Page 34 of Taking Her Medicine

“Shh, Zoelle.” He nuzzled the side of my head, holding me tightly. “Breathe, kitten.”

“I’m so sorry, Sir.” I shook my head back and forth. “I-I don’t know what happened, but I panicked.”

“Your reaction leads me to believe something happened to you with a wooden object.”

“I-I blocked it out,” I admitted. “My brother and I had this awful babysitter one summer when we were too young to stay home alone during the break. She couldn’t have been older than twenty something, but she had no business spanking us.” I buried my head in his shoulder.

“Talk through it, kitten.”

“This girl was awful! My mother was a workaholic after my father bounced off.” I jabbered on about my less than stellar childhood. I should have been embarrassed at opening up to Aaron in such a way, but instead relief buzzed through my body. “She used wooden spoons, spatulas, cutting board, w-whatever she could get her hands on.”

“Don’t worry. We won’t use wood, baby girl. Ever.”

My heart and my head felt lighter than it had in years. Sharing stories that I’d never really told anyone purged a bunch of gunk out of my system just like after a thorough punishment. Somehow without spanking me, Aaron still found a way to get me to open up. I took a few deep breaths and let them out. “My mom doesn’t even admit it to this day, but it must have been hard on her.” Admitting my mother’s faults didn’t excuse them, but it offered insight I hadn’t realized. “We don’t get along anymore, and I don’t talk to my brother either. He was out on the streets for a while. It’s just easier to keep my distance.”

“My mother took a page out of your father’s book, but everyone was better off without her. She died a few years ago, barely sober, rotting in a shack that was right out of a hoarder’s wet dream.” Aaron wiped his thumb under my eyes, catching the last of my tears.

“At least your father wanted you to be somebody important.”

“My father is an asshole, Zoelle.”

“Huh. Well, he’s got to be smart to be a surgeon.”

“World-renownedsurgeon,” he scoffed. “An intelligent asshole is still an asshole, kitten.”

“Do you ever talk to your siblings?”

“No. They are mirror images of our father, so they can all fuck off.”

His siblings, three brothers and a sister, were all doctors. I couldn’t imagine growing up in a competitive type of environment on top of the childhood trauma he seldom mentioned. When he did talk about it, he seemed to want to skate around the details. Being the youngest saved him from physical abuse from his mother, but she wasn’t warm or loving to any of them. I remembered Aaron telling me that he was accepted as an exchange student in middle school and all throughout high school. I relaxed against him as he rubbed my head, running his fingers through my long hair and gently untangling the knots.

We let the silence build between us, processing the conversation in our own heads, but it wasn’t awkward.

“Becca is my friend, and obviously you are, too.” I sighed deeply, changing the subject away from our less than supportive families. “But I learned early on the only person I can rely on is myself. Anyhow, I see people who have a tribe of best friends to reach out to whenever something goes wrong—or right as it may be. And I just… don’t have that.”

“I’ve made like two close friends in my whole life—and they went through medical school with me.” Aaron scoffed. “Otherwise, I’ve kept to myself, kitten. Jaxon moved out to Chicago right after we graduated and Caleb stayed in Boston. The three of us haven’t seen each other in a while.”

“You’ve been really busy. Don’t beat yourself up about not having time for people. You should get in touch with them. I bet they would love to hear from you.” I glanced upward to catch his eyes. “Did you go toHarvard? It’s only one of the most prestigious medical schools in the entire country.”

“Does it matter to you, sweetheart?”

“No, but I’m just curious since you’ve never mentioned it.”

“Whether you go to Harvard, or any other medical school, you’re still a doctor after you walk across that stage, kitten. Bragging about prestige isn’t my thing, but yeah, I applied as an international student and wound up staying here.”

“You’ll just have to choose your own tribe, Aaron. I’ve been meaning to do the same thing once I find people worth adding.”

“Do you want to be in my tribe, Zoelle?”

“Hm.” I tapped my chin. “Can I be the leader?”

“Nope.I’mthe leader.”

“I don’t know. I’ll have to think about it.” I pretended to ignore him. Aaron tickled my sides until I screeched. “Fine, Daddy! Can I at least design the tee-shirts?”

“Silly little kitten.” He stood up with me still on his lap, and I wrapped my legs around him. “Let’s go watch cartoons. I don’t want to leave a punishment hanging over your head, but my implements are next door.”

“I didn’t call red to get out of a punishment.”

---