CHAPTER TWO

      NATALIE WAS WAY outside her comfort zone. But her BFFs would be proud, right? She had walked up to a man she found enthralling on paper, sexy in real life, and she’d expressed her interest in him.

      And in his work.

      He might think her a fool. For all she knew, he had a girlfriend.

      Duh. Of course a man as gorgeous as Matthew had a girlfriend. What had she been thinking? She’d practically been drooling prior to finding out who he was, and after? Well, the man mesmerized.

      Not that she’d dreamed in a million years that she might act on their suggestions, but when Suzie and Monica told her to have a fling to put Jonathan out of her mind once and for all, they should have been more specific. As in, making sure who she wanted wasn’t already taken. Yes, she had noted at the airport that he didn’t have a wedding band, but even that didn’t mean anything beyond that he wasn’t wearing a ring. The star-struck look in her eyes had probably terrified the poor man.

      Still, he didn’t look the type to easily scare.

      “I have a seat.” He turned, gesturing to a spot on the front row.

      Ouch. Married, dating, or whatever, she’d been shot down.

      Trying not to let her disappointment and embarrassment show, she glanced around and was grateful to see the next speaker at the podium. “Okay, well, it’s time to restart, so...”

      Awkward.

      Not waiting for a response, she high-tailed it to her back row seat to shrivel up and die of humiliation. So much for going after what she wanted.

      Ugh. Could this day possibly get worse?

      Later that evening, Natalie stared at her reflection in the hotel room mirror.

      For a few insane moments, she had let herself be guided by pure feminine interest and she’d made a fool of herself with Matthew Coleman.

      Because he was a sexy beast or because of his surgical skills?

      Or both?

      He was brilliant. She’d read enough of his articles and research to know the man was a genius. That alone would have had her introducing herself, wanting to discuss his work, pick his brain and soak up everything he said.

      That he was utterly gorgeous, well, that was a bonus.

      Or could have been, had he been interested. She’d thought she’d seen interest, but she must have been wrong.

      He wasn’t. Had shot down her offer. End of story. Major embarrassment and utter failure at her first show of interest in the opposite sex since her and Jonathan’s split, but not the end of the world. The opposite sex wasn’t a priority. Her career was and she had that—so no big deal, right?

      Still, the conference wasn’t so big that she wouldn’t bump into Matthew. She’d act as if her invitation had been casual, that she’d only been interested professionally. She was Dr. Natalie Sterling, a pediatric heart surgeon with some pretty fabulous credits to her name, thanks to having met Dr. Luiz during her residency and his having pulled her onto his research team.

      No harm done in asking Matthew to dinner. It wasn’t as if she’d verbalized that looking at him made her want to take off his clothes and do wild and crazy things.

      With one last look in the hotel bathroom mirror, she applied a fresh coat of lipstick, checked to make sure she didn’t have any smeared on her teeth, and left the safety of her hotel room to go to dinner. Maybe she’d get lucky and she wouldn’t see Matthew this evening.

      Or, as her luck for the day would have it, he’d be the first person she saw when she stepped off the elevator.

      Seriously, the elevator door slid open and there he was, just outside the elevator bank.

      Sometimes life wasn’t fair.

      The man’s looks weren’t fair. Those eyes. So unusual. So mesmerizing. So zoned-in on her.

      How was she supposed to act professional when he made her giddy as a schoolgirl? Ha. She hadn’t been a giddy schoolgirl. She didn’t recall ever having felt so inferno-hot inside.

      His gaze raked over her red heels, up her bare legs to where her red skirt brushed the tops of her knees. His visual perusal continued, up and beyond to where her waist dipped in beneath her white blouse and matching red jacket. The fire burning in his icy blue eyes had her insides battling the urge to run back to the elevator versus leaping into his arms and ripping off his clothes.

      He made her feel alive, hot, very female. That scared her. Probably because she wasn’t one for letting her body dictate her actions and he made her body want to act. Logic. That was what dictated her life. Logic, and...

      Those wicked blue eyes connected with hers.

      Forget logic.

      Her breath caught. Her skin prickled with awareness. Her thighs clenched. Any moment her heart was going to pound its way free of her chest. She might spend most of her time locked away in the sterile confines of the hospital, but she wasn’t a fool or oblivious. Desire shone in his eyes and matching want burned within her.

      “I was beginning to think you’d changed your mind about dinner.” He smiled, his voice deep, warm, drawing her further under his spell. “I’m glad I waited.”

      Natalie’s legs liquefied. She remained upright. Somehow. Matthew had just given her a complete once-over and now he was saying he’d been waiting on her? Had she really awakened from the light nap she’d taken, sitting on her room’s balcony?

      “I have a table near the front and asked a couple to save our seats,” he continued. “I hope that was okay.” When she nodded, he placed his hand low on her back and guided her toward the hotel ballroom, where their dinner keynote presentation would take place. “You look lovely, by the way.”

      His hand burned through the material of her suit, searing her skin with its warmth and making her feel a little woozy. His actions were familiar, as if he had the right to touch her. Obviously he did, because she wasn’t complaining.

      “I looked for you after Dr. Epsteiner’s lecture, but never spotted you, not then or at any other point this afternoon.”

      Insides rattled at his admission, Natalie focused on each step she took and prayed she didn’t stumble in her heels. Carefully, she made her way