Bachelor at Her Bidding (Bachelor Auction Book 2) by Kate Hardy Page A

a plate containing more of the gorgeous macarons.
    And he was still naked.
    Rachel had a nasty moment when she thought, what if my blind was open and someone outside had seen him? But her kitchen windows were above waist height. Even so, would anyone make the connection and start gossiping? She’d hated all the gossip at the hospital when her marriage to Nick had collapsed, and she didn’t want to have to go through all that again.
    “You’re panicking,” he said softly.
    She nodded. “You just made coffee in my kitchen, without so much as a stitch of clothing on. Anyone looking in could’ve seen you.”
    “I guess I could’ve worn an apron.” He shrugged. “Though I didn’t bring one with me and I’m guessing that, as you’re not into cooking, you don’t have one either.”
    The little quirk in his mouth was irresistible and made her smile back, despite her awkwardness. “Yeah. Sorry. I guess I’m overreacting.”
    “Just a little.” He sat down on the bed next to her and stroked her face. “Do you want cream or sugar in your coffee?”
    “Cream, because it’s my birthday – otherwise I just take a splash of milk, and never sugar,” she said.
    He smiled at her. “As a doctor I guess you’re supposed to promote healthy eating.”
    “I try.” She took the cup of coffee from him once he’d added cream and sipped it. “This is fabulous. It’s not my coffee, is it?”
    “The instant stuff you made me earlier? Um, no.” He grinned. “I think I might need to teach you a little bit about coffee, Dr. Cassidy.”
    Did that mean they were going to see each other again?
    Or was she hoping for too much?
    Not quite sure what to say next, she ate a macaron. What had just happened between them was amazing, but it shouldn’t have happened. And she didn’t have a clue what ought to happen now. “I – um – Ryan, I…” She took a deep breath. She could do this. She was Dr. Rachel Cassidy, a future pillar of the community in Marietta; she was good with her patients…
    … and not enough for Nick.
    She pushed the words out of her head. “Ryan, this was meant to be just dinner, I feel like a… like a…” She paused. “What do you call a woman who pays for sex?” she asked helplessly.
    “You didn’t pay me to go to bed with you,” he said softly. “That just happened. And you’re right – it shouldn’t have happened. It wasn’t part of the deal.”
    “I’m no good at relationships,” she said miserably. “I’m divorced – though I probably don’t need to tell you that. You’ve probably already heard it from someone in town.”
    “Yeah, I have,” he admitted.
    Hopefully nobody in Marietta knew the whole reason why she was divorced; she’d just said that it hadn’t worked out and changed the subject if anyone asked further. Her family and closest friends knew that Nick had cheated on her, but she knew they wouldn’t spread the gossip. Though she hadn’t quite been able to tell them the full story, because she felt too awkward and ashamed about what had happened.
    The day she’d come home early from work.
    Nick had been there – his shoes were in the hallway – and there was another pair of shoes kicked off next to them. Women’s shoes. Not Rachel’s.
    Maybe a colleague had popped in to see him. Or a neighbor. A friend.
    But deep down inside she’d known.
    She’d heard the noises coming from the bedroom. And, unable to stop herself, she’d pushed the door open.
    Nick had been lying there on their bed, gripping the wrought iron headboard and grunting in pleasure. And another woman – a woman with lush curves, so very different to Rachel’s own slender frame – had been straddling his naked body, bouncing up and down on him and crying out equally loudly.
    They’d been making too much noise to hear her.
    Hurt, betrayed and angry, she’d slammed the door. Hard. She hadn’t even been able to pack, because her clothes were in the wardrobe opposite the bed. Their