“Not that it’s any of your business, but I agreed to come home and take over for my dad years ago, back when Mr. Commitment didn’t exist. I had no idea that I’d be required to hold my patients’ hands regarding their relationship issues. Believe me, if I’d had any idea, I never would have agreed.”
“Then you need me.”
He crossed his arms across his broad chest again. “Oh, really?” he said, his voice rife with amusement.
She gave a quick nod, unwilling to let his bad attitude back her down. “Really. I have a knack for helping people with problems. Maybe we should make a deal—my relationship expertise in exchange for a partnership.”
He let out a heavy breath and abruptly flipped the file on the counter closed. “No deal, Ms. Williams. I don’t need help with Mr. Commitment that badly.” He straightened and inclined his head. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a patient in a few minutes.” With that, he exited the waiting room through a door in back of the counter, leaving Sunny alone.
And desperate. She’d been counting on this job to prove to herself, and to her parents, that she could make a success doing what she loved. Not to mention that she was dead broke. She needed this job for so many reasons, and she really wanted to stay in Oak Valley and settle down.
The need for the commitment and stability she’d never had growing up still burned inside of her like a smoldering fire, impossible to put out or ignore.
Besides, a pact was a pact.
But one man had torn up her dreams with his highly questionable bedside manner—what a grump!—and my-way-or-the-highway beliefs about healing. Uptight Connor Forbes claimed he didn’t have any use for a partner.
A tight knot formed in her chest. She had to think of a way to change his mind.
Maybe a cup of herbal tea and a bagel were what she needed to maintain an even keel during this unexpected, upsetting crisis. It was a cool morning, even though the sun was shining. Rufus would be fine if she put him in the van for an hour or so, especially since she’d parked in the shade.
With a sigh, she picked up her bag and headed out the door, hoping Oak Valley had a restaurant open for breakfast. She simply needed time to figure out how to deal with Doctor Disagreeable’s rejection.
She laughed humorlessly under her breath, feeling the fool. Her reliable instincts told her there wasn’t enough herbal tea in the world to help her change the stubborn, absolutely annoying man’s mind.
Talk about an awkward situation, Connor thought. Gorgeous female massage therapist/yoga instructor unexpectedly shows up at his father’s behest, expecting to be Connor’s partner, nosing her way into his business. He might want to be her partner in other things—she’d smelled, and looked, really good—and a little feminine companionship sounded great.
But his business partner? No way. Even though he wasn’t the type of guy who wanted to make a pretty girl sad, he’d find a way to live with that.
He shook his head and sat down behind his oak desk. Damn his father for arranging something so outrageous without his approval. It was bad enough Dad was demanding that Connor take the dubious title of Mr. Commitment. Now he was making business deals with medically unqualified people. What was the old guy thinking?
Connor shoved his reading glasses in his lab coat pocket and pushed his irritation with his dad aside in favor of the controlled, professional attitude he always strived for when he was with patients. He proceeded with his day and saw two patients, Margery Leventhal, who had vague stomach complaints that turned out to be simple gas, and Jeb Hornsby, whose gout was acting up.
Connor then took his usual morning break and strolled down the boardwalk to Luella’s Diner for a doughnut and coffee. On the way, he lifted a hand to Lester Parsons and Ozzie Peterson, two retirees who were sitting at their usual morning spot on a bench in front of Jeremiah’s Barber Shop across the street. He smiled at Abigail McNeil, out walking her basset hound, and greeted Frank Osbourne, the local contractor, who was loading his pickup with building supplies outside Truman’s Hardware Store.
Connor shook his head. A man couldn’t burp in Oak Valley without the whole town knowing it. After living in a big city like Seattle, he’d expected to feel stifled here, and that had proven true. He liked the people of Oak Valley well enough, but everyone had always bugged him to loosen up. If things worked out the way he’d planned, he wouldn’t have to stay here forever.
A few minutes later, Connor stepped into Luella’s, enjoying the usual aroma of sizzling bacon, fresh brewed coffee and fried doughnuts. Luella’s place had looked the same since Connor was a kid and his parents had brought him and his siblings here for Sunday breakfast. The quaint eatery boasted rustic tables and booths with high backs, white paper placemats, red-and-white checked curtains and a long counter with worn wooden stools.
As she did every day, Luella’s daughter, Mary-Jean, waved to him from the kitchen, visible through the cutout wall behind the counter. He smiled halfway and waved back. She was always so friendly to him. For the life of him, he couldn’t figure out why—he had said only a handful of words to her.
He noticed Steve McCarthy, an old high school classmate, sitting in a back booth, enjoying a cup of coffee with his sister, Julie, who’d married Bud Whitesell, the owner of the local garage. Connor waved at them and then went to sit in the third booth from the door, his usual spot. He looked forward to a cup of hot coffee and a sinfully fattening doughnut. He’d think about anything but Sunny Williams.
Just as that idea ran through his brain, he saw the subject of his thoughts sitting in his booth, a cup of tea and a half-eaten bagel in front of her, talking animatedly to, of all people, his own sister, Jennifer.
He raised his brows. Sunny had certainly made friends quickly. Obviously, she was the outgoing, friendly type. She would probably fit in with his sociable family perfectly. He gritted his teeth.
Despite the fact that he was irritated she was in his booth, he couldn’t help but appreciate her beautiful skin, delicate bone structure and flashing brown eyes all over again. And her shiny pink lips, pulled into a broad, appealing smile, exposing straight, white teeth, made his insides burn.
He didn’t want his insides burning, knew from experience what kind of failure that always brought about, despite his need to socialize with someone of the female persuasion who wasn’t his mother or his sister. He clenched his jaw tighter, ready to cut out.
Jenny noticed him, smiled and spoke up. “Hey, Connor, have you met Sunny?” She turned to Sunny and gestured to Connor. “This is my brother, Connor.”
Sunny looked up and her smile faded. “Oh, we’ve already met.”
He inclined his head. “Yes, we have, haven’t we?”
Jenny frowned and looked at Sunny. “Didn’t you say you just arrived in town?”
“I did.” Sunny took a sip of tea. “I stopped by your brother’s office first thing.” She put her tea down, smiled and drilled him with her amber-shaded gaze. “We had business, didn’t we, Dr. Forbes?”
He nodded, betting she was going to go into how he’d turned down her bid to be his partner to Jenny, whose mission in life was to take over.
Jennifer looked at him, one blond brow raised. “What kind of business, Connor?” She glanced back at Sunny. “You’re not sick, are
