Total pages in book: 31
Estimated words: 28745 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 144(@200wpm)___ 115(@250wpm)___ 96(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28745 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 144(@200wpm)___ 115(@250wpm)___ 96(@300wpm)
Justice lifted his chin at a man in a dark suit who nodded and followed the kid out the door. I recognized the man as one of Kendall’s security team and figured he’d been tasked with seeing the teenager out the door.
My knuckles cracked, but the music was playing too loud for anyone to hear it, which allowed me to slink away without drawing attention. I had almost lost my fucking mind, and I had to wonder if I would still be sane by the time Samantha turned eighteen. The odds weren’t looking good.
I quickly found my table and sat down next to Rush. “Almost blew that shit up, didn’t you, pal?”
I glared at him and tossed back the scotch that had been waiting for me, then muttered about Samantha’s dress, adding plenty of expletives.
“Well, this has been fun…”
I glanced at Rush and scowled. “Don’t—”
He sighed. “I saw your speech, saw you almost blow the whole operation with your girl, and listened to you complain about her dress—not that I don’t think you’re justified—for the last ten minutes. I’m going to head out.”
Irritated but without a reasonable argument, I leaned back in my seat and stared up at the ceiling. “You’re a son of a bitch, you know that?”
“For ditching you at a boring event with plenty of fortune hunters eyeing me like a piece of meat? I’m fine with that.”
I couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped my lips, and I stood to grasp his hand and pull him in for a man-hug. “See you next week?”
Rush was coming to the hospital in his firefighter capacity to see the kids.
“Wouldn’t miss it.”
* * *
It was Tuesday, and Samantha was due at the hospital any minute, so I grabbed a chart and started rounds. It gave me an excuse to see her. She’d been visiting the kids for several weeks, and whenever possible, I tried to “drop by” for something whenever I knew she’d be there.
After I finished in the third room, I came out and spotted Samantha in the play area, tuning her instrument. I casually wandered over to say hello.
“Hi—”
“Dr. Whitney!” Someone practically screamed my name just as my beeper went crazy, and my name was called over the PA.
Samantha’s head whipped up, but I didn’t have time to finish my greeting. I took off toward the nurse who’d called me while listening to the codes being announced while they paged me.
“Code pink.”
Fuck.
Nearly nine hours later, I breathed a sigh of relief as I stripped off my gloves and threw them in the disposal bin.
“Nice work, Dr. Whitney,” Dr. Hera—one of our pediatric anesthesiologists—praised as he removed his surgical gear as well.
“We’ll see,” I mumbled, my mind running through every minute of the emergency surgery I’d just performed on a four-week-old baby girl. It would be a couple of days before she was out of the woods, but I was confident I’d done the best possible job.
After doing some paperwork, I changed out of my scrubs into street clothes. Then I walked out into the lobby and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw Samantha curled up in one of the incredibly uncomfortable chairs, fast asleep.
I glanced at my watch to see that it was almost midnight. What was she doing there? Had someone in her family been hurt?
“Maria from the rehab center walked her down here about six hours ago,” said the nurse behind the desk a few feet away. “Told me she was waiting for you so that I didn’t kick her out for loitering.”
Waiting for me?
Nodding to the nurse in acknowledgment, I crossed the room to her chair and went down on my haunches in front of her.
“Samantha?” I said softly, not wanting to startle her. She didn't stir, so I tried again. “Samantha, wake up, baby doll.” The endearment slipped out, and I silently berated myself. I couldn’t keep calling her that out loud until the time was right.
That hadn’t done any good either, so I shored up my control to do what I’d tried to avoid—touching her.
I ran my finger down the side of her beautiful face and swallowed a groan at how soft her skin was. “Samantha, wake up,” I cajoled, shaking her shoulder gently.
This time, her eyes fluttered a few times before they slowly opened. Fuck. All of my thoughts became scattered at her adorable, sleepy look. In my mind’s eye, I could see her like this, naked and curled up in our bed. But she’d also be wearing satisfaction from being thoroughly fucked the night before.
“Noah.” She yawned and stretched her arms over her head, pushing her tits out. To keep from ogling or fondling the lush mounds, I pushed to my feet and focused on her face. It didn’t soften my cock, but it was hard anytime I was around her…or thought about her. However, my head cleared a little, allowing me to focus on the situation rather than fantasizing.