The Jinx: A Romantic Medical Comedy (Heartthrob Hospital Book 2) Page 9

  The bad thing was, tomorrow was her twenty-eighth birthday and she’d be spending it alone without either Jack or Zack.

  “Here,” she said, tucking her clipboard under her arm and giving Zack a last-minute once-over. “Your tie is a little crooked.” She reached out to adjust it.

  He grinned down at her.

  “Oh, my gawd!” a female voice shrieked. “That’s Zack Travis! Isn’t he just the bomb?”

  Another girl squealed in response. The next thing CeeCee knew they were knee-deep in teenage girls giggling and blushing and asking Zack to sign their T-shirts.

  Tsk, tsk, what a spectacle.

  I won’t get jealous. I won’t! It’s just showbiz and the attention is good for the auction.

  Besides, she had no call for jealousy. She had no claim on Zack, nor he on her. And that’s exactly the way she wanted it.

  Wasn’t it?

  “Sorry, ladies,” she said, firmly taking Zack by the arm and detaching him from one leggy blonde with a skirt so small she could have used it as an eye patch. “I’ve got to get him backstage.”

  He shrugged helplessly at the teenagers, and one even had the audacity to hiss at CeeCee.

  Brat!

  She hustled him through the back door to the auditorium. “I’ve got a few things to take care of. You be good while I’m gone.”

  “Sweetheart,” he murmured, leaning in close.

  So close the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end.

  “I’m always good. Just you wait and see.”

  “You’re impossible,” she said, torn between being irritated with him and being very turned on by his hand lingering at her waist.

  “Oh, no. That’s where you’re wrong. I’m very, very possible. Especially when it comes to you, my flame-haired vamp.”

  “Quit it!” She moved away, unable to stop a warm flush from spreading up her neck. “I’ll be back in a few to check on you.”

  “Bye.” He gave her a goofy grin and wriggled both his fingers and his eyebrows.

  Why did she have the feeling she was going to come back to find half a dozen women feeding him grapes and fanning him with tree fronds?

  Because that’s the kind of guy he is, CeeCee. Face facts. Mr. Footloose and Fancy-Free may not come with strings attached, but for that very reason you can’t expect him to have eyes for only you.

  But dammit, that’s exactly what she did expect!

  She was confused about her feelings for Zack. Very confused.

  Could things possibly get any more snarled between him and CeeCee?

  Jack leaned against the wall considering that question. While his plan to impersonate his brother might have looked good at the onset, the deeper he slipped into the deception, the harder he found it to look himself in the mirror.

  Hang on. Not much longer. You’re almost there.

  “Mr. Travis?”

  A soft, feminine voice brought his head up. Three young women sidled up to him, each clutching glossy eight-by-ten photographs of Zack.

  “May we have your autograph?” The boldest one tentatively extended a picture and pen toward him.

  All three looked so excited with awestruck gazes on their faces, and he didn’t have the heart to send them away.

  “Sure, sure.” He smiled. “What’s your name?”

  “Suzie.”

  He scribbled, “To Suzie of the amazing blue eyes” across the bottom of the photo, then added Zack’s signature.

  “Thank you so much,” she breathed, blushed prettily, and stepped back to let her friends come forward.

  The next thing he knew, he was surrounded by women—tall ones, short ones, old ones, young ones. Blondes and brunettes and redheads. All of them seeking to talk to him, touch him, flirt with him. They batted their eyes and asked him about himself. They offered to cook him dinner or take him for a ride in their cars. They oohed and aahed, cooed and simpered.

  Jack had never received this kind of female adoration, and it disconcerted him. He felt claustrophobic and ached to bolt from the room. But how could he? These women would be bidding on him, supporting the auction. If he were rude, it would take money from CeeCee’s worthy charity.

  He forced himself to smile and joke, to say something nice to every one of them, but it wasn’t easy. He drew on everything he knew about his charming brother and used it to maximum effect—the endearing grin, the lazy drawl, the flirtatious wink.

  Zack might enjoy being the center of women’s attention, but Jack found out rather quickly that he did not. There was only one woman he wanted fawning after him, only one woman he wanted to kiss for the rest of his natural days. Only one woman who made his heart beat faster and his breathing quicken.

  The woman standing in the doorway, arms crossed over her chest, looking mad enough to chew nails.

  “What’s going on in here?” CeeCee snapped, drilling Jack with a bone-chilling glare. “No one’s allowed backstage except employees and the bachelors. Shoo, ladies. Go on. You can bid on Mr. Travis to your heart’s content when the auction begins.”

  Jack watched the disappointed women file out the door, but then he turned his smile on CeeCee. No point wasting the charm he’d gone to so much trouble milking up.

  “Hey, babe.” He winked.

  “I thought I told you to be good,” she chided.

  “All I did was sign a few autographs. No harm done.”

  “Women follow you like a trail of ants to cookie crumbs.” CeeCee shook her head, but she was smiling. He took that as a positive sign.

  “I didn’t invite them back here,” he said. “They just sniffed me out.”

  “Must be your cologne. What is it? Eau d’ Harem?”

  “Nah, Scent of a Rebel.”

  “Gets ’em every time.”

  “You know that’s right.”

  “Zack,” she said at the very moment he said, “CeeCee.”

  They both chuckled.

  “You go first,” he said.

  “No, you.”

  “I don’t want you to think it means anything when I flirt with other women,” he said. “Because it doesn’t.”

  She shrugged. “Makes no never mind to me.”

  “You’re not the least bit jealous?”

  “Not a bit.”

  “Not even a teeny-weeny little bit?” He marked off an inch with his thumb and index finger.”

  “Not even a speck.”

  She laughed again and shook her head. He couldn’t help tracing his gaze along her body. She looked fabulous in that sparkly blue dress with the cinched waist. Her three-inch heels made her almost as tall as he.

  Dammit, he wanted her to be jealous. He wanted her to fight for him. Then before he realized what he was doing, Jack kissed her.

  His arm snaked around that gorgeous twenty-four-inch waist.

  Deny this!

  He hauled her flush against his chest and caught her wrists with one hand. His mouth captured those red-hot lips.

  Just try and pretend you don’t want more, princess!

  Jack kissed her hard and deep, with an urgency that vibrated up from the core of him. Her body heat penetrated his psyche on a primitive level, excited him beyond belief.

  She sagged into him.

  Desire shot through his body like a heat-seeking missile. He reached up and traced a finger over her soft-as-silk cheek.

  In just a few minutes a horde of hungry women would be bidding on him, vying for the honor of taking him to Galveston Island. But Jack didn’t want any of them. He only wanted CeeCee.

  He looked into her eyes, saw her staring up at him, alarm on her endearing features. Immediately she drew back.

  “I got lipstick all over your face,” she said huskily. “And here I am without a tissue.”

  From his pocket, he produced a handkerchief.

  “You’re just like Jack.” She dabbed at his cheek, studiously avoiding his gaze. “Never without a clean hankie.”

  But I am Jack, he longed to tell her. I’m the
one giving you toe-curling kisses, not Zack.

  Go ahead, tell her.

  He opened his mouth to speak the truth but at that moment five tuxedoed bachelors strolled through the door and the opportunity was lost.

  Now she knew why they called him Wild Man. You could never tell what he might do.

  CeeCee fingered her lips. Truthfully, her knees were still a little shaky as the aftermath of Zack’s kiss lingered in her system, rending her almost useless.

  The auditorium was packed, the attendees anxiously awaiting the bachelor auction. She should be battling stage-fright butterflies. Instead, all she could think about was kissing Zack. What was going on here? She had kissed dozens of handsome men. She’d even had a fling or two. Jack was her only regret, but ever since Zack had come along, she’d gone all gooey-headed over him.

  Not a good sign.

  Her pulse whirled like a helicopter blade whenever she chanced to look at him. In his form-fitting tux, he overshadowed every other bachelor behind the velvet curtain. But it wasn’t the tuxedo that lent him his sexual attraction.

  No, siree.

  Even if he’d been in a pair of cutoff blue jeans and a ratty T-shirt, he would have outshone every other man there. She knew exactly what he looked like under those fancy duds. She had been giving him physical therapy in the whirlpool. Except for his brother, in CeeCee’s eyes, there was none finer than Zack Travis.

  And apparently more than a hundred women in the audience chanting, “Wild Man, Wild Man, Wild Man,” shared her opinion.

  The jealousy she’d earlier denied stormed into her throat, making it hard to breathe. She couldn’t believe that he would be leaving with some other woman this afternoon.

  An irritating tic jumped in her left eye. This was crazy. She had to snap out of envy mode. She had a benefit to host. CeeCee clasped and unclasped her hands. Then she threw back her shoulders, held her head high, and stalked onstage. She reached the podium, took the microphone in her hand, and then began to tell the crowd about the charity.

  The audience settled down, but only slightly. CeeCee introduced the auctioneer, then moved back into the wings to watch the proceedings.

  They had saved the best for the end. Zack was the last bachelor on the program. When he strolled onstage and the auctioneer called his name and began describing his attributes, she could practically see the wallets opening and money pouring out.

  From across the platform, Zack’s eyes searched and found hers. He gave her a wink. A wink that snagged her heart.

  Oh! CeeCee thought. I’m getting into something I can’t handle.

  “Let’s start the bidding at five hundred dollars,” the auctioneer said. “After all, we are talkin’ one mighty sexy motocross champ.”

  “Six hundred,” a familiar voice rang out.

  CeeCee shielded her eyes and peered into the crowd. Was that Janet’s voice?

  “Seven hundred!”

  “Eight hundred.”

  “Nine hundred.”

  It was Janet! Her best girlfriend was bidding on the guy she wanted to have a fling with? CeeCee glowered. How could she do this to her? Janet knew how much she liked Zack. She gritted her teeth and slowly began to shred her copy of the program into tiny little pieces.

  “One thousand dollars.”

  Shred.

  Zack gave the audience a Cary Grant smile and tossed his head like a fashion model, working them up.

  The rascal.

  Shred. Shred.

  “Eleven hundred.” Janet again.

  CeeCee could see her statuesque friend standing up in the front row waving her hand. The eye tic was back, jumping uncontrollably.

  “Twelve hundred.”

  “Thirteen.”

  “Two thousand!” Janet shouted.

  Shred. Shred. Shred. Too bad the paper wasn’t Janet’s throat.

  “Twenty-one hundred.”

  The bids flew so fast the auctioneer could barely keep up. She had known Zack was popular, she just hadn’t realized how many women would be willing to spend so much money simply to spend thirty-six hours with him at a cute bed-and-breakfast on Galveston Island.

  The lucky dogs.

  “Twenty-five hundred,” Janet shouted.

  Good grief! Did her friend have no shame? The highest any of the other bachelors had gone for was eighteen hundred dollars. What was the matter with Janet? Why did she want Zack so badly? Hurt feelings replaced her resentment. Yes, she’d known she what she was up against from other women when it came to Zack, she just hadn’t expected to compete with her friend.

  Zack seemed delighted by the whole thing. He kept strutting around the stage like a prize peacock, preening and striking macho poses that had the crowd in gales of laughter. CeeCee was ready to trot over and kick him in the behind. His ego desperately needed downsizing.

  And she was just the woman to do it. Unfortunately, she’d have to wait until he returned from his date on Monday.

  Argh!

  Patience wasn’t her strongest virtue.

  Shred. Shred. Hey, she was out of paper.

  CeeCee looked down at the snowstorm of paper flecks surrounding her. Pathetic! It was the sexual tension making her so crazed. That was all. If she’d slept with him and gotten him out of her system, she wouldn’t give two hoots in the wind who was bidding on him.

  “Sold for three thousand dollars to the leggy brunette in the front row!” the auctioneer shouted.

  Janet bounced with joy.

  CeeCee’s stomach plummeted to her feet. Janet had won Zack. Then to her horror, her eyes went misty.

  What was the matter with her? She didn’t get weepy over men. Not ever. Well, except the tears she’d shed over losing Jack’s friendship. But she shouldn’t care about a short-term romance that had never even progressed beyond kissing.

  She wanted to flee, get away before she had to face either Zack or Janet. But her assistant, Deirdre, appeared at her elbow, an excited look on her face. “We’ve raised ten thousand dollars,” she whispered.

  Yes. Well, that was great. She had to go to the podium and announce the details to the audience. It was the last thing she wanted to do, the last place she wanted to be, but CeeCee sucked up her disappointment and strode out to deliver the closing speech. The bachelors and their dates were lined up across the stage, eagerly waiting her news.

  By some miracle she managed to come off sounding polished and professional. Finally, she was able to escape, only to be stopped in the hall by Janet’s voice.

  “CeeCee! Wait.”

  She tried to hurry outside. Tried hard to pretend she hadn’t heard. She picked up the pace and threw the heavy exit door open. She burst out into the bright sunlight. She stood there blinking, and then the damned door slammed on the tail of her dress.

  Before she could jerk herself free, Janet tugged open the door and gaped at her. “Where are you rushing off to? Didn’t you hear me calling you?”

  “Uh, was that you?”

  Great. Now Janet was going to rub her face in her victory. She turned to find Zack and Janet arm in arm and grinning like a pair of opossums.

  “What is it?” CeeCee asked, feeling exceedingly tired.

  They looked good together. Both tall and dark. If she were a bigger person, she’d give them her blessings. Instead, she wanted to wring both their necks.

  “Happy birthday to you,” Janet began to sing and thrust Zack forward.

  “It’s not my birthday.” CeeCee felt quarrelsome.

  “It is tomorrow,” Zack said.

  “Happy birthday to you,” Janet kept singing.

  Zack reached out and took CeeCee’s hand. “Pack your bags, lady, we’re off to Galveston.”

  “I don’t get it.”

  “Your birthday present.” Janet waved at Zack with a flourish of her hand. “Ta-da.”

  CeeCee frowned. “Will you two please just tell me what’s going on?”

  “Since the foundation’s rules prohibited the coordinator from bidding on th
e auction items, Janet and I cooked up this little scheme.”

  CeeCee stared at Zack. “You mean you rigged the auction?” She turned to Janet. “You weren’t really bidding on him?”

  “I was bidding on him for you, silly. Did you actually think I’d try to steal your guy?” Janet shook her head.

  “Who’s shelling out the three grand?” CeeCee asked.

  “I am.” Zack grinned. “It’s for a good cause, and hey, I needed the tax deduction.”

  “You mean you paid three thousand for a date with me?” She placed a hand to her chest, flattered, but suddenly apprehensive.

  “Yes,” he admitted, a certain glimmer in his eyes that looked far too much like the way Jack had looked at her the day he had given her the ultimatum.

  Oh my gosh, what did that mean?

  If Zack was forking out three thousand dollars for her birthday present, he must be more serious about her than she thought and that scared CeeCee more than a million beautiful supermodels screaming, “Wild Man, Wild Man, Wild Man.”

  10

  Jack and CeeCee strolled arm in arm down the Galveston seawall at sunset. He was dressed in black jeans and a print silk shirt. She wore a siren-red sheath dress that threatened to stop his pulse.

  People passing by, most of them in swimsuits or shorts, gave them the once-over. Who could blame them for staring? She was with the most gorgeous creature on the face of the earth and he knew it.

  Overhead, seagulls cawed and glided gently on the breeze. The air tasted salty and smelled of delicious aromas emanating from the restaurants lining the street. Couples and families pedaled surreys around them. The young and the young at heart whizzed by on in-line skates. Souvenir shops beckoned from the sidelines, offering seashells and brightly colored trinkets.

  But Jack couldn’t stop looking at CeeCee. She was chattering about anything and everything—the auction, the weather, how nice it had been of he and Janet to arrange this for her birthday.

  He hung on her every word, but he was so dazzled by her beauty, he forgot what she had just said. Occasionally she would turn toward him, tilt her head in that endearing way of hers, and smile at him like he held the key to the universe.

  It was a powerful feeling.