“It’s nice to meet you, ma’am.” Hallie started to rush forward, hand extended, but then stopped. He could see the pain on her face.
Asa went to her, his hand impulsively reaching out to touch her cheek. “Are you okay?”
“Yes. I almost forgot that my body is one big, giant sack of soreness.”
“Did the bath help?”
“A lot. Thank you.”
“How’s your head?”
“I’ll take some aspirin when I get home. I’ll be fine.”
“Are you okay, dear?” His mother stepped forward. There was genuine concern on her face.
“I’m fine. I just fell on the ice yesterday and gave myself a little concussion. Your son came to my rescue. I was coming to tell you it was nice to meet you and then get out of your hair. I didn’t mean to interfere with your plans. You have a very nice son, Dr. Andersen.”
“Thank you, Hallie.” His mother looked at him and gave him a smile. “He’s a good man.”
“I’ll see you around, Asa. Thank you again.”
He grabbed her hand, stopping her from fleeing. “You don’t have to leave. You’re not interfering with anything.”
“We didn’t have plans,” his mother added. “I was just stopping by. You shouldn’t be alone when you have a concussion. Sit down on the couch and I’ll make you some tea. Have you eaten anything today?”
“No ma’am, but—”
“No buts. You take yourself over to the couch this moment. Asa, help me find the tea and use that app on your phone to order us something for lunch. Italian, I think. Or maybe deli. What do you think, Hallie?”
“Whatever you want, Dr. Andersen.”
“I think you need pasta and bread. It’s settled. Go sit down now and I’ll bring you your tea.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Hallie did as she was told, leaving Asa and his mother heading to his kitchen.
“That girl is just darling. I like her already. A much different direction than your usual conquest. What’s her story?”
“She’s not one of my conquests. She’s my neighbor. She’s a high school teacher at Wheatly Academy.”
His mother gave an approving nod. “I’ve heard great things about Wheatly. They take brilliant but at-risk youth and prepare them for college. They only hire the most qualified teachers. Your girlfriend must be bright.”
“She is bright. Her dream is to become a college professor, but she’s not my girlfriend.”
“A college professor! Why didn’t you tell me about her sooner?” She rummaged through his cabinet for the tea he kept there just for her.
“There’s nothing to tell. I barely know her.”
She slanted a brow at him. “I saw the way you looked at her. Sweet, pretty, educated. She’s perfect for you. Maybe I’ll finally get some grandchildren. Your sister has been married for nearly two years and stubbornly refuses to give me one. Maybe if she knows she’s in competition with you it will speed her up.”
“She’s enjoying traveling with her husband. Carlos just retired from baseball at the end of the season.”
“You’ve both done enough traveling.” She touched his face. “Don’t ruin this for me, Asa. I might never like another one of your girlfriends again.”
Hallie snuggled into the warm, hard surface she was sleeping on. She had slept on softer mattresses but she liked the feeling of this one. She had been so cold since she had been in New York, like a chill had seeped to her bones and never let up. But tonight it was finally gone and for once she felt warm and protected. It was when she felt a hand gently rest on her cheek that she realized that her warm, hard mattress was a warm, hard body.
She remembered where she was and she knew that she should move, but she didn’t want to. She didn’t want to lose this feeling that she was sure she would never have again while she was here, but she lifted her head and looked up at Asa. “I can’t believe you let me fall asleep on you.”
“You needed to sleep. You injured your brain. It needs rest to recover.”
She was feeling a little better despite the stiffness in her body. The Andersens had really taken care of her today. Dr. Andersen had bossed her around, ordered her to put her feet up and eat more and drink extra fluids. It was heavenly. She hadn’t been mothered in a long time. It was nice to experience it, even if it came from someone else’s mother. “Where is your mother? She must think I’m awful.”
“She went home about two hours ago.”
“Two hours ago! How long have I been out?”
“You went down about a half hour before she left.”
“You let me sleep on you that long?”
“It started out with just your head on my shoulder, but you curled up like that a half hour ago or so.”
“You should have woken me.”
“I didn’t see a reason to.”
“What did your mother say about me? ‘Where on earth did you find that dizzy girl? And do you always let women you barely know use your bathroom?’” She could only imagine what the beautiful, proper professor thought about the strange woman with the head injury who had somehow gotten involved with her son. “I can’t imagine a worse first impression to make.”
“She likes you.”
“She was being polite.”
Asa shook his head. “Trust me, Hallie. If my mother didn’t like you she would make it known. My mother may have excellent manners, but she has no problem stating her opinion. She had my last girlfriend in tears their first meeting.”
“Oh. I can see that. She scares me a little. Why didn’t she like your last girlfriend?”
“She called herself Bambi and when she met my mother she was wearing a top that was so low-cut you could see... All the gifts God gave her. Plus she wore jeans that were cut so low you could see her thong.”
“I think your mother should have made you cry. Why would you bring home a woman like that when you knew your parents would be disapproving? It’s like you set that poor lady up.”
“I didn’t. My parents were in the city and asked if they could take us to lunch. I wasn’t planning on introducing them that day. Bambi was dressed like that when I picked her up and I didn’t feel like it was my place to ask or tell her to wear something that would please my mother. Would you want a man telling you how to dress?”
He had a point. “No. My ex was like that. I was supposed to dress a certain way. Speak a certain way. Behave a certain way. All to keep up with the image he had crafted. I hated it.”
“What’s wrong with the way you speak, dress and behave?”
“I just wasn’t right. My ex-fiancé is a Realtor who specializes in luxury properties. It was a small family business that he had grown over the years. He wanted to cater to the wealthy jet-set crowd and celebrities and I was supposed to be.... I’m not sure who or what he wanted me to be, but in the end I couldn’t deliver.”
“Thank God for that. You shouldn’t be with a man who doesn’t think you’re good enough.”
“I knew it was going to end when he asked me to straighten my