach Harrison.”

She put her hand in his and gave it a quick shake. “Make sure Antonio sees one of the cardiologists, Mr. Harrison. Otherwise, his career won’t save him from another episode.”

Zach’s phone started buzzing. He gave a brisk nod, then left her, his phone already at his ear. She may be interesting, but he had other priorities right now.

* * *

APRIL PULLED UP in front of the house that belonged to her friends Sherri and Dez Jackson. While she would have liked an evening out, Sherri had been under the weather. April retracted the phrase. What Sherri felt...it was as if her body had been scorched to get the cancer out. April remembered the sensation and gave a shiver that had nothing to do with the snowflakes drifting down from the sky. Her days battling cancer were long over, thank goodness. Now she had to put her life back together, hopefully better than it was before. She needed balance between work and personal life. Correction. She needed to get a personal life.

She grabbed her purse and journal from the front seat and exited the car. Page pulled in behind her, so she waited for her to park. They walked up to the front door, unsure of how they’d find Sherri. April knocked and soon Agent Hottie answered the door. “She’s in the family room,” Dez told them after the perfunctory hugs and kisses. “And I don’t need to tell you two to take it easy on her. Don’t wear her out.”

“We know how she’s feeling better than you do.” Page shoved a pizza box into his hands. “For you and Marcus to share. Us girls have our own.”

They walked through the living room and kitchen and down one step where they found Sherri on the sofa with her legs up on the coffee table, wrapped in a fleece blanket. She looked up at them and gave a watery smile. “Thanks for bringing the girls’ night to me.”

She had dark shadows under her eyes and looked as if she could fall asleep at any moment. April put a hand on her shoulder. “If you’re not up for company...”

“Don’t you dare leave me.” She pointed to two recliners adjacent to the sofa. “Now, sit and tell me something good.”

“April got a knife pulled on her in the ER today,” Page said, opening their box of pizza.

Sherri gasped. “And that was good?”

“Because of it, she met a hot guy who saved her by kicking the knife out of the junkie’s hand.” Page offered a slice of pizza to Sherri, who waved it away. She then handed the slice to April.

Sherri gave a soft smile. “And who was this hot guy?”

“An annoying jerk who wanted me to tell him his client was fine without running any tests.” April took a bite of her pizza and chewed, thinking about Zach Harrison. “If he hadn’t been so irritating, I might have found him attractive.” Page and Sherri exchanged glances. April pointed between them. “What does that look mean?”

Page cocked her head to the side. “It means he’s your soul mate, obviously.”

What? That was the most ludicrous idea she’d ever heard. She was about to tell them so when they burst out laughing.

Still chuckling, Sherri said, “She’s joking. It means we’re happy that you finally have started to notice men.”

“I notice them.” April paused when she saw Page roll her eyes. “I just choose not to do anything about it.”

“And when is that going to change? I thought getting back in the dating scene was on your list.” Page gestured at the journal that April had placed next to her chair. “Isn’t that what you were talking about earlier? That it’s time to begin living your life again? To start dating and falling in love.”

“Yes, it’s time.” She opened the journal and found the page where she had written a second-chance list of things to do when she was healthy again. She’d pored over the list as she’d sat in the chair during chemotherapy. Written and rewritten it until she’d found the top twenty things she most wanted to do. Number four was to start dating. “So how do I do it?”

Page gestured at Sherri, who shook her head. “Don’t look at me. Dez and I didn’t really date before we got married. I mean, we’d been friends for years, but we didn’t date.”

“And I haven’t exactly been single for that long.” Page rubbed her left ring finger. The wedding band was removed a few weeks ago when the divorce became final. “There are plenty of online sites to help you find dates.”

April made a face. “I’m not sure about that. Don’t you two know anyone you can set me up with?”

Sherri snapped her fingers. “What about my cousin Mateo? He’s single, and I guess he’s good-looking.”

She remembered meeting him last summer at a party celebrating Sherri’s last chemo appointment. “He’s not my type.”

Page held up one hand like a stop sign. “Hot and available is not your type?”

Sherri turned to Page. “You think Mateo is hot?”

“So does every other woman in Detroit. Come on. The man is seriously good-looking.” Page fanned herself. “And you want to pass that up, April?”

April gave a shrug. “All right. If he agrees, I guess I could go out with him.”

Dez joined them and handed Sherri a cup of steaming tea that brought the scent of ginger with it. “You ladies all right out here?”

Sherri kissed his hand before taking the mug. “Dez, do you know any available guys for April?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. What’s your type, April?”

“It’s been so long, single is her type.” Page snapped her fingers. “There’s that one doctor who asked you out a while ago, but you took no notice of him.”

“Because I’d just been diagnosed with cancer. I wasn’t worrying about dating at the time.” She remembered how he’d stammered out an invitation to a concert. She could only think that she might be dying, and going to see a symphony was the least important thing she could do at the time. Figuring out how to survive had been her focus.

“Well, things have changed. What was his name again?”

“Dr. Sperry, and he got married this past summer.” He’d even invited her to the wedding along with half of her staff. She’d declined but sent a gift.

“Oh.”

“Besides, I don’t want to date another doctor. My schedule is hectic as it is.”

Sherri put down her phone, then smiled. “I gave Mateo your number, so don’t be surprised if you hear from him.”

Her stomach clenched, and she put her half-eaten slice of pizza back on the paper plate. “You really shouldn’t have done that.”

“Well, are you serious about doing the things on your list or are you only interested in talking about doing those things?” Page leaned forward and touched her knee. “You’ve been given a second chance at life, April. Are you going to sit and let it pass you by or are you going to reach out and grab the opportunity?”

She’d already let too many things go, rather than pursue them. Men she might have dated and fallen in love with. Jobs that she might have excelled at. Opportunities that never came around again. Enough was enough—she needed to do this. Standing, she declared, “I’m going for it.”

CHAPTER TWO

APRIL STUDIED HERSELF in the full-length mirror and put a hand to her chest. After her reconstruction surgery, the doctor had put an implant in her unaffected right breast in order to make both match in size. She now had more cleavage than she’d had before her cancer diagnosis. The coral dress she’d chosen to wear had a scoop neckline that dipped down more than she would have liked. Afraid her scars would show, she found a floral scarf and looped that around her neck and tucked it into the collar to give her some coverage.

The doorbell rang, and she took one last glance at herself in the bedroom mirror. She’d changed because of cancer, but then she’d had to. Tonight was for taking back her life. And who knew what the future held.

She opened the front door and whistled at Mateo, who stood on the porch in an emerald green silk shirt and black pants. He looked like he was ready to dance. He gave a lopsided grin. “You look pretty good yourself.”

She adjusted the scarf. “Did you want to come in for a moment?”

He gave a nod before ducking inside. She took a deep breath before shutting the door and turning to face him. No dating for over two and a half years—long before cancer had dominated her thoughts and days—she put her nervousness down to that. It’s not like this was a blind date with a stranger. She knew she could trust Sherri’s cousin. Knew she could relax and have fun.

He glanced around the room, then his chocolate-brown eyes were back to her. “This is a nice place. Cozy.”

“It is small, but it’s close to the hospital. Since I spend most of my life there, it made sense to move into this neighborhood. I could even walk there if I had to. But late at night in this neighborhood, it’s not the best idea.” She bit her lip to keep from babbling.

Mateo nodded and let out a breath. “Sherri told me that she met you at the ER.”

“She told me that you’re a great lawyer.”

He cast his eyes down and gave a shrug. “I don’t know about great.” He raised his head to look at her. “Are you as nervous as I am?”

April laughed and put a hand to her belly. “Does it show?”

He took a step toward her. “Let’s just agree that tonight is about becoming friends and going out to have a good time.”

He was already playing the friend card? But she agreed. Not that she didn’t appreciate his trying to defuse the tension. “Do you want to head out?”

He helped her shrug into her coat, then he opened the door, letting her leave the house first. Just like a gentleman. He waited on the second step of the porch while she locked the door and put the keys into her rose-gold clutch. He even held her elbow as they walked down the sidewalk to his car. He opened the passenger door for her and waited until she had folded her legs inside and secured her seat belt before he shut the door and ran around to the driver’s side. He started the car, and silence fell between them as they drove to the club. After a few minutes, Mateo spoke. “My cousin mentioned you wanted to try salsa dancing. Why salsa?”

It was one of the things on her list, something she’d added after watching a reality show about dancing. “Because salsa dancers look like they’re enjoying the life they’ve been given. Sherri told me that you were an expert.”

He laughed at this. “If by expert she means that I’ve been dancing since I was eight, then yes, I guess I am.”

“Any tips?”

“Let the music guide you and follow my lead.”

It sounded easy enough. When they arrived at the club, Mateo took her elbow as they stepped inside and searched for a table. The beat of the music made April’s feet twitch, wanting to go out on the dance floor before she had learned any of the moves. She reminded herself that learning to salsa dance would take more than a good song playing on the sound system. She took off her jacket and handed it to Mateo, who left to check their coats and order some drinks.

Shortly after, Mateo approached their table with two drinks in his hands, a beer for him and a margarita for her. He handed her the bright pink drink, then glanced at the empty dance floor before sitting down. “When do they start the dancing?”

She took a sip and shrugged. “The website said nine.” She glanced at her watch. It was about a quarter past. “Maybe they’re running late?”

“Or maybe they’re waiting for someone to get things started.” He smiled at her. “Want to give it a try?” She took a gulp of her raspberry margarita and jumped up. Mateo took her hand as they walked to the dance floor.

“Start on your left foot,” he said and slipped his left hand in hers and his right on her back. He took a step forward as he nudged her backward. She took a step back with her left foot, then a step with her right and brought her left in line. Then he drew her forward a step. Her ankle wobbled on the heel of her shoe, and he gripped her tighter to keep her steady, and they stopped in place. “That’s the basic step. You’ll do fine.”

April gave a nod and stared at her feet. She remembered taking ballet when she was six, but had only lasted a year before she found that she preferred different pursuits like performing experiments in the science lab or reading about the life cycle of the earthworm. She’d left sports and physical activities to her brother, Tony, until now. Feel the beat, she chanted to herself. Follow Mateo’s lead. Stop thinking and just feel.

Mateo’s gaze searched her eyes. “Ready to start again?”

“You bet.” He nudged her backward again. This time, she stayed steady on her feet, switched off her brain for a few seconds while she followed his moves. Mateo grinned. “Now, I’m going to spin you. Ready?”

He held their hands up high, and she spun around under them. When she turned back to face him, she laughed. “I’m dancing.”

He returned her smile. “Yes, you are.” He tightened his grip on her hand. “Okay, now let’s try a different step.”

They started as they had before. Back, forward, then he put his arm around her shoulders and they danced side by side rather than facing each other. He spun her into their original position and started the sequence again. April whipped her head back on one of the turns and lost her footing again. Mateo caught her before she could hit the floor. “Sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. You’re doing really well for your first time salsa dancing.”

The song ended, and they headed to their table. April sipped her margarita and watched as other dancers filled the dance floor. The way they moved effortlessly and in sync amazed her. Even if she took dance lessons for six months, she doubted she could move as easily as the women dancing. She might dance better than tonight, but she’d still struggle with turning off her brain and letting her body take over.

She found Mateo watching her. “You look lost in thought,” he said.

Story of her life. “Sherri said you’re helping her and Dez finalize Marcus’s adoption.” The couple had planned on being his foster parents, but had recently taken steps to legally make him a part of their new family. “She’s so happy.”

“She deserves to be after all that she’s going through.” He watched her over the top of his beer glass. “And how are you feeling?”

Sherri had told him about her cancer? “Real good.” She sipped her drink, then motioned with her head to the dance floor. “Want to give it another try?”

“Okay, okay.” He drained his beer, put his arm around her waist and led her to the dance floor.

After three songs, April’s heart pounded, and a fine sweat had formed along her hairline. She let go of Mateo’s hand and fanned herself as the song changed to something slower. He raised an eyebrow at her. While she longed to sit, her body had something different in mind and she took his outstretched hand in hers.

They danced, their bodies close. Touching, then he nudged her away and spun her around and brought her close to him again. It felt like a tug-of-war between the two of them, but one that Mateo controlled the entire song. The intimacy of the dance should have made her feel a stirring of emotion for the man holding her close, but she felt nothing. Friendship sure, but not that pull of attraction. At the end of the song, she returned to the table. Mateo left her to get glasses of water. She ran her hands through her curls in an attempt to cool herself. A guy in a suit stopped beside her. “Dr. Sprader, you looked good out there.”

She looked up and recognized that sports agent. “Mr. Harrison. I’m surprised to see you here.”

* * *

ZACH HAD BEEN surprised to see April on the dance floor, and with a boyfriend, no less. He tried to ignore the hollow feeling in his chest at that thought and pointed at a corner where a hot new talent on the baseball circuit sat with his girlfriend. “I brought a potential client tonight.”

She glanced in the direction he’d indicated and frowned. “You dumped Antonio already?”

“I have more than one client. Just like you see more than one patient.” He tried not to let her comment hit him hard, but it was too late. He got tired of being accused of having divided loyalties when he had to work for more than one client at a time. He needed to provide for his family, after all. And that didn’t come cheap. He looked toward the bar where her date had disappeared. “You and your boyfriend dance really well together.”

“He’s not my boyfriend.” She fidgeted with her purse, snapping it open and shut. “Not that it’s any of your business, but it’s our first date.”

“Really? Based on how you were dancing, I’d figured you knew each other pretty well.” He’d been impressed by how at ease she seemed after a few songs. They’d moved so naturally together that he assumed they were a couple.

A fast-tempo song started, and she stared out at the dance floor with a look on her face that made him wish he knew how to salsa. He wondered what it would be like to hold her in his arms and turn her around the room. Not that he had time for such frivolities as dancing. He needed to focus on his business.

Someone appeared next to him, and he turned to find her date standing there with two glasses of ice water. He handed her one, put the other on the table and offered his hand to Zach. “Thanks for keeping her company. You a friend of April’s?”

She scoffed at this, and he shook his head. “No. She took care of one of my clients.” He accepted the date’s hand. “You’re a great dancer.”

The guy gave a cockeyed grin. “My mother taught me when I was young.”

“And he’s a wonderful teacher, too.” April put a hand on the date’s arm and peered at Zach. “You don’t want to leave your client alone too long.”

Dismissed so quickly. Zach smiled. “You’re right. I’m here for work, not for pleasure.” He glanced at her again. “Good to see you, Dr. Sprader.”

“Thank you, Mr. Harrison.” She took a sip of her water. “Want to go back out there for the next dance?”

The date looked between them and gave a slow nod. “Sure. Whatever you want.”

Zach shook the date’s hand again and walked to the corner table. He took a seat next to his client, Chris Ramos. “Did you two discuss my proposal?”

Ramos put an arm across his girlfriend’s shoulders. “Mr. Harrison, you’ve given us a lot to think about, but I’d like to get to know you a little more before I sign my life over to you.”

“I can guarantee you that my terms are more than fair.”

Ramos held up a hand. “Why don’t we enjoy the music and dancing? There will be time for negotiating later.”

Problem was Zach didn’t know how to enjoy much beyond working and closing the deal. Just ask his ex-wife. “Of course.”

The song changed and Ramos leaned over to his girlfriend to whisper in her ear. She nodded, and they left the table to join the dancers on the floor. Zach searched the crowd and found Dr. Sprader with her date. She looked fantastic in that soft orange dress and her dark blond hair wildly curling around her face. Her expression seemed to be lit up with joy as she turned in the guy’s arms and swayed to the beat of the music.

He wondered what it would take to find a woman like her. And if he did find someone, if she would be interested in him.

He grimaced. He’d proved that he wasn’t made for relationships. He’d failed miserably as a husband. He could provide financially, but not when it came to love and affection. He’d forgotten birthdays and special events. He missed anniversaries and holidays. Unless, of course, it was for a client. Those he remembered.

Dr. Sprader glanced in his direction and he looked away, self-conscious to be caught watching her on the dance floor. A waitress stopped by the table, and he welcomed the distraction to order another round of drinks. Ramos and his girlfriend returned to the table after a few songs. Chris gulped his beer and patted Zach on the back. “Man, this place is sick. How did you find out about it?”

“Came as a recommendation from a friend.” Okay, so it was another client, but he didn’t have many friends. He noticed that Dr. Sprader seemed to be leaving, her jacket over one arm and the other around her date.

Ramos followed his gaze and gave a small smile. “She a friend of yours?”

“No. We just met.”

“For someone you don’t know, you seem to watch her quite a bit.” Ramos looked over at his girlfriend, who smirked and nodded. “She someone you want to get to know better?”

Zach turned his attention back to Ramos. The last thing he needed was to lose a client because his focus was elsewhere. “My life doesn’t have much room for making new friends right now. I’m dedicated to my clients and their needs. I work tirelessly to get the best contracts and to make sure their lives are exactly what they want.”

Ramos nudged him. “I get it. You’d work just as hard for me if I sign with you.”

“So what is it that’s keeping you from doing that?” Zach asked. He’d been wining and dining this guy for three months without a commitment. “What is it that you need? Tell me and I’ll make it happen to get you on my roster.”

Ramos and his girlfriend exchanged glances. He leaned in close to Zach. “We need to get married. And quick. You make that happen, and I’ll be happy to join you.”

Zach wanted to groan. Couldn’t he have asked for something easy like playing for the number one team in the league at a cool six million a season? But he smiled and nodded. “Then you’d better be ready to walk down that aisle.”

* * *

MATEO PARKED HIS car in front of her house and cut the engine. She peered through the window to concentrate on the porch light. Was Mateo expecting to come in? Would he kiss her or push for more? And did she want him to?

She licked her lips and shifted to face him. He kept his gaze straight ahead, focused on something in the dark. “Thanks for a fun evening, Mateo. I really enjoyed it.”

He turned and smiled at her. “I did, too. More than I expected to.” He winced. “I didn’t mean that the way it sounded. You’re nice, I mean, and very attractive. But...”

“But.” She returned his smile. “It’s okay. I liked our time together, but I don’t feel that spark for you either. We’d be better off as friends.”

“Right. Friends.” Mateo let out a sigh. “I did notice some sparks between you and that guy who stopped at our table.”

“Mr. Harrison? No, you’re wrong. I’ve only seen him twice, and there’s nothing there. Nothing. Not a thought or idea. Not a thing.”

He stared at her with a faint smile on his face. “Are you sure about that? You seem a little too adamant.”

“I protest too much, in other words?” She gave a shrug. “There’s something about him that really bugs me. I can’t describe it.”