Page 11 of Single Daddy Doctor Dreamy

Her cheeks are flushed, her blue eyes wide with a mix of surprise and something else, something that makes my pulse thunder.

"Joel," she whispers, her voice shaky. "What are we doing?"

I step back, raking a hand through my hair. "I don’t know."

She touches her lips, still swollen from the kiss. "This… this can’t keep happening."

"I know."

But even as I say it, I know I’m lying. Because I want it to happen again. And again.

And it does. We lean into each other and the kissing continues.

A knock on the door jolts us both. I quickly step away as Lucy straightens her shirt and smooths her hair. When I open the door, Rivkin is standing there, his expression smug.

"Hope I’m not interrupting anything," he says, his tone dripping with insinuation. Before I can respond, he adds, "Just wanted to let you know—the board’s making their decision about who is going to be on the short list for the chief of staff position this week. Might want to keep things… professional until then."

He walks away without waiting for a reply, leaving me seething. Lucy touches my arm lightly, grounding me.

"We should get back," she says softly.

I nod, but my thoughts are anything but settled. Between Rivkin’s cryptic comments and the memory of Lucy’s lips on mine, my carefully ordered life is unraveling faster than I can control.

The door to the storage room swings shut behind us as we step into the hallway. I glance at Lucy, who’s busy smoothing her hair, her cheeks still flushed. She’s pretending like nothing happened, but I can see it in her eyes—she’s just as affected as I am.

"I’ll, uh, see you later?" she says, her voice a little too breezy as she pushes the now-forgotten lunch bag into my hand and heads down the hall. I watch her go, wondering how on earth we’re going to keep this from spiraling out of control.

I’m halfway back to my office when Rivkin’s words replay in my head. "Might want to keep things professional." The way hesaid it… it wasn’t just about Lucy. There’s something else there, something he’s not saying. My stomach tightens.

The promotion to chief of staff should be straightforward. I’ve put in the work, earned the respect. But Rivkin’s tone… it’s like he knows something I don’t. Something that could derail everything.

Back in my office, I sink into my chair, the tension in my chest refusing to ease. I try to focus on the stack of patient files on my desk, but all I can think about is Lucy—the taste of her lips, the way she felt pressed against me, the way she…

No. I can’t do this. Not now. Not with Rivkin lurking and the promotion hanging in the balance. I’ve worked too hard to let everything fall apart because of a few moments of weakness.

But the more I try to convince myself, the less certain I feel. Because deep down, I know… one moment with Lucy is worth more than all the promotions in the world.

5

LUCY

I can still feel his lips on mine—warm, insistent, and entirely unexpected. As I sit in the living room, watching the boys play a rowdy game of tag, their energy barely contained by the walls of Joel’s house, my thoughts refuse to cooperate. They circle back to that moment in the storage room and his kiss at the festival, repeatedly, teasing me with what it meant… and what it didn’t.

“Lucy, are you okay?” Miles’s voice breaks through the haze, his wide, curious eyes looking up at me.

I blink and force a smile. “Of course, bud. Just daydreaming.”

“Daydreaming about what?” Finn chimes in, his grin mischievous as he climbs onto the couch beside me.

“Pancakes,” I say, poking his side to make him giggle. “Extra syrup, lots of whipped cream. Maybe even chocolate chips.”

Miles groans dramatically. “You’re making me hungry!”

“Good,” I say, ruffling his hair. “Dinner’s soon. Go wash up, both of you.”

They scamper off, and I let out a slow breath. My heart is still racing, and it has nothing to do with pancakes. What are we doing? Joel and I. we’ve crossed some invisible line, and now I’mnot sure if I’ll ever find my way back. Worse, I’m not sure if I want to.

The sound of a light knock and the front door opening snaps me out of my thoughts. Aiden steps in, his familiar presence both comforting and, at this moment, unsettling. He’s still in his work clothes, the sleeves of his button-down rolled up, his tie slightly loosened. When his eyes land on me, they narrow just slightly.

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