She ventured a small smile. “Let’s see. A medical conference? The latest surgical gadget?”
“Nada. You must think I’m a real workaholic.”
“Aren’t all doctors married to their work? Something about making a difference? Saving the world?”
Anthony leaned back in his chair. “I admit I had dreams of grandeur when I first entered medical school.”
“And now?”
He smiled. “I’m satisfied with just changing my patients’ lives in my corner of the world, right here in Bay Point.”
“Do you feel like you’re making a difference?”
He thought a moment. “Yes. If my patients are happy, I’m happy.”
“By changing who they are?” she said.
His face contorted a bit, as if he was surprised by her question.
But Liza didn’t care. The only thing her mother’s cosmetic surgeon cared about was lining his pockets by preying on women with low self-esteem.
She prayed Anthony wasn’t the same way, and now was a good time to make sure, before she formally signed a contract to work with him.
He moved his chair closer to hers. “I’m modifying their appearance according to their wishes, that’s all.”
“By feeding into their negative self-perceptions?”
“Their internal reasoning is really none of my business. My job is to listen to their concerns and set realistic expectations for the outcome.”
“So you don’t claim to be a miracle worker?”
“No, but my patients think I am. And that’s all that counts,” he replied, without a trace of the egoism that he often displayed.
His smile was brief, though, and did not reach his eyes. She sensed that he felt insulted.
“But why the interrogation?” he asked. “I feel like I’m on one of those investigative news programs.”
She stifled the urge to take his hands in hers, in apology, as she didn’t mean to hurt his feelings.
“I’m sorry. I’m just trying to get an understanding of who you are.”
He stared at her, a hint of a smile on his face, as he leaned forward. “As a doctor? Or as a man?”
Liza felt her face flush. Both, she wanted to say, but she choked back the word.
She wanted to understand the man, but she didn’t want to lose the project, especially since the contract hadn’t even been officially signed.
“A doctor, of course,” she lied.
She watched his face for any signs of disappointment at her words, but all he did was motion for Ruby.
“Good. But the only thing you have to worry about is designing my clinic, not what goes on within my walls. Are we clear?”
She nodded as Ruby approached the table. Though Liza was glad for the interruption, she stewed quietly at how Anthony’s demeanor could change from flirtatious to friendly to stern in the span of a few minutes.
She decided to end the meeting quickly, as graciously as possible, before she said something else to jeopardize their fragile professional relationship.
He requested some mineral water, and when he asked her if she wanted anything else, she declined.
Ruby scribbled the final total and slid the bill upside down on the table.
Anthony rubbed his hands together. “Shouldn’t we be talking about next steps? I’m eager to get started.”
Liza nodded. “We can. Though it’s a bit premature, at this point. The contracts haven’t been signed yet.”
She refused to smile, determined to show him that she could be just as terse and businesslike as he could be.
He lowered his voice and whispered in her ear. “Does that mean I can kiss you again?”
She felt her heart leap in her chest at the words that so easily trickled out of his mouth and reignited her desire.
It could be a game, and he could simply want her to stroke his ego. She wouldn’t fall for it. She didn’t want to give him any further indication that she was interested in him as more than just another rung in the stepladder of her career.
“Only if you want me to scream,” she whispered back.
Ignoring the shocked look on his face, she dug out a few bills and placed them on the table.
Anthony touched her wrist gently. “Hey. I was teasing. Let me get that, okay?”
She shouldered her purse, shook her head and grabbed the check from the table.
“No worries, I’ll write it off. See you later.”
Before he could say another word, she walked away. She resisted the urge to look back and see if he was following her, but there was no need. She felt his eyes boring a hole into her back and her face burned in response.
Ruby normally kept the door open in the mornings, when the weather was cooler. When Liza reached it, she heard a squeal of delight.
“Liza! I’m so glad to see you! Are you still coming to our meeting this afternoon?”
Mrs. Harrill was a tall, extremely thin woman with the booming voice of a sports announcer.
“Yes, I planned on it.”
She clapped her hands together, as if she’d just heard the best news of her life.
“Wonderful! The members of our historical society will be so pleased!” she exclaimed.
Liza resisted the urge to put her hands over her ears. “I’m looking forward to it,” she replied with a polite smile.
Mrs. Harrill had her body angled in such a way that she would have knocked the woman over if she’d tried to go outside.
So she couldn’t budge.
“Oh, hello. Dr. Marbet. I didn’t see you there.”
Liza swiveled around. “That happens a lot,” she muttered to herself as her elbow brushed against Anthony’s abdomen. When she felt his hand on her shoulder, she thought she would melt right onto the floor.
“Mrs. Harrill. You’re looking well.”
“You would know, Dr. Marbet,” she said, beaming, and Liza wondered what she was implying.
He gestured toward the door. “We were actually just leaving.”
Mrs. Harrill’s brows pinched together and she stared at them as if they’d committed some crime. “We?” she asked, her voice lowered. “Well, don’t let me keep you both.”
“Thank you,” Anthony replied, gently steering Liza forward.
Mrs. Harrill left the doorway and entered the coffee shop, so they could pass through freely.
“Liza, we can’t wait to hear about your plans to help us restore the old schoolhouse,” she turned and called.
Anthony grabbed Liza’s hand, and pulled her away.
Some of the people who were sitting on the patio lifted their heads. Since she was so new in town, she didn’t recognize any of them, but she bet they knew Anthony.
He held on to her hand tightly, until they were around the corner, then he abruptly let go. When he did, Liza felt a strange sense of abandonment that made her suddenly angry.
She put her purse back on her shoulder, from where it had slipped to her wrist.
“What was that about?” she asked, somehow managing to keep her voice level.
“Remember how I told you that Maisie was always trying to hook me up with someone.”
Liza nodded. In addition to being a highly sought-after cosmetic surgeon, he was also known around town for his refusal to date local women, so he was always fodder for a good rumor.
“Mrs. Harrill is her partner in crime. I think they have some kind of bet on who will introduce me to the woman who will be my wife.”
Liza’s cheeks burned. The man flirting with her again, but this time, she was in no mood to reciprocate, or encourage him.
“Well, it certainly won’t be me,” she retorted.
If Anthony couldn’t keep up his half of their agreement, she’d have to
do it for him, she thought as she walked away.
But in her heart, she longed to run back into his arms.
Chapter 9
Liza fluffed her hair in front of her ears and stepped out of her truck. She blinked, her eyes adjusting to the early-morning sun. It was warm so she’d worn a pair of denim shorts and a T-shirt. Today, she and Anthony were meeting with the man she was recommending to lead the construction of the clinic.
She leaned against her vehicle and sighed. She hadn’t spoken to Anthony since she’d walked off and left him on Magnolia Avenue. They’d only communicated via email and their lawyers.
She missed his smile, though she often didn’t know what was behind it. She missed his body, though she’d never really touched it. But most of all, she missed him.
She bent to tighten the laces on her new steel-toe boots. They were months away from beginning construction, but she had bought a pair anyway. She planned on using the time to break them in, before they broke ground on the clinic.
Out of the corner of her eye, Liza saw Anthony’s truck approach.
She heard the car door slam and his shoes crunching on gravel, but she kept her head down as he rushed to her side.
“Are you okay? Another problem with your ankle?”
Liza focused on her laces, as his words swept over her like a gentle wave.
He sounded as if he was concerned about her, as if he cared. But was that just because he was a doctor and had taken an oath to assist anyone who appeared to be in need? Or was it because he had feelings for her?
He knelt down in front of her and lifted her chin to face him.
“Liza, are you okay?”
Her eyes met his and it was like a billion stars exploded between them, so intense was the heat. It was instantaneous, undeniable and incredibly hot.
This time, there was no denying the attraction between them, and her need for him. It would be like denying her need for food and water. There was no doubt he cared about her, but there was nothing she could do about it.
They’d made a promise, and she had to be strong for both of them.
Liza stood up and put her hands on her hips. “Yes. Can’t I tie my own shoe laces without you coming to my rescue?”
He rose slowly, and she could see the hurt in his eyes.
Inwardly, she chastised herself for sounding so irritable, when all she wanted to do was throw her arms around his neck so hard that they’d both fall to the ground. He’d kiss her and neither of them would care about the gravel digging into their skin, because the pleasure would outweigh the pain.
But that was a five-second fantasy. In real life, the pain always outlasted the pleasure. Anthony was a gorgeous risk, best to keep him safely in her mind and out of her bed.
“Sorry, I was just trying to help.”
She leaned back against the truck. “And I was only teasing.”
Anthony shoved his hands in his jeans, and braced his hip against his own vehicle. He seemed wary of her now, and that saddened her.
“Thanks for setting up this meeting so early.” He glanced down at his watch, and back up at her. “I’ve got about an hour before I have to be at the hospital.”
She turned away from his eyes and pulled her phone out of her back pocket. “Trent should be here any minute.”
“Good guy?”
She nodded. “The best. I’ve used him on a couple of other projects, not here of course, but in other parts of Northern California.”
They fell into an uneasy silence. Their trucks were parked close to each other. If she stretched out her arms, she could have touched him.
She hadn’t worn her sunglasses this morning, and neither had he. They were naked to each other in that respect, and could not hide behind them.
Anthony made no secret of his desire for her. It was as palpable in the air between them as the scent of the ocean.
She saw his eyes caress her body, travel down her legs and back up again to her face.
His actions didn’t make her feel uncomfortable; instead, they set off tiny fireworks of yearning that made her quiver inside. She wanted to do the same thing to him, but with her mouth. If he could see what was going through her mind, he might have had a heart attack from shock.
Anthony cleared his throat and she jumped a little. He walked to the front of his truck and stopped.
“The place hasn’t changed much,” he said, turning back.
Her voice caught in her throat at the hint of a smile on his lips. His low tone seemed to glide through the air and wrap around her, comforting in its sexiness.
Liza squinted, even though the sun, at seven o’clock in the morning, wasn’t very bright yet.
“Yes, it’s still a broken-down motel,” she said, wryly.
And I still think I might be falling in love with you.
She took in a sharp breath at her thought. Denying her feelings for Anthony was easy. Admitting them to herself was not.
In two steps, he was at her side, and for a moment, she panicked, thinking she had actually voiced that she was in love with him, rather than simply thought the words. It was early, she hadn’t had any coffee and so her mind was a little groggy. Plus, she was anxious about seeing him again. Anything could happen.
He put his elbow on the hood of her truck, near the front windshield. “How are you, really?”
“I’m fine, Anthony,” she said, without looking at him. If she did, she knew she would drown in his eyes.
“Just anxious to get started.”
“I know. Me, too.”
His voice was so close; his body even closer. She felt her legs wobble, and dug the heels of her boots deeper into the gravel to stabilize them. But there was nothing she could do to calm the rapid beating of her heart.
She checked her phone again. Where was Trent?
Anthony reached for her, and she turned around and faced him.
The tug of his hand caused a chain reaction and she felt the pull of his body, like some kind of sensual magnet. Her breasts felt heavier than usual, nipples tightening.
But rather than close the gap between them, though she desperately wanted to, she kept her hip firmly against the warm metal of her truck. As if the vehicle could protect her from the desire that was swiftly threatening to overtake her.
“I’m sorry about the other day. Back at Ruby’s. I didn’t mean to upset you. When you walked away without saying goodbye, I realized I did.”
She couldn’t believe he was actually apologizing. His words sounded so sincere, causing her eyes to smart with tears. She blinked away the moisture, glad for the slight breeze in the air.
His palm was cool to the touch, but her hand jerked a little as if she’d been burned. Still, he didn’t let go, and Liza didn’t pull away. She remained where she was, her hand in his, her body leaning against the truck, her right arm pressed against the glass.
Silence fell between them, the sounds of birds filling the space where their mutual desire was inescapable.
“Don’t worry about it,” she managed to say, trying on an impersonal, professional tone. Her voice sounded thin and narrow in her ears, not full and lush like his.
“Now that the deal is settled and the contract is signed, there’s a lot to do.”
His eyes drifted down to her lips and lit a fire there, too. She licked them involuntarily, remembering the passion that his kisses had invoked weeks ago. Since that time, her need for him had never gone away. It had only grown stronger.
“Lots to keep us busy,” he said, his breath a bit ragged.
Her lips parted in anticipation, and she dropped her eyes from his, realizing he was watching her intently.
She stared at her boots, as if they were the most interesting things in the world, trying to think of what to say next, someth
ing that wouldn’t give her thoughts or feelings away.
He drew his knuckles down lightly across her jaw. She lifted her eyes, and what she saw in his, nearly rocked her off her feet.
“Liza, I—”
His words were cut off by the loud roar of a motorcycle approaching. She jumped and Anthony dropped his hand to his side. She pressed her back against her vehicle, heart pounding, just as Trent rode up and parked on the other side.
Had he seen Anthony touching her? It was hard to tell because Trent was wearing a helmet, with the dark shield pulled down to protect his eyes.
The feel of Anthony’s skin upon hers lingered as she walked around her truck to greet him.
“Hey, glad you could make it out this morning,” she said, wiping her palms on her shorts.
Trent got off his midnight blue motorcycle and slowly took his helmet off. Standing well over six feet tall, he was dressed in jeans, dirty work boots and a blood-red T-shirt. His tattooed arms were hard and muscular, with hands so large they looked like they could take out three men with one punch.
Though Trent appeared, and sometimes acted, like a rebel, she knew he was just a teddy bear at heart.
She was sure that with his dark skin, warm brown eyes and his rough-and-ready aura, he had plenty of women who would hop on his motorcycle with him and ride away into the sunset.
She wasn’t one of them.
Liza waited for Anthony to join her before making introductions.
“Trent Waterson. Meet Dr. Anthony Marbet, the owner of the property.”
“Just call me Anthony. I’m looking forward to working with you.”
Trent tucked his helmet under one heavily muscled bicep, and the two men shook hands.
“Pleasure.”
He stepped back and took a rag from the back of his jeans. As he wiped the sweat away from his close-cropped hair, he let out a slow whistle.
“Looks like the motel has seen better days, but I’m guessing a whole lot of hot lovin’ was made between these walls.”
Liza felt her cheeks warm and saw the corners of Anthony’s mouth tilt up when he caught her watching his reaction. She guessed he wasn’t uncomfortable at all at Trent’s comment.
Winning the Doctor Page 10