A Second Opinion

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

      Nick choked on his wine, spraying it over his dinner place. He put a hand on his mouth, embarrassed.

      Suzanne frowned.

      Had she just asked him to marry her? He bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. Damm it! Why did she have to get the wrong idea. He didn’t want to jeopardize their tenuous relationship. Lucas meant too much to him.

      “I thought you met someone overseas?”

      She shook her head. “That didn’t work out. How could it with him in Africa? I can’t take Lucas there, the country is dangerous. My life is here.”

      He took another sip of wine and swallowed it quickly. 

      “Suzanne, you are a wonderful woman, any man would be lucky to be with you. But that can’t be me. I am getting over Kate and you are getting over someone. This could be disastrous.”

      She shook her head. “You left Kate. I left my man. We’re done with our romantic entanglements. We get along so well, and Lucas adores you. We could be a real family.”

      “Is that why you had me move here?”

      She shook her head but looked away. 

      “Just think about it Nick. Lucas could have both his parents, we would have each other. We’re both surgeons, we understand the lifestyle, we get what it’s like. We could be good together.”

      He shook his head. “Suzanne, I love Kate. I’ve loved her for a very long time, so long in fact that I think I have always had my heart closed to anyone who wasn’t her.” He froze. What did I just say?

      Suzanne was looking away, not willing to meet his eyes. 

       He softened his voice. “It wouldn’t be fair to you or to Lucas. We would eventually grow to resent each other and take it out on him.”

      She looked down.

      “This is going to sound crazy, but what if you left Lucas with me and went back to Africa?”

      She looked up, already shaking her head. “I can’t live without him.”

      “Just go see what you have with this guy there. If it’s going to work out with him, we can work out a shared custody arrangement. I’ll take him for a few months and then you have him.” He sat up straighter. This could work. Why hadn’t he thought about it before?

      She shook her head. “That may work now, but in three years he’s going to be in school and we can’t uproot him every few months.”

      “Three years is a long time from now. By then your situation may have changed, you can work on moving back here. Or I can have him during the school year and you can have him during winter and summer holidays. Or maybe you can convince your guy to move here.”

      She shook her head. “I can’t live without Lucas. He’s my whole life.”

      Nick stood up and pulled his chair closer to hers. He grabbed her hands and clasped them tightly. His eyes were shining. “Believe me Suzanne, I get it. I left Kate for Lucas. But guess what, I am miserable. I love Lucas with all my heart, but he can’t fill the space that Kate’s left. I miss her every day. I long for her every day. And to be honest with you, I don’t think I can keep doing this.”

      She looked down. “Suzanne, if you love this guy, you owe it to yourself to see if you can make it work. Real, true love, it doesn’t come by very often. But when it does, it smacks you in the face and you can’t fight it.”