The Doctor's Secret Bride (1) Read Online Free PDF

him under that grim exterior he’d initially exhibited.  Michelle had no idea what had caused him to take an immediate dislike to her, but his attitude changed the moment she made his daughter laugh.
    She could tell he loved his child more than anything else in his world and that he’d appreciate anyone who contributed to her happiness.  Today, she was that anyone .  She had a job.  She had a place to sleep.  She would have a home-cooked meal tonight.  She wouldn’t have to jump out of bed tomorrow morning and rush over to the corner store for a newspaper to check the want ads, or spend time on the Internet, sending off resume after resume into cyberspace.  She could relax for the first time in almost two years.
    Well, that is if she could bring herself not to fantasize about the dangerously sexy doctor.  From the way he’d gazed at the painting of his wife while fiddling with the wedding band on his finger, Michelle sensed he was still in love with her.  They were worlds apart—employer and employee, and the sooner she accepted that fact, the better off she’d be.
    “I should check on Precious before she thinks I skipped out on her,” she said, heading for the door on legs that felt like overcooked spaghetti.
    “Michelle?”
    She stopped, but didn’t turn around.  “Yes?”  She licked her lips nervously.
    “We’ll go over Precious’ schedule later.  I have to return to the hospital, but I’ll be back in time for dinner.”
    “Okay.”
    “And, Michelle.”
    “Yes.”
    “Thanks again for making my daughter laugh.”
    “You’re welcome, Erik.”
    Erik watched her go, a fire kindling deep within him as he took in the delicate sway of her hips and buttocks.
    Oh yes, she was trouble.
     
     
     

CHAPTER THREE
     
    “You know what, Daddy?” Precious beamed from the opposite side of the dining table.
    Erik smiled at the enthusiasm in his daughter’s eyes and voice.  Since they sat down to eat, she’d been talking nonstop bringing him up to date on her exciting afternoon with her new nanny.  “What, sweetheart?” he asked, wiping his mouth with his napkin and placing it on his lap.
    “Michelle pushed me so high in the swing, I almost saw Grandpa Erik and Grandma Danielle all the way in Granite Falls.”
    “Wow, that’s amazing.  I didn’t know Michelle was so strong.  I guess we got us a super nanny, huh?”   He winked at Michelle.
    “Yeah, we have a super nanny.  She’s the bestest, funnest nanny ever.”
    The joy in his daughter’s eyes filled Erik’s soul with gratitude.  He smiled at Michelle, hoping she understood what she’d done for him, for them.
    “I think you should wait a while before you go handing me a diploma,” she said.
    “What’s a diploma?” Precious asked.
    As Michelle explain what a diploma was, Erik looked around the elaborately decorated room with its Waterford chandeliers and gold cabinets filled with priceless ornaments Cassie had collected over the years.
    It had been a while since he’d taken a meal in here.  He and Precious usually ate at the kitchen table, something Cassie would never have approved.  She was all about prestige and appearances, the very lifestyle he’d been trying to escape when he left Granite Falls.  The table had always been laden with gourmet dishes on Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving.  They’d always had friends and family with whom to enjoy the elaborate meals.  But since her death, he and Precious either went to his mother’s on the other side of town, or up to Granite Falls, his hometown, a three-hour drive north of Manchester.
    The dining room had become a passageway from the kitchen to the family room.  This afternoon, for some inexplicable reason, Erik had called Mrs. Hayes from the hospital and asked her to set the table for dinner.  A faint smile ruffled his lips as he recalled that conversation.
    “The formal dining room, Sir?”
    “Yes, the formal dining room, Mrs. Hayes, where people sit down