I was a simple guy. I just loved saving lives.
I had a natural interest in biology from a young age, and by the time I was in high school, it was the only thing I’d ever wanted to do.
I didn’t want to talk shop with these self-important fuckers after hours.
Eighty hours a week in the emergency room, that’s what I lived for.
But at least tonight I had Carly by my side.
There was something between us, an understanding that neither one of us took these sorts of events seriously.
I was shocked as hell to find out she was pre-med, even holding her own when a neonatal specialist had been talking about lung capacity in preemies.
Carly was smart as fuck.
And that only made her sexier than hell to me.
We hadn’t been able to keep our hands off each other all night, and as the drinks continued to flow, we’d only grown closer. We’d laughed more at private jokes, she’d opened up about how tough her schedule was, and I’d actually been able to chime in and share a few things that helped me get through med school.
“I’m ready to get you out of this dress.” I fingered the spaghetti strap, that little bit of fabric holding in the heavy weight of her gorgeous tits. “This dress was made for you, but it needs to come off.”
“I’ll never have a chance to wear it again,” she quipped.
“Not if I have anything to say about it.” I turned, edging her out of view of anyone else, and pulled the thin strap aside softly, caressing the creamy flesh of her shoulder with my lips.
A slow shudder rolled through her body, and I savored the way her eyes fluttered closed and her lips parted as she sucked in shallow breaths.
“You’re the most gorgeous thing I’ve ever seen when you’re turned on.”
Her elegant throat moved as she swallowed before her eyes fluttered open and nailed mine. She was about to respond when we were interrupted.
“Thorn! Let me refresh your drink!” A doctor from the third floor, one whose name I still hadn’t quite caught, slapped me on the shoulder.
I turned, hardly restraining the irritation. “I’m good, thanks.”
“Sure? Well, I wanted to talk to you about rotating into ER—”
“Sorry, this isn’t something I really want to talk about tonight. My lovely date and I—”
“Thorn, it’s okay.” Carly placed a hand at my chest. “I’m just going to slip off to the ladies’ room.” She pecked me on the cheek and rested her hand on my chest for an extra-long beat before she pulled away.
“She’s a gorgeous one. Where’d you find her?”
I shook my head, eyes still riveted on Carly as she walked away. “She just fell into my lap.”
FOUR
Carly
After refreshing my lip gloss in the ladies’ room, I ducked out onto the balcony to take in the view. This terrace towered over some of the highest buildings in the city, and the dark shadows and cool wind made the entire landscape look like a haunted Gotham. Surrounded by red brick buildings, the main streets twinkled with lights, the entire sight completely magical. I needed a minute to take it all in.
How was it possible that I’d simply swiped right and found a man like this? A doctor, of all things, who had bought me a sparkly dress, taken me to a ball…had I fallen into a fairy tale?
“Thorn dating interns now?” A scratchy voice caused a shiver to run down my spine.
The faint smell of a cigar curled around my nostrils.
“I’m not an intern.” I turned to find the chief of staff of the hospital, the man Thorn and I had just been speaking to, standing entirely too close for comfort behind me.
“Would you like to be?” He leaned in, one thick eyebrow rising suggestively.
“Maybe…someday.” I backed away a few steps.
“I’m exactly the man who can make that happen. All applications go through me.” A heavy hand rested at the curve of my lower back, and I nearly shrieked.
My heartbeat kicked into high gear, every fight-or-flight nerve in my body raging at me to sock him straight in the balls and run.
But, Thorn… I couldn’t ruin whatever standing he had with his boss. I knew the politics of these hospitals, and who you knew mattered. Who you didn’t piss off mattered even more.
“Carly, was it? You’ve got the most gorgeous set of ti—”
“What the fuck were you saying?” The warm timbre of Thorn’s voice washed over me.
Oh, thank God.
“I was just telling the little lady here—”
“She’s not a little lady. She’s a woman, and you need to treat her that way.” I turned just in time to see Thorn’s swing land squarely in the chief of staff’s barrel of a chest, sending him stumbling backward. His cigar fell to the ground, and his face blazed red with embarrassment or rage. I couldn’t tell. I didn’t care. “If you even fucking look at her again, I’ll report you to the board. Got it, Chief?”