Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 67644 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 338(@200wpm)___ 271(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67644 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 338(@200wpm)___ 271(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
4
Autumn
I was supposed to meet Drew in the lobby in less than five minutes, and I was second-guessing my decision big time. It wasn’t that I wasn’t ready to head down since I’d already changed out of my boring khaki dress pants and button-down blouse that I’d worn all day for my conference. I hadn’t brought anything date-worthy with me on this trip since it was supposed to be all business. Luckily, I had my favorite pair of jeans and a cute top that I’d packed for the trip home. It was the shoes that saved the outfit. The kick ass pair of heels notched it up from super casual to worthy of a first date in Vegas, as long as we didn’t go anywhere too fancy.
But the clothes situation wasn’t the reason for my hesitation. It was Drew and my reaction to him. He had me acting completely out of character. I couldn’t believe I agreed to meet him for dinner in the first place, but I’d been overwhelmed with disappointment when I’d realized it was too late to do anything other than go up to bed last night. Alone. And, I’d done some serious imagining of what would’ve happened if I’d asked him to join me in my room...which was another example of me not acting like myself. And then there was the fact that I’d seriously considered skipping out on one of my workshop sessions this afternoon to go shopping for a different outfit.
I’d been laser focused on my goals for a long while—undergrad, med school, residency. Guys didn’t interfere with that. Period. And yet here I was, skipping out on a networking opportunity to go on a date with Drew after thoughts of him had wreaked havoc on my concentration all day long. But I knew Bailey would ask me for details about my trip and if I told her about Drew after bailing on the date, she’d talk her husband into driving her and the kids from Nebraska to LA just so she could kick my ass.
“So I don’t really have a choice,” I muttered as I grabbed the handle to my hotel room door and wrenched it open. Although it was true, I was rationalizing the decision I wanted to make anyway...and that was fine by me since it meant I’d spend time with Drew.
Decision made, I was relieved to spot Drew as soon as the elevator doors opened on the bottom floor. Even more so when his attention landed on me and his blue eyes darkened a shade as his fingers stopped playing with a poker chip and slipped it onto his pocket. Then he strode purposefully towards me while I walked towards the lobby.
“I was starting to wonder if you’d changed your mind.”
I almost had, but it’s not like there was any way for him to know that. “I’m right on time.”
He tapped the face of what looked like a super expensive watch. Whatever he did for the casino must pay well. “You’re thirty-five seconds late, sunshine.”
“Thirty-five seconds?” I sputtered. He sounded worse than the Chief Resident had been about timeliness during my first year of residency. “That’s not even a thing.”
“It is when you haven’t been able to get the most gorgeous woman you’ve ever met off your mind all night and day.” The deep rasp of his words sent a shiver down my spine, and goosebumps broke out on my skin when he bent his head to brush his lips across my cheek. His hand went to my waist, and the heat of it burned through my top. “I’ve been kicking my own ass for letting you walk away from me, even though I got you to agree to dinner.”
Considering how much time I’d spent thinking about him today, I was incredibly touched by his admission. It meant I wasn’t alone in what I was feeling. My relief prompted me to confess, “I spent an awful lot of my day thinking about you, too. It’s a good thing the conference offers recordings of the workshops since I wasn’t paying attention like I should’ve been.”
“Recordings?” His hand slid from my waist to my lower back as he guided me around the corner to an elevator that stood by itself. He slid a key card into a slot to the right of the doors, and they opened. When they closed behind us, he pressed the top button before tugging me into his side. “Now that I know they’re an option and your mind is on me instead of your conference, I’m going to push hard for you to skip out on work and explore Vegas with me instead.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “I don’t let men interfere with what I want to accomplish as a doctor.”
“I’m not just any man.” His hold on me tightened. “And I refuse to spend even a second thinking about how you might’ve been with anyone else. Not when I set this up so I have you all to myself.”