Page 77 of Playing Games

He nods. “Scottie loves showing pictures of her family and friends when she’s trying to procrastinate on her PT sessions.”

I snort. “I can’t say I blame her. I know her PT sessions are brutal.”

“They are,” he admits. “But she’s strong.”

“Yes. She is.” There is no denying that Scottie Bardeaux is strong. After everything she’s been through with her family life and her devastating spinal cord injury, she’s more than proven her strength and tenacity.

“So, your father is Dr. Nick Raines?”

I nod again. “Yes.”

“I had the pleasure of having a Zoom meeting with him last week,” he updates. “He wanted to know Scottie’s current PT schedule and progress and was telling me about his plans for a consult with her next week when he’s back from Germany.”

Everything he’s telling me is stuff that I already know. And when I don’t say anything, he adds, “Dr. Raines is a brilliant man.”

“He is considered one of the best neurosurgeons in the country and even most Western European nations.”

“Yeah,” Adam replies through a soft laugh. “That definitely makes sense. I mean, he gave me a basic rundown of a few of the options he felt might be a possibility for Scottie. Though, he prefaced that he couldn’t be sure until he ran more tests.” He shrugs and runs a hand through his hair. “Not going to lie, I had a hard time digesting it all.”

I tilt my head to the side. “What was hard to digest?”

“Well…” Another soft laugh leaves his lips. “Just about all of it, honestly. But I mean the part about some kind of molecular inhibition technology.”

“You mean the NVG-291?”

“Yeah.” Adam smiles. “That.”

“Basically, when someone suffers a spinal cord injury, chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans collect at the site of injury and create scar tissue that prevents any type of axonal growth and natural nerve regeneration,” I explain what already feels very straightforward to me. “NVG-291 is utilized to mitigate those inhibitory effects and aid in the nervous system working to repair itself. There’s been a lot of success with this technology in small clinical trials too. It’s proven to reactivate important regenerative processes, including axonal regeneration, remyelination, and enhanced neuroplasticity, which are vital for repairing nerve damage and restoring lost functions in patients with spinal cord injuries.”

Adam’s eyes go wide for a moment, his lashes fanning against his cheeks several times in the process. “Are you in residency for neurosurgery?”

“Oh no.” I shake my head. “My interests are more research- and lab-focused. Particularly, focused on computer science and artificial intelligence.”

“Well, it’s safe to say you’re definitely Dr. Raines’s daughter.” Adam smiles and runs a hand through his hair. “You know, if you ever want to come to one of Scottie’s PT sessions or grab lunch or coffee, I’d love to pick your brain some more.”

“Thanks, but no. Neuroscience isn’t my specialty.”

The dismissal is swift, easy, and painless—at least for me. I don’t feel bad or war with my decision, and I don’t have any trouble being the stalwart girl I’ve always known myself to be.

And isn’t that an interesting tidbit of research?

As it turns out, Blake Boden is the only guy I can’t turn down.

Blake

Zip’s Diner is packed to the brim, Scottie’s surprise birthday party in full swing now that the guest of honor has arrived, and the noise and activity are teeming with sensory input.

Butmyeyes have only a singular direction of focus—to the darkest corner by the back booth, where Lexi stands talking to some douchebag I’ve never seen before for the sixth consecutive minute.

I try to distract myself, heading over to where Finn and Ace stand to greet Finn and let them redirect my thoughts so I don’t do something stupid like walk right over there and tell that guy to take a fucking hike. But my mind is so fucking one-track, instead of joining their ongoing conversation about pulling off Scottie’s big surprise, I start a new one of my own—topic: motherfucker in the back corner with my girl.

“Who’s that guy?” I ask, and Finn shakes his head in confusion.

“What guy?”

“Seriously? The one talking to Lexi.” Frustration finds its way into my veins, but Ace, the asshole, laughs.

“You’re fucking intense right now, Boden.”

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