He shrugged. “I never want more than one night.”
She should be appalled, disgusted by the thoughtless casualness of his remark.
Instead she found herself intrigued. That was a decisive remark to make when she could feel his erection resting against her thigh.
Curiosity gave way to determination to prove the arrogant Houston Hayes wrong.
With her, one night wouldn’t be enough.
He would want more.
And he wasn’t the only one who liked to be successful, especially when the odds were against her.
Josie usually got what she wanted, too, no matter how hard she had to work at it or how long.
Chapter Five
Bob Andrews and Dave Jablonski were in the hall talking when Josie emerged breathless, even more scattered than usual, patting down her hair. Houston was right behind her, which made her blush when she realized there really wasn’t any plausible reason for a doctor and a resident to be in a closed supply closet.
Both doctors looked up at her and she gave them a bright smile, hoping like hell no one would guess she’d just spent ten minutes getting felt up by Houston.
Dave smiled back at Josie. “Hey, Josie, we’re all going to Coconuts for a drink in about an hour. Join us?” At the last minute he seemed to realize there was someone standing behind her. “Oh, you, too, Dr. Hayes. The more the merrier.”
Josie noticed that everyone on staff always referred to one another by first names, with the exception of Dr. Hayes. She was starting to suspect he didn’t want anyone to know he had a first name. Even his ID badge clipped to his waistband said merely Dr. Hayes. She knew. She’d looked.
Yet his name fit him. It was unusual, commanding. Sexy. Or maybe that was her hormones on overdrive again. But she suspected he used formality to maintain distance between himselfand his colleagues, herself included until fifteen minutes ago. Now he wanted zero distance between them, clothing optional.
Which brought to mind a whole other unpalatable subject. Could she really get naked in front of a man who by all rights should only exist in her fantasies without it being awkward? Would she just freeze, panic, or talk too much?
Then she thought about that kiss.
She was pretty damn sure she would know exactly what to do naked with Dr. Hayes.
“No thanks. The storm this afternoon kicked up a few waves, so I’m going surfing,” Houston said.
She spun around in amazement. Surfing? Houston was a surfer? Not to mention that was the longest personal statement she’d ever heard him utter.
He was always all work, driven to perfection as a surgeon. He didn’t engage in idle chitchat.
Even his kisses weren’t idle. They, too, were skilled, concentrated. Perfect.
“Oh, yeah,” Bob said with a nod. “Those waves are a solid five feet. Have fun out there.”
Dave said, “Well, how about it, Josie? I don’t think you’re going surfing, are you?”
Relieved that no one seemed to notice the tension between her and Houston, she laughed at Dave’s question. The most athletic thing she did was jump around in pain when she forgot her aqua socks and the sand on the beach burned her sensitive feet.
“No, no surfing for me. But I can’t go to the bar anyway because I’m on call for ER.”
“Okay. Maybe next time.” They waved and continued on down the hall.
Which left her standing in the hall staring at the floor, no clue what to say to Houston. He had pressed her for an answer in the supply room. She hadn’t given him one.
She knew what she wanted. But she still didn’t know if it wasthe right thing to do. If she listened to her body and Houston’s argument, she could ruin her career as a surgeon.
If word ever got out they’d had an affair... well, it would be ugly, no matter what he said.
Yet it was so darn tempting.