The Baby Who Stole the Doctor's Heart

The Baby Who Stole the Doctor's Heart
Dianne Drake

Hot-shot Doc… There’s no place in brooding Dr Mark Anderson’s life for love. He’s working temporarily in White Elk as a favour, then he’ll be gone – and nothing will make him look back. To Daddy! Until he meets beautiful single mum Angela and her adorable daughter.The last thing this rugged doctor expected was to lose his heart to these two, but the moment Angela’s baby girl utters her first word – ‘Daddy’ – he’s wrapped around her chubby little finger! The time has come for Mark to move on…but now he’s looking for a permanent role – as part of their little family!Mountain Village Hospital Welcome to a small town with a big heart

“You bought those toys for her?” Angela asked.

“Eric’s sister has that boutique in town. Handmade for Baby. Everything guaranteed to be non-allergenic and eco-friendly.”

“But so many? There must be ten?”

“Eleven,” he interrupted. “Couldn’t choose between them, so I bought them all. Figured Sarah would figure out which ones she likes, and the rest I’ll donate to the hospital.” He set her down amongst the stuffed bunnies and giraffes.

“I think my daughter is going to like all of them.”

Mark didn’t answer for a moment. Just stood there and stared at Sarah, sitting in the stack of animals, looking wide-eyed at them. “I hope she does,” he said, his voice a little gravelly. He cleared his throat, then faced Angela. “A young lady can never have too many stuffed animals, can she?”

“You’re a real softy—you know that?” So much so, she was tempted to kiss him. But she didn’t.

About the Author

Now that her children have left home, DIANNE DRAKE is finally finding the time to do some of the things she adores—gardening, cooking, reading, shopping for antiques. Her absolute passion in life, however, is adopting abandoned and abused animals. Right now Dianne and her husband Joel have a little menagerie of three dogs and two cats, but that’s always subject to change. A former symphony orchestra member, Dianne now attends the symphony as a spectator several times a month and, when time permits, takes in an occasional football, basketball or hockey game.

Other titles in theMountain Village Hospitalseries by Dianne Drake:

CHRISTMAS MIRACLE: A FAMILY

NEWBORN NEEDS A DAD

HIS MOTHERLESS LITTLE TWINS

Dear Reader,

It is such a privilege to be back with you again, in this last book of my Mountain Village Hospital Series. I’ve loved writing these books, loved being able to develop continuing characters across these stories. I’ve especially loved writing this last book because it touches on a subject that’s near to my heart—diabetes. Of course, this The Baby Who Stole the Doctor’s Heart is a romance in the truest sense of the word. It brings together two people who desperately need second chances at love, and unites them as a family. But it also touches on juvenile diabetes and allows Angela, who’s spent the first three books cooking at the lodge as a chef, to find her true passion in tending to the nutritional needs of diabetic children. Leaving her work as a chef and becoming a hospital dietitian, she has a chance to create a situation that not only teaches children, but also empowers them in taking care of themselves. Naturally, my hero, Dr. Mark Anderson, is drawn to that strength and conviction in her. He doesn’t want to be. In fact, he’s not sure what he wants or where he wants to be, but one confrontation with Angela and there’s no turning back.

There’s no turning back from diabetes, either. But, the fight goes on, and one of the great crusaders is Brenda Novak, a fellow Harlequin author. Her son was diagnosed with the disease when he was young, and she’s been fighting the battle ever since. But Brenda does it in a big way. Every May, Brenda hosts an online auction where all proceeds go to diabetes research. Harlequin, by the way, is one of her biggest supporters and sponsors. (Thanks, Harlequin!) Last year was her sixth year, and she topped an accumulated $1 million! I know it’s not quite May yet, but this year consider spending a moment looking at her website, buying an object, or making a donation. You can check out the auction at www.BrendaNovak.com. While you’re there, take a peek at my donations. As you’ll see, I love antique jewelry.

In the mean time, I appreciate your setting aside some time to read The Baby Who Stole the Doctor’s Heart.

Wishing you health & happiness!

Dianne

P.S.: As always, I love hearing from you. Please feel free to contact me at Dianne@DianneDrake.com.

THE BABY

WHO STOLE THE

DOCTOR’S HEART

DIANNE DRAKE

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

In this story I’ve dealt with diabetes—

an illness that has touched my life in so many ways.

I would like to dedicate this book to

Marguerite Holmes, my mother, William White,

my uncle, and Keith Kreider, one of the first heroes of

my heart—all people I’ve loved and lost to diabetes.

And I would also like to dedicate this book to my

friend and fellow-author Brenda Novak, whose efforts

to raise money for diabetes research will save lives.

CHAPTER ONE

DR. MARK ANDERSON took one more look at the application in his hand, laid it on the desk, facedown, and took off his glasses. “It’s not going to be easy, because I like her, but I can’t let her into my program. She doesn’t fit the criteria, doesn’t even come close to the credentials I’m seeing in the other applicants I’ve looked at.”

Drs. Neil Ranard and Eric Ramsey glanced at each other, both of them with expressions on their faces that reflected their support of the decision, mixed with disappointment. “Naturally, we’re disappointed, but it’s your choice and we support that,” Eric said.

“She’s your sister-in-law, Eric. And, Neil, she’s your wife’s best friend. I’m feeling pressured here.” Being in White Elk was pressure, staying in medicine was pressure. Everything was pressure these days, and he was already counting down the days until he was done with all of it. Medicine, old life, friends. Everything! Eighteen months to go, and he couldn’t wait. But for now he was here, trying to make the best of it because he owed Eric and Neil. They were friends. In better days, best friends. And when they’d asked him to help them start a school to train advanced medical rescue teams, he’d seen it as his chance to pay back all the favors, all the support. After that, though, he was done.

Eric shrugged. “No pressure. Angela’s a great dietician. She has a natural talent for seeing all the connections between health and nutrition. And she’s taking on the juvenile diabetes project here at the hospital. But we understand that she doesn’t have the kind of medical training you’re after. She’s eager to learn, but if she doesn’t qualify, she doesn’t qualify.”

“Well, I’m not feeling great about the decision, but I don’t want to be saddled with someone who’ll hold the program back, and that’s what she’ll do.”

“Saddled?” Neil questioned, arching his eyebrows in surprise. “I wouldn’t exactly call being involved with Angela in any way being saddled.”

Mark sighed. Angela was a looker, in a cute, pixie sort of way. He did have to admit that. Short, with cropped brown hair, amazing dark brown eyes. And so much sparkle to her. Cute, sexy. Girl-next-door in a most kissable fashion, if he had been inclined to kiss anymore. Which he wasn’t. “You know what I mean,” he grumbled, shaking her image out of his head.

“Don’t envy you the task of rejecting her,” Neil said, standing, followed by Eric.

Mark cringed at the thought. “I don’t envy myself the task either.” He hated rejection. Went out of his way not to be involved in it. But this was one he couldn’t help. He didn’t have a place for her in his program and he couldn’t make a place for her. He had eighteen months to accomplish what should, logically, take two years, and Angela would slow him down. His hands were tied, even though he was the one tying them. “And let me tell you now, this isn’t what I bargained for when I came here. I wanted to teach and train, not do the paperwork.”

Eric chuckled. “Trust me. Angela is more than paperwork.” On that note, the doctors left Mark’s office, left him wondering why he’d agreed to this, why he hadn’t followed his first impulse and simply walked away.

Truthfully, he didn’t know. Didn’t want to examine it either, for fear of what he’d find. He’d made his choices, made his decisions, and he wasn’t going to change. Sure, he had a detour for the next year and a half, but after that…

Sarah’s photo didn’t dominate her desk by any means, but Angela’s gaze was drawn to it a dozen times an hour. Maybe two dozen times. She’d never known anything or anyone that could fill her heart the way her daughter did. Coming up on Sarah’s first birthday, that was all Angela could think about—the last twenty or so tumultuous months, learning she was pregnant, discovering that her husband didn’t want a baby or a wife, seeing him flaunt his various affairs on international television. Still, it had been a good time in spite of all that, because of Sarah. “We’re doing quite well for ourselves,” she said to the photo, then refocused on the meal plan she was devising for Scotty Baxter.

He was seven, with uncontrolled diabetes, and she was worried because he didn’t have the home support he needed. His mother rewarded him with snacks, never refused his demands, and most of the time Scotty demanded sweets and foods that weren’t good for him. Helen Baxter loved her son the way Angela loved her daughter, but Helen’s definition of love was overindulgence, maybe because she was a single mother who was trying to compensate for the lack of a father in Scotty’s life. She totally sympathized with Helen, and in some ways she could see that in herself… overindulging Sarah because Sarah’s father had walked out. But not overindulgence to the point of harming her, and that’s where Scotty and his mother stood right now.