From Doctor...to Daddy by Karen Rose Smith Page B

beautiful woman.”
    â€œThank you,” she murmured, still looking up at him.
    â€œI’ve wanted to kiss you since the first time I saw you.”
    â€œDillon, we shouldn’t even consider a kiss.”
    â€œ You kissed me, ” he teased.
    â€œThat was just a thank-you kiss,” she whispered.
    â€œMaybe this could just be a thank-you kiss.”
    He really intended the kiss to be short and light and simple. But when his mouth settled on hers, when his heat ignited hers, it became more than a thank-you, more than short, much more than simple.
    Her arms twined around his neck and he embraced her tighter. His mouth opened over hers and she responded in kind. She tasted so good, and she responded so passionately that his blood heated. He was more aroused than he’d been in years.
    Then in a flashing instant, he felt the change. Her response came to a halt. He knew exactly what was going to happen. When he released his hold on Erika, she pulled out of his arms.
    â€œI never should have done that,” she murmured, her hand over her mouth. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”
    â€œYou weren’t thinking, and neither was I.”
    She was shaking her head. “I can’t get involved. I have Emilia to think of. I never should have kissed you.”
    He could see the panic in her eyes. The desire that had risen up in him when he’d taken her into his armshad rattled him, too. “Erika, it’s okay. It was only a kiss.”
    â€œOnly a kiss,” she agreed, looking over his shoulder and a little less panicked. “I hope no one saw us,” she murmured.
    That made him frown. He wasn’t ashamed of being with her. They hadn’t done anything wrong.
    But before he could put those thoughts into words, Erika stepped farther away. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
    The next moment she was running for her car, hopping inside, starting the engine. As she drove away, Dillon knew that taking advantage of her friendly kiss had been the wrong thing to do.

Chapter Four
    A ll morning Erika had sat at her desk, answering the phone, printing guidelines for the stores downtown who were involved in Frontier Days. Still, she couldn’t erase Dillon’s kiss from her mind, or the feel of his lips on hers. Yet she had to try. She’d put so much time and effort and focus into getting her life back on track. She couldn’t let a handsome doctor who was going to leave in a few weeks ruin everything she was building.
    Still, she was curious about him. She wondered why, whenever Dillon was with children, she glimpsed so much sadness in his eyes. Would he ever tell her what that was about? Did she really want him to?
    Entering the three-story main lobby of the resort from the corridor that led to the shops and restaurants, she noticed Dave Lindstrom standing by the life-size elk sculpture near the huge central fireplace. He was speaking with another guest. Crossing the vast lobby to reachthe check-in desk, she was surprised when Dave’s son Jeff approached her, casting a glance at his dad before he asked, “Can I talk to you? Maybe over there?” He pointed to one of the leather sofas that faced away from his father.
    Crossing to the sofa and sitting down, Erika felt a sense of urgency about Jeff. She didn’t know if she should talk to him with the threat of a lawsuit in the air, but his gaze was so beseeching she gave in. She had a few more minutes on her lunch break to spare.
    She smiled at him reassuringly. “What would you like to talk about?”
    He fidgeted with the hem of his T-shirt. “My dad said the chef who made my lunch got fired. And a lawsuit will cost the resort lots and lots of money and more people will get fired. Is that true?”
    Jeff was mature for his age…and bright. The chef had in fact been fired, though she’d sworn she’d been very careful with his salad and his burger that day. Erika