My Sister's Boyfriend (The Trouble With Twins 1) (6 page)

The boy didn't respond, but his eyes widened before he glanced at his mom.

His mother spoke up. "They were playing the only team they hadn't beaten this year. They're in first place."

Brent faced Eric, his expression stern, and his voice gentle. "If you told your mother you felt bad, she wouldn't have let you play, would she, Sport?"

The boy blinked his eyes and bit his bottom lip before he glanced away, not responding, but breathing in the mist.

"Eric, this disease you have is mean and nasty. As you found out tonight, it's very serious and can make you very ill. You have to be grown-up enough to admit when you're feeling bad, even if that means you don't get to play ball when you want to. If you aren't honest and tell your Mom and Dad when you feel bad, you could have a reaction like you did tonight or even worse."

The mother glanced at Brent, her eyes wide. "Are you telling me Eric was sick before the game?"

The boy pulled down the inhaler and wheezed. "But—I wanted to play."

"When your lungs are sick, they have to heal before you can play ball or exercise," Brent said gently. "Your other choice is to get out of sports completely."

Brent faced the parents. "Eric has a respiratory infection. It's not bad, but when he ran, his lungs, which were already under stress, couldn't handle the need for more oxygen, and his body went into an attack."

"Eric, I know you want to play ball, but we were so worried!" the anxious mother exclaimed.

Jennifer walked away, unable to watch anymore. Brent seemed like a sensitive, caring doctor whom both children and parents trusted. The teenager she'd been infatuated with had changed and grown into a respected doctor.

Now he was a strong, capable, gentle, and very sexy man whom she’d enjoyed being with tonight. He sparred with her on equal terms and kept her off balance. With just a look he could trigger her hormones to levels they'd never experienced before.

She closed her eyes and tried to remember how in the height of passion on that night so long ago he'd called her by her sister's name. But dredging up her hurt and angry feelings was next to impossible. Especially when her conscience gently reminded her she'd deceived him.

#

A week passed, and Brent avoided Jennifer. The few women whom he had found interesting in the past, whom he enjoyed being with, and whom had minds that intrigued him, he steered clear of. And Jennifer Riley not only had a mind he wanted to explore, but she had a body that caught and held his attention. She could wear sackcloth and ashes and somehow his male radar would zoom in and find her appealing. Better to avoid any possible complications by circumventing the attractive Miss Riley.

Plus there was that teenage episode with her sister that could really put a spoiler on things if she ever found out. But weren't twins usually close? Maybe she already knew, but if that were true, why would she have accepted his date for dinner?

Today when he'd learned she was in charge of the new wing for his department, he found himself standing in front of her office, unable to ignore her any longer. He rapped on the door.

"Come in," she called.

He opened the door and walked in. She sat behind her desk, a pair of small-framed glasses perched on her petite nose.

"I thought you had excellent eyesight."

She glanced up, pulled the glasses off, and leaned back in her chair, gripping the frames in her hand. She gave him a cool look. "I have no trouble distinguishing people. However, I do have problems looking at figures up close."

"Hey, give me credit," he prevailed. "I knew who you were when I picked you up the other night," he reminded her, remembering how she'd looked in the short, shimmery wisp of a dress. Hot, slinky, and very sexy.

She smiled. "How can I help you, Dr. Moulton?"

Did she use his professional name to put him in his place or remind him they were working? The urge to reach across her desk, take the glasses from her hand, and kiss her until her lips were swollen rocked him. He took a deep breath and released it slowly. Turning, he shut her office door, enclosing them together. The scent of roses tinged with musk permeated the air. The smell did not help his already over-stimulated senses.

"So, Miss Riley, I hear you're in charge of raising the funds for my new pediatrics wing." He used the same polite, professional address that she'd used, hoping to return his thoughts to the matter at hand.

"Yes, I'm doing some preliminary figures for County General's new pediatrics wing right now."

He sat down across from her, willing his body to relax. Still, his mind was bursting with excitement that the hospital would finally get started on the new facilities he desperately needed.

"Great! Let me give you a quick rundown of all the things we're going to need."

"Dr. Moulton—"

"We'll require a new neonatal unit, and then for the children we'll insist on a play area, gym, and classrooms for our sick children who are unable to attend school, not to mention all new equipment, with a state of the art operating room." He paused and glanced excitedly at her. "I know the head pediatric surgeon at Arkansas Children's Hospital. I'm consulting with him on what we'll need for the operating room. This is going to be fantastic. The two of us together can build the most up-to-date pediatrics hospital in this part of the state."

For a moment she didn't say anything but sat with her glasses in her hands, staring at him like he'd lost his mind. She'd never seen a doctor get excited about equipment before.

"Excuse me, Dr. Moulton, if I'm not quite as exuberant as you about this lavish center you want to build. My focus as the head of this project will be that we raise enough money to pay for what we need and that whatever debt we have to finance does not overwhelm this hospital for the next twenty years. Our government funds together with what we raise in donations must pay for more than fifty percent of this project."

The excitement he'd experienced moments ago dimmed slightly, and he sensed she'd just pointed out a flashing yellow caution light on a speedway. Surely she realized that the county was in desperate need of an updated facility. "The children of Smith County deserve good health care. Last year, eighteen thousand children walked through the doors of this hospital."

"I agree, Dr. Moulton. The question of the children of Smith County receiving good health care is not an issue. My concern is what this hospital can afford. My job is to raise as much money as possible and keep our costs in line."

He slumped in the chair, wanting to somehow ruffle the feathers of this very cool woman who looked professional and hot at the same time. "Have you made a plan of action to acquire the capital needed for this project?"

"I'm researching what's available in federal grants and loans and Chairman Weaver has already begun to solicit donations from some of our more prominent members of the Tyler community. You know, the larger donors who may want the wing named after them."

"Sounds reasonable."

"I have some ideas I want to discuss at a committee meeting I'm having next week."

"Jennifer, if you can bring this together for me and my staff, we'll be very grateful." He liked the way her blue eyes grew large and soft at his obvious attempt to flatter her professionally.

Jennifer smiled. "Whether or not this project comes together will depend on if we get the donations we need."

Brent tried to contain his enthusiasm. "I'd be a good spokesman if you need someone to talk to the community about this project. I'd be happy to speak to any organizations that you think can help us."

She paused. "I'll take that under advisement. Still…your expectations about how much we're going to be able to raise and how much government funding we'll be able to obtain should be realistic."

Life should be realistic, but sometimes a man wanted the impractical. Just like now. The sound of her voice sent his visceral reactions into stimulus overload, and his body responded. It was just chemistry. Still, he wanted her badly, and given his previous history with her sister, that didn't seem wise.

"I'll have the staff put together our recommendations for you. You know, sort of a wish list," he said, trying not to focus on the way her breasts pushed against her silk blouse.

She shook her head. "That would be helpful, but don't get your hopes too high, Dr. Moulton. Funds will be limited."

Limited funds in a hospital were a part of daily life. But his hopes were soaring at the thought of a chance to explore Jennifer's lush curves.

He raised his brows. "We'll see."

"The first committee meeting will be next Tuesday at nine o'clock, and I'd like you to be there. I spoke with your secretary and she said she would clear your calendar that morning."

"Good. Unless I have an emergency, you can count on my attendance."

They seemed to run out of things to say, and for a moment he simply stared at her, admiring the saucy tilt of her head. For a woman, she had a cocky air about her that drew him. He wanted to kiss that confident mouth of hers until she begged him to take her right there on her desk.

"Anything else, Dr. Moulton?" she asked, watching him, unaware he daydreamed of her and him on the desk naked.

Yet there remained that issue with her sister. He took a deep breath to gather his thoughts from their wayward path. How did a guy tell the woman he wanted that he'd slept with her sister, even if it was years ago?

"I'm sorry our dinner date didn't exactly turn out as planned. I tried to find you after I finished up in the emergency room, but the nurses told me you'd left."

"Yes, I called my sister and she picked me up since I didn't know how long you'd be," Jennifer said, her blue eyes shifting uncomfortably.

"I still owe you a dinner," he remarked. He'd enjoyed being with her that night, so much in fact that part of him knew that if he asked her out again, he'd be tempted to take her home to his king-size bed. And he didn't like to date women that appealed to him both mentally and physically. No, his dates were more on the physical side. That's why his sister teased him about dating only 36 Ds.

So why did he want to break his own rules with Jennifer?

"Maybe some night when we're both a little less busy," she said. "Right now, I'm swamped crunching numbers for the executive board and researching possible grants."

Part of him felt relieved that she didn't want to rush out to dinner with him, yet a more dangerous part of him wanted to reach across that desk and pull her to him and kiss her until her hair was mussed and her eyes were shadowed with passion.

He'd like to clear her desk with a sweep of his arm and lay her across the wooden desktop, pull her skirt up and lose himself in her moist heat.

This woman was far too alluring for him to explore anything more than mental pleasures with. For he knew he would enjoy sexual pleasure with her, and feared the combination of the two could lead to serious involvement. A state he avoided at all costs.

"Sounds like you're trying to lose me," he said.

She smiled. "Hardly. Now is just not a good time."

He let his gaze travel over her smart business suit and her blonde hair worn up in a twist with curls around her face. She seemed so pristine, so proper, but her blue eyes radiated with a sensual heat that left his breath short. No, she wasn't brushing him off. She definitely felt this passion simmering between the two of them.

"Let's make a promise to each other," he said. "Once we have fifty percent of the money raised, we'll return to Randi's Steakhouse and celebrate."

"It's a date, Dr. Moulton."

#

On Tuesday, Jennifer glanced up as Brent walked through the door. Her pulse accelerated as he smiled at her and she had to remind herself he was fifteen minutes late. She sat at the head of the table in the main conference room, chairing the first fund-raising committee meeting.

"You've been asked to participate on this committee because of your past experience in helping the hospital raise money. Except for Dr. Moulton, who, as head of the pediatrics department, will be very involved in all aspects of this project."

He smiled at her and nodded as he took a seat at the conference table. He looked particularly handsome today, dressed in a cream shirt with a Winnie the Pooh tie. Silly, but she knew his patients would adore the tie and remember him for his absurdity.

Brent was full of contrasts, and that intrigued her.

She tried to keep her mind on the subject at hand, but somehow she kept noticing little things about Brent. How large his hands were, the way she perceived his distinct scent though two people sat between them. The way his broad shoulders filled out the dress shirt and the rippling of his muscles through the cotton.

"We expect the overall cost of the project to be around ninety million dollars." A collective gasp filled the room. "The executive board has agreed on several fund-raisers that we're going to hold, and we've been given a goal of obtaining eight million dollars."

"Eight million dollars! No way," Brent said unexpectedly, surprising her. His green eyes flashed with disbelief. “That’s too much.”

"That's almost ten percent," someone to her left said, stunned.

Jennifer raised her hand to halt the conversation.

"Keep in mind that a lot of that money will come from drug companies, corporations, and some of our more influential citizens. Chairman Weaver has already raised more than three million dollars on his own, and we know that more donations will be coming in. I anticipate that our part will be approximately two million dollars."

Brent laughed. "That’s better, but still, how can you expect us to raise two million dollars in an economically depressed rural town?"

"Well, Dr. Moulton, it's either raise the two million dollars or give up some of the items on your very lengthy wish list."

He frowned at her, and she could tell he didn't appreciate her response.

Jennifer gently reminded Brent and the committee members, "I suggest that we attempt to raise as much money as possible before we admit defeat and start cutting some of the items on the wish list."