Page 36 of Dr. Baby Daddy

Victor nods and finishes his drink. “We don’t have to work tomorrow. I could use a couple drinks to unwind after the last week.”

It’s decided, and within a few minutes, the four of us are piling into a cab and heading back to the apartment complex. Izzy leads the charge up the stairs and to her apartment, already ordering pizzas from her favorite shop down the street.

I head to the fridge and pull out some of the drinks, setting them out on the counter. Kate kicks off her shoes while Izzy heads into her bedroom to change. Victor makes himself at home on the couch, sprawling out and loosening the top two buttons of his shirt.

Izzy comes back out into the living room, wearing nothing but a pair of biker shorts and one of my old band shirts. Her hair hangs loose down her back as she joins me in the kitchen.

She loops her arms around my waist, leaning her head into my chest. “I’m glad you were able to be there tonight. And that I knew you were there.”

I kiss the top of her head with a smile. “Well, hiding in the shadows is what I’m best at.”

“Ah, yes.” She leans back and puts her hands on my chest. “The brooding and isolated doctor, shoving away the rest of the world.”

I kiss the tip of her nose. “And look at what you’ve turned me into. Not only did I spend my night at a jazz club, but now I’m at a house party.”

Izzy rolls her eyes and pulls away to crack open one of the watermelon seltzers. “Who would have thought that having a social life would be good for you.”

Victor smirks and trails into the kitchen with Kate behind him. “If you think that he’s never had a social life, you should hear about the time he went streaking after finals.”

Izzy’s smile widens as she leaves me to go stand beside Victor. I glare at him as their heads bend together and he starts whispering to her. I should have known he was going to take the first chance he could to tell her that story.

Kate pours herself a large glass of wine and leans against the counter. “You make her happy. I hope you know that and don’t do anything to screw it up. She was a mess when you took off for those couple days. She thought that it would be pushing too hard to call you and ask what the hell was going on. I was two steps away from storming into the hospital and kicking your ass myself.”

I swallow hard and pop the top off a bottle of beer. “I would have deserved it.”

She nods toward Izzy. “I’m going to tell you right now that she is probably the best thing that’s ever going to happen to you. If you do anything to screw it up, you’re going to spend the rest of your life regretting it.”

“I know.” I take a long swig of the beer while Kate smiles over the rim of her glass. “Izzy is a great woman, and I’m going to do my best to try not to screw it up.”

Izzy pulls out her phone and connects it to the speakers, music filling the small apartment. She finishes her drink and turns the lights down low. Kate puts her glass to the side and helps Izzypush furniture out of the way while I grab the pizza from the man at the door.

By the time I pay the man and come back in, Izzy is in the middle of the living room, her hips swaying and her hands raised above her head. Her dark eyelashes brush against her cheeks as she closes her eyes and gets lost in the music.

I don’t know what I’m going to do if I mess this up.

Izzy opens her eyes as the music changes to an upbeat song. She and Kate grab new drinks and slices of pizza, bouncing around to the beat while they eat. I lean against the counter with my slice, watching Izzy spin in a circle.

She’s effortless and carefree in a way that I could never be. Izzy is the definition of a wild child. It’s not the first time I’ve looked at her and thought she was growing up in the wrong decade. I look at her and imagine her in the seventies, driving around in a van to attend every musical festival she could find.

And that’s the kind of energy she’s bringing to my life.

Izzy holds out a hand to me as soon as she’s done with her slice of pizza. I hesitate for a moment, taking another sip of my beer. I’m not the kind of man who dances around the living room. I’d rather sit down and watch a movie, just the two of us.

Until she gives me that smile that has me bending over backward. I put the drink down and head over to her, taking her by the hand and spinning her under my arm. Kate laughs and goes to drag Victor over while Izzy puts her hands on my hips and tries to get me to move them.

“You’re so stiff.” She laughs and pushes my hips one way and then another. “Loosen up a little.”

I swirl my hips around, chuckling as Izzy shakes her head and settles for looping her arms around my neck. “I’m hopeless. You’re going to have to give up on me ever being a good dancer.”

Izzy kisses the hollow at the base of my neck. “I think I can be fine with that. You just sway and look pretty. I’ll do all of the dancing.”

I smirk and dip her low before bringing her back up. Izzy’s cheeks are red from laughing as she presses her body closer to mine. “Don’t know how to dance, my ass.”

“Some dances.” I move with her in a slow circle. “Mainly anything that would be useful at a charity gala. They were one of the few times my parents wanted to pretend that they had a child. I was good for drumming up donations.”

Victor laughs and heads back over to the counter. “He’s right about that. I used to go to some of those events with him to keep him entertained. He would dance with a couple people, get a few thousand dollars for whatever his parents’ cause was, and then he would hide under a table with whatever appetizers he could find.”

Izzy stops dancing and arches an eyebrow. “How old were you when you stopped hiding under tables?”

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