Free Playing for Love (Summer Beach Vets 1) - sweet vacation romance by H.Y. Hanna

what was it? He was sure he hadn’t read the signals wrong. There had been an instant attraction that sizzled between them—almost from the first moment they’d met in the vet clinic reception. He didn’t think he had mistaken the warmth in Sara’s soft blue eyes or the adorable way she had blushed under his intent gaze. Then there was the frangipani…
    And the almost-kiss…
    Craig thought of Sara’s enthusiastic attempt to try the Tim Tam Slam last night. He liked that in a woman—that she was game to try new things and not so self-conscious that she wouldn’t do something for fear of looking unattractive. He knew some girls who wouldn’t want to mess up their make-up or be seen from a bad angle. But Sara had embraced the ritual whole-heartedly.
    He groaned silently as he remembered the way those full lips of hers had looked, pursed around the biscuit, as she sucked the coffee up. He didn’t know when he had ever found chocolate biscuits such a turn on!
    Sighing, Craig turned impatiently away from the windows and stalked to his study. He had to go over the proposed episode outlines for the new season of Aussie Beach Vets . While most of the show was spontaneous “reality TV”, there had to be an element of planning beforehand to make sure that the crew were briefed on certain procedures, but more importantly, to make sure that no patients ever found the filming intrusive. Craig had been adamant about that. The show might have made him one of the highest-paid stars on Australian TV but his first concern was still his patients. He remembered suddenly that he was seeing his agent down in Sydney on Tuesday. He might as well get the outlines done now, he decided. It would hopefully take his mind off Sara too.
     
     
    Craig managed to keep his thoughts from straying too often towards the beautiful American for the rest of the day, although he couldn’t quite stop himself from listening for the phone, hoping that it might still ring with a last-minute acceptance from Sara to his drinks invitation. But though the phone rang several times, none of the calls were from Sara.
    By the time Monday morning rolled round, Craig was starting to feel angry. If Sara didn’t want to see him, why couldn’t she just tell him? He was a straightforward Aussie bloke and he didn’t like playing games.
    He went for his regular morning beach jog, trying to pretend that he wasn’t hoping to see Sara’s curvy figure on the horizon, and then showered, changed, and headed into work. Things seemed to be quieter this morning—the car park was relatively empty and there was nobody in the waiting room yet. Of course, the morning appointments had barely started. Still, it looked like the mad wave of emergencies in the last few days was over. Typical, Craig thought, as he spied Dan and Charlie chatting in the hallway. Of course things would quieten down now that most of the team was back.
    He gave his colleagues a wave but didn’t stop to talk to them. They were covering the main clinic this morning which meant that he had a couple of hours free to catch up on some post-operative notes and other admin. But first he would check in to see the patients on the ward. He smiled to himself suddenly as he thought of the puppy with the paralysis tick bite. At least there was some good news there. It looked like the pup was going to pull through.
    Craig pushed through the swing door that led to the hospital ward at the back of the building and came to a sudden stop as he saw Sara crouched down by one of the crates. She jumped up when she saw him and rubbed her hands nervously on her jeans, not meeting his eyes.
    “G’day,” said Craig, going slowly forwards.
    “Uh… hi.” Her voice was soft, hesitant.
    She looked like she hadn’t slept very well—there were shadows under her eyes and her face was pale. Craig felt his anger evaporate. Whatever it was that was bothering Sara, whatever the reason she had suddenly shied away from him, she wasn’t