The Nurse's One Night to Forever

by Janice Lynn

  One shy nurse...

  One liaison of a lifetime!

  When surgical nurse Riley King shares an unexpected night of passion with heartthrob surgeon Justin Brothers, she vows that their intense connection is for one night only! Riley’s not looking for a relationship—she’s been there and been left at the altar to prove it. But there’s more to Justin than meets the eye... Can she let her past go and allow herself to risk her heart?

  Being careful not to flip him out, Riley got into the hammock and snuggled next to him.

  Over the past two weeks, he’d kissed her forehead, her nose, her hand, her fingertips. He’d held her hand a couple of times, such as at the movie theater that night.

  But he’d not kissed her lips, nor had he hugged her.

  So, Riley’s body was very aware of being up close and personal to Justin’s as she lay in the crook of his arm.

  Although usually the eucalyptus filled her senses, Justin overpowered everything, his long lean body, his spicy scent, his warmth.

  “This is nice,” he said, lacing his hand with hers.

  “It’s one of my favorite places to be,” she admitted.

  “In my arms?”

  “In the hammock,” she corrected, but if she was honest, Justin’s arms could quickly become her very favorite place to be.

  Which was a little scary.

  Dear Reader,

  Sometimes while writing a story, a hero comes along who makes me sigh and think, What a great guy. Justin is that sort of hero. Having been adopted, he has a passion for making a difference in kids’ lives that gives my heart a happy squeeze.

  After being essentially left at the altar, nurse Riley King has had it with romance. Orthopedic surgeon Justin Brothers knows there’s something special about Riley, but she refuses to date and risk falling in love. Can he woo her into giving romance another try and trusting him with her heart?

  I had so much fun writing Justin and Riley’s story. Justin is such a great hero and I loved watching him woo Riley into giving romance another go. I hope you enjoy their story.

  Janice

  The Nurse’s One Night to Forever

  Janice Lynn

  Janice Lynn has a master’s in nursing from Vanderbilt University and works as a nurse practitioner in a family practice. She lives in the southern United States with her husband, their four children, their Jack Russell—appropriately named Trouble—and a lot of unnamed dust bunnies that have moved in since she started her writing career. To find out more about Janice and her writing, visit janicelynn.com.

  Books by Janice Lynn

  Harlequin Medical Romance

  Christmas in Manhattan

  A Firefighter in Her Stocking

  It Started at Christmas...

  The Nurse’s Baby Secret

  The Doctor’s Secret Son

  A Surgeon to Heal Her Heart

  Heart Surgeon to Single Dad

  Friend, Fling, Forever?

  A Nurse to Tame the ER Doc

  Visit the Author Profile page at Harlequin.com for more titles.

  Janice won the National Readers’ Choice Award for her first book, The Doctor’s Pregnancy Bombshell

  To Macy

  Praise for Janice Lynn

  “What a wonderfully crafted, fast-paced, captivating read Ms. Lynn has delivered in this book that kept me entertained from start to finish.... A marvellous and extremely engaging read in this book where the chemistry between this couple is off-the-charts....”

  —Harlequin Junkie on Friend, Fling, Forever?

  Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  EPILOGUE

  EXCERPT FROM REUNITED BY THEIR SECRET DAUGHTER BY EMILY FORBES

  CHAPTER ONE

  FOR THE HUNDREDTH time since Riley had arrived at the engagement party Dr. Justin Brothers found himself watching her pretend she was having a good time. She wasn’t.

  Which didn’t make sense as he knew she and Cheyenne were close friends. And Paul was a great guy. Surely Riley was happy at their engagement?

  Still, if ever a woman was faking it, Riley was now. Her eyes begged to be rescued, even though she was laughing at something someone had said.

  Justin wanted to don some armor and do just that.

  He knew better.

  Riley King fought her own battles and would cut down any man who got in her way. Or maybe it was just him she cut down.

  The only place she was relaxed around Justin was in the surgery suite. There, she’d give tit for tat. He loved working with her, watching her take charge and make sure everything went smoothly. It always did with Riley at the helm.

  “Go talk to her.”

  Justin cut his gaze to his friend Paul. “You worry about taking care of your own love-life.”

  Faux-punching Justin’s shoulder, Paul grinned. “This whole shindig is about my love life and how awesome it is.”

  A pang of envy hit. Was it only last summer that Justin had almost walked down the aisle himself? That he’d thought he’d found “the one?”

  How quickly things changed.

  Although Justin wasn’t lonely, he wasn’t opposed to meeting someone special and being in Paul’s shoes.

  His gaze went back to Riley. The curvy nurse who was so quick to put him in his place, had captivated him from the moment he’d met her.

  “You like her.”

  “Never said I didn’t,” he reminded his friend, dragging his gaze from Riley yet again. “It’s more that she doesn’t like me.”

  Paul gave a look of disbelief. “Never known you to strike out.”

  “It happens.” Unfortunately. He couldn’t recall the last time prior to Riley, but she was a biggie.

  Too bad she’d laughed when he’d asked her out. Laughed and told him no in no uncertain terms.

  His gaze drifted back to her, taking in the body-hugging green dress that flounced at the hem and made his eyes pop. She had her dark hair pulled up, but several tendrils had worked loose and framed her pretty heart-shaped face. At work she wore scrubs and no-nonsense shoes. Tonight she had stilettos on that made her legs look a million miles long and gave a gentle sway to her hips when she walked.

  Just looking at her had Justin struggling not to reach for his collar to loosen a few buttons. Riley made him hot.

  Because she was hot.

  And smart, and funny, and—not interested.

  Only he’d swear she was...

  From across the terrace her big green eyes collided with his gaze and she failed to hide the initial flicker of awareness. The same awareness he felt every time they were together but that she seemed to find easy to push aside and deny.

  She’d had a bad break-up a year or two ago. He didn’t know the specifics, but you couldn’t work in the same hospital unit and not pick up on gossip. She didn’t date. Perhaps she was still hung up on her ex. That theory made the most sense but, right or wrong, the thought of her wanting another man irked him.

  Cheeks blushing a rosy pink, she averted her eyes, took a drink from her champagne glass, then pretended to listen to whatever her friend was saying.

  The same way Justin was pretending to liste
n to what Paul was saying.

  Justin grimaced and told himself to stop with the Riley fascination and acknowledge the woman Paul was now introducing to him.

  The single woman who’d just joined them had a hopeful look in her eyes. If she triggered half the sparks Riley did, he’d consider himself a lucky man.

  Too bad he felt nothing when he looked at the tall blonde and everything when his gaze wandered back to the brunette whose gaze was on him again...

  * * *

  For so many reasons surgical nurse Riley King hadn’t wanted to attend her coworker’s engagement party. But she adored Cheyenne, and hadn’t been able to think of a single excuse that wouldn’t have their close-knit workgroup rallying to make sure Riley was okay.

  This party was about Cheyenne—not a wake for expressing grief over Riley’s jilting at the altar. She had to at least make a quick appearance, even if she knew she’d be one of the few solo attendees and would get looks of pity and offers of blind date set-ups.

  No, thank you.

  She didn’t want pity, blind dates, real dates, or to be anywhere that had anything to do with the opposite sex and especially not with weddings.

  Like this engagement party.

  Still, she had to go on smiling and pretending she was having the time of her life, and that she wasn’t hungry when she was actually longing to give in to the temptation of the yummy-looking calorie-laden appetizers at various locales on the beautifully decorated patio.

  Even worse, she had to pretend that the engagement and wedding excitement didn’t trigger flashbacks to sitting in her fancy white dress, alone on her wedding night.

  Johnny’s exit had just been more dramatic, but every man Riley had ever cared for had left, leaving her done with romantic involvements.

  So why was her gaze constantly on the man on the opposite side of the party venue? The very gorgeous man she couldn’t keep her eyes from straying to no matter how many times she dragged them away?

  Hot, steamy Dr. Justin Brothers—the heartthrob orthopedic surgeon all the females at the hospital oohed and ahhed over twenty-four-seven.

  Riley didn’t ooh or ah over Justin. Much. Sure, he was tall, muscular in a non-gym-rat kind of way, and had the most amazing blue eyes and smile. But she knew his type. Male—which equated to love ’em and leave ’em.

  Justin was one of those fast guys who didn’t waste time before declaring, “Next!” From the moment he’d arrived on the Columbia Hospital scene, he had never been with the same woman twice. He wasn’t interested in pretending he’d stick around.

  Wasn’t that what Karen, one of his more recent exes, had told Riley when they’d bumped into each other at the grocer’s? Justin was fun while it lasted, but knowing that hadn’t prevented the woman from being heartbroken when he’d moved on.

  Riley did not want to be the next Karen. Or Nancy. Or Stephanie.

  So what if she enjoyed their hospital banter? The way he made her fight laughter more often than not? Made her fight the awareness that, although she’d sworn off romance, her body was still young and hormonal?

  Regardless, she wouldn’t risk a repeat of what had happened with Johnny. Not ever, ever, ever.

  That was why she’d told Justin no when he’d asked her to dinner.

  Twice.

  She hadn’t been sure he was serious the first time, and had figured the second time had been about wounded pride.

  But if ever she was tempted to date again, Justin would be the one to make her do it.

  When Justin had come to work at the hospital six months ago she had felt good old-fashioned lust surge to life. Something she’d thought impossible to feel again. Something she hadn’t wanted to feel again.

  Which was why she avoided him when she was outside the safety of the hospital.

  The less she knew about Justin, the better.

  The more she thought of him as a player—no better than any other man who’d ever walked the earth, looking for a female’s heart to crush—the better.

  The sooner she snuck away from this party, the better.

  Why had she thought she could attend an engagement party? Wasn’t that like having all her shattered dreams tossed right into her face? A vivid reminder of her own engagement party?

  Romantic happiness was like a vapor. Here one moment, gone the next. Riley had sworn off pursuing that elusive mirage. Life was so much better since she had.

  She gripped her glass tighter. She should have known Johnny would invade her thoughts tonight. She had known.

  Laughing a bit too loudly at a comment someone made, Riley wanted to fall through the floor. Surely enough time had passed that she could leave without being noticed?

  She glanced at her fitness watch. Her heart sank. Had she really only been there just over thirty minutes? How was that possible when it seemed hours had gone by since she’d arrived a little late, with her roommate Cassie and her on-again, off-again boyfriend Sam?

  An hour. She had to stay at least an hour.

  Then she could go home, change into something comfortable, eat celery while telling herself it tasted way better than chocolate, grab her six-pound Maltese terrier, and lie on the hammock in her backyard to let the night sky and her loving dog soothe away her raw nerves.

  Across the room, Justin Brothers clanged his glass, causing the crowd to hush.“Can I have your attention, please?”

  Oh, he had Riley’s attention, all right. Way too often and almost non-stop since she’d arrived and seen him putting shame to every other man present in his tailored black pants and perfect-fitting light blue button-down shirt. He’d undone a couple of buttons at his throat and rolled up his sleeves to reveal tanned mid-forearms. He looked phenomenal. Someone should put him on a billboard.

  Yep, her attention was had. Which was unfortunate. You’d think an engagement party that had caused an outbreak of botched wedding memories would douse her reaction to Justin, but he still left her feeling unsettled.

  “We’re here tonight to celebrate Paul and Cheyenne’s engagement,” he continued, glancing to where the happy couple stood next to one another.

  Riley’s gaze followed, taking note of Paul’s arm around Cheyenne’s waist, his hand resting at his fiancée’s lower back as she smiled up at him with her heart and a lifetime of dreams shining in her eyes.

  Once upon a time Johnny had held her and she’d smiled adoringly at him, oblivious to his cheating ways.

  Ugh. Riley fought a wave of nausea and finished off the champagne she wasn’t supposed to drink until after the toast.

  Staring into her empty glass, she grimaced. Oops.

  Moving away from the friends she’d been talking to, she grabbed another glass from a nearby tray to participate in the toast to the happy couple.

  Relationships always started with smiles and happiness. It was what came later that brought tears and heartache. Grief. Humiliation. Pity.

  Drinking champagne inappropriately.

  Poor Cheyenne.

  Cheyenne wouldn’t listen, though. Hadn’t Riley already tried to warn her friend to no avail that she was making a mistake? Cheyenne had hugged her and told her that someday someone was going to come along to heal all the wounds Johnny had inflicted.

  Which was naïve and completely ridiculous.

  Riley did not need or want someone to come along and “heal” her. She was healed—and she had learned valuable life lessons her friend had yet to experience.

  Riley prayed she never would.

  Tightening her hold on her new glass, she focused on where Justin was still talking, giving his toast to the couple. He was Paul’s best man and he was taking his duties seriously, delivering one heck of a spiel about love and commitment.

  As if he knew anything about those things.

  “So, let’s raise our glasses to Paul and Cheyenne, celebrate their love, and w
ish them a long, happy life together.”

  Riley did wish that for her friend. She just didn’t believe it was possible. Still, she raised her glass, faked a smile as she clinked her glass against the nearby guests’ glasses, then took a sip. A long sip that almost emptied her glass.

  When she looked back toward Justin her eyes collided with his blue ones, as they often did. Probably because he was wondering why she couldn’t stop looking at him.

  Heaven help her, but it would be easy to fall into that man’s eyes and drown in their mesmerizing depths.

  She ordered her own eyes to move, to look at the pretty landscape surrounding the porch, the ornate bushes, the small trees and colorful plants—anything other than Justin.

  Her eyes refused to budge, preferring to submerge themselves in vivid blue.

  Maybe he’d put a spell over her. Because not only would her eyes not avert, but her ability to fake anything vanished.

  She knew it because she saw concern flicker on his face.

  She didn’t want his concern.

  She was fine.

  Better than fine.

  Only...

  Only nothing.

  Shunning the emotions rocking her, she clamped her armor and her fake smile back into place and raised her glass to him in acknowledgement of his toast.

  His gaze searching hers, he raised his glass back.

  In unison, eyes locked, they took a drink.

  Riley swallowed, wondering if she’d had too much as her head felt dizzy. This glass was her third and would be her last.

  She rarely drank, so three glasses of champagne had to be why her insides felt so topsy-turvy. If she wasn’t careful she would soon be quite tipsy. She’d only ever been drunk once—and, really, did that night even count?

  Ha. That night counts for everything, the nagging voice that reared its ugly head from time to time reminded her.

  That night had been the end of what she’d thought the rest of her life would be and the beginning of a very different reality.