Hockey Holidays Read online

  “Not at all.” I straightened, satisfied all was in order. “It’s clear you’re a very talented hockey player.”

  “Thank you.”

  His legs were still touching the outer curve of mine. Solid and strong, it wasn’t unpleasant.

  “I was hoping to impress you,” he said.

  “And why is that?”

  “You came to my rescue.” He set one hand on my waist, gently, and leaned close again. “When I hit the ice, it was you who was there when I came round.”

  Warmth from his palm penetrated my clothes and onto my skin. I stared at his handsome face, his cute smile, and then his stunning eyes I’d just been up close and personal with.

  “It’s my job,” I managed.

  “I get that, but still…you’re prettier than our usual medic.”

  “Your usual medic is my brother.” I flicked off my torch and stepped away. “Twin brother.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “Ben is your twin?”

  “Yes.” I set the torch on the table and picked up the reflex hammer. “And because he’s on his honeymoon in”

  “South Africa, with Lisa. It was a bummer I couldn’t make their wedding. I hope they’re having an awesome time on safari. Have you heard from them?”

  I was surprised how much he knew about Ben. “Er, yes, not long ago. They’re having a great time.”

  “Good, they deserve it. Hey!”

  “Keep still.” I tapped his knee again.

  He chuckled. “Now what are you doing?”

  “Just checking…” I didn’t bother to explain; instead, I quickly checked his opposite patellar reflex. They were both fine.

  “And you don’t have a headache?”

  “Nope. No headache.” He stood, unfolding to his full height and towered over me.

  I looked from the hollow of his throat up at his face. “Any odd symptoms?” Why had the question sounded silly when I’d asked it a thousand times to a thousand different patients?

  “Sweetpea.” He set his hands on his hips, just over the roll of the towel. “Not that I’m complaining about your thoroughness, but do I look as if there’s anything wrong with me?”

  I dipped my gaze. His broad bare chest was only inches from mine. My nipples tightened, and a sudden image of being naked and pressed against him filled my mind.

  A flush of heat spread over my cheeks, and a little fizz of anticipation traveled up my spine.

  What are you doing?

  “No, Mr. Walker, you appear in excellent health.” I stepped away and dropped the reflex hammer into my bag. “Though any visual disturbances, headache, or nausea in the next few days should be checked out.”

  “I can do that, but I have another idea.”

  “What’s that?” I snapped my bag shut and turned to him.

  I caught my breath, surprised by how close he was. He’d moved quickly across the room.

  “You could be my personal medic. Stick with me and I’ll keep you informed of how I’m feeling on a minute to minute basis.”

  I raised my eyebrows, wondering what line he was going to come out with next.

  His sensual mouth curved into a smile. “Like literally, I’d tell you anything that crosses my mind.”

  “I’m not sure I’d want to know.”

  He laughed. “Seriously, how about that drink upstairs? It’ll be a good atmosphere.” He paused. “And it is Christmas.”

  “It’s not Christmas yet, and I have to be at the hospital early in the morning. I need to get home.”

  “Ah, the old ‘early start’ excuse.”

  “It’s not an excuse. I have to be in surgery at eight a.m. to perform a triple heart bypass on a forty-one-year-old who’s had a bunch of bad luck with his coronary arteries.”

  “Damn.” He scraped his hand through his hair, exposing dark underarm tufts. “That’s rough.”

  “It is, but hopefully I’ll be able to stop life being quite so rough for him in the future.” I stepped away. “It was nice meeting you, Mr. Walker.”

  “Nathan. Call me Nathan.”

  I paused and glanced over my shoulder.

  He was looking at my ass.

  “Goodnight, Mr. Walker.”

  Chapter Three

  “Dr. Delaney, you’ve had a delivery.” My PA, Nicola, stood from behind her desk as I arrived at the surgical office suite.

  “I have?” Snapping the facemask from my neck, I tapped the bin with my toe and dropped it under the lid. “Thanks for coming in today, by the way, I really appreciate it.”

  “No problem. Saturday’s are all about sport in our family, so I’m happy to leave the boys to it.”

  “It’s a great help. The admin seems to be overflowing lately.” I paused. “Is the delivery the medical research papers I’ve been waiting for?”

  “No.” She shook her head. “Definitely not research papers. Something else.” She grinned.

  “What then?” I wasn’t in the mood for guessing games. I’d spent six hours repairing a heart that had been stubborn about restarting, pushing even my normally unwavering nerves to breaking point. Finally it had, though, and the new vessels had filled well, the cardiac wall pinking up and beating strong.

  “Go and look.” She rubbed her hands together.

  I didn’t reply; instead, I strode into my office, my mind full of all the things I had to do.

  I was still wearing scrubs but I was hot, so the cool air-conditioning was welcome and I’d been looking forward to it. What I hadn’t expected was a huge bunch of white orchids amongst long black fronds on the middle of my desk. The display was so big it was blocking out the view of the Orlando skyline through the window and had completely hidden my leather chair—a birthday present from Ben. “What the…?”

  “Aren’t they gorgeous?” Nicola was at my side. “Came about an hour ago.”

  “Who from?”

  “I don’t know. I’m your PA, it’s not my place to open small silver envelopes arriving with flowers…at least not flowers like that!”

  “Envelope?” I spotted the card with the flowers. It stuck upward on a stick. Plucking it off, I quickly opened it. “Probably a grateful patient.”

  “A rich patient.” Nicola was at my shoulder.

  “Is there such a thing after the medical bills from here?”

  “True.”

  I pulled out the card.

  You missed a good party last night, sweetpea.

  Call me. We’ll have our own.

  897657648876

  Nathan W.

  I re-read it, then read it again. The nerve of the man!

  We’ll have our own.

  “Nathan W?” Nicola said, looking over my shoulder then pretending to be interested in straightening a stem. “Who’s that then?”

  “It’s a guy from last night, at the hockey game I covered for Ben.”

  “In the crowd?”

  “No, one of the players.”

  “Nathan W…” She rose her eyebrows, and her mouth fell open for a moment. “Nathan Walker. The Flash. Damn, he’s hot, girl!”

  I laughed at her slip from normal professionalism. “He banged his head. I had to check him out.”

  “I hope you did more than feel his skull.” Her cheeks turned crimson. “I’m sorry…that was out of line.”

  I laughed. “Don’t worry about it.” The moment of humor was a relief in an otherwise fraught day. “He was fine as it happened. But…”

  “But you made an impression on him. And let me tell you, there’s uglier guys in the league to make an impression on.”

  “That might be the case. But to quote my brother, he’s trouble.”

  “Yeah, red-hot trouble.” She grinned and squeezed my forearm. “And not likely to give up until you call that number.”

  “As if I have the time.”

  “Sophie…” She paused. Normally she’d call me Doctor Delaney. “It’s good to have a bit of fun after a long day. You know, de-stress.”

  “Are you suggest