Annie dug in the envelope and pulled out a piece of paper. “You mean you don’t want to give ET an interview?”
“No.”
“How ’bout People.”
“No, Annie.”
“I guess this proposition from Charlie Sheen is a no.”
“What! Give me that.” Janet snatched the message from the receptionist’s hand and stared at it. “Oh, for the love of Pete.”
She crumpled the paper and tossed it in the trash can. “Only give me information dealing with patient care. Got it?”
“Yes, ma’am. I mean, doctor.”
Shaking her head, Janet hurried down the hall for the safety of her office. She had no notion of what she was getting herself into when she’d pretended to be Gage’s fiancée. All she had wanted was to make her father proud of her, and what she had gotten was a three-ring circus without a ringmaster.
Engagement parties and engraved invitations. Fertility teas and batty wannabe grandmas. Paparazzi stalking her. If she wasn’t so worried, she would have to laugh.
The Ice Princess in demand as a pinup queen. Ludicrous.
And yet, a small fissure of pleasure careened through her. For the first time in her life she was in demand as something other than a doctor. Oddly enough, she felt feminine and wanted.
And it was all because of Gage.
On Thursday morning she arrived in the office to find Gage standing at the window and staring out at the parking lot.
She caught her breath at the sight of him and placed a hand to her stomach to still the butterflies dancing there. The morning light pouring through the half-open blinds silhouetted his broad shoulders.
He was so unbelievably handsome. No wonder he attracted the attention of the paparazzi. What wasn’t to like? He’d even captured the heart and imagination of her father, and that was no easy feat.
She closed the door behind her and Gage turned to meet her gaze.
“Hi,” he murmured. “How you holding up amidst the craziness?”
“Me?” It touched her that he was concerned about her welfare. “What about you? I’m so sorry for all this.”
He shrugged casually, but his eyes looked weary. She had the strangest urge to wrap her arms around him. “There you go again, accepting responsibility for something that isn’t your fault.”
“Part of this is my fault.”
“It’s got nothing to do with you. I can’t escape my celebrity. No matter how hard I try.” He inhaled deeply. “I just want to be a good doctor, but this brouhaha gets in the way.”
“You’re an excellent doctor.”
“I got asked to do an interview on Howard Stern.” Gage changed the subject. “Can you believe that?”
“I can go you one better.” She flashed him a smile. “Charlie Sheen asked me out.”
“You’re pulling my leg,” he said. “You wouldn’t really go out with him. Would you?”
“Would that bother you?”
“I’m your fiancé,” he growled, but his eyes teased. “What do you think?”
Before she could respond to his question, Gage’s intercom buzzed. He leaned over the desk and flipped the switch. “Yes?”
“Gage, good morning.” Dr. Peter Jackson’s voice filtered over the speaker. “Is Dr. Hunter in there with you?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Splendid. May I see you both in my office?”
“We’ll be right there.” Gage switched the intercom off.
“We’re in trouble,” she said.
“Hey, slow down. Don’t jump to conclusions. Maybe he just wants to congratulate us on our impending nuptials.”
“Yeah, and maybe there really is a Santa Claus, Virginia. I think he’s ticked off about the persistent mob in the parking lot.”
Gage took her hand. “No point speculating. Let’s go find out.”
They found Peter lounging in his leather chair. He gave them a tight smile when they walked through the door. He motioned them to two chairs positioned in front of his desk.
“Have a seat.”
They sat.
“I think it’s wonderful that you two have found love with each other,” Peter said. “But I hope your relationship isn’t going to cause a problem for the clinic, or that you’ll have any problems working as a team.”
“No, sir,” Janet said. “Our relationship won’t affect our work.”
Gage knew fibbing to Peter was killing her. Letting her father believe they were engaged was one thing, but perpetuating the masquerade with their boss was taking its toll. He understood her conflict. On the one hand Janet was a scrupulously honest woman with the highest moral standards, but she was still a little girl, willing to do anything possible to gain her father’s love and attention, even if it mean violating her own values.
“That’s good to hear.” Dr. Jackson steepled his fingers and leaned forward. “However, I’m afraid the media chaos is already creating a disturbance. Our patients are finding it difficult getting past those reporters.”
“The media circus is entirely my fault,” Gage apologized. “If it wasn’t for my past celebrity, they wouldn’t be the least bit interested in my marriage plans.”
Marriage plans.
It felt weird to think of himself as a groom again. Except he wasn’t getting married. He was simply helping a friend in need.
Like Pauline?
No, not like Pauline, this was different.
How was it different?
This was Janet.
And?
You ’re not really marrying her.
“I think you two should take a few days off until this blows over,” Dr. Jackson said.
“What?” Janet’s voice rose and her brow furrowed.
“For the good of our patients.”
“But what about our practice?” Gage asked.
Dr. Jackson waved a hand. “Not to worry. Phil and I will take calls for you this weekend. He pulled a key from his drawer and tossed it across the desk to Gage. “I have a houseboat on Lake Travis. It’s at your disposal. Take the rest of the week off starting now. Consider it an early wedding present.”
“Sir, this is far too generous; we can’t accept.” Gage pushed the key back to his boss, not because he didn’t relish the thought of spending a long weekend alone on the lake with Janet, but because he did.
“My reasons are purely selfish.” Peter nudged the key back in his direction. “Getting you two out of town is in the best interest of the clinic. I won’t take no for an answer. The houseboat is being stocked with
