someone she hardly knew?
She remembered the delicious excitement that night of leaving with the mysterious stranger. She remembered her thoughts about destiny. She remembered her thought, Who would ever know? Melissa groaned. Once. Just once in her life she’d thrown caution to the wind and acted on her instincts. Everything about that night had been magical. So much so that when she’d woken in the morning she’d picked up her clothes and crept out, reluctant to do anything to break the spell from the night before. But at work she was sensible Melissa. Reliable, dependable and good at her job, not the bumbling, distracted idiot she’d felt like today. She wanted to keep her personal and professional lives separate. She was going to have to speak to him. There really wasn’t any way around this.
She lifted her head at the slowing footsteps approaching her. Missy was startled. He was the absolute last person she expected to see right now.
He slowed his jog and walked the last couple of steps towards her in his navy jogging shorts and T-shirt. No other clothes could showcase his muscled legs so perfectly. A wicked thought filled her mind and instantly a smile danced across her lips as he thumped down next to her.
She leaned back against the steps. ‘So, Dr Roberts, what can I do for you?’ The mixed scent of his sweat and cologne instantly invaded her senses, making her head swim with memories of their night together.
That was it. That was what he’d loved about her. That had been the attraction—the fact she wasn’t afraid to say whatever was on her sassy mind. He leaned back against the steps next to her, ‘Well, Sister Bell, I’m not quite sure,’ he said. ‘We seem to have got ourselves into a bit of a predicament.’
He turned towards her, his face only inches from hers. And then she saw them, those chocolate eyes again. Those deep eyes. The type that drew you in and made you forget who you were and where you were. The same eyes that had mesmerised her on that long, hot night together.
‘You’re a distraction,’ she said.
‘What?’
He flinched backwards and drew his gaze away from hers and she blinked twice. Apparently she was the only person caught in the memory.
‘You distracted me at work today, Cooper. It’s really difficult to be in a confined space with someone you last saw naked.’
He raised an eyebrow at her candour. ‘Get straight to the point, why don’t you?’
‘It needs to be said.’ Her fingers twiddled with a lock of her hair. She was trying to appear cool and casual. ‘I felt as if I couldn’t concentrate at work today and that’s not me. I’m very good at my job.’
He nodded thoughtfully. ‘I’m sure you are.’ He ran his hand through his hair, catching the big brown strand that fell over his eyes. He looked sideways at her and gave a grin. ‘I’d hate to be responsible for your mind not being on your work.’
There it was again, that sexual tension that seemed to spring up whenever they were near each other. There was silence between them for a second as his words hung in the air. Did he really need a distraction at work? No, he didn’t. What he needed was to take some time to settle into his new position and find his feet again. His eyes darted around the empty jogging track. If he didn’t look at her then he couldn’t think illicit thoughts. He struggled to find the words he felt he had to say. ‘This is probably a bit awkward for us both.’
Melissa groaned. She raised her hand in disgust. ‘Please don’t give me the speech.’
This time his eyes did meet hers, and his brow furrowed in confusion.
‘What do you mean—the speech?’
She shook her head. ‘I’m too old for all this. It’s more than a little awkward. I asked you what you did for a living. You deliberately skirted the question. Do you think I would have gone home with you if I’d known I was going to spend the next year working with you?’ She was getting annoyed now. Her pent-up frustration from spending the last few hours in the labour suite with him was finally bubbling to the surface.
‘Well, I don’t know, do I?’ he answered calmly. ‘Would it have made a difference?’
Melissa gritted her teeth. What was that supposed to mean? That she would have gone home with him anyway? Did he think she was some kind of tramp?
‘Yes!’ she spat out. ‘I’ve learned from experience that work and pleasure shouldn’t mix.’
Did she really mean that? What she’d learnt from experience was that she, David and work shouldn’t have mixed. Or maybe she just shouldn’t have mixed with David, full stop. But Cooper was someone entirely new. Did she really just want to be his one-night stand? Or did she want something more? Her mind was in such a turmoil of emotions right now she didn’t know what she wanted. But the last thing she needed right now was another work-related romance. Last time around it had been a disaster, with everyone knowing every detail of her life. A private life should be just that—private. She took a deep breath, trying to regain her composure, and lowered her voice. ‘Please tell me you haven’t told all your new colleagues about the woman you picked up in the pub?’
Cooper sat wordlessly. She thought he would do that? He’d come here to tell her that what they’d had had been a mistake. He wanted to concentrate on his new job. A beautiful stranger had seemed like a great way to move back into the land of the living. But a beautiful colleague whom he’d see on a daily basis and would imagine in all sorts of ways would only confuse things for him. His gut twisted with the inevitable realisation that he wasn’t ready for this yet.
His stomach clenched into a tight knot. He lifted up his finger and brushed it momentarily against her cheek. He thought this was what he had wanted too. No complications. To forget all about it. But all of a sudden, as the woman he’d shared the most passionate night of his life with sat beside him, he wasn’t so sure.
‘Of course I haven’t said anything to anyone,’ he said softly. ‘I’m not that kind of guy.’
He heard her let out a huge sigh of relief. ‘Thank you, Cooper,’ she whispered. She saw the hurt expression on his face and gave her shoulders a little shrug. ‘I don’t know you, Cooper, I mean really know you. I had to ask.’ She leaned forward, picking up some of the red asphalt from the running track and letting it run through her fingers. ‘So what happens now?’
He turned to face her. Confusion spread across his face. ‘What do you mean?’
‘Cooper, you came halfway across town to come and speak to me.’ She put her red-tinged fingers on his arm. ‘What is it you want to say?’
Her heart was thumping in her chest. She knew what she wanted him to say, but from the expression on his face she knew he would never say it.
He bit his lip. He hated this. He wasn’t even sure how to say it. Maybe if he’d been here a few months and had met her at work, maybe if he’d been six months down the line and had met her in the pub, it would be different, but right now it just didn’t feel right and he had to tell her. ‘I’m not looking for a relationship right now.’
The words came out rapidly and for some horrible reason it had an effect on her that she hadn’t expected. It hurt. She’d been taught a valuable lesson years ago when her father had left her mother for another woman, and she’d spent months watching her mother break down. With that and David, she’d
