Page 52 of Protecting What's Mine

She shook her head. “Uh-uh. That’s first date conversation.”

Hell. He was going to fall hard for this woman, and it was going to hurt.

“Okay,” he said. “So burnout comes knocking, and you decide a lifestyle overhaul is necessary.”

“And here I am.” She gestured with her free hand. “Goodbye, Afghanistan. Hello, Benevolence.”

“Trading hot zone trauma medicine for small-town country doctoring,” he summarized.

“Bingo. I couldn’t even stick it out a few more years for retirement. I processed out.”

He tightened his grip on her hand. “And that pisses you off.”

She shot him a small, rueful smile that had him staring at her lips again. “Yes, it does.”

“And you’re more pissed that you couldn’t hold up. You didn’t quit because it was your idea. You had to quit.”

He watched her suck her bottom lip into her mouth.

“It’s okay,” he told her. “You can tell me what I had for breakfast today if you want to.”

“Microwave breakfast burrito,” she said. “It’s less fun now that you know I can see into your place.”

“Speaking of less fun. Those curtains on your bedroom window are awfully thick.”

“Room darkening so I can sleep past dawn.”

“Do you?”

“Nope. Zero-five-thirty on the dot.”

The music on the speakers changed to a slow country number.

“Why fight it?” he asked, pulling her to her feet.

“What are we doing?”

“We’re gonna dance.”

“No one else is dancing,” she said, looking around the patio.

“I’m going to explain my idea to you, but it works better if we’re dancing.”

“Do small-town girls really fall for this shit?” Mack demanded.

He tugged her into his arms. “Big city doctors, too.”

She cocked an eyebrow but let him draw her closer. “Apparently.”

“Get a room, chief!” The same skinny guy in a dirty ball cap from the car on the street last week hooted from a table full of similarly suited softball players.

“Get a vasectomy, Carl,” Linc shot back with a grin.

Carl and his tablemates dissolved into laughter.

“Now, back to my idea.”

“If this idea involves us getting naked together, I’m still interested, but it’s still not going to happen,” she said.