“Then he’s obviously a blind asshole.”
Lucie snorted and shook her head. “You don’t know Stephen. The man has more charm in his pinky than half of Reno. He’s an amazing orthopedic surgeon who always goes the extra mile for his patients. He’s smart, successful, and incredibly handsome. We’re so compatible. I know I could make him happy if he would just give me a chance.”
“So if he’s too dense to make a move, why haven’t you?”
Heat immediately flooded her cheeks, and she lowered her gaze to inspect her intertwined fingers in her lap. “I can’t. I wouldn’t know what to say. And even if I did, and he by some miracle said yes, I…”
“You what?”
“I wouldn’t know what to do,” she whispered.
“Do?” He tried to think what she could mean, but came up empty. Unless…“Lucie, you’ve dated since your divorce, right?”
“This is stupid, Reid, let me down.”
He didn’t budge. “You’ve got to be kidding me. No boyfriends?”
“I have to tell you, Andrews, your incredulity is not making me want to open up to you on this subject in the least, so just let me up and we’ll schedule you another appointment for next week.”
“Okay, okay, I’m sorry,” he said, placing his hands on her upper arms. He winced as fire shot through his shoulder. It hadn’t been his intention to upset her more than she already was. He blinked back the pain. “Hold on, what do you mean ‘next week’? Aren’t we going to have daily sessions at the very least?”
“For the most part, yes. Since it is Friday, we’ll start next week. Besides, you’re not my only patient. I have a full schedule.”
Shit, now what? He needed a hell of a lot more attention than a couple of days a week.
“Maybe you should hire a dedicated PT. You know, someone who can be with you 24/7 to work with you and keep you from overtraining. If you’re anything like I remember, you have no concept of holding back.”
“That’s perfect. That’s exactly what I need. With that type of care I can be cage-ready by fight night.” He stepped back with a satisfied smile and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll send someone over later to pick up you and your things.”
…
She’d already hopped off the table and moved to the desk and now her head whipped around so fast he was worried she’d need her own therapy to repair the whiplash. “What?”
“It only makes sense if you move in with me until I’m healed, Lu. Come on, it’s not like I didn’t practically live at your place when we were younger. Then we can work on my shoulder more often and you can make sure I don’t do anything stupid. And you know I’m guaranteed to do something stupid.”
He watched as she crossed the small room to retrieve his shirt. “Even if the idea of moving in with you for two months didn’t bother me, there’s the little issue of my job.”
“I’ll pay you for your time off, of course. Double if you want—money isn’t a problem.”
She gave him the universal get dressed signal by slapping his shirt against his chest. “You’re absolutely right; money isn’t a problem. I have at least eight weeks of vacation time saved up since I never have a reason to take it. The problem is that the idea is ludicrous!”
Reid had to think quickly or he was going to lose this fight, and something deep down told him to not lose this fight. He needed her to get him where he wanted to be in two months. He was as sure of it as he was his own name. Suddenly the perfect lure came to him, and though the idea gave him equal parts excitement and anxiety, he cast it anyway.
“I’ll teach you how to get your doctor if you do this for me.”
Lucie had been on her way out of the exam room, all but dismissing him and his offer of being roomies, but that simple statement had her feet glued several feet before the threshold. She was hooked, now he just had to reel her in carefully, or he’d lose her and his chances for a rematch. He approached her slowly from behind as he spoke.
“I’ll show you how to act, what to say…everything you need to know to make him notice you. If there’s one thing I know, its women and what they do that turns men on to the point of utter distraction.” Her head turned to the side. Not a big movement, but enough to let him know he had her attention. “You’ll have him eating out of the palm of your hand in no time. I guarantee it.”
Long moments passed in slow motion. His pulse raced in his ears as he waited for her to call him an idiot or storm off in a fit of disgust. That Jackson would skin Reid alive for teaching Lucie anything having to do with seduction should’ve made him think twice about his offer, but he couldn’t bring himself to retract it.