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The Mommy Bride
Shelley Galloway
It's been a tough road, but Claire Grant is determined to put her past behind her and build a secure future for her teenage son.Her new life plan doesn't include a relationship with Dr. Ty Slattery, the handsome resident who's trying his best to change her mind. Until one unforgettable night turns her world upside down… Becoming pregnant again also wasn't part of Claire's plan! And the wary single mother isn't ready to let down her guard.Can Ty convince her to take a chance on love–and on him? That, together, they have what it takes to become a real family?
“How are you this morning?"
“I'm fine."
“Glad to hear it.”
The look Ty gave her, so warm and caring, made Claire stir the batter with a little more force than necessary. Made her think maybe he was more attractive than she’d originally thought.
His look made her feel as if she was missing something. Made her remember that once upon a time she believed in dreams and fairy tales. In happily-ever-afters.
No way was she ever going down that path again.
Dear Reader,
I’ve got a story for you. A few years ago, one of my critique partners suggested that our writing group think about helping some women in a homeless shelter. Instead of just writing a check, she thought we should give them gift bags full of all kinds of things we take for granted. Things like toothpaste, shampoo, lotion, soap and combs.
The five of us gathered up these items, and one evening we put together fifty bags for Christmas. We had so much fun, we’ve done it several times since.
Well, then we heard the most amazing thing. Last Mother’s Day, those ladies had some bags left over. They took the extra bags and handed them out to women who were living on the streets…women less fortunate than themselves. Those are some pretty incredible ladies.
Kind of like the heroine of this book, Claire Grant.
Some of you might remember meeting Claire in my novel Simple Gifts. In Simple Gifts she was a homeless mom trying to get back on her feet. Claire and her story resonated with a lot of readers. With me, too! I couldn’t forget Claire, and I knew she and her son, Wes, needed their own happy ending.
I spend most of my days writing, volunteering and being a wife and mother. I’m so thankful that Harlequin has given me the opportunity to write and dream about people I would like to be. Thanks so much for picking up my book. I hope you’ll enjoy Claire’s story. And if you have time, I hope you’ll tell me what you think. Please visit me either at eHarlequin.com, or at www.shelleygalloway.com.
Shelley
The Mommy Bride
Shelley Galloway
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shelley Galloway loves to get up early, drink too much coffee and write books. These pastimes come in handy during her day-to-day life in southern Ohio. Most days she can be found driving her kids to their activities, writing romances in her basement or trying to find a way to get ahead of her pile of laundry. She’s also been known to talk to her miniature dachshund Suzy as if she actually has opinions about books.
Shelley is the proud recipient of a Romantic Times BOOKreviews Reviewer’s Choice Award for her 2006 release, Simple Gifts. Shelley attends several conferences every year and loves to meet readers. She also spends a lot of time online. Please visit her at eHarlequin.com or at www.shelleygalloway.com.
To women who’ve struggled over adversity. And to
women who’ve helped others achieve their dreams.
And, of course, to Tom.
For not blinking an eye when I buy fifty bars
of soap for strangers…or when he discovers that
yet again I forgot to do the laundry.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter One
“I knew things were too good to be true,” Lynette pronounced just as a young woman, a little girl and a teen tromped into the reception area of the Lane’s End Memorial Hospital. “I was a fool to think we’d actually have a slow afternoon for once.”
“We had a good forty-five minutes of downtime, that’s got to be a record,” Claire said as she hopped off her stool.
“We almost got our crossword done.”
“Almost.” Lynette quickly shoved their daily crossword to one side as the trio approached, each wearing looks of worry and panic.
Closer inspection revealed a bloody towel wrapped around the boy’s hand. Joking was pushed aside as duty clicked in. “May I help you?”
Treating them to a weary smile, the woman nodded. “Taylor here cut up his hand pretty bad. I think he’s going to need some stitches.”
The little girl’s hair was the exact shade of auburn as the woman’s; she stared at Claire. “We need some help.”
Privately, Claire thought they all did. Their coats weren’t thick enough to ward off the cold weather. Each looked in need of hot soup. And as a slight musty scent floated her way, Claire realized that a shower would be a good idea, too.
A shiver ran through her as she fought back memories. Remembering darker times would do her no good now. She’d do well to keep that in mind. “We’ll get you started in a jiffy,” Claire promised with a smile, though she felt herself getting a little woozy. There was a lot of blood on that towel. “Lynette, I’ll start the paperwork.”
Her partner picked up a phone. “I’ll go ahead and call for assistance.”
After grabbing a clipboard holding the necessary forms, Claire guided the trio to a nearby cubicle. “We’re calling for help so Taylor can get treated right away. In the meantime, we just need some basic information.”
Wariness fought with relief in the woman’s hazel eyes. “I don’t have insurance.”
Claire hadn’t thought she did. In her experience, insurance premiums weren’t high on your list when you didn’t know where the next meal was coming from. “We’ll worry about that in a bit. Just fill out what you can and we’ll concentrate on getting Taylor fixed up.”
The little girl’s eyes widened just before she popped her thumb in her mouth. Tenderness passed over the woman’s expression as she turned to Taylor, who was sitting in the chair next to her. Gently she combed back a lock of hair. “We did the right thing, didn’t we?”
He still hadn’t said a word. The woman didn’t look like she needed an answer.
That was worrisome. As the woman started filling out the forms, Claire glanced back toward her reception partner. “Lynette? Any word?”
“Yep.” Behind her, Lynette was talking on the phone in her usual no-nonsense way, chomping gum in between every other word. “I got put on hold for a sec, but—here we go.” Her voice a little louder, she said, “We’re gonna need some help over here in registration. Yes. Uh-huh. Thank you.”
“Any minute now,” Claire promised. Funny how it seemed like things were taking forever, when in truth the trio had only arrived minutes ago.
As the girl sucked her thumb and the boy said nothing, Claire did what she could to try and provide reassurance. “Everything’s going to be okay,” she said. “The doctors are good here. And the staff’s the best.”
Some of the stress in the woman’s eyes settled. A dash of kindness really did work wonders. Once their gazes met, Claire spoke slowly again. Remembering her son’s last scrape, worn like a badge of honor, she said, “So, how’d you get cut?”
But that question didn’t achieve the results she’d hoped for. Instead of an explanation, all she got was a suspicious look. Finally—almost defiantly—he mumbled, “I cut it on a can.”
The woman’s chin rose a bit. “We were…collecting cans and one had a torn edge.”
Claire’s wooziness increased tenfold. And not because of the blood. Unfortunately, she knew all about collecting cans in the dark. Swallowing hard, she fought to keep her voice neutral. “We’ll get you fixed up in no time.” She darted another look to the reception desk.
Lynette raised two fingers. “Two minutes, tops.”
Claire touched the woman’s arm again. “Let’s go have a seat. I’ll need to take you over to the—” Her words faded as the staff door to her left opened and she saw who arrived.
Ty Slattery.
Of course he had to be the one to come to provide assistance.
If she could, she’d cue movie trailer music and one of those announcers with a big, booming voice. Just when she thought things couldn’t get any worse…
“Hey, Claire,” Ty said as he approached.
“Hi, um, Dr. Slattery. We’ve, um, got a little issue here.” She groaned inwardly at her awkwardness.
“My son got cut pretty bad,” the woman said.
Ty didn’t even blink at the soaked towel. “You sure did. I think you came to the right place,” he said, his voice caring and kind. “I’m Dr. Slattery. Who are all of you?”
The mom blinked. “I’m Deanna Johns. This is Taylor. And this little thing is Annie.”
“Nice to meet you,” Ty replied, just like they were at the park instead of the hospital.
Claire sighed. Honestly, did he have to be so perfect? Time and again she’d seen Ty Slattery work magic with everyone who came in contact with him. For a man who wasn’t all that heart-stoppingly handsome, he sure had a way with women.
When Dr. Slattery faced her, he pointed to the hallway on the opposite side of the room. “I was just about to leave for the day when I heard Lynette’s page. Thought I’d see if I could help out.”
She knew she should tell him thanks.
She knew she should smile back at him. But that felt almost impossible to do. He affected her too much.
Luckily he was ignoring her rudeness. After quickly looking at the trio by Claire’s side, he pointed to a wheelchair parked near the admission desk. “Go grab that, will you? We’ll get Taylor settled.”
Claire hurried to do as Dr. Slattery bid, thinking that his calm, soothing voice was affecting her just the way she’d hoped her smile had reassured Deanna.
Too bad she didn’t want her emotions around him calmed down. No, sir. She needed to be vigilant and on-call around this guy.
Claire wheeled the chair to the teen. He eased into it. Then, before Claire could stop her, Annie scrambled onto her brother’s lap. “Hey, sweetie, you need to let your brother—”
In spite of his injury the boy made room for her, lifting his hand into the air so it wouldn’t get jarred. “Don’t worry, it’s fine.”
“No, it’s not, Taylor,” Deanna said, iron in her voice.
“I’ll take Annie while you get fixed up.”
But the little girl cuddled closer.
Claire was just about to pry her away when Ty stopped her. “If we take a ride down the hall, then will you hop off?”
Amazingly, she nodded. Okay, maybe not so amazingly. Everyone—young and old—seemed to have a soft spot for Ty Slattery.
