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‘Will it go?’
‘Once your bones have fully matured. Unfortunately, the more active you are, the worse the symptoms are likely to be.’
Fraser looked grumpy. ‘I’ll have to spend the summer playing on game machines.’
‘I don’t think so,’ his mother said dryly. ‘You can read a few books.’
‘Books!’ Fraser’s face went from grumpy to mournful. ‘It’s my holiday! Why would I want to spend it staring at a book?’
Aisla walked towards the door. ‘Thanks, Dr MacNeil. Flora. We’re grateful.’
Conner waited for the door to close behind him. ‘I don’t know which upset him more—the prospect of cutting back on football or the thought of reading books.’
‘It was a close-run thing.’ Careful not to look at him, Flora changed the paper on the couch. ‘Thank you for seeing him.’
‘Your diagnosis was correct. Well done. That was very impressive.’
‘Thank you. I’m pleased all that studying paid off.’ Although she didn’t look at him, she knew he was watching her. She could feel him watching her.
‘Flora…’ His voice was husky. ‘I know you’re hurt and I’m sorry.’
‘I thought you never apologised.’
‘Well I’m apologising now,’ he said testily, and she shrugged.
‘You don’t have to apologise for not finding me attractive,’ Flora said stiffly, and heard him inhale sharply.
‘I know you won’t believe me, but I was doing you a favour.’
‘Really? It’s doing me a favour to kiss me and then tell me I’m boring?’
‘I should never have kissed you in the first place.’
‘So why did you?’ She breathed in and out, forcing air into her lungs. ‘Not once, but twice. The kiss on the beach—all right, let’s say that was an accident. But you kissed me again, didn’t you? If I’m so boring, why did you do that? Were you just teasing me? Doing me a favour, giving boring old Flora a thrill? Did you just do it to hurt my feelings? It was patronizing, Conner. You made me—I was…’ She couldn’t even say the words. ‘If you didn’t want me then you should have just left me alone. Or are you so bad that you just have
to cause hurt?’
‘Bad? You think I’m bad?’ He pressed her against the wall, his body hard against hers. ‘I’ll show you what bad is, Flora.’ He brought his mouth down on hers with punishing force, kissing her with raw, explosive passion, the slide of his tongue explicitly sexual and unbelievably seductive.
And she melted. Her head spinning from his skilled assault on her senses, she kissed him back, feeling fire dance inside her belly. She wasn’t capable of thought or speech—all she could do was respond to his demands. She did so willingly and when he finally lifted his head she stared at him, mute.
‘I’ve been called bad by a lot of people,’ he said hoarsely, his hands planted either side of her head so that she couldn’t escape his gaze, ‘and most of it has been justified. But I’m damned if I’m accepting that criticism when it comes to you, Flora Harris. If I was as bad as people think, we would have already had sex.’
She was dizzy with need, unable to make sense of what he was saying. ‘But you don’t find me attractive.’
‘No?’ He slid his hands over her bottom and pulled her into him so that she felt the hard ridge of his arousal pressing against her. ‘What I really want to do right now is strip you naked and take you hard and fast until we’re both so exhausted that neither of us can move. And then I want to do it again. And again. Do you understand me?’
She gave a little whimper of shock and his eyes darkened.
‘I’m not talking about marriage, or friendship or any of those soft, woolly things. I’m talking about sex, Flora. Sex.’ He released her suddenly and took a step backwards, a look of disgust on his face. ‘And that isn’t the sort of person you are, which is why I’m going to let you go now. I’m going to walk out of that door into my consulting room and you’re not going to follow me. You are a woman who deserves a conventional relationship with a reliable guy. I’m neither of those things.’
She licked her lips, shaken by everything he’d said to her. ‘I don’t think you should tell me what I want.’
‘You’re too naïve to play this game.’
‘I am not naïve. I’m not naïve, Conner.’ There was tearing agony inside her. He was going to walk away from her again. ‘Would it make a difference if I told you that I’m not a virgin? Is that what’s worrying you?’
He inhaled sharply and turned away, his profile tense. ‘Don’t tell me that.’
