Page 9 of The Surgeon's Secret

“Have you spoken to Benjamin?” Lexi asked. “He’s been paying my mother all these years. He’s been paying for me, including my education through med school.”

Josephine’s eyes flashed with surprise. Clearly, she hadn’t expected that. Even she knew Benjamin wouldn’t be paying for a child that wasn’t his.

“Have you ever met him?” Josephine asked.

Lexi shook her head.

“So again, you only have your mother’s word to go off, regarding the payments,” Josephine said.

Lexi nodded. It was clear that Josephine was clinging to any shred of hope that Lexi wasn’t actually related to her. It made Lexi uncomfortable.

“I’m not making this up, Doctor,” Lexi said, her voice just as sharp as Josephine’s. “This is a big deal for me. I’ve wanted to meet you my whole life. This isn’t my fault. This is something your father did. I’m sorry it’s such a surprise to you, but this isn’t my fault, and I won’t allow you to accuse me of lying about who I am.”

Anger bubbled up inside Lexi. She stared at Josephine, her expression unyielding.

“Get out, Dr. Bond. Get to work. I don’t have time for this. I have a hospital to run,” Josephine said coldly, standing up and quickly guiding Lexi out the door.

Lexi stormed down the corridors toward the elevator. This was fucking ridiculous. Josephine was being outrageous. The least she could do was acknowledge her and validate her existence. Lexi was fuming when she rounded the corner and nearly ran right into Catherine. Catherine’s eyes softened as she recognized Lexi.

“Lexi, are you okay? What happened?” Catherine asked, placing a gentle hand on Lexi’s arm as she noticed her panicked state.

Lexi didn’t know what to say. She wanted to crumble into Catherine’s arms, and the moment Catherine put her arm around her shoulders, Lexi felt the urge to let go.

“Come with me,” Catherine said. Lexi appreciated her taking charge. Catherine guided Lexi through the corridors and into a small staff room with a sofa, soft lighting, a fridge, and a kettle on a small counter.

“Sit down,” Catherine said, and Lexi flopped dramatically onto the sofa. Catherine filled a glass of water at the sink and handed it to Lexi. “Take a sip,” she said gently. Lexi obeyed.

“What happened?” Catherine asked softly as she sat next to her. Their closeness made Lexi want to reach out and touch Catherine, but she resisted.

“Josephine—Dr. Mars—she basically called me a liar. Denied that Benjamin is my father. She doesn’t want to accept it, doesn’t want to listen. I knew this was a possibility, but I…I thought maybe we could have something—a friendship, some kind of sisterly connection. But it didn’t go that way. And I snapped at her, too. She told me to get out. I don’t even know if I’ll have a job by the end of the day.”

Lexi sighed, feeling defeated. Everything was falling apart. Nothing about this situation was going how she’d hoped.

Suddenly, Catherine’s hand was on her leg, just above her knee, and Lexi jumped at the intensity of the connection. Catherine’s touch wasn’t hot, but it felt like it burned into her skin.

“Everything will be okay,” Catherine said softly. “Think about it from Josephine’s point of view. This is a lot for her to take in. If she’s defensive, it’s probably not because she doesn’t believe you—it’s because she does, and she’s struggling to accept it. She’llneed time to get used to this and time to get to know you.” Catherine paused, her warm, whiskey-colored eyes locking onto Lexi’s. Lexi wanted to dive into them, to devour Catherine. She leaned in, ready to kiss her, to claim her…

But just then, two nurses walked into the room, and the moment was broken. They quickly pulled away from each other.

Lexi leaned her head back against the sofa and closed her eyes. This was too much. She’d nearly kissed Catherine—what the hell was she doing? Preying on James Spencer’s wife? That was a really bad idea.

“I’ve got to go, Catherine. I have a craniotomy to prep for,” Lexi said quickly, standing up and rushing out the door without looking back.

6

CATHERINE

It was Friday night, and Catherine had a charity hospital event to attend. She was supposed to be attending with James, but he was still away—his flights had been rescheduled again. That was life with him: unpredictable and lonely. The hospital was hosting the event, and Catherine was just there to play the perfect wife, make small talk with the right people, charm, and entertain. But she really couldn’t be bothered. She wanted to stay home and think about Lexi instead.

Lexi had almost kissed her on the sofa. Catherine was sure of it. Lexi had looked into her eyes and tension had bubbled up inside her, sending shivers through her whole body at the thought of Lexi’s mouth on hers.What on earth was this curiosity?Catherine wondered. She was straight, wasn’t she? And yet here she was, feeling a burning desire for a woman—a very beautiful woman, but still, awoman. Catherine had never looked at women like this before, had never looked atanyonelike this before, with this desperate need for them to kiss her.

After leaving the room with the nurses, Catherine had felt flustered, worried that they might have noticed something.Could they see what was happening?Of course not. She was Dr.James Spencer’s wife. She hadn’t done anything inappropriate…yet. She contemplated skipping the hospital gala, but she knew James would be mad if she didn’t go. She had to make an appearance for both of them.

Catherine finished curling her hair in the mirror. It looked good, and her makeup was flawless. She selected a royal blue silk gown. The color reminded her of Lexi’s eyes, and the thought made her mind wander to the rest of Lexi’s body. Catherine remembered noticing Lexi looking at her nipples through that sheer blouse, and how much she’d liked feeling the other woman’s eyes on her.

She slipped into the silk dress. It was floor-length, with a slit up one side that showed off a decent amount of thigh, but not too much. The thing about James was that he liked her to dress classy but sexy, though nottoosexy. Other people should find her attractive, but nottooattractive. It was a look Catherine naturally pulled off well. Or had it ever really been natural? She’d been living this way ever since she met James in med school—conservative yet alluring.

Catherine slipped into her heels and headed out the door. The car and driver were waiting for her. She was thoughtful on the way to the gala. The event was being held at the Ridgemont Hotel, a five-star luxury skyscraper on the beachfront. It wasn’t too far from her house, and soon she was stepping out of the car, smiling and charming as she walked into the event, surrounded by doctors, benefactors, and sponsors—very wealthy people. This was as much Catherine’s job as surgery itself, but it felt strange being there without James. It wasn’t the first time she’d attended one of these things without him, though.

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