My Sister's Boyfriend (The Trouble With Twins 1) (3 page)

"Oh,” Leslie said. "Do I detect a trace of interest in this girl?"

Brent shook his head, unable to change his sister's one-track mind. "I don't think that's a good place for me to go. Her sister and I shared a teenage sexual liaison the night before we both went away to college."

"Lord, save us from teenage hormones," Leslie said, leaning back in her chair shaking her head. "Did you ever call Julia after that night?"

"No.” Brent frowned, knowing his actions had been less than stellar though the night had been memorable. "I was young and focused on getting out of town."

His mind conjured up the image of Jennifer Riley in her slinky black dress, her blonde hair curling around her shoulders. She'd looked so much like Julia, he'd been certain it was her.

The memory of Julia in the backseat of his car that last night before they'd both gone away to college lingered on the edge of his mind, an awesome experience of two kids learning about sex.

Yet he'd enjoyed kissing Jennifer Riley.

The sharp ring of his cell phone had him glancing at the number. "I've got to run, Sis. That’s my reminder about my next meeting. Thanks for lunch."

"Give some thought to what I said."

"Sure," he responded as he stood, his voice lacking conviction. There was no way he would search for a serious relationship no matter what Leslie said. He still remembered his parents' split as if it had happened only yesterday. And watching the ever-changing spouses in their parents’ lives had long ago convinced him there was no such thing as till death-do-us-part.

He caught the elevator and rode the clambering machine up to the fifth floor where he hurried down the hallway to the chairman's office. Pushing open the door to the boardroom, he felt a moment of shock when he saw Julia Riley standing next to the hospital chairman. Or was it Jennifer?

Their eyes met and held as he glanced at her enticing ruby lips, remembering the feel of Jennifer's mouth on his. His pulse did a stutter step then leaped at the memory of her in a chiffon dress dipped and curved in all the right places.

But what was one of the Riley twins doing here now?

Chapter Two

Brent stopped cold inside the door and stared. His heart accelerated at the sight of one of the Riley twins standing beside the Chairman of the Board, Dr. Henry Weaver. Dressed in a pale blue suit that accentuated her indigo eyes, making them shimmer like crystals, she looked better than a million dollars.

Still he couldn't tell if this was the singing telegram woman of several nights ago or the teenage girl he'd taken in the backseat of his car. Whichever twin, she was hot.

"Dr. Moulton, I began to think you weren't going to attend today's meeting.” The chairman motioned for him to come in.

"Sorry, sir, I was running a little late," he lied, his eyes still fixated on Julia. Or was she Jennifer? It must be Jennifer. What would Julia be doing here if she owned her own business?

"I'd like you to meet our new development director, Jennifer Riley," he said, introducing Brent to the very woman he'd kissed two nights before.

She now worked at County General? They would see each other every day? He stared as his mind tried to wrap around the fact that she was here working for the hospital. What about the job she did for her sister? Didn't she have a coffin somewhere that needed jumping out of? Anything to get this piece of temptation off his turf.

Not that he minded looking at her, certainly. She was gorgeous, but the memory of holding her on his lap, her black dress clinging to her luscious curves, made him thankful he wore his long scrub coat. He didn’t need this luscious carrot dangled in front of him every day.

"We're acquainted," he said.

The arousal he felt at the sight of Jennifer Riley today didn't have anything to do with the fact that she looked like Julia. No, he admired her proud stance, the way her eyes met his boldly, not backing down. He glanced at her lips. Did she remember their kiss?

She held out her hand, and a whiff of something soft and flowery caught his attention, a tempting and erotic scent that brought to mind images of silk sheets and warm nights filled with passion. "Good to see you again, Brent. I didn't know you worked at County General.” His large hand engulfed her smaller one as he shook it, her soft skin smooth as a petal in his rough palm.

“I’m the chief of pediatrics,” he murmured unable to keep from staring at her.

Today she appeared beautiful, reserved, and businesslike, nothing like the seductive temptress from his birthday party. He wanted to experience again the woman he'd kissed two nights ago. He wanted to ruffle her neatly styled hair while she sang to him in that sultry, throaty voice of hers. “Happy Birthday” had never affected him like this before. The need to shake up the cool, professional Miss Riley overcame him.

"Congratulations on the job," he said with sincerity. But before he could earn a Boy Scout badge for good behavior, temptation got the better of him. "You're dressed quite differently from the last time I saw you."

Jennifer stiffened. Her blue eyes darkened as her brows rose, accepting his verbal challenge. She pulled her soft hand from his, her long manicured nails running along the inside of his palm and shooting a tingle of awareness straight to his groin.

"Yes, you're no longer wearing a football jersey and I’m no longer a member of the drill team," she said with a smile and a look that wanted to plunge daggers in him.

He couldn't contain his grin at her quick comeback. "Yeah, well, time has certainly flown by, and soon we'll all be over the hill."

Brent heard a trace of sarcasm in her voice as she laughed. "Speak for yourself. Failing eyesight and memory loss hasn't affected me yet. My eyesight has always been good enough to distinguish people, and I can still recall people's names, even from high school."

Ouch! She'd just delivered a resounding put-down, though most of the people in the room would never know her comments were directed at him.

"Since I'm a doctor, I'm sure I'd recognize the signs of vision and memory loss."

"Oops!" She gave an insincere little laugh. "I forgot you are a doctor now. I keep thinking of you as the captain of the football team."

The chairman in the room cleared his throat and Brent laughed to keep from scowling. The sexy blonde thought quickly on her feet, and she hadn't let his provoking comment go by unchallenged.

Dr. Weaver and the rest of the board watched them with interest, clearly not understanding their wordplay. Rather, they looked like spectators at a tennis match with their heads swinging back and forth with the banter.

"Maybe we should get started," Dr. Weaver interjected in the drawn-out silence.

They took their seats around the conference room table and the chairman of the board began the meeting.

“For those of you who haven’t met our new development director, I’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Riley. She is going to be in charge of raising both charitable donations and government funds for the hospital. While raising this money, it will be critical that she does it in such a manner that the hospital’s image with the public is protected. We are here to serve the people of Smith County and must at all costs be seen as an outstanding institution.”

Everyone clapped and smiled at Jennifer. All Brent could do was stare as he tried to remember the differences between her and Julia, her sister. His memory of Julia seemed vague, yet he did recall her smile and the sound of her laughter. Considering what they'd shared that night, it seemed sad that he remembered so little.

That hot, sensual, summer night, had culminated with them having sex in the back of his car.

Now here he sat, less than five feet away from Julia's sister, and all he could think about was how pleasing to the eye Jennifer Riley was, in or out of a coffin. He liked what he saw and would not mind the opportunity to seek out her lips again. Attitude, beauty, and a sexy mouth were qualities he admired in a woman regardless of what his sister said.

Jennifer jerked her head toward the chairman.

"Dr. Moulton?" the chairman’s voice snapped him out of his recollections.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" he asked, sitting up straighter in his chair.

"On call last night?" Dr. Weaver asked. "I asked you if you had completed the feasibility study on the equipment needed for the new wing of the pediatrics department."

Brent couldn't believe he'd let his mind wander so far from the meeting at hand. This project could make his pediatrics department one of the most prestigious in the country and help more children than he'd ever dreamed possible.

"My team is creating a detailed list of equipment that we think is absolutely necessary for the new wing. We're working with the staff at Arkansas Children's Hospital, one of the top facilities in the country, and should have the list completed by our next meeting.” Hopefully he'd bluffed his way through being caught daydreaming.

"Well then, if no one else has anything to report, we're adjourned," Dr. Weaver said, scooting his chair away from the table.

Dr. Weaver turned to Jennifer, his dark eyes observing her. "Once again, welcome Miss Riley. I hope you'll enjoy working here at County General."

"Thank you. I'm certain I will."

Brent stood back as she turned and walked toward the door. Her pale blue skirt ended above her knees and the strappy cream sandals she wore showed off her trim legs that stretched into his dreams and wrapped around his waist while he plunged deep inside her.

He turned, refusing to watch her walk away any longer. His reaction to the way the material clung to her perfect derriere was less than professional.

Dr. Weaver watched him. "Is something wrong, Dr. Moulton? You seem distracted this morning."

He laughed and started walking toward the door, trying to escape the observant Dr. Weaver. "I'm fine. I just have a lot of things on my mind. You know patients, reports, and the usual."

Mainly a tall, leggy blonde who had popped into his life and immediately thrown him off balance. But he'd quickly recover from this instant attraction; he always did. That's how he'd remained single this long.

#

In the hallway, Jennifer hung back from everyone as they departed the boardroom and headed off for their various job duties. She needed to speak with Brent and ask him to keep her birthday greeting private. The last thing she wanted was everyone to know she jumped out of coffins half dressed, playing a vamp as she delivered singing telegrams for her sister.

It was bad enough the way she and Brent had sparred in the staff meeting. She'd let her quick temper get away from her when he'd dropped none-too-subtle hints regarding their last meeting.

People from the meeting loaded up the elevators. The doors closed and the lights indicated its descent to the lower floors. She stepped over to a water fountain. Bending over, she twisted the knob and put her lips to the cool water as it splashed from the faucet. When she finished, she looked up straight into the gaze of Dr. Brent Moulton.

He leaned against the tile wall, blocking her way.

"I'm on my way to ophthalmology to have my eyes examined. I might even have them examine my head while I'm there.” His mouth turned up in a smile that revealed the even white rows of his teeth.

She raised her brows. "You started that little tug of war back there."

He grinned. "Next time, I'll remember to wear my bulletproof vest to the weekly meeting."

"Don't start things you can't handle," she warned, watching the way his eyes sparkled with laughter.

The bell dinged, announcing the arrival of the elevator. People filed off and Brent grabbed the door, holding it open. He glanced at her. "Going down?"

A sexual image popped into Jennifer's mind and she quickly hit an imaginary delete key. "Yes, thank you."

"What floor?"

"First," she said, feeling awkward as the doors shut, leaving them alone in the enclosed metal box.

The elevator chugged, the machinery whining as it descended. "I didn't know you were a doctor."

"I didn't know you were the new development director."

Quickly they approached the first floor.

She reached over and punched the stop button on the elevator panel, bringing the car to a grinding halt.

"What are you doing?" he asked. "Are you crazy?"

"Sometimes," she said calmly. "We need to talk alone before we reach the first floor."

His brows rose as he gazed at her.

"This is an old elevator. We're hanging here suspended between floors," he warned halfheartedly, his voice deepening.

"I know, so let's make this quick.” She smiled at him, feeling impish at having the courage to halt the elevator. "Look, I need this job and I don't want to lose it. Normally, my sister would have been jumping out of the coffin last Friday night, but I agreed to help her because she didn't have anyone to do your gig. I would appreciate it if we kept this between us."

The expression on his face changed. His eyes darkened as he gazed at her in a new way, one that left her very aware of the fact they were alone in a small, enclosed elevator suspended between floors.

He moved in close to her, invading her personal space and placing both of his arms on either side of her head, effectively trapping her against the wall. She licked her parched lips, her mouth feeling dryer than the Sahara desert, but she refused to move or look away. The tip of his finger traced her cheekbone, while his gaze slowly undressed her. Her breathing quickened.

"I can keep a lot of things between us, like the way your lips feel against mine. Or the fact I like you all dressed up in that little black outfit," he said, his voice low and deep. He picked up a strand of her blonde hair and let it fall to her shoulder. She felt trapped, yet it wasn't a bad feeling, more of an enticement. "That dress clung to you better than Saran Wrap."

She laughed. "I didn't know you were a cook."

"I'm not, though plastic wrap could be entertaining."

This wasn't going exactly how she’d planned. He was supposed to agree, not to say anything, and then they were to part, only to see each other as casual acquaintances. She'd never considered him pinning her against the wall while his voice caressed her.