A Christmas Kiss With Her Ex-Army Doc. Tina Beckett

didn’t hesitate. “I am. I’ll make sure I put my name on the list.”

      “Great. FEMA has just finished setting up a disaster relief camp. So they should be ready for us by the time our group arrives.”

      Clancy hadn’t said anything, and she wondered if he’d changed his mind about going. Neil must have thought along the same lines because he glanced over at him. “How are you settling in?”

      “So far, so good. I’ll take a look at the sign-up sheet.”

      Hmm, that was rather noncommittal. What happened to all that talk about them both being adults and able to handle situations like this?

      If he decided not to go, that would be a relief, right?

      “That’s all I can ask,” Neil said.

      “My sister is in surgery right now for preterm labor, and my decision has to hinge on the outcome.”

      The administrator frowned. “I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”

      “Not a problem. Hopefully everything will turn out all right, and I can join the team.”

      Hollee had almost forgotten about that. Of course he wanted to see what happened with Ava and the baby. She felt like a fool for thinking his hesitation had anything to do with her.

      She steered the conversation away from the subject, hoping to reassure Clancy that everything would turn out okay. “Do you think it would be all right if I bring some Christmas lights to decorate the tents or wherever we end up staying?”

      “I didn’t see anything against that in the paperwork. It might even help morale. We’ve already planned on bringing some small gifts for the kids. They’re going to send me a rough count of the numbers once they get organized.”

      “That’s great.”

      “Don’t forget to sign up,” he said again, before waving and heading the way they’d just come. Why not? Even Neil had to eat.

      “Let’s head right to Maternity,” she said. “I can sign up afterward.”

      “Are you sure?”

      “Yes, I’m anxious to see if there’s any word.”

      Making their way there, they stopped at the nurses’ station, and the person behind the desk gave them a smile, not even asking what they wanted. “She’s doing well. The baby’s out and being assessed. She’s tiny, but perfect. I don’t think she’s going to need as much support as many born that early.”

      Clancy planted a hand on the desk as if to support himself. “Can we see her?”

      “Not yet. They’re still closing her up.” The nurse hesitated. “And she does have the flu, so we’re taking extra precautions.”

      “We’ve all had the flu shot, obviously, but we’ll be careful.”

      Wow, Clancy had said “we” as if expecting her to go with him to see Ava. And of course she wanted to. Even if seeing the relief in his eyes had just about done her in. How hard would it be to see Clancy’s niece, knowing that his family was growing, while she was alone?

      In five years of marriage, Jacob had continually put off having children, at first saying they had plenty of time. The last time, he’d said he wasn’t sure if he wanted children at all...with her.

      Those words had hurt in a way that went beyond description. But he’d said he didn’t want a divorce, he wanted to work things out, even though she’d seen no evidence of that before his last deployment.

      In the end, nothing had been settled between them. Had Jacob somehow known about her youthful crush on Clancy? No. Of course not. That had been over before they’d gotten married. And Hollee never would have cheated on him. Not even with Clancy. Her infatuation had been just the foolish stuff of youth.

      She was over it now. And she’d donned her anti-Clancy armor as soon as she’d seen him again. She was well protected and ready for anything.

      At least, she hoped she was. Especially if he ended up going on the relief trip. The last thing she needed to do was dig up that old crush and start mooning over the man again. Especially if he still played the field, like he had when they’d been younger. If that was the case, and he tempted her to share more than a simple kiss, she would be setting herself up for a whole lot of hurt. And this time there would be no one there to catch her when she fell.