10. Doc
J ames leans against one of the cabinets in my office and I scowl at him. “Don’t you have some bodyguarding things to do?”
“Nope,” he replies, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Well, you can’t hang out here all day. I have things to do.”
“Wasn’t planning on it, my dear.” His smirk stirs both my irritation and my cock.
Before I can say something scathing back, the door to the office opens and one of the maids bows her head before allowing Soren to enter. He waits until the door is shut after the maid before turning to meet my eyes.
“Is the escort necessary?”
I shrug. “Boss’s orders, not mine. You’ll have to deal with it for a while, until he decides you’re trustworthy.”
He rolls his eyes and it makes me grin that he’s willing to drop some professionalism around me. Everyone knows I don’t stand on ceremony, and as long as someone isn’t an asshole then I don’t care if they allow their real personality to shine through rather than stifle it for ‘professionalism’.
James coughs, and it’s not a cute subtle cough either, but one that forces our attention to him. Glaring, I roll my eyes at his innocent-looking grin, before looking back at Soren.
“This is James Rossi, my main bodyguard, so get used to him being around. James, Soren Knightly, my new medical assistant.”
James steps forward. “It’s nice to meet you. Sorry you got stuck with Doc.”
Asshole . I go through my mental shopping list, wondering what next he can buy me, when Soren laughs and I put that idea on pause.
Soren’s blue eyes glimmer as he laughs, his smile making him look young and carefree. In this moment, I have no idea how old he is. He's younger than me, for sure…but too young? Not that I should be thinking about how old he is, or if it’d be reasonable to get him to fuck me.
Two sets of eyes boring into me brings my thoughts back into focus. “What?” I ask.
James just smiles and shakes his head. “See what I mean? He’s really very intelligent, if you look past the cranky outside, but inside he’s a mess. So just watch him and make sure he’s at least pretending to function like a normal person.”
“Hey!” I protest. “That seems very unfair.”
“I told you last night you needed a keeper. I wasn’t just saying it for shits and giggles, dear.”
I flip him off and he laughs, turning back to Soren. “Anyway, I’ll be around, so if you need anything, just ask one of the guards or other staff for me. But it’s always best for me to get out of the way in case someone needs to see Doc. He gets prickly if there are too many people around.”
“I don’t get prickly .”
“Sure you don’t,” James replies absently. “I’ll see you both later, when I come to drag Doc home by his hair.”
He clasps Soren on the shoulder and leaves the office, shutting the door firmly behind him.
“So…” Soren shoves his hands into the pockets of his scrubs. “You and James are…a thing?”
I laugh, long and loud. “We fuck, if that’s what you mean. He’s my best friend, the only person who knows how to put up with me, but I don’t want to date him. I won’t give you his personal details, but neither of us is right for one another in the long-term. What we have works for us.”
“I’m not judging,” he assures me, his voice soft. “I don’t know either of you, so I can’t comment on your situation, only on what I’ve seen so far. Whatever works for you works for you, and no one can tell you any differently.”
My cheeks burn and I wonder when the last time I blushed was. Soren’s soft expression loosens something inside my chest and I have to catch my breath at the feeling.
Luckily, before I can open my mouth and say something that will ruin whatever this is, there’s a knock on the door. Soren looks at me with a question in his gaze and I give a short, clipped nod.
As he opens the door, I take a few breaths, trying to get my shit under control. On the other side of the door is Roman Amato, and I bite back a groan at seeing him. The little shit is far too observant for his own good, so if he catches wind of anything I may or may not be feeling about Soren, he’s going to run straight to his lovers, maybe even his father. The last thing I need is the main Family gossiping about my personal life.
“Shirt off, on the bed,” I tell him curtly.
“Not gonna introduce us, Doc?” I can hear the smile in Roman’s voice, even as I turn to grab a pair of gloves.
“Soren, Roman Amato, heir to the Family. Roman, this is my new assistant. Treat him gently.”
Roman laughs, but it’s cut short as he groans. “Fucking hell,” he mutters.
Turning back around, I help him straighten and gently move his arm away from where he’s holding himself around the middle, as if that’s actually going to stop his ribs from aching.
“Where’s your keeper?” I ask as I unbutton his shirt and ease it off.
“Don’t need one,” he says, letting me guide him to the examination table before helping him up.
There’s another knock on the office door, but before Soren can open it, the person on the other side does. Hollis Maddigan all but storms into the office, dark eyes fierce behind his glasses as he aims his glare at his young lover.
“You,” he says in a wrecked voice. “Were supposed to wait for me, Giocattolo.”
“No voice,” I snap over my shoulder, as I begin a light examination of Roman’s ribs. “How’s your head?”
Roman winces as I carefully prod his torso. “Not bad. I made it downstairs on my own. I don’t feel like I’m dying just by opening my eyes anymore. Can’t view screens still, but also don’t wanna throw up every time I move. So, all in all, it could be worse.”
“Good. I still want you to take it easy for the next few weeks. Not only to give your head some time to heal, but your ribs as well. You surprisingly haven’t injured yourself more, so keep doing what you’re doing.”
“Nothing but lying around bored,” he grumbles.
“Better bored than dead or worse,” I remind him.
Finished with my examination, I change gloves and point to the table after helping Roman off it. “Up,” I order Hollis, earning a glare from the hacker, but he does as asked.
“Help me dress?” Roman bats his eyes at Soren, smiling sweetly.
I want to warn the other man that Roman may look like an angel, but he’s really a viper. But I don’t, because if he’s going to last here, it’s best Soren learns now how to handle the brat. Trial by fire and all that.
I check Hollis’s stitches first, making sure there’s no infection or anything else to be concerned about before I take a look at the inside of his throat.
“I’m no expert,” I say when I’m finished, “but it looks a hell of a lot better than it first did. How’s it feel?”
Hollis sighs but raises his hands and signs. “I…may have overdone it with the voicing since the accident.” At my raised eyebrow, he scowls. “You try staying silent when the person you love gets hurt. But…I’m working on it.”
I nod, appreciating that his signing speed is more moderate than what he’d use with Roman and his grandmother. I’m fluent enough, that was part of the deal I made with Cristian. Should something happen to Roman’s grandmother during one of her rare visits, or any of Roman’s other family members, Cristian wanted me to be able to communicate with them. Not only that, he was cognizant of the fact that hearing loss is hereditary on that side of Roman’s family; he didn’t want any of us to be caught unaware, had the genetic lottery swung that way with his son.
“Good. We have an appointment at the end of the week with the specialist. Jayden pulled some strings to get us in as soon as possible. Try not to voice until then, okay? I don’t want them to say the damage is worse than initially thought because you were a dumbass.”
“Your bedside manner needs work, Doc,” he gripes.
“It’s part of my charm,” I reply cheerfully.
Hollis rolls his eyes before asking, “Who’s the new guy?”
I switch to ASL, my signs not nearly as smooth as Hollis’s but understandable. “Medical assistant, Soren Knightly. Don’t tell me you don’t have a whole file on him.”
Hollis laughs and then winces as the sound hurts his throat. At my ‘I told you so’ look, he rolls his eyes. “What’s on paper doesn’t tell me about him, specifically. Besides, I’m making Leandro do most of the legwork on this one, so I’ve only read the barebones of the file so far.”
I shrug. “Not much to tell yet. He has a sharp tongue, though, so I think it’s safe to say he’ll fit in.” I shake my head when Hollis gives me a knowing look. “Not like that, you dick. I know better. I mean, he’s been able to keep up with me so far. I might have…pushed him a little too far when we first met, but he didn’t snap like any other person would, and that’s good enough for me.”
Hollis nods. “Okay,” he says. “On paper, he’s perfect. His background is what you’d expect from someone who grew up in the lifestyle, but he hasn’t really made waves in the Bratva. I don’t know if that’s because Petrov kept him out of it, or if we’ve just yet to discover anything. I’ll see what pops up when Leandro does a little more digging.”
“Or you could just ask,” Soren replies, sidling up to the examination table and leaning his hip against it.
Hollis and I both look at him. Roman moves to stand on the other side of his lover, green eyes carefully watching my assistant.
Soren grins. “Couldn’t help but eavesdrop. I’d apologize but I’m not sorry.” He looks at Hollis, his eyes darkening a little. “Next time, do a little more research before thinking someone can’t understand when you’re talking about him. One of my best friends is deaf. I speak three languages, and have a smattering of vocabulary in a fourth, so, you know, maybe take this as a lesson to not talk about someone when you’re in the room with them.”
Roman laughs and his shoulders relax, his defenses easing. Even though he’s hurt, I know he wouldn’t have hesitated to protect Hollis had he needed to. It’s both an admirable trait and irritating as all hell.
“I like you,” Roman tells Soren.
Hollis says, “Sorry. You’re right.”
Soren waves him off. “No hard feelings. I’m actually curious about what you discovered.”
The hacker shrugs. “Basic shit,” he replies. “Family stuff, your standing in the Bratva, schooling, that kind of stuff. Like I said, I haven’t read much more than the surface level stuff. And my son hasn’t turned up anything you may or may not have done on behalf of your uncle’s organization. Though I do need to have a conversation with him about looking closely at the people surrounding those we investigate; they’re just as important as our target.”
“Well I can tell you now, you won’t find anything scandalous in my background,” Soren tells him. “Uncle Ivan sent me here for a reason. All that, it’s not for me. I studied medicine to help the people who worked for my Family, but that’s not where I belong. Much to my father’s disdain.”
“Good,” Hollis says. “But you can understand why I would like to verify that with my own sources, right?”
“Sure, I have nothing to hide.”
And why do I feel like that’s bullshit?