Laura Iding - Dating Dr Delicious

“Good job. Looks like the tube is in place.” His low voice was reassuring. Almost mesmerizing. Relief made Hannah’s knees feel weak, but she stiffened them with an effort. Her job was only partially done. “You’ll need to get a chest X-ray to confirm placement.”

“Will do,” she said, as she handed over the task of securing the tube to the nurse standing beside her. Once she was free to move aside, she glanced up at her rescuer.

And froze when his glittering green gaze slammed into hers.

The force of the collision made her heart drop to the soles of her feet. The room whirled and there was a loud roaring in her ears.

No. It couldn’t be. But it was.

Jake. Her Jake. Her one-night-stand-Jake was here.

The flare of shock reflected in his gaze almost made her feel better. At least she wasn’t the only one knocked off-balance at seeing him again. But then she noticed the name on his ID badge and the sick feeling in her gut returned.

Great. Just what she needed. Not only was Jake a doctor here at the hospital.

He was Dr. Holt. The attending physician on duty. And the Chief of Trauma Surgery!

The man she’d impulsively spent the night with was the same man who could make or break her career.

Dear Reader

When I was young, I wanted to be a doctor. (Didn’t we all?) However, back then women didn’t have quite the same opportunities as men, and following that career path required a huge time commitment. So I settled on becoming a nurse instead.

I’ve always admired those who did make the sacrifice needed to become a doctor. So I decided to write a story where the heroine becomes a surgeon against the most overwhelming odds.

Hannah Stewart has studied hard and worked several jobs on her path to becoming a surgeon. She’s determined that nothing and no one will get in her way. Including the hot Chief of Trauma Surgery Jake Holt. After an incredible night with Hannah, Jake is stunned to discover she is one of his new interns, assigned to the trauma rotation. A relationship between them is completely out of the question. Or is it?

I hope you enjoy Hannah and Jake’s story. Don’t hesitate to visit my website or find me on Facebook. I love to hear from my readers.

Sincerely

Laura Iding

www.lauraiding.com

Laura Idingloved reading as a child, and when she ran out of books she readily made up her own, completing a little detective mini-series when she was twelve. But, despite her aspirations for being an author, her parents insisted she look into a ‘real’ career. So the summer after she turned thirteen she volunteered as a Candy Striper, and fell in love with nursing. Now, after twenty years of experience in trauma/critical care, Laura lives in the northern part of the United States, and spends all her spare time with her two teenage kids (help!)—a daughter and a son—and her husband. Enjoy!

Dating Dr Delicious

Laura Iding

www.millsandboon.co.uk

This book is dedicated to my editor, Meg Lewis.

It’s always a pleasure working with you!

CONTENTS

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Epilogue

CHAPTER ONE

HANNAH Stewart woke up, momentarily confused by the darkness. Then she remembered.

There were no lights from the city shining in through her curtainless windows because she wasn’t at home. She was at Jake’s condo.

An odd mixture of pleasure and shame washed over her. Good heavens, what in the world had gotten into her? Allowing Jake to take her to his place last night had been completely out of character. Yet she couldn’t bring herself to regret her impulsive decision.

Or rather she refused to regret one second of the pleasure she’d spent in Jake’s arms.

But fantasy time was over. Carefully, she lifted her head from the pillow to better read the small alarm clock on the bedside table. It was half past three in the morning.

Late. Or early. Depending on your frame of reference.

Regardless, she needed to leave. Now. Her last day of freedom was over and she needed to get home and pull herself together before heading to the hospital.

Gently, so as not to wake the man sleeping soundly beside her, she eased out from beneath the covers. When she stood, taking her weight off the mattress, Jake muttered and shifted restlessly. She froze, holding her breath until she was reassured he hadn’t woken up.

Daring to breathe again, she blindly felt around the floor for her clothes, before remembering that she’d likely left most of them in the living room.

The memory of their frantic lovemaking made her blush. Never before had she let herself go so freely as the way she had with the devilishly attractive Jake. She’d lost count of how many times they’d made love. Her body still ached in the most unusual places.

She slipped from the bedroom and headed down the hall, into the living room. She stubbed her toe on the glass-and-chrome coffee table and had to bite her tongue to keep from crying out in pain. In the flurry of sexual activity, she’d only gotten a glimpse of the interior of Jake’s condo, but as her eyes adjusted to the dim light from the window, she looked around curiously.

She wrinkled her nose, somewhat disappointed to see that he went for the expensive, modern type of dcor. Not that it mattered, except the chrome and glass seemed a bit impersonal. And the so-called art on the walls made her raise her eyebrows in surprise.

Hmm. She obviously didn’t get it.

The sense of shame intensified. She didn’t belong in the world of sailboats, yachts and fancy high-rise condos. And she’d been silly even to try. Once she became a surgeon, she still couldn’t imagine herself living like this. She’d gone into medicine to help people, not to become rich and famous.

Fantasy time was definitely over.

Shaking her head at her foolishness, she picked up her clothes, strewn from one corner of the room to the other. She blushed again as she pulled on her yellow bikini, limping as she favored her sore toe. She pulled on the blouse and shorts over the top, slipped her feet into her flip-flop sandals and reached for her purse.

“Going somewhere?” Jake asked.

Her heart shot into her throat and she gasped, spinning around toward him. He stood in the hallway wearing nothing but a scowl on his face and low-slung boxers. Refusing to be distracted by his muscular bare chest, she tried to keep her gaze steady as the seconds dragged out into a long, uncomfortable minute. “Yes. I—uh, have to go.”

His gaze bored into hers. “Without saying goodbye?”

Embarrassed, she glanced away. Okay, maybe she was out of practice with this stuff but, really, what did he expect? They didn’t even know each other’s last names.

She shoved aside the flash of guilt. People did this all the time, right? Right. “Look, it was great. Spectacular, really. You were...absolutely amazing. But I have an important meeting to attend this morning so I really need to get home.”

His gaze never wavered. “Fine. I’ll drive you.”

“No!” Her refusal came out more harshly than she’d intended. But for some reason she wasn’t anxious for him to know where she lived. Besides, from this day forward her life was not her own. She had no idea what he did for work, but whatever it was, she was certain he’d have far more free time than she would. “I mean, don’t bother. I’ll get a cab.” Or the subway.