Private Partners (Doctors in Training 2)

“How’s school going?” he asked, fully aware of the primary reason she hadn’t been taking the best care of herself lately.

She shrugged. “It’s pretty tough right now.”

“How many subjects did you say you’re taking this semester?”

“Seven. Microbiology, which includes immunology and parasitology. Pharmacology. Pathology. Ethics. Genetics. Behavioral science. And ICM—Introduction to Clinical Medicine 2.”

He shook his head in consternation. “How do you keep up with all of that?”

“It’s not easy. We have tests every two weeks, covering anywhere from fifty to eighty lectures per exam.”

“Damn, Annie.”

She could feel her throat tightening again. “I’ll be studying all weekend to make up for taking the time off for dinner with my family tonight.” Realizing what she’d just said, she blinked. “Um—how long were you planning to stay?”

His smile was just a little crooked. “Don’t worry, babe. I won’t interfere with your studying.”

Wincing guiltily, she reached out to touch his face. “I don’t want you to think I’m sorry you’re here. It’s always good to see you, Liam.”

Dragging her hand to his lips, he brushed a kiss across her knuckles. “I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you, too,” she admitted.

She had loved him almost from the moment she’d laid eyes on him more than five years earlier. She hadn’t stopped during the years that had passed after they’d broken up so painfully during her freshman year in college. She’d only fallen harder when they’d met up again accidentally in London. Which probably explained how he had charmed her into this impulsive marriage that still seemed to have an unlikely chance of long-term survival—something she didn’t want to think about just then.

He tangled one hand in her hair. “You didn’t really want to leave just yet, did you?” he asked, his breath warm on her lips as he spoke only an inch or so away from her mouth.

“No. Not just yet.” Wrapping a hand around the back of his head, her fingertips sliding into his short hair, she closed the short distance between them.

Studying could wait just a little longer.

Propped on one elbow, Liam watched Anne sleep. The bedroom was almost dark, but just enough light spilled in through the curtains and from the bathroom night-light to illuminate her pale face against the sage-green pillowcase. Her long, wavy, light blond hair tumbled around her in a rather decadent manner, falling across her bare shoulder and the upper curves of breasts visible above the sage sheet that covered the rest of her.

One strand of hair drooped over her left eye. He wanted to reach out and brush it away, but he was afraid of waking her. She needed her sleep. She looked exhausted, and he couldn’t claim full credit.

Though he’d tried to hide it, he’d been startled by her appearance when he’d entered the apartment. It had been only six weeks since she’d sneaked away to join him for their weekend in Memphis during her Christmas break. He had commented then that he could see the toll her hectic schedule was taking on her, but the evidence was even more visible now.

She was too thin. Her light blue eyes were shadowed by purplish hollows her careful makeup didn’t quite hide. She was still beautiful in his eyes; nothing could change that. But he worried about her.

He knew all too well the pressure her family placed on her. Almost as much as she placed on herself. That was most of the reason this marriage had been kept such a secret. Anne worried about her mother, who had been taken so ill very soon after they married. And she had said she couldn’t handle the burden of her family’s disapproval and disappointment on top of the stress of medical school. She needed her family’s support and encouragement during the long stretches when she and Liam were separated, she had said. Though he tended to believe her family’s support came with too many strings, he had agreed.

He’d had reasons of his own for going along with her request to keep their marriage to themselves. Yet he hadn’t realized at the time how burdensome this sneaking around would become. Nor quite how much he would miss her when they were apart, even though he had known from the beginning that their time together would be limited.

Seeing how wan and tired she looked, combined with the sad condition of her pantry, had convinced him he’d done the right thing by coming here now. She needed him. She just didn’t realize it yet.

He wondered a bit warily what she would say when he told her he had no immediate plans to leave.

Chapter Two

Liam wasn’t in the bed when Anne woke Saturday morning. She lay very still for a few moments after glancing at the clock and noting it was just after eight. Her instincts told her she was alone in the apartment.

He wouldn’t take off again without telling her goodbye. He’d probably gone out to pick up breakfast, considering there was no food in her kitchen.

She stumbled toward the shower, deliciously sore and loose-jointed after the night’s activities. Running the water as hot as she could stand it, she scrubbed her skin until it glowed and washed her hair with a peach-scented shampoo she knew he liked. Rather than take the time to blow-dry the long waves, she pulled her hair back into a loose braid. She applied makeup carefully, accenting her eyes and brushing blusher over her cheeks in an attempt to look less pale and tired.

She’d just finished dressing in a bright green sweater and slim-fitting dark jeans when she heard Liam’s key in the door.

He entered with his arms loaded with grocery bags. He hadn’t just bought breakfast; it looked as though he had enough food to make a month’s worth of meals.