“Step into the treatment room,” he said levelly. “I’ll have a look at you.”
Oh God, that stirred up all kinds of images. He had looked at her, seen her, done things to her. Been inside her. Lifting her gaze, she met his eyes squarely and felt a flush of heat blossom in her cheeks. The bloody man knew exactly what she was thinking, she just knew by the glint in his eyes!
“Thanks, but not necessary.” In one swift turn, she walked quickly down the corridor.
She could feel his gaze burning into her back, but she knew there was no way he’d pursue her. He had patients to see, notes to write, and no gossip to stir up. She was safe. Until she came back to the hospital, anyway, and that was a problem for another day. For tonight and the next two days she could hide behind the safety of her closed door. And cringe and worry there.
Arriving home, she parked her car in the garage and went up the path to the house. Locking the door behind her, she greeted Frizz and Sugar, who met her and complained at not having been fed since midday.
“Yes,” she agreed dispiritedly, “You both have very hard lives.”
Dropping her bag on the hall table, she went into the kitchen, the cats meowing and twining through her legs. Placing two bowls of fresh, raw meat on the floor, she emptied and refilled their water bowl and watched them eat for several seconds.
No doubt about it, Frizz and Sugar had it good. Fresh food, fresh water, a soft bed, and they didn’t have to go to work or worry about making fools of themselves. Hell, they didn’t even care if they were fat or skinny, as long as they were loved and fed. What a great life.
Leaving them to their dinner, she went down the short hall to the laundry where she took her clothes off and dumped them into the washing machine to deal with in the morning. Her shower was lukewarm, just the way she liked it, but her mind wasn’t on the water or the fragrant soap. Her mind was on Dr Rick Reed and the problem looming over her.
It didn’t look like Rick was going to pretend he didn’t recognize her. He’d been almost challenging, his mouthed ‘wait’ a direct order he obviously expected her to obey. Not in this lifetime. The problem was, how far was he going to pursue this? Would he just give up? Decide after seeing her in the harsh light of - well, not day, but the electric lights – that she wasn’t really worth it? Why did he want her to wait? It certainly wasn’t to profess undying lust for her, not going by the grimness on his face. And it was that grimness that made her so glad she hadn’t hung around.
Drying herself briskly, she glanced at her face in the mirror above the basin. She was okay in a fresh, apple-cheeked kind of way, but there was no way she was a raving beauty. Nor a slim seductress, far beyond that, in fact. Rick, on the other hand, was handsome and built like a wet dream.
Feeling self pity well up, she pulled her nightgown on and went to sit on the end of the bed. Picking up the remote, she flicked on the small television and stared unseeingly at the late-night news. Thank God she was on days off and wouldn’t have to worry about facing Dr Rick Reed. She had two days to figure out what to do when they finally met again. By then, who knew, he might just be happy to forget about it and not refer to their little meeting. Once the shock wore off, she had no doubt he would be more than happy to forget about it.
Yes, she comforted herself as she lay down and flicked through the channels, once he got over the shock of recognizing her, he’d see the wisdom in not referring to it again. Life could go on as before and as long as she avoided him—
The phone rang.
Thinking it was the hospital ringing with a query, she picked up the receiver. “Hello?”
“Cherry Williams?”
“Yes?” The deep tones of the caller didn’t sound like any of the male nurses she knew.
“This is Rick Reed. I—“
Cherry practically threw the receiver back onto the cradle. Heart thumping, she sat on the bed staring at the phone. He’d actually rung her home!
Frizz jumped up on the bed and rubbed his head against her arm, purring energetically.
The phone rang again, the ring a persistent peeling. Was it her imagination or did it suddenly have a decidedly masculine burr to it? If it was Rick again, she could ignore it, yep. But what if it was the hospital? Reaching over, she flicked on the answering machine and waited, her heart bumping uncomfortably in her chest.
The phone stopped ringing and the message was clear. “Cherry.” Definitely a masculine burr. The deep tones sent a shiver through her. “We need to talk.” No, we don’t. “Give me a call on the following number and we’ll arrange a meeting somewhere.” He stated the phone number and rang off.