Page 15 of Scoring the Mountain Man

“Explain,” Em says, taking a sip of hers.

“Where to start? He's doing well with his therapy,” I start.

“Well that’s good news. So what's the issue?” she asks.

“Yesterday, we finished his therapy and I left, but then he called me to come check his knee because he bent down from a standing position without thinking and said he was in pain. I turned around and went back,” I say and watch her nod for me to keep going.

“When I got back into the cabin, he was in the living room, and I could immediately tell he was in a lot of pain. His knee was swelling up, but I couldn’t feel any tendons had been pulled.”

“Okay, so what happened?” Em asks impatiently.

“He kissed me,” I blurt out, taking a drink to hide my red face.

“How was it?” she asks.

“It…it was great,” I stammer.

“So why didn’t you go see him today?” she asks.

“I didn’t want to hear him say, I’m sorry, it was a mistake,” I admit softly.

“I see,” she says, taking another sip and thinking, before adding, “What if he doesn’t think it was a mistake?”

“How can he not? He’s Wes’ best friend and he’s my patient,” I tell her. “Plus I crossed the line. I should have maintained a professional boundary and I allowed my feelings to get the best of me,” I sigh.

“Wes is a big boy. He’ll get over it. As for the professional boundary, he kissed you. You didn’t initiate the contact.”

“This time,” I mutter. “But what if there is a next time?” I question thoughtfully.

“Was it that good?” she asks with a smirk.

I give her my unbelievable look, but then I can’t help the smile that crosses my lips with the memory of his kiss. “Yeah, it was,” I admit.

“So, how long do you plan to avoid him?” she asks.

“I don’t know.” I rub my hands over my face. “A few more days?”

“Is that fair to him?” she asks and I already know the answer.

“No,” I whisper and she nods her head with a smile on her lips.

I sigh again and take another drink.What am I going to do?

Em stays until she finishes her glass of wine, talking things out, and by the time she leaves, I know I am going to go back to Jaxon’s.

I toss and turn all night as images of his chest play in my mind with the softness of his lips and the demanding way he kissed me.

I finally give up on sleep and jump in the shower trying to wash the images of Jaxon from my mind as I allow the water to cascade over my body.

I can’t help my thoughts as I think about what his hands would feel like touching all over my body and holding me.

“God, I’m so pathetic. The man is my brother’s best friend and I’m sure he has tons of women throwing themselves at him.I don’t need to be one of them,” I tell myself as I lather body wash all over me.

I finish my shower, get out, and dry off. I walk into my closet and pick my scrubs for the day before getting dressed. Then I brush my wet hair while I blow dry it before putting it up in a messy bun at the top of my head.

I walk into the kitchen to make some coffee and turn the tv on to the local news.

I hear the meteorologist give the weather update for today.

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