The Single Dad Finds a Wife by Felicia Mason

Darling only to have the pretty physician walk straight into his arms. He steadied her, then let go quickly even though he wanted to breathe in the scent of her hair and hold her for just a moment. Since neither was appropriate, he held up a now partially crumpled piece of paper.
    â€œI was headed to the hotel when I glanced at this and realized I needed some clarification from the nurses.”
    â€œLet me see,” Spring offered. “I may be able to help.”
    Although they were no longer in physical contact, neither of them moved from the spot where they’d collided.
    Her eyes, he decided, were the blue of a cloudless summer day, and her lashes were full and long.
    â€œYour eyelashes are beautiful.”
    As soon as the inane words left his mouth, David felt as if he were fifteen and trying to ask Cindy Rae, his longtime secret crush, if he could walk her home from vacation Bible school. What type of lame guy complimented a woman on her eyelashes?
    But instead of the “Well, bless your naive little heart for even thinking you had a shot with me” look that Cindy Rae had given him all those years ago, Spring Darling actually smiled. He watched as her eyes lit up with genuine humor and not the amused pity of a pageant princess in the making. The smile that now curved Spring’s mouth was the very one that he’d dreamed about while dozing on the chair in Jeremy’s room.
    â€œI’m the envy of my younger sisters, who spend hundreds of dollars every year on eyelash plumpers, lash curlers and every new mascara that hits the market.”
    â€œBrains and beauty,” he said almost to himself. “Now there’s a lethal combination.”
    â€œI’m as tame as they come,” she said. “Would you like me to take a look at the instructions?”
    After taking half a step back from her to clear his head, as well as put some physical distance between them, David smoothed the paper on his pants leg before handing it to her.
    â€œDr. Emmanuel is going to release him tomorrow,” he told her. “I asked for instructions early so I could get anything he might need and have it ready.”
    â€œJeremy’s just fallen asleep,” Spring said. “We can talk in the atrium. It’s right down the hall.”
    He glanced at Jeremy’s closed hospital door. Even though he’d left barely half an hour ago, he couldn’t resist checking to make sure he was resting comfortably. “I’ll just take a quick look.”
    Spring nodded, and he thought she might be used to anxious parents who wanted to assure themselves that their little ones fared well. “I’ll wait here.”
    Charlotte glanced up from the newspaper she was reading in the very chair where David had spent the night. She smiled and lifted a finger to her mouth. “Shh.”
    He nodded.
    Jeremy was indeed sleeping, looking as he always did. Were it not for the hospital bed, the monitors and a huge teddy bear that he was clutching, his son would have looked as if he were at home in his own bed. The life-size bear sported a polka-dot bow tie and was just the sort of toy David would have gotten for him had his mind been on anything but the surgery his little boy had undergone.
    â€œThat was a good idea,” he told his mom with a nod toward Jeremy’s new companion. “Thank you.”
    Charlotte shook her head. “Not from me. It’s from Dr. Darling.”
    David’s brow lifted in surprise. “Really?”
    She nodded, then whispered, “He named it Beau for the bow tie.”
    David didn’t know what to make of this news, but he was grateful to see Jeremy looking so peaceful following the trauma of the previous night. After coming out of recovery and waking, he’d been fretful and the night had been long. The nurses told him that it was normal for children to be anxious in the unfamiliar surroundings.
    â€œI’m going to talk to the