Betcha Say That, Betcha Never

The morning shift at St. Augustine Hospital always carried the faint scent of coffee and disinfectant—a combination Evangeline had long since grown accustomed to.

She was an attractive woman with shoulder-length dark brown hair and warm brown eyes, though she never quite saw herself that way. In her mind, her glasses made her look plain rather than pretty.

She was reviewing patient charts at the nurses' station when Dr. Adam Hale strolled over, his lab coat swaying behind him as though he were walking onto the set of a sitcom instead of into a busy trauma unit.

He was undeniably handsome.

Tall, with dark hair, dark eyes, and a sun-kissed complexion, Adam carried himself with effortless confidence. His neatly trimmed goatee, touched with just enough gray to be distinguished rather than old, along with his warm smile and rich, pleasant voice, made more than a few nurses swoon.

“Morning, Wife,” he said cheerfully.

Evangeline looked up from the chart and fixed him with an unimpressed stare.

The expression on her face made it abundantly clear she was not amused.

“Why are you calling me that?” she asked, her voice edged with irritation.

“Because you are,” he replied with an easy grin.

She rolled her eyes.

“Last I checked, I woke up alone this morning. I'm not wearing a ring, and there's certainly no marriage certificate tucked away in a keepsake box.”

His grin only widened.

“Has anyone ever told you that you're adorable when you're annoyed?”

Without missing a beat, she smacked him in the stomach with her clipboard.

“Oof,” Adam grunted, clutching his midsection in exaggerated pain.

“Your patients are waiting for you,” she said, snatching up one of the digital tablets before turning on her heel.

“What time should we meet at the courthouse?” he called after her.

Evangeline didn't bother looking back. She simply kept walking. She felt a very strong temptation to make an obscene gesture over her shoulder. But decided that it was better that she did not. Getting written up wasn't worth showing Dr. Hale how she actually felt.

II

Throughout the day, Adam kept calling Evangeline "Wife." Whenever someone mentioned her, he would casually refer to her as his wife as though it were an established fact.

Naturally, the rumors spread throughout the hospital.

By lunchtime, several supervisors had begun asking Evangeline if there was something going on between the two of them. By then, her patience had worn dangerously thin.

She found Adam in the hospital café, calmly eating his lunch.

“We need to talk,” she said.

He looked up with a smile.

“Of course, Wife.”

Her eye twitched.

“Will you stop calling me your wife?" she demanded, loud enough for nearby tables to hear. “The higher-ups have been asking if there's something going on between us, and I've had to explain that you're just obnoxious... and completely nuts.”

Adam simply smiled.

“Now, now, darling,” he said smoothly. “There's no need to make a scene.”

Evangeline folded her arms.

“Oh, I got your 'making a scene.'”

She took a deliberate step closer.

“Why don't you go flirt with the nurses on the seventh floor? God knows some of those well-known tramps have probably fantasized about you banging one of them into a locker room—or the parking garage.”

The café fell silent.

Conversations stopped.

Several people looked up from their lunches.

Adam slowly set his fork on his plate, suddenly looking much less confident.

He leaned forward and lowered his voice.

“Could you... please not make a scene?”

A smug grin spread across Evangeline's face.

“So that's all it takes?” she asked, matching his quieter tone. “I just have to raise my voice a little and mention the nurses on the seventh floor?”

Adam sighed.

“Lighten up, Evangeline.”

“I'll lighten up,” she replied, “when you stop strolling into this hospital and calling me your wife when I'm clearly not. I don't find it cute, funny, or flattering.”

He looked at her for a moment before smiling again.

“And what if I genuinely think you're beautiful?”

Evangeline stared at him in exasperation.

“Ugh!”

After pushing the chair against the table. She spun on her heel and stormed out of the café.

Adam watched her go before picking up his fork and resuming his lunch.

He quietly admitted to himself that her putting him on blast was embarrassing.

Still, it wasn't nearly enough to make him stop.

◾◾◾◾

It was nearly the end of Evangeline's shift.

Before heading home, however, she spotted Adam walking down the hallway and made a beeline toward him.

“Dr. Hale!” she called.

Adam turned and smiled.

“Yes, my darling wifey?”

A mischievous grin spread across Evangeline's face.

“I have a song for you.”

Adam blinked, pleasantly surprised.

“Oh?”

“Yes. I heard it today and immediately thought of you.”

She pulled out her smartphone, tapped the screen, and held up the speaker.

Suddenly, Gloria Estefan's "Betcha Say That" began playing through the hallway.

Several staff members looked over curiously.

Evangeline skipped ahead to her favorite part of the song and held the phone toward Adam as the lyrics played.

“It's your favorite line, and you think it's gonna work every time...”

She sang along with a theatrical flourish before stopping the music.

Then, looking Adam straight in the eye with a sardonic smile, she continued singing.

“You think I was born yesterday. You think I'm a dumb woman...”

She lowered the phone.

Adam stared at her, completely unamused.

“I never said you were dumb.”

“Then stop calling me your wife.”

Without waiting for a response, she turned on her heel and walked away.

She had done it again.

The nearby nurses and staff looked at Adam, several of them shaking their heads in amused disapproval.

Adam let out a long sigh before continuing his rounds.

Embarrassing? Absolutely.

Enough to make him stop?

Not even close.

III

Throughout the rest of the week, Adam stopped calling Evangeline his wife.

Instead, he ignored her.

He had hoped she would notice the sudden change and eventually come over to ask what was wrong.

She didn't.

She simply went about her day as though nothing had changed. The only time she spoke to him was when it concerned a patient.

His plan had backfired.

Still unwilling to give up, Adam continued ignoring her the following week.

That decision proved to be a mistake.

When Evangeline needed to discuss a patient's condition with him, he deliberately brushed past her and refused to engage. Left with little choice, she reported the incident to their supervisors, explaining that she believed he was ignoring her because she had repeatedly asked him to stop calling her his wife.

The meeting that followed was one Adam would rather forget.

The hospital administrators reprimanded him, reminding him that St. Augustine Hospital maintained a strict policy regarding workplace harassment and professional conduct. They explained that what he considered harmless teasing could easily be interpreted as unwanted romantic attention. Worse, refusing to communicate with a coworker after she had established a clear boundary could be viewed as retaliatory behavior, especially when it interfered with patient care.

It was a lecture he did not enjoy hearing.

Later that evening, Adam sat alone in his car, staring through the windshield as he replayed the conversation in his head.

He couldn't understand why Evangeline seemed so cold toward him.

He genuinely liked her.

No—that wasn't entirely true.

The moment he had first laid eyes on her, he had fallen hopelessly in love.

As they had worked together over the past several months, every conversation had only deepened those feelings.

He admired her kindness and compassion. Patients adored her, and her fellow nurses respected her. She possessed an impressive breadth of knowledge, especially when it came to herbal remedies and holistic care. Although she wasn't the most outgoing person, she was warm, thoughtful, and remarkably easy to talk to once she let someone get to know her.

Everything he learned about her only reinforced what he had felt from the very beginning.

He had fallen in love at first sight.

Adam sighed and rubbed a hand over his face.

“Okay,” he muttered to himself. “Clearly, what I've been doing isn't working.”

For several moments, he sat in silence.

Then an idea slowly formed.

A smile crept across his face.

“I think that I have just thing that might convince Evangeline to give me a chance” he said.

He started the engine, already wondering if his new plan had any chance of succeeding.

◾◾◾◾

The next morning, Adam approached Evangeline at the nurses' station.

“Good morning, Nurse Collins,” he said with a warm smile.

Evangeline looked up from the patient's chart she was reviewing and regarded him skeptically.

“Good morning, Dr. Hale.”

Adam took a slow breath.

“Listen... I owe you an apology. The way I've been acting has been disrespectful and immature. You asked me to stop, and I didn't listen. I'm sorry.”

She studied him carefully, trying to determine whether he actually meant it.

“When we're on the clock,” he continued, “I'll be completely professional. You have my word.”

Evangeline remained silent for a moment before giving a small nod.

“Apology accepted.”

“Thank you.”

As the day went on, Adam kept his promise.

He didn't flirt.

He didn't call her "Wife."

He didn't make a single suggestive remark.

Instead, he joked casually with Evangeline and the rest of the staff the same way he did with everyone else. He was friendly, respectful, and surprisingly easy to work with.

By the end of the shift, Evangeline found herself thinking that perhaps Adam wasn't so bad after all.

That didn't mean he wasn't still annoying.

There was something about that Cheshire-cat grin of his that immediately put her on guard. Every time he smiled at her, her instincts whispered that he was plotting something.

When her shift finally ended, Adam caught up with her near the elevator.

Without a word, he held out a single white rose.

“For friendship,” he said with an easy smile.

Evangeline blinked in surprise before cautiously accepting it.

“Thank you, Dr. Hale.”

“You're welcome.”

He slipped his hands into the pockets of his lab coat.

“Would you mind if I walked you to your car?”

She raised an eyebrow.

“I promise,” he said, lifting both hands in surrender. “No flirting. No funny business. Just making sure you get there safely.”

She eyed him for several seconds.

“Fine,” she said at last. “But just so we're clear—I do believe you're being sincere.”

Adam's smile brightened.

“However,” she continued, narrowing her eyes, “there is something about you that practically screams, 'I'm up to something.'"

Adam merely grinned.

Evangeline sighed and shook her head.

“See?” she muttered. “That grin right there.”

Without another word, they headed toward the elevator.

◾◾◾◾

Adam behaved himself as they boarded the elevator and rode down to the parking garage.

When the doors opened, he walked beside Evangeline toward her car.

She glanced at him, a faint smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

“What are you up to?”

Adam flashed an innocent grin.

“I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.”

“Oh, you're definitely up to something.”

She couldn't help but laugh.

Adam smiled at the sound.

“You have a beautiful laugh.”

Her smile softened.

“Thank you.”

She unlocked her car with her key fob before looking back at him.

“And...thank you for walking me to my car.”

“My pleasure,” he replied. “I wanted to make sure my wife made it safely to her car.”

Evangeline stopped and slowly turned toward him.

She crossed her arms and gave him a look that was meant to be stern.

The tiny smile she was unsuccessfully trying to suppress completely ruined the effect.

Adam noticed immediately.

“There it is,” he said with a grin.

“What?”

“That smile.”

He took a step closer.

“You can't hide it from me.”

She rolled her eyes.

“Oh, really?”

“Absolutely.”

He leaned in just enough to tease.

"Admit it. You find me irresistible."

Evangeline laughed and shook her head.

“I think you're a hot mess.”

Adam placed a hand over his heart as though deeply wounded.

“I can be hot...” he said with a playful smirk.

“...and messy.”

The mischievous glint in his eyes made the implication impossible to miss.

Evangeline's eyes widened.

“Oh my God!”

A burst of laughter escaped before she could stop it.

“You are unbelievable.”

“I've been told that.”

Still laughing, she opened her car door.

“I'm leaving now. Have a good evening, Dr. Hale.”

Adam stepped back, raising a hand in farewell.

“Drive safely, baby.”

She paused before getting into the driver's seat.

Turning back, she caught him still standing there, smiling at her.

Despite herself, she smiled back.

Then she climbed into her car, started the engine, and drove out of the parking garage.

Adam watched until her taillights disappeared from view.

Only then did he speak softly to himself.

“My lovely Angelline...”

He smiled to himself.

“...I love you more than you'll ever know.”

His grin returned.

“And someday, you'll know it too.”

IV

“He likes you!” Jeanne, Evangeline's best friend, declared.

Evangeline gave her a deadpan stare.

“What?”

Jeanne smiled knowingly.

“With everything you've told me, it should be obvious.”

“The man is annoying,” Evangeline replied.

“Yes,” Jeanne admitted. “But you've also said he's handsome, has a great sense of humor, and is a complete gentleman. He's been nothing but courteous to you lately.”

“Do you have to repeat everything I've told you about him?” Evangeline asked, fighting back a smile.

“Yes!”

Jeanne stood and grabbed her purse.

“Now, are you ready to go?”

Evangeline sighed.

“How did you convince me to go to the Gilded Parlor?”

Jeanne's grin widened.

“Because you need to have some fun. Besides, you said you wanted to go somewhere and do something you've never done before.”

Evangeline covered her face with one hand.

“Only you would think of taking me to a male strip club.”

◾◾◾◾

The interior of the Gilded Parlor was far more elegant than Evangeline had expected.

Plush leather chairs surrounded polished marble tables, while warm, intimate lighting gave the room a sophisticated atmosphere. The stage stretched across the front of the club, and music from the '80s, '90s, early 2000s, and today played throughout the venue.

The waitstaff were all handsome and impeccably dressed in crisp white button-down shirts beneath black velvet vests embroidered with gold, paired with tailored black slacks and polished shoes.

A few of them flirted playfully with Jeanne and Evangeline.

Jeanne shamelessly flirted right back.

Evangeline, on the other hand, responded with shy smiles and polite laughter.

“So?” Jeanne asked. “Having a good time?”

“I actually am,” Evangeline admitted.

Just then, the emcee's voice echoed through the room.

“Ladies...coming to the stage! Romantic, suave, and always a gentleman...please welcome...Adam Valet!”

The opening notes of "Stay With Me Tonight" by Jeffrey Osborne filled the club.

The stage lights brightened.

A tall, broad-shouldered man dressed in a perfectly tailored black tuxedo stepped into the spotlight.

As he danced, slowly removing pieces of his jacket and tie as part of the performance, something about him struck Evangeline as strangely familiar.

Then he turned toward the light.

Her eyes widened.

“Oh...hell.”

Jeanne looked at her.

“What?”

“That's Dr. Hale.”

Jeanne nearly choked.

“That's him? That's the guy who's been calling you 'Wifey'?”

Evangeline nodded, her disbelief evident.

“Apparently...he moonlights”

Onstage, Adam's eyes found hers almost immediately.

He smiled.

Then he winked.

Evangeline felt her cheeks grow warm and instinctively rested her chin in her hand.

Jeanne giggled beside her.

A moment later, Adam motioned for Evangeline to join him onstage.

She stared at him in disbelief before emphatically shaking her head.

He simply smiled.

Still dancing, he made his way to their table and extended his hand toward her.

“Oh, hell no,” Evangeline muttered.

Jeanne burst into laughter.

“I'm not taking no for an answer, babe,” Adam said with a teasing grin.

Evangeline sighed dramatically.

“Damn you.”

She slipped her hand into his, allowing him to lead her onto the stage.

Adam continued his routine, weaving Evangeline into the choreography with surprising grace. Every so often he would spin her beneath his arm or gently draw her into a brief dance hold before sending her twirling away again.

To her own surprise...

She was actually having fun.

When the song ended, applause filled the room.

Evangeline immediately started toward the stairs.

Before she could leave, Adam caught her hand.

“Going somewhere?” he asked, grinning.

She looked him up and down before shaking her head with an amused smile.

“I was going to ask how long you've been doing this...”

She paused.

“...but I'm honestly afraid of the answer.”

Adam laughed.

“Short answer? Just tonight.”

She blinked.

“The owner is an old friend of mine. He needed someone to fill in at the last minute, and I thought it would be fun.”

Evangeline looked down at his bare chest before meeting his dark eyes again.

“You are...” she began, laughing softly.

“I honestly don't know what word fits you.”

Adam smiled.

“Wolfish.”

She laughed.

“I was going to say impossible.”

Without another word, Adam slipped an arm around her waist and drew her close.

Then he kissed her.

For a heartbeat, Evangeline froze.

Then, to Adam's surprise—and perhaps her own—she kissed him back.

◾◾◾◾

Jeanne had stepped into the ladies' room, leaving Evangeline alone at the table.

She slowly sipped her rum and cola.

“Mind if I join you?”

A knowing smirk crossed her face before she looked up.

Adam stood beside the table, handsome as ever in a fitted black, long sleeve pull-over shirt, dark jeans, and boots.

The sight of him made her blush, and she quickly looked away.

“Have a seat.”

Adam slid into the chair next to her, resting his chin on his fist as he studied her with that unmistakable Cheshire grin.

She laughed softly.

“You smile like the Cheshire Cat.”

“Why, thank you,” he replied, the grin only growing wider.

Evangeline covered her face with one hand, laughing.

“You have such a beautiful smile,” Adam said. “And that laugh...” He shook his head. “How am I supposed to keep from falling for you?”

She lowered her hand and met his gaze. Those dark, smoldering eyes were almost unfair.

“Why do you have to be so damn charming... and sexy?”

The words slipped out before she could stop them.

Her eyes widened.

“Oh no...”

She covered her face again.

“I didn't just say that out loud.”

Adam laughed.

“Oh, baby,” he said, smiling warmly. “Just admit it. You're every bit as taken with me as I am with you.”

She slowly lowered her hand and gave him a perfectly deadpan stare.

“I admit to nothing.”

His smile softened.

He leaned forward, gently took her hand, and lifted it to his lips.

He pressed a tender kiss against her knuckles.

“Marry me.”

Evangeline blinked.

“You barely know me,” she said. “Except for what you learned in the six months we've only worked together.”

“I know enough.”

She searched his face.

He wasn't teasing.

He wasn't flirting.

For the first time since she'd met him...

He looked completely serious.

“Marry me, Angelline.”

She tilted her head.

“Angelline?”

Adam smiled.

“Angel... and the last part of your name.”

His thumb gently brushed across the back of her hand.

“Because you're as beautiful as an angel.”

He held her gaze.

“From the moment I first saw you, I fell in love. Every day, I look forward to seeing you. You're the first person I think about when I wake up, and the last person on my mind before I go to sleep.”

Her heart began pounding.

A sensible voice in her head insisted that this was impossible.

Too sudden.

Too fast.

Yet as she looked into his eyes, another part of her whispered that he meant every word.

“I can't just marry you,” she said quietly.

“Why not?”

She smiled.

“For starters, we know almost nothing about each other's daily lives. We don't know each other's habits. We don't even know what the other likes to eat for breakfast.”

Adam chuckled.

“Every morning I wake up alone in my king-size bed.”

His voice grew quieter.

“I shower, shave, get dressed, make myself a cup of coffee and whatever sounds good for breakfast.”

He smiled sadly.

“Then I sit at my kitchen table...across from an empty chair.”

His eyes never left hers.

“An empty chair that I imagine you sitting in.”

His free hand gently brushed the back of his fingers against her cheek.

“I want to wake up beside you. I want to make breakfast for you—or better yet, make it together. I want to come home after a long shift, have dinner with you, hear about your day, make you laugh. I want us to share our thoughts with one another”

His smile became almost shy.

“And at the end of the night...I want to hold you in my arms and fall asleep looking into those beautiful eyes.”

Evangeline let out a slow breath.

“Why me?” she whispered.

Adam smiled.

“Why not you?”

She couldn't help smiling back.

“I might drive you crazy," she admitted. "Or worry you. I am a storm of emotions. Complicated.”

“And?”

The single word left her speechless.

She pressed her lips together to keep from smiling too broadly.

“Don't say I didn't warn you.”

“I've been warned.”

He lifted her hand again and kissed it once more.

His grin returned.

“Now just accept my proposal...and kiss me.”

She laughed.

“One more question before I answer.”

“What is it, baby?”

He looked at her expectantly.

She leaned forward with a mischievous smile.

“Are you going to dance like that on our wedding night?”

Adam threw his head back and laughed.

“If that's what you want...”

He winked.

“...then absolutely.”

She laughed with him.

“You know, you were right.”

“Oh?”

“You are a wolf.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“A mischievous, relentless wolf.”

His grin became almost boyish.

“I knew what I wanted.”

He gently squeezed her hand.

“And I wasn't going to stop until I won you over.”

She looked into his eyes for a long moment.

“Consider me won over.”

She smiled.

“Oh...and one more thing.”

“What?”

“I'm not wearing a white wedding dress.”

The look that crossed Adam's face made her immediately suspicious.

His eyes sparkled with mischief.

She pointed a finger at him.

“Behave, Wolf.”

Her stern tone was completely undermined by her laughter.

Adam laughed.

“See? You already know exactly what I was thinking.”

She shook her head.

“What am I ever going to do with you?”

The moment the words left her mouth, she froze.

Her eyes widened.

“Don't answer that.”

Adam laughed even harder.

V

Three Months Later

A simple trip to the courthouse.

Jeanne stood beside them as their only witness.

It wasn't the grand wedding either of their families had expected, but it was exactly what Adam and Evangeline wanted.

After the ceremony, the newlyweds met both of their families at a local restaurant for a small celebration.

Evangeline's family was still trying to process how a whirlwind romance had led to marriage in only three months. Adam's family, on the other hand, hadn't been surprised in the slightest. From the moment they met Evangeline, they welcomed her with open arms, insisting she already felt like part of the family.

The first few minutes were a little awkward.

Before long, however, the room was filled with laughter.

Adam's younger brother, Philip, stood and lightly tapped his glass with a spoon.

“I'd like to make a toast.”

The conversations faded.

“To my big brother, Adam, and my new sister-in-law, Evangeline.”

He raised his glass.

“May God bless your marriage with love, laughter, and more happiness than either of you can imagine.”

He glanced at Evangeline with a mischievous grin.

“And...welcome to the Hale family. Prepare yourself for a lifetime of Hale family insanity.”

The room erupted in laughter.

Evangeline smiled and raised her own glass.

“Thank you, Phil.”

She looked around the room.

“And just so you know...my family is just as crazy.”

More laughter followed.

“So insanity isn't exactly new territory for me.”

Philip nodded thoughtfully.

“Fair enough.”

He pointed toward Adam.

“Still, if you can put up with my brother and all of his nonsense...”

He paused dramatically.

“...then I believe you.”

He smiled.

“Because only a slightly insane woman would marry him.”

The restaurant burst into laughter.

Adam looked his younger brother with the unmistakable expression of a man silently plotting revenge.

Philip caught the look immediately.

He pointed at Adam.

“I'm getting my ass kicked for that one.”

Adam chuckled.

“Just remember our Sunday football games.”

Evangeline laughed.

“Oh, now this I have to see.”

Philip looked at her.

“See? She's already looking forward to watching you whip my ass.”

Adam wrapped an arm around Evangeline's shoulders as she leaned comfortably against him as laughed at him and his brother.

She smiled.

“Oh, Lord...”

She looked from Adam to her own sisters and brothers-in-law.

“I am thinking about when football season starts. It is going to be loud.”

Jeanne laughed.

Having spent enough time with Evangeline's family, she knew exactly how loud they became whenever they watched a football game.

Adam grinned.

“That reminds me.”

He looked around the table.

“Every Sunday during football season, everyone is invited over to our house. Family tradition.”

Evangeline slowly looked at her sisters, then at her football-obsessed brothers-in-law.

She sighed dramatically.

“Oh, good Lord...”

Ray, one of her brothers-in-law, immediately raised his hand.

“In that case...”

He lifted his glass.

“Invitation accepted.”

Everyone laughed again.

◾◾◾◾

Later that evening, Adam and Evangeline relaxed in their hotel room.

They lay side by side on the bed, each holding a glass of champagne.

Earlier, at Evangeline's playful request, Adam had performed the same dance that had first surprised her at the Gilded Parlor.

She had laughed through most of it.

Now the room was quiet.

Adam smiled as he looked over at his wife.

“So, Mrs. Adam Hale...”

He took a sip of champagne.

“I betcha you never imagined I'd actually win you over.”

Evangeline turned onto her side to face him.

She smiled warmly.

“No.”

She reached over and gently took his hand.

“I really didn't.”

Her smile softened.

“But I'm glad you did.”

She gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

“And you know something?”

“What?”

“I love you.”

Adam's expression grew tender.

“I love you, too.”

He leaned over and kissed her forehead.

She nestled against him, resting her head on his shoulder.

Outside, the city lights shimmered beyond the hotel window.

Inside, surrounded by laughter that still echoed in their memories and the promise of a lifetime together, they quietly began the first night of their new life as husband and wife.