12. Soren
“ I s this what you do on a weekly basis?” I ask Rose as I help her stock the medical room at the Amato main house.
She shrugs. “We do different things, it depends on what’s going on. Right now it’s quiet, but sometimes we’re busy because the Family can’t keep their hands to themselves. You’ve met Hollis Maddigan, right?”
“Yeah, last week, Doc checked his throat. Looked like a pretty nasty injury.”
Rose laughs. “That’s the least of what you’ll see here. When Hollis and Tennant ‘play’…things can get out of hand.”
I act ignorant. “What do you mean?”
She rolls her eyes. “You saw Hollis’s throat. He let that fucking savage tear into him like a feral animal. I don’t know how anyone could be okay with that, let alone get off on it.”
You’d be surprised. I don’t say that, of course, not wanting to alienate her so soon after being hired. Aside from Doc, Rose is the only one I really have to talk to, especially when we’re here at the main house.
The other staff at the clinic seem…standoffish. I don’t know if it’s because I’m new, or if being handpicked to work for Doc makes me a pariah.
“If you’re going to be judgmental, Rose,” Doc says from behind us, “I will happily put you somewhere else.”
We both turn to Doc, where he’s leaning against the doorframe. I meet his eyes and he grins before turning his attention back to Rose.
“I–I’m sorry, sir,” she stammers.
“You know better,” Doc reprimands. “What the Family does in their free time does not concern us. We are here to bandage their wounds and make sure the idiots don’t die from their injuries, not condemn them because they like rough sex. You’re getting off easy this time, but if I catch you being a judgmental bitch again, I’ll take you straight to the Boss, understand?”
“Yes, sir.” Rose bows her head, shoulders hunched.
This side of Doc is different from the one I’ve been getting to know over the past week. His expression is stern rather than teasing, and there’s a hardness to his voice that I didn’t expect. Gone is the sarcastic doctor who seems to thrive on his own chaos, and in his place is a man who was made to be the Head Doctor to a mafia Boss.
My cock aches at the sudden switch. Already attracted to the man, this new side of him is just as intriguing. I want to put both— all —parts of him on his knees…
Doc speaks again, bringing my thoughts back to the matter at hand. “Since you seem to have forgotten your place,” he tells Rose, “you can go help out at the clinic while Soren comes to Enzo’s appointment with me.”
Rose raises her head, and I think she’s going to protest, but manages to hold her tongue. I admire that because in her place I wouldn’t be able to.
Doc meets my eyes again, and the sharp look in them tells me he can guess at what I’m thinking, so I hold back my words.
Rose and I finish stocking up the medical supplies, and Doc gives it a once over before we all gather our things.
“I am sorry, Doc,” Rose says as we walk to the front door.
“I should hope so. Remember where you are, Rose. And the respect that is expected of you when working in this house. Another infraction like that, and not only will the Boss be informed, but your father as well.”
Rose winces, and my curiosity is piqued. Outside the house, we stand on the front steps and Doc places a hand on her shoulder.
“I enjoy having you on my team. Let’s keep it that way.”
She nods once, gives a shaky smile, and heads down the steps to the side of the driveway, where the staff are permitted to park.
“Come,” Doc says to me. “We’re cutting it close to our appointment time.”
I follow him to his car, where James is already waiting, his copper hair shining in the midday sun.
I’ve spent the past week watching how Doc interacts with his bodyguard. I want to say I trust that Doc was telling the truth when he said his involvement with the other man was for sex and friendship only, but I don’t know either of them, so it’s hard to take words at face value.
Their actions don’t line up to what Doc told me, and yet they do… Yes, James is affectionate with Doc, but it is never the other way around. The bodyguard is always the one to make the first move. James might dote over Doc, making sure he’s fed and watered every few hours, but it all seems…perfunctory. Neither seem to get pleasure from the caring acts.
And while James may roll his eyes and chide Doc when he’s being especially caustic, it’s nothing more than a quiet reprimand, no warning or heat or promise of…anything behind it. Not like there would be if I were the one calling him on his bullshit.
The time and care I would put into the older man if I were able…
Sliding into the car while trying to hide my rapidly filling cock isn’t an easy feat. Sitting across from Doc, in the small confines of the backseat, has me taking a few deep breaths, hoping my inconvenient erection isn’t noticeable.
In no world should I be having those types of thoughts about my new boss. It doesn’t matter how pretty I think his cognac eyes will look when filled with tears, glittering up at me as I fuck his mouth or his ass. Or that I want to see him soft and vulnerable, as I bring out the barely-restrained need I can almost see vibrating just under the surface.
And yet, I want it all the same.
“Can I ask a question?”
Doc studies me for a moment before replying. “You want to know who Rose’s father is?”
“Yes, if it’s not overstepping.”
He shakes his head. “You would’ve figured it out eventually. Every single member of my medical staff comes from this lifestyle.” He lets that sink in for a moment before continuing. “The position this job affords us means the Family has to make sure we’re trustworthy. What better way to do that than hiring people who were already born into the mafia? Your uncle giving you to Cristian was more than just a show of good faith between allies. You were pre-approved by the status of your birth.
“Rose’s father is one of our best dealers. He oversees two sections of territory. I don’t think I have to tell you what an honor that is. His position gives him power amongst his colleagues. Not only that, it means he has Cristian and Tennant’s attention, something he doesn’t want to lose because his daughter decided she was above showing the main Family the proper respect they’re due.”
“So, what? The Boss makes people choose who in their family will go into medicine?”
Doc shakes his head. “No, Cristian would never make that a requirement. But everyone in the Family knows there is a chance to be handpicked to work, not only in the clinic, but with the main Family as well. I chose my assistants very specifically. Not only did they have to have the right medical knowledge, but I needed them to have the right personalities as well.
“I may have more liberties than any other member of staff, but there is still a certain respect that needs to be afforded. This was explained to you when you were hired. Rose was out of line today. We may not agree with how the main Family lives their lives, but that is no reason for such blatant judgment.”
I nod in agreement. “Yeah, I can respect that. Kink is… It’s very personal to the people involved, and who are we to tell them what gets them off, makes them happy, is wrong? We don’t have to understand it in order to respect a person’s choice. So long as everything is above board and everyone consents, it doesn’t matter what happens.”
Doc laughs. “Can’t say anything those fuckers do is safe or sound, but I know for damn sure it’s consensual. If there’s one thing neither Tennant nor Cristian fuck around with, it’s lack of consent.”
His use of safety terms in BDSM catches my attention, but I can’t tell if it was purposeful or not. It wouldn’t be outlandish for him to say that what our bosses do in their bedroom isn’t safe —I’d seen Hollis’s throat after all. That he used sound in the way he did though…that means something to someone like me.
Pushing those thoughts away, I change the subject before I do or say something stupid, and ask, “Where are we going?”
“My house.”
I blink at him. “What?”
“We are going to my house. One of Roman’s bodyguards was injured in the same crash he was. Enzo lost his leg and is currently recuperating in my downstairs sitting room. My medical assistant, Kail, is his personal nurse for the time being; along with a few others I hand selected to watch over him during the day.
“He has an appointment with not only his physical therapist, but a prosthetist this afternoon. The three of us are going to work up a plan of action for the next stage of his recovery.” He studies me for a moment before saying, “It’s actually a good thing you’re coming with me instead of Rose, you get to meet Kail this way.”
“Is he going to be mad you hired someone to replace him?”
Doc laughs and shakes his head. “No, he’s a sweetheart, probably sweeter than I deserve, if we’re being honest. Though, don’t let him fool you, his tongue is still sharp. Anyway, he knows I need the help with him not being around, and you’re not replacing him. This situation with Enzo won’t be forever, and I’ve needed another assistant for a while. The last few years have been…stressful. I don’t know how well you’ve kept up with the Family while being in the Bratva, but it’s been a rough time for everyone, medically, putting a strain on our resources. I just hadn’t let Cristian hire anyone. I have a hard time with trust, if you could believe it.”
I can, actually. If there’s anything the past week has taught me, it is that for all Doc is full of salt, some of it is more intentional, to keep people at a distance. I don’t have to know him well to see what he’s doing. After all, except for the trips, I’ve mastered the art of keeping myself distant from the others in my uncle’s organization.
It’s another piece of Doc that draws me in, makes me want to prove myself to him. It’s barely been a week and already my thoughts are running away from me.
You’re supposed to be better than this. Getting Doc on his knees is one thing, but the things I’ve wanted and fantasized about over the last few days are a whole other. I am so fucking screwed.