Janice Lynn - A Nurse To Tame The Er Doc

“Or if you got the urge to work while here and needed inspiration...” His tone teased.

Yeah, had Jack been the model, she seriously doubted she’d have been oblivious. Looking at the man was like looking at the most interesting piece of artwork she’d ever encountered, beautiful, intriguing, and full of character.

Meeting his gaze and feigning excitement, she couldn’t resist saying, “You really think Robert would do that for me?”

Jack laughed. “I’m sure you could convince him.”

“I don’t know,” she said, trying to sound unsure. “There’s that nurse he was meeting when he took off earlier.”

“There is that.” Jack’s gaze stayed locked with hers, both of them smiling, Taylor feeling really good on the inside.

This, she thought. This was fun. Light and held no real meaning. Just a man, a woman, and good old-fashioned physical chemistry.

Was the new Taylor the real Taylor, okay with starting something with Jack—a doctor, for goodness’ sake!—when she knew they’d go their separate ways when the music festival ended because she didn’t want a relationship? Not that she suspected he did either, just that she didn’t want a man in her life. She had too many things to still learn about herself.

“Hungry?”

Starved, and not for food. She wanted what she saw in his eyes, in what being near him hinted at within her body.

Did that mean she was okay with a meaningless fling?

Or maybe she just wanted to learn what Jack could teach her about herself?

He propped his guitar against his chair and stood. “I have sandwich stuff. You want to eat with me or grab something from a vendor?”

“You don’t have to feed me.” Was she talking food or sex? Or both? “I brought food.”

His lips twitched. “Something more exciting than ham and cheese?”

“Does such a thing exist?” she asked with feigned seriousness, eliciting a laugh.

While he pulled out his sandwich supplies from his cooler, Taylor dug through her supplies to find a plastic container of cookies she’d made, thinking she and Amy would gobble them up.

When she set them on his table, he stopped what he was doing and helped himself to one.

“Hey, these are good.”

He sounded so surprised that Taylor laughed.

“You didn’t mention anything about being a good cook,” he accused.

“I’m not, but I can bake cookies.”

During her classes, she’d discovered she found cooking so-so but enjoyed baking. She’d mastered basic skills but had thrown herself into spending more time at her sculpting class.

“They’re good,” he repeated, reaching for another.

She slapped at his hand. “Didn’t your mother make you wait until after dinner before having dessert?”

His gaze lifted to hers and, grinning, he shook his head. “My mom would have been the first to encourage me to have the good stuff first because life is short.”

Taylor’s brow rose. Wow. “Sounds fun.”

And very unlike her older parents who hadn’t planned to have children, hadn’t wanted them, but had been stuck with her all the same.

“But not very nutritious,” Jack added wryly.

“There is that.”

* * *

Jack spread a blanket on the ground a good distance back from the stage. He and Taylor could have made their way closer, but closer to the stage meant more crowded. No way could they have seen from their sitting positions.

Taylor’s arms were wrapped around her knees and she was watching the band as if they were the most fascinating group she’d ever seen. Her head bobbed ever so slightly to the beat.

“Our little jam session may fail to impress you now that you’ve seen this.”

She glanced toward him. “Not likely. You were good.”

“Glad you thought so.”

Still looking his way, she asked, “Did you ever want to play music professionally?”

He chuckled. “Probably the same as every other kid who played an instrument dreams of being a rock star. But if you mean was I ever in a band then, yeah, a few over the years.”

“What happened?”

“I wasn’t that good, and I fell in love with medicine.”

Her expression became thoughtful. “A musician or a physician. Interesting choices.”

“Maybe if I’d been better at the music there wouldn’t have been a choice.” He shrugged. “Once I was exposed to medicine, there wasn’t a choice. I knew that’s what I was supposed to do.”

Not once had he ever regretted that decision. Sometimes life threw things at you to point you in the right direction. In his case, life had hit him over the head—heart—to steer him down the right path.

“I’m glad you get to play from time to time and have both in your life.”

Ready to shove the past back as far away as it would go, he took a drink. “I enjoy life.”

A true statement. He’d dealt with what had happened years ago to Courtney and had spent years making atonement. It was all he could do.

“Not many people can say that,” Taylor mused, her voice sounding almost wistful.

He turned toward her. “Can you?”

She took a long time answering, but finally nodded. “I am enjoying life very much. Thank you.”

The emotion in her voice, almost surprise, at her answer did funny things to Jack’s chest.

He reached over, took her hand into his and gave a reassuring squeeze. “I’m glad you’re enjoying life, Taylor.”

He was also glad that rather than pull her hand away, she laced her fingers with his and shot a grateful smile toward him. As if maybe she’d meant right now, this very moment, was what had made her say she was enjoying life.

That he played a role in her happiness.

A humbling thought.

There was something fragile about Taylor. Something that brought out a protectiveness that left him feeling a bit lost.

In the past, if he’d felt an attraction to a woman and that attraction was reciprocated, he’d acted without hesitation. Lord knew, he was no saint. Far, far from it.

Taylor felt an attraction to him. He was sure of it. Although there was a hesitation on her face at times, she hadn’t really tried to hide her interest. But there was a vulnerability in her eyes that had him second-guessing himself. He didn’t do vulnerable in his personal relationships and sure didn’t want to feel protective of someone he was destined to walk away from.

Still, what he wanted to do was lean over and kiss Taylor.

They wouldn’t be the only couple at the concert making out. Kissing would be tame compared to some of the amorous sessions that happened around the festival.

But most of those making-out sessions were just chemistry playing out between young, healthy couples.

Just?

What was it he thought was between Taylor and him should he kiss her, if not just chemistry?

He didn’t do relationships that weren’t just physical chemistry. Not ever.

Well, once, but never again.

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