Page 27 of Doc

“Same, Doc,” he whispers. “Same.” He reaches up and lightly grips my chin. “Can I kiss you?”

I manage a nod and a breathy yes, and then he’s tugging me down to him, his lips on mine.

The kiss is soft, gentle, a slow exploration of mouths as two people learn each other. It’s everything I want in a kiss, and the reason I usually avoid them with people; it’s too easy to fall head over heels for a kiss like this.

His grip on my chin is firm, but he doesn’t try to touch me anywhere else, and I’m thankful for it. Just this alone is enough to make my body tremble and my heart stutter in my chest.

When he pulls away, he wipes his thumb across my bottom lip. “We should talk, because I want to do so much more than this.”

Letting out a heavy breath, I agree. “Not here, though. Come home with me after work.”

“Okay.”

One last kiss before we pull away completely, both of us knowing there needs to be more words than physical touch between us before this gets out of hand.Like it hasn’t already.

“Give me your phone,” James orders, holding his hand out to Soren. The younger man hands the device over, a wary look on his face. “I’m not waiting for you,” James explains. “Now you won’t get lost.” He hands Soren’s phone back and stalks down the steps to the waiting car.

“I’ll see you soon,” I tell Soren.

“Why does it seem like he wants me to get lost?”

I laugh a little. “That’s just James. He’s a good guy, but all the Rossis are a little rough around the edges.”

Soren snorts. “Right, whatever you say. I’ll be right behind you.”

I nod and head down the steps, ignoring the eyes burning into my back as I head to the car. James holds the door open and gives me a wry grin before I slip into the backseat.

“You’re not cute,” I tell him. He laughs even as he shuts the door after me.

Once we’re on the road home, James speaks up. “You okay? You were tense at the house, and I didn’t have to drag you out of the office.”

Letting out a long sigh, I lean my head against the window and close my eyes. “He called meDr. Wescott. Teased me about my name a little… It…triggered me a bit.”

I keep my eyes closed so I don’t have to meet his in the rearview mirror. “Ash…”

“I’mfine,” I stress. “That’s why he’s going home with us, we’re going to talk about some things. Not about who I was, but to lay some ground rules for this…thing we’re doing.”

“What you’re looking for, that takes a certain level of trust?—”

“No,” I cut James off. “Trusting him to put me on my knees and bend me to his will is one thing, but trusting him withthatis another.”

“I know. I didn’t mean right away, Ash. But you can’t tell me you haven’t thought about the future, should this ‘thing’ go that far.”

Sighing, I open my eyes and straighten in my seat. Removing the scalpel hidden in my sleeve, I twirl it between my fingers as I gather my thoughts. “I have, and the truth is, I don’t know. I want to say hell no, that this,” I gesture up and down my body, despite the fact he can’t see since he’s driving, “is who I am. Who I was born as doesn’t matter, and that’s true enough in a sense. But…I think any partner worth it would be someone I want to share everything with.”

“You know you don’t owe anyone anything, right? Not even me.”

“I know. It’s why I told you my name. It’s why I let you call me that horrid nickname. You get it, you and Cristian, and maybe Hollis, are the only ones who ever have.”

The thing is, I want to be able to trust someone that deeply, to give them not only my present and future, but my past as well. I just don’t know if Soren is that person.

Once home,I leave James to wait for Soren while I check in on Enzo. His second surgery is in a few days and he’s been in a foul mood ever since. I’d feel bad for Kail, except I know my assistant can handle himself. Kail might look sweet and have a better bedside manner than I do, but he also grew up in this life. His father and brothers made sure he’s no pushover. I assigned him to Enzo because I knew the bodyguard would need the reality check Kail can so easily give him, even when Enzo is being particularly caustic.

“How you doing today?” I ask as I look over the notes made by both Kail and Jayden.

“Alive,” is Enzo’s terse reply.

Looking up at him, I study his face for a long moment, noting how his mouth seems to have set into a permanent hard line and the crow’s feet at the corner of his eyes seem deeper.

---