How to Marry a Doctor

She held up the dress her sister had chosen and looked at herself in the mirror. The white pattern running up the front of the dress had a design that might’ve made a nice henna tattoo. It was a little wild for her taste.

“I don’t know, Em, this one looks a little low cut.”

“Try it on. You never can tell when it’s on the hanger.”

Wasn’t that the truth? The same rule could apply to men, too. You had to try them on—well, not literally, of course. She couldn’t fathom getting intimate with a man. Even if it was a man Jake had picked out for her. Not that she was contemplating life as a born-again virgin. It was just too much to contemplate right now. First, she’d meet the guy or guys—Jake did have until the wedding—and see how she got along with him or them. Then she’d think about...more.

The thought made her shudder a little.

She slipped out of the dress she’d just tried on and hung it up—it was a prim flowery number in primary colors. It was too dowdy—too matronly—too...something. Anna couldn’t put her finger on it. Whatever it was, it just didn’t feel right.

“Who did you fix Jake up with?” Emily asked from the other side of the fitting room curtain.

“Her name is Cheryl Woodly. She’s a freelance nutritionist who works with new mothers. I met her at the hospital.”

“Oh, yeah? What’s she like?”

Anna slipped the dress over her head.

“Nice. Smart. Pretty.”

“How is she different from Jake’s past girlfriends?”

“Did you not hear me say she’s nice and smart? Miss Texas possessed neither of those qualities.”

“Me-ow,” said Emily.

“I’m only speaking the truth.”

“When are they going out?”

“Friday.”

Anna stared at herself in the mirror, tugged up on the plunging halter neckline, trying to give the girls a little more coverage. She wasn’t so sure she wanted to put everything on display on a first date. The dress was great, but it was decidedly not her.

“Anna? Did you try on the one I just gave you?”

“Yeah, but—I don’t know.”

“Come out. Let’s see it.”

“Nah. Too much cleavage. Too little dress.”

Anna hesitated, turning around to check out the back view. She had to admit it was a snappy little number and it looked great from behind. But the front drew way too much focus to the cleavage and that made her squirm.

“Let me see.” Before Anna could protest, Emily’s face poked through the split in the curtain.

Anna’s had flew up to her chest.

“It looks great,” Emily said. “The color is out of this world on you. It brings out your eyes. And move your hand.”

Emily swatted away her sister’s hand from its protective station.

“I don’t know what you’re afraid of. It accentuates your tiny waist and you’re barely showing any cleavage at all. It’s just-right sexy. A far cry from those scrubs you hide in every day.”

“My scrubs are for work. They’re my uniform.” Anna turned back to the mirror and put her hands on her hips. She turned to left and then to the right. “You’re just jealous that you don’t ever get to dress so comfortably at work.”

By day, Emily worked in a bank in Dallas and wore suits to work. Because she was saving for a house, two or three times a week she worked as a hostess at Bistro St. Germaine, where she had to dress in sleek, sophisticated black to fit in with the timeless elegance of the downtown Celebration restaurant. Emily had great taste in clothes. Anna would’ve asked if she could borrow something from her younger sister—and Emily would’ve graciously dressed her—but it was time for Anna to add a couple of new pieces to her own wardrobe.

“Scrubs are like wearing jammies to work every day,” Emily said.

“You know you would if you could,” Anna said.

Emily rolled her eyes. “I think you should buy that dress. If not for a date, for you.”

“I’ll think about it. Now let me change.”

Emily stepped back and let Anna close the curtain. Before Anna took off the dress, she did one last three-sixty. It really was cute, in a boho-sexy sort of way.

“Do you really think Jake has some good prospects in mind for you?”

“Who knows? We just talked about this a couple of days ago.”

She slipped off the dress and put it with a cute red dress with a bow that tied in front. As she pulled on her jeans and plain white T-shirt, Emily said, “You don’t sound very enthusiastic. Are you sure you want to do this?”

“The ball is already rolling. It’s just until the wedding. I’ll be surprised if it’s even five dates. We’ll see what happens.”

When Anna opened the curtain, she noticed a certain look on her sister’s face.

“What?” Anna asked and gathered the clothes, keeping the red and blue dresses separate from the things she didn’t want.

“I have to be honest,” Emily said. “I always thought you and Jake would end up together.”

Her stomach clenched in a way that bothered her more than her sister’s words.

“Emily, why would you say that? Jake and I are friends. Good friends. Nothing more.”

“Because for better or worse, you two have always stuck together. I mean, I grew up with him, too, but you don’t see him hanging out with me. The two of you have always had a really strong bond. Think about it. You and Jake outlasted your marriage. Why the heck are you fixing him up with someone else?”

“Emily, don’t. That’s not fair.”

Anna walked away from her sister.

“Yes, it is. Why is it not fair?”

Anna set the two dresses she wanted to buy on the counter and handed the hanging clothing she didn’t want to the sales clerk. After she paid for her purchases and they were outside the Three Sisters shop, Emily resumed the conversation.

“What’s not fair about it?”

“You know I can’t date Jake. He’s my friend. He’s always been my friend and that’s all we will ever be.”

Anna felt heat begin to rise up her neck and bloom on her cheeks.

“Then why are you blushing?” Emily asked.

Anna turned and walked to the next storefront, the hardware store, and studied the display as if she’d find the perfect pair of sandals to go with her first-date dress hidden somewhere among the tool kits, ladders and leaf blowers showcased in the window.

Of course, Emily was right behind her. Anna could see her sister’s reflection in the glass. She couldn’t look at her own as she tried to figure out exactly what was making her so emotional. It wasn’t the fact that she was fixing Jake up with someone who could potentially change his mind about marriage being the equivalent of emotional Siberia. Good grief, she was the one who came up with a plan in the first place.

Now Emily’s arm was on Anna’s shoulder.

“Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I’m just a little puzzled by your reaction. I was half teasing, but you’re upset. You want to talk about it?”

Anna ran her hand through her hair, feeling a bit perplexed herself.

“I guess it’s just the thought of the dating again. You know, starting over. I’m thirty-three years old. This is not where I thought I would be at this age. Em, I want a family. I want a husband who loves me and kids. I never thought I’d be one of those women who felt her biological clock ticking, but mine feels like a time bomb waiting to explode.”

The two sisters stood shoulder to shoulder, staring into the hardware store window.

“Well, I guess that eliminates Jake, since we know his thoughts on marriage. Even if he is the hottest guy in town, you don’t need to waste your time there.”

Anna drew in a deep breath, hoping it would be the antidote to the prickles of irritation that were beginning to feel as if they would turn into full-blown hives.

“Even if he was the marrying kind, he’s my best friend, Emily. There are some things you just don’t mess with and that’s one of them. Hal used to go on and on about how Jake and I secretly wanted each other. Once he even swore there was something going on between Jake and me. But Hal was my husband. I loved him. I loved our marriage and I never cheated. He couldn’t get it through his head that a man and a woman could be friends—that there was nothing sexual about it.”

“That’s probably because in his eyes he couldn’t look at a woman without thinking about sex,” Emily said. “You know what they say, people usually yell the loudest about the things they’re guilty of themselves.”

“So, could you just help me out please and not talk about Jake and me in those terms? He’s my friend. End of story. Okay?”

* * *

Jake had heard a lot of excuses for getting out of a date, and tonight’s ranked up there with the best. Cheryl Woodly had called him thirty minutes before he was supposed to pick her up at her place in Dallas for dinner. Her reason for begging off? Her cat, Foxy, had undergone emergency surgery that day and she wasn’t comfortable leaving it alone.

He could understand that. He knew people were as crazy about their animals as they were about their children. In some cases, people’s animals were their children.

As he turned his 1969 Mustang GTO around and headed back toward Celebration, he realized he wasn’t a bit disappointed that Cheryl Woodly had canceled. In fact, from this vantage point, getting out of the blind date seemed like a blessing in disguise. Cheryl had halfheartedly mentioned that maybe they could have a rain check, and he’d made all the right noises and said he’d call her next week to see if they could get something on the books. He wasn’t sure if she was preoccupied with her animal or if she was only being polite in suggesting they reschedule. Either way, she didn’t seem very enthusiastic. So he wished Foxy the cat well and breathed a sigh of relief.

Still, there was the matter of what to do with the two tickets he’d bought to the Celebration Summer Jazz Festival. He didn’t want them to go to waste. Five minutes later, he found himself parking his car in the street in front of Anna’s house.

She lived in a Key West–style bungalow two blocks away from downtown Celebration’s Main Street. Jake had helped Anna pick out the house after she’d moved to Celebration and her divorce was final.

The place had been a fixer-upper in need of some TLC. Anna had said it was exactly what she wanted—a project to sink her heart and soul into while she was getting used to her new life. She’d done a great job. Now the house was neat and a little quirky with its fresh island-blue and sea-green paint job. Its style reflected Anna’s unique cheerful personality and it always made Jake smile. The lawn was neatly manicured. She must’ve recently planted some impatiens in the terracotta pots that flanked the porch steps. The flowers’ vibrant pinks, fuchsias and reds added another well-planned accent to the already colorful house.

That was the thing about Anna; she put her heart and soul into her home and the place radiated the care she’d invested.

Her Beetle was in the driveway. He could see the inviting faint glow of a light through the living room window.

Good. She was home.

He was going to razz her about her matchmaking skills being a little rusty, since the first date she’d arranged had essentially stood him up. Technically, Cheryl hadn’t left him hanging. But Jake was realizing he could get some mileage out of the canceled date and he intended to use it as leverage to get Anna to go to the jazz festival with him tonight.

He’d have a lot more fun with her anyway.

Jake let himself out of the car and walked up the brick path that led to Anna’s house. He rapped on the door. Knock, knock-knock, knock, knock, their traditional signal that announced they were about to let themselves inside. Really, the knock was just a formality, to keep the other from being surprised. In case she was having sex in the kitchen or something.

Actually, he hadn’t been concerned about walking in on Anna having sex because she’d been living like a nun since her divorce. And funny, now that he thought about it, Anna never seemed to come around as much when he was in a relationship.

Hmm. He’d never realized it until right now.

He tried the handle and her door was unlocked. So he let himself in the side door.

“Hey, Anna? It’s me.”

He heard a muffled exclamation from the other side of the living room. Then Anna stuck her head out of the bedroom door.

“Jake? What are you doing here? Why aren’t you out with Cheryl?”

She was hugging the doorjamb and clutching something to her chest as if she were hiding. It looked like she was wearing a dress.

When was the last time he’d seen Anna in a dress?

“She stood me up. What are you all dressed up for? Don’t tell me you have a date.”

Anna straightened, moving away from the doorjamb, cocking her head to the side.

“She stood you up? Are you kidding me?”

Whoa. She was definitely wearing a dress and she looked nice. He’d never realized she had so much going under those scrubs...so much going on upstairs. How had he never noticed that before?

The fact made him a little hot and bothered.

He had to force his gaze to stay on her face. Or on her bare feet. Her toenails were painted a sexy shade of metallic blue that matched the dress. Her legs—how had he never noticed her legs before? They were long and lean and tan and looked pretty damn good coming out of the other end of that skirt, which might’ve been just a hair short...for Anna.

Damn. She sure did look good. No. She looked hot.

If she looked like that, why did she cover herself up?

Because this was Anna.

He cleared his throat. “Well, she didn’t technically stand me up. She called me when I was on my way to get her to say her cat had surgery today and she didn’t feel right about leaving it alone.”

Anna put her hands on her hips and grimaced. The movement accentuated the low neckline of her dress and the way her full breasts contrasted with her tiny waist that blossomed into hips... Jake forced himself to look away.

“So you didn’t shave before you went out? Are you trying to look cool or are you just too lazy?” she asked.

“What?” He rubbed his hand over the stubble on his jaw. “I’m trying to look cool. The ladies like a little five-o’clock shadow.”

She quirked a brow and smiled. “Okay, I’ll give you that one. It does look pretty...hot.”

Something flared inside of him.

“Well, I mean it would be hot if it wasn’t you.”

“What do you mean if it wasn’t me?”

She shot him a mischievous smile that warmed up her whole face.

“You’re messing with me, aren’t you?” he said.

“Yeah. I am. It’s fun. Oh, I forgot to tell you that Cheryl is a major animal lover. I’m not surprised she wanted to stay home with the cat, but it would’ve been nice if she could have given you a little more notice.”

“Ya think? Where are you going, dressed like that?”

Anna blushed and crossed her arms in front of her, suddenly seeming self-conscious again. It was one of the things he found most endearing about her.

“I’m not going anywhere. I bought some new clothes and I was trying them on so I could figure out what I wanted to wear on my date with Joseph. He texted me today and asked what I was doing next Wednesday. So I figured I needed to decide what I was going to wear. What do you think of this dress? I wasn’t so sure, but Emily talked me into getting it.”

She put her hands back on her hips and struck a pose. The tags were dangling under her arm and he had an urge to suggest she take it back and exchange it for something a little more modest. Something that didn’t make her look like such a knockout.

“It’s, uhh... It looks great.”

Maybe a little too great for a first date with a guy like Joseph Gardner. He and Joe had been roommates in college while Jake was doing his undergraduate work. Joe lived in Dallas now. He was a friend, a good guy, really. That’s why he’d decided to fix him up with Anna.

And that was why his own attitude about the dress confused him.

“In fact, since you’re dressed, why don’t you give it a test run and wear it to the jazz festival with me tonight?”

Anna groaned and shook her head. “No, Jake, I really wasn’t up for doing anything tonight—”

“God, you’re so boring.” He smiled to let her know he was just kidding. “Besides, since you fixed me up with a dud, don’t you think you owe it to me to not let this extra ticket go to waste?”

She sighed and cocked her head to the side. She smiled at him. He could see her coming around.

“In fact, if we leave now, we will have just enough time to grab something to eat and get over to the pavilion for the first act.”

She shook her head. “Jake, I took my makeup off when I got home from work. Can you give me a couple of minutes to fix myself up?”

She looked so good he hadn’t even realized she didn’t have any makeup on. Her skin was clear and her cheeks and lips looked naturally rosy. Standing there with her auburn hair hanging in loose waves around her shoulders... And with just the right amount of cleavage showing, he couldn’t imagine that she could make herself any more beautiful.

Something intense flared inside him. It made him flinch. His instinct was to mentally shake it off. When that didn’t work he decided to ignore it, pushing it back into the recesses of his brain where he kept all unwelcome thoughts and memories and other distractions that might trip him up or cause him to feel things that were unpleasant.

It was mind over matter.

Right now, what mattered was him getting his head on straight so that they could get to dinner and the jazz festival.

“You look fine,” he said. “Besides, it’s just me.”

“Yeah, you and the hundreds of other people that will be at the jazz festival. You don’t want them looking at you and wondering, Who’s that homely woman with Jake Lennox?”

Homely? How could she see herself that way? It didn’t make sense.

“Darlin’, you are a lot of things, but homely isn’t one of them.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “Okay. Okay. You don’t have to lay it on so thick. Let me get my sandals and we can go.”

When she turned around to walk back into the bedroom, his eyes dropped to her backside which swayed gently beneath the fabric of her dress.

What was wrong with him?

Nothing.

Just because Anna was his friend and it had never really registered in his brain that she was an attractive woman, didn’t mean she wasn’t or that he couldn’t appreciate her...from afar.

From very far away. If he knew what was good for him.

But why now?

Why, in the wake of this bet, did it feel as if he was seeing her for the very first time?

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