“Yes, and all you have to do here is lie down and enjoy being pampered. This room is what they call the Turkish Bath.” He set her down on a pallet of soft blankets on a ledge. “I’ll now send for your maid to help you get dry and remove these wet garments. Then lie on the pallet, face down, and have her cover you with this blanket.”
Her eyes almost popped out of her face.
“Do you mean unclothed?”
“Yes, my lady. I need access to your back and legs. I’m afraid garments would impede the massage and the acupuncture.”
“But I can’t lie naked in front of you!”
A pity, that.No!He must stop these inappropriate thoughts. She was a patient. A lady in need of help. What kind of doctor would he be if he took advantage of his patient’s vulnerabilities? A degenerate, that’s what. In order to help her, he must stop seeing her as a desirable woman. But that proved more and more difficult every moment he spent in her company.
Drawing in a deep breath to summon the inner calm he needed, he replied, “You won’t be exposed. A blanket will cover you. I shall only uncover the area I’m working at that moment. Your maid can remain in the room if that will put you more at ease.”
She frowned. “I don’t know. Is that considered normal and appropriate in your culture?”
His lips twitched. She had him there. “No. Most Chinese women wouldn’t even go to a male doctor. But they have female doctors who can see to their needs. You don’t have female doctors in England.”
“English women go to male doctors. But in this instance, it seems very…intimate.”
“Don’t think of me as a man.” He had to put her at ease. Even if he wasn’t fully at ease with touching her naked body himself. But this part of the treatment was important. He recalled another tradition of his people. “If it helps, think of me as a eunuch.” He cringed inwardly as he said it.
Her eyes widened until they resembled full moons. “Are you?” She immediately clapped a hand over her mouth. “Oh, please forgive me. I can’t believe I asked…” She shook her head. “That’s none of my business.”
Wang burst out laughing. He never thought he would laugh about his manhood. But her expression of horror was too much to bear.
“No. I am not.” He most definitely—most emphatically—was not. Especially not around this woman.
She frowned playfully at him. “That’s terrible of you to tease me so, Mr. Wang.”
“It was not my intention to tease. I merely sought to put you at ease. This part of the treatment is important.”
“What will it involve?”
“I will massage your back and legs. And also use acupuncture to stimulate yourqi.”
“What is‘qi’, and what does this acupuncture involve?”
He could see the curiosity in her eyes. It wasn’t mistrust, but genuine interest in the therapies that motivated all her questions. He liked an inquisitive mind.
“Qiis the life force. Vital energy. It needs to be balanced and flow unrestricted through channels in the body called meridians.For that purpose, I will insert needles into specific points. They will stimulate your nerves and enhance the blood flow, promoting healing while reducing inflammation and pain. It can even help the mind find calm, and restore movement. That is what acupuncture is about.”
“Needles! That sounds painful.”
“It’s not. I promise. These needles are very thin, and I will place them gently. You may feel a tingling sensation. And that is good. Means it’s working. But there should be no pain.”
He glanced at her, watching for skepticism, for hesitation. But she only nodded slowly, thoughtful. Perhaps, he dared to hope, she was beginning to trust in what he could offer—not only as a doctor, but as a man who wished to see her well and whole again.
“Very well, then. Give me a few minutes. I will call you when I’m ready.”
Bowing at the waist, he retired and sent the maid in to help her mistress. He could use these few minutes to bring himself under control and remember, she was just a patient.
Except that not even a few hours, even years, would be enough to convince himself of that.
CHAPTER 4
Estherlayinthepleasantly warm room, under Wang’s skilled ministrations, and she couldn’t remember ever being so comfortable, or so relaxed.
He started on her legs, massaging the calves, sliding up her oiled skin with exquisite pressure. His hands kneaded, rolled, and pressed, dragging little moans of pleasure from her lips. Sounds she unsuccessfully tried to bury in the towel she was using as a pillow. Why had she hesitated so much to allow this? It felt divine.
