Crystal Green - From Doctor...to Daddy / When the Cowboy Said ''I Do'' - From Doctor...to Daddy

She walked beside him into the living room as he said into his phone, “Ron. It’s good to talk to you again. I wondered if you could cover for me tomorrow morning at the resort. I have an appointment at Thunder Canyon General Hospital.”

The doctor must have answered him in the affirmative because Dillon stopped before heading into the living room and nodded. “That’s great. I’ll let Ruthann know you’ll be there until noon.”

When Dillon closed his phone, Erika couldn’t help but ask, “Are you getting checked out at the hospital?”

He shook his head. “You worry too much. No, this is business. I have an appointment with the Chief of Staff.”

She supposed it wasn’t unusual for doctors to consult with each other and she had no right to delve into Dillon’s business.

“If you didn’t have to get home to Emilia, I’d ask you to have dinner with me tonight,” he said casually.

Her gaze lingered on his eyes and then his lips and then his upper body. She swallowed hard. “I do have to get home.”

When he set his hands on her shoulders, her stomach somersaulted. He asked, “Why did you come up to my suite tonight?”

She licked suddenly dry lips. “I told you I was worried about you.”

Silence wound about them, intensifying pheromones, need and awareness. Whatever bond they were forming drew them closer together. Erika breathed in Dillon’s freshly showered scent, longed to feel his skin against hers.

When Dillon wrapped his arms around her, she wound hers around his neck. His body was hard against hers. His mouth took its time with her as he nibbled at her upper lip and lined it with his tongue. She touched his upper lip with hers, thinking that would be the tinder that burst their kiss into flame. But he apparently had more self-control than she did because his lips trailed kisses across her cheek and down her neck. She moaned, feeling weightless in his arms.

Every thought skittered away into pure physical sensation. Then his hands were in her hair, his lips sealed to hers, and the taut pressure gave way to erotic invasion. His kiss seemed to go on forever. She responded to every thrust of his tongue, playing a game of tease and retreat. She felt the shudder that ran through his body and knew they were both dabbling with desire that could explode and hurt them both. Still she couldn’t seem to get enough and neither could he. If his ribs were bothering him, desire must have overridden any discomfort he felt.

The kiss might have urged them to his couch. They might have ended up in his bedroom. But she’d never know because there was a knock at his door.

They both froze.

Dillon pulled away from her just a few inches, called, “Just a minute,” and kept her in his embrace.

She had to find her composure and quickly. This had been a test and she’d failed it miserably. If that knock hadn’t sounded on the door—

She backed away from Dillon … a good foot away. With a deep breath, she let her gaze trail down his upper body again, and it settled on his bruises. She brushed them lightly with the back of her hand, and he winced, obviously in greater pain than he was willing to admit. “While you’re at the hospital tomorrow, please get this checked out.”

She felt his hot gaze on her as she crossed to the table and picked up her purse. Then she went to the door and opened it, welcoming the waiter and Dillon’s supper … escaping back to a life that was safe.

The following evening, Dillon walked up to Erika’s house and pressed her doorbell. Today he had been suddenly aware of time ticking away. He was dissatisfied with allowing his career to become his life. Considering the past few years, he was downright fatigued by beating himself up about his failed marriage … about the god-complex he and other doctors had that they could cure a child in spite of the odds. He also realized he needed to remember Toby well —not sick—and the good times they’d experienced, rather than all the moments he’d missed.

He’d spent the morning at the hospital, thinking about his future, discussing options with the Chief of Staff who understood the needs of Thunder Canyon residents. By the time he’d returned to his office, Erika had gone for the afternoon, working to finalize events for Frontier Days. He’d missed her. He didn’t know what this feeling of connection to her was, but he needed to pursue it.

So here he was, standing at her front door, rationalizing why he’d come, why he was carrying a present for her daughter.

Before he’d left the resort, he’d been steeped in decisions about what came after September. Should he accept the offer to join the concierge practice in Texas? Should he stay near his family? Should he make a move and maybe find a new life in Montana? He was grateful he had choices, but the choice right now didn’t seem clear. This evening, getting away from the resort and his suite had just seemed like a good idea.

The chime from Erika’s doorbell echoed inside. He felt a rush of adrenaline when she answered the door wearing a thigh-length red sweater and black leggings. Her mass of loose waves tumbled around her shoulders and all Dillon wanted to do was run his fingers through them.

Her brown eyes were huge with questions. “This is a surprise.”

Her gaze ran over his black sweater and khakis, and he liked the fact that she looked at him the way he looked at her. “I should have called.”

“But you didn’t.”

She was the kind of woman who wouldn’t let him get away with anything. “If I had called, you could have easily given me an excuse not to see me. Are you busy?”

As if on cue, Emilia’s voice came from inside. “Mommy, pway.”

“I’m a mom,” she reminded him. “I’m always busy.

But I’ve fed Emilia supper and this is our winding-down time. Come on in. How are your ribs?”

“They’re better. Nothing is broken.” He’d had them x-rayed while he was at the hospital.

“Did you have supper?”

“Yes. Sue dropped off some of her soup and homemade bread.”

“She’s a good cook.”

Whereas Erika’s living room had been straightened up the last time he was here, now it had a different look because it had been a two-year-old’s play area for the past couple of hours. Sofa cushions stood cockeyed against the furniture with a blanket draped over the top. Stuffed animals, dolls and doll clothes lay scattered across the rug. Children’s books covered the top of the coffee table, while a coloring book and crayons were left abandoned on the easy chair. The whole atmosphere gave his heart a pang that was warning him he’d made a mistake by coming.

Erika scooped up a few toys and cut him a sideways glance. “Be careful not to trip over anything.”

Emilia was on her hands and knees peeking out of her hideaway at him.

“Hi, there,” he said, crouching down. “Remember me?”

She grinned and crawled out a little farther. “Doctor, doctor.”

“She remembers,” he murmured, stunned by the wonderful-terrible recall of a child. Toby had been like that, too—quick to remember, quick to make friends.

“She remembers what she wants to remember, so you must have made an impression,” Erika joked.

“That could be good or bad,” he said drily. “Come here, Emilia, I have something for you.” He wiggled the box.

Emilia scrambled out from under the cushions and blanket, pushed herself to her feet and ran over to him. One of her little overall straps was falling over her shoulder. She bumped against Dillon’s knees, holding on to them to balance herself.

He pushed her shoulder strap up where it belonged on top of the little white blouse covered with dancing dogs. “Would you like to open this?”

He set the box on the floor because it was too big for her to handle. Emilia squatted down beside it.