What would you do if the spirit of your dead twin brother came back?
What about if he inhabited the body of your adopted daughter?
Former
drug addict, turned state prosecutor, Shane Occena has to deal with
this when the little girl he rescues one night, named Shawna, declares
that she’s the reincarnation of his brother Shawn, that he’d lost over
eight years before. Feeling a connection to Shawna that can’t be talked
away, Shane begins the adoption process and gains custody. When Shawna
begins acting like Shawn, Shane takes her to see Child Psychologist,
Tucker Ames. And that’s when his life really changes.
Dr.
Tucker Ames spends his days talking with children helping them heal
from their scars and come to grips with their gender issues and
sexuality, and his nights alone, hoping for a family of his own. When he
meets Shane and Shawna Occena, he finally feels as if he’s met the
family that’s destined to be his. But first he has to help Shawna heal
from her childhood, Shane heal from his scars, and find a way to help
Shawn cross over to the other side.
But
when allegations of child abuse are brought against Shane, and Tucker’s
family spontaneously descends on this makeshift family in Pensacola to
lend their “support”, will Tucker and Shane be able to stay together and
be the parents that Shawna so desperately need? And will Shawn ever let
go of his hold on Shawna and finally ascend to the afterlife? Tucker
and Shane may think that they are Raising Shawna, but in the end, she
may be the one to raise them all.
“Hello?”
he said into the phone. Silence greeted him and Shane lowered the
bottle of orange juice as his brows furrowed. “Hello?”
“Um-yes, hi, Mr. Occena? It’s Dr. Ames. Shawna’s psychologist?” the deeply, husky voice on the other line said.
Shane’s heart sped up and he swallowed thickly. “Yes, hi, Dr. Ames. What can I do for you?” he asked the handsome doctor.
“I-I-um, I was just
calling to check up on Shawna. Today’s session was a little difficult
for her and I just wanted to make sure that she was okay.”
Shane
chuckled even as his groin tightened by the sound of the doctor’s voice
in his ear. “She’s fine. As a matter of fact, she’s upstairs getting
ready for a bath with her trusty sidekicks at her feet.”
“Her sidekicks?”
Shane
was aware of the sound of rustling coming through on the other end. He
wondered what the other man was doing. Was the good doctor calling him
from home? Perhaps Dr. Ames was undressing for a shower or maybe he was
lying naked in bed and the sound of rustling was the sheets shifting
around his naked form. Shane groaned silently. That line of thinking was
sure to get him into trouble. He pulled his mind back to the
conversation.
“Yes, Reba is a cat and
Sinatra is a dog. I had them before I adopted Shawna. It was love and
friendship at first sight when the three of them met.”
“Well,
that is really good. It’s always good for kids who have been adopted
and who have endured the trauma that Shawna has to have playmates, even
if they are of the feline and canine variety,” Dr. Ames said with a
small chuckle and Shane joined in his amusement.
The
line grew silent then and Shane held his breath, wanting the doctor to
talk to him about something other than Shawna but almost positive that
it would be out of line and unethical.
“Sooo—” he hedged.
Dr.
Ames sighed. “Mr. Occena, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have even called you. I
normally don’t. I can’t even lie and say that it’s the uniqueness of
the situation that has captured my interest. This is very unethical of
me and I know I shouldn’t have called, but I couldn’t get you out of my
mind and I just had to call.”
Shane
sighed happily before he chuckled. “Well, I’m glad that you called me
even if you shouldn’t. I admit that I couldn’t stop thinking about you
either.”
He heard the sharp intake of breath from the doctor on the other end.
“This conversation could get me into a lot of trouble, Mr. Occena,” Dr. Ames cautioned him.
Shane
nodded though he knew the other man couldn’t see him. “I understand. We
can stop talking about this right now if you want,” he offered the
psychologist a way out of the conversation.
“That’s
just it,” Dr. Ames said, and Shane could hear the frustration in the
other man’s tone and felt it vibrate within himself. “Even though I know
that this conversation is highly inappropriate, I mean, you are the
father of one of my patients, I find that I don’t really care. I want to
help and treat Shawna through this new development, and at the same
time, I find myself wondering what it would be like to take you out on a
proper date. Dinner, dancing, and a kiss at your front door.”
Shane’s
breath sped up in his chest and he pressed the bottle of orange juice
against his heavy erection. “I know what you mean.”
“But
this is highly inappropriate and we should probably stop talking about
things that cannot be right now,” Dr. Ames said, though it sounded more
like a question.
Shane didn’t know how he was supposed to respond in that moment. Was he
supposed to tell the doctor that he agreed with his assessment of the
situation, or should he try to fight for the obvious connection that he
felt with the other man? He was so confused and confusion was definitely
not good in this situation. Confusion would have him being selfish and
putting his raging libido ahead of his daughter’s welfare. That wasn’t
something he wanted to do. He had to think of Shawna. Shawna was the
most important thing in his life at the moment, and while the
possibility of being with the doctor was a definite temptation, it was
one that he was going to have to let slide through his fingers. Though
it pained him to do so.
“You’re right, Dr. Ames. This is definitely a conversation that we shouldn’t be having,” Shane said into the phone.
A
sigh drifted through the line then, a sigh of disappointment,
frustration, and resignation. Shane felt the echo of it in his heart.
“Yes, well-I guess I will see you and Shawna next week.”
“Yes, you will,” Shane said.
Neither
of them said goodbye nor spoke for a long minute. Shane listened to the
doctor’s breathing and found himself matching the man’s breathing with
his own. He didn’t know how long they sat on the phone, merely listening
to the other breathe, when he heard Shawna’s voice from upstairs.
“Daddy! I’m weady!” she called.
“Coming,
baby girl,” Shane called back, covering the mouthpiece of the phone. He
sighed again and his eyes slid closed. He had to say goodbye to the
doctor, even though it pained him to do so. “I have to go. Shawna’s
ready for her bath.”
“I
understand,” Dr. Ames told him and Shane could hear the sadness in the
other man’s voice. “Well, as I said, I’ll see you both next week.”
“Yes. Next week. Thank you for calling, Dr. Ames,” Shane said. “Goodbye.”
“Goodbye, Mr. Occena,” Dr. Ames stated and they both hung up the phone then.
Shane
headed upstairs to help Shawna with her bath, his mind divided between
his daughter and the gorgeous psychologist whose voice haunted him. And
that night when he finally crawled into his own bed to sleep, a full day
of work before him, the face of the man he’d been dreaming about for
months finally came into focus. It was Dr. Tucker Ames and Shane had
never been so disappointed to wake up than he was that next morning. It
was a beautiful dream, and, for the foreseeable future, it would have to
stay just that… a dream.
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