Dreams & Desires. Kat Cantrell

didn’t seem to have a comeback for that, but her inner struggle was written all over her face.

      “You do what you need to do,” he told her. “But as long as we’re involved, I’m not going to date, or have any sort of physical relationship with anyone else.”

      She looked as if she might cry, or barf. As if she didn’t know how to feel. And all she managed was a shaky, “O-okay.”

      He tugged her back into his arms with no resistance and tipped her chin up so he could look into her eyes. “That’s a promise, sweetheart.”

      Something dark flashed in her eyes. “In my experience men have a very limited grasp on the concept of a promise.”

      “Sounds like you’ve been hanging around the wrong kind of men.”

      Clearly he’d hit a sore spot. She untangled herself from his arms and said, “This is not the time or the place to get into this. I have to get back to work. If anyone asks, we’re discussing Janey—I mean, Madeline’s case. Finishing up paperwork or something.”

      He nodded. “As you wish.”

      After she left, he took a seat at his desk. Boy, had he hit a nerve.

      Luc popped his head in a second later. “Hey, have you got a minute?”

      “Sure, what’s up?”

      He flopped down in the chair opposite Parker and propped his feet up on the desk. “I haven’t seen you in a few days so I wasn’t able to congratulate you on solving the mystery.”

      Mystery? Had he somehow figured out that Parker and Clare were intimate?

      He decided to play dumb. “I’m not sure what you mean.”

      Luc looked at him as if he was an idiot. “Madeline. I hear that she’s getting better.”

      Oh, that mystery. “Twin-to-twin transfusion,” he said with a shrug. “Who knew?”

      “Was that Clare I just saw leaving your office?”

      “We were discussing a patient,” he said.

      “I also heard you were at the diner with her the other night. Sounds as if you’re wearing her down.”

      It took a second for Parker to realize that Luc was referring to their bet. Parker had completely forgotten about it. What seemed like an innocent joke then could have real repercussions for his relationship with Clare if she ever caught wind of it.

      “Actually I haven’t made any progress at all. And I’m thinking I’m just wasting my time.”

      “You might want to rethink that,” Luc said. “I mentioned our bet to Bruce Marsh in Radiology and he wanted in. He must have told someone, and they must have told someone else. Last night I heard a member mention it at the club.”

      Suddenly Parker was the one who felt like barfing. And he couldn’t even get angry because it wasn’t unusual for their little bets to make the rounds of their fellow doctors. To have this one running rampant through the hospital was bad enough. Now that it was out in public, God only knew who would get wind of it.

      What the hell had he done?

      “I’m clearly not getting anywhere with her, so let’s just call you the winner and be done with it,” he told Luc.

      Luc frowned. “It’s not like you to give up so easily. Is there something you’re not telling me?”

      He wrestled with his options. If he told Luc the truth he would be breaking a promise to Clare, but if he didn’t he could find himself in the hot seat.

      Breaking a promise to Clare to save himself? Really? That sounded like something his father would do. There had to be a better way.

      “The truth is, I’ve started seeing someone,” he told Luc, sticking as close to the truth as possible. “She works here at the hospital and wants to keep the relationship quiet while we see where this goes.”

      His curiosity piqued, Luc asked, “Is it someone I know?”

      “Maybe. Maybe not. But I have strong feelings for this woman, and if she hears about the bet she might take it the wrong way.”

      “I see what you mean,” Luc said. “I’m sorry, Parker. I’ll see what I can do to make this discreetly go away, but it seems to have taken on a life of its own.”

      Parker felt sick to his stomach. How the hell had he gotten himself in this mess? What had he been thinking? Innocent bet or not it had been sexist and chauvinistic. That was exactly the person he’d been struggling not to be. There was a time when he saw women as playthings...as an interesting and pleasurable way to pass the time. And while he’d never been openly or deliberately disrespectful to any member of the opposite sex, his actions spoke for themselves.

      If Luc couldn’t get a handle on this, Parker would have no choice but to fess up to Clare and take his lumps. Even if that meant losing her.

       Ten

      As promised Violet picked Clare up on the way to Priceless.

      It was currently housed in a giant renovated red barn in the Courtyard, the growing artist’s community on the outskirts of town. Clare used to be a regular shopper in the antiques store when it was located downtown, but it had been devastated by the tornado. Since Raina had changed locations, Clare never seemed to get out that way often enough. Seeing all of the amazing stock up front in the shop as Raina led them back to the workshop was motivating Clare to come back very soon.

      Violet had been quiet for most of the drive there, which was very unusual for her. She was one of the spunkiest women Clare knew. And weirdly enough, Clare, who was usually the quiet type, couldn’t seem to stop talking. She felt all bubbly and excited inside, while at the same time questioning her own sanity.

      Exclusive, my ass. How could the hospital playboy make such an outrageous claim? She was betting that he’d never even been in a committed relationship. Now he wanted one with her? They didn’t even...match. He should be with someone like Grace. Someone as beautiful as he was.

      Once they were inside the building under the bright studio lights, Clare realized that Violet didn’t look so good. Her skin looked especially pale against her thick auburn hair, and Clare could swear she was a little thinner than the last time she saw her.

      When the class was under way, she leaned close to Violet. “Are you feeling okay? You look a little green.”

      The minute the words were out she realized that Parker had said nearly the exact same thing to her earlier today. Oh, great, he was beginning to rub off on her.

      “I don’t know what’s wrong,” Violet said, sipping gingerly on the water bottle she’d brought to class. “I’ll be fine for a while, then get this weird overwhelming nausea. It must be some sort of virus.”

      It didn’t sound like a virus to Clare. “When do you seem to feel sick the most?”

      “I wake up feeling pretty lousy every day, and though I’m starving all the time, if I eat I can barely hold it down. I’ve been really tired, too.”

      Clare made her voice even lower and asked, “Is there any possibility that you’re pregnant?”

      Violet sucked in a breath and a myriad of emotions flashed across her face. Shock, fear, confusion. Then she shook her head and said, “No, that can’t be it. I’m not even seeing anyone.”

      “Are you sure, because early prenatal care—”

      “That’s not it,” she insisted. “It’s just a virus or a parasite or something. I’ll be fine.”

      Clare let it go, but a few minutes later, as she snapped a piece of glass in the wrong place, Violet nudged her with her elbow and whispered,