Page 75 of Sinful in Scrubs

I couldn’t help but smile as I saw Jason’s face light up. “Are you getting married?” he asked.

Emma turned to face me, eyes wide, lips pursed together.

I shook my head. “We’re not there yet, kid. We’re not there yet. But potentially, she’s going to be moving in with us.”

“That’s fantastic! Does that mean you’ll play Mario Kart with me?”

“I’ll play Mario Kart with you,” Emma responded, “but right now, your dad and I have some work to get done.”

“Are you sure about this, Dad?” Lily asked.

“I’m more than sure of it, Lily. I’ve been hoping that we would be able to do this. That everyone would be able to get along and work out living together.”

“This is going to be the topic of therapy for the next couple of weeks, but I should be fine,” Lily said. She had a huge grin on her face. I thought she might be more than okay with Emma moving in with us.

Emma reached out for Lily. “I want you to be okay with this too.”

“I’ll be okay with it. I promise,” Lily said.

“I am so relieved,” Emma smiled, and the kids shuffled their way through the door.

“I thought you were going to tell them,” I said as she closed the door behind the kids.

“For a second there, I thought so too,” she admitted. “Now that that’s taken care of, we need to get this presentation situated.”

“You expect me to be able to focus now?” I joked.

“You ate all that good for your brain food. Yes, I do expect you to focus.”

“Can I at least kiss you first?” I stood and crossed the room to where Emma stood. I slid my arm around her back and pulled her in close before dipping my face down to hers. That first kiss after having missed her for weeks was tender and sweet.

The urge to deepen the kiss and turn this moment into something more intense was fierce. Having Emma in my arms was entirely too tempting. There was no way we would be able to get our proposal done if we continued kissing at that moment.

We spent hours late into the night discussing our plan. And the next week, every spare minute we had together—where I wasn’t staring into her beautiful eyes, just realizing how incredibly lucky I was—we spent focused on this presentation.

Emma was aware she had a rare second chance to rectify what had gone wrong the first time, and I was here to make sure she didn’t get blindsided when it came time to stand in front of the review board, even with Kevin present.

And when the actual presentation began, Emma spoke clearly, articulating our concerns and the needs of the ER department. She outlined how vital it was to have someone who could act as a liaison between the emergency crews, the nurses, the doctors, and the facilities. We needed someone who could prioritize triage so that those who truly needed help weren’t left waiting in fear and pain.

“Thank you for your insights into ways of improving how we care for patients,” the head of the board—whose name I couldn’t remember—said as he stood up. He extended his hand, first to Emma, then to me. “This was a fine presentation, and I see where we missed some details the first time.”

I did not miss the sharp glare he sent in Kevin’s direction.

“We have much to discuss,” he continued, “and I think you’ll be hearing from us much sooner rather than later.” He paused, looking directly at Emma. “I understand that you temporarily left us for the West Coast?”

Emma gave him a tight nod in response.

Just as I expected him to dismiss us, he added, “I’m glad you decided to come back. We definitely need people of your caliber here at Manhattan Memorial.”

35

EMMA

“What are you doing down here?” I teased as I followed Marcus down the administrative hallway.

“I got a call. I got a call to come to James’s office. How about you?”

“The same,” I said. “Do you know why? Have you heard anything?”

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