Under the Mistletoe with John Doe. Judy Duarte

fact that she was distracted—but it wasn’t because of another case or dilemma that worried her. It was clearly him causing her mind and thoughts to wander.

      And she couldn’t risk letting that happen. Whatever was going on between them had to be one-sided. And even if it wasn’t, she couldn’t stay at his bedside a moment longer. Not when her body was going whacky, just being around him.

      So she glanced at her wristwatch, then back at him. “I have a meeting with a colleague before my shift starts, which means I need to go.”

      Honesty was always her policy, so even little white lies never sat easy with her. But she couldn’t think of another excuse to leave.

      “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said, as if her visits had become a ritual they both could count on—and look forward to.

      She wanted to remind him that it wasn’t a done deal, but she’d already tossed out Doc’s offer for him to stay on the ranch. And John had agreed.

      So she stepped away from his bed. “Have a good evening.”

      “You, too.”

      As she turned and walked out of his room, she picked up her pace as though she could outrun all she’d been feeling back there, but reality dogged her down the corridor and into the elevator.

      John had only touched her—and just briefly at that. But the fact that she’d reacted so strongly to something so minor left her unbalanced and skittish.

      She did her best to regain control of her senses, but it wasn’t easy.

      When the elevator doors opened on the second floor and she stepped into the corridor that led to the cafeteria, she tried another tack.

      Okay, so she was sexually attracted to John Doe. What was wrong with that? It’s not as though she had to actually act upon that attraction.

      And there was probably a very good reason for it, too—one that went beyond the man’s looks and the intoxicating sound of his voice.

      She’d sworn off men and sex ever since she’d told Doug to pack his things and move out of the house they’d shared when they’d been together. She’d been determined to focus on her career, on her patients. And she wouldn’t let a relationship get in the way of that again.

      But she was only human, with sexual needs and desires that had been dormant for too long. So it was just her hormones at play. Her body was merely reacting to its basic need for sex and zooming in on a possible candidate.

      That’s all it was.

      She just needed a sexual release. But where did she find a potential partner, especially in Brighton Valley? And what about the hours she kept?

      It was going to be tough. Especially when John Doe was the first sexual interest she’d had since she and Doug had split.

      But there was no way she’d sleep with a patient. Especially one who had no idea where he’d come from or where he was going next.

      Of course, with John Doe living only a couple of yards away from her house, she feared she was fighting a losing battle.