Jo Leigh - Doctor, Darling

Connor met Gillian’s gaze and forgot everything but the color of her eyes. She put her hand on his arm. Warm, small, delicate…her touch stirred something deep inside. “Have dinner with me,” he said. “Please.”

She hesitated. He knew she was going to say no. But that wouldn’t do. And not because of his sentence. Because he didn’t want the feel of her hand on his arm to go away. “Please,” he said again.

She nodded. A tiny move.

He reached out with his hand and brushed her cheek. Her skin was as soft as he’d imagined. Softer.

“I’ll pick you up at seven,” he said.

She blushed and then took her hand from his arm. She opened her mouth, and he could see in her eyes that she was going to change her mind.

There was only one thing to do. He kissed her.

Dear Reader,

The lazy days of summer are here, and Harlequin American Romance has four charming new stories for your enjoyment! Whether you’re relaxing on the beach, out on a picnic or just grabbing a few moments of special time for yourself, we hope our books will brighten your days.

Harlequin American Romance has the pleasure of launching the brand-new continuity series MAITLAND MATERNITY with Tina Leonard’s Surprise! Surprise!, a doubly precious tale of twins who bring their parents back together. Look for Jacqueline Diamond’s I Do! I Do! next month, followed by twelve brand-new MAITLAND MATERNITY stories, coming from Harlequin Books!

Summer is a popular time for gettin’ hitched, as the BACHELORS OF SHOTGUN RIDGE are about to find out! Mindy Neff’s exciting new miniseries begins with sexy bachelor Wyatt Malone’s story, The Rancher’s Mail-Order Bride. Don’t miss Ethan and Stony’s stories, coming in July and August!

Dr. Gail Roberts has a very special little gift for Brian Walker in Linda Randall Wisdom’s My Little One, the continuation of our wonderful WITH CHILD…promotion. And Jo Leigh tells the story of a doctor who gets waylaid in a small Texas town and finds love when he least expects it. Doctor, Darling will steal your heart!

Our best wishes for a summer filled with warmth and romance. Happy reading!

Melissa Jeglinski

Associate Senior Editor

Doctor, Darling

Jo Leigh

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Jo Leigh currently lives just outside Las Vegas, Nevada, where she still can’t get used to the slot machines in the grocery stores. Storytelling has always been a part of her life, whether as a producer in Hollywood, a screenwriter or a novelist. It probably began when she told her third-grade teacher that elephants ate her homework.

HARLEQUIN AMERICAN ROMANCE

695—QUICK, FIND A RING!

731—HUSBAND 101

736—DADDY 101

749—IF WISHES WERE…DADDIES

768—CAN’T RESIST A COWBOY

832—DOCTOR, DARLING

HARLEQUIN INTRIGUE

568—LITTLE GIRL FOUND

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

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Conner Malloy stood in front of the Eat ’N Greet diner, in the middle of the quaint little town. He knew it was the middle because he could see where the town ended and the highway began, both ways. If a thousand people lived in Miller’s Landing, Texas, he’d be surprised. It was six hours from Houston, his home, and miles from any serious traffic. But it did have an antique store.

He’d found the store on the Internet when he’d searched for medical antiques. After e-mailing the proprietor for a couple of weeks, Conner had realized he needed to see the goods in person. If the stuff was on the level, it meant he’d finally be able to illustrate his book with accurate pictures instead of drawings that might or might not have been to scale.

He knew the antique store was on Main Street. Right next door to the Sew ’N Sew fabric store and across from Lulu’s Dresses.

It was exciting, he had to admit. Although he wasn’t a writer by trade, he’d been fascinated by old medical techniques and implements ever since his first year of residency. The hobby had become a passion over the years, so he didn’t think it was odd to take his vacation in this little Podunk town despite what Hugh said. Or any of the other attending physicians at Texas Children’s Hospital. They just didn’t understand, that’s all. When the book got published, they’d change their tune.

A woman in a denim dress stepped out of the coffee shop and stood stock-still when she saw him. She stared at him oddly, as if she’d just seen his face on America’s Most Wanted. He smiled at her, but she didn’t smile back. Friendly little town.

There it was. Odds ’N Ends. And right smack-dab in the middle of the display window was a real jewel. A rib spreader, circa early 1800s. In terrific condition. Conner’s gaze stayed on the surgical antique as he pushed open the door. Well, tried to. It was locked.

Then he saw the little sign. Closed For Eleanor’s Birthday. Conner had no idea who Eleanor was, but already he didn’t care for her. Six hours on the road, a lousy meal at a truck stop on the way, and the place was closed for Eleanor’s birthday. Great.

For a moment, he contemplated getting back in his car and heading for home, but then he looked at the rib spreader again. What else might Mr. Johnson have inside?

Conner looked at his watch. It was almost four. He was hungry, tired and cranky, and a shower would be mighty welcome. He’d passed a motel. The Set ’N Stay. What was it about the word and these people hated?

He quickly crossed the street and headed for the motel. The woman in the denim dress had moved, and now she stood in the shade of the fabric store. He nodded again, and she stared again. Weird. Then, as he passed the hardware store, another woman stepped to the doorway. She, too, gawked at him, unsmiling. He didn’t bother nodding to her.

When it happened again at the Laundromat, he got the willies. Another woman, this one with lacquered silver hair and little pursed mouth, lifted her head to peer at him through the bottom of her bifocals.

“Afternoon,” he said, trying to shake off the feeling that Stephen King might be lurking behind a washing machine.

“Afternoon,” she said back, her voice as stiff as her bouffant hairdo.

Conner kept right on going. At least one person stood in each doorway. At the diner, there was a record four. A woman and three children. The little boy wore an X-Files T-shirt. That explained it. Maybe he should just forget it. Get in his car and go. No. He needed those antiques.

He walked faster. It wasn’t until he’d reached the front of the motel that he realized he’d been humming “Strange Days” by the Doors. “Amen, brother,” Conner said as he stepped into the front office.