The Greek Children's Doctor

Alex had left to collect his date half an hour earlier so she knew it had to be Andreas.

She walked to the door on shaking legs and paused for a moment. Her heart rate accelerated dramatically and excitement curled in the pit of her stomach.

She closed her eyes briefly, wondering why on earth she’d invited the man. She was playing with fire.

Andreas Christakos could hurt her badly.

Taking a steadying breath, she opened the door, trying to control her reaction as she saw him.

Damn.

She should have known that the man would have looked spectacular in formal dress.

She bit back a groan. The truth was Andreas would look spectacular whatever he wore.

He lounged in her doorway, confident, sexy and so masculine that it took her breath away.

He was all temptation and trouble and she’d elected to spend the evening with him.

Great.

‘Hi, there.’ She sounded breathless and hated herself for it. She hoped he wasn’t any good at reading body language but her instincts said that he would be. This man knew everything there was to know about women.

His eyes slid slowly over her and finally he spoke. ‘You look sensational.’

Suddenly she wished she’d chosen to wear a different dress. Something that covered her up. Something that would protect her from the way he was looking at her. The dress she’d chosen skimmed her womanly curves and seemed demure enough from the front, but the back was a different matter, and she found herself wishing that she didn’t have to turn around.

He was looking at her quizzically. ‘Are you ready?’

‘I need to fetch my bag.’ Which meant turning round.

His gaze didn’t shift from hers. ‘Fine.’

Swallowing hard, she backed away from him and his eyes narrowed.

‘Is something wrong?’

‘No.’ This was utterly ridiculous! She took a deep breath and turned around, walking quickly to her room to collect her bag.

She returned in seconds. ‘I’m ready.’

He didn’t answer and slowly she lifted her gaze to his.

‘Well, now I know why you were reluctant to turn around,’ he said hoarsely, his dark eyes holding hers. ‘That dress should carry a health warning. Shall we go?’

He placed a hand on her bare back and it was as if she’d drunk champagne on an empty stomach. Her legs trembled and her head swam. She was acutely conscious of every inch of him as they made their way down in the lift and climbed into the car he had waiting.

It was a warm summer evening but suddenly Libby found herself shivering.

His gaze settled on her face. ‘Are you cold?’

Libby shook her head, knowing that she’d never be able to convince him that she was cold.

She wasn’t cold. She was just suffering from an acute attack of out-of-control hormones. No man had ever affected her this way before. She’d never experienced this stomach-curling excitement that she felt with him.

‘So why are you shivering, agape mou?’

She turned to look at him and gave a moan as his mouth descended on hers.

His kiss was slow and erotic and within seconds she was clinging to him, wriggling closer, her whole body throbbing with a heat and desire that was totally unfamiliar.

When he finally lifted his head, her heart was thundering in her chest.

‘I’ve ruined your lipstick,’ he said huskily, his eyes resting on her swollen mouth. ‘I’m sorry.’

She swallowed hard and reached for her bag. ‘J-just don’t do it again,’ she stammered, ignoring his low chuckle.

Who was she kidding?

Kissing Andreas was like taking a trip to heaven.

Given the choice, she’d happily spend the rest of her life doing nothing else.

They arrived at the hotel and joined the rest of the guests on the terrace where they were drinking champagne.

Libby immediately caught sight of Katy and Alex with their partners. Anxious to be in a group as a method of self-protection, she took Andreas by the arm and walked across to them.

Katy was looking elegant and classy in a long black dress, her blonde hair swept up on top of her head. She had more colour in her cheeks than the last time they’d met and Libby leaned forward to kiss her and then turned to Jago, Katy’s husband.

‘Congratulations,’ she whispered, as she stood on tiptoe to kiss him.

Then she shook hands with Alex’s date for the night, a cool-eyed blonde who was a clone of all the women that Alex dated.

Libby smiled politely, noted that the girl’s name was Eva and wondered whether she knew that Alex would be seeing someone else within three months. He never dated anyone for longer than that. He was more wary of commitment than she was.

She introduced Andreas and instantly he and Jago started talking about a case they’d had in A and E the previous day.