Going to the Chapel by Debra Webb Page A

Ignoring him, she
paused at the desk to jot down the patient’s name and the treatment
she’d administered. The next doctor would need a proper
record.
    “ It’s right, seeing you
here like this, Caroline.”
    She looked up just in time
to watch him move deliberately toward her. “Don’t,” she
warned.
    He stopped right beside
her, those deep blue Garrett eyes staring down into hers. “This is
where you’re supposed to be. The whole town wanted you here. I—” He
snapped his mouth shut before he said the rest.
    “ You haven’t been going
around telling people that I’m here to stay, have you?” she
accused. Surely he wouldn’t do that. What would he hope to
accomplish? And what did it matter what he’d once wanted? It was
over now.
    He shook his head. “They
just assume since you’re back that you’re here to stay. They’ve
seen you at your grandmother’s house. They think you want to be
here. They need you. They’ve always wanted you back
here.”
    Caroline summoned all her
defenses. She would not fall victim to his numerous charms. The way
he looked at her...the way he smelled...the way just being this
close to him made her feel. He was everything she’d ever wanted.
And he had broken
her heart. He had ruined their lives. First by insisting that she
go straight from medical school to being the doctor in Lucy’s
Branch. He was unmovable on the issue. He would not even hear of
spending a little time away before they became Mr. and Mrs. Lucy’s
Branch.
    Caroline had wanted more.
To see the world...to be free for just a little while. Then Slade
had died and she’d had to come back. She wanted desperately to make
up with Chase. They’d been on the outs for almost two months.
Slade’s death had only reinforced his stand on staying put. At the
same time, it had reaffirmed what Caroline already felt. Life was
short. She wanted to have just a little bit of time for the two of
them to share alone. She’d left after the funeral, angry and
frustrated. Three weeks later, when she realized that she loved
Chase too much to give him up for anything, she came back to town
to find out he’d just left on his honeymoon...with another
woman.
    Ire flamed inside her even
now. “But you made sure that wouldn’t happen, didn’t
you?”
    A muscle started to tic in
that handsome jaw. “I did what I had to do.”
    Caroline threw the pen
she’d been using onto the desk. “Oh, yes, I forgot. You had to get married. Your
girlfriend was pregnant. How could I forget that little detail when
you were supposed to be engaged to me at the time conception
occurred? I’ve done the math, Chase. I know what you
did.”
    He snagged her by the arm
and pulled her around to face him. “You don’t know anything about
what I did or why I did it. You were already gone,
remember?”
    She glared up at him. “Out
of sight, out of mind, I suppose,” she hissed. “Did your brother
know you were fooling around with his girlfriend?”
    Fire glittered in his eyes.
“I didn’t—”
    “ Save it, Chase.” She tried
jerking free of his iron grip. “I didn’t want to hear it then; I
don’t want to hear it now.” Oh he had called. Had even hunted her
up and practically beat the door down. But Caroline had called the
cops. She did not want to hear his excuses. He’d hurt her far too
badly.
    “ Then hear
this.”
    His mouth came crashing
down on hers and all else ceased to matter. He kissed her until she
couldn’t breathe. His mouth, his taste, engulfed her. He tasted
like…home. His hard body drew hers like a magnet. She melted
against all those hard contours. Every ripple and bulge sent shards
of need tingling through her. She told herself to push him away,
but she couldn’t. She could only cling to him as if he was all that
kept her grounded to this earth.
    His palms cupped her face
and he deepened the kiss, stroking her tongue with his own. Making
her long to feel the most male part of him inside her. She wanted
to rip his