Free A Christmas Wish by Evie Knight Page B

since you asked, I know for a fact you did nothing last summer. You
were too busy working to take some time off,” Ethan said from her door.
    Her
breath caught in her throat at seeing him standing under the doorframe, in all
his powerful glory. Jerk. His words hurt. Why did he care what she did
or didn’t do? It wasn’t any of his business. And… and… why did he come to her
office? “What do you want? I have lots to do and you’re taking up my time.”
    Ethan
closed the distance with a few long strides and propped his hands on her desk,
leaning forward. “I’d love to take you out to dinner, but you’d say no, so I
won’t ask.”
    Of
course she’d say no. Her indifference façade toward him was limited to work.
Being with him outside of their usual surroundings would be a game-changer—something
she’d never knowingly put herself through. Dinner with him would lead to other
things she wouldn’t be able to walk away from. Studying his face, her eyes
lingered on his seductive lips, confirming her last thought. One kiss from him
and she’d be doomed.
    “I saw
in the calendar that you’re going to the children’s hospital. Can you take a
couple of my patients’ files and drop them off? I’m staying until closing
tonight, and their admin offices would be closed by the time I’d get there.”
    Jasmine
took in the way his lips moved when he talked, imagining what his velvety voice
would sound like if he ever whispered naughty things at her ear. How would his
lips feel on her neck? She blinked, then looked away. “Sure. Give them to
Laurie.”
    “Would
you let me take you out to dinner?”
    Without
looking at him, she said, “I thought you said you wouldn’t ask.”
    “I
changed my mind.”
    She
opened up a file and grabbed a black pen. “Thank you. But my answer is no.”
    “I can
be persuasive.” With his finger, he slid her folder toward him, forcing her to
look up.
    “I can
be stubborn.”
    His
lips twisted into a lopsided grin. “I like stubborn.”
     
    * * * *
     
    Since their impromptu
encounter in her office this morning, Jasmine hadn’t been able to concentrate.
Luckily for her, today she had easy appointments, and for the most part, her
time had been filled with paperwork. She left as soon as her last appointment
was over and hurried to the children’s hospital. Ethan never handed the files
to Laurie, and Jasmine didn’t bother to ask him for them. If that’d been part
of his plan, then he’d failed.
    “Dr.
Lamont,” Sally, one of the nurses, said, “the kids have been waiting for you.”
    Jasmine
took the charts from Sally and headed down the narrow white hallway in the
direction of her patients’ rooms. “How are they doing?”
    “They’re
doing wonderful today. It must be the season,” Sally replied, barely containing
her excitement. “What kid doesn’t look forward to Christmas, right?”
    “Right.”
Jasmine drew her brows together as she continued her walk, pondering what had
Sally in such high spirits today.
    “The
kids are in the playroom. I hope you don’t mind.”
    Shaking
her head, she said, “No.” Jasmine found her way to the recreation room at the
end of the hall and stopped in her tracks.
    Ethan was
surrounded by kids, sitting in the middle of the room, as he read a book to
them.
    What
the….
    His gaze
met hers across the room, and heat covered her from head to toe. She could’ve
sworn he was still at the practice when she left. Or had she imagined it?
Tracing back her time at the office today, she actually didn’t recall seeing
him all afternoon.
    “Oh,
Dr. Sinclair is so great with the kids. He’s been here most of the afternoon,”
Sally said.
    “Has
he, indeed.” The man wasn’t persuasive, he was stubborn. She narrowed her eyes
at him and approached the small circle. Her three little patients stood and hugged
her.
    “Jasmine,
you won’t believe what Ethan told us,” one of the kids said.
    “It’s
so great, I can’t believe it!” another