Thanks so much for having me today! I hope you enjoy my medical romance, The Doctor’s Secret. Here’s a little taste of it to celebrate the release!

“Simon—your guy was here!” Dante gestured excitedly in the direction of the nurses’ station. “You’d think a rock star arrived from the way everybody behaved. All the women were starry-eyed and giggling like schoolgirls, and when he left, all they could talk about was how hot he was. I mean, even I had to admit he was gorgeous. If I were gay, he’s who I’d go for.”

Simon’s heart was beating in his ears, and he smoothed his hands over his hair and scrubs. “He’s here?”

Dante gave Simon a once-over. “What happened to you? You’re wet, and you have food smeared all over you. Is that…oatmeal in your hair?”

Gasping, Simon winced as his fingers found the nest of oatmeal. “I gave Mrs. Mueller her shower, then got her to eat before her nap. It was a bit of a struggle.”

“Dude. I keep telling you, that’s not an RN’s job.” Dante shook his head. “I’ll cover for you while you shower. You got spare scrubs in your locker, yeah?”

“I do. Thanks, Dante, I owe you one.” Simon hurried down the hall.

“You can introduce me to the cute new night nurse,” Dante called as Simon disappeared around the corner. “Obviously don’t tell Andreas.”

Simon wasn’t sure why he was so nervous, or why he thought he needed to shower in case he ran into Hong-Wei. Probably he’d already left or was in a meeting, and if he wasn’t, he’d be out of the main area of the hospital by the time Simon was showered. Still, Simon couldn’t help rushing to the locker room, telling himself if he was fast, he might have a chance—

When he opened the door to the locker room, he ran straight into Hong-Wei.

Literally, he ran into the man, right into his chest. Hong-Wei’s scent hit him, some kind of subtle cologne mixed with aftershave and a peppery essence of male that curled into Simon’s belly and made his knees waver.

Hong-Wei caught Simon as he wobbled, then wrapped an arm around the small of his back, holding him in a sturdy grip. “Are you all right?”

No, Simon was going to die of embarrassment. He was a mess, and he’d nearly run Hong-Wei over. “I’m fine. Thank you.” Simon righted himself as best he could and tried to hide his dirty tunic with crossed arms. Of course Hong-Wei appeared incredible, wearing a tasteful gray mock turtleneck and black trousers that rippled every time he shifted his body. He had on a long, slim-fit white lab coat, unbuttoned, flowing around him.

No oatmeal in sight.

Simon scraped together what dignity he could manage. “It’s good to see you, Dr. Wu. I didn’t expect you to come to the hospital so soon.”

Hong-Wei seemed as if he wanted to say something, but he was also frowning, studying the mess in Simon’s hair. Before Simon could say anything to explain, another voice from behind Hong-Wei piped up.

“Simon, let Wu through so I can get out already.”

Owen. Blushing, Simon shuffled down the side of the wall and remained there, flat as he could, as Hong-Wei moved aside so Owen—and God help him, Mr. Beckert and Mr. Andreas—could come through. To Simon’s surprise, Hong-Wei remained beside him, meaning once all the men had exited the locker room, they ended up in a circle at the edge of the hallway.

Beckert, ever the politician, took it in stride. “Thank you again for picking up Dr. Wu last night. I apologized to him that none of us were able to come with you, but he says you were more than an adequate host.”

Simon resisted the urge to hide the oatmeal in his hair. “I’m always happy to help.”

Hong-Wei was still fixated on Simon’s disarray. “Did something happen to you?”

Simon gave in and tugged at the oatmeal, which was firmly glued to his head. “I was trying to get Mrs. Mueller to eat.”

Andreas narrowed his gaze at Simon. “Feeding patients is a nursing assistant’s job, Mr. Lane.”

Owen smiled one of his brittle smiles. “Simon takes special care with his patients. You won’t find a more conscientious nurse at St. Ann’s. He can assist with all surgeries, but he doesn’t mind lending a hand when we’re short-staffed in any department. I’ve seen him taking out trash on occasion as well.” Owen rubbed his chin. “Mueller. That’s the benign stomach tumor case. You might find it interesting, Jack.”

Jack? Simon blinked, surprised Owen and Hong-Wei were already on a first-name basis.

Hong-Wei perked up. “I would?” He turned to Beckert. “May I see the patient’s file?”

“With pleasure.” Beckert looked like a cat with cream. “We’re off to get you into the system now so you can see the electronic files. We’ll find you someone to take you on errands as well, while we’re at it.”

“I already have that arranged.” Hong-Wei’s hand fell on Simon’s shoulder, and he glanced sideways at him. “Unless Simon has changed his mind?”

Simon was sure his face had to be in flames. “I— Of course not. I’ll take you wherever you need to go. Just give me a call.”

“I’ll do that.”

Hong-Wei lifted his hand and strode away from Simon, lab coat rippling in an invisible breeze as if he were in some sort of ad for sexy hospitals. As the group disappeared around the corner, Owen gave Simon a heavy wink.

Andreas gave him a long, narrow look.

Simon hurried into the locker room, stripped out of his clothes, and ran into his shower, setting the stream on full blast.

Blurb

The brilliant but brooding new doctor encounters Copper Point’s sunny nurse-next-door… and nothing can stand in the way of this romance.

Dr. Hong-Wei Wu has come to Copper Point, Wisconsin, after the pressures of a high-powered residency burned him out of his career before he started. Ashamed of letting his family down after all they’ve done for him, he plans to live a quiet life as a simple surgeon in this tiny northern town. His plans, however, don’t include his outgoing, kind, and attractive surgical nurse, Simon Lane.

Simon wasn’t ready for the new surgeon to be a handsome charmer who keeps asking him for help getting settled and who woos him with amazing Taiwanese dishes. There’s no question—Dr. Wu is flirting with him, and Simon is flirting back. The problem is, St. Ann’s has a strict no-dating policy between staff, which means their romance is off the table… unless they bend the rules.

But a romance that keeps them—literally—in the closet can’t lead to happy ever after. Simon doesn’t want to stay a secret, and Hong-Wei doesn’t want to keep himself removed from life, not anymore. To secure their happiness, they’ll have to change the administration’s mind. But what other secrets will they uncover along the way, about Copper Point… and about each other?

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Author of over thirty novels, Midwest-native Heidi Cullinan writes positive-outcome romances for LGBT characters struggling against insurmountable odds because she believes there’s no such thing as too much happy ever after. Heidi is a two-time RITA® finalist and her books have been recommended by Library Journal, USA Today, RT Magazine, and Publisher’s Weekly. When Heidi isn’t writing, she enjoys cooking, reading novels and manga, playing with her cats, and watching too much anime. Find out more at heidicullinan.com.