Chapter Thirty-Eight
I’d been back to work about three months and was starting to wrap up my second year as a resident when Dr. Iverson ended his residency.
I avoided the hell out of the small gathering assembled to see him off. Someone had brought a cake and some refreshments to the residents’ lounge. I also didn’t sign his card. No shocker. I wasn’t his biggest fan.
After finishing my evening rounds, I was headed back to the lounge to secretly swipe a piece of cake when Louisa, on a long call, peeled off from the nurses’ station to ask me if we could chat really quick.
We found an empty examination room.
“Heya, I know you’re aware it’s Iverson’s last day today. He’s still lurking somewhere around. Just giving you a heads up in case he decides to deliver a parting shot.”
I nodded. “Thanks.”
“You remember the nurse in psych? She wanted me to thank you for reporting. She’s so thrilled he’s not going to be around for a fellowship.”
I smiled. “It sucks that she had to go through that. Especially because she felt her voice wouldn’t be heard. I just wish I could have done more to help.”
Louisa’s eyes lit up and she leaned in, lowering her voice conspiratorially. “Well, keep this on the downlow, but she’s decided to hire a lawyer, because there were others who had complaints about him too. They want to go after him for damages, so he’ll suffer some real consequences rather than a slap on the wrist. They’re looking for a little payback, you know?”
I blinked, hoping this payback plan didn’t involve violence and dumping a body in the ocean or something. Tempting, but...no.
“How can I help?”
“They were wondering if you would testify. They are getting the case together.”
I blinked. “But the things he did to me are nothing compared to—”
“They were still wrong. He’s entitled and bound to keep failing upward. You know he’s going to end up as chief of medicine somewhere and still treating the women he works with this way.” I inwardly groaned, having suspected the same and yet felt helpless to do anything about it. Maybe this would be my chance.
Louisa reached into her pocket and pulled out a card. “She asked me to give you this card for her lawyer. If you want to help, just call him. Think about it, anyway.”
My eyes widened and I bit my lip. “I’ll do whatever I can.”
Louisa leaned in and pulled me into a hug. “I know it takes courage to go up against a colleague, especially when you’re in the vulnerable position like being a resident. You’re a badass, Mia.”
“Not feeling that so much these days but I do want to help where I can.” And write a check to help their legal fund once I figured out a way to anonymously contribute.
Minutes later, I slipped into the residents’ lounge to finish up some paperwork and wrap up my day. Ignoring the half-hearted décor—a sign and a balloon bouquet—I gravitated to the remains of the sheet cake, cutting a piece for myself. It was my favorite, after all, yellow cake with custard filling and buttercream frosting.
That’s where I was, after having inhaled the cake but still finishing up my charts when Dr. Iverson entered the room. My eyes flicked up, met his, then flicked back down to the screen. This was about the extent of our interactions since my complaint was filed with HR.
Which suited me just fine. And it would have continued it like that had he not, after cleaning out his locker, ended up standing at my shoulder with his stuff in a giant gym bag slung over his shoulder.
“Uh, hi,” he began awkwardly when I looked up from my work.
I raised my brow. “Hi,” I replied, carefully lacing my fingers together atop the desk.
“I’d like to have a word.”
I glanced around the empty lounge. We were the only ones in here. Suddenly feeling that this might go somewhere weird, I decided to be on even ground, without him standing over me. “Go ahead.” I said, popping up to move to the coffee station.
I was simultaneously curious and dreading what he’d have to say. Maybe he’d find it in his miniscule hard heart to apologize. Somehow, I doubted it.
He followed me over as I plucked up the coffee pot and poured some into my mug. “So I get that you did what you felt you had to do.” He paused a beat. “But you know, it might have been nice if you’d talked to me first before reporting.”
My eyes flicked up at him, then back down to where I was fixing my coffee. “I did talk to you. Multiple times. Whenever I did, your reaction made me feel unreasonable for pushing back.” He frowned but I continued before he’d almost inevitably interrupt me. “You have two choices, Dr. Iverson, you can become belligerent and resentful toward me, or you can take it as a learning moment. You will continue to work with people. Professionals who’ve spent grueling years studying and practicing in order to be here. The lesson is simple. Treat them right. Respect them. You’re not the main character. Don’t impose your wants and needs on them.”
He flushed and I could tell that a thousand thoughts ran through his head as he processed my words. I stirred my coffee and avoided his gaze. But I stayed right where I was.
Instead, he seemed to dismiss his options and gave a half shrug, a slight roll of his eyes. “Well, agree to disagree. I just was trying to push you to be better. I figured most professionals would want that. But I guess...the biggest problem is that you may not have recognized the definite chemistry between us. We wouldn’t have been striking sparks off each other whenever we worked together, otherwise. In other circumstances, we could have clicked as a couple.”
I curled my lip at him. “What some people call chemistry, others call dislike.”
Well, there it was. He was still an asshole and hadn’t learned a goddamn thing.
He shot me a patronizing smile. “You know what they say about the fine line between love and hate.” I calmly sipped my coffee showing him no response. I also glanced at my watch to carefully note the time.
In the face of my nonresponse, he seemed to flush a deeper shade of red. There was a nasty glint in his eyes. “Well, good luck with your career, Mia. You are a good doctor even without the pushing. Who knows? Maybe we’ll work together again. Or you can, you know, look me up if you ever decide to dump the code monkey and find a real man.”
I didn’t even look at him. Just sipped my mug. “None of those things will be happening.”
After another beat, he pivoted, and he and his giant gym bag were gone. I literally let out the breath I’d been holding in relief. My gaze flicked up at the security camera situated right above me. Hopefully it had caught the whole encounter. But if not, I recreated the entire conversation for my notes.
More ammo for the lawsuit. And he’d never come back to this hospital. So much the better.
When I got home from the hospital, I expected to walk straight into the arms of my waiting husband. It had been a long-ass day and he’d taken his first international trip since the baby had been born. But the house was quiet, and Adam was in bed, sleeping instead of waiting up for me.
With a sigh, I made my way into the dark bedroom and sank down on the end of our bed and watched him. He’d been gone for nearly a week to speak at a massive gaming conference, Gamescom, in Cologne, Germany. I’d watched his keynote speech on the internet and had been so proud of him.
And he’d only arrived home a few hours ago, so I surmised he must not have been able to sleep much on the long flight from Europe. He never went to sleep this early normally.
And though I was tempted to wake him up and kiss him all over, just to give him a proper welcome home, I let him sleep. He looked so peaceful and so damn gorgeous. Now well into his early thirties, he was even better looking than his younger self. I almost let loose a girlish sigh. God, I’d missed him. Rubbing the stiff muscles at the back of my neck, I couldn’t help but think about the million things I had to do—the most important of which was to get out of my scrubs and get to bed. But I didn’t want to...not yet.
“Are you just going to sit there and stare at me like a creeper or are you going to come over here and kiss me?” he muttered, cracking an eyelid open in the dim light.
I let out a laugh. “Did I wake you up?” I stood up, coming around to his side of the bed to land a big one on his sexy lips.
“No. I’ve been lying here waiting for you to get home. You took your sweet time about it, too.”
I shrugged. “Sorry. Had a bunch of paperwork to wrap up.” And a jerk former senior resident to rid myself of...
Adam rolled onto his back and hooked an arm around my waist. “Hmm. You have a serious emergency to handle right here, doctor.” His hand slid up my back and he pulled me down to kiss him. It didn’t take much effort on his part because I was more than willing to suck on that delicious mouth. His hands came up to twine through my hair, his wedding ring glinting in the low light. Soon he was pulling my long hair out of my ponytail to let it spill down over my shoulders.
My mouth moved hungrily on his, tasting every inch, every corner. I got out bits of the normal chitchat in between frenzied kisses, which also involved him pulling my scrubs off of me. “How was Germany?”
“I missed you,” he said by way of answer. His hands came up to unhook my bra.
“I missed you too,” I replied. He yanked my top over my head, my bra following it in seconds. I ran my hands over his bare chest and down under the sheets, noticing that he’d saved me the trouble of undressing him by going to bed naked.
“Awfully presumptuous of you, isn’t it?” I snarked as I ran my mouth over the ridges of his yummy chest, tasting every valley. He let out a long, slow groan.
“Foreknowledge,” he muttered, pulling my head up to his again so he could claim me with his mouth. Then his lips traveled down my jaw, against my neck, evoking delicious, dizzying sensations there. “I knew you’d be overtaken with lust and jumping my bones the minute you got home.”
“So sure of yourself,” I said, sucking my breath as his mouth blazed a trail from my neck, across my collarbone and chest to fasten on my nipple while he caressed its twin with his free hand. I arched my back, gasping with pleasure.
“No, it was actually you that I’m sure of.”
When I thought he’d roll us over, I pulled away, laughing and climbing on top of him, ready to prove him right. “This cowgirl is ready to ride. Better saddle up!”
I bent over, grabbed a condom out of the nightstand drawer and deftly tore the package open with my teeth, slipping it on him in one easy motion. He laughed that breathy laugh he always did when he was turned on. “You don’t waste any time, do you?”
“Not when I have a hot piece of manmeat between my legs.”
“I feel so objectified.” Grinning, he gripped my hips and slid inside me. We both groaned in unison. It had been a long day, a long shift. I should have been ready to collapse, but instead I was exhilarated, my blood singing through my veins in a rush of frenzy and thrill, just by being in this man’s arms again.
“You love it,” I breathed.
“Damn right I do.”
I rode him slowly, relishing the feel of him inside me, his hands cupping my breasts, his fingers tracing over the tattoo across my old surgery scar, the constellation Draco.
Then with growing urgency, I moved quickly, sliding my hips over his, pushing us both closer to climax. He hooked a hand around the back of my neck, pulling my mouth down to his and we moved against each other, like the cloudy sky skimming over jagged mountains—he solid, hard, and me fluid and shifting over him. Our mouths locked in a long, passionate kiss. I came like that, with his thumbs gliding over my nipples, our bodies fastened together. I pushed against him and felt my world shattering around me, releasing in ecstatic waves.
In moments, Adam had rolled us over, now moving on top of me to finish, driving into me with hard, fast strokes before stilling while I caressed his back, his shoulders. He let out a long, slow breath and then bent to gently pepper my face with kisses.
After he rolled off, I lay back against my pillow, feeling as refreshed as if I’d awoken from a full night’s sleep. With a dreamy sigh, I watched as he got up from the bed, went into the bathroom and then came back, settling beside me.
“Okay, now we can talk...” he said with a grin.
I rolled onto my side and hooked my arm around him. “For now...”
He laughed and kissed me. “So, tell me everything I missed.”
“I got my results for my five-year scan today,” I said. “Everything’s good.”
His arms tightened around me, and he breathed into my hair. “Of course it is.” His voice was light, relaxed, but I knew how tense he got every year when I went in for my scans. And now that we’d hit the five-year mark, the chance of cancer recurrence had dropped dramatically.
Thank god for that.
We talked some more—about his trip and the latest goings on with the gaming industry, me recounting things that had happened at work, the latest from our friends and family members. I left out the weird conversation I’d had with Iverson not two hours before.
Adam held me for a long time, his hands moving over my body as if he’d never touched me before. His hands slid slowly across my breasts, my belly, past my c-section scar that ran just above the pubic bone, before slipping lower. I smiled, opening my legs. I was ready for round two.
But a shrill cry pierced the air, and we froze. Adam stiffened against me and I reached over to turn down the monitor on the nightstand. He moved to sit up, but I stopped him. “Don’t go. Most of the time she rolls right over and goes back to sleep.”
He pulled away and gave me a look as if to ask, are you kidding me? And promptly slid out of bed and into his closet to pull on his pajama bottoms. Sighing, I sat up as he left the room. I reached over and turned off the monitor, got up and grabbed my own nightshirt and pulled it on. So much for round two. That was a rare gift, these days, anyway.
A minute later, he was back in the room with the other love of his life in his arms, planting kisses on her teary cheeks. She had a chubby fist in her mouth. Her dark hair, the same color as his, frizzed in a curly aura around her angelic face.
“Hey baby girl,” I said, holding out my hands for her but she turned her head away, tucking in under Adam’s chin. “Ah, so now that Daddy’s home, my name is mud again.”
Adam sat down on the bed, lying back and settling our daughter on his hard chest. I grabbed a pacifier from the nightstand and held it up to her. She took it and in less than two seconds flat, her long, dark lashes lay against her soft cheeks.
“You spoil her,” I whispered.
“Daddy’s prerogative,” he answered, giving me a smile, and taking my hand in his while he kissed the top of her head. My heart skipped a beat like it always did when I watched them together. Even now, as little as she was, I knew a special relationship when I saw it. “I haven’t seen her in a week, either. And she got bigger.”
I smiled lazily, squeezing his hand. “Babies do that. And fast.”
I was so entirely grateful for all that I had. Him, her, our wonderful life together.
I reached out and traced the tattoo on his chest, spelling out his sister’s—and now our daughter’s—name in beautiful jade script. And the other tattoo, still freshly inked. Weeks ago, he’d surprised me with it, “closest to my heart,” he’d explained. when he’d come home, surprising me with it spelling out my name, Emilia.
Because I was Dr. Strong, MD to some, Mia to everyone else, Mommy to Sabrina. But I was—and would always be—his Emilia.