KRISTI GOLD - Doctor For Keeps

“This Is Miranda Brooks. Miranda, This Is Dr. Rick Jansen.”

Miranda scooted the chair from beneath the table, rose on rubbery legs and slowly turned to stare into an onyx gaze that cloaked any reaction. Her heart took a nosedive and the air left her lungs. She suddenly felt like the brunt of the ultimate celestial joke.

The man standing before her in standard green surgical scrubs covered by a lab coat, the requisite stethoscope draped around his neck, could pass for any doctor from the chin down. But the solid gold loop at his ear, the sleek black hair, the sexy gleam in his midnight eyes, made him seem more maverick than medic.

No, he wasn’t an ordinary doctor by any stretch of the imagination—even Miranda’s very vivid imagination.

Nor was he an ordinary man.

Dr. Richard Jansen was not only Miranda’s first official boss, he was also her first official lover.

Dear Reader,

As we celebrate Silhouette’s 20 thanniversary year as a romance publisher, we invite you to welcome in the fall season with our latest six powerful, passionate, provocative love stories from Silhouette Desire!

In September’s MAN OF THE MONTH, fabulous Peggy Moreland offers a Slow Waltz Across Texas. In order to win his wife back, a rugged Texas cowboy must learn to let love into his heart. Popular author Jennifer Greene delivers a special treat for you with Rock Solid, which is part of the highly sensual Desire promotion, BODY & SOUL.

Maureen Child’s exciting miniseries, BACHELOR BATTALION, continues with The Next Santini Bride, a responsible single mom who cuts loose with a handsome Marine. The next installment of the provocative Desire miniseries FORTUNE’S CHILDREN: THE GROOMS is Mail-Order Cinderella by Kathryn Jensen, in which a plain-Jane librarian seeks a husband through a matchmaking service and winds up with a Fortune! Ryanne Corey returns to Desire with a Lady with a Past, whose true love woos her with a chocolate picnic. And a nurse loses her virginity to a doctor in a night of passion, only to find out the next day that her lover is her new boss, in Doctor for Keeps by Kristi Gold.

Be sure to indulge yourself this autumn by reading all six of these tantalizing titles from Silhouette Desire!

Enjoy!

Joan Marlow Golan

Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire

www.millsandboon.co.uk

To my editor, Jennifer Walsh,

for her wonderful insight and thoughtful guidance.

To my agent, Pattie Steele-Perkins,

for her unwavering patience and welcome support.

And to Kristen, whose wisdom and talent

belie her youth—

“Una mujer que conoce bien los conejos.”

began her romance writing career at the tender age of twelve when she and her sister spun romantic yarns involving a childhood friend and a popular talk-show host. Since that time, she’s given up celebrity heroes for her favorite types of men, doctors and cowboys, since her husband is both. An avid sports fan, she attends football and baseball games in her spare time. She resides on a small ranch in central Texas with her three children and retired neurosurgeon husband, along with various livestock ranging from Texas longhorn cattle to spoiled yet talented equines. At one time, she competed in regional and national Appaloosa horse shows as a non-pro, but gave up riding for writing and turned the “reins” over to her youngest daughter. She attributes much of her success to her sister, Kim, who encouraged her in her writing, even during the tough times. When she’s not in her office writing her current book, she’s dreaming about it.

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Epilogue

The soothing sound of a saxophone caressed Miranda Brooks like a lover’s touch as she lay beneath a diamond-studded sky. The sweet scent of freshly mown grass rode in on the warm night breeze, teasing her senses and filling her with euphoria.

Sinking farther into the cushioned poolside chaise, she closed her eyes and let the music lull her into an erotic fantasy. A place where she could conjure up the perfect lover, in the perfect setting, at the perfect time….

“Knock that racket off!” someone yelled from an upper-level apartment.

With a grating squeak, the music stopped. Miranda’s eyes shot open, and she braced herself upright on bent elbows. She surveyed the apartment pool deck but found it as deserted as before, exactly why she’d come here. It seemed she hadn’t been alone after all, and the music hadn’t been electronically reproduced, as she’d first believed. Which meant someone had been serenading her, either unaware or intentionally.

She looked through the wide metal bars surrounding the pool, scanning the area for signs of the mystery musician.

Then she saw him.

Silhouetted in an open apartment door only a few feet away, he was more shadow than real, more mystical than man. He seemed to be staring at her, although she couldn’t quite see his eyes. But she could feel his gaze linger over her as his music had only moments before.

He moved beneath the faint yellow glow of a porch light, the saxophone poised in one hand, causing Miranda’s pulse to stutter. He appeared to be not much over six feet tall, yet his overwhelming presence commanded attention. Still, she couldn’t make out his features unless he came closer. Not likely that would happen, no matter how hard she wished for it.

Miranda sank back into the chair thinking she should probably leave. But she couldn’t. Not yet. Not until she caught another glimpse, just one more glimpse. Then she would go.

The steady sound of footsteps and the creak of the wrought-iron gate pierced the silence. Miranda squeezed her eyes shut again. The sheer thrill of seeing him kept her immobilized, and she waited.

“Are you okay?” he asked in a voice deep as the deadliest sin.

Miranda slowly opened her eyes to a gaze so dark it walked hand in hand with midnight and a face so striking it shamed the stars. His raven hair was sensually mussed, an unruly lock resting against his forehead, as if moments before he’d left his bed, or a woman’s arms. The single gold loop dangling from the lobe of his left ear twinkled like the stars above him. He wore loose black dress slacks and a tailored white shirt with the sleeves rolled up and the first two buttons undone.

A fantasy come to life.

He looked altogether dangerous. Seductively dangerous.

Miranda inched up, tugging her short floral skirt down as she went. “I’m fine. Why do you ask?”

Much to Miranda’s surprise, he pulled a nearby deck chair alongside the chaise, as if he’d been invited to sit, and rested his sax against one leg. “You were so still, and you’re wearing your street clothes. I thought maybe you’d passed out from too much sun.”

“What sun?”

He smiled an alabaster smile and looked up at the inky sky. The moon hovering above them had nothing on his luminescent grin. “You’re right. I believe the sun’s left us.” He brought his dark eyes back to hers. “Then from too much tequila, maybe?”

She tried to look appropriately incensed, a difficult task considering his sensuous smile. “Do I look drunk?”

“No, but looks can be deceptive.” He winked. “Even angels toss back a few now and then.”

Miranda’s face flooded with heat, both from the compliment and his assumption she might be intoxicated. “I assure you I’m quite sober, Mr…?”

He thrust his hand toward her. “Just Rick.”

After a moment’s hesitation, she took his hand, and as she had suspected, his grip was sturdy, his large palm sporting a callus. Imperfections on a man were deemed sexy. But on a woman…