Special Forces Rendezvous Read Online Free Page A

descended, during which Julia tried to come up
with a way to ask him if he was sticking around for a while, without sounding
like she cared if he was sticking around for a
while. After a moment, she gave up. Screw it. She hated playing games, or saying
anything less than what was on her mind.
    So she opened her mouth and said, “Are you sticking around in
San Marquez for a while?”
    A regretful look entered his eyes. “I’m afraid not. I’m on a
nine-o’clock flight back to Ecuador.”
    Disappointment skidded through her, but she hoped it didn’t
show on her face. She trailed after him toward the older-model Jeep parked a few
dozen yards away. She couldn’t help but admire his taut ass, which looked
ridiculously good in those cargo pants of his.
    Oh, boy. She was totally lusting after this man.
    And he was leaving. Just her luck.
    Sebastian opened the driver’s door, but didn’t make a move to
hop into the Jeep. Instead, he offered an awkward-looking shrug. She got the
feeling this man didn’t feel awkward or nervous often, and she fought a smile as
she watched him shift his feet.
    “Thanks for taking the time to talk to me, Doc.”
    “It was no problem at all.”
    He cleared his throat. “And if, er, if I find myself in these
parts again, maybe I can come see you...”
    He trailed off, making it unclear whether that was a question
or a statement.
    She treated it like the former. “Sure, I’d like that.”
    Their gazes collided, and there it was again, the crackle of
heat, the sizzle of awareness. Her nipples promptly puckered and strained
against her white cotton bra, and that spot between her legs throbbed with
anticipation. Jeez. You’d think she hadn’t had sex in two years or
something.
    Oh, right. She hadn’t had sex in
two years.
    Pushing aside the sarcastic thoughts, she focused on Sebastian,
who looked ready to say more. Julia held her breath, waiting for him to speak,
but then an indefinable expression washed over his face. She glimpsed
reluctance, regret, even a cloud of torment, and before she could try to make
sense of it, he slid into the driver’s seat and shoved a key in the
ignition.
    “Keep up the good work, Doc.” He raised his voice so she could
hear him over the rumble of the engine.
    She swallowed another dose of disappointment. “Have a safe
flight,” she told him, and then she stepped away from the vehicle and raised her
hand in a wave.
    The Jeep raised a cloud of brown dust as Sebastian executed a
U-turn and sped toward the gravel road that would lead him back to
civilization.
    “Who was that? ”
    Julia turned around in time to see Lissa Purdue descending the
porch steps and striding in her direction. Out of all the staff at the clinic,
she was closest with Lissa, the fun-loving Australian nurse she’d been bunking
with for the past six months.
    “That was that journalist I told you about,” Julia answered,
her eyes still focused on the Jeep, which was slowly disappearing from view.
    “For real? Because that was one crazy-hot bloke.”
    She sighed. “Yes, he was.”
    Lissa’s jaw fell open. “No way. The perpetually professional
Dr. Davenport is showing not-so-professional interest in a bloke? Are you ill,
love?”
    She rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t very well argue. It was
true, the opposite sex hadn’t interested her much since she’d arrived on the
island. While some of the other women—Lissa included—had no qualms about
flirting with the single males in their vicinity, Julia made an effort to keep
things professional.
    There were several attractive men working at the clinic,
including Kevin Carlisle and Simone’s single father, Marcus, but Julia wasn’t
one to mess around with a coworker. During her last placement in Ethiopia, she’d
watched two colleagues fall in love—and then she’d witnessed the relationship
crash and burn, making life downright unbearable for everyone who’d had the
misfortune of being around.
    Unfortunately, with her coworkers