When she looked out at the crowd and found Spence dancing with one of the night nurses, whose hands were running up and down his arms, Sage felt a searing flash of jealousy. Ridiculous! She was there with her own date, and she didn’t want to be with Spence.
So what if it looked like Spence would be taking the woman home for the night? So what if he and that . . . female fell in love and lived happily ever after? She didn’t want him—she didn’t want anyone. She had to focus on her career, and only her career right now.
So did she care when Spence kept his distance for the rest of the evening? She had to admit, after she left the party—Ted dropped her off at her apartment—she felt a dull ache in her stomach, a deep emptiness. Maybe being alone wasn’t what she really wanted.
No. She had to shake off these feelings. She was happy with her career choice, a choice she’d always known would lead to a lot of lonely nights. It was worth it because she got to do what she truly loved. Not everyone could say the same thing.
She was also incredibly grateful when she watched Ted drive away without even walking her to her door. It was early, only ten, and he hadn’t even asked if she wanted a nightcap. Maybe he’d been just as relieved to get away from her as she was to get away from him.
It was really kind of sad. It hadn’t helped that her date, the most boring man alive, had been in the same room as Spence all night. Maybe, before Spence, she might have had a great time with Ted. Then again, maybe not.
“Stop thinking about Spence,” she muttered as she approached her front door. “You don’t want him, certainly don’t need him, and have nothing in common with him. Just focus on work.”
As she reached the top of the steps, she noticed a bright red package sitting there with a large gold bow and a tag with her name in bold cursive letters.
She loved gifts. There was something magical about opening a wrapped present. Yes, she was perfectly capable of going out and buying her own trinkets, but knowing that someone had thought about you enough to give you something he or she had chosen just for you . . . that was special.
Should she wait until Christmas to open it? It certainly looked like a Christmas gift. There was nothing else to tell her who it was from. She shook the snow off her shoulders, then picked up the package and walked into her warm apartment.
After removing her coat and sitting down in the living room with the gift on the table in front of her, she eyed it eagerly. Who was she kidding? There was no way she’d wait. She undid the tape holding the lid down, and when she lifted the lid, she simply gasped.
She picked up the note and held it while gazing at the crystal red apple tree ornament that was sitting on a cushion of bright green velvet.
I have decided to be your fairy-tale prince. It’s time for me to wake up my Sleeping Beauty.
Spence
Her heart melted. Yes, it was silly. Yes, it was a bit cheesy. And, yes, she was in trouble—total-and-complete-meltdown kind of trouble. She was falling for this man even though she knew she shouldn’t, and knew it could be disastrous. But how could she not when he was claiming to be her very own Prince Charming?
“Is it normal to have sharp, shooting pains running up and down my legs and spine?”
“Yes, unfortunately, and it’s nothing that can be helped. When you’re on your feet for twelve hours straight, that tends to happen,” the nurse said with a laugh before trudging off down the hallway. Sage already knew that, but somehow it felt better to voice a complaint.
Sage had been working long shifts for five days in a row and she felt—and looked—like the walking dead. She had the next two days off and she wasn’t going to leave her apartment the entire time. Bed, food, and romantic comedies on the television screen—she didn’t care in what order.
When she turned a corner and saw Spence walking toward her, her heart did a little flip-flop and she couldn’t prevent a smile from popping up on her face. The man was a gift-giving genius. She wanted to not like them, but she couldn’t help it. How was a woman to resist when she kept getting packages on her front doorstep and in her locker at work?
She knew she should tell him she couldn’t accept these presents, but each one was so unique, so special, that there was no way to give them back. Grace was green with envy each time Sage showed her the newest installment in Spence’s recurring gift club.
He’d left her the crystal apple, two silver bells, a miniature dragon, and a single red rose. All of them had a theme from her favorite princess movies, all had a meaning, and each came with its own note.
This man was flipping her world upside down and she was so ready to pull him into the nearest broom closet and show him her appreciation—and maybe, just maybe, relieve the constant ache in her body, which grew worse every time she saw him.
“How did your last trauma case go?” he asked, standing well within her personal space.
She didn’t care.
“It went well. I have to admit I was a little disappointed when I had to come back home for my residency, but I’m learning a lot and logging massive hours. And not only is it excellent training, but it’s been good to be home.” Sage started walking toward the locker room, because, as much fun as it was to stand there and chat with Spence, she really was exhausted and more than ready to get back to her apartment and put her feet up.
“Yes, it’s been a slow season, too, so imagine what you’ll learn when things start heating up.”
“Is it awful to hope for disasters?”
“It is if you want people hurt, yes, but not if you want to learn how to save more lives.”