I had been hoping she had been drawn to me for reasons other than guilt, but I’d take what I could get. I knew she had been looking for comfort, and I hoped I’d helped give her that.

I tugged on her arms and pulled her down to meet my mouth. I brushed my lips over hers, giving her a few soft kisses. “I will try to help you in any way I can.”

“All right.” She sighed. “I was kind of fudging about doctor-patient confidentiality. I can talk about it, especially under these particular circumstances. I just can’t name names. It’s just that…I don’t really want to talk about it. But I know I have to.” She laughed a bit. “God, I tell my patients all the time that they need to talk if they want to heal.” She shook her head, her wet hair sending a few droplets of water onto me. “I had a patient, Jonah. A patient who…didn’t make it.”

My heart fell. “I’m so sorry.”

“She killed herself. And I’ve racked my brain, trying to figure out what I missed. I’ve gone through my notes myriad times. I’ve gone through the sessions in my head, trying, and failing, to figure out where I went wrong.”

“Do you think that maybe you didn’t go wrong?”

“But I did. If I had done my job, if I had seen some indication that she was suicidal, I could’ve saved her. She would be alive today.”

“You’re putting a pretty heavy burden on yourself.”

“Don’t you put that same burden on yourself?”

I couldn’t fault her perception. She was right. I did. And I’d been lucky. I got my brother back. He hadn’t died, though God knew he had spent many years wishing he had.

“Let’s not talk about me right now, Melanie. I’m doing fine.” A half-truth, but what the hell? “Let’s talk about you. You’re a professional, and you know how any practice of medicine is. There are some people you can’t help. I’m very sorry for your loss. I truly am. But what else is going on here? I get the feeling there’s something you’re not telling me.”

She wiped away a tear that had fallen down her cheek. “I’m telling you all I can.”

“Is there anything I can do to help you?”

She laughed shakily. “You can maybe…give me something to do for the next three weeks.”

Was she asking me to take her away? To stay with her in the city or for her to stay here? I had no idea.

“I wish I could take you on an extravagant vacation, Melanie, and believe me when I say I would if I could. But this is autumn. It’s a busy time for us with the harvest and all and then getting the orchards and vineyards winterized.”

She shook her head vehemently. “No, you misunderstood me. In fact, I don’t know why I said that. I just wish—”

We both turned our heads simultaneously toward the door to the house, and Lucy bolted to two figures rushing toward us.

Jade and Talon.

Melanie gasped, crossing her arms over her chest and sliding back into the pool.

“Doc?” Talon said.

The poor woman turned beet red.

“What are you guys doing here?” I asked.

“I think I could ask you the same thing,” Talon said.

“I’m going for a swim,” I said, clenching my teeth. “At my house. That’s it.”

“Sure,” he said. “Have it your way.”

Melanie was looking down, her arms still crossed over her chest, even though the water was covering her. I got out, naked as a jaybird, and tossed my boxers on. Jade had the decency to look away as she rubbed Lucy behind her ears. I grabbed the robe for Melanie, used it to cover her as she got out of the pool, and then wrapped it around her.

“Do you want to go inside?” I asked Jade and Talon.

“Sure,” Talon said. “We have some news.”

Chapter Twenty–Eight

Melanie

If I’d had one wish at that moment, it would have been for a giant hole to open up right next to Jonah’s pool and swallow me. I was completely embarrassed. How unprofessional! I was Talon’s therapist, for God’s sake. And here I was, naked, and in his brother’s pool.

I needed to excuse myself fast. Of course, I wasn’t sure what to say, so I walked briskly through the kitchen and back to Jonah’s bedroom to put on my clothes…and found that only my bra was on the floor. The rest of my clothes were in the kitchen, strewn on the floor, no doubt being seen by Talon and Jade at that moment.

“What the hell have I done?” I said aloud.

“You haven’t done anything wrong.” Jonah stood in the doorway, holding my clothes. “Here you go. Get dressed. There’s nothing for you to be embarrassed about. Then come out and join us. We’re going to have a drink at the kitchen table and look at the new evidence Talon and Jade have.”

“This is really none of my business.”

“Of course it’s your business. You know the whole story. You probably know it better than either Jade or I do. I talked to Talon. He doesn’t mind you being here.”

I imagined the two of them guffawing and patting each other on the back, congratulating each other on their conquests. My God, this was so unprofessional.

Joe grabbed a pair of jeans, pulled them on, and then walked out of the room. He turned back to me. “Take your time, but please, don’t worry about anything.”

What the hell? Right now, I wasn’t allowed to practice in my chosen field. Talon probably already knew, had gotten a call from Randi earlier. I took off Jonah’s robe and hung it up in his closet to dry out, and then I went to the bathroom and dried myself off with one of his soft cotton towels. My hair was a mess from the earlier shower and now from the pool. I combed through it as best I could and then put my work clothes back on.

“Now or never,” I said aloud. I walked out of the room, down the hallway, toward the kitchen.

And then made a beeline to the front door, where I escaped.

I didn’t particularly want to go back to my loft, so I decided to go into the little town of Snow Creek and do some exploring. The Western slope was home to many little towns, but I usually stayed in the city. I couldn’t help but be a little curious about the hometown of one of my most successful patients…and his brother.