PRINCE CHARMING M.D. (13 page)

He pointed to a small sign near the registration desk. It told seminar attendees to go to the main ballroom. She swallowed hard. Had Walter made a mistake sending her here? Maybe she should have refused or thought up an excuse to put the experience off.

They walked into the ballroom. Huge crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling. About sixty people were milling around. Dana resisted the urge to run back to the car. She knew that everyone could tell she was out of her element.

Trevor leaned close. "I hate stuff like this," he whispered. "It makes me uncomfortable."

"Really?"

He nodded.

His confession made her feel better. "Me, too," she admitted.

"So promise you'll tell me if I get spinach in my teeth, and I'll do the same."

She chuckled. Something leaped between them. It wasn't exactly an electric current, but it was close. She thought about all they'd discussed in the car. His irritation when she'd assumed he'd gotten married because Vanessa was pregnant, and his assurance that the rumors about his dating habits were just stories and not the truth at all. Mostly she thought about his hint that he was interested in her. She clutched the information to her chest and prayed that it was true.

A petite and very pregnant Asian woman walked to the podium set up at the front of the room. "Good afternoon," she said, distracting Dana from her thoughts and the feel of Trevor's hand at the base of her spine. "Welcome to our week-long seminar."

"She's going to pop any second," Trevor said, eyeing her stomach. "My back hurts just looking at her."

"Imagine how hers feels."

"I don't want to."

"My name is Shelly Jones and I'll be leading the seminar this week." She touched her stomach and smiled. "Don't be fooled. I know I look huge, but I have at least three weeks to go."

"Is that all?" Dana murmured, wondering if the woman had a family history of early delivery.

Shelly's dark hair hung past her shoulders. She wore a navy dress and low heels. "We have an eclectic group with us this time. Everyone from middle managers at a large telecommunications firm to a surgeon."

Dana nudged him. "That would be you."

"Gee, thanks."

He whispered the words close to her ear and his warm breath fanned her face. She felt a flicker of response deep in her belly.

"We have many goals for the seminar," Shelly continued. "Lots of different exercises. We hope you enjoy your time with us. First, we're going to start with an ice-breaker exercise. Several staff members are going to walk around with baskets. Inside are pieces of paper. Take one and read it, but don't let anyone else see what's written."

A young man in a hotel uniform passed by them. Dana and Trevor each took a slip of paper. Dana opened hers and read "Somewhere
Over
the Rainbow." She frowned. What did it mean?

"The first order of business is to get to know one another." Shelly smiled. "In case you haven't guessed, these are song titles. I want you to start humming your song, then walk around humming until you meet up with others who have your song. We should end up with five groups of twelve. Ready?"

There was a moment of stunned silence in the room. Shelly laughed. "This is just the beginning. By the end of the week, this will seem tame. I promise."

"Like that's good news," Trevor muttered. "I can't sing and I don't hum much better."

Dana didn't know whether to grin or run screaming for the car. She decided to play along. She began humming her song. Trevor looked at her.

"That doesn't sound like 'Getting to Know You.'"

She shook her head.

"See you around, then," he said, and turned away.

He cleared his throat several times,
then
emitted a sound that wasn't anything like music. Dana started to laugh.

Three hours later she was still laughing. The exercise had been great fun and she'd made friends with several people. Following the session, they'd been fed dinner and assigned rooms.

Trevor took her key and held it up next to his. "Rooms 306 and 308. Looks like they're adjoining." He winked. "I'm hoping to catch up on my sleep, so try not to keep me up too late with your wild parties."

"I don't have wild parties," she insisted. "You're the one with the reputation."

"'Still waters run deep.'"

"I'm—" She paused, not willing to say she wasn't deep. "I promise not to party."

"I don't mind, as long as you invite me."

They halted in front of her door. He handed her the key, then leaned against the door frame. "Did you enjoy tonight?"

She nodded. "It was great I think I'm going to learn a lot."

"Me, too."

He was staring at her. Dana told herself it didn't mean anything, but her suddenly pounding heart didn't believe her. Had it gotten really hot all of a sudden? And what had happened to her ability to breathe? Her chest was tight and her lungs ached. Maybe it was…

She knew exactly what it was. What it always was. Trevor.

She stared back at him, willing him to move closer, to kiss her. That's what she wanted. His mouth on hers, his arms around her. Only then would the aching inside go away.

She leaned toward him. He touched her cheek. "'Night," he said, and walked to his door.

Dana stared after him, confused and obviously ready for more than Trevor was willing to offer.

Chapter Seven

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^
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D
espite the threat of rain later in the week, the next morning dawned clear and warm. Trevor stared out at the manicured gardens of the hotel and told himself he had no one but himself to blame for his lack of sleep. He'd known better than to start thinking about Dana as he'd gone to bed. He should have read one of the many medical journals he'd brought with him. The information would have provided a distraction, and occasionally the articles were dry enough to use as a sleep aid.

Instead, he'd stretched out in the dark and thought about their drive together, about all she'd talked about and how she'd looked behind the wheel of his car. He'd pictured her soft hair blowing in the wind and the way her mouth had turned up when she'd smiled. He'd recalled their conversation, how she'd talked about keeping her grades up in college so she wouldn't lose her scholarship. She'd worked hard to achieve all that she had and he admired that. He admired her.

But he wasn't sure what else he felt where she was concerned. He respected her and her abilities. He knew he liked her. He thought she was bright and funny. Obviously he wanted her. A few minutes in her presence provided physical proof of that fact. So many times he'd wanted to kiss her. Not just yesterday, but other times. Last night had been the worst, though. Watching her at the opening session, hearing snippets of her conversation with the other participants and her laughter. He'd felt drawn to her. And like that foolish moth, he was at risk of getting fried.

A tap at his door distracted him. He crossed the carpeted floor and unfastened the lock. Dana smiled up at him from the hallway.

"I wasn't sure if you'd already left for breakfast, so I thought I'd check. Would you like to go down together?"

The seminar brochure had stressed the need for casual clothing so everyone could be relaxed during the exercises. Dana wore black jeans and a red sweater. Gold hoops dangled from her ears. He could smell the scent of soap and shampoo; she rarely wore perfume.

The wanting came hard and fast. He tried to convince himself some of it was about not having been with a woman in so long, but he knew it was specifically about Dana.

"Breakfast sounds great," he said, and picked up his room key. "How'd you sleep?"

"Fine. It's quiet out here."

"I noticed," he said, remembering the stillness as he'd lain awake in the king-sized bed. He'd imagined he could hear her stirring on the other side of the wall.

"I went through the materials they gave us last night," she said as they waited for the elevator. "There wasn't much on the program."

"I saw that, too. I don't think they want us to have time to prepare."

She looked at him and wrinkled her nose. "I keep telling myself this is for my own good. Walter wouldn't have sent me unless he thought I could handle it."

"You'll be fine," Trevor told her, placing his hand on the small of her back and motioning for her to precede him into the elevator.

"Easy for you to say. You're the one with the natural charm."

"As opposed to unnatural charm?"

She chuckled. "As opposed to those of us who muddle our way through social situations."

Her confession of feeling inadequate surprised him. He'd always viewed Dana as completely together. "You don't muddle—you do great. Everyone admires you."

He'd kept his hand on her back because it was a socially acceptable way to touch her. She hardly needed his assistance or guidance. It was a ploy to stay close to her, touching her, absorbing her warmth and the pleasure her presence brought him. So he felt her start of surprise at his compliment,

"Trevor," she began, as if going to ask him to explain himself. Then the doors opened and they joined the other seminar participants walking toward the large ballroom at the end of the hallway. There wasn't another chance for private conversation.

The ballroom had been divided into several smaller rooms; the largest was being used for breakfast, with eight round tables set for eight.

"I don't see any nameplates," Dana said, moving close to one of the tables and glancing at the place setting. "I guess it's not assigned seating."

"Works for me, but what are those?" Trevor asked. He pointed at the small white boxes sitting next to each plate. The boxes weren't much bigger than a medium-sized apple.

Shelly, their very pregnant leader, walked to the front of the room and took a microphone from its stand.

"Good morning," she said. "Please sit anywhere. There's a surprise waiting for you at the table, but we'd appreciate it if you waited to open it until after breakfast. However, we'd like you to write your name on the tags provided so we can all continue getting to know one another."

"How about over there," Trevor said, deciding to assume
he
and Dana would sit together.

"Great."

When he held out a chair for her, she slid into it and smiled at him. His body reacted with the same embarrassing speed as when he'd been all of seventeen. He settled on the seat next to her and moved close enough to the table that no one would be able to tell.

The food was as good as it had been the previous evening. Everyone was friendly and soon a spirited discussion was underway at their table about the contents of the mysterious white boxes.

"Chocolate," Dana said firmly.

"For breakfast?" Trevor asked.

"Chocolate is a food group that works at any meal."

Two of the people sitting with them were women. They smiled at each other. The guys looked confused. Trevor had long since realized females had a relationship with chocolate that mere men could never understand.

"Too small for a book. Maybe it's some kind of crystal or meditating rock," a guy named Bill said. He was an executive in the banking industry and a resident of
San Francisco
. "After all, this
is
California
."

They kept guessing until breakfast was over and Shelly picked up her microphone again. "All right," she said. "Go ahead and open your boxes."

Trevor reached for his. It was lighter than he'd expected and something moved around inside. Not as though it
were
alive, but he could feel weight shifting.

Dana opened hers first and started to laugh. "What on earth is this for?" She held up an egg.

Trevor opened his box. "I have the same thing," he said, staring at the contents.

"We all do." Bill looked disgusted. "An egg?"

Shelly nodded as if she'd heard him. "That's right, everyone has an egg. For the next week, this is your best friend, your child, your constant companion—whatever you want it to be. The point is
,
you're responsible for the egg. You'll bring it to
classes,
take it out with you for dinner. The rules of engagement are the eggs are not to be left alone … ever."