Playing Doctor by Jan Meredith Page A

The thought barely crossed his mind before another followed—it wasn’t him she was rejecting, but he was the man she was turning away.
    The unfairness of it drove his anger up. He could handle the anger, welcomed it even. It was mild compared to the other emotion roiling through him that threatened to lay him low. That she would compare him to the man who had abused her, judge and sentence him for a crime imposed on her by another man wounded him to the bone.
    “I’m not him, Beth. I would never intentionally cause you harm.” If he felt some small token of satisfaction at the shame that lit her lovely face, then so be it.
    Gabe rose from the bed and dressed. She sat cross-legged, her fingers plucking at the sheet pulled over her breasts. Her eyes followed him as he crossed to her, bent down, and took her chin in his hand. He took her mouth again, roughly at first, surprised at how badly he wanted, needed that one last taste of her. He lingered there, rested his forehead against hers. “Thank you for last night—for everything.”
    Her eyes filled. “Thank you .”
    He took a breath, blew it out. “So, there’s nothing I can say to change your mind?”
    Beth’s eyes drifted shut. A small, shaky breath passed her lips. For a moment Gabe thought, hoped , she was having second thoughts, but then she looked up and shook her head. “No.”
    Seconds ticked by, then he nodded, turned from the bed, from her, and walked to the desk. Beth’s paperwork lay there, waiting for her attention. He reached down, ran his finger over the letterhead on the staffing schedule, and glanced at the résumés as bits of their earlier conversation played back in his head.
    “This is my cell.” He picked up the pen lying beside her laptop, scribbled the number on a Post-it note and stuck it to her laptop. “If you change your mind.” He went to the door, turned the knob, and glanced over his shoulder. “Beth…change your mind.”
    The door closed behind him with a quiet click . The weight of a new burden settled across Gabe’s shoulders as he made his way down the corridor to the elevator. He knew without a doubt he was walking away from the best thing that had happened to him in a long time, and he’d just made the biggest mistake of his life. Knowing it was irrelevant—he’d done all he could. It was up to Beth now.
    …
    Clutching the sheet to her chest, Beth watched Gabe walk out the door. The soft snick as it closed behind him echoed in the room like a cannon blast. The fragile hold she’d managed to maintain on her control slipped and she fell back on the pillows, staring up at the ceiling as Gabe’s scent rose from the bed and surrounded her.
    What have I done?
    The right thing—the only thing I could do.
    Swallowing the lump that formed in her throat, Beth rolled onto her side. She pulled the covers around her and breathed in his scent, wrapping herself in a cocoon of uncertainty. She had been close, so very close, to saying yes, but she needed time. It was all so new, so fresh, too soon after their night together, while her defenses were down and her body thrummed from his loving, to commit to seeing him again. She needed some distance to gather her thoughts, get back on an even keel.
    She had hurt him with that comment about Jamie. She hadn’t meant it to be a comparison, but the flicker of anguish in Gabe’s eyes…she may as well have dealt him a physical blow. How could she have caused such a gentle man pain? That wasn’t supposed to happen. One night, then go their separate ways—that had been the plan.
    Proof enough that she had nothing to give.
    Will I ever be able to give myself completely to any man?
    You’ll never know unless you try, the annoying voice of reason taunted.
    A knock sounded at the door and a faceless voice called out, “Room service!” Beth’s stomach roiled at the thought of eating. She let him knock again and then heard him walk away. Maybe someone would stop him, take it to their