What Matters Most (Arabesque) (Mass Market Paperback)

by Gwynne Forster (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Tall, muscular, compassionate and strong-willed, Dr. Jack Ferguson is everything Melanie Sparks wants in a man, and the last thing she needs in a boss. Growing up poor, Melanie dreamed of becoming a nurse, and her job at Jack's clinic can make that a reality—but only if she keeps her mind away from a tempting seduction that could never be more than a wonderful fling.

Son of a prominent Baltimore doctor, Jack is expected to choose a wealthy wife. Instead he's falling for someone his powerful father will never accept. Working with Melanie to help those most in need, Jack realizes that what he truly wants is the woman who's right in front of him—but can he convince Melanie of that?

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Melanie Sparks opened her bedroom window wide and breathed. The crisp April night air couldn't banish her problems, but she needed the psychological effect of clearing her head it seemed to give. If her father thought that challenging her every time she came home could break her, she'd show him. Nearly exhausted from typing students' term papers, studying during the day and attending evening classes at Towson University in Baltimore—a two-hour trip by bus between her home and the university—Melanie just wanted to go to bed and stay there. But challenges were merely invitations to hang tough.

Melanie had wanted to be a nurse since she was seven years old. Now, at age thirty-one, the coveted degree was finally within reach…provided she could pay her tuition. And with the prize so close, she was not going to allow anything to get between her and her bachelor's degree and certification as a registered nurse. She had been tired, but the thought was as calming as a warm bubble bath.

She arose early and prepared breakfast for her father and herself. Her father hated to eat alone, but he was not by anyone's measure pleasant company, so she finished as quickly as possible and went to her room to work on the student papers. It wasn't fun, but it was plentiful, and the money supported her, and allowed her to attend nursing school. And best of all, she didn't have a boss. Unfortunately, she didn't make enough to pay for her tuition.

She dashed out of the apartment en route to school that evening and ran down the stairs to avoid seeing her father, who stepped off the elevator just as she reached the staircase. She knew that, if he saw her, she would be late for school. He always found a way to delay her with questions that didn't require an answer, or he nagged her to get a full-time job and forget about school.

At the university, she ran into Greta, one of the few students with whom she maintained a friendly relationship, a young woman whose situation appeared to be as desperate as her own. She didn't make friends since she dared not bring them home. That evening, Greta's face bloomed with a rare smile.

"Guess what, Melanie? I got a job, a real one. And I only work four hours a day. Now, I'll be able to pay my tuition. Girl, I feel like dancing."

"I'm happy for you. At least one of us is sure to graduate. I don't even want to think about how much I owe."

In her enthusiasm, Greta grabbed Melanie's arm a little too tightly. "I'm going to work at a clinic in a senior center. They didn't need a registered nurse, and since I'm a licensed practical nurse I got the job."

"We have to talk," Melanie said. "I'm an LPN, too. But if I don't get to class, old lady Harkness is going to have my head."

"Good luck," Greta called after her.

Melanie stopped. "Don't worry. Even if I have to work two jobs seven days a week, I'll be in that line when the dean starts passing out sheepskins."

"Wait a minute. Check the bulletin board. That's how I found my job."

Melanie thanked Greta and headed for her class.

After the lecture, she went to the student lounge, looked on the bulletin board and made a note of the ads that interested her. She was so busy, she missed the nine-thirty bus and got home an hour later than usual. As she'd expected, her father was on the warpath.

"You comin' in here later and later. I wanna know what's goin' on besides this school you claim you goin' to."

"I was checking out jobs, Daddy." She figured that would calm him, but rather than take a chance, she grabbed a banana from the kitchen counter and went to her room. Peace and quiet meant more to her right then than a full stomach. Two of the ads were good prospects, and she put the listings on her night table.

As soon as her father left for work the next morning, she telephoned a Dr. Ferguson, whose answering machine said to leave a message or to call him after two o'clock in the afternoon. She left a message asking him to call her before four o'clock. The other ad seemed less appealing. Although she didn't have a class that evening, she wanted to speak with the doctor before her father came home. She had never made so many mistakes typing papers as she did that day. Suppose he didn't call.

When she answered the phone at a quarter of three, she could barely catch her voice. "Hello."

"This is Jack Ferguson. Who am I speaking to?"

"Oh! Thank you for returning my call, Dr. Ferguson. I'm Melanie Sparks, and I'm answering your ad. I'm a licensed practical nurse, but I don't have much experience. I'm studying at Towson University three evenings a week, and I should have my degree by the end of the school year. But right now, I need a job."

"Thank you for responding to my ad, Ms. Sparks. I must say I like your honesty. What days are you in school?"

Here we go, she thought and worked hard at hiding her nervousness when she told him, "Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings and Saturday mornings. In the day, I work at home typing term papers and theses, but it doesn't pay enough."

"I imagine it doesn't." The more he talked, the more interested she became in knowing if the man was anything like the warm and comforting voice. "I have an office in the Bolton Hill area," he said, "but I'm opening one in Southwest Baltimore, and I need a nurse in that office."

"And you can't get a registered nurse to go there because it's not the greatest neighborhood." Her hopes began to rise. "If you're willing to take a chance on me," she told him, "I certainly don't mind working there. And after I graduate in June, you'll have a registered nurse."

"I like what I'm hearing, Ms. Sparks. But before we firm this up, I think we ought to meet. Can you come to my office at ten tomorrow morning?" He gave her the address.

"That's quite a distance from where I live, but I can make it by ten."

"Good. Take a taxi, and I'll reimburse you."

She thanked him, hung up and leaned back in the old chair. Such a kind and reassuring voice, and such a deep, velvet voice. She wondered how old he would be and what he looked like. The voice that she heard most often—her father's—was neither kind nor velvetlike, but cruel and harsh from guzzling beer.

"Ms. Sparks, Dr. Ferguson will see you now." A glance at her watch told Melanie that it was exactly ten o'clock. She had expected a long wait, and the doctor won points for punctuality.

"Dr. Ferguson, this is Ms. Sparks," the brusque receptionist said.

The man stood, and walked toward her with his right hand extended in her direction, smiling as he did so. And what a smile! She knew she was not easily flustered, and she did her best to summon her composure and return the smile. The touch of their hands produced what seemed like electricity, and both his eyebrows shot up. She had no idea what happened to hers, so she straightened her shoulders and raised her chin. She hadn't expected such a man, and the prospect of working so closely with him flashed through her mind.

Jack Ferguson thought he'd moved toward Melanie Sparks, because she was closer now, but he wasn't sure. He touched her hand to shake it and felt a shock run through his body. She reacted to him as he reacted to her. But hell, he needed a nurse, and they'd just have to work around it. She found her voice first, that same soft, sweet voice that he remembered from the afternoon before and had anticipated hearing again.

"I'm glad to meet you, Dr. Ferguson," she said, without an inkling of any physical reaction, and he relaxed. He had either misread her or she was a consummate actress. In any case, she lessened the tension, and that suited him. He told himself that he was capable of ignoring the tall, dreamy-eyed and perfectly stacked woman who would be working with him in his office, because he had to have a nurse.

He let a smile float over his face, or at least he hoped he had. "Please have a seat, Ms. Sparks. Thank you for coming. How much was your taxi fare?" He didn't want to forget that. She told him, and he opened his desk drawer, counted out twice as much and handed it to her.

Melanie looked first at the seventy-five dollars in her hand and then at Jack Ferguson. "That will take care of your fare back," he answered her silent question. "Mind telling me why you don't hesitate to work in that neighborhood? There's a lot of crime around there."

The neighborhoods around South Baltimore were worlds apart from upscale Bolton Hill. "Dr. Ferguson, I grew up in a poor neighborhood, not unlike South Baltimore, so I'm used to it and to the people who, like me, are working hard to make it. I've wanted to be a nurse most of my life."

He crossed his legs at the knee, leaned back and made a pyramid of his fingers. "My office is open from five to eight on Tuesday and Thursday evenings." He quoted a salary, and she felt her eyes widen.

"That's more than fair, Dr. Ferguson."

He relaxed visibly. "Then it's a deal. You'll get an advance for the cost and cleaning of your uniforms and your transportation to and from the office."

Working in an office where, often, it would be only the two of them could be a problem. She knew nothing about him, and his apparent gentleness and kindness could be an act. She wasn't cynical. But to be forewarned was to be forearmed.

She leaned back in the chair, crossed her legs, feeling comfortable with herself. She looked around at the opulent space. "Do you mind if I ask you a question, Dr. Ferguson?"

"Not at all. What's on your mind?"

"You have a posh office here in a rich neighborhood. Why would you open another office in one of the poorest sections of the city? You certainly won't make money down there." His smile and relaxed manner told her that he welcomed the question, though she sensed that he was not used to being challenged. Obviously, she'd earned his respect.

"No one was more surprised than me, Ms. Sparks, when I decided to open an office in South Baltimore. But I'm more proud of it than of all my accomplishments. It didn't happen by accident, and definitely not on a whim. A couple of months ago, well after midnight, as I was leaving the hospital, and old woman reached out to me, asking me to help her grandson. S...

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Kimani Press (October 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373831064
• ISBN-13: 978-0373831067
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #752,568 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars What Matters Least, October 11, 2008

By	Tap Shoes (Michigan) - See all my reviews

OMG, I hate this book! As I write this review I've decided not to even try to finish it. Once again Gwynne Forster has done a disservice to readers. This book is supposed to be inspirational but, the only thing it will inspire me to do is to not read another story she writes.
We are given a 34 year-old hero, Dr. Jack Ferguson who is supposed to be a wealthy, educated, noted and respected cardiologist acting like a spoiled child and a spineless 31 year-old heroine, soon to be registered nurse, Melanie Sparks who placates him. I could not relate to either of them and found the dialog between them dated and immature.
It's the same old story, he's a have and she's a have not. After a medical ephiphany he decides to come down to the hood and mingle with the have-nots by opening a clinic and subsequently finds a kindred spirit in Melanie who just happens to need a job while she's getting her nursing degree. Oh and don't forget that after meeting her he then starts to have thoughts about his future meaning a family of his own.
I think Forster was trying as usual to make her hero a sexy alpha-male but once again she only made him come off as needing to be constantly reassured, paranoid, overbearing and annoying. At any time I expected Dr. Jack Ferguson to stomp his foot and hold his breath if he didn't get what he wanted.
Jack and Melanie are totally UNREALISTIC and the author puts them in unrealistic situations. For instance, why would Jack agree to spend the weekend at his architect's house after just meeting him and his family and then expect Melanie to agree to accompany him which of course she did and she didn't ask one pertinent question as to why and he (Jack) only wanted to do it because he was taken with the architect's precocious six year old daughter? This is just an example of why I found no empathy or support for them or their silly story.
The premise from Forster is always the same, big, handsome, accomplished, strong-willed man has to bend the will of the loyal, unassuming, low self-esteemed, do-gooder woman into doing what he wants. I was just insulted that a publisher would greenlight this mess for publication and shame on Forster for underestimating the reader by once again offering superficial characters with a re-hashed story. Just a real disappointment with two of the most unappealing characters put on paper. SAVE YOUR MONEY!!!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I was looking for More, October 27, 2008

By	Linda Y "always reading" (Columbus, OH) - See all my reviews

I was a little disappointed how this story turned out. Although the sparks between Jack & Melanie were instantaneous, the whole process was drawn out a little too long being that the book was over 300 pages. This also could've been a great story if the secondary characters were utilized appropiately. I felt like I was left hanging and wanting more.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars (3.5 Stars) Doctor, Doctor, December 18, 2008

By	Urban-Reviews.com (Urban-Reviews.com) - See all my reviews

Melanie Sparks has always wanted to be a nurse. She was not going to let anyone or anything stand in her way. Her less than favorable upbringing caused her not to expect anything from anyone either. So when s Melanie answered an ad for a nursing job in a South Baltimore clinic, she did not expect the doctor to be so breath-taking. Dr. Jack Ferguson is a renown cardiologist who started a clinic in one of the poorest neighborhoods in Baltimore. His father is also a prominent doctor in Baltimore who wants his son to marry well. After Jack meets Melanie, he only has eyes for her. Jack and Melanie have several odds against them: both of their fathers, their different backgrounds, and Melanie not thinking that Jack could possibly want her. Jack has got to convince everyone, including Melanie, that she is the one for him.

What Matters Most is like a version of the movie Pretty Woman. Rich doctor meets poor nurse, introduces her to the finer things in life, and regardless of what others think, he is going to be with her. It has that very classic romantic element about it. The story also flows well, and Forster does a good job with the feel good element that has you rooting for the hero and heroine to win.

Reviewed by Tenecia
for Urban Reviews