I knew from the way he said it that he wouldn’t take no for an answer. Mr. Summerfield was my boss, after all. The patient could wait another moment. I closed the chart and gave the two men my full attention.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir,” I said, extending my hand.
“The pleasure is indeed mine, Dr. Reynolds,” Mr. Steel said, accepting my hand. Then, he raised it to his lips, never taking his eyes from mine. His hands and lips were unusually cold, but it was probably just from the air conditioning.
Just then, Rosa appeared outside the examining room and gave me a look.
“Well, I really must go,” I said, turning to leave. “I have patients.”
“Until we meet again,” Steel said, as a smile played at the corner of his luscious lips.
Man, is he hot, I thought to myself. As I walked away, a shiver shot down my spine. There was something about him that I couldn’t quite place, but I quickly brushed the thought aside. I was married, after all, even though our marriage had lost a bit of its sizzle. Steven, my husband, had changed over the past few months, along with our marriage, but I was sure that he hadn’t cheated, and neither had I.
I continued throughout the rest of the day on my rounds, but caught Mr. Steel watching me off and on throughout the night, and his assistant was no longer in sight. I was surprised that he was still here. Surely, it didn’t take that long to make a donation. Once, I looked up and his eyes connected with mine. They were a beautiful shade of green, astounding me, and he had the most beautiful physique on a man that I had ever seen.
After nightfall, I walked out of an examining room and stretched, starting to feel the effects of the day. Without knowing why, I looked around and Mr. Steel was nowhere to be found. Oh, well. He’s probably married, anyway, I thought to myself. I shook my head, not knowing why I was so drawn to this stranger. I laughed without mirth and shook my head, brushing the thought aside. I picked up another patient chart, but had to go home soon. Steven worked nights and was out of town a lot, but I wanted to get home in enough time to see him off before he left for work, at least.
After seeing another patient, I yawned, deciding to call it a night.
“Ah … superhero Wonder Doctor is tired,” Rosa said sarcastically, checking a chart.
“I’m not tired …”
“Go home, doc! I’ve got this,” Rosa said, taking my purse from behind the counter.
“What the hell?”
“Yeah, yeah. Fire me tomorrow,” she said, then shoved my purse into my hands and turned me toward the door. Rosa and I had become best friends since I started working here. She was the only one who could get away with talking to me this way. “Right now, you need to go home to that husband of yours.”
I smirked. “Things haven’t been good between us for a while.”
“Well, then, go home and make it good, you lucky woman,” Rosa joked. “Hell, Henry hasn’t been able to get it up in years. Go home and get some!”
“Rosa!” I said, laughing as I shook my head in disbelief, but I was too tired to argue. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“If you hurry, you might be able to catch him before he leaves for work,” Rosa replied, pushing me toward the door.
“Why don’t you go home, too?” I asked. “You’ve been here as long as I have.”
“You’re right,” she said, pulling her purse out from behind the counter, too. “Let’s both get out of here.”
“Are you making me an offer?” I joked, linking my arm with hers.
“Hell, no!” she said, playfully pushing me away. “I’ve already told you that my boat don’t float that way.”
I laughed. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
We walked out the front door, grinning as we waved to the girls behind the front desk. It was dark in the parking lot and I was glad that I had walked out here with Rosa. I wasn’t afraid of things that go bump in the night, but you never know.
“Are you going to be okay driving home?” I asked Rosa as I hit the unlock button for my Mercedes.
“Of course! I do this all the time.”
I waited as she unlocked her door. “Call me when you get home,” I said, opening my car door.
“Why? So you can whisper sweet nothings in my ear?” Rosa joked, holding her car door open.
“No, I’ll save that for tomorrow.” I gave her a wink and she guffawed.
“Ciao!” she yelled at me, giving me one last wave as she slid into her car and shut the door.
I laughed and quickly slid into my car as well, then locked the doors. I drove past the neon lights of the casinos on the way home and into the darkness of the desert then finally into my neighborhood as thoughts of the delicious Lance Steel crept into my mind. He was probably the hottest man that I’d ever met, with his dark good looks and bright green eyes. I quickly pushed the thought aside as I pulled up in front of the house that belonged to Steven and me.
I hit the garage door opener and his red Corvette was gone. I had missed him … again. He had already left for work. It was just as well. I pulled into the garage and quickly shut the garage door behind me. A few minutes later, I walked into the house and poured myself a glass of wine.
I kicked off my shoes and sat down on the couch to watch television, but my thoughts kept creeping back to the elusive Mr. Steel. Before long, I was comparing the men on the television screen to him. Lance had greener eyes than he does. Lance’s shoulders were broader. Lance was taller than he is. Ugh! Why was he invading my thoughts like this? I couldn’t believe that I was having random thoughts about a complete stranger. I shook my head, trying to clear my head of the guilt, then turned off the set and walked up the stairs, carrying my wine with me.
At the top of the stairs, I turned right and headed to the bedroom, then changed into a spaghetti strap white silk nightgown. I tried to push the thoughts of Lance to the back of my mind, but his face kept dancing behind my eyelashes. Heat crept through my body just at the thought of him as I fought to keep him out of my mind. I sat up on the edge of the bed and scrubbed my hands across my face, trying to clear my head of the obscene images that kept invading my mind. Why was I fantasizing about a man I’d just met? I was a married woman, after all. I reached for my wine and took another sip. Soon, the luscious liquid started working and my eyes became heavy, but as I finally drifted off to sleep, thoughts of Lance invaded my mind … and then my dreams.
The alarm rang all too soon the next morning, jolting me awake. Slowly, I opened one eye and hit the snooze. It was five o’clock in the morning. Ugh, I groaned as I turned over and shoved a pillow over my face. I was almost asleep when the alarm blared loudly again, causing my body to jerk. I closed my eyes, but all I could think about was Lance. I sat up on the edge of the bed and shook my head, then shut the alarm off and got up to take a shower.A few minutes later, the heat from the water blast rushed over my body, waking me up. I squirted body wash into my hand and rubbed it slowly over my body, closing my eyes, imagining that my hands were Lance’s. I rubbed across my breasts and over my nipples as images of Lance danced through my mind. Slowly, I ran my hand between my thighs to my heat. The water rushed over my body and my breaths quickened as I imagined that I was with Lance under a waterfall on a tropical island. My clit swelled at the thought and I let m
Throughout the night, Kellen worked with experience beyond his years, despite his youthful appearance. “How long have you been a nurse?” I asked later in the day when he handed me another chart.“For a while,” he said, and then changed the subject, “Mr. Rollings is waiting in Room Six.” He pointed to the door and I nodded.When I turned around, my breath caught at the sight of Lance Steel walking in our direction with Drake Summerfield. Shit! I had successfully pushed him out of my mind for most of the day and now here he was, a Greek god in all his glory, walking toward me. I headed to the examining room and pulled the chart from the tray outside the door, pretending not to notice. Why did he have such an effect on me?“Leila,” Drake called out to me, then corrected himself, “Dr. Reynolds, do you have a minute?”I looked up from the chart casually, even though my heart was doing flip flops in my
Suddenly, a male figure stopped in front of me and I froze. The man was in silhouette and I couldn’t see who it was. All of the self-defense classes that I had taken over the years rushed into my brain as I tightened my grip on my car keys. I could ram them into his jugular vein and it would be over in seconds, or shove the heel of my hand into his nose …“Dr. Reynolds, it’s me, Lance Steel,” he said, almost reading my mind.“Oh, you scared me …” I said, taking a deep breath.“What are you doing out here alone?” he asked, suddenly angry. “Anything could happen to you …”“I’ll be fine,” I said, trying to walk past him. Actually, at this point I would rather take my chances with a complete stranger.He grabbed my arm, not letting me pass. “I’m walking you to your car.” It wasn’t a question.“I beg your pardon?”
The rest of the day passed uneventfully until sundown. Rosa, Kellen, and I worked throughout the day, making a good team. Kellen was so young—probably fresh out of nursing school—that I was surprised he was as knowledgeable as he was about nursing. He performed as if he were a seasoned veteran—just as good as Rosa, and she had been a nurse for over twenty years. I pushed the thought aside, deciding to go home early, or on time, actually.“I don’t believe it. The sun is just setting and you’re going home,” Rosa teased with a twinkle in her eye. “The days of miracles aren’t over.”“Love you, too!” I said, knowing it would irritate her.“You know …”“I know, your boat don’t float that way,” I teased as a smile curled my lips. “But if you ever change your mind …”“I won’t let you know,” Rosa returned. She had
I stepped in line to buy my ticket inside the theater when I heard a voice that shouldn’t be so familiar. “Dr. Reynolds! What a surprise to see you here!”Oh, shit! Why did I have to run into Lance Steel? “Mr. Steel, what are you doing here?” I asked, donning my best poker face.“It’s nice to see you, too.” He looked me up and down, his eyes lingering over my light blue blouse and heels a bit too long. “You look nice today.”“Thanks.” I chose a movie and stepped up in line, trying to ignore him.“What movie are you seeing?” he asked, stepping up behind me.“Why? Are you going to the movies, too?” I asked, suddenly surprised. He was dressed in blue jeans with a sexy button down black shirt, open slightly at the neck and black leather boots. His usually coifed, sexy dark brown hair was falling lazily across his face, accentuating his bright green eyes.
Although it was a movie that I really wanted to see, I paid no attention to it. As the love story unfolded on the screen, I studied Lance more than the movie, taking note of his chiseled features, piercing green eyes, and testosterone overload. The electricity in the air was so thick between us that you could cut it with a knife. I took a deep breath, forcing my eyes back to the screen without really seeing what was happening, forgetting momentarily that I was married. Then, the lights came up, bringing us both back to reality.“Thank you,” I said as we walked out of the theater.“For what?” he asked, amused.“That was the most fun I’ve had in a very long time.”“My pleasure,” he returned as we left the theater and walked into the darkness of the night, when he stopped abruptly. “Do you want to catch a bite to eat while we’re here? There’s a restaurant around the corner.”
“What did you tell him?” Lance asked, trying to calm down. He took a sip of his water, but made a face and set it back on the table. “After he told you to ‘play nice.’”“I told him that I would slap any man who deserves it, including him,” I replied, taking a sip of my water, as well.“Good girl,” he said as a smile spread across his face.I lifted an eyebrow, questioning.He shrugged. “I deserved it,” he replied, holding my hand a bit tighter, forcing me to look into his eyes. His hands were cold, but I pretended not to notice. “You should feel free to slap any man who deserves it … including me.”I smiled, suddenly feeling awkward when the waiter approached to take our order. “Good evening,” he said, and then proceeded to tell us the dinner specials and his recommendations.Lance nodded to me.“I’ll have the Shrimp Alfr
I drove home in the dark, trying to steady my heart. What am I doing? I wondered as I pointed my car toward home. I had so much on my mind that it practically drove itself home. I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself. What the hell am I doing? But there was something about Lance that I just couldn’t describe. Besides his incredible good looks, there was something else about him … I felt secure, treasured … like a princess around him. It was as if he had already placed me on a pedestal, treating me like royalty. I had never been treated like that before, and I knew that I could easily get used to it.When I got home, Steven was gone. Obviously, he had already left for work—if he even came home at all—even though it was Saturday. I should be off from work the next day, but I really had no desire to have a confrontation with Steven, even though I knew that we needed to talk soon.I took a deep breath to steady myself, pulled the car