Dating Impossible

Evernight Publishing

www.evernightpublishing.com

Copyright© 2013 Kathleen Grieve

 
ISBN:
978-1-77130-305-7

Cover
Artist: Sour Cherry Designs

Editor: Cheryl
Harper

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

WARNING:
The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is
illegal.
 
No part of this book may be
used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission,
except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

This is a
work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any
resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or
dead, is entirely coincidental.

DEDICATION

For
Dennis…My love, my life, and my eternal happiness.

DATING
IMPOSSIBLE

The Dating Series, 2

Kathleen
Grieve

Copyright
© 2013

Chapter One

“God damn it!” a female exclaimed, stopping Dr. Cruz Avery
mid-step. He stood by the partially open door in the back hall of Our Lady Of
Sorrow Catholic Church.

Intrigued by a woman who would use the Lord’s name in vain
given her current surroundings, he leaned closer to the crack in the door. And
here Cruz thought his brother’s wedding would be an occasion he’d have to
suffer through. By all indications, things might be on this side of
interesting.

He heard a muffled thump then the crash of breaking glass
followed by more cursing, words any sailor would be proud of. He shook his head.
Unable to resist, he placed his palm against the cool wood and gave a gentle
push. His gaze landed on the sexiest bare back he’d ever seen. The sleek lines
of her naked spine faced him as she hopped from foot to foot, struggling with
the zipper of an emerald-colored wisp of a dress.

Sunlight streamed through the window, highlighting a tumble
of strawberry blonde curls that disappeared over one shoulder, reminding him of
an angel.

Another round of expletives came from the woman. The cursing,
along with the sexy tattoo
of an elaborate lotus flower in a splash of
solid colors displayed upon her lower back, reminded him that she was no angel
.

“Can I help?” he asked, entering the room and closing the
door behind him to allow her privacy.

“I’ll kill her for making me wear this,” she said, speaking to
herself. She probably hadn’t heard his question. The seductive movements of her
hips as she struggled to close the gap exerted a strange power over him. His
next inquiry lodged in his throat and he held still.

A huff of exasperation escaped the tantalizing beauty. Her
hands left the gaping zipper and moved to her lustrous hair. With a vicious
twist, she yanked the silken mass into a loose knot at the nape of her neck. Tiny
tendrils escaped, falling against her smooth neck. An urge to trail his fingers
down the vertebrae of her spinal column nearly overtook him. He clenched his
fists.

Mouth dry, he sucked in a breath. He attempted to look upon
her as if she were one of his patients in the ER, clinically, without emotional
or physical interference. He’d seen more than one half-naked woman before, but
that didn’t stop him from enjoying the view.

He cleared his throat obnoxiously, not bothering to cover
his mouth.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, whirling around to confront him. Recognition
registered in her deep green eyes. “Oh,” she repeated. “It’s you, Jett!”

With her gown gathered with one hand carelessly across her
front, Cruz noted that the fabric gaped open. A generous portion of cleavage
was exposed. He lifted his gaze to her face as his sizzling brain registered her
identity along with the fact she’d mistaken him for his twin brother. Disappointment
slammed into his gut.

The spitfire tomboy who hounded him and Jett, interfering
with their boyhood exploits for most of his youth, had turned into quite a
beauty. “My, my. I bet your father’s ears are burning right now, little
Josephina Jo.” Cruz tsked. “Such foul language, and from such a beautiful
mouth.”

She rolled her eyes with dramatic flair. “Whatever. Roxanne
would have your balls in a sling if she heard you flirting with me in that tone
of voice. Men. Always flirting, even when they’re taken.” She turned,
presenting her back to him. “I got off work late. By the time I arrived,
everyone had already left to take their places in the main hall. Make yourself
useful and zip me up.” She wiggled her hips impatiently. “And don’t call me
that ridiculous name. Love them dearly, but it’s not my fault my parents
couldn’t decide which grandmother to name me after.”

Closing the gap between them, Cruz grasped the zipper at the
base of her spine with the fingertips of his right hand and placed his other
palm on her hip for leverage as she shifted from foot to foot. “Quit
squirming,” he said. Ever so slowly, the creamy skin was covered in a sea of
emerald fabric. Heat seeped into him where he touched her. “What should I call
you? JJ?” He smirked at the back of the stunning redhead standing in sultry
impatience before him. With reluctance, he let his hands fall away. “Never
suited you.”

JJ snorted and tossed her head as she whirled to face him. “As
if you know what suits…” Fussing with the sleeveless, tight bodice of her
dress, she kicked at the floor-length skirt. “Bridesmaids’ dresses suck!”

Not from
where I’m standing
.

Cruz cleared his throat and glanced around the room, trying
to focus on anything but the sexy siren in front of him. Bits of broken glass were
scattered on the carpet beside JJ. “Careful, there. You’ll cut yourself,” he admonished.
“What did you break?”

“Not with these on, I won’t.” Disregarding his question, she
lifted the dress to mid-thigh and kicked out a boot-clad foot. “They’re Louis
Vuitton boots. Glazed calf leather in black with three-inch heels.” A sigh of
reverence escaped her pink pouty lips. She shook her leg, exposing more of her
smooth skin where the boots ended. “I love that they go past my knees because I
can wear them while riding my bike. Aren’t they great?”

Gut tightening, Cruz tore his gaze from her creamy thigh and
focused once more on her face, swallowing hard. Again, he noticed how
absolutely beautiful she looked. Her eyes sparkled with excitement and
heightened color burnished high cheek bones. For the first time, he became
aware of a silver chain woven delicately through the fine tresses of the top of
her head. Vaguely, he wondered how it had survived her earlier assault upon her
hair. A pink tongue slid across her lips, and all thoughts fled his clouded
mind. Gaze glued to her mouth, he leaned in, breath caught in his chest as he
attempted to resist that old familiar magnetism between man and woman. Somewhere
in his desire-muddled brain alarms blared a warning, but he couldn’t quite
remember why he shouldn’t taste those lips.

JJ dropped her dress in one swift motion and stepped back. Her
sharp glance assessed him. Surprise registered within the dark green depths. “Christ,
Cruz. The cheap tabloid buzz in the ER is right on the money. You were going to
kiss me, weren’t you?”

Her accusing tone pulled him up short.
Shit! What the hell was he doing?
This was little Josephina Jo. Her
father was his dad’s best friend, for Christ’s sake! And at the moment, she was
under the misconception that he was his twin brother. Guilt crept into the back
of his mind. He opened his mouth.

What the hell
? She’d
called him Cruz and had known he wasn’t Jett all along? Now
this
was the JJ he remembered. Always
messing with his mind. If he hadn’t been so damn occupied with what a hot mess
she was, his brain would function properly.

His gaze narrowed. “Gossip is ripe in the hospital. The
older and moldier, the better. Especially in the ER,” he said. “As a colleague,
you should know better than to listen to that bullshit. And you knew I was Cruz
all along?”

Her green eyes clouded briefly then cleared. “Of course.”
She held up her hand. “I couldn’t resist messin’ with ya. Jett has a small burn
mark on his neck just to the right of his Adam’s apple.”

She smiled and the world around him brightened, tilting on
its axis. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound escaped his lips.

“Forget it. Just straighten your ass up and remember I’m not
one of your ER bunnies for you to screw with.” She hooked an arm through his
and yanked him toward the doorway.

He halted, forcing her to stop midstride. “ER bunnies?” he asked.
The door behind them busted open and Ambra Jenkins came flying in dressed
identically to JJ.

“JJ! Cruz! There you are!” the svelte respiratory therapist
exclaimed, gasping for breath. “I’ve been searching for you guys everywhere. The
ceremony is about to begin and you’re missing the drama. Jett’s as pale as a
ghost and Roxanne’s nerves are so frayed she’s making me nervous.”

Cruz turned to his sexy damsel in distress. Accusation
burned in her icy stare. He could only imagine what the bedpan buzz was about
this time. His lips curved in a slow, lazy smile and he shrugged.

“Let’s move!” Ambra tossed her head impatiently. Silver
bracelets jangled along one slender arm as she whirled around and breezed out
into the hall, obviously expecting them to follow.