âIâm your Christmas present.â
âExcuse me?â Blake asked his new patient.
âI bet you never had a Christmas present like me before.â The woman smiled.
âYouâre pregnant,â he stated.
âYes, Iâm pregnant. Great work for noticing.â
âHave you come to see me about your pregnancy, Miss McKenzie?â
âItâs Dr. McKenzie. And Iâm your Christmas present.â
âJust explain,â Blake said.
âYour friends Jonas and Emily have organized it all with the hospital board. Theyâre giving you a holiday and Iâll take over.â
âItâs a very nice idea,â Blake forced out. âBut itâs impossible. You canât just take over my Christmas. I see fifty patients a day!â
âFifty? Okay, maybe I canât. But maybe I can share it.â
âWhat?â
âWell, maybe we could have a Christmas to remember. Together.â
Dear Reader,
Christmas is my very favorite time of the year. From the first rendition of âJingle Bellsâ in my local supermarketâthatâs usually about SeptemberâIâm tingling with anticipation. My kidsâ school runs a Christmas cake drive and Iâm a volunteer cook (or maybe that should read volunteeredâthanks, kids!), so by October my house is full of the smells of Christmas and Iâm aching to put up the tree.
When I was asked to write a Christmas romance I didnât need any encouragement. I sat down immediately to think up a nice Christmassy plot. What would I like for Christmas? Thatâs easy. Itâs what I always wantâa very special Christmas surprise.
So thatâs what Iâve given my gorgeous Dr. Blake. A surprise in the form of his very own Christmas angel.
I do hope you enjoy Dr. Blake and his angel. Blessings on you and yoursâand have a very happy Christmas.
Marion Lennox
âIâM NOT a patient. Iâm your Christmas present.â
Rightâ¦
The woman had glossy, copper-red hair. She was wearing purple patchwork overalls, a pink T-shirt and pink flowery sandals. She was also heavily pregnant.
Dr Blake Sutherland still had urgent house calls to do. Heâd promised Grace Mayne heâd visit her tonight and the elderly fisherwoman was already waiting. Heâd been up since dawn, he was exhausted and now he had a nutcase on his hands.
âExcuse me?â
âI bet youâve never had a Christmas present like me.â The womanâs bright smile exuded happiness.
Who on earth was she? Blake didnât have a clue. Sheâd arrived an hour ago, settled to wait for his last afternoon appointment and had been placidly reading old copies of Rich and Famous until heâd found time to see her.
His Christmas presentâ¦
On reflection, he decided to ignore what sheâd said and try again. âYouâre pregnant.â He sat back and did a slow assessment. She was at least seven months, he guessed, or maybe more. She was glowing with the health most women found in late stages of pregnancy, and she lookedâ¦lovely?
Lovely was as good a way as any to describe her, he decided as he took in her startling appearance. Her riot of copper curls was close cropped but not enough to stop the rioting. Her freckled face was enhanced by huge green eyes, and she had the most gorgeous smileâ¦
Oh, for heavenâs sake! Ignore the smile. She also had a problem or she wouldnât be here.
âYes, Iâm pregnant. Great work for noticing.â She chuckled. It was a nice, throaty chuckle that went beautifully with her eyes. âEm said you were a brilliant doctor, and youâve just proved it. Pregnant, hey?â She patted her tummy. âWell, well. Whoâd have guessed it?â
He had the grace to smile. âIâm sorry, butââ
âI guess since Iâm pregnant you have two gifts for the price of oneâbut maybe the outer package is the only useful bit. Thatâs me.â
She was a nutcase! But she was pregnant and she may well have medical needs. He needed to step warily. The worst medical mistakes were made when doctors were tired, and he didnât intend to toss her out unchecked because she was a bit unbalanced.
âHave you come to see me about your pregnancy?â He glanced at her naked ring finger and took a punt. âMissâ¦â Another glance to the card his receptionist had given him. âMiss McKenzie.â
âItâs Dr McKenzie,â she told him. âOr Nell if you prefer.â Her smile deepened and she held out her hand in greeting. Dazed, he took it. âNellâs better. Dr McKenzie always makes me feel like someoneâs talking to my grandfather.â
Her hand was warm and firm. His hand was shaken and released and that was how he felt. Shaken.
This conversation was way out of line, he decided. He didnât have a clue what was going on. âMiss⦠Doctorâ¦â
âHey, you are exhausted,â she said, on a note of discovery. âEmily and Jonas told me you were. They said you really, really needed me, and after an hour in your waiting room Iâm starting to see that theyâre right.â