Dammit, why did Ross Hardwick have to show up at her therapy session?

Sharon thumped the kitchen counter in frustration. She'd been doing such a good job of forgetting about him. Okay, yes, so she might have gotten herself off to thoughts of him once... twice... a few times over the last couple of weeks. She couldn't help it. His low, velvety voice, his mischievous grin, and his large, soft eyes haunted her.

Damn the man. Damn him for being handsome, and rich, and smart, and paying her bills and then apologizing for it, and then asking her out to dinner… What the hell had that been about, anyway? He'd made it very clear to her that he wasn't interested in dating. She had known that about him before she'd known anything else, because it was one of the first things he’d mentioned at the gala. Why would he be asking her out now?

She had to get him out of her head. Normally she'd call Leticia and they'd have a night on the town, but thanks to her leg, that wasn't going to happen any time soon. And she wasn't the type to just go to a bar and pick someone up. As Leticia had been happy to point out, Sharon didn't do one-night stands. Except with Ross, apparently. And now that one exception was reminding her of why it was a rule.

Her phone beeped and she picked it up, checking her email. Working from home had proved to be even easier than she'd expected. Her work mostly involved phone calls, and when she needed to meet with a potential donor or colleague in person, she just sent Charlene in her place. It had all been going smoothly.

This email wasn't about work, though. It was from the hospital.

"A post-surgery check-up?" Sharon said it out loud, just to make sure it was real. She had to go in and see Ross?

She wasn't sure she could handle it.

But the email was very specific, and she knew that it was the right thing to do for her leg. The appointment, the email explained, would probably involve an x-ray to ensure that her leg was healing properly and that her body was accepting the rod. It was just an annoying coincidence that it would require her to see the man she was trying to avoid thinking about.

Why did the universe do this to her? What had she done to deserve this?

"I must have been very bad in a past life," she muttered to her coffee maker.

The coffee maker, although excellent at dispensing liquid caffeine, had no advice to offer.

The next day, Sharon asked Charlene to drive her to the hospital. "I feel bad," she confessed. "This can't be in your job description."

"Don't worry about it." Charlene flashed a grin. The girl was tall and lanky, with light blonde hair and blue eyes, but she still managed to remind Sharon of Leticia. They both had the same way of smiling easily, and both seemed to have boundless energy. "It's no problem."

Charlene dropped her off at the front entrance. "I'll park the car and wait for you in the lobby."

"Thanks again," Sharon said.

"And again, don't worry about it!" Charlene flashed her another grin and then drove off into the parking structure.

Sharon turned to face the hospital entrance, leaning on her crutches. Well, there was no sense in delaying the inevitable. She had to face Ross sooner or later, so it might as well be sooner.

She checked herself in and was initially assessed by a nurse, so she began to hope that maybe she wouldn't have to see Ross after all. This hope was dashed when the nurse left her in an examination room, telling her that, "Dr. Hardwick will see you in just a moment."

Sharon waited nervously, reading the posters on the walls over and over again until she thought she might have them memorized. Just when she thought she was going to scream from anticipation, the door opened and Ross entered.

She had tried so hard to think of him as Dr. Hardwick in her head. She had tried to tamp down on her attraction to him. But now that he was in the room with her, his dark gaze so heavy on her that she could almost physically feel it, it was all she could do not to beg him to kiss her.

"Nice to see you again, Sharon," Ross said. He sounded amicable but distant. It was hard to remember that this was the same man that had paid her medical bills and then asked her out on a date just a few days ago.

Ross looked at her chart. "You seem to be recovering well. Any unusual pain?"

Sharon shook her head. "I mean, there's discomfort sometimes, but it seems like that's normal. From what the nurse told me."

"Unfortunately, yes." Ross grimaced. “It’s what happens when you’ve got foreign objects in your body. Is it just the rod, or are the screws in your ankle giving you issues? Most people experience discomfort with either one or the other, and it’s usually the screws because your ankle is where most of your mobility is.”

Sharon had to hold in her sigh of frustration—her mother had always said she was an impatient one, and this was definitely proving that. “How long will my recovery take?”

Ross gave her a stern look, and Sharon knew instinctively that he had given many a patient that look over the years. It really shouldn’t be turning her on, or reminding her of how he’d taken control, and how she wanted him to take control and force her to obey his every instruction.

Bad Sharon, she thought. You’re in a goddamn hospital!

“It might take up to a year to get your leg completely back to the way it was,” Ross said, setting down his clipboard, “And even then there might be permanent changes. Your leg might shrink a little, for instance. That’s what the physical therapy is for, to prevent those natural changes from affecting your daily life or changing how you use your body.”

When he talked about how she used her body, he was probably just referring to things like walking or climbing stairs. He wasn’t talking about… anything else. He couldn’t be. But Sharon’s mind couldn’t help but go there anyway, thinking of Ross being careful of her leg while laying her down on the bed or while spreading her thighs open for him—

Ross crossed the room to stand in front of her, and Sharon was sure that he could hear her heart beating wildly. "Mind if I take a look?"

Her throat was suddenly dry. Not trusting her voice, she just nodded. This was the first time they'd been this close since the first night. She could smell him, a dark, woodsy scent, and with it came all the sense memories of that night together. His hands on her. His mouth on her breasts, her stomach, in between her legs...

It could have been her imagination, but she thought she heard Ross suck in a breath. Could he tell what she was thinking?

He put his hands on her leg, gently feeling along it and testing it for problems. "How does that feel?" He asked, his voice low and rough.

She wanted his hands to roam higher, to pin her down like they had before. Sharon swallowed. "It—it feels fine. No pain."

Ross looked up at her, and Sharon felt painfully embarrassed. Her pathetic arousal must show all over her face, and here was Ross just trying to do his job.

"You sure?" He asked, his voice getting even lower. "You sound... breathless."

One of his hands slid farther up her leg, just to the hem of the hospital gown they'd had her put on. Oh, God, she was wearing nothing but a flimsy paper hospital gown. It would be so easy for him to rip it off of her, leaving her exposed and open to whatever he wanted...

Ross tilted his head a little closer. His pupils were so wide, they made his eyes look black. "Sharon." His voice was nothing more than a rough murmur. "I need you to tell me to stop."

"Why?" Her voice didn't sound like her own. It was too breathy and desperate.

"Because if you don't, I might do something very bad."

With a boldness that came from who knew where, she grabbed his hand and pushed it underneath her hospital gown, right up to where she was starting to get wet. "Does it feel like I want you to stop?"

Ross's eyes darkened even further. A voracious grin flashed across his face, and then he lunged forward, pressing their mouths together and swiping his tongue across her lips. Sharon pressed herself forward as best she could with her bad leg, grabbing frantically at his coat and trying to work a hand underneath his shirt. Ross’ hands were everywhere, sliding underneath her gown and grabbing first her ass, then her breasts. Then he gently twisted one of her nipples, making her gasp into his mouth. His tongue slid into her mouth again and again, and God, she wanted him. She wanted him in her, wanted him everywhere…

"I can't stop thinking about this," Ross admitted. He kissed along her jaw, across her cheeks, and down her neck. Sharon tilted her head back to give him more access.

"Me neither," she replied, finally getting her hands under his shirt so she could gently scrape her nails down his chest. Ross shuddered against her, sucking gently where her shoulder met her neck. Then he straightened up to kiss her properly again. Sharon swallowed a whimper as he dragged her up against his body with one hand and kneaded her breast with the other. She was so wet, it felt like she was going to soak through her gown, and possibly even the paper she was sitting on.

Ross was no better off. She could feel his erection through his pants, pressing up against her leg.

It was like she'd been doused with a bucket of cold water. She was about to have sex with her doctor in his place of work, on an examination table!

Sharon pushed Ross back. "We—we can't."

Ross blinked, his eyes thick with lust. It seemed to take him a minute to process what Sharon had said. She knew the moment he did because his face flooded with guilt.

"You're right." Ross stepped back. "I'm sorry, that was extremely unprofessional. I took advantage—"

"I literally told you to take advantage." Sharon still felt out of breath, and she hated how raw her voice sounded. She must look a complete wreck. "I just... anyone could walk in."

"No, you were right to stop." Ross ran a hand through his hair. "But I do want to keep doing this. If you want."

Sharon didn't know what to think. She wanted Ross. She wanted him so badly that she could literally taste it. But she also had no idea what to expect from him. He had made it clear that he didn't want a romantic relationship, but Sharon didn't know how to settle for anything less.

"I still want to take you out on a date, if you'll let me." Ross sounded incredibly sincere. "Now I owe you two apologies."

"You don't have to apologize for this." Sharon sighed, trying to compose herself.

"Still. Let me take you out. Please."

Ross sounded serious. He even sounded nervous, which somehow made his offer more tempting. Sharon hadn’t previously thought Ross capable of feeling nervous, and that subtle display of vulnerability made him seem more approachable. Going on a date with him was still probably a terrible idea. He could break her heart so very easily. But she wanted him so badly, and he seemed to be in earnest.

Could she risk it?

Sharon took a deep breath. Be positive, she thought. Like Leticia said. This could be a fun way to relax. And if nothing else, she'd get free dinner out of it.

"Sure."