“You’re applying for a job here?” she said, certain she hadn’t heard him right.

He shrugged. “Why not? I care about what I do, but it doesn’t have to be in Tennessee. People in Mistletoe have hearts, too.”

She could attest to that. Hers was currently full to bursting.

“The medical center is attracting all kinds of new patients, and the local hospital is going to need to take on new doctors to keep up with the growing number of surgeries. I don’t think it will keep me as busy as my current position in Knoxville, but I want more time for me. For my kids.” He stared into her eyes. “For us. Our relationship would have to be long-distance for at least a few weeks, while I get everything settled, but the people I’ve talked to seem very interested in signing me on.”

She resisted the urge to succumb to the pure, shimmering happiness threatening to engulf her, afraid there must be some kind of catch. Not even Maggie and Fred and Josh opening their hearts to her had quite prepared her for someone loving her on a scale of this magnitude. “But how would the kids feel about it? You just said your relationship is improving, so-”

“I didn’t do this without giving it serious thought,” he vowed. “If that were the case, I would have been back the same night as the day I left. I talked to the kids, talked to Sara, and what we decided is this-when you love people enough, you make them part of your life. You make an effort in spite of geography. Conversely, when you’re not trying, not even living under the same roof is a guarantee of being close.

“The kids don’t live with me, anyway. I get them for special occasions and some weekends, which they voted unanimously that they’d be happy to spend here. Knoxville is not at the other end of the galaxy. I can-I will-get up there for birthdays and graduations and school plays.”

Just like that, the dam broke. The joy she hadn’t quite dared to feel rushed over her in a wave and she was more than happy to let the undertow drag her out over her head. I love you, I love you, I love you.

She stood. “I have more pet visits to do.”

He nodded, looking disappointed but trying to hide it. “I understand. Maybe-”

“But I need to shower first. You know-” she tapped her finger to her lips “-we never really got to have our date on the Fourth of July.”

He arched an eyebrow. “No, I guess not.”

She pushed open her front door, grinning over her shoulder. “Come on, Dr. Varner. I owe you some fireworks.”

Tanya Michaels

Tanya Michaels began telling stories almost as soon as she could talk…and started stealing her mom’s Harlequin romances less than a decade later. In 2003 Tanya was thrilled to have her first book, a romantic comedy, published by Harlequin Books. Since then, Tanya has sold nearly twenty books and is a two-time recipient of the Booksellers’ Best Award as well as a finalist for the Holt Medallion, National Readers’ Choice Award and Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA® Award. Tanya lives in Georgia with her husband, two preschoolers and an unpredictable cat, but you can visit Tanya online at www.tanyamichaels.com.


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