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under a spell, Tanya would act as though
    it had been a dream. She’d deny his bite mark bruising her shoulder, the still sore, stinging hurt of her nipples where his lips had pinched them hard, and the deep, resonating ache inside her.
    But he had the disarming spell right there.

    He picked up the box and hastily shoved it into the top drawer.

    No sooner had he done this, than the door to his office creaked opened wider and in walked…
    Anne.

    His disappointment spilled over his face.

    “Oh, good morning, Anne,” he said, adjusting the notepad on his desk. “Any cancellations this morning?”
    Anne’s thick braids shook in their high ponytail as she said, “No. This time of year brings out all kinds of blues.”
    Tak gave her grin that felt both tight and temporary on his face. As if it didn’t belong to him. He realized to his dismay he was using his placating patients-only smile.
    “Ready, Dr. Nakamura, for the 9 o’clock appointment?” Anne peered at him over her square goldenrod frames. “You feeling okay?”
    Tak fumbled to sit straighter in his chair and said, “Of course.”

    Of course not!

    “You may begin when ready, Anne,” he said a little more sharp than he intended. He cleared his throat and gave her the patient-only smile again. “Please.”
    Anne’s smooth, arched eyebrow rose, but she said, “Before we start, Dr. Morris said she can’t meet today at 2:30.”
    Tak’s eyes glazed over and he nodded. He tried to focus on something beyond Anne, to wrestle his anger back down to manageable. It wasn’t her fault Tanya skipped out on him. No, it was his. He underestimated her stubborness. Why would she make this easy for him when it was so difficult for her?
    As Anne read off the names of his upcoming patients, Tak began to formulate the last measure of his plan.
    Tanya won’t be able to outmaneuver this one.
    Chapter Nine

    The rest of the morning dragged by in a series of endless complaints, bellyaching, and finger pointing. Tanya suppressed yet another urge to reach across, slap her patient, and tell her to suck it up. Life sucked for everyone from time to time. She held the thin reins of her patience with all she could muster. Shocked at her slippery grasp on professionalism, she crossed her legs and leaned forward, pretending to be interested in the prattling story of the female patient’s mother.
    When the onslaught ceased, Tanya gave the woman a grin she prayed was warm and understanding all the while shuffling her out the door. The clock inched ever closer to 2:30 and she longed to bolt through the thick oak doors and out into crisp air. Before Tak caught her.
    Thanks to Debbie’s efficient booking, the day had been a series of patients strolling in and fumbling out of her office. Now the lull in activity would only serve to entice Tak to her door.
    I’m not running from him. I’m being strategic. Yes. That’s it.

    She shoved a rough handful of papers into her satchel, grabbed up her purse, and ignored the trembling in her hands. With a brief glance over her office, she shut off the lights and inched out of the office, making sure to look both ways for Tak. Finding the hushed hallway empty, she sucked in another breath of courage, stood up straight, and stalked into the uncertainty.
    Not that she hadn’t seen Tak today. Oh, she had. The image of him seared right into her eyelids. Whenever she closed them, she saw him in rigid clarity. That silky thick black hair lying carefully against the cobalt blue of his Brooks Brothers button down shirt, and the midnight slacks that draped across those hard thighs – thighs which pinned her on the divan, thighs which supported her as she bucked upward and onto his rigid rod. He’d flashed those dazzling white teeth that had marred her shoulder and inflicted a tiny love wound which throbbed under his
    heated gaze. Yes, those hands fondling papers in the same slow swirls they’d loved her breasts, swatted her tenderbox and made her