The Army Doctor's Baby (Romance Novella) by Helen Scott Taylor Read Free Book Online

shouldn't be together. She just wanted to enjoy the sensation of his closeness and dream for a little longer. Despite that she rolled over to face him.
    They lay for a few moments, heads on the pillows, faces barely twelve inches apart. Then Radley shifted forward and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss took her by surprise but her eyelids fell and she kissed him back, putting all her pent-up feelings into that few seconds before he withdrew.
    "I shouldn't have done that." Radley's breath trailed out on a gentle sigh. "I shouldn't have slept with you, not until we'd handled all the obstacles between us. I've put the cart in front of the horse, or something like that." He winced. "I don't think I've ever said that in my life before. It's one of those strange things my mother says. I'm really making a mess of this, aren't I?"
    This strong, capable man was nervous. It sent a burst of warmth through her, warmth and love. She pulled her hand out from beneath the covers and placed her palm on his cheek, caressing his stubbly skin. "I love you."
    There, she'd said the words that had been riding the back of her tongue for the last couple of weeks. Words that wanted to spill out every time Radley gently picked up George as though he were the most precious thing in the world, and kissed him with a complete lack of self-consciousness. He was a man comfortable in his own skin with nothing to prove, a man who seemed to find pleasure in helping those in need.
    It was amazing he was Cameron's brother because they couldn't be more different. Cameron was focused on himself. She couldn't imagine him empathizing with his patients. Maybe the army would make him grow up and change.
    Radley's fingers stroked her jaw, her cheek, her lips, his gaze following their course with an almost reverential look. "I think I fell in love with you the first time I set eyes on you. You were sitting in my father's chair with George at your breast. Seeing you there was almost a spiritual experience."
    Olivia laughed, slightly embarrassed. "I suspect you're remembering it through rose-colored glasses."
    Radley simply smiled and stroked strands of hair off her forehead.
    "We need to tell your mum." This was what Olivia dreaded. She had such a good relationship with Sandra and didn't want to spoil it.
    "Let me tell her. I'll choose the right moment. Mum's down-to-earth and reasonable. She knows things don't always turn out as planned. And she can hardly be surprised when we've spent so much time together while Cameron hasn't even bothered to contact you."
    Radley rolled on his back and stared at the ceiling. "There's something I need to tell you."
    The change in his tone and expression sent a frisson of warning along Olivia's nerves. "It's nothing bad, is it?"
    "You'll have to be the judge of that." Radley ran a hand over his face, and the moment stretched, pulling Olivia's nerves tight.
    "In the interest of full disclosure, I have to admit that it's partly my fault Cameron didn't contact you when you told him you were pregnant."
    "What?" How could that be? She hadn't even known Radley back then.
    Radley turned to face her again. "Cam called me when you first contacted him about it. He was certain he couldn't have gotten you pregnant, so I told him to forget it and get on with his life."
    Pain and disappointment spiked through Olivia. A sudden need for space made her roll away onto her side of the bed. She turned her back on him and chewed the side of her finger, trying to think.
    "If I'd thought there was a chance he really was your baby's father, I'd have advised him to do the right thing. But he was so certain, Olivia."
    Her initial shocked reaction faded and her rational mind caught hold again. Radley hadn't forced Cameron to ignore her. Cameron hadn't told Radley the truth, and it was Cameron's responsibility to make his own decisions. It wasn't Radley's fault. And to be honest, she was now relieved that things had worked out this way or she would never have come