Swept away by a rich man…

THE MILLIONAIRE’S CINDERELLA

Three sensual and exciting stories from

three beloved Mills &Boon authors

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September 2009

The Parks empire: secrets, lies & loves

Featuring

Romancing the Enemy by Laurie Paige Diamonds and Deceptions by Marie Ferrarella The Rich Man’s Son by Judy Duarte

The Millionaire’s Cinderella

Featuring

Renegade Millionaire by Kristi Gold Billionaire Bachelors: Gray by Anne Marie Winston Her Convenient Millionaire by Gail Dayton

THE MILLIONAIRE’S CINDERELLA
KRISTI GOLD
ANNE MARIE WINSTON
GAIL DAYTON

MILLS & BOON®

www.millsandboon.co.uk

RENEGADE MILLIONAIRE

Kristi Gold has always believed that love has remarkable healing powers and feels very fortunate to be able to weave stories of romance and commitment. As a bestselling author and romance Writers of America RITA® Award finalist, she’s learned that although accolades are wonderful, the most cherished rewards come from the most unexpected places, namely from personal stories shared by readers. Kristi resides on a ranch in Central Texas with her husband and three children, along with various and sundry livestock. she loves to hear from readers and can be contacted at KGOLDAUTHOR@ aol.com or Po Box 11292, robinson, TX 76716, USA.

To Vicky,

for joining me on every step of the

incredible journey

One

Joanna Blake had never been kissed like this before. If only she knew his name.

A few moments ago, he had come to her at the stroke of midnight, an ethereal presence with topaz eyes as enticing as a powerful talisman. She’d been standing in a corner of the hotel’s ballroom wearing a borrowed dress, practically unnoticed by most of the medical community in attendance at the New Year’s Eve gala. Now she was under the spell of a stranger who had somehow empowered her to be brave and bold, uninhibited.

When he pulled her closer in a solid embrace and deepened the kiss, Joanna’s heart rate skyrocketed like the fireworks outside heralding the new year. The sleek glide of his tongue, his heady scent, his arousing heat, called to Joanna on a primal level, a sensual plane she hadn’t known existed until now.

He ended the kiss yet kept his sultry gaze fastened on her face. Joanna was only mildly aware of the room’s revelry, the jubilant toasts, the clink of champagne glasses. At the moment, it was as if they were the only two occupants caught in some other dimension.

He brought his lips to her ear and murmured, “Happy New Year,” followed by a word that she didn’t understand in a language that was as exotic as the man. It sounded musical and mysterious, an endearment, she presumed, or maybe hoped. He smiled and she smiled back, helpless to do anything else.

The spell was suddenly broken when reality took hold. Joanna backed away from him, appalled by what she had done. She had never kissed a perfect stranger. In fact, she hadn’t kissed any man in quite some time. Maybe that was why she had allowed it to happen, and so enthusiastically enjoyed it. Still, that was no excuse to carry on the way she had.

Overcome by the need to escape, she muttered, “I have to go now.”

He raised a dark eyebrow. “So soon?”

She tried to respond but couldn’t quite reclaim her voice. Once again, he had captured her thoughts, her will. She couldn’t allow the hold he had on her. “I need to go home.” Home to an empty, run-down apartment void of warmth and welcome.

She turned away from the stranger and headed for a safe haven, beyond his mesmeric pull. She’d only managed a few steps before she paused to take another look, as if he still held some mystical power over her. He watched her with a guarded smile, an enigmatic backdrop against the floor-to-ceiling windows.

His dark hair was pulled back at his nape; his flawless skin the color of warm caramel. His attire stood out among the standard tuxedos, a muted gray jacket and slacks and a black shirt secured at the collar by a platinum medallion. The diamond stud in his ear seemed to twinkle in sync with the lights of the San Antonio skyline reflecting from the window at his back.

Struggling with good judgment, Joanna hurried toward the double doors to escape all that magnetism. But in her heart of hearts she knew that she would never forget this event, never forget him and the imposing image he cast against the night sky. Never forget his drugging kiss or that something inexplicable had happened to her normally cautious self.

She reached for the door with one hand and fumbled for the car keys in her small satin bag with the other. In her haste, the purse tipped, spilling its contents. She knelt and quickly scooped up the few items, shoved them back into the bag, then rushed into the corridor.

Once she reached the stairs outside leading to the parking lot, Joanna gripped the railing and paused to catch her breath before making her way to her dilapidated car. She unlocked the door and slid inside, taking another moment to recover. Luckily she’d had only a single glass of champagne, otherwise she probably wouldn’t be able to drive. At the moment she felt more than a little dizzy, but it wasn’t the wine having that effect on her. It was the kiss. It was him.

After fumbling twice with the key, Joanna finally turned the ignition and heard only a grinding noise. She tried once more, and then again, receiving nothing but protest from the temperamental vehicle. The worn-out sedan had chosen that moment to give up, something she’d been expecting—and dreading—for months.

Tapping her forehead against the steering wheel, she released a frustrated groan. Why now? Why tonight? She had no one to call, no one to seek out for a ride unless she returned to the ballroom. If she chose that route then she risked running into the phantom kisser. Maybe that wasn’t such a horrible prospect.

Good grief. She certainly didn’t need to see him again, no matter how appealing the thought. She already had one male in her life; she didn’t need another. Joseph, with his trusting smile and wisdom beyond his years, was her world, her hope, her all. Considering he was only six years old, he posed a lot less trouble than most adult men, especially his father, who had left them alone in the city while he chased after another scheme that promised him riches and excitement. A man who couldn’t let go of his youth. Adam hadn’t wanted to deal with responsibilities, or a family. Joanna had learned much too late that he would never change.

And now their child—the baby Joanna had wanted so badly—had to depend on her, because his father simply didn’t care. If she hadn’t been able to send Joseph to live with her mom, she didn’t know what she would have done.

If only Joseph could be with her now, but he wasn’t, and she should be thankful for that. The broken-down car, her equally broken-down apartment, served as reminders of why her son must continue to live with his grandmother, over five hundred miles away. Although that was best, sending him away had been the most painful experience of her life.

She turned her thoughts to the day when she’d told Joseph goodbye with the promise that they would be together soon. She’d tried so hard not to cry, tried to be strong, but to no avail. Joseph had proved to be much stronger. When she’d hugged him hard, never wanting to let go, he’d patted her back and said, “It’s okay, Mommy. You’ll have a good job and make some money, then I’ll come back to San Antonio, okay?”

Her little man. And every day since their parting two months ago, Joanna had resisted the urge to send for him so they could be together now.

Joanna had no choice but to put that idea out of her mind. Joseph needed security and a safe place to live, something she couldn’t offer until she found better housing, paid off a few more bills. Hopefully they would be reunited soon, if only fate would quit throwing up roadblocks.

The rap on the window startled Joanna so much that she almost cried out. She was overcome with relief when she saw Cassie O’Connor standing outside the car, not some mugger.

She stepped out of the sedan then leaned back against the closed door for support.

Cassie gave a one-handed sweep of her shoulderlength blond hair, her dark eyes reflecting her concern. “Where did you go in such a hurry?” Cassie asked.

Joanna willed her pounding heart to slow. “I have to work at the birthing center tomorrow.”

“That’s horrible, working on New Year’s.”

The day held little meaning for Joanna, since she would be spending it without her child. “Babies don’t care about holidays. Besides, I’ve got bills to pay.” And it looked as though she would have one more debt now that her car refused to run. Just another to add to the pile, thanks to her ex-husband’s careless disregard.

“I’m sorry if I scared you,” Cassie said. “I was worried something might be wrong when I saw you rush out.”

“Actually, I’m glad you came along. My car won’t start.”

Cassie gave her a sympathetic look. “Not a great way to ring in the new year, that’s for sure. Do you have a phone to call a mechanic?”

Joanna couldn’t afford a cell phone. She could barely afford the pager she was required to carry. “No, and I have no idea who to call.” Nor did she know how she was going to pay for the repairs. Under normal circumstances, her nurse’s salary was more than decent, but the amount of liabilities Adam had left her with was obscene.

“We’ll ask Brendan for a recommendation,” Cassie said. “He’s bringing the car around. We can give you a ride home.”

Joanna didn’t relish the thought of the O’Connors seeing her neighborhood. “I’d appreciate that, but you can just drop me off at the clinic. I have some extra clothes there.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to go home?”

“I’m sure. That way I’ll already be at work in the morning, since it looks like I’ll be without transportation.”

“Okay. If you’re sure.” Cassie’s brassy smile appeared. “And how did you like Dr. Madrid?”

“Dr. Madrid?”

“Yes, Rio Madrid. The man who had you in a lip lock a few minutes ago.”

Joanna’s face heated to flash-fire proportions. She’d hoped that no one had witnessed her reckless behavior. Obviously she’d made a total fool out of herself with a man. Again. “Oh, him. I guess I didn’t realize he was a doctor.” She hadn’t even known his name.

“As a matter of fact, he assisted Dr. Anderson when the twins were born.”

“He’s an OB?” Joanna failed to keep the shock from her voice.

“Yes, and I’m surprised you haven’t met him before tonight.”

Joanna still hadn’t officially met him, but she had kissed him. “I’ve only been working at the center for six weeks. I still haven’t met all the obstetricians.”

“That might be for the best,” Cassie said. “He’s not too receptive to alternative birth methods.”

Classic conservative-doctor attitude, Joanna thought, though the man didn’t appear to be typical physician material. But men could be deceptive. She had learned that lesson the hard way. “Hopefully I won’t be crossing his path any time soon.”

Cassie’s grin deepened. “Do you mean personally or professionally?”

“Both.”

Cassie rubbed her arms and shivered. “If you say so. Right now let’s get out of here. It’s pretty nippy tonight and I need to relieve the baby-sitter.”

Joanna hadn’t noticed the cold, probably because she still battled a slow-burn heat caused by Dr. Rio Madrid. She started to move but realized her dress was caught in the closed door—the dress she had borrowed from Cassie. What other disaster could possibly befall her tonight?

She opened the door and pulled the hem from the car’s rusty clutches, immediately noting an ugly smudge of grease on the royal-blue satin. “I’m sorry, Cassie. You were so nice to loan this to me and now I’ve probably ruined it.”

Cassie glanced at the soiled hem. “That’s okay, Joanna. I’m sure the dress will be fine after it’s cleaned.”

Joanna had her doubts about that. “I’ll get it cleaned for you. It’s the least I can do.”

“You have enough to worry about. I’ll take care of it. Believe me, with six-month-old twins, you have to have a lot of things cleaned.”

Joanna thanked her lucky stars that she had met Cassie and her husband, neonatologist Dr. Brendan O’Connor, just after she’d taken the job. Cassie had visited the birthing center and sent several referrals her way through her social work at Memorial. Their friendship made the transition of sending Joseph to live with his grandmother somewhat easier.

Joanna sighed. “Guess I’m kind of out of it tonight.”

Cassie grinned again. “I don’t doubt that one bit. Midnight kisses can do that to a girl.”

Joanna couldn’t agree more. That kiss was still fresh on her mind—and on her lips. But she was determined to forget it, even though it was the most unforgettable kiss she had ever received.

A kiss delivered by a gorgeous stranger. A beautiful doctor. The very last thing she needed in her life.

Rio Madrid yanked the pager from his lab-coat pocket and pressed the button. Great. A call from the E.R.— just what he needed to end one helluva hectic day.

He tossed the tray filled with his untouched dinner onto the cafeteria conveyor belt and headed down to the emergency room. In the past eighteen hours, he’d delivered three babies, seen an office full of patients and had barely enough time to take a breather, much less eat. He was beginning to question whether he should have hired a partner after Anderson’s retirement. Too late to worry about that now. Besides, he’d always been a loner, and he liked it that way.

After he reached the nurses’ station, he used the counter for support. He was too tired for a man barely thirty-three years old. “What’s up, Carl?”

The burly nurse glanced up from his charting and hooked a thumb over his shoulder toward the board listings. “We have an OB admit brought in by a nurse from the birthing center.”

“Where is she?”

“The patient?”

No, the pope, Rio wanted to say but kept his frustration in check. “Yeah, the patient.”

“In Room 3 with the nurse.”

“The nurse?”

Carl shrugged. “She won’t leave until she knows what’s up. Common practice when midwives are involved.”

That didn’t surprise Rio at all. In fact, he was immediately reminded of his mother.

Forcing himself into action, Rio headed down the corridor and noticed a slight woman dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt standing outside his destination. She studied the toe of her sneaker, her arms folded across her chest.

Although he couldn’t make out her features, Rio was hit with a sense of familiarity. Strange, since he was certain they’d never met, but he couldn’t escape the belief that he knew her from somewhere.

His steps slowed. Something about her reminded him of another woman standing alone in one corner of a crowded ballroom, seeming as if she’d been trying to blend into the background. But Rio had noticed her immediately. When midnight rolled around, and no one had claimed her for the traditional kiss, he’d spontaneously stepped into the role.

Why he’d done it, he couldn’t exactly say. Maybe because she had seemed so lost and out of place among the medical icons and their wives. Maybe because she’d looked so beautiful yet lonely and he could relate to that. But the way she’d responded to his kiss had made him consider taking her to his bed to welcome in the new year—until she ran away. In truth, she’d been in his bed since that night, if only in his imagination.

He studied this particular woman as he continued forward, doubts creeping in with every step. No way this could be her. He couldn’t be that lucky twice. Besides, the woman he’d kissed had been dressed in blue satin, her hair pinned up into a fashionable style, her face carefully made up to suit the occasion, anything but nondescript.

Then the midwife looked up. Dark lashes outlined her vibrant blue eyes devoid of makeup, her fair skin a direct contrast to the dark spiraling curls framing her face. She looked as if she’d stepped right out of a soap commercial, all natural, attractive, appealing in an unpretentious way. Still, he couldn’t get past those expressive eyes that now studied him with only mild curiosity, not surprise or anything that would indicate she knew him. But he got the distinct feeling that he did, in fact, know her.

It didn’t matter, Rio decided. Tonight he had to play the professional. Tonight he was the obstetrician, and she the midwife. It sure as hell wasn’t a good time to get personal, even if it turned out that she happened to be his New Year’s temptress. Even if he did have something that belonged to her. Something he’d been carrying around for the past three days, futilely trying to find its owner. And now he was fairly sure he’d found her.

When she didn’t acknowledge him, he reached around her, slipped the metal chart from the holder and opened it to check the notes. “Are you with Mrs. Gonzales?”

“Yes, I am.”

Rio couldn’t help but react to her floral scent, her closeness, the stubborn memories of a kiss that wouldn’t get out of his head. He looked up from the chart and met her noncommittal expression. “And you are?”

“Joanna Blake. I’m with the birthing center.”

Rio took the hand she offered, noting the smooth texture and how fragile it felt in his palm. “I’m Dr. Madrid.” For some reason he was reluctant to let her go.

She pulled her hand from his grasp. “Nice to meet you.”

He studied the chart again but couldn’t quite focus. The more he looked at her, the more certain he was that this could be his unidentified angel. “Tell me about Mrs. Gonzales.”

“She came to the center and presented with excessive vaginal bleeding. She’s a gravida 2, para 1, abortus 1.”

Rio rubbed his chin. “Three pregnancies and one live birth and this one. What happened with the other pregnancy?”

“First trimester miscarriage about two years ago. This time, she’s had an uneventful gestation. No significant problems.”

“Well, it looks like she has some now.” He flipped the chart closed and held it against his chest. “Did you examine her cervix?”

She frowned. “Of course not. I think we both know that an internal examination could exacerbate her bleeding.”

Her adamant tone, the fire in her eyes, intrigued him. Excited him, even. “Just making sure.”

Frustration passed over her once-guarded expression. “Dr. Madrid, I’m trained to recognize problematic signs. That’s why I came here with her, to make sure my patient receives the best care.”

“I wasn’t questioning your judgment.”

“Yes, you were.”

Actually, he was. He’d seen his share of births go badly in nonhospital settings—one in particular. For that reason, he couldn’t seem to stop his concern over nontraditional methods, even though they were becoming readily accepted in the medical community. “Consider me overly cautious, okay? Now do we stand here in the hall and continue our conversation, or do we go see about our patient?”

For a second he thought she might smile but it didn’t quite take. “Yes. But first I think you should know that Mr. Gonzales knows only a little English and Mrs. Gonzales knows next to none. If you’d like for me to interpret —”

“I can hold my own in the Spanish department, Ms. Blake.”

A slight blush stained her porcelain cheeks. “Okay, then.” She made a sweeping gesture toward the open door. “After you, Doctor.”

He couldn’t resist rattling her chain a little. “I would say ladies first, but I’m thinking you might slug me.”

“I’m thinking you might be right.”

Finally, she smiled, and then he knew for certain. She was the woman who’d marched through his mind for the past three days. The woman who’d run away from him at midnight. His reluctant Cinderella.

Obviously he didn’t recognize her. That shouldn’t matter to Joanna, but for some reason it did. If she looked at it logically, there was no reason why he should remember. It had been dark in the ballroom, and she’d been dressed up. Still, she couldn’t ignore the little twinge of hurt.

But she had to ignore it. Mrs. Gonzales’s well-being should be first and foremost in her mind, not Rio Madrid. At least the doctor seemed genuinely concerned for the woman. He spoke in perfect Spanish, his voice gentle and compassionate as he performed the ultrasound.

While he worked, Joanna took the opportunity to study him. He looked much the same as he had that night—darkly handsome, but his suit had been replaced by a blue scrub top that covered faded jeans, and the diamond stud in his earlobe exchanged for a small gold loop. His slick dark hair was still pulled back and secured at his neck, allowing Joanna to look her fill at his face in the glare of fluorescent lights—a chiseled face with a finely honed nose, high cheekbones and a granite jaw. And oh, that mouth. She recalled his soft lips, how gentle and breathtaking that kiss had been.

Her gaze dropped to his strong hands that had pressed against her back, held her close, made her melt. He might not look like a conventional doctor, but he was one fine masterpiece of a man. Even his name sounded striking. Rio Madrid…

“Okay, that does it.”

The doctor-in-question’s declaration forced Joanna back into the situation at hand, and her thoughts back onto her patient. The fear in Mr. and Mrs. Gonzales’s faces had lessened until Dr. Madrid began to explain the findings from the ultrasound. Placenta previa, as Joanna had suspected, and now the baby would more than likely have to be delivered by cesarean.

After the doctor was done, he stood and signaled Joanna to follow him into the hallway. Once they were out of the patient’s earshot, he said, “Since she’s at term, I’ll go ahead and do a C-section.”

“Bed rest—”

“Is not an option. She’s bleeding too much—”

“Dr. Madrid—”

“We need to get that baby out of there. This is the best course—”

“But—”

“—of treatment.”

Joanna waited for a few moments to make certain he was finished with his tirade before speaking again. “Just for the record, I’m in total agreement with you.”

He frowned. “You are?”

“Yes, I am.” She was caught between wanting to shake him and kiss him. Ridiculous, at least the kissing part. “If you’d let me get a word in edgewise, then you might have realized that.”

At least he looked contrite, and much too cute. “Sorry. I’m pretty damn tired at the moment.”

“That will make one a little cranky.”

He sent her a crooked smile. “So you think I’m cranky?”

Cranky, and gorgeous. “Maybe just a little bit.”

“Could we settle for mildly out of sorts?”

Joanna couldn’t help but smile back. “I suppose we could compromise with out of sorts. As long as we drop the mildly.”

His grin deepened and he opened his mouth to speak but before he could, a harried middle-aged woman approached him. “Dr. Madrid, the Gonzaleses have no insurance. I need to make payment arrangements with them. If they can’t pay, we need to transfer—”

“She’s not going anywhere.” His voice brimmed with barely contained anger. “I’m going to do an emergency cesarean in about ten minutes, and her husband’s going to be with her. End of conversation.”

“But hospital policy states—”

“I don’t give a damn about policy.” He lowered his voice, his jaw clenched tight. “I know you’re just doing your job, but I don’t have time to argue. Have your supervisor call me after the surgery if there’s a problem. I’ll handle it.”

The woman walked away, shaking her head.

Joanna smiled. “Bravo, Doctor. I’m impressed.”

His grin came slowly and unexpectedly, but Joanna’s reaction was fast and hard to ignore. “The bureaucracy around here sucks.”

“I have to agree with you on that, too.” She glanced toward the cubicle. “Well, I guess I should wish the Gonzaleses luck so you can do your job.”

He rubbed a hand over his shadowed jaw. “Do you want to scrub in with me?”

Joanna was totally taken aback by the offer. “I’d love to, if it’s okay with the hospital.”

“I’m giving you my permission, and that’s good enough. Let’s get going.”

After Dr. Madrid had made appropriate arrangements, Joanna followed him to the labor and delivery unit to change. She dressed and scrubbed then found him waiting for her in the operating suite. Stopping at the head of the table, Joanna exchanged a few encouraging words with the nervous couple, then moved past the drape to join the crew at the table.

“I assume you’ve scrubbed in on one of these before,” the doctor asked, the scalpel poised in his hands.

“Plenty.”

“You’re not doing them at the center, are you?”

That might have made Joanna mad had he not said it with amusement. “Not hardly. But I have had several opportunities during my training.” More than a few in her checkered past. She’d put her career goals on hold when she’d become pregnant her second year of medical school, soon forced to settle back into the role of nurse because of finances. Then later, Adam had completely robbed her of her dreams of becoming a doctor. He had robbed her of a lot more than that.

Joanna tamped down the bite of resentment to watch the obstetrician in action. His skill was apparent with the first cut, his hands deft, his movements flawless as he worked quickly to deliver the baby. Joanna and the doctor smiled at each other in unison when the little girl released a loud cry of protest during her entry into the world outside the womb. A wonderful sound, Joanna thought. She would never get over the miracle of birth, no matter how many times she witnessed it. And from the satisfied look on Dr. Madrid’s face, she imagined he felt the same.

Joanna had done little more than observe until he held up the umbilical cord and asked, “Do you want to cut this?”

“Sure.” Joanna complied, pleased that he thought to involve her at least this much.

Before handing the baby over to the attending pediatrician, Dr. Madrid held up the infant for the new parents to see and said, “Usted tiene una ninña hermosa.”

Joanna couldn’t deny that, when she turned from the table to watch the pediatrician examine the child. The baby girl was beautiful with her thick cap of black hair and her round cherub’s face. She looked plump and healthy, her coloring good.

Children were truly a blessing, and that concept made Joanna think of her own son and how much she missed him, cherished him. How much sadness had been a part of her life over the past few months without him.

“Ms. Blake, please see Mr. Gonzales to the nursery while I finish up here.”

The concern in Dr. Madrid’s voice drew Joanna’s attention from the infant. “Okay.”

As she walked to the head of the table, Joanna noticed the doctor’s dark brows drawn down with concentration, and beads of sweat dampening the front of the blue cap covering his head. She heard him give the order for several meds, and other muttered comments from the staff about too much blood.

Something was wrong. Terribly wrong.

Joanna instructed Mr. Gonzales to follow her, trying her best to alleviate his distress with a calm voice. He kissed his wife’s cheek, then stood. Once in the hallway, the pediatrician signaled the new father to come with her and they walked away behind the portable crib, leaving Joanna behind, hoping to find out what had gone wrong with Mrs. Gonzales.

Joanna removed her gloves and mask and remained outside the O.R. suite, glancing in the door’s window to try to discern the problem. She couldn’t see anything for the flurry of activity surrounding the table.

After what seemed like an interminable amount of time, Dr. Madrid backed away from the table, looking relieved. He stopped for a moment and spoke to Mrs. Gonzales, then headed for the exit while the staff prepared to move the patient.

He yanked the gloves off his hands, the mask off his face and raked the cap from his head, tossing them into the refuse container. He then pushed through the double doors to join Joanna outside the room.

“Is she all right?” Joanna asked.

“She had a bleeder, but I’ve got it under control.”

“You didn’t have to do a hysterectomy, did you?”

“No. I’ve managed to save her uterus. They’ll give her a couple of units of blood. I’m sure she’ll be fine.”

“I’m glad. I was worried.”

“So was I.” He leveled his golden gaze on her. “Do you want to grab some coffee after I make sure Mrs. Gonzales is settled?”

That sounded like a plan, one she didn’t dare consider. “I really need to go. I have to call the center then get home. I’ll check on Mrs. Gonzales before I leave.”

His sultry smile crept in. “Not even one cup of coffee? Just ten minutes of your time?”

“Actually, I’m in a hurry.” In a big hurry to get away from those tempting topaz eyes, that drop-dead smile.

His grin deepened. “Are you always in a hurry?”

An odd question. “Most of the time I’m running on full speed. Aren’t you?”

“Yeah, but I’m about to give out.” He surveyed her face, his gaze zeroing in on her lips before he again locked on her eyes. “Are you sure I can’t change your mind?”

Oh, he could, but she wouldn’t let him. Joanna started backing down the hall while she slipped the robe away from her shoulders. “I really do need to go.”

He watched her the same way he had at the gala before she’d made her escape. The man must have excessive pheromones, she decided. Right now they were working on her in some not too unpleasant ways. Head to toe chills traveled downward and heat settled low in her belly. It would be all too easy to agree to spend more time with him. And all too risky.

“I could walk you to your car,” he said through another rogue smile.

Truth was, her car sat in her apartment lot after she’d scraped together enough money to have it towed. She didn’t have enough funds to have it fixed, though, and the darn thing still refused to run. She wished she could say the same for her sprinting pulse. “Actually, I’m into mass transit these days. I’m taking the bus home.”

“I could give you a ride.”

She had no doubt about that. “I’ll manage fine.”

“Okay, if you’re sure. Guess I’ll just have my coffee alone.”

She forced herself to turn away from him. Away from all the electricity the man emitted like a live wire. She picked up her pace before she changed her mind and went back to him, probably at her own peril.

“Have a nice night, Cinderella.”

Joanna stopped dead in her tracks.

Slowly she turned only to find an empty space where he had been. Vanished, like some unearthly presence, into a netherworld.

Joanna laid a hand across her pounding heart and took in several deep breaths. One realization haunted her like a ghost.

He had recognized her.

Two

Rio sat once more in the hospital cafeteria, this time with only a cup of black coffee. He didn’t dare waste another meal in case he was summoned back to the emergency room or to the labor and delivery floor. It was now nearing 8:00 p.m., and he still had three hours left to take calls before a resident relieved him. Regardless, he was determined to get out of there, even if it meant coming back in.

He should be tired, dead on his feet, but he wasn’t, and he had Joanna Blake to thank for that. He’d almost gone after her, waited outside the dressing room and tried again to convince her to join him.

He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t. Normally, he didn’t give up easily where women were concerned, but this woman was different. She sure as hell wasn’t his type, surprisingly innocent—except for that mouth of hers. A great mouth, even when she chose to use it as a weapon on him, in every respect. She was also a mom.

Withdrawing the picture from his scrub shirt pocket, Rio studied the young boy he presumed to be Joanna Blake’s son. He could be wrong, but he doubted it. The kid had the same eyes, the same dark hair, the same smile. He flipped it over again, as he’d done several times over the past few days.

Joseph Adam, age 3. My heart. Definitely something a mother would write.

Rio had seen the picture fly onto the floor New Year’s Eve when Joanna had dropped her bag on the run. But before he could shove his way through the crowd and retrieve the photo in order to return it to her, she had already flown away like a dove finally emancipated from a cage.

He should’ve given it back to her tonight, but he hadn’t. Maybe he viewed it as some connection to her. Maybe he would use it as an excuse to see her again. Maybe even tonight.

Why not? He wasn’t one to avoid risks outside his medical practice. Besides, he wanted to know more about her. Wanted to know, if he kissed her again, would he still have the same gut-level reaction? Would it go beyond a kiss? Only one way to find out.

Rio decided it would take her several minutes to dress, make a call, then another fifteen or so to check on Mrs. Gonzales. Only fifteen minutes had passed since he’d left her in the hall. If he hurried and changed into his street clothes, he might catch up to her at the bus stop.

On that thought, he shoved his chair back and went in search of a woman who might not want to be found. Not that he’d let that stop him.

“Nice night, huh?”

Joanna glanced at the man who’d seated himself on the bus-stop bench where she now waited. She’d been so lost in her thoughts—thoughts of Rio Madrid—she hadn’t even noticed his presence until that moment. He was big and beefy, his round ruddy face covered by a full reddish beard. He wore only a faded denim vest— ridiculous considering the cold—his hamsize arms sporting tattoos that ran together in a webwork of blue, covering almost every inch of his skin.

A scruffy scarecrow of a guy wearing a dirty cap and threadbare flannel shirt, his lecherous grin exposing a sparse display of yellowed teeth, stood at the opposing end of the bench. The smell of stale beer and cigarettes carried on the faint January breeze, causing Joanna’s empty stomach to pitch.

The big man nodded toward his partner. “Mind if my friend has a seat?”

Before Joanna could issue a protest, the second man took his place on the other side of her. Wonderful. Flanked by offensive lowlifes.

Focusing straight ahead at the street, she became more than a little wary when in her peripheral vision she noted both of them staring.

“You want a smoke, missy?” the skinny guy said, his voice rough as unfinished pine.

She hugged her arms closer to her middle and shot him a look of disdain. “No, thanks.”

The big guy released a grating chuckle. “Maybe you want to go down the street and have a beer with us. Take a walk on the wild side.”

Not with these animals. “I don’t drink.”

The ogre inched closer, his massive thigh brushing hers. “Aw, come on now. Everyone needs a drink now and then.”

Considering his breath, he’d probably had plenty. She shuddered. “Not me.”

He tipped his head close to her shoulder. “You sure are sweet.”

Joanna bolted from the bench and faced them, trying hard to hide her fear behind a toughness she didn’t feel. “Don’t trust appearances, mister. I can be downright mean when I have to be.”

The ape snorted. “I bet you can be bad, too.” The skinny one let go a round of wheezing chuckles.

Joanna slipped her hand inside her bag, then remembered she hadn’t replaced her pepper spray since she’d changed purses the other night. Turning toward the street only enough to keep the pair in her sights, she silently cursed her stupidity for not getting out of there at the first sign of trouble. Where was the darned bus?

Joanna sensed movement, then felt the heavy weight of a huge arm draped around her neck, a hand rubbing her shoulder. Frozen by fear, she stiffened her frame and tried to plan what she should do next. Kick him in the groin and run back to the hospital? The parking lot stood between her and the main building. A big parking lot filled with only a few cars and probably fewer people.

No, she wouldn’t run. She wouldn’t let them see her fear.

With a sigh, she yanked the man’s arm from her shoulder and stepped to one side. “Look, I’m not interested in a beer, or a good time. I’m heading home to my husband who happens to be a cop. So if I were you, I’d keep my hands to myself before I drew back a nub.”

“I’d do what the lady says, because if she doesn’t take care of you, I will.”

Joanna looked from her harassers to Rio Madrid, standing behind the bench, his hands hidden away in the pockets of a black leather jacket, his eyes dark and intense. He looked predatory, ready to pounce.

He came around the bench and put himself between Joanna and the strangers. “Move on, amigos. Find yourself some other woman.”

The ragtag pair faced him. The big one was several inches taller than the doctor and looked just as threatening. “Maybe we don’t want another woman.”

Rio wrapped one arm around Joanna in a protective embrace. She heard a click and realized someone had produced a knife or a switchblade. Her throat constricted, her body stiffened. Then she realized it was the doctor who had the weapon when the giant glanced at Rio’s hand that Joanna couldn’t see.

The man backed off, looking paranoid. “Okay. Take her. She ain’t that great, anyway.” He turned away, his partner close on his heels muttering, “Crazy cop.”

Rio braced his hands on Joanna’s shoulders and turned her to face him. “Are you okay?” he asked with concern.

“I was handling them just fine.”

“Looks to me like he was doing all the handling.”

“I’m sure he’s harmless. He certainly couldn’t get away fast enough from you. Then again, maybe it was the knife.”

Rio dropped his hands and produced the weapon in question from his jacket, snapping open the lengthy blade with a click. “I’ve had it since I was thirteen. It’s dull as dirt, but it looks like it could do some damage.” He retracted the blade and slipped it back into his pocket.

“Obviously it was convincing enough,” she said.

“Either that, or he thinks I’m your husband working undercover. He probably has some pot stashed somewhere. So is it true?”

Joanna couldn’t help but smile, mainly from relief. “He didn’t offer me any pot, just a walk on the wild side.”

Rio’s smile came halfway, but was no less effective than a complete one. “I meant the thing about your husband being a cop.”

“I’m divorced, and no, he wasn’t a cop.” He wasn’t much of anything. “Chances are my ex would’ve tried to pay those creeps to leave me alone, unless he decided to let them have me.” Joanna clamped her mouth shut. She couldn’t believe she’d said such a thing. Never had she talked so openly about Adam to anyone. She wasn’t inclined to let her bitterness show.

The doctor streaked a hand over his scalp. “Sounds like good riddance on all counts.”

She couldn’t agree more. She also didn’t understand Rio Madrid’s sudden appearance, even though she certainly appreciated it. “What are you doing here?”

“I came looking for you, and I’m glad I did.”

So was Joanna, but she wouldn’t make that admission. “Is something wrong with Mrs. Gonzales?”

“No, she’s doing great.”

“Then what can I do for you?”

“I thought I’d try to convince you to have that cup of coffee.” He studied her for a long moment. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine. Really.”

“You’re shaking.”

“I’m cold.” She was also lying.

Stripping out of his jacket, he put it around her shoulders. It smelled like leather and the spicy scent that had washed over her sparked her fantasies, that one memorable night in his arms.

“Better?” he asked.

She was somewhat warmer, but not as warm as she’d been when he’d held her close to his side. “Much, but now you’re going to be cold.”

He rubbed a hand across his chest, covered only by a thin black T-shirt. “Don’t worry about me. I’m hot most of the time.”

Joanna had no answer for that, at least not a verbal one. Right now she was heating up fast in response.

“I take it you don’t own a car,” he said.

“I do, but it’s at home, broken down.” A perfect match for her apartment.

“Then I’ll take you home.”

At that moment, the bus pulled up to the curb, all squealing brakes and spewing fumes. “That’s not necessary. My ride’s here.”

Rio nodded toward the two thugs now boarding the vehicle. “You really want to do that?”

She looked at the bus, then back at him, unsure of which road to take. “Well, actually…”

He raised his hands, palms forward. “I promise I’ll keep my hands on the steering wheel. You’ll be safe with me.”

Joanna didn’t feel at all safe with him, not that he presented a physical threat, or at least the kind that the seedy jerks had posed. But there was something very dangerous about Rio Madrid, the kind of danger that a woman could easily take pleasure in. The kind Joanna would be smart to avoid.

She also didn’t like the thought of him seeing where she lived, a crime-ridden neighborhood on the far side of town. But more so, Joanna hated the prospect of getting on the bus with two questionable characters, so she found herself saying, “Yes, if it’s not too much trouble.”

This time Rio’s grin came full force, a sensual explosion. “No trouble at all.”

If only Joanna could believe that she wasn’t borrowing more trouble with Dr. Rio Madrid.

Rio took the narrow streets slowly, surprised by the place Joanna Blake called home. Not that he hadn’t seen its kind before. Every town had one, an area full of lost souls caught in the throes of poverty. Not only had he seen it, he’d lived it until he’d turned fifteen. By that time good fortune had played a part in his future and he’d moved up in the world—a world he’d never quite fit into.

He passed the rows of rickety apartments and small clapboard houses, noting a lot of activity on the streets, and none that looked within the law. Probably a lot of drug deals going down, gunrunning, all kinds of dangerous happenings—things the woman beside him should never have to be exposed to.

He sent a quick glance in Joanna’s direction. “Do you live alone?”

She continued to stare straight ahead. “Yes, I do.”

He wondered about the boy in the picture. Maybe he’d been wrong. “No kids?”

“Actually, I have a son.”

As he’d suspected. “But he doesn’t live with you?”

“No.”

Rio’s curiosity got the best of him. “He lives with his dad?”

“No. He’s with my mom in the Texas Panhandle.”

“That’s a long way from here.”

“Yes, but I don’t have a choice at the moment.”

Rio hated the pain in her voice. “Why not?”

She sighed, an impatient one. “Just look at where I live. It’s not fit for most adults, much less a child.”

“Then why don’t you move in with your mother?” As if that were any of his business.

She shrugged and continued to stare out the windshield. “I wish I could, but I can’t. There are almost no job opportunities in my hometown. I have a lot of debts, and working in a larger city gives me more pay. I’m hoping to get back on my feet this year, find a better place to live so I can move my son back here with me.” She sat forward and pointed. “Up that next alley. You can park beside my car. It’s the ugly white one.”

Rio turned the truck up the potholed pavement and to the space next to the car she’d indicated. Behind them sat a brown brick building, three floors high, shutters hanging out of kilter from windows covered by burglar bars. The scraggly lawn was littered with debris and so was the alley, with several old tires stacked against the building among broken beer bottles.

“Welcome to paradise,” Joanna said as she opened the door.

Rio got out and encountered something hard beneath his foot. He looked down to find a used syringe under the toe of his boot, thankful he’d stepped on the plastic, not the needle. Kicking it aside, he walked to her car.

“What’s wrong with it?” he asked.

She hung back at the front of his truck. “I don’t know. It won’t turn over.”

“Pop the hood.”

“What?”

“Pop the hood. I’ll take a look.”

Reluctantly she withdrew her keys and unlocked the car door, then slipped inside and tripped the release. Rio lifted the hood but the muted rays coming from the guard light didn’t afford him enough illumination.

Joanna joined him at the hood and leaned over the engine beside him. Having her so near didn’t help his concentration. “I can’t see,” he said. “I need a flashlight.”

“I don’t have one in the car.”

Their arms brushed and Rio nearly bumped his head when he straightened. “You should always carry a flashlight. I keep one in the truck.”

“I suppose you’re always prepared.”

He grinned. “Always. With everything.” Except he hadn’t been prepared for her, especially not his immediate reaction when she stood so close, or his need to kiss her once more. But he wouldn’t. Not now.

Glancing over his shoulder at the apartment building, he asked, “Which one is yours?”

“Second floor. Apartment 202.”

He braced his hands on the edge of the engine and leaned into them. “Tell you what. You go on up and make some coffee and I’ll see if I can tell what’s wrong here.”

“You really don’t have to do that. Besides, I don’t have the money to pay you.”

He straightened. “You can pay me with some coffee.”

“But—”

“No argument. And hurry. I might fall asleep on my feet if I don’t get some caffeine soon.”

“Okay. I’ll bring it down.”

“I’ll come up and get it.”

She looked more than a little worried. “Are you sure?”

“Unless you want me to come up now and check out the place, make sure there aren’t any more criminal types waiting for you.” Considering the surroundings, Rio realized that might be a real possibility, and he hated the fact that she had to come to this place every night alone.

She started toward the entrance without giving him a second glance. “I’ll be fine until you get there.”

As Rio watched her walk away, the slight sway of her hips encased in nice-fitting jeans, he realized she was more than fine. And he was in major trouble.

When Joanna heard the knock on the door, she wasn’t at all fine. In fact she was nervous over Rio Madrid’s arrival. She fumbled with the spoon in her hand, then dropped it into the cup before she made a total mess of her stained and cracked kitchen counter.

Taking a deep breath, she unlocked the door but left the chain intact until she peeked outside. After verifying it was the doctor, she slipped the chain and allowed him entry.

She felt uneasy, self-conscious, when he surveyed the efficiency apartment that consisted of only a small kitchen and dining/living room area that also served as her bedroom. The lone bathroom with its rusty pipes and chipped tile could barely qualify as closet-size although her clothes hung on the shower-curtain rail, the only place available.

“It’s not much,” she said after tolerating the silence for a few more moments.

“I’ve seen worse.” His gaze traveled toward the water-stained ceiling while he noted the sound of an overloud stereo shaking the walls from excessive bass.

“My neighbors like to party,” Joanna said.

“Sounds that way.” He turned his attention back to her. “How long have you been here?”

“Almost two months.” Two months too long.

His took a slow visual excursion down her body. “And you’re still in one piece?”

“So far.” She could very well come apart at the seams if he didn’t stop looking at her that way.

He slipped his hands into his back pockets. “I think I found the problem with your car. There’s a loose wire leading to the starter. I’m pretty sure I fixed it.”

“That’s wonderful news.” The man was too amazing for his own good. “Have you always worked on cars?”

“I’m good with my hands.”

She had no doubt about that. “I’m glad it’s minor. I wasn’t sure how I was going to pay for major repairs.”

“Don’t get your hopes up yet. I still need to make sure I’ve found the problem. If you’ll give me your keys, I’ll see if the car starts.” He wrapped one hand around his nape and rolled his head on his shoulders. He looked exhausted.

Joanna felt incredibly selfish. “Why don’t we have some coffee first? We can check it when you leave.”

“Sounds good to me.”

She stepped back in the kitchen and took the pan from the stove to pour water into each cup. “I hope instant’s okay. It’s all I have.”

“Do you have a phone?”

She nodded over one shoulder. “Right there on the wall. Help yourself.”

He moved into the small space beside her, bringing with him the scent of night air and incense. Turning on the faucet in the kitchen sink, he began washing the grease away from his hands. “I don’t want to make a call. I want to make sure you have some way to communicate in case you have trouble.”

“Yes, I do, and it works.” For now. She was in danger of losing the service if she didn’t pay her long-distance bills in a timelier manner. But she wouldn’t give up her only means of communication with her child, even if it meant keeping the heat turned off.

While she stirred the coffee, he continued to watch her as he dried his hands on a dish towel. His presence made her wary. As much as she hated to admit it, Joanna was very drawn to Rio Madrid—his heady aura, his dark exotic good looks—though that seemed unwise. But he wasn’t the kind of man a woman could easily ignore— even a woman who had no intention of getting involved with anyone.

After he tossed the towel onto the counter, she handed him one steaming mug. “Do you want anything in it?”

“Just more coffee. I like it strong.”

“Oh.” Joanna couldn’t manage anything else when he reached around her to add another spoonful of grounds to the cup, his chest brushing against her shoulder. That simple contact had her knees threatening to dissolve like the three spoonfuls of sugar she’d heaped into her own coffee.

He leaned back against the cabinet. “Are you feeling calmer now after your encounter?”

For a moment she wasn’t sure which encounter he spoke of, the pleasant one a moment before or the disgusting bus-stop experience. She sipped her coffee, yet tasted nothing. She needed more sugar, less Rio to distract her. “I’m calmer, but I’m also feeling a little stupid. I should have walked back to the hospital when I first noticed the big one.”

“They probably would’ve followed you.”

“Could be. Never trust a man with a tattoo.”

He frowned, then his mouth turned up into a worldrocking grin. “Oh, yeah?”

Setting his cup on the cabinet, he faced her and tugged the hem of his shirt from his waistband. Before Joanna could respond, he slipped the shirt over his head, taking the band securing his hair with it. And there he stood, bare-chested and gorgeous, his hair flowing to his shoulders like an ebony waterfall.

Before Joanna could ask just what he thought he was doing, her eyes centered on his chest. Lean muscle defined his torso; a triangular tuft of dark hair covered the space between his nipples. Although she knew better, she couldn’t stop her gaze from tracking the path leading to the band on his low-riding jeans that he had managed to unsnap without her noticing. Slowly he lowered his zipper partway, leaving her speechless, excited, unable to move. Then the tattoo came into view.

Below his navel, a black jungle cat horizontally spanned the tight plane of his abdomen, interrupting the trail of masculine hair leading downward. Joanna’s mouth dropped open but she snapped it shut to muffle her sharp, indrawn breath. The tattoo looked powerful, provocative, impressive.

When Joanna finally looked up, she found his smile absent and his expression disarming. “Does this make me untrustworthy?” he asked in a low, spellbinding voice.

Her gaze traveled back to the tattoo and she took in the details, while the awareness that he was watching her sent electricity racing along her nerve endings. As far as Joanna was concerned, this particular artwork made him that much more sensual, seductive, mysterious. She had the overwhelming urge to touch it, to see if it was as silky as it looked. She was as drawn to that tattoo as she had been to its owner on New Year’s Eve— as she was tonight. Without regard for common sense, she breezed a fingertip across the cat—only to be stopped by the doctor’s grip on her wrist.

He released a slow, strained breath. “Normally I might say, ‘Feel free to keep touching,’ but I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Not unless you realize you’re stirring up trouble.”

Joanna’s eyes moved to the obvious bulge below the waistband of his jeans, which were faded to a bleachedout blue in some hard-to-ignore places. Her face flamed from mortification, from totally forgetting herself, forgetting whom she was with, what she was doing. Again.

She dropped her hand to her side but couldn’t bring herself to contact his powerful golden gaze. “I’m sorry. It’s just that…I don’t know. It looks so soft.”

“Take my word for it, it’s not.” His tone was wry, his voice grainy, deep and deadly.

She raised her eyes to his, finding them as enticing as they had been after he’d kissed her that night in the ballroom. Grasping for an innocuous question, she asked, “Is it a panther?”

He looked down at the tattoo. Joanna couldn’t seem to stop herself from looking, too. The muscles in his abdomen clenched as he ran one sturdy, square finger along the jungle cat’s back, much the same as she had, causing Joanna to shiver. “It’s a jaguar. My onen, or so my mother told me.”

“Your what?”

He redid his jeans, slipped the shirt over his head and secured his hair back in the band, much to Joanna’s disappointment. “Onen. My animal, or the animal assigned to me at birth. My mother was of Mayan descent. She believed in the folklore.”

“So you’re Mayan?”

“That and a few other things. Spanish royalty, reportedly a white missionary a couple of generations back. My family has a strong history of forbidden love.”

“Forbidden” pretty much summed up Joanna’s reaction to this man. An enigmatic, unpredictable man who held her imagination captive, kept her fantasies churning and her pulse erratic. “Where’s your mother now?” she asked, searching for something that might take her mind off his unmistakable aura, his blatant sensuality.

A fleeting sadness passed over his expression. “She died a few years ago. She was a good woman, a little misguided in her beliefs, but she was charitable to people in need.”

“Like her son?”

His smile crooked the corner of his lips, a decidedly cynical smile. “Don’t peg me wrong, Joanna. I enjoy my success and all that it brings.”

“But you helped the Gonzaleses, knowing they didn’t have any insurance and not much money.”

“I do that on occasion, but I still have paying patients. I’m not opposed to making money.”

Exactly something Joanna’s ex would have said, only he had been inclined to involve himself in get-rich-quick ploys, not honest work.

The conversation lulled as Rio Madrid continued to scrutinize her with penetrating eyes near the color of a harvest moon, as if he had some need to interpret her feelings, uncover her very soul.

Joanna struggled to come up with more small talk, but she had trouble assembling her thoughts with his steady gaze now on her mouth. At least he hadn’t mentioned that night…

“About the other night,” he said, as if he’d read her mind.

“The other night?” she repeated, as if she had no idea what he was talking about.

“Yeah, New Year’s night. I find it hard to believe you don’t remember, because I haven’t been able to forget, querida.”

She shrugged, trying to affect nonchalance even though both her body and soul reeled in reaction to his declaration and endearment. “I thought maybe you didn’t recognize me.” She was secretly thrilled that he had.

“I didn’t at first, until you smiled.” He rubbed his thumb across her bottom lip. “You have a great smile. A great mouth.”

Joanna couldn’t ignore the tingles produced by his touch or her heart’s incessant pounding. “Do you always kiss females you don’t know?” she asked, her voice coming out too high.

He moved his palm to cup her cheek the same way he had that night. “Not normally, but you looked like you could’ve used a little company.”

She could use some strength at the moment, a lot of strength, in order to resist his lure. “I’m used to being alone. Not that I didn’t appreciate the gesture.”

He stroked his thumb back and forth along her jaw, her chin, grazing the corner of her lip with each pass. “Is that all you felt? Gratitude?”

She couldn’t begin to describe what she’d felt when he’d kissed her, what she was feeling now with him so close, his hand on her face, his eyes focused on her mouth, her will caught firmly in his grasp.

Then he lowered his head, slowly, slowly, and softly kissed her, no more than a tease, a taunt, but it left Joanna wanting as she’d never wanted before…

The shrill of a siren interrupted the moment. Joanna pulled away from him and walked to the window to survey the scene, as much to catch her breath as out of concern for the familiar activity downstairs. Three patrol cars pulled up at the curb near the front of the building and several armed officers dashed toward the entrance. Nothing she hadn’t seen before.

A gentle hand rested on her shoulder. “You’re not safe here, Joanna.”

She hugged her arms to her chest. “I don’t have a choice.”

Rio took her arm and turned her to face him. His sultry expression had been replaced by one of unease. “Yes, you do have a choice.”

“I promise I don’t. I’ve looked all over the city for another place to live and I can’t find anything I can afford.”

“Maybe you haven’t looked in the right place.”

“What do you mean?”

He dropped his hands and took a step back. “This might sound crazy, but you can live with me.”

Crazy? Of all the absurd suggestions, this one had to top the list. “I don’t think so, Dr. Madrid.”

“It’s Rio, and let me clarify what I mean. I have an older restored house in a well-established neighborhood. There’s a nice room in the third-floor attic. It’s pretty big, and comfortable, with a private bath. The lady I bought the house from kept it as her reading room. You’d be comfortable there. And safe.”

No matter how tempting the thought, she wouldn’t feel safe—at least from an emotional standpoint—living in the same house with Rio Madrid, even if the place were a mansion. He already presented a huge temptation, a threat to her sanity and a menace to her emotions.

Joanna had no intention of getting involved with another man at the moment, even if he was a successful doctor. She had more than enough worries to contend with. “I really appreciate the offer, but I barely know you.”

“You know me well enough to realize that I have your best interests at heart.”

How could he sound so certain? “Why would you want to do this for me?”

“Because I’m worried about your safety.”

She shook her head. “But I hardly have enough money to pay my rent here. My mother lives on a fixed income and I have to send money for my son. I have all these bills, thanks to my ex, and then—”

“You could pay me in other ways, nonmonetarily speaking.”

Of all the nerve. “I will not be your—”

“Let me rephrase that. Do you cook?”

The man was frustrating her beyond belief, not to mention making her seriously consider his offer. “I’ve been known to prepare a meal or two.”

“I’d like that every now and then. It beats canned pasta and frozen dinners.”

Joanna fought the urge to say yes. Fought the allure of his tempting topaz eyes and renegade’s smile. Fought her own needs and desires making themselves known for the first time in ages. She couldn’t very well see him on a daily basis and keep all of that need out of the mix.

“Again, I really do appreciate the offer,” she said. “But I can’t accept.”

Reaching into the back pocket of his jeans, he withdrew a photo and handed it to her. “If you won’t do it for yourself, then do it for him.”

Joanna stared at the picture of Joseph for a long moment, the one she thought she’d lost, shock momentarily robbing her of her voice. “Where did you find it?”

“On the ballroom floor. I saw it fall, but by the time I got to it, you were gone.”

Joanna held the snapshot close to her heart, so very thankful for its return. She had many pictures of her son, but this one was her favorite. She met Rio’s eyes and found compassion there. “I owe you a lot for this.”

“You owe your son, Joanna. He deserves to have his mother safe and secure until you two can be together again. I’m giving you that opportunity.”

He was giving her too much food for thought, too much logic. She should resent him for using Joseph to confuse her, but she also knew that what he’d said was true.

She surveyed her son’s innocent eyes, his sweet smile, and suddenly felt as though the choice had been made for her.

Joanna raised her eyes to Rio Madrid’s, finding herself victim to his charismatic pull, as if he alone held the power to bend her will. Bend her battered heart. She could not, would not, allow that to happen.

“I’ll consider your offer, but if I decide to say yes, it will be for my son.”

Never for herself.

Three

She hadn’t said yes, but she hadn’t said no either, the reason why Rio decided to broach the subject again with Joanna Blake first thing this morning, as soon as he could get away from the hospital.

The night before she had allowed him to stay only long enough for the downstairs commotion to end with several young punks being hauled off in police cars. He’d offered to sleep on her couch, only to learn the couch was her bed. That fact hadn’t made him rescind the offer, but Joanna had adamantly refused. At least her car had started, and she’d seemed to be grateful for that. He hadn’t tried to take advantage of that gratitude by kissing her again. But he’d wanted to. He still did.

More important, her welfare was at stake. Her stubborn pride could get her hurt, or worse. He didn’t intend to let that happen, if he could convince her to move in with him.

He also wasn’t stupid enough to deny that he wanted her, but he wouldn’t push. Once they spent more time together, who knew what might happen? Maybe nothing. Maybe everything.

After making his morning rounds, Rio set off for the birthing center on foot, the weather as crisp and clear as a new dollar bill. He enjoyed the walk past the small family businesses that hadn’t been taken over by hospital expansion. Enjoyed the sun on his face, the cool air filling his lungs, the prospect of seeing Joanna Blake again. On that thought, he hastened his steps until he was almost jogging for the last two of the five blocks.

Once he reached the white brick building with the high-pitched roofline, he paused to catch his breath in front of the pillar that read, Edna P. Waterston Birthing Clinic. He wondered about Edna and figured she was probably a midwife or some rich matriarch who wanted something to remember her by. If not for Joanna Blake, he’d never step foot in a place like this. Too many sorry memories to deal with.

Rio entered the glass door, surprised by the pleasant surroundings. The waiting room was warm and comfortable, nice blue-and-green-plaid couches, contemporary art, gleaming hardwood floors with various plants set out here and there. Soft music filtered through overhead speakers, while a few small children played in a toy-filled area under the watchful eyes of their mothers.

He wasn’t sure what he’d pictured, but this wasn’t it. Maybe he’d expected something more outdated, a throwback to a time and place in his past when standard medical care for pregnant women wasn’t always an option. The type of surroundings he’d witnessed as a teenager when he’d helped his mother tend to women who couldn’t afford anything but a home birth. Bad memories of unsterile conditions, one very sick mother, his own mother utilizing primitive training passed down to her from previous generations. One dark night when her limited skills had failed her and the young woman in her care.

Rio pushed away the recollections and ignored the curious stares as he strode to the reception desk framed by a large opening unencumbered by glass. A young woman sitting behind the counter sent him a sunny smile. “May I help you?”

He looked over her head and searched behind her toward the hallway to the left, attempting to see if he could spot Joanna. He wasn’t successful. “I’m looking for Ms. Blake. Is she in?”

“Yes, sir, she is. Do you have an appointment?”

He considered giving her his name but realized if Joanna knew he’d come to pay her a visit, she might not see him. “It’s personal.”

“Can I have your name, please?”

Damn.

He sent her his best grin. “It’s a surprise visit.”

One hand went to her throat, but her smile remained intact. “Well, I’m not sure Joanna would like that kind of surprise.”

Rio couldn’t argue that. “Just tell her I’m a doctor from Memorial, okay? That’s all she needs to know.”

She chewed her bottom lip. “I’m not really sure…”

He leaned into the counter and sought out her name from the badge pinned on her lapel. “I’d really appreciate it if you would, Stephanie.”

Keeping her eyes locked on Rio, the woman picked up the phone, punched a button and slowly repeated the message. After she hung up, she said, “Wait right here. She’ll be with you in a minute.” The receptionist stacked a few folders then regarded him again with another smile. “So, what kind of doctor are you?”

“OB.”

She leaned a cheek on her palm and gave him a coy look. “Really?”

“Yeah. Really.” She was flirting with him. Maybe some other time, Rio might have flirted back. But the only woman he was interested in at the moment had yet to appear.

He heard the familiar sound of Joanna Blake’s voice, soft and soothing, deadly as far as he was concerned. Knowing she was nearby had his body reacting in ways not appropriate for a grown man, especially in this setting.

The door to his left opened and a very pregnant woman walked out with Joanna following behind. He immediately recognized the patient. Allison Cartwright, his patient.

Rio didn’t know who looked more shocked, Allison or Joanna. Both stared at him a long moment, but Allison spoke first. “Hi, Dr. Madrid. Fancy meeting you here.”

He couldn’t ignore the sudden flash of anger. “Guess I could say the same thing. What are you doing here?”

She raised one shoulder in a shrug. “Now don’t get upset. I’m just visiting. Joanna was explaining the center’s birthing methods to me.”

“No problem,” he said, but it was, at least for him. Rio leveled his gaze on Joanna. “Do you have a minute, Ms. Blake?”

“I’m leaving, so she does,” Allison answered for her, then hurried out the front door in a matter of seconds.

“What can I do for you, Dr. Madrid?” Joanna’s tone was professional, with only a hint of friendliness.

He glanced back over his shoulder at Stephanie, who still continued to stare, then turned his smile on Joanna. “You don’t really want to discuss that here, do you, Ms. Blake?”

Color splashed across Joanna’s cheeks as she held open the door leading from the reception area. “Follow me, but I only have a few minutes.”

“That’s all I need,” he said. “For now.”

So much for not pushing. If he knew what was best, he’d stop with the innuendo. But for some reason, Joanna Blake unearthed his wicked side, trampled his control.

He followed her down the corridor, watching the gentle sway of her hips encased in black slacks, not jeans, but just as high impact.

“All the exam rooms are full, so this will have to do.” She stopped at a room set off in another alcove away from the main corridor, stepped to one side and allowed Rio to enter.

The place resembled something straight out of a bedand-breakfast inn, complete with a queen-size bed, rocking chair and redbrick fireplace. He found the decor to be surprisingly elegant, all flowers and lace, reminding him of his own home’s attic room, the one he’d offered to Joanna Blake, the reason why he was here. But first, he had a few other questions for her.

“What was Allison Cartwright doing here?”

“She’s considering using the center instead of the hospital.”

“Why?”

“Well, she’s still on probation at her new job, so she has no insurance, and she can’t really afford the hospital bill.”

“What about the baby’s father?”

“She told me he’s out of the picture.”

“The same thing she told me.” His thoughts about Allison began to falter when he homed in on Joanna’s mouth. Why the hell couldn’t he keep his eyes off her?

Glancing away, he said, “I’m sure the hospital would be willing to work something out financially. I’d be willing to do the same.”

Joanna frowned. “That’s for her to decide, don’t you agree?”

“We’ll see,” he said, thinking he sounded like a jerk. He wasn’t necessarily opposed to what Joanna Blake did for a living. He even understood the need in some cases. But he still couldn’t get past his concern for babies being born off hospital premises, although he had to admit the place wasn’t anything at all like what he’d expected.

He shot a glance at the open door to his right and noticed a whirlpool centered in a large bathroom.

He strolled around the room and stopped at the bed, testing its firmness with a push of his palm. “What are the rates for this honeymoon suite?”

“For your information, it’s the Rose Room, one of our birthing facilities,” she said, impatience evident in her voice, her rigid frame. “And our rates are about one-third the cost of standard hospital rooms.”

Her defensive tone made Rio all the more determined to play with her a little, in a figurative sense, at least at the moment. “Nice bed. Nice place. No stirrups?”

“No stirrups. We don’t need them. But we do have ultrasound equipment and fetal monitors, many of those other little medical marvels you find at a hospital.”

He inclined his head toward the bathroom. “What’s the whirlpool for?” As if he didn’t know.

“Water births.”

He rubbed his chin. “Oh. I thought maybe this doubled as a conception room, too.”

A smile began to form on her lips but soon faded. “That usually happens before the patient comes to us.”

“Usually? Ah, so someone has used this room for a little extracurricular activity.” He had no trouble picturing that happening—with him and Joanna Blake.

She rolled her eyes to the vaulted ceiling. “No one’s committed any hanky-panky in this room. Not that I’m aware of. At least not me.”

Rio was more than relieved over that admission. He moved to the bathroom’s open doorway and stared inside, one hip cocked against the frame. “I think this room would be better put to use with a bottle of champagne, some candles, and a man and a woman intent on making a baby, not having one.”

“Very amusing, Doctor.”

He faced her again and grinned. “Do you have something against romance, Ms. Blake?”

“I don’t have time for romance. I do have several patients to see, so what do you need?”

Rio sent another pointed look at the bed. When he brought his attention back to her, he noticed she was looking at the same spot, maybe even imagining them on that bed, or some bed, tangled together in sheets, sweat and great sex. Or maybe he was caught in the wishful-thinking trap.

Clearing his throat to gain her attention, he said, “I don’t have a lot of time, either, so I’ll get to the point.”

“Hallelujah.”

He ignored her sarcasm and continued. “I’m here to find out if you’ve come to a decision yet about moving in with me.”

Her eyes widened, looked panicked. She rushed to the door and closed it before facing him again. “Keep your voice down, please. I don’t want the staff to think that I’m moving in moving in with you.”

“Then you are going to move in with me?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Yeah, you did.”

“What I said was…” She threaded her bottom lip through her teeth. “I don’t remember what I said.”

He strolled to her, hands jammed in his pockets to keep from touching her even though he really, really wanted to. “Let me refresh your memory. Last night you said you’d think about it, a minute ago you said yes.”

“I did no such thing.”

He inched a little closer until they were almost touching and braced one hand on the door, above her head. “Maybe not in so many words, but the message I got was pretty clear. So when do you want to do it?”

Her breath hitched. “Do what?”

He could think of one particular response to that but decided to give her the proper one. “Move in with me. How about this weekend?”

Her gaze roamed to his mouth. “You don’t give up easily, do you?”

Not when he wanted something badly enough, and he had to admit he wanted her badly. But she wasn’t a catch-me-if-you-can kind of girl, so he damn sure better proceed with caution. “No, I don’t give up easily, especially when a woman’s life might be at stake. So is Saturday good for you?”

Indecision warred in her expression. She opened her mouth, shut it, then opened it again. “Okay, I guess. I’m not on call, so this weekend would be fine.”

“Great. I’m not on call, either.” His first instinct was to kiss her until both of them struggled for air. He went with his second—a simple smile. “What made you decide?”

“My son.”

He expected that, admired it even, but he’d like to think that living with him wouldn’t be such a sorry prospect for either one of them. Although, come to think of it, he’d never lived with a woman for more than a weekend. He wasn’t sure how he would adjust to having her there all the time, keeping him at arm’s length, at least for the time being. But he was more than willing to try it, see where it led.

He stepped back and grinned at her stern features. “Hey, don’t look so serious. We might have a good time.”

She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. “I’m not looking for a good time, Dr. Madrid. I’m looking for a safe place to stay. A temporary place to stay.”

She said the words with conviction, with heavy emphasis on “temporary.” That was fine by Rio. A permanent relationship wasn’t something that had remotely entered his mind, regardless of the fact that Joanna Blake seemed the type who deserved something solid and steady. “First rule, call me Rio. Second, you can stay as long as you like. Other than that, there are no rules.”

Her smile was hesitant, but had an immediate effect on Rio’s suddenly sensitive libido. “With our schedules, you won’t even know I’m there,” she said.

Unable to help himself, Rio reached out and brushed a curl from her face. He might have serious doubts about how this was going to work, but he had no doubt she wouldn’t be easy to ignore.

“Believe me, I’ll know you’re there.”

Joanna had her doubts about moving in with Rio Madrid. But when moving day came, she brought along her few possessions and a whole lot of misgivings. Being near him threatened her common sense, uncovered dormant urges best left hidden away, reminded her that she had very basic feminine needs. Needs she had no business acknowledging. But she had to do this for Joseph.

She kept telling herself that very thing while standing on Rio’s front porch, hangers full of clothing draped over her arm, waiting for the doctor—dressed in tattered jeans and black leather jacket—to open the door. Today he’d pulled his hair back on the sides and top, the rest falling to his shoulders. He looked like an A-1 fantasy, a woman’s dream. So did his residence.

She’d heard about the King William district, but nothing could compare to witnessing its splendor. The well-kept house resembled an English manor, beautiful and bigger than any home Joanna had lived in during her thirty-four years. Unlike her neighborhood, the area was absent of noisy cars and deafening music. No threatening characters and criminal activity, at least on the surface.

“There’s something I forgot to tell you.”

The declaration drew Joanna’s attention to Rio, his hand on the brass knob, a box tucked underneath his arm. Nothing in his expression gave any indication of what that “something” was.

She backed away from the porch and studied the facade all the way up to the third-story dormers. “Let me guess. You have a commune living here.”

“No, but I do have a roommate.”

Before Joanna had the chance to unpack, the secrets had already begun. Now she would have to explain to her mother that she was not living with only one man, but two. “You should have told me before I agreed to come here.”

“I didn’t want to give you any reason to change your mind. Besides, I think you’ll like her.”

Her? He had a woman living with him? A lover? That shouldn’t matter one way or the other to Joanna, but for some reason it did. “Your roommate’s female?”

“Yeah, Gabby. She’s great.” His tone was full of pride and affection.

Joanna tried to mask her shock, hide her frustration with an even tone. “What does she think about me moving in?”

He grinned, his white teeth set off against his warm brown skin. “I haven’t told her yet.”

That set Joanna’s teeth on edge. “You didn’t tell her?”

“She wouldn’t understand.”

Oh, marvelous. What had Joanna gotten herself into? What if this woman refused to let her live here, forcing Joanna to reside in her own car or a seedy motel? “Well then, maybe I should wait out here until you make sure it’s okay.”

“She won’t mind. She’s pretty friendly.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk to her first?”

“Nope. Just be prepared for the welcome.” Rio pushed open the door and waited for Joanna to move past him.

The roommate was all but forgotten when Joanna stepped inside the circular foyer. The floor’s majestic white marble tile glistened like the surface of a frozen pond. A chandelier hanging from the two-story ceiling dripped diamond-like crystals. Straight ahead, a staircase with a black iron banister climbed upward until it took a turn to the left at a large landing. Above that landing, a window set with stained glass shot laser beams of light over the walls and white-carpeted stairs. The panes shaped a black cat with exotic gold eyes. Breathtaking, but almost out of place among the traditional elegance. Joanna continued to stare as if cemented in place by the animal’s metallic gaze.

“That’s a beautiful window,” she said.

“Thanks. I designed it.”

She studied Rio Madrid, now facing her at the bottom of the stairs, amazed at how much he resembled the animal, how he possessed the ability to hold her captive with his topaz eyes. Maybe this was Rio Madrid’s idea of a self-portrait, because in Joanna’s opinion, he, too, contrasted with the environment. Rugged appeal surrounded by refinement.

Danger in the midst of majesty.

Click-clack noises that sounded like hooves drew Joanna’s attention to the hallway flowing into the vestibule from her right. Before Joanna could brace herself, a huge black and gray mottled thing came bounding into the foyer, streaking past her to Rio.

“Some watchdog you are.” The beast rose on hind legs, massive front paws propped on Rio’s chest. “Get down, Gabby.”

This was Gabby, the mysterious roommate?

Rio slid the box and dog to the floor then shucked off his jacket and hung it over the banister. He scratched the head of the monstrosity with heavy jowls and pointy ears. “Gabby, this is Joanna. Joanna, my roommate, Gabby.”

Joanna wasn’t sure whether to be really angry or really relieved. “Very funny. I thought you meant you lived with—”

“A woman. I know, but I wasn’t sure how you’d feel about residing with an overgrown lapdog.” Rio tried to affect little-boy innocence with a shrug, but it was lost on Joanna due to his toxic smile, the snug fit of his longsleeved white thermal shirt and soft, washed jeans that molded him in all the right places, leaving no doubt he was all man.

She looked down at the dog, whose tongue hung out one side of her mouth, her head cocked as if totally enthralled by her master. Joanna couldn’t blame her. The doctor made her want to pant and fawn, but she sure as heck wouldn’t do that.

Joanna clutched the hangers to her chest when Gabby cautiously moved to sniff her feet. At least the dog’s tail was wagging, a good thing, Joanna decided, considering the size of the canine’s teeth.

Uncertain what to do next, Joanna said, “Hey, Gabby.”

As if totally disinterested in Joanna’s greeting, the dog turned her attention back to her master with a look that could best be described as love-struck.

“I found her on the side of the road about three years ago,” Rio said, scratching Gabby behind the ears. “She was starved, I think maybe even beaten. It took me a year to get her to trust me and not to cower.”

Obviously Rio Madrid made it a habit to pick up distressed females. “She looks healthy now. And big.”

“She’s a big baby.” Rio pointed at the floor. “Stay.” Gabby tucked her tail between her legs and stretched out on the black Oriental rug at the foot of the stairs, her head resting on crossed paws.

Joanna suspected that many females, regardless of their species, would gladly drop to the ground in answer to his command. Not this female. Joanna was stronger than that. At least she hoped so, although at times she greatly questioned her strength in his presence. Especially now.

Rio gestured toward the staircase. “You, Ms. Blake, may come with me.”

Joanna silently followed behind him trying hard to avert her gaze from the roll of his narrow hips as he took the stairs with a long stride. Even when they arrived on the second floor, she couldn’t seem to stop looking, imagining, remembering the night he’d kissed her, the night he’d taken off his shirt at her apartment. And that tattoo. Below that tattoo…

“My bedroom’s down there.” Rio pointed to his left.

“Really?” Joanna’s voice sounded high-pitched and scratchy.

“Yeah. Do you want to see it?”

She didn’t dare. “Maybe later.” Maybe never, if she knew what was best for her.

He gestured in the opposite direction. “There’re two baths and three other smaller rooms at the other end.”

“What’s in those other rooms?”

“Not much. One’s my office, the other two have a few odds and ends, but no real furniture to speak of.”

“Oh. So where am I staying?”

“Right this way.” He crossed the hall and opened a door that led to another stairwell enclosed by narrow walls. “Be careful,” he said over one shoulder as he began to climb the steps. “It’s pretty steep.”

Joanna made sure to concentrate on her footing, not Rio Madrid’s finer points, as she scaled the stairs. She’d hate to have to explain that she’d taken a tumble while shamelessly staring at his butt.

At the top of the staircase, he opened another door and stepped inside the room. Joanna could only gape once she entered behind him. The whole area was swathed in sunlight spilling from the triple windows. The four-poster white canopy, covered in a frilly spread dotted with lilacs, the antique-white dresser, the immaculate hardwood floors with scattered throw rugs, looked like something from Victorian times. A matching lilaccolored chaise set below one window served as an invitation, a place to curl up with a good book and a cup of tea. Or with a lover on a lazy Sunday afternoon. She swallowed hard.

“Wow.” It was all Joanna could manage at the moment. The room was almost twice as big as her old apartment, and no comparison as far as comfort was concerned. Never in her wildest imaginings had she envisioned this lovely place.

Rio laced his hands at his nape, his gorgeous face shining with satisfaction. “Yeah, it’s nice. Not exactly my kind of decor, but I didn’t have the heart to change anything. It has a personality all its own.”

Joanna couldn’t agree more. She walked to the bed and ran one hand down the post. “It’s wonderful.”

He pushed open another door and leaned against the wall next to it. “The bathroom’s right here. It’s not very big, and it only has a tub. An old claw-footed tub, but it’s been restored. If you’d rather take a shower, you can use one of the second-floor bathrooms, or you could use mine. It’s big.”

Joanna locked on to his sensual smile. The image of showering with Rio Madrid arrived in great detail, including fogged-up glass from heavy breathing, not steam. Slick bodies, roving hands…

Good heavens. She didn’t need to think about that now. Or ever. “Is there somewhere I can hang these?”

He pointed behind her. “In the closet.”

She turned. “A closet? That’s great. I haven’t had one of those in a while.” She hadn’t had a lover in a while, either, a fact apparent every time Rio Madrid walked into the room.

After hanging her things in the moderate-size closet, she faced him again. “I guess I’ll go get the rest of the boxes and bring them up.”

“I’ll do it in a minute. Care for some lunch?”

“Sure. I thought I’d go to the store and pick up a few groceries.”

He pushed away from the wall. “I had my housekeeper do that yesterday.”

“You have a housekeeper?”

“Yeah. I can’t keep this place clean by myself, nor do I want to. She comes in twice a week, during the day.”

“I think I’ve died and gone to heaven.”

His grin resurfaced. “So your idea of heaven is a housekeeper?”

Joanna strolled to the bed and dropped onto the edge. “One of my ideas.” Laughing, she fell back and sank into the soft mattress, arms raised above her head. “And this bed.”

Rio slipped onto the bed beside her, thankfully not in a prone position. “I agree, a good feather bed qualifies as heavenly. So do other things.”

She stared up at him. “What other things?” Had she really asked him such a leading question?

His smile faded into a seriously sensual expression. “Walking barefoot in grass. Swimming naked in a lake. Making love in the moonlight.”

Joanna’s heart lurched hard in her chest. She’d only done one of those things, but she hadn’t walked barefoot in clover since she was a teenager. “Very poetic, Doctor.”

“Not poetry, just perfection.”

He was perfect, Joanna thought, from head to toe, at least superficially. But she knew soul deep that perfection was only an illusion. Everyone had flaws; Rio Madrid was no exception. But he also had an undeniable aura, a sensual magnetic field, drawing her in as if she were made of iron. She feared she might not be that strong if he made one move toward her.

Bolting from the bed, she stood before him, hands clasped tightly to keep from pulling the band out of his hair to let it completely fall just so she could experience its silky texture. “Okay, so what do you have in mind for lunch?”

The look he gave her said anything but food. His sexy smile had her thinking the same thing. “I’m kind of partial to peanut butter and jelly.”

She returned his smile. “My son’s favorite fare.”

His features went solemn. “You know, Joanna, your son’s welcome here. If you want to send for him, we could fix up one of the bedrooms.”

Joanna experienced a twinge of emotion over his generosity. Few men would offer their homes to a single mom and her child. “I really appreciate that, but he’s settled into school right now and I wouldn’t want to uproot him again until I have a decent place of my own. Maybe that will happen by this summer.”

Rio stood and sighed. “You’ve been here less than an hour and you’re already thinking about leaving me.”

Leaving him? “I can’t stay here forever. But I appreciate this arrangement more than you know. It will give me a chance to get back on my feet financially.” If he didn’t pull the rug out from under her emotionally. Again, she didn’t plan to let that happen. She’d done that once, let a man have her heart only to be left holding the remnants.

“We’ll take it one day at a time,” he said with confidence as he strolled toward the door. “But in the meantime, let’s go downstairs and grab some lunch. I’m starving.”

So was Joanna, for things she didn’t dare want.

Four

“You have a fountain in your pool.”

Rio couldn’t stop the urge to tease Joanna a little. He had trouble stopping any urges where she was concerned. “A pool? No kidding? I didn’t realize that. Guess I should go into the backyard more often.”

Joanna glanced at him over one shoulder and smiled. “You are just full of it today, aren’t you?”

Rio couldn’t seem to get his fill of looking at her. He took the last bite of his sandwich and sat back in his chair, enjoying the view of Joanna staring out the breakfast nook’s window. Her dark hair spiraled into curls between her shoulder blades. Natural curls, Rio suspected. She did things to jeans that shouldn’t be allowed. She did things to him that would definitely be considered downright sinful.

Her slender hand rested against the pane, her nails short and neatly trimmed. Good, Rio thought. Long nails meant hard-to-hide scratches from lovemaking. And why the hell he believed that would happen between him and Joanna Blake would be anyone’s guess. But something told him it could happen. Would happen. The carnal tension between them was gathering force, brewing like a spring storm, not that she would acknowledge it. At least not yet.

Pushing back from the table, Rio joined her at the window, standing close, but not too close. Patience would probably be the best way to handle what was happening between them, had been happening since New Year’s Eve. Patience was something unfamiliar to him. He was the kind of guy who jumped in feetfirst and asked questions later when it came to his private life. Not a good idea in this instance.

Focusing on the backyard where Gabby lay gnawing a rawhide bone beneath an ancient cypress, he said, “There’s a small hot tub in the corner of the pool with room for three.”

“You, Gabby and your current girlfriend?” He heard a smile in her voice, and curiosity.

“Are you trying to get me to come clean about my personal life, Joanna?”

She turned, putting them in closer proximity yet maintaining an intangible distance. “It’s really none of my business, but I imagine you’ve had a woman in your hot tub before.”

He had, but not in a while. “I’ve been too busy to utilize my hot tub. Not today, though. Are you game?”

She frowned. “Are you nuts? It’s forty degrees outside.”

“That’s why they call it a hot tub.”

“It’s also still daylight.”

He propped one hand on the window beside her head, leaned closer and lowered his voice. “Are you shy, Joanna Blake?”

“I’m a mother, for Pete’s sake.”

“And mothers are forbidden to use hot tubs?”

“Mothers don’t have the kind of figures most twenty-year-olds have. At least this mother doesn’t.”

He allowed his gaze to slide down her body and linger in certain places. He wanted to do the same with his hands. “I seriously doubt that.”

“You’re seriously wrong.” A blush stained her fair cheeks. “Besides, I don’t own a decent swimsuit.”

“Who said anything about a swimsuit?”

She turned back to the window. “What’s in that building over there?”

Obviously she was more interested in continuing the tour than his suggestion. “It’s a pool house with an attached garage. I keep my bike in there.”

“Ten speed?”

“Harley.”

Once more she faced him, this time hugging herself as if she needed protection from him. “You own a motorcycle and live in a mansion. I’d say you are a walking contradiction, Doctor.”

He wished she’d call him by his first name. Right now he wasn’t the doctor. Right now he was a man in the company of a woman that he wanted too much. “Is that a problem?”

“Not really. It’s just that you’re not at all what I thought you’d be. At least at first.”

“And what was that?”

“An average male on the make. Your generous nature surprises me. So does your attraction to material things.”

He took a step back, guilt dogging his steps as he made his way back to the table and reclaimed his seat. “I’ve heard it all before, that old ‘the love of money is the root of all evil’ clause. But once you’ve been without it, money’s not a bad thing to have. I imagine you know that.”

“Yes, I do.” Joanna joined him at the table and sat across from him with her blue eyes trained on his face. “I take it you didn’t have much when you were growing up.”

“I had next to nothing. My parents were migrant farmworkers, chasing the next job. After my father died, my mother moved from California to Texas. She worked as a fruit picker during the season and hired out as a domestic the rest of the time.” And a midwife at night, something he didn’t care to discuss.

“What happened to your father?”

Rio didn’t like dredging up the past, but he’d left himself wide open to her questions. “An industrial accident involving some kind of machinery. I don’t know many details.”

“I’m sorry.” She sounded as if she truly was.

“Don’t be. I don’t remember him. I was too young when it happened.”

She rested her cheek on one palm. “So what made you decide to become a doctor?”

A long story, but he’d try for a condensed version. “My mother worked for a retired colonel. He knew I had an interest in medicine, so he took me under his wing since he didn’t have any kids.”

Joanna leaned forward. “Did he put you through medical school?”

That, and hell on earth. “Yeah, but first he put me into boarding school when I turned sixteen. I hated it. They made me cut my hair, robbed me of my heritage so I’d fit in. I’ve worn my hair long ever since.”

“Your culture’s very important to you, isn’t it?”

“Some aspects, yes, some not.” Especially those that defied logic.

“But you believe in your…What did you call it?”

“My onen. Mayan mythology. The sun god is a jaguar. It also foretells the arrival of foreigners.”

“Foreigners?”

“Yeah. I think my mother chose that for me since I was born in the States. But she swore it came to her in a dream. I have a hard time believing it.”

He’d never put much stock in dreams before he’d met Joanna Blake, before she had begun to disturb his own dreams. Surreal dreams. Sexual dreams.

Maybe his mother had been right to give him the onen. Joanna had come into his life, foreign to him, with a deeply engrained love for her child and a strong conviction in her work ethic. The consummate mother. A woman who deserved a considerate man to attend to her needs. Some of those needs Rio would have no problem tending, others he wasn’t so sure.

Suddenly he wondered if this was the woman his mother had told him about, the stranger who would change his life for the better. A nice thing to consider, if he really believed in all that mystical stuff. Maybe he was just too jaded to believe in forever-after or love. He sure as hell didn’t intend to settle down, conform to what society considered fitting—a marriage license and the average two kids.

Joanna remained silent with her elbows propped on the table, palms forming a resting place for her cheeks. She stared off into space as if she’d left him mentally, if not physically. He had a good idea where her thoughts had taken her.

“You’re thinking about your son,” he stated.

Joanna looked up, startled. “As a matter of fact, I was.”

“When was the last time you talked to him?”

She straightened and fidgeted with a corner of the cloth place mat. “Two days ago, when I told my mom I was moving.”

“I bet it’s tough on him, being without you.”

She smiled a sad mother’s smile. “It is. Tough on us both. But he’s a strong little boy. He’s had to be.”

Rio wanted to know more about her, what made her tick. What made her sad other than the absence of her son. “Tough divorce?”

“In some ways, yes. Especially on Joseph, not that he had a great relationship with his father.”

“So his father’s totally out of the picture?”

“Very much so. I don’t even know where he is. Not that I want to know.”

Sorry bastard. “Does Joseph ask about him?”

“Sometimes, but like you, he was too young to remember much about his dad. Joseph’s the best thing that came out of my marriage. He’s always been my strength.”

The unshed tears glistening in Joanna’s blue eyes caused something deep inside Rio to hurt for her, made him want to take away that pain he saw all too clearly, even though she tried to hide it with a weak smile.

“Call him now, Joanna.”

She looked surprised and thankful. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“I’d like that. But I insist on paying you for the—”

“Forget it. Just call your son.” He nodded toward the phone hanging on the wall.

She quickly rose from the chair and strode to the phone. Rio thought he should probably leave, give her some privacy, but for some reason he stayed, maybe to provide some comfort if she needed it. He doubted she’d ask, though, or easily accept his consolation.

“Joseph, it’s Mommy.” Her face immediately brightened. “You’re playing with your train? I’m so glad you like it, sweetie. I’m sorry I couldn’t give you more Christmas presents, but maybe next year.”

A long pause suspended the conversation until Joanna finally said, “I’ll have to see about that bike. But you have to have training wheels until you learn to ride it.”

Rio watched Joanna from the corner of his eye while he cleared the plates from the table. She twisted the cord round and round her finger, swiped at her face now and then, raised her chin and covered her mouth on occasion. He could tell she was trying hard not to cry. If only he could do something to rid her of those tears, at least temporarily. Get her mind off her troubles. Maybe he could.

After she hung up, he held out his hand to her. “Come here. I want to show you something.”

She blinked then stared. “Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise.”

“Surely you don’t mean that hot tub.”

“Nope. I want to show you my favorite place.”

Joanna stared with wide-eyed wonder at a room that held every indoor form of recreation imaginable, including a freestanding basketball goal on one end. A pool table sat in the middle; electronic pinball games lined the paneled walls. The only thing that even hinted at adulthood was a bar that resembled something out of a saloon, complete with a mirrored background, shelves full of liquor and inverted glasses of every shape and size dangling from a row of holders above the counter.

“This used to be a formal dining room.”

Rio’s statement brought Joanna back into the real world, or his world, as the case may be. “It looks big enough to be a ballroom,” she said.

“True. The room didn’t have anything in it when I bought the house, so I turned the space into play town.”

Play town was an accurate description, Joanna decided. Perfect, since it seemed Rio Madrid was still a little boy playing at being an adult—conservative doctor by day, adventurous adolescent by night. She’d known his kind before, been married to his kind, as a matter of fact. The kind of man that should be avoided at all costs.

But she couldn’t avoid him at the moment since he was still holding her hand, looking as though he was awaiting approval on a job well done. Looking devastatingly handsome.

Tugging from his grasp, she walked to the leafscrolled wooden pool table, obviously expensive, maybe even an antique, more than likely five times more costly than her car.

She faced him and immediately noticed the pride in his expression. “Very interesting, Doctor. Is this what you do in your spare time when you’re not in the hot tub?”

“Yeah. It helps me relax.” He cocked one eyebrow. “Can I interest you in a game?”

Oh, yes. Oh, no! “What kind of game?”

He made a sweeping gesture around the room. “Take your pick, but I was thinking pool.”

Now, this could be great fun, a chance for Joanna to play her own little game. “Oh, I don’t know. It’s been a long time. I’ve never been all that good.” Not quite as good as her dad, but she could definitely hold her own.

“I’ll go easy on you.” His mellow, hypnotic voice made her think of slow and easy lovemaking. She suspected he would take his time, using his skilled hands, his mouth…

She should be horsewhipped for thinking such things, but Joanna couldn’t deny that Rio Madrid was the kind of man that fantasies were made of. Nothing wrong with fantasies, she guessed, as long as she didn’t allow them to take flight into reality.

Rio crouched at the end of the table, retrieved the balls from beneath and rolled them onto the felt surface. After he had them racked, he made his way to the cues hanging on the only bare space of wall. He grabbed two then came back to her. “Exactly how much experience do you have?”

A loaded question, especially since he posed it as if it had nothing to do with billiards. She took the pool stick he offered and a deep breath, but couldn’t avoid brushing his hand, couldn’t ignore the electric current that his touch generated throughout her whole body.

“As I’ve said, it’s been a while.” Been a while since she’d played pool, since she’d made love, since she’d even wanted to make love.

“I’ll let you break then. Give you a head start.”

She could use one at the moment, but she inherently knew it would take little time for Rio to catch up.

Determined to focus on the game, she rolled her shoulders to loosen up then walked to the end of the table, lined up the cue ball and studied the angle. Feigning ignorance, she asked, “Is this okay?”

“I’d say that.”

Rio didn’t appear to be looking at the ball, or the cue. He was looking straight at her cleavage, slightly exposed beneath her cotton blouse because of her position. Normally she would scold him. Normally she would button up to the neck and give him a dirty look. But she didn’t feel all that normal. She felt wicked, delighting in the power she seemed to have over him at that moment.

About time. He’d mesmerized her on more than one occasion.

Finally he looked away and removed the rack. “It’s all yours.”

With a little thoughtful planning, Joanna managed to hit the cue ball exactly right, causing it to bounce twice but landing short of the other balls.

She straightened and tried to look contrite. “Sorry. Guess it’s been longer than I thought.”

“Maybe you’re not holding the cue right.” He took his time traveling to the other end of the table but didn’t hesitate when he came up behind her and circled his arms around her, positioning her hand on the end of the stick. Joanna had all the confidence in the world on how to handle a cue, but she didn’t have a clue on how to handle his nearness and still remain composed enough to play the game. He was warm against her back, hard, male, making her feel intoxicated as if she’d raided the old-timey bar and downed all the whiskey.

His breath fanned her face, fed the flame now spanning the length of her. He smelled like incense, spicy and exotic and tempting. Joanna continued to play ignorant, play at this game of chance where the stakes were high and losing all common sense could be the price she would pay if not careful.

“Now hold it steady,” he said in a warm honeyed voice, thick and seductively sweet.

Steady? How could she? “I’ll try.”

The feel of him molded to her backside in all the right places had knocked her self-control for a loop, disturbed the timbre of her voice. She sounded like a mouse and felt like a woman. A woman in dire straits, enveloped in the solid arms of a man-boy with too much charm and the means to make her tremble, which she did, but only slightly.

With Rio’s assistance—help she didn’t really need— she broke the balls, effectively scattering them over the green felt surface, the way her composure scattered in his presence.

Much to her disappointment, and relief, he straightened and moved away.

His grin was confident, distracting. “You don’t have to call the pocket right now since you’re getting reacquainted with the game.”

Joanna smiled to herself. Little did he know, the charade was now off and the competition on.

She leaned forward over the table, sensing Rio’s scrutiny and trying hard to ignore it. If she didn’t, she’d probably bounce the balls like ball bearings across the room with her first shot. “Twelve ball, corner pocket.” After she said it, she did it. And again and again. With little effort, she cleared the table of all the striped balls.

Feeling sassy and satisfied, she said, “Well, Doctor, do you want to take a shot now before I take on the eight ball? I’ll be glad to let you.”

His smile looked sinister, and totally sexy. “You little sneak. Where’d you learn to play like that?”

“My dad.”

“He taught you well.”

“Yes, he did. As a matter of fact, he made a living at being a teacher. English teacher. So did my mom.”

“Do you two still play?”

“He died when I was in college.”

“I’m sorry.”

“So am I, but he led a full life. I only wish he’d known his grandson.” Joseph had been lacking a good male role model because of that fact, and his own father’s apathy.

Rio laid his cue on the table, not bothering to take a shot. But he sure as heck was shooting holes in Joanna’s resolve when he took the cue from her and laid it next to his then brushed his knuckles across her cheek. “Best I can recall, none of my teachers were pool sharks. But then, I don’t remember any of their daughters looking like you, either.”

Joanna forced herself away and strolled to the end of the room near the large picture window. She came upon a train set, intricately detailed down to the tiny pines and miniature houses. She bent and studied the tunnel opening from the foot of a tree-dotted hill. “Joseph would love this. The train I gave him for Christmas is cheap plastic.”

She heard a thwack and glanced over her shoulder to find Rio dispensing the remainder of the balls into the pockets. His thermal shirt, pushed up at the sleeves, revealed his caramel skin threaded with masculine veins. His dark hair veiled his beautiful face when he leaned over, but it didn’t matter. Joanna had practically memorized every detail.

He moved around the table and leaned over to make another shot. “I used to watch one setup from the window at a train shop when I was a kid.” He sent one ball into the pocket then straightened. “I waited a lot of years to have one of my own.”

Joanna turned back to the train to keep from staring at him. When she heard footsteps behind her, she didn’t dare turn around. “Exactly how old are you, if you don’t mind me asking?” she said, aiming for something simple to say.

His hand came around her to push the control, setting the locomotive in motion along with her pulse. “Literally? Thirty-three.”

She concentrated on the engine billowing steam, the multicolored cars as the train made the rounds on the track. “And how old would you like to be?”

“That depends. When I’m in here, I’m thirteen again. In the outside world, I have to be the grown-up.”

“Well, I passed you up agewise last year.”

“You’re only fourteen?” he asked, mock seriously.

She turned and smiled at him. “Ha, ha. Thirty-four. And a half.”

He inched a little closer, seeming to suck the air from the small space between them. “An older woman. Intriguing. You look much younger. Not fourteen, but I would’ve guessed under thirty.”

“Sometimes I feel ancient.”

He stroked a hand over her cheek while studying her flushed face. “You feel great.”

She was losing it, losing her will to resist him. Not a sensible thing to do, but rationality wasn’t foremost on her mind at the moment. Rio was, with his penetrating eyes and a smile that certainly didn’t belong on a boy. “So you don’t like being the grown-up?” she asked.

“There’s nothing wrong with being a man when the circumstance calls for it.”

He stopped the train now in mid-whistle, sending the room into silence. Then he pulled her flush against him and claimed her mouth with a kiss that could shake the tracks, the walls, shake Joanna into oblivion. It did. The gentle thrust of his tongue, the searing heat of his body, the strength of his steady hands as they traveled the length of her back then came to rest on her hips, acted on her like a magic charm, a spell she couldn’t escape if her very life depended on it.

She draped her arms around his neck and sent her hands through his silky dark hair to explore. The kiss deepened, wild and needy, hungry and desperate. Desire advanced and her concerns retreated. Under Rio Madrid’s expert guidance, she forgot to be afraid to want.

Rio was suddenly moving, taking her with him, leading her to who knew where. Perhaps a dreamland of his own making, like the mythical god he had spoken of, a sun god creating a firebrand with his mouth moving softly yet firmly against hers. She instinctively knew that he could take her places she’d never been before, if she allowed him.

He spun her around and backed her up without breaking the kiss. The edge of a table nudged her hip, the pool table, she decided, not that it mattered. The only thing that mattered was Rio and what he was doing to her body and her brain.

His lips drifted down the column of her throat, leaving a wet tingling path in their wake. His hand came to rest on the placket of her blouse, causing Joanna’s heart to beat in a crazy cadence. He slipped the buttons with ease, allowing a cool draft of air to caress her heated skin. But the heat came back when his lips floated over the rise of her breasts.

Joanna laid her hands on his bent head, lost in the feel of his mouth on her skin, the deep, damp heat settling between her thighs.

He lifted his head and studied her with a potent golden gaze. “ ¿Me quiere usted?”

She couldn’t deny that she wanted him. She wanted this, wanted more, even though she shouldn’t. “Yes.”

“Diga mi nombre.” He made the demand in a low, persuasive voice.

She understood the Spanish, but not his request. “What?”

“Say my name.”

Rio, her mind shouted, but she feared forming the word in her mouth. If she dispensed with the formality, he would no longer be the elusive doctor. If she continued to allow this heavenly assault on her senses, this prelude to pleasure, he could very well be her lover. And once more, she would be vulnerable to a man who wasn’t what she needed at all.

But she did need this physical contact, to be desired as a woman. To satisfy cravings that had long been missing from her life. To forget herself in the arms of a man whose name meant “river.” A man as seductive as dark waters, his lure a strong current promising to carry her away into uncharted territory.

She hesitated a moment longer, searching his eyes for a reason to stop. She saw only questions, then disappointment before he turned away from her.

Hands fisted at his sides, he muttered, “I promised myself I wouldn’t do this.”

Joanna clasped her shirt closed. “Do what?”

“Push you.”

“You didn’t push me. I let it happen.”

He finally turned to her. “You’re not ready.”

She’d certainly felt ready. More than ready, and willing. “How can you say that?”

“Because you can’t say my name. I’ll be damned if I make love to a woman who calls me ‘doctor.’”

Her gaping shirt forgotten, she braced her hands on her hips. “Rio. There, I said it. Are you happy now?”

His gaze went to her exposed bra and a half smile curled the corners of his mouth. “Yeah, you said it, but not like you meant it.”

He was driving her to distraction, making her insane. “I don’t understand this at all.”

“You understand it. You won’t acknowledge it.”

She redid her blouse with shaking fingers. “Forget it. This was a mistake anyway. All of it.”

“Is it, mi amante?”

Her eyes snapped from the buttons to him. “I’m not your lover, remember?”

His smile disappeared, making way for a look that could dissolve the pool table behind her. “You will be, Joanna. When you’re ready.”

She hugged her arms to her middle. “You’re mighty sure of yourself, aren’t you?”

He folded his arms across his chest, his face an unreadable mask. “You can lie to yourself. You can pretend that nothing’s going on between us. But I can’t lie. I know how I feel when I’m holding you, and it’s not just minor affection.”

Why, oh, why hadn’t she stayed home New Year’s Eve? Stayed in her wretched apartment? She’d been comfortable with her existence, her celibacy, her choices. Why did he have to come along and disrupt her life? Why him, of all people—a man who made her ache, made her want, made her realize she possessed desires beyond all bounds?

The shrill of the phone startled Joanna and caused her to physically jump.

Rio grabbed up the cordless phone. “Dr. Madrid.” He paced with his back to Joanna. After a time, he said, “Okay, I’m on my way.”

He replaced his phone on the charger and turned. “I’ve got to go into the hospital.”

Already she was missing him, and she hated that. “I thought you weren’t on call.”

“I’m not, but this is a special case. First baby. She’s sixteen, scared. Her boyfriend didn’t stick around. She wants me to deliver.”

Her admiration for him increased more than she thought possible. “I guess she needs you.”

“Yeah. Nice to know someone does now and then.” He sounded almost sad, as alone as Joanna felt much of the time.

He stopped in the doorway. “Make yourself at home. There’s a casserole in the fridge you can heat up for dinner. My housekeeper left it for me.”

“I’ll make do.” She needed to say something, but she wasn’t sure what. “Rio?” The word rolled easily off her tongue.

His smile appeared, slowly. A satisfied smile. “Yeah?”

“Since this is a first baby, you might be a while, so I just wanted to say goodnight and thanks for everything. I hope you get some sleep.”

He braced one hip against the door frame and released a mirthless laugh. “Sleep? Not in a million years.”

Five

Joanna couldn’t sleep. Maybe it was the strange house, the strange bed, the knowledge that she was all alone again.

Since retiring for the night, she had listened carefully for the sound of Rio’s return but hadn’t heard a thing, even from Gabby who was still outside, as far as she knew. Of course, Gabby didn’t strike her as being much of a watchdog.

Joanna had gone to her room following a meager dinner of tuna casserole and an hour spent watching some inane sitcom. Now she sat in bed and tried to read materials to prepare for a continuing-education course she was due to take in the spring. She quickly abandoned that for a glitzy magazine heralding the breakups of rich and indulgent celebrities. Tiring of that, she tossed the magazine aside and stared at the ceiling.

Maybe if she took another shower, she might relax. A hot bath…The hot tub? Well, that was an option. Since Rio was gone, she could hide away in there without notice. But what if he came home? Gabby would warn her, hopefully giving her enough time to sneak back inside.

Joanna rose from the bed and rummaged in the dresser for the only swimsuit she owned. It was black, basic, the only thing daring about it came in the form of sheer netting that covered the midriff but revealed little more than a hint of flesh.

After donning the suit, she retrieved an oversize towel from the linen closet and padded down the stairs. Just to be on the safe side, she tiptoed to Rio’s room. The door was partially open and it creaked when she gave it a push. Her heart jumped, but thankfully she found the king-size bed still made, its owner absent. She took a chance and snapped on the light for a better look.

The bedroom was without embellishments, masculine, from the heavy pine bed covered in a black and gold spread to the posh tan carpeting. Several artifacts were set out on the tables in a small sitting area to her right, clay pots of every shape and size, a few polished stones, some small sculptures. On the wall over the black marble fireplace’s mantel hung an odd-looking calendar sporting a moon, stars and the sun. Yet the enticing scent exclusive to Rio appealed to her most of all.

Feeling nervous over invading his privacy, Joanna retreated out of the room and started down the stairs and into the backyard. The night was moonless, cold, and she almost reconsidered, but she’d already come this far, no use turning back now. After her eyes adjusted to the limited light, she headed for the hot tub, pulling up short a few feet away when she caught sight of the dark, imposing figure cast in shadows spilling across the water’s surface.

Rio.

Joanna saw a chance at escape until Gabby whined from her perch on the ground near the steps that led to the tub.

“Looks like you and I had the same idea.”

His deep voice stopped Joanna’s departure, nearly stopped her heart. “I couldn’t sleep, so I thought this might help me relax.” She was anything but relaxed at the moment. “But since you’re—”

“There’s plenty of room for us both.”

Even if the tub spanned the length of the yard, she doubted there would be enough room for her and Rio Madrid, together. Not if she wanted to keep her guard up, her head on straight and her clothes on.

“Join me,” he said in a seductive voice that promised untold pleasure. “The water’s great.”

The water wasn’t her main concern at the moment. Rio’s unexpected presence was. Did she dare join him?

She was afraid to move forward, afraid to move at all. She could do this, act like an adult, not some flighty, smitten teenager. Stay for a little while. Only a little while.

Clasping the towel to her chest, she moved on sluggish legs. She managed the steps but couldn’t manage to take her eyes off him once she reached the top. The darkness didn’t allow her to make out much more than his shadowy form. Probably a good thing since she noted that his clothes were piled on the bench in the corner. All of them, she suspected.

Keeping the towel close to her body, she sat on the ledge opposite him and dangled her feet in the water. “Wow. This is much hotter than I realized.”

She saw a flash of white teeth. “The temperature just rose a few degrees, among other things.”

Don’t look, Joanna. But she did, and luckily she couldn’t see anything much, not that she didn’t really want to.

Then he reached behind him and snapped on the light. The jets whirred to life, setting a foaming mound of bubbles into action, along with Joanna’s pulse.

She looked away, afraid she might see something she didn’t need to see, namely all of Rio’s body now reclined in one corner of the tub. Every fine detail.

“Are you going to get in, Joanna, or just sit there until you turn into an ice cube?”

She ventured a look in Rio’s direction. His hands were stacked behind his head, his hair wet and much too sexy for words. She chafed her palms down her arms. “It is kind of chilly.” Chills that were a direct result of viewing his bare chest, his sultry smile.

“It’s warm enough in here.” He gave her a lingering assessment. “Nice suit.”

She looked down, then back up again. “It’s all I have.”

“I mean it, Joanna. It looks great on you.”

Searching for a switch of subjects, she asked, “How did the birth go?”

“Without a hitch. In fact she delivered in two hours. A healthy baby girl. A little underweight, but okay.”

“Then you’ve been in the hot tub all this time?”

A deep chuckle rumbled in his chest. “Now if that were true, I’d be shriveled up like a prune. Believe me, I’m not.”

Again she wanted to look below the water’s depths, find a break in the bubbles, find his tattoo and the territory beneath. But she forced her eyes to remain on his face. “How long have you been home?”

He dropped his arms and stroked one hand across his chest. Joanna couldn’t help but imagine her own hand there. “Long enough to take a quick swim then get in here. I stayed at the hospital until she said goodbye to her daughter.”

“Said goodbye?”

“She’s putting the baby up for adoption.”

Joanna’s heart began to ache with that knowledge. Being without Joseph for the past few months had been devastating, and only a temporary situation. She couldn’t begin to imagine how heartbreaking it would be to give up a child permanently. “I’m sure that was a difficult decision,” she said with a sigh.

“Yeah, but for the best. She wants to continue with school. She doesn’t have any money since her parents kicked her out, but she’s got a relative willing to take her in, as long as it’s only her and not a child.”

“I hope they find a nice family for the baby.”

“I hope so, too. It’s tough not being wanted.”

How odd that he would say such a thing since he’d spoken so fondly of his mother. How strange that he sounded so sad. “I wouldn’t know.” At least not from a parental standpoint. On the other hand, she knew quite well how it felt not to be wanted by a husband. “Sounds like you might have had some experience with that.”

His sudden slight shift was the only thing that indicated his discomfort. “Oh, my mother wanted me, all right, until she married my stepfather.”

“You never mentioned him before.”

“I did. The colonel.”

“The man your mother worked for?”

“Yeah. And after they married, they sent me away to boarding school. Expected me to conform, be what they wanted me to be, in his case, white. It wouldn’t do for a decorated military man to have a poor multiracial brat running around, now, would it?”

The venom in his tone caused Joanna to flinch. “But his last name was Madrid.”

“No. It was Burlington. He adopted me, but I used my own father’s name in med school. I had it legally changed back after the colonel’s estate was settled.”

“I’m sorry that you had to live like that.”

“Well, at least I got all this in the deal.” He made a sweeping gesture around the area. “He left all his money to me, his ranch, which I sold the first chance I got. I didn’t want to hang on to those memories.”

Again he had thrown her off balance with his revelations. He was more an enigma now than ever.

The strap on Joanna’s swimsuit slipped off her shoulder. When she started to push it up, he said, “Leave it.”

For some reason she did, even though the falling strap pulled the neckline of the suit lower, exposing the top of her breast.

“Get in, Joanna,” he commanded in a deep, drugging voice. “I won’t bite. Much.” He topped off the request with a wicked grin.

Joanna suspected it would take more energy than she owned to resist his pull. But she didn’t have the desire to fight him any longer, at least at the moment. She could do this, keep her distance, remain focused and maintain a firm grip on reality.

Tossing her towel aside, she slipped into the welcoming water across from Rio. Her fair skin was cloaked in a translucent blue because of the tinted light. But Rio was dark and dangerous, the proverbial calm before the storm.

Tipping her head back, Joanna closed her eyes and tried to block out Rio’s image.

A hand caught her wrist, prompting her eyes to snap open and her pulse to quicken. Slowly he pulled her forward then turned her until she came to rest between his thighs, her back to his chest.

“Relax,” he whispered. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

Oh, but he could, and quite sufficiently, at least from an emotional perspective. She couldn’t think about that now, or worry about it, because her attention was drawn to something against her lower back. She didn’t have to guess what that something was.

He rested his lips against her bare shoulder then worked his way up her neck. She shuddered at the sensations, trembled when he slipped the other strap down. He streaked his knuckles back and forth over the rise of her breasts. She wanted him to keep going, ached for him to keep going, but he didn’t.

“Take it off,” he murmured. “You’ll feel better.”

Abandoning good sense, Joanna slipped her arms out of the straps and tugged the bodice down, baring her breasts completely to his eyes, his hands. Yet he still didn’t touch her, at least not intimately.

He did wrap his arms around her shoulders, his hands clasped together above her breasts. Joanna marveled at the contrasting colors of their skin—hers almost alabaster white, his the color of warm chocolate. Marveled at her sudden lack of inhibition, her indescribable need for his touch.

Her legs floated upward and so, it seemed, did her whole being. She waited for Rio to remove her suit completely but when he didn’t, she worked it down and away and watched as it twisted into the current.

“Now that’s more like it,” he said. “Don’t you feel a sense of freedom?”

She did, and she also felt light-headed, uncontrolled and needy.

She looked back at him. His golden earring twinkled, his eyes a near match in color. His strong, sharp features delineated by the glow of the light bouncing from the water’s surface mesmerized her, as did his lips outlined by the shadow of evening whiskers playing over his jaw.

He watched her for a long moment, waited for something but she wasn’t sure what. He made no move to touch her intimately yet his eyes never left hers.

Unable to stand the suspense any longer, she palmed his jaw and brought his mouth to hers. He kissed her deeply, deliberately, with a steady glide of his tongue in a slow, seductive foray, back and forth until she lost all sense of time or place or purpose. A slight moan climbed up her throat and she tried to stop its progress. Honestly she did, but she couldn’t. She also couldn’t halt the cravings, the way he held her prisoner with his capable mouth. She felt the glide of his erection against her back as he pulled her closer to him, his hips lifting on the current. It was the most erotic moment she had ever experienced, knowing how close she was to giving him everything, finally acknowledging a sensual facet of herself that she had long ago learned to deny.

Yet when his hand drifted to her breast, Joanna tensed, a knee-jerk reaction she couldn’t control.

He broke the kiss and rubbed his thumb over her lip. “Do you want this, Joanna?”

She tucked her head beneath his chin, turning her face into his neck, away from his questioning gaze. “Yes.”

She sensed he would treat her with consideration and care, with skill. And he did, with a light stroke on one nipple, then the other. She melted against him and closed her eyes, immersed herself in his touch, the ripples of water flowing over her.

The night wrapped around her like a comforting mantle, as comforting as Rio’s embrace, his sleek touch. Something inside Joanna broke away. Her caution, her concerns. All that mattered was him, the feelings he stirred within her, the undeniable passion, the yearning that was so foreign yet so welcome.

As if she’d totally detached herself from the lonely, celibate shell her life had been to this point, she laid her palm on his hand and guided it downward. He paused at her belly immediately below her navel, brushing his knuckles back and forth in a slow, torturous rhythm.

“Tell me what you want, Joanna,” he whispered.

She didn’t want to think, or to consider what was about to happen. She wanted him, only him, and to be the woman that he desired. “Touch me.”

He sifted his fingertips through the tangle of curls between her thighs, then on to her susceptible flesh with a gentle yet unyielding caress. “Like this?”

“Yes.” The word hissed out on the wings of a broken breath.

His murmured sensual words danced around in her head as the bubbles danced over her body. His fingertip made gentle passes over places too long ignored then slipped deep inside her, slowly, deliberately.

The steam rose around her as Rio’s touch swathed her in a heavy fog of desire. The pressure began to mount beneath his insistent strokes. So did the need to resist for fear of completely losing herself. But no matter how hard she tried to fight it, prolong its arrival, the climax came with the force of a tempest, sucking her breath from her lungs, her thoughts from her brain. Her pulse throbbed in her ears, her body trembled. She felt weak, boneless, satisfied.

Rio held her through the aftermath for a time, still toying with the curls with gentle fingers. She wanted to tell him to touch her again, and again. She wanted to take him inside her, all of him, to know what it felt like to be totally consumed by a man who held such sensual power over her.

“Are you okay?” he whispered.

Was she okay? She was more than okay. More than ready to continue. She could only nod, her cheek rubbing against the warm damp skin at his neck.

“Good. Maybe now you’ll sleep.”

With that, he tipped her face up, brushed a kiss over her lips then worked his way from behind her. “Stay as long as you’d like.”

When he left the tub, Joanna could only stare at him, stare at his sculpted buttocks, his damp hair resting on his shoulders, his strong spine glistening with moisture. And when he turned, the evidence that he was still aroused definitely caught her attention before he slipped on his jeans without bothering to dry off.

Joanna felt self-conscious, alone and naked, cold and confused. She crossed one arm over her breasts and searched beneath the water’s surface for her suit. Not finding it, she hoisted herself out of the tub and grabbed for the towel to secure it around her.

“Where are you going?” she asked through chattering teeth as she sat on the bench near the tub, unable to stand any longer.

“To bed.”

“But…I…you…” She sounded like a stammering idiot, a desperate woman.

“I what?”

“I thought maybe we might finish this.”

He slipped his shirt over his head. “Not tonight, Joanna. This was for you.” He knelt and fished her suit from the water, squeezed it out, then tossed it at her. It hit the wooden deck at her feet with a soggy thump.

She snatched up the suit and stood, fighting to control her anger. “Oh, so you were doing me a favor, were you? Poor desperate Joanna Blake who hasn’t been with a man in years.”

He inclined his head. “You haven’t?”

Nothing like giving herself away. “No, I haven’t, and I don’t need your favors.” She shot a pointed look below his belt. “So is this some kind of test of your strength, or do you plan to take care of that yourself?”

He ate up the space between them in two long strides, clasped her hand and pressed her palm against his erection. “I plan for you to take care of this but only when you’re ready.”

He took a step back and Joanna rolled her eyes to the night sky. “We’re back to that again? I did what you wanted. I said your name, several times. What do I have to do next, recite poetry?”

“You have to learn to trust me. You have to believe that I’m worthy enough to make love to you in every way.”

“And I have no say in the matter? We’ll make love when you say the time’s right?”

“We’ll make love when you come to me without my coercion. And not a minute before.”

He clicked off the jets and lights in the tub then turned and sprinted down the steps with Gabby following at his heels. The sound of the back door closing jarred Joanna out of her shock. Suddenly she felt to-the-marrow cold, and alone.

She also felt determined. If Rio Madrid wanted to play games, then bully for him. She didn’t have to play along. If he was waiting for her to come to him, then he definitely had another think coming.

She didn’t need him, and that’s what she kept telling herself all through the night.

Two long, restless nights, Joanna thought as she readied for her next patient the following Monday afternoon. One equally chaotic day. When she turned on the water in the exam room’s stainless sink, a flashback assailed her—blue lights, skilled hands, naked flesh, absolute paradise.

She fumbled with the blood pressure cuff, dropped the chart and knocked her coffee cup over onto the counter. Luckily it flipped sideways into the sink, saving the carpet from a good dousing, saving Joanna from a fit of oaths directed at Rio Madrid.

She definitely had the good doctor to thank for her distraction as well as the heat flowing through her body on a stream of remembrance. She needed to stop thinking about what had happened Saturday night, as well as what hadn’t happened. So far, that’s about all she’d thought of since the moment she’d awakened at dawn, alone.

Joanna supposed she should be thankful Rio hadn’t changed his mind and come to her. But she wasn’t. As unwise as it seemed, she would have welcomed him into her bed, into her body without a second thought, but probably not without regret.

Yes, she should be very thankful he’d stayed away, avoided her yesterday as well. Instead, she was frustrated and needy and still wanted him as much as she had two nights before. As much as she had that first night when he’d kissed her.

“Knock, knock,” Allison Cartwright called from the open door. “Do you have a few minutes?”

Joanna pulled a few paper towels from the metal dispenser and wiped the water from her hands, wishing she could as easily wipe Rio from her mind. “Come on in. My next patient’s not due in for another ten minutes or so. What’s up?”

Allison strode into the exam room, her auburn hair swinging back and forth where it fell over her shoulders. After dropping her small frame into the nearby chair, she let out a strained breath and stretched out her long legs. “My feet are starting to swell and my hips are expanding to dangerous proportions. I have to pee every fifteen minutes because I think junior here is sitting on my bladder. But that’s okay because in about six weeks, he’ll be here and I’ll forgive him everything.”

Joanna grinned. “Are you still convinced it’s a boy?”

Allison gave her round belly a pat. “You betcha. He’s so active that I can’t help but believe he’s training for soccer.”

“You could always find out during an ultrasound.”

“Nope. I want to be surprised.”

“By the way, have you seen Dr. Madrid lately?”

“Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Dr. Madrid.”

Joanna tried not to push the internal panic button yet she couldn’t help but worry that maybe people already knew about her recent living arrangements. Ludicrous. Allison had no way of knowing since she worked across town for a prominent law firm. Unless Rio had told her. Surely not. “What about Dr. Madrid?”

“I’ve come to the decision that I’m going to use the center, as long as you’ll attend my birth. I’m just not sure how I’m going to tell him. He’s been so good to me, and he’s such a great doctor, but I really don’t want to have my baby in the hospital.”

Joanna crossed the room and leaned back against the exam table, facing Allison. “Are you absolutely sure? You’ve told me that you were considering an epidural, and you know we don’t provide that here.”

“I’m sure. And I’m no longer worried about the pain aspect because I know you’ll be with me through the whole thing. To be honest, there are other reasons why I don’t want to have this baby at Memorial.”

Joanna frowned. “You’re not obligated to tell me, but does this have something to do with the baby’s father?”

Allison’s gaze faltered. “You could say that, but I’d rather not say anything more.”

“I understand.” Obviously the father worked at the hospital. Joanna briefly wondered if maybe he was married. Such a shame if that were true, but she had a hard time believing Allison would fall into that trap. However, Joanna knew all too well how persuasive men could be, as well as deceptive. “Would you like me to tell Dr. Madrid about your decision?”

Allison frowned. “In all fairness, I need to tell him myself, but if you could just sort of pave the way so he won’t be quite as shocked.”

“No problem,” she said, although she didn’t exactly relish the idea. “I’ll mention it to him tonight.”

“Tonight?”

Oh, heavens, how was she going to get out of this one? “Uh, well, yes. If I see him tonight. For some reason. That’s possible, if there’s some reason for seeing him.” Wow, Joanna. That sounded really coherent.

Allison sent her a knowing smile. “I think the midwife doth protest too much.” She leaned forward and lowered her voice. “Is he as good as he looks?”

Right on cue, heat rushed from Joanna’s neck to her scalp. “I wouldn’t know.” Not that she didn’t want to know. Actually she did know on a limited basis.

“Are you sure?”

She was sure about one thing—she needed to end this conversation now. After a quick glance at the clock, Joanna said, “Oh, look. It’s time for my next patient.”

Allison rose from the chair with a grace Joanna had always longed for and started toward the door. “Okay, Nurse Blake, I’m not going to bug you since we’re all entitled to our little secrets.” She circled her slender fingers around the doorknob and turned to Joanna with a wily grin. “But as soon as you find out how good the doctor really is, be sure to let me in on it.”

With that she breezed out the door, and Joanna resisted the urge to throw water on her face to cool the sudden heat.

Water. Soothing warm water, bubbles twirling over her body, gentle fingers dancing over tender flesh…

Joanna slapped her palms to her cheeks as if she could jar the memories from her mind.

Darn Rio Madrid. When she did see him again, she would make it a point to mention Allison Cartwright. And she’d make it quite clear that the game was up, she didn’t want to play, so he’d best keep his distance.

Now if she only remembered to keep hers.

Six

After two lengthy deliveries, Rio arrived home early Friday morning slightly before dawn. He built a fire in the den, stripped off his shirt and collapsed onto the sofa with Gabby.

Since Joanna had moved in with him two weeks ago, he’d barely seen her due to their conflicting schedules, at least not as much as he’d wanted. They had shared dinner a few nights, and he did have to admit that he’d greatly enjoyed the meals she’d prepared, their casual conversations, and definitely the way she always made him smile with some amusing story about her son. He appreciated the fact that she really listened to him when he’d had a particularly tough day, appreciated their shared concern for their patients. Yet he’d sensed the discomfort those times when—unable to resist—he’d done nothing more than reach out and touch her face or her hand.

She should consider herself lucky, Rio decided. He’d wanted to touch her elsewhere, kiss her everywhere. He’d fought to keep his hands to himself, battled to keep from coming up behind her while she’d stood at the stove cooking, wanting badly to turn up the heat by slipping his hand inside the baggy sweatpants she tended to wear after business hours, to make her react the way she had in the hot tub. But he’d decided to stick to his guns and wait for her to make the next move, even if it was killing him to do so.

Thoughts of making love to her—really making love to her—made him brick hard, made him want to groan with frustration. He lowered his fly an inch to provide some relief, but it didn’t help all that much. Only one thing would alleviate the problem, and she was upstairs, fast asleep.

After yanking the band from his hair, Rio tipped his head back against the leather sofa and propped his feet on the coffee table. With Gabby curled up next to him, he flipped on the TV with the remote and settled for some infomercial hawking a miracle cleaner. Normally he would try to find something more entertaining, or at least something that might put him to sleep, at least for an hour or so before he had to return to the hospital to make his morning rounds.

Right now his thoughts centered on Joanna, on the fact that she was upstairs in bed, alone, and he was on the couch, hurting like hell from wanting her. From wanting to touch her again, only this time with his mouth as well as his hands. From needing to be inside her with an urgency as unfamiliar as having a woman living with him. A woman he wanted way too much.

But he’d been dead serious when he’d told her that he wasn’t going to make love to her until she came to him. It needed to be a conscious decision, not duress, that brought her to his bed. She had to make up her mind that she was willing to enter into a relationship that might never be more than two people enjoying intimacy.

He wished he could offer her more, but he wasn’t sure he could. An integral part of him feared the loss of freedom since he’d given up so many liberties in his life-time. But more important, he wasn’t certain he was cut out for marriage or fatherhood; his own example had been anything but satisfactory.

At times he had considered settling into that role, yet he’d never found a woman who’d encouraged the kind of feelings that led to a serious commitment.

Except for the woman upstairs. Maybe that’s why having Joanna Blake in his life was beginning to scare the hell out of him. And as bad as he hated to admit it, his burgeoning feelings for her did alarm him on a very distinct level. He’d mistakenly thought he could handle it. Handle having her here yet not having her completely. He didn’t like his weakness, nor did he want to act on his desire unless he knew for certain she was willing to accept the terms. But he wasn’t sure how long he could remain strong in her presence—emotionally and physically.

Gabby whined, cocked her head to one side and stared at the doorway from the entry. Rio looked over his shoulder to see Joanna’s form cast in a mix of gold and silver light coming from the TV and the fire. She trudged into the room wearing a thigh-length flannel nightshirt and a pair of baggy socks, her hair a tangle of curls. She was a mess, and Rio couldn’t remember ever wanting someone as much as he wanted her at that moment.

His body had begun to calm a few moments before only to be brought back to life by her sudden appearance. If he were any kind of gentleman, he’d grab a throw pillow and shove it on his lap to hide his current predicament. But from the looks of Joanna’s sleepy expression, he doubted she’d notice.

After Joanna settled into the oversize club chair cattycorner from the couch, he asked, “What are you doing up so early?”

When he unconsciously rubbed a hand over his bare chest, her gaze followed the movement, continuing to his abdomen and lower, where his jeans were partially undone, serving to make him even more uncomfortable.

“What are you doing…up?” She jerked her gaze back to the television.

Rio almost laughed—a pain-filled, joyless laugh. Instead, he laced his hands behind his head and released a slow, even breath in an effort to conceal his uneasiness. “I haven’t been to bed yet. In fact, I just got home. Busy night so I’m still high on adrenaline.” High on her. High on the prospect of peeling her faded flannel nightshirt slowly off her body and making long, hard love to her in front of the fire. The flame had dwindled due to his halfhearted attempts, but the blaze burning below Rio’s belt generated enough heat to fuel the entire city.

Joanna stretched and yawned. “I couldn’t sleep any longer. Too much on my mind, I guess.”

She sounded slightly distressed, and Rio’s concern for Joanna helped to pacify his cravings somewhat. “Is work not going well?”

She shook her head. “Work is fine. I got a letter from my mom and Joseph yesterday.”

His concern increased. “Something wrong?”

“Not really. Joseph is doing well in school, making A’s although he’s had a little trouble with talking in class.” She smiled. “He gets that from his father.”

Rio dropped his feet from the table and leaned forward, arms draped on his thighs. “You’re missing your son,” he said in a simple statement of fact.

“I miss him every night, every day, especially when it’s cold. It reminds me of when he was born, in November. The day I took him home, it was around thirty degrees, crisp and clear outside. I spent that first day holding him. He was so tiny and I was so scared. Just the thought of molding someone’s life is overwhelming. But I like to think about that particular day when it was just us, getting to know each other.”

“What about your husband?”

Joanna hugged her knees to her chest, her feet balanced on the edge of the chair as she turned her attention to the smoldering logs. “Oh, he was out celebrating the fact that he had a son. He started celebrating the day I went into labor and didn’t quit for about a week.”

“But he was with you during the birth.”

“Well, no. Adam wasn’t very good at that sort of thing. But I was lucky, only four hours of labor.”

“You were lucky where the labor was concerned. I can’t say the same for your choice in husbands.”

Joanna nailed him with blue eyes that looked almost translucent in the muted light. “He was very charming, a big talker.” She nodded toward the TV and the hyperactive host extolling the virtues of the cleaner in a booming voice. “Just like that guy. The pitch sounds great and then you soon discover you’ve purchased a faulty product. I’ve learned that when it sounds too good to be true, most likely it is.”

God, Rio despised her ex more and more with each revelation and he didn’t even know the guy. But he did know that Joanna had told the truth, and that was enough justification for his hatred. “Did the bastard ever give you what you needed?”

Her gaze snapped to his. “He gave me Joseph.”

“He should be supporting you financially.”

“With what? His looks?” Her tone bore the anger of a woman scorned, and rightfully so. “He couldn’t keep a job while I was in school. I doubt he has one now.”

“You were in school when the baby was born?”

“Medical school. Second year. That’s how we ended up in San Antonio.”

The disclosure threw Rio mentally off-kilter. “Medical school?”

She tucked her legs beneath her and folded her arms across her breasts. “Yeah. I didn’t exactly plan to have a baby then. I wanted to wait until I finished but…” Her gaze faltered. “I foolishly thought that having a child might settle Adam down. Obviously I was mistaken.”

“Obviously. But you don’t regret having Joseph.”

“No. He’s my whole life.”

Rio saw undeniable love reflecting from her beautiful blue eyes. A mother’s love. And he realized now, more than ever, she did merit a man who could love her the way she deserved to be loved.

“I had no idea you planned to be a doctor,” he said, ill at ease over his sudden feelings of inadequacy where Joanna was concerned, with how little emotionally he had to offer.

“There are quite a few things you don’t know about me.”

He knew that he respected her, that he admired her selfless love for her child. That he hated what her husband had done to her. That he wished he had more to give. “I’d like to know more about you, Joanna,” he found himself saying with sincerity. He did want to know her, and he was only beginning to scratch the surface.

A reluctant grin curled the corners of her full lips. “I think we’ve skipped a few important steps, considering you now know what I look like naked.”

She could have gone all day without saying that. His uncooperative body could have gone all year without hearing it.

Shifting from the building tension in his groin, he opted to revisit something they’d discussed the day she’d moved into his house in an attempt to quell the urge to carry her to his bed. “The offer still stands about having Joseph come to live here. Then he could be with you every day.”

She sighed. “I really appreciate it, but as I’ve said before, he needs to stay in school throughout the remainder of the year now that he’s settled.”

“Okay, but if you change your mind, you know he’s welcome.”

To his surprise, she scooted out of the chair, walked to the sofa and hovered above him. “Are you planning to go to bed any time soon?”

He wanted to go to bed with her, but not unless she extended the invitation. “In a while.”

She looked at him expectantly before her gaze traveled to his mouth. “Guess you’re really tired, huh?”

Not so tired that if she asked, he’d make love to her until the sun rose in a couple of hours. But only if she asked. “Is there something you need from me?”

A long silence ensued as she stood there opening and closing her fists and biting her lower lip. It took a major effort on Rio’s part not to take her hands, pull her into his lap—straddling his lap—so he could feel her against him, let her know that he needed to be inside her more than he needed sleep. For a brief moment he thought she might actually come to him and soothe the ache building to an unbearable intensity below his tattered jeans.

The moment ended when her gaze shifted away. “Actually, there’s something I need to tell you. In fact, I’ve been meaning to tell you for a while now.”

Her serious tone indicated seduction was the last thing on her mind. Or maybe he’d only imagined the longing reflecting in her blue eyes. He patted the cushion next to him in hopes that she might reconsider. “Have a seat.”

She stared at the sofa as if it were covered in spikes, not leather. “It can wait. You need your rest.”

Aside from needing her in a very fundamental way, he needed to know what was bugging her. “A few more minutes aren’t going to matter.”

Finally, she claimed a seat on the far end of the couch as if he were contagious. “It’s about Allison Cartwright. I believe she’s decided to use the center for the birth.”

Rio wasn’t exactly surprised, nor was he exactly thrilled. Yet he had to accept Allison’s decision, even if he didn’t like it. “I understand why she feels she has to do it.”

“But you’re angry about it.”

“Not angry. Concerned.”

Joanna moved closer, once again jump-starting his awareness of her—the way she smelled, the way he knew she would feel beneath him. “Rio, I promise she’ll be fine. The pregnancy is going very well, right?”

“Right.” He couldn’t disregard his apprehension any more than he could disregard his desire for Joanna Blake. He centered his gaze back on the TV, away from her assessment. “But anything could happen.”

“Or nothing could happen aside from the birth of a healthy baby. You and I both know that.”

He could feel her staring at him, dissecting him. Right now he was just too damn tired to discuss this. Wound too tight to think about anything other than escaping before he released all his frustration by taking Joanna into his arms to try a little sensual persuasion. “Just promise me that if something does come up, you’ll bring her to the hospital.”

“I’ll call you if something happens, but I seriously doubt it will.”

“Fine.” He came to his feet only then realizing the extent of his exhaustion. He might as well be wearing concrete shoes, he decided as he headed toward the kitchen. At least his body had calmed somewhat.

“Rio.”

Joanna’s smooth, soothing voice turned him around, teased his libido awake again. “Yeah.”

“You know, you could still be present for the birth if you’d like.”

“No, thanks.”

She frowned. “I hope one day you’ll trust me enough to tell me what happened that made you so opposed to nonhospital births.”

“Nothing happened.” Except he’d watched a young woman die when he was barely old enough to watch that same woman give birth. “Just consider me overly cautious.”

“Are you going to your room?”

Not such an appealing thought without her accompanying him. “I’m going to grab the paper and have some coffee first.”

“Then I need to ask a favor.”

He could think of several favors he’d like to provide for her, even dead tired. “Shoot.”

“Do you mind if I use your shower? I won’t take long.”

“No problem.” It was a problem, at least for Rio. Knowing Joanna was in his shower—naked and wet— would prevent him from sleeping at all should he decide to grab a quick nap in his bedroom. But that wouldn’t keep him from honoring her request. In fact, he was beginning to think he might have a damn hard time refusing her anything.

She wasn’t alone.

Through the mist clinging to the transparent shower door, Joanna saw Rio leaning against the bathroom entry, his arms folded over his bare chest with one hip cocked against the frame. His stance seemed surprisingly relaxed, as if watching her bathe was a part of his daily routine. Joanna was not the least bit relaxed, nor had she been since she’d come upon him in the den cloaked in firelight with his jeans undone to reveal a partial glimpse of the tattoo. And below that, strong evidence that he was aroused. So had she been at that moment. So was she now.

Yet she wasn’t exactly surprised by his presence.

After all, this was his private domain and she had left the door partially ajar to keep the bath from steaming up. Or so she’d told herself. In reality, in an inexplicable place buried deep within her psyche, she’d secretly hoped that he would venture inside. Silently yearned for him to shed his clothes, his resistance, and join her for some more water play.

Instead, he continued to stand and stare, and Joanna continued to slowly lather her body with the same soap she had detected on his skin on more than one occasion, as if unaware of his presence.

The simple act of showering took on a whole new meaning. With every stroke over her slick flesh, she imagined his skilled hand there. With every pass over her breasts, she remembered his impassioned touch. With every random tick of her pulse, an all-consuming heat assailed the very core of her. Joanna’s head began to whirl with possibilities and her body reeled when she considered where this might lead.

Obviously nowhere, she soon realized after she’d finished washing and he still hadn’t made a move. Not even an inch. Maybe he found her figure lacking. Maybe he didn’t appreciate the faint stretch marks on her upper thighs, the slight roundness of her belly, the fullness of her hips.

But he’d seen all those details in the hot tub and that hadn’t stopped him then. Something was definitely stopping him now.

Resigned that he wasn’t going to do anything but gawk, Joanna turned off the spray, pushed open the shower door and grabbed for the bulky black towel hanging on the rack to her left. She dried herself slowly, still very much aware that he continued to study her. But she didn’t dare look at him, not yet. Not until after she had her feet firmly planted on the woven mat outside the shower and her robe covering her completely.

Though she felt self-conscious, Joanna affected casualness as she raised her eyes from where she’d cinched the robe’s tie loosely around her waist. She met his gaze, dark and intense and oh so seductive. “Did I take too long?” Her voice sounded remarkably nonchalant.

“Not at all.” His voice sounded impossibly deep and rough.

“I’ll be out of your way in a minute,” she said. “Just let me run a quick brush through my hair.”

After taking a seat before the vanity, Joanna combed through her unruly curls, not seeing much of anything but Rio’s reflection in the wide mirror. His expression remained guarded, still as dispassionate as it had been while he’d watched her bathe, but his eyes belied that appearance of calm and control. They looked dark and disturbed. Very disturbed.

She pivoted on the backless stool to face him with brush in hand and he gave her a slow visual once-over, pausing at her feet. “Your leg’s bleeding,” he said with a hint of concern.

Joanna sent a quick look down and noticed a thin trail of red oozing from a small cut on her ankle. Great. If she didn’t do something about it soon, she would bleed all over the nice beige carpet. “Sorry. I didn’t notice.” Actually, she had been vaguely aware of the nick while shaving her legs, but the sharp sting had been no match for the mind-numbing ache for Rio’s complete attention. It still wasn’t.

Reaching behind her, she laid down the brush, snapped a tissue from the holder on the counter and dabbed at the cut.

Without speaking, Rio pushed away from the door and strode toward her, causing her breath to hitch and her heart to leap. He bent and opened the bottom drawer to her left, and as he rummaged through the contents, several items drew Joanna’s attention, one in particular. A box of condoms. An industrial-size box.

Rio pushed the box aside, withdrew a bandage and ripped it open then tossed the wrapping into the nearby wastebasket. His mouth formed a grim line as he slammed the drawer and stood in front of her. Joanna expected him to hand her the bandage but instead, he knelt and propped her foot on his leg. She couldn’t disregard the fact that she was sitting on a stool wearing only a knee-length pink terry robe with her foot balanced on his taut thigh and her heart lodged in her dry throat. Goose bumps covered her entire body despite the warmth of the bathroom or Rio’s heat-inducing gaze now centered on her eyes.

After he gently applied the bandage, Joanna assumed he would stand and leave. But he remained motionless, as if awaiting some sort of response. Joanna supposed she should express her gratitude, verbally thank him, but she couldn’t seem to get a handle on her words when he began to brush his thumb over her instep in a maddening rhythm that put her senses on high alert.

Rio continued to silently regard Joanna, the tension as thick as the vapor that had risen from the shower. She had no idea what he was waiting for but she suspected it might be some kind of signal from her, something that indicated she wanted him to act on the electricity arcing between them, and no doubt she did, even though she shouldn’t.

But the shouldn’ts and couldn’ts never seemed to matter much when he was around. They didn’t matter now as he kept his eyes fastened on her flushed face. She only knew that she wanted him with an urgency that discounted logic.

The last remnants of Joanna’s common sense blew away along with any semblance of normal breathing. As if of their own accord, her legs slightly parted and the robe fell to each side of her thighs in blatant invitation.

Without taking his gaze from hers, Rio raised Joanna’s foot as well as her heart rate. He planted a soft kiss on her ankle above the bandage, then another on the inside of her calf and after that he moved on to her knee.

Keenly aware of his upward trek and his possible goal, Joanna had a hard time drawing air when he continued his daring exploration. Nothing like kissing and making it better—Joanna’s final lucid thought as she clamped her eyes closed while his tongue blazoned a scorching, wet path along her inner thigh. His mouth, so soft upon her naked flesh, generated such a searing heat that she could only consider how badly she needed relief. How badly she needed Rio.

In the distant recesses of her consciousness, Joanna knew it would be wise to halt what he was about to do. But her mind was as weak and shaky as her body, as limp as the sash he untied with one hand as she let him have his way without even one muttered protest. She gripped the edges of the stool when he opened her robe completely, exposing her breasts. At the same time, she opened her eyes to risk a glance, discovering his mouth only inches from intimate terrain.

Joanna couldn’t begin to recognize this uninhibited woman residing beneath her skin. The old Joanna would have protested, questioned her wisdom, his intent, or at least looked away. But this newer version couldn’t resist Rio Madrid. Couldn’t keep from watching, not even after he settled his mouth between her trembling thighs. Not even after he finessed her vulnerable flesh with his clever tongue, stroked her tender breasts with his gifted fingers, continued to scrutinize her as she balanced on the brink of something she wasn’t sure she could bear.

Watching the surreal scene, watching him watching her, sent a mind-bending climax tearing through Joanna. The intense sensations made her almost pull away from Rio’s provocative torment, but she couldn’t. She could only drop her chin to her chest as she rode wave after wave, pulse after pulse of pure bliss.

Before Joanna could completely recover, Rio hauled her into his arms and framed her face in his palms, holding her in place to accept what he so willingly gave—a kiss that threatened to dissolve her where she now stood, a meeting of tongues and teeth and tastes that greatly affected her balance.

Searching for an anchor, she braced her hands on his waist. She needed to feel every part of him, every lovely inch of him, and reached between them to jerk open his fly. When he didn’t stop her, she slipped her hand inside his briefs. His hands dropped to her shoulders and he squeezed them tightly when she touched him with firm, inquisitive strokes. Just imagining him inside her made her dizzy, made her some wild, wanton creature.

After Rio groaned, Joanna anticipated he would scoop her up and carry her to his bed, yet he continued to touch her again in much the same way she now touched him, kissed her with unrestrained passion. She was completely and utterly devoid of will. A tiny pinch of apprehension tried to rear its head but Joanna pushed it out of her mind, determined to concentrate solely on her goal, to break Rio down, one touch at a time.

In response, Rio murmured a few words from his mother’s native language, phrases he knew Joanna wouldn’t understand. Sexual words. His body’s reaction needed no interpretation. He was as achingly hard as he’d ever been in his life, as desperate for her as he’d ever been for any woman.

Her smooth, solid caress overrode Rio’s resistance, drove him to the brink, sliced his good sense to shreds.

And he couldn’t do a damn thing to stop it.

With his mind caught in a carnal haze and his body screaming for relief, Rio pulled her down onto the bathroom floor and kicked out of his jeans and briefs. He grabbed for a condom from the drawer and hesitated. But that hesitation—that faint glimmer of uncertainty— evaporated when Joanna released a soft beseeching sound.

Rio tore the package open with his teeth and rolled the condom on, then without formality, without the slightest pause, thrust into Joanna’s body. The extreme pleasure he felt at that moment came out in a rough sigh as he battled to hang on to his composure, at least for a while longer. Uninhibited, unrestrained, they rolled until Joanna was positioned above him, straddling him, taking the lead that he was more than glad to relinquish. He worked his hands into the damp curls spiraling at her shoulders and kept his eyes fixed firmly on hers, searching for any resistance, for any sign that he had read her wrong. He saw only the perfect portrait of a beautiful, sensual woman caught in a quest for liberation as she moved in an erotic tempo, rode him as if she intended to steal his sanity.

Determined to hold off his climax for as long as he could, Rio nudged Joanna forward with a palm on her back until he could take her pink-tipped breast into his mouth. He clasped her hips and gently pushed her down until he immersed himself completely in her inviting heat. She straightened and tilted her head back, her eyes closed, her lips trembling. Rio sensed she was on the verge of another orgasm. He wasn’t very far behind.

Beyond that point, Rio stopped thinking, stopped considering anything but the raw passion that blocked everything from his brain as a climax ripped through him, took him beyond the realm of conscious thought where nothing existed but Joanna’s own climax pulling him deeper inside her body, deeper into mindlessness.

After a time, Joanna wilted against his chest and her breath came out in ragged gasps to match his own. Rio held her tightly, reveling in the clean rain-shower scent emanating from her silky hair and soft skin, the taste of her still lingering on his tongue and lips. He experienced every brisk beat of her heart against his chest and each lingering pulsation where they were still joined. But as the sensations began to subside, awareness struck him like a fist in the face.

Joanna Blake was more than he’d ever imagined her to be as a lover, even in his most untamed dreams. Regardless of what she’d done to his body, done to his mind, it couldn’t compare to the havoc she was creating in his heart. She had set free something in him that he’d never expected, something far removed from physical gratification, and he knew in an elemental way he would never be the same from this point forward.

He also recognized that she needed more than sex. She needed a man who could love her well, day in and day out. A steady secure man who didn’t mind giving up his freedom to settle into a normal routine. He wasn’t sure he would ever be able to open himself up to the possibility of a lifelong commitment, even if Joanna was the only woman who’d ever come close to rousing those feelings within him. Feelings he was too damn afraid to acknowledge.

With so many concerns hanging over his head, Rio began to regret giving in to base urges. He admittedly enjoyed sex hot and hard and fast if the situation called for it. And yes, Joanna had willingly participated, but she hadn’t exactly asked him, at least not verbally.

But this was more than sex. More than he cared to deal with at the moment. He had to come to terms with the fact that he’d started it, something he’d sworn not to do, and he’d finished it without regard to what she needed—slow, tender, considerate lovemaking in a comfortable bed, not on a bathroom floor, especially not the first time.

Right now he had to get away from her so he could think. So he could sufficiently chastise himself for the loss of control. He didn’t like losing control.

As much as he wanted to take Joanna to his bed, to say to hell with work and make love to her all day long, he wouldn’t. Not if he intended to face the harsh reality of the situation—she deserved better than him.

Slowly Rio rolled her aside, breaking all intimate contact, leaving him feeling oddly bereft. He came to his feet and started toward the door, his limbs heavy with satisfaction, his head and heart burdened with guilt.

Without retrieving his clothes, without even a glance back, he muttered, “I’m sorry.”

Seven

Sorry?

Joanna could only stare mutely at Rio’s strong back as he left the room, left her lying naked on the floor with her mouth agape and her body still shaking from their lovemaking.

Lovemaking? Not hardly, she thought. Sex would be a more accurate description. Wicked, fast, incredible sex. Except for one thing. When Rio had slid inside her body, he’d managed to work his way further into her heart. And she hated that, hated that she’d left herself so open, so vulnerable to a man who had promised her nothing beyond a place to live and a vow that they would be lovers. Now they were lovers, and he was sorry.

Snatching her robe from the floor, Joanna shrugged it on and secured the belt at her waist so tightly she thought she might cut off the circulation from her neck to her ribs. With determined steps, she walked into his bedroom to find him stretched out on his back on the bed beneath a sheet—a black satin sheet that sheltered only his groin and left leg, leaving his chest exposed as well as the rigid plane of his abdomen. His other leg, bent at the knee, revealed the distinct, solid muscle defining his calf and thigh, both covered in a fine veneer of dark, masculine hair.

Joanna forced her gaze to Rio’s face where he had an arm draped over his eyes, his dark hair a near match to the sleek black pillow. Even now, even though she could probably spit nails because of his sudden departure, desire shot back to life, threatening to urge her forward into his bed, into his arms to invite him back inside her body.

With all the strength she could muster, Joanna hugged her arms to her middle in order to resist him. But she refused to leave until she’d said her piece. “Do you mind explaining what that was all about?”

“You know what that was all about.” His voice sounded coarse, either from the lack of sleep or an abundance of regret.

“I’m not talking about the sex, Rio. I’m talking about you running away with nothing more than some lame apology.”

He dropped his arm from his eyes yet failed to look at anything but the ceiling. “I apologize again. I should never have allowed that to happen.”

She should never have let him into her life, much less into her heart. “You weren’t exactly alone in there. And if you’ll recall, I didn’t stop you.”

“You didn’t ask me, either.”

Frustration brought fire to Joanna’s cheeks. “Was I supposed to say, ‘Rio, take me now’? I think it was more than obvious that I wanted it to happen.”

He turned to his side to face her, his elbow bent and his palm providing support for his jaw. The sheet slipped lower, revealing a glimpse of the mat of dark hair below his navel and the jaguar. Only a microinch more, and Joanna would be able to see everything that made Rio Madrid undeniably male. Moments ago, she had gained personal, intimate knowledge of that part of him, and she’d been anything but disappointed. Her pulse sprinted with the remembrance of how glorious it had felt to have him fill her completely. She wanted to relive it again. Here. Now.

Joanna clenched her jaw, angered by her sudden lack of self-discipline. What on earth was wrong with her? She was supposed to be mad at him, furious even. She wasn’t supposed to want him, but regretfully she still did.

He settled his golden gaze on her eyes. “You deserve more than a quick roll, Joanna.”

“I deserve some honesty, Rio. Some respect.”

“It’s because I respect you that I’m feeling pretty damn guilty at the moment.” He rolled onto his back and sent one large palm slowly down his chest, bringing it to rest over the jaguar below his belly, as if he and that powerful symbol were truly one. “If I hadn’t left when I did, I ran the risk of losing control again.”

Joanna’s mood brightened somewhat, knowing that he hadn’t been disappointed by the experience. Knowing he had wanted her as much as she’d wanted him, at least from a physical standpoint. “And what exactly is wrong with losing control? Does that make you too human?”

“It makes me less of a man because I didn’t stop to consider what you need. But when I watched you bathing, touching yourself in the shower, I couldn’t think beyond what I wanted—to finally be inside you even if it meant taking you on a bathroom floor.” He released a humorless laugh. “Not one of my finer moments.”

Joanna would have to argue that, but she wouldn’t do anything to nourish his ego. “Why can’t we just chalk it up to pure animal lust?” The words sounded hollow, even to her own ears. It hadn’t been that simple, at least not for her.

Rio sent a glance her way before returning his sullen gaze back to the ceiling. “In my experience, I’ve learned that women are brave beyond all bounds, stronger than most men in many instances. They deserve to be treated with the utmost respect.” He turned his head toward her. “You’re a single mother, Joanna. You have a responsibility to your son as well as to yourself. You don’t need to be involved with someone like me.”

“Then you’re saying you’re not worthy?”

“I’m saying that I probably can’t give you what you need beyond sex. Do you really want to settle for only that?”

Joanna didn’t know what she wanted at the moment. She only knew that when she was with him, no matter what the circumstance, she experienced some sort of spiritual connection. That in itself was ill advised, something that had become painfully obvious the moment Rio had admitted that he could offer her nothing more than a little sexual satisfaction. A quick roll now and then.

Weary and exhausted, she saw no reason to continue a conversation that would get them nowhere, at least not now. She needed to go to work, fulfill her responsibilities, leave Rio to his remorse while she dealt with her own. She had to learn to accept him for who he was— a man who wanted no ties, a man very much like her ex-husband in that regard though that’s where the similarity ended. Still, she couldn’t make those same mistakes again, not when it came to her threadbare heart and her son’s welfare.

Tipping up her chin, shoring up her frame, she dropped her hands to her sides and fisted the robe in a death grip. “Now that you’ve cleared everything up, I’ll get ready for work. We can forget this ever happened.” She would never forget. Ever.

As she turned away, he caught her hand, jolting her, unnerving her, but she didn’t dare face him.

“I wish things were different, Joanna, and maybe someday you’ll understand.” His voice held a trace of sadness, of regret. “But right now, you only have to understand one thing. I can’t remember ever wanting a woman as much as I want you.” When his warm lips slid over her wrist, a flash of memory, sharp as a needle stick, bolted into Joanna’s brain—the memory of his mouth caressing her thoroughly. Every part of her.

It would be so effortless to give into those memories, to go to him and experience each one again. To accept the fact that he could give her everything she desired when it came to lovemaking, yet he couldn’t give her love.

In the silence of the room, with her hand still steadfastly wrapped in his hand, her life reluctantly meshed with his life, she secretly admitted that a part of her needed his love.

Pulling from his grasp, Joanna rushed back to her room, away from him. As she had that first night in the ballroom, she instinctively knew that she might never escape the hold he had on her, no matter how far or how fast she ran.

Rio had opted to drive to the hospital on the bike this morning in hopes that some cold air might clear his head. It hadn’t. Now in the process of making morning rounds, the mental fog cluttering his mind wouldn’t dissipate, even after two cups of espresso he’d made at home and one mudlike cup of coffee he’d managed to gulp down in the doctors’ lounge.

Exhaustion wasn’t hindering his thought processes; Joanna was. He couldn’t halt the guilt trip he seemed determined to take. He couldn’t shake what had happened between them earlier. Nor could he stop thinking he wanted it to happen again.

Right now he had to quit considering everything but his duty to his patients.

He strode down the hospital corridor running on autopilot. When he arrived at his destination, he snapped the chart from outside the door and pushed his way into the room. The woman whose baby he’d delivered only a few hours ago looked up from the bed expectantly.

Though she appeared thoroughly worn out, she managed a bright grin. “Good morning, Dr. Madrid.”

He returned a courteous smile that felt much too forced. “How are you doing, Mrs. Rutherford?”

“I’m doing great, but I’d be even better if they’d bring me my baby.”

Rio glanced at the empty crib near the bed. “Have you seen him since the delivery?”

“No, but the nurse told me that right after they had him bathed and dressed, they’d bring him right in.”

“How long ago was that?”

She glanced at the wall clock. “About two hours ago, I think. I drifted off. I do hope they bring him soon because my husband’s coming back before he has to leave for work. He’s bringing our daughter.”

Rio dropped the chart on the bedside table and said, “I’ll be right back.”

Returning to the hallway, he dashed to the nurses’ station and found the charge nurse charting at the desk. “Sara, do you know why the Rutherford baby hasn’t been brought to his mother?”

The woman looked up and shrugged. “Sorry. I didn’t know he hadn’t been. She’s not my patient. We’ve been swamped since the shift change.”

Rio was swamped by sudden anger. But he reined in his temper knowing she didn’t warrant his frustration. “The mother is breast-feeding,” he said, taking the edge from his voice. “Mind calling the nursery to find out what’s going on?”

“Sure, Dr. Madrid. Anything else?”

“Nope, that’s it.”

Her gray eyes narrowed and she frowned. “Rough night?”

Rough morning. “Just the usual.”

She closed the chart and gave him her full attention. “Well, I hope you get some rest this weekend. We’ve got a full moon on Monday. You know what that means.”

Yeah, he knew what full moons meant. All hell breaking loose in the baby department. He thought about his mother, in part because Sara reminded him somewhat of her—kind eyes and a worldly wisdom—but anytime he considered the moon, he thought of her. She’d wholeheartedly believed in the powers of the universe, legends learned from her Mayan heritage, but most of all she believed in the infinite power of love. And she’d loved Rio’s stepfather, though God only knew why. The man had been anything but lovable.

He sent Sara a brief smile and a muttered, “Thanks,” then headed away.

An unexpected sadness settled over Rio as he walked the quiet corridor. An overwhelming feeling of loss, but he considered that it only had to do in part with his mother, and more to do with losing Joanna. That realization made him take a mental step back. You couldn’t lose something you’ve never really had, he decided. And he couldn’t have Joanna, not beyond what they had shared this morning.

By the time he made it back to his patient, Mr. Rutherford had returned to his wife with their five-year-olddaughter in tow. Rutherford stuck out his beefy hand. “Great to see you, Dr. Madrid. Thanks for everything you did last night.”

Rio took the hand he offered for a quick, robust shake. “Your wife did all the work. I was just there to make the catch.”

Both Mr. and Mrs. Rutherford chuckled while their frowning daughter looked on, twirling a blond curl around her finger with a vengeance.

The door swung open to a nurse carrying a yellow bundle in her arms.

“Looks like the guest of honor has finally arrived,” Rio said. After he took the newborn from her, the nurse rushed away as if she expected he might take her head off. Obviously Sara had read the staff the riot act over not bringing the child in sooner.

Rio approached the bed to finally unite child with mother but first caught a glimpse of round cheeks and sleepy innocence from beneath the blanket. Another bout of melancholy crept in as he laid the baby in Mrs. Rutherford’s arms.

“Does he have a name yet?” Rio asked.

“Rufus Harold Jr.,” Mr. Rutherford stated with open pride.

Rufus Rutherford. Tough break, Rio thought. “And you are?” he asked the little girl who seemed totally disinterested in her brother, if not somewhat annoyed.

She jutted out her chin in defiance. “Rita Louise Rutherford and I don’t like babies.”

“Rita,” Mrs. Rutherford scolded. “You haven’t even seen him yet. Come take a look.”

“I don’t wanna.”

A classic case of sibling rivalry, Rio decided. When Mr. Rutherford stepped forward as if to escort his daughter out, Rio put up a hand to stop him then pulled a lollipop from his lab-coat pocket and offered it to Rita. “For the big sister.”

She seemed somewhat appeased yet still not overly thrilled as she unwrapped the candy and stuck it in her mouth. Rio knelt on her level. “My mother spoke often about the sun and moon. The sun is strong and therefore in charge of looking after the moon.” He brushed away a golden curl from her shoulder. “Since your hair is the color of the sun, then your little brother will be the moon. He’ll look to you for guidance. That’s a very important job. Think you can do that, Rita?”

She glanced over her shoulder toward the baby then pulled the sucker from her mouth with a pop. “I guess so, as long as he doesn’t get into my stuff.”

Rio presented his first real smile of the day when Rita gave him a winning grin. “Why don’t you try holding him?”

After Rita nodded and handed her father the candy, Rio picked her up and put her on the bed. Mrs. Rutherford gently placed the baby in his sister’s arms and Rio saw an immediate transformation in the little girl. New life had a way of working on a person, no matter what that person’s age.

Mrs. Rutherford looked up with a grateful expression. “Thank you, Dr. Madrid.”

“No problem, and I’m sorry it took so long for you have your son with you.”

While Rita continued to hold the baby, Mrs. Rutherford unwrapped the blanket to do the usual motherly allparts-accounted-for check. “Two hours is a long time to be without your child.”

Try two months, Rio thought as Joanna’s predicament worked its way back into his brain. As he watched the family gathered around to survey the miracle, he realized how much Joanna needed to have her son with her.

He’d been alone for so long, Rio was only beginning to realize the importance of that concept—and the extent of his own loneliness. He hadn’t stopped to consider how difficult it must be for Joanna, not having those she loved and needed nearby. He’d only considered how much he wanted her, his own desires and needs. That made him a selfish bastard, and somehow, someway, he needed to make amends.

Starting now.

Joanna dismissed her next-to-last patient and moved on to the final one, thankful to discover the patient was Allison Cartwright. She could use a familiar face right now, someone who might distract her from thoughts of Rio.

As Joanna entered the exam room, Allison smiled but it immediately faded. “You look absolutely beat, Joanna.”

She felt as if she’d taken a beating—to her heart. “It’s been a long day.” Joanna moved to the chair next to the table where Allison sat wearing a cornflower-blue exam gown, her swollen feet propped up on a stool. “How have you been feeling?”

“Pretty good, except for the usual pregnancy woes. Caroline examined me since you were running behind.”

Joanna tamped down her guilt. “I’m sorry. I’m not moving very fast today. Anything special to report?”

Allison’s smile disappeared. “Actually, she’s a little concerned about my blood pressure.”

Flipping open the chart, Joanna scanned the notes. “Your pressure is a bit high but your urine looks normal for now. However, you do have quite a bit of edema.” She set the chart down and turned her attention to Allison. “To be on the safe side, I’m going to put you on bed rest for the next couple of weeks. I also want to check you on Monday, and in the meantime, we’ll order a few lab tests.”

Allison’s eyes widened. “Bed rest? Is that necessary? I really don’t have any extra sick leave coming to me. If I have to take off early then I run the risk of losing my job.”

“Allison, I know it’s tough, but I don’t want to run the risk of anything happening to you or your baby. You could be facing preeclampsia and we don’t want to take any chances. Preeclampsia is a condition where—”

“I know all about it,” Allison said. “My sister had it and so did my mother. In fact, my mother died giving birth to my sister from full-blown eclampsia.”

Joanna’s concern increased. “I’m so sorry to hear that, Allison. And that’s all the more reason to watch you carefully since you could have a genetic predisposition.”

Allison sighed. “Okay, I’ll figure something out. This baby is very important to me and I don’t want to take any chances whatsoever. After all, the doctors said I’d never be able to get pregnant.”

Joanna smiled. “Well, I guess they were wrong, weren’t they?”

“Yes, they were, and speaking of doctors, I spoke to Dr. Madrid today.”

Joanna swallowed hard. “Really?”

“Yes, on the phone, and I appreciate you letting him know about my decision.”

“He seemed okay with it?”

“Yeah, he was fine, as far as I could tell.”

Joanna wondered how cooperative Rio would be if he knew of Allison’s current problems. “I’m glad.”

“He did seem a little distracted, though.”

He could join the club, Joanna thought. “I’m sure he’s probably very busy.”

“He said I was in good hands with you.” Allison grinned. “Does he have personal knowledge of your hands?”

Boy, did he. “Very funny, Allison.”

“I’m sorry, but that day I saw him here at the center, I could tell something was going on between you two.”

Joanna’s face felt like an inferno. “What makes you think that?”

“By the way he looked at you. Are you going to deny there’s something going on between you two?”

After hesitating just a little too long, Joanna realized she might as well come clean. After all, she could use someone to talk to. Several times she’d almost called Cassie O’Connor but she didn’t want to burden a busy mother of twins. And she had forged a friendship with Allison in the past few weeks. Right now Joanna could use a friend. A female friend.

Turning away from Allison, Joanna walked to the counter and toyed with the chart. “Actually, I live with Rio.”

Allison’s sharp intake of air caused Joanna to face her once more. “I had no idea it was that serious,” Allison said.

“I’m only living with him temporarily until I can find a decent place of my own.”

“But there’s a little more to it, isn’t there?”

Joanna lowered her eyes and fiddled with the stethoscope hanging around her neck. “I suppose you could say that.”

“Are you sharing his bed?”

Maybe not his bed, but she had shared his bathroom floor. “I guess you could say things have progressed from an intimate standpoint. Right now I’m kind of confused over the whole situation.”

“Sex can definitely cause confusion. It certainly changes things.”

“Yes, it does,” Joanna said.

Joanna glanced up to see Allison’s hands resting on her distended belly, regarding her with a questioning gaze. “Are you in love with him, Joanna?”

Hearing the words sent shock waves spiraling through Joanna. “I’m, um, well, I’m very fond of him.”

Allison’s eyes went wide. “God, you are in love with him, aren’t you? Didn’t they teach you in school to never fall for a doctor?”

Joanna had sworn to never fall in love again, probably an unrealistic goal unless she decided to stop living completely. But she certainly hadn’t intended to take that leap now, and especially not with a man like Rio Madrid. A man who steered clear of commitment. “I’m not in love with him.” Yet.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course.” Liar. “Believe me, I’ve worked with more than a few doctors that are great at what they do, attractive in a lot of ways and anything but commitment material.” Rio in a nutshell.

“So have I,” Allison said wistfully. “And it’s the hardest thing to accept, isn’t it?”

Joanna was beginning to suspect Allison had more than a little personal experience with doctors. “Stop me if I’m being too intrusive, but does a doctor figure into your baby’s parentage?”

After glancing at the picture of a perfect family hanging on the pale-blue wall, Allison turned sad eyes back to Joanna. “Yes, my baby’s father happens to be a doctor.”

“Does he know about the pregnancy?” Joanna asked.

Allison twisted the hem on the gown until Joanna thought it might rip. “No, not yet.”

“Are you going to tell him?”

“I’m not sure. He’s only recently returned from a six-month leave of absence. I don’t know how he would take the news or if he would even want to be involved. It happened one night, a huge mistake, except for the pregnancy. I wouldn’t take that back for a minute. This baby is a miracle.”

Joanna’s heart went out to Allison knowing she might have to raise a child alone. How well she could relate to that. And although she was curious to know exactly who the unidentified doctor might be, she wouldn’t ask. “Right now, let’s concentrate on your health. Get plenty of rest, we’ll monitor you carefully and by this time next month, you’ll have your little one. Then you can decide what you want to do about the father.”

Allison sent Joanna a knowing smile. “And maybe soon you’ll have what you want, too. Whatever that might be.”

Right now Joanna only wanted to go home and consider what she needed to do about Rio. At least it was Friday and she wasn’t scheduled to take call but she did intend to phone her son. She needed to hear his voice, to speak to the little man, the center of her life, the only male who should matter at the moment. And Joseph did matter, more than anything in the universe. But one thing had become all too apparent. Despite how angry he’d made her that morning, Rio Madrid was starting to matter to Joanna. Too much.

Eight

At a little past 8:00 p.m., Joanna arrived home and held her breath as she pulled up behind Rio’s truck. In a way she’d hoped to find him gone. Another part of her warred with excitement just knowing he was there.

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