Redeeming The Rebel Doc. Susan Carlisle

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СКАЧАТЬ he had chosen a handful. The manager took the pants from Rex, who all but growled, “Where’s the dressing room?”

      “This way, sir,” the older man said, appearing perplexed.

      “Just call me Rex.”

      The man nodded and led the way to the back of the store.

      Tiffani followed, feeling a little dazed. Rex had taken over. She needed to regain control but was unsure how to do it.

      Rex dropped his helmet on top of the last display table before the dressing stall. Immediately he pulled his shirt over his head.

      Tiffani was given a spectacular view of his back muscles shifting under bronzed skin. That expanse of pure masculinity tapered down to a trim waist.

      Her step faltered.

      Surely it was from the shock of him stripping so freely. Not from the delicious view she’d been given. She should want nothing to do with men, doctors in particular, but she wasn’t immune to a good-looking male. Rex Maxwell had a very fine body to go with his handsome face. If he affected her this acutely, surely other women would also be attracted to him. Smiling to herself, she nodded. Tiffani would use his raw virility to her advantage during the campaign.

      “Hand me the shirts and pants first. I’ll try the jackets on last,” he said from behind a wooden door that stopped a couple of feet from the floor. She watched with a skip of a heartbeat as his jeans puddled around his feet.

      The manager hurried to give him the pants. Rex opened the door far enough to take them. Seconds later he opened it again and stuck out a hand. “Shirts?”

      The manager moved out of Tiffani’s way so she could hand him her armload of shirts. She did her best to keep her eyes off the almost naked man before her. When Rex chuckled softly, she instinctively met his gaze. The twinkle in his smoldering eyes made her discomfort intensify. He was playing with her. But she had endured enough cat-and-mouse games for a lifetime.

      She quickly turned but not before her downward glance had registered his navy sport briefs barely concealing his manhood. Trying to hide her sexual attraction, she said in as flat a voice as she could muster, “Let me see you when you’re dressed.”

      Minutes later he came out wearing a light blue shirt and navy pants. The manager held up a tan jacket. Rex slipped it on with a grace Tiffani couldn’t ignore. He’d been toying with her earlier. Had known he was embarrassing her. Yet here she was, ogling him again. Whatever was going on with her body had to stop. He was a client and one she was determined not to like or trust. All doctors were self-centered and so far Rex Maxwell hadn’t proved himself any different.

      He put his arms out and slowly turned around. “What do you think? Will I do?”

      She studied him intently, hoping to find a flaw. There wasn’t one. So she promptly ordered, “Let’s see the others.”

      “No. You can choose what you like out of my selection. I’m done here.” He shrugged off the jacket.

      She stepped in front of him, ignoring the garment he held out. “You need to try them all on. I want to make sure they create the right image.”

      He took the stance of a man in a gunfight, letting the jacket sweep the floor when he lowered his arm. His stare was hard. “They’re all the same size, just different colors. Mix and match ’em. I’ve done all the fashion-show stuff I’m going to do. Period.”

      Everything about him warned she shouldn’t push any further. So she looked down at his boots. “Okay. Now for shoes.”

      Rex lifted a foot, moving it one way then another. “What? You don’t think these go with everything?”

      Relieved his mood had mellowed, she retorted, “I think traditional footwear would be more appropriate. The boots work for your motorcycle but I don’t think they’re the best choice for TV interviews or social situations.”

      “Social situations? What social situations am I going to be in?”

      She could feel the appalled aura envelop him.

      “The hospital is planning a small cocktail party and dinner for the accreditation committee. It’ll be a great opportunity for you to talk to influential members of the community, while impressing the committee. Let them get to know you.” She smiled, hoping to encourage him.

      His jaw tensed. “I won’t be attending. That isn’t my thing.”

      Time to try coaxing. “Sure you will. You’ll be the face of the hospital by then. The surgeon everyone wants.”

      “If that happens it’ll be because I’m a great surgeon, which by the way I am, and not because you dressed me up and paraded me around.” He headed toward the dressing room.

      She called to his back, “It’ll be good for you and the hospital.”

      Rex turned and confronted her. “I have no interest in being linked to the hospital forever. I’ve agreed to help because Dr. Nelson strongly encouraged it, but with this I draw the line. I don’t do social.”

      “Your social appearance might mean getting top marks from the accreditation committee. You know they’re overly conscious of the malpractice case. We’re trying to rebuild some public goodwill as well.” She couldn’t back down on this. It was the cornerstone of her plan.

      “Do you really believe changing my wardrobe and showing me off to people who value appearance over substance is going to make that much difference?” There was a snide tone to his words.

      She fervently hoped so. This project was her ticket out of town and away from Lou. “I make a living seeing that it does.”

      He leaned close and looked her directly in the eyes. “Don’t you think honest people see beyond all your publicity? I know I’m more interested when I get to know the real person, not the one putting on shiny shoes and a smile, trying to be someone they’re not.”

      Stepping closer and lowering her voice, she hissed, “You need the shiny shoes and smile so people will want to take the time to get to know you. Do you think black T-shirts, holey jeans and biking boots exude medical professionalism? It’s important the community has confidence in you. Believes they’ll get the quality of care they expect.”

      Surprise and then something she wasn’t sure she could name flickered in the depths of his eyes. He said, just as quietly, “Their quality of care hasn’t changed. Mine or the hospital’s. Just because a family wouldn’t accept I couldn’t save their father’s life doesn’t mean my skills are any less competent or professional than they were before the malpractice suit.”

      Tiffani flinched. This conversation was treading too close to the personal. She had promised herself that she would see this job through without letting what had happened to her father intrude. The only way to do that was to go on the defensive. “Just what is your issue? After all, you’re getting a new wardrobe at the hospital’s expense and you’re an intelligent man, so you know how important what I’m trying to achieve is. Why all the pushback?”

      “Like I can’t afford my own shoes and my own clothes,” he spat. “Clothes I have no interest in wearing.”

      “I still don’t understand СКАЧАТЬ