Cross My Heart (A Contemporary Romance Novel)

perspective.
    Jenna was leaving in August. She’d made it clear she didn’t want to get involved with anyone while she was here.
    Which left them with three options.
    The most obvious was for him to behave like a rational adult instead of a lust-crazed teenager, and ignore his attraction to her. That would be the intelligent thing to do, and Michael considered himself an intelligent man.
    Then there was the option Claire was hoping for—the Disney fantasy option. Sweep Jenna off her feet and convince her to stay. Which would involve what? Falling in love? Getting married? Living happily ever after?
    It sounded ridiculous even in his head. And even if, by some miracle, things did head in that direction, in the end they’d both regret it. He’d never been able to make a woman happy, and as much as he already liked Jenna, they were completely different people.
    He and Denise hadn’t made it, and they were both in medicine. They spoke the same language and wanted the same things—or so he’d thought, anyway.
    So what kind of chance would he and Jenna have? He remembered the song lyrics she’d written down for Claire. He could appreciate their power, and the restless passion of the mind that had created them, but only from a distance. He didn’t feel the kinds of things that Jenna felt. On an essential level, she was unintelligible to him.
    So option two was out.
    Then there was the third option. They could act on their attraction and have an affair. A no-strings, no-commitment affair.
    He wanted that so much it was hard to think straight—and he could always think straight, no matter what the circumstances.
    He couldn’t believe he was even considering it. He took his relationships seriously, like everything else in his life. He’d never gone into one with a built-in expiration date.
    If he and Jenna got together, it would be because he couldn’t control himself around her any more. A problem he’d never faced in his life. If there was one quality in himself he’d always been able to count on, it was his self-control.
    He’d gotten to that point in his thought process when the phone rang. It was Jim Healy, calling to ask if Michael could cover his shift at the free clinic tomorrow so he could observe a rare procedure at the hospital.
    “I know you’re on vacation, but no one else can do it. You know I’m thinking about specializing in neurosurgery.”
    “Yeah, I know. Don’t worry, you’re covered. You owe me, but you’re covered.”
    He heard Jim’s sigh of relief over the phone line. “I do owe you, man. I owe you big.” There was a burst of something that sounded like applause, and Michael remembered he was at the hospital fundraiser tonight. The same fundraiser Jenna was at.
    “How’s it going tonight?”
    “Fine. Same old same old, you know? Your ex did a good job.”
    “Yeah, Denise is perfect at this kind of thing.”
    She really did make a good dinner speaker—funny, intelligent, compassionate. She’d been all those things when she’d broken up with him, too.
    “You’re everything I could ever want in a man, Michael. Everything except madly in love with me.”
    “That’s not true. You know I love you.”
    “But you’re not madly in love. If you are, say it. Say, Denise, I’m madly in love with you.”
    And he hadn’t been able to—not even to save his relationship. The words had stuck in his throat.
    Suddenly, for some reason, he imagined saying them to Jenna.
    He really was losing his mind.
    “Any gorgeous babes there tonight?” he couldn’t help asking.
    “Yeah, it’s a pretty good night, babe-wise. Denise looks awesome, of course. Luz and Sara, too. And that new obstetrician, what’s her name? Caroline. She’s very, very hot. And Allison Landry looks great, but I just found out she’s off the market. Luckily she made up for it by bringing her sister.”
    Michael’s hand tightened on the phone. “Oh, yeah?”
    “Yeah. Jenna Landry. She’s kind of a local celebrity. She was in a rock band, the Red Mollies. I saw her in concert once, which you’d think would be a pretty good pick up line, but no dice. She’s been shooting me down all night. I’m trying not to take it personally.”
    Thank God for small favors. At least he wouldn’t have to listen to his friend describe a date with Jenna in vivid detail. The thought made something thick and dark settle in his stomach.
    “I should probably get back,” Jim was saying. “So, we’re cool for