Page 25 of The Doctor's No-Strings Deal

“There’s a little sandwich shop across the street. They make a mean tuna salad.”

Charlie rolled his eyes as they made their way to the locker rooms. “Only you would eat tuna on the job, Bright. It’s unseemly.”

“It’s delicious. Good brain food.” Megan slapped him on the shoulder again, noting how tall he was, and remembering that she had, in fact, gotten some of that. The memory made her blush. Here she was, fighting with Charlie Sullivan, and not all that long ago, she had been moaning beneath him. He had quite the mouth on him — that was for sure — in more ways than one. She tried to shake the memories by insulting him again. “Don’t worry, I’m sure they’ll have some boring, rich-boy sandwich for you.”

“I don’t eat sandwiches. I’ll order a salad or stir fry, but I don’t eat sandwiches.”

“Sushi?” Megan offered.

“It’s a possibility,” he said.

“But I can’t afford sushi,” she admitted.

“It’s on me this time, Bright. I consider it the price I must pay to have a more nutritious lunch today.”

“Tuna is plenty nutritious,” Megan said, keeping the argument up as they packed up their things and headed to the garage, where Charlie’s driver George would presumably be waiting for them. “I eat it all the time, and I’m filled out rather nicely, if I do say so myself.”

Charlie gave her a quick once-over, from her head to her shoulders and back again. “Can’t argue with that. Well, you can still order tuna if you like. It’ll just be on rice instead of bread.”

“So is this like a date?”

“Absolutely not.” He spun on her with a severe expression. “Don’t you be getting ideas about us. We had a one-night fling, and that’s all it was. In the real world, I despise you.”

“Just a break in the war, then,” she said. “For the record, I don’t despise you.”

He turned to her, and she watched half of his mouth twitch up into a smile. She decided to take it as a good sign.

CHAPTER 12

CHARLIE

Megan was all he thought about, no matter how much he pretended otherwise. He’d wanted her to obsess over him, but things seemed to have worked out the other way around. Every time he stood behind her, he could smell the light perfume she sometimes wore, and he flashed back to that night in his apartment. Even though he’d only spent one night with her, he missed her as though he’d been living with her his whole life. She just seemed right in his world.

At the same time, he loved to hate her. She was so sickeningly sweet, like cotton candy outside a county fair. So why did he suddenly seem to have a major sugar addiction?

As for his residency, Charlie was convinced this was among the worst things that could have happened to him. He couldn’t concentrate while Megan was around, and he was afraid to fall behind. Not just afraid — it was more like a phobia. Not being the best would make him question his place in his own family. It would make his family question whether he even belonged among them, and that would be devastating. The pressure he lived under on a day-to-day basis was nothing short of immense.

When his shift was over, he made his way to his locker, collected his books, and headed for the break room. He intended to get some studying done here, where he was in work mode, where he wouldn’t be faced with the sight of his tragically empty bed. Anyway, getting a little study time in when Megan wasn’t around to distract him was just what the doctor ordered.

But of course, when he entered the break room, Megan was already there. Charlie couldn’t believe his bad luck. He was tempted to immediately turn around and leave, but that would be showing weakness. One thing he knew he should never do while his fiercest competition was around was show any weakness. So he sat down right across from her and opened his books.

She glanced up, adjusted her glasses, and gave him a little smile. “Couldn’t stay away, could you?”

Charlie glared across the table at her. “I didn’t know you were here. I was planning to get some solo work done where I wouldn’t be… distracted.”

“Do I distract you?”

“Anybody would. I take my studies seriously. This isn’t social hour.”

Megan’s smile grew, and she seemed to be enjoying the conversation, awkward as it was. She stood and gathered her things. “All right, then.”

“You don’t have to leave,” Charlie said. “I can study just fine while you’re here.”

“I know.” She stepped around the table and took the seat next to his. “I just thought, you know, since I’m not any more distracting than anyone else, it wouldn’t make a difference where I sat.”

When she sat down next to him, he could feel the heat from her skin.

“Whatever this is,” he said, “I’m not participating.”

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