0373011318 (R)

An enticing reunion...

Renowned neurosurgeon Vivian Maguire knows everything there is to know about the human brain. But when she returns to Nashville—and the man she left behind seven years ago—it’s her heart that suddenly occupies her every thought.

Dr. Reece Castle has made a name for himself as a premier neurosurgeon to the stars, yet Vivian’s return brings him crashing back to reality. Because every glance and unwitting touch tempts him to risk his heart for another chance with the one that got away...

Before she knew what was happening he was setting down his guitar and closing the gap between them. His hands were cupping her face, his fingers brushing the nape of her neck and then his lips were on hers.

He was kissing her, making her melt into his arms in a heady rush of pleasure. And she knew without a doubt that this kiss was not enough. She wanted more.

She wanted his hands on her body, touching her in places that no one else had touched. She wanted him again. She wanted him pressed against her, making love to her, but she couldn’t have that.

She didn’t deserve that.

Vivian pushed him away, placing her hands on his chest. She could feel his heart was racing like hers.

“I think I should go home now,” she whispered, her voice hitching in her throat because her body was protesting.

“I think that’s a good idea,” Reece agreed huskily. He took a step back from her. “Just let me put out the fire and I’ll meet you at the truck.”

Vivian nodded and walked toward the front of the house, the spell broken. She glanced back to watch him throw sand on the fire, breaking up the logs so it wouldn’t keep smoldering, and she wished there was some way to stop the fire that was burning for him inside her.

But when it came to him she knew it wasn’t a fire that could be easily extinguished.

Dear Reader,

Thank you for picking up a copy of
Tempting Nashville’s Celebrity Doc
.

I grew up watching
Hee Haw
on Saturday nights at my grandparents’ house. The first musicians I was exposed to as a child were Cash, Carter, Jones and Hank Williams Jr. Country was a part of my childhood.

Even though I never really thought much about Nashville when I grew up, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to visit on my way to RT Booklovers Convention New Orleans in 2014.

The moment I crossed the Tennessee border I fell absolutely in love with the state and the city. I knew that I had to set a book there, and I wanted to incorporate the music I love so much into the story—which is how my neurosurgeon Dr. Reece Castle came to be.

He walked into my mind a couple of years ago when I was in Nashville, and like the true gentleman he was, he waited until I could tell his and Vivian’s story.

I hope you enjoy their story—and if you ever get the chance to spend a bit of time in Nashville, or even the great state of Tennessee, I hope you do it. You won’t regret it.

I love hearing from readers, so please drop by my website at
amyruttan.com
, or give me a shout on Twitter:
@ruttanamy
.

With warmest wishes,

Amy Ruttan

TEMPTING NASHVILLE’S CELEBRITY DOC

Amy Ruttan

Books by Amy Ruttan

Harlequin Medical Romance

The Hollywood Hills Clinic

Perfect Rivals...

Sealed by a Valentine’s Kiss

His Shock Valentine’s Proposal
Craving Her Ex-Army Doc

New York City Docs

One Night in New York

Melting the Ice Queen’s Heart
Pregnant with the Soldier’s Son
Dare She Date Again?
It Happened in Vegas
Taming Her Navy Doc

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

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This book is dedicated to all the country greats, new and old, who have touched my heart. Thank you for the music.

Also to my father, who introduced me to the music of Cash and Hank Williams Jr. I may not have appreciated it when I was younger, but I get it now. Thanks, Dad.

Praise for Amy Ruttan

“Amy Ruttan delivers an entertaining read that transports readers into a world of blissful romance set amidst the backdrop of the medical field. Sharp, witty and descriptive,
One Night in New York
is sure to keep readers turning the pages!”

—
Contemporary Romance Reviews

“I highly recommend this read for all fans of romance reads with amazing, absolutely breathtaking scenes, to-die-for dialogue and everything else that is needed to make this a beyond awesome and WOW read!”

—
Goodreads
on
Melting the Ice Queen’s Heart

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

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

EPILOGUE

CHAPTER ONE

“
Y
OU
CAN
DO
THIS
.”
It was a reassurance she kept repeating over and over to herself. And though she didn’t usually talk to herself in public, saying it out loud made her feel better.

Yeah, right.

Right now, standing here, all her bravado was fleeting as she stared up at the impressive entrance of the Cumberland Mills Memorial Hospital. The hospital where she’d done her first residency, before she’d left for her prestigious fellowship in Munich seven years ago.

Nothing had changed. She closed her eyes and took in the sweet, heady floral scent of the magnolia trees. It made her think of summers running barefoot on the lawn, of her father sitting in the swing on the wraparound porch strumming on his guitar while she played. A jangled memory of a man who’d left her and her mother a long time ago tied to the scent in the air.

She sighed and shook that thought out of her head. There was no room for those thoughts today. No room for memories.

Though that was difficult. Everywhere she went in Nashville she was reminded of the ghosts of her past. The choices she’d made and the hurt she’d left behind. Nashville haunted her, which was why she’d left. Why she’d planned to never come back.

Except here she was. Back at the beginning.

You’re here for Mama. You’re not starting over.

Still, coming back to the place she grew up felt like a second chance. As if karma was telling her she’d made all the wrong choices and was making her start all over again.

She had to remind herself that things were different.
She
was different. She was stronger. When she’d started here she was so unsure of herself that she had put on an air of confidence, built walls to keep people out. So much so she was considered an ice queen by some, while the seasoned surgeons thought she was too meek to be good at what she did.

Only one person had seen through all that.

Don’t think about him.

Vivian steeled her resolve and clutched the strap of her designer messenger bag. She was no longer that girl from the east side of Nashville, the girl from the wrong side of the tracks. She was now a world-class neurosurgeon and diagnostician.

* * *

She held her head up high and walked through the doors of Cumberland Mills, taking in the sights of one of the busiest and most affluent hospitals in Nashville.

Nothing had changed on the inside.

Like me.

“Dr. Maguire, it’s good to see you again.”

Vivian turned to see the Chief of Surgery, Dr. Isaac Brigham, walking toward her across the spacious atrium, the heart of the hospital. Other than a bit more gray in his ebony hair, Dr. Brigham still looked like how she remembered. When he’d been an Attending and she’d been a scared resident trying to melt into the background. How quickly she’d changed under his tutelage.

“Never forget you’re a shark. Always moving forward.”
That was what Dr. Brigham taught her and she’d taken it to her heart when she’d decided to look forward and go to Germany.

Only today she didn’t feel so much like a shark, standing here at the beginning again.

Vivian took his hand and shook it. “So good to see you again, Dr. Brigham.” Only that was a lie. Dr. Brigham might have taught her to be a shark, might have been a good surgeon, but he was two-faced and stubborn. You didn’t want to get on his bad side.

It was trying for her to play nice with a man she found so annoying. A man she didn’t trust.

“It’s Isaac.” He had that plummy Belle Meade accent, affluent. So different from the accent she’d worked hard to get rid of. The one people looked down their noses at. Judging her as if she was trash and someone who didn’t belong.

She smiled. “I think that will be hard for me. I mean, you did set me on my path to that fellowship in Munich. You were my teacher and I was terrified of you.”

Isaac chuckled and crossed his arms. “Scare you? I’ve heard stories from your time in Munich. Have to say, I knew that you had it in you. Though I had moments of doubt. You were so quiet and shy. You barely spoke above a whisper back then.”

“I don’t whisper anymore.” Vivian smiled to herself, pleased that her reputation was preceding her, because she knew she had to build up a reputation here. She was after Dr. Brigham’s job. It was no secret that he was planning on retiring and most of the senior surgeons here had an advantage over her. They were known, they had a history. Most came from old Nashville money and she wasn’t a fool. She knew that would be an advantage to them and she was an unknown entity. Something she planned to change.

“Well, I’ll take you around our Neuro department and introduce you to your VIP patient.”

Vivian fell into step beside him. “VIP patient?”

He nodded. “Well, you have to get your feet wet here. Besides, I hear you’re the best diagnostician.”

“So they tell me,” she said. “Tell me about the case.”

“You’ll be working on the case with one of my most respected neurosurgeons. It’s a strange case and what better way to initiate your time here as our top diagnostician.”

“Most respected neurosurgeon” meant one thing to Vivian. Competition.

“Who is the VIP patient?”

“Country star Gary Trainer. He’s a rising star, but has been having the most curious neurological symptoms since he was rushed in two days ago.”

“Has he had an MRI?”

Isaac grinned. “Of course—as I said, he’s a VIP patient and his record label is very anxious to get him back on his tour.”

Of course.

Musicians were always eager to get back on the road. She’d heard her dad say that enough times.

“Stay longer, Hank. Please. Just a bit longer.”

“I can’t, Sandra. I need to be on the road. I have to make it. I will make it, just like Ray Castille. I will be as big as he is.”

Vivian laughed uneasily, trying to shake her father’s voice from her head. “Musicians.”