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I pulled her closer, and our lips finally met. The soft touch of her mouth made me delirious. I ran my hands all over her back, and she tousled my hair, gently tugging on the strands. Her hands then traveled over my scrub shirt, tracing the outline of my back through the fabric. She was killing me softly, slowly.

“Olive,” I murmured in between kisses.

“Don’t stop,” she whispered. “Please, never stop kissing me like this.”

My heart was about to explode. I looked into her eyes, and she giggled. I smiled back at her, then went for another taste of her lips.

This felt so wrong and yet so good at the same time. I’d never felt this with Sue. I’d never felt this with anyone, for that matter.

I let my hands travel up her arms. She let out a soft moan, and her voice only spurred me on. But then the sound of a phone call filling the clinic begged for our attention.

She pulled back, looking all startled and flushed.

“Leave it,” I said. “Let it ring.”

She shook her head. “It could be important.”

She was right. I was still on call, which meant I couldn’t exactly ignore the phone. We let go of each other, both looking like we’d just come back to Earth after a long voyage out in space.

“I’ll be right back,” Olive said in a husky voice. She blushed and tried to smooth her hair before disappearing into the hallway. She was so adorable, it almost hurt.

I took a few deep breaths and tried to come back to my senses. I walked over to the sink in the recovery room and splashed cold water in my face. I needed to get a grip. What had I done? Why had I let myself get carried away like that?

Olive popped her head back inside. “It’s Justin. He wants to know if he can get an update on Beau’s condition. His wife is worried sick as well. Apparently, she’s pregnant, and he’s afraid the stress will harm the baby.”

I nodded. “Of course, I understand. I’ll take the call in my office. Do you mind staying here and keeping an eye on Beau? I know he’s sleeping, but I don’t want to take any chances.”

She nodded before heading back to the reception desk to transfer the call.

I had taken enough risks already today. I just hoped neither of us would regret it later. I sure didn’t, even though I had no clue what to do or expect next.

Chapter Sixteen

Olive

Lewis shut his office door behind him, and I slid myself onto a chair. Archie stirred in his sleep, his paws twitching.

I smiled as I touched my lips with my fingers. The same lips Lewis had just kissed. Gah, it had been so amazing. But now what?

That’s the thing with crossing a line with your boss. It probably gets awkward after the fact, and you still have to work together. I couldn’t even blame him if he told me it was all a big mistake because he had told me to stop. He had told me he didn’t want to date a coworker.

But if all of that was true, then why did those kisses feel so good? There had been a passion in the room that I’d never experienced before. Stefano had definitely never managed to stir those feelings up inside of me. The chemistry we used to share didn’t come close to what I had just experienced. Heck, even calling it chemistry with my ex-boyfriend stretched it too far.

Stefano was like a dry sandwich, and Lewis a giant cinnamon roll. Stefano was like a salad, and Lewis a complete meal with extra fries on the side. Yeah, that was it. Lewis was exciting and fresh, whereas Stefano was bland and safe. Not to mention the lame move he’d pulled with chickening out on our relationship.

A feeling of dread crept over me. What if Lewis flaked out out as well? I didn’t feel like finding out. Maybe it would be better to ignore everything that had happened between us.

I sighed.As if. I had fallen under the same ‘Lewis effect’ the rest of the town’s women had seemed to succumb to.

With one difference. He had kissed none of them, and all of me. I grinned, thinking back to how his hands had caressed me. Could a guy like Lewis truly like someone like me? Someone with weird passions like tarot card readings for dogs? Or had it been nothing but a temporary bout of lust?

I decided to remain professional and not talk about it for the rest of the night. I’d pretend to catch up on some paperwork, then go home and obsess about what this all meant without Lewis around. That sounded fair, no? He had Beau to focus on after all. The last thing I wanted was to jeopardize his patient’s health.

Five minutes later, Lewis appeared at my desk.

“Everything okay?” I asked.

He nodded. “Yeah. I told Justin Beau is doing well, considering the circumstances.”