Lucky Dr & the Rockstar Next Door (Small Town Holidays #3)

1. Mac

1 MAC

Welcome to Holiday Grove.

The sign wasn’t the typical industrial blue or green highway sign; that wasn’t how Holiday Grove rolled. The town went all out for the holidays, featuring a multi-colored sign to announce that you were in a place that celebrated something nearly every day of the month—which was only a mild exaggeration.

Holiday Grove was also where my brother had chosen to build his next resort, a crunchy granola place that wouldn’t obstruct the gorgeous mountains visible from every spot in town. It wasn’t just the location of his newest business venture; it was his new home since he had fallen for a local bakery owner. So when my tour ended three days ago, I made plans to surprise him.

I found a house to rent where I could work on my next album in peace. The one thing Holiday Grove didn’t have was paparazzi, making it the ideal place to unwind after nearly a year of touring the world. I rented a gorgeous red electric vehicle for a quiet drive, just me alone with my thoughts and a few threads of lyrics and chords that might become something—though for now, they were little more than a welcome distraction on the road.

“What in the hell is that?” I slowed down at the sight of what looked like a chair tipped over on the side of the road. That didn’t make sense. As I got closer, I realized it wasn’t a chair but one of those motorized scooters. I hadn’t seen anyone riding around when I was here at Christmas, but it didn’t look like it had been on the side of the road for long.

Just keep going, Lancaster, don’t end up dead and buried. My inner coward was right; this all felt like a scene straight out of a horror movie, and I wanted no part of it.

Something told me I’d regret driving off without checking if the scooter was abandoned. “I’m too damn pretty to die this young. I want more Grammy awards, more chart-topping songs, maybe even a track that could win me an Oscar.” With that thought in mind, I stopped the car and stepped out.

“Hello!” I called, scanning the empty road for anyone, but it remained just as desolate as it had been five minutes ago when I passed the welcome sign.

I took a few steps closer and shouted again, “Is anyone over here? Need some help?”

I heard a rustling, followed by a small voice saying, “You’re not some sex-crazed killer, are you?”

I laughed and shook my head, unsure of where the voice was coming from. “Do you really care?”

“No,” the female voice replied after a moment. “I suppose not. I seem to have taken a tumble.”

Shit. I stepped closer and paused just behind the scooter. “You’re not some sex-crazed killer, are you ?” It was worth confirming.

The older woman laughed. “I’ve made it to ninety-plus years without being one, so I guess it depends.”

“Depends on what?” I asked, intrigued.

“On what you look like, of course. I don’t want to be a victim of some indiscriminate sex-crazed killer.”

I chuckled and followed the sound of her shaky voice until I stood above a woman who had to be at least one hundred and ten years old.

“Shit, are you all right?”

The woman had a shock of silver curls and was tiny—probably less than a hundred pounds. “Do I sound all right? After your interrogation, we’re lucky I’m still alive.” She laughed again at my glare. “Goodness, you are a tall drink of water, aren’t you? Handsome devil, too.”

“Are you injured?”

“Nah, just my pride. Finally get that pool boy I’ve been praying for, and here I am sprawled on the grass like one of those Halloween skeletons.”

I bent down and scooped her into my arms, pleased to find she was indeed about a hundred pounds. “It’s all right, honey, I’m used to women falling at my feet.”

She erupted in laughter, wrapping her arms around me. “I’ll just bet you are with that face. Oh, and these muscles.” She paused, squeezing my back muscles while looking at me with confusion and concern. “Are you taking me somewhere to take advantage of an old woman?”

“Absolutely,” I assured her, depositing her in my passenger seat. “I’ll bring you back to the scooter when you’re able to walk again.” Her laughter echoed as I closed the door and went around to the driver’s side.

“Damn you,” she grunted when I pulled into the parking lot of the medical center. “I don’t need to see a doctor.”

“How do you know? Are you a doctor?” I raised an eyebrow at the feisty old woman and waited for her response.

“No, I’m not. But I’m fine.”

“Okay, you’re fine. But I need to know you’re okay too, so let’s get you in there and checked out, yeah?” I gave her my best smolder, and, of course, it worked like a charm.

“Lord save us all from handsome men like you,” she grumbled. “But you’ll have to carry me in.”

I smiled. “My pleasure. I’m Mac, by the way.”

“Edith,” she replied with a smile. “You’re Lee’s brother. The musician.”

“Yeah, that’s me. Nice to meet you, Edith.”

“Nice to be carried by you, Mac.”

Yeah, she was a trip, behaving like the belle of the ball as I carried her into the emergency center with all eyes on us. I explained to the admitting nurse why we were there.

“She says she feels fine, but she’s a tiny thing, and who knows how bad that little tumble was.”

“It was very kind of you to stop,” the nurse purred, batting her eyelashes. “Come on, I’ll take you back.”

I followed her into an exam room and set Edith on the paper-covered table.

“He’s mine,” Edith snapped, shooing the nurse toward the door. “You’re welcome.”

“How do you know I wasn’t interested?”

Her gaze narrowed. “I’m old, not blind. You had about as much interest in her as I do.”

I laughed. “I don’t know what floats your boat, Edith.”

“You’re a wicked one, aren’t you?”

I shrugged. “Only sometimes.”

“So, tell me, Mac, what’s it like being a famous musician?”

“Mostly, it’s amazing. I get to make music for a living and sing my own songs, too. I love being on stage with tens of thousands of people singing along to the words I wrote. Everything else is just a requirement so I can do the part that I love.”

A throat cleared behind me, and when I glared at Edith, she flashed a mischievous smile. “Edith, what’s going on?”

“Dr. Stevens, what’s shakin’?”

I turned to see Dr. Stevens, completely shocked to find a gorgeous blonde instead of a middle-aged man with a pot belly. She had big hazel eyes, large swaths of gold and brown with flecks of green throughout. There was a hint of curves beneath her white jacket and a chest that was more than a handful beneath her dark blue scrubs.

She stared back for several long seconds before recognition flashed in her eyes. But Dr. Stevens was a professional; she didn’t acknowledge that she knew who I was or ask for a photo or autograph. “Are you here with Edith?”

“Oh yeah,” the older woman answered with a smile. “This handsome devil found me on the side of the road.” When neither of us responded, she groaned. “I took a fall off my scooter, and I was lucky Mac here came along to help.” She waved a wrinkled finger in my direction.

I stood to my full height and offered her my hand. “I’m Mac.”

She accepted it easily. “Dr. Stevens. Kayla Stevens. Dr. Kayla Stevens.” She cringed at her words. “Sorry, I’m still getting used to being called doctor. ”

“Nice to meet you, Dr. Stevens.” Her small hand was soft with long, delicate fingers. Electricity ran between us, and when she moved to pull away, I gripped her hand just a little tighter before releasing it. “I’ll wait for you out there, Edith.”

“Don’t be shy now, boy. You can stay.”

Unsure what to do, I looked at Kayla for advice.

“She probably won’t need to be undressed, so it’s fine.” She started her external examination while asking Edith questions about her blood pressure, diet, and exercise regimen. “Any pain anywhere?”

“A little on the side where I fell, probably just a bruise.” She waved off the doctor’s concern as she winked at me. “Are you single, Mac?”

I knew what she was doing, and I had no objections, even though the gorgeous doctor was determined to ignore me. “I am. Traveling so much makes it hard to maintain anything meaningful.”

“Well, Kayla here is also single. She came back to Holiday Grove to run the ER department.”

“I don’t run the department, Edith. Reginald does.”

“Only because he’s older than dirt. We all know you’ll have that job in no time.”

“Thanks, Edith. We’ll do an x-ray, and if everything looks good, you can go home tonight.”

“All right. Can my boy toy come along to hold my hand?”

She turned to me with a half-smile and shook her head. “He can come with you, but he can’t hold your hand. No boy toys in the x-ray room.”

“Bummer.”

“Totally,” I agreed with a smile. “But maybe I should just wait for you in reception.”

“Party pooper,” she said, sticking her tongue out at me.

I stood and opened the door.

Kayla pushed Edith in a wheelchair in the corner of the room and turned to face me before I left the exam room. “You should stay in here. It’s private and,” she gestured to me from head to toe, “you know.” She turned back to Edith and pushed the chair down the hallway.

I laughed. It was the most she’d said directly to me since she came into the room, but her voice was soft and husky, with a breathy quality that shot straight to my dick. I tamed the beast by sheer willpower before Edith returned with a clean x-ray, then got the fireball home.

“I’ll get your scooter to you tomorrow. Promise.”

“I’ll hold you to that, Mac. And thanks for helping an old girl out.”

“My pleasure. See you tomorrow, Edi.” With one last goodbye, I jumped back into my rental car and punched in the directions for my temporary home, located on May Day Lane, because of course all the streets in this town are named after holidays, big and small.

The realtor called it a mid-century modern home with an open floor plan, not that I knew what the hell any of that really meant. The place was spacious with one story, and the price was right. That was good enough for me.

And it was home sweet home for the next month or so.