Page 2 of Dr. Billionaire
He spotted her at the bar when he walked in and took a moment to watch her. She was wearing a short black skirt and a red halter top, and she looked entirely uncomfortable and out of place as the bartender handed her a martini. She didn’t know he was watching, he could tell, because she took a large sip and immediately sputtered as a look of disgust came over her face. She wasn’t used to dry martinis, he suspected, and had probably ordered one to appear more sophisticated. He found that insanely charming.
“Jenna,” he said as he slid into the seat next to her. “It’s nice to meet you.”
He watched her meet his eyes and then freeze, setting her drink down in a hurry and straightening herself as if she’d been caught doing something she shouldn’t. “Mark, hi! I was just… waiting. Wow, you look just like your picture.”
“You were expecting something different?” he replied, the corner of his mouth turning up in amusement.
“Well, no. I mean, I’ve heard stories about online dating going horribly wrong, but this is the first time I’ve done it.” She looked down, as if suddenly feeling shy.
“Why don’t we move to a table,” he said, standing up, offering her his hand, and then guiding her in that direction.
The hostess, having seen Mark enter, led them to a doorway at the back of the room and held a thick black velvet curtain aside for them. Mark pulled out one of the chairs at the small room’s single elegant table for Jenna.
“It’s good to see you again, Dr. Peterson. Will you be having wine?”
“Yes, a glass of cabernet for me, and a glass of Moscato for the lady, please,” he answered, then turned to wink at Jenna. “You’ll like it, it’s sweet.”
He enjoyed seeing her blush, though he wasn’t certain if it was due to the fact that he had called out her youthful distaste for dry alcohol or the fact that he had taken the liberty of ordering for her. Either way, she seemed intent on ignoring both of those things as she continued the conversation without missing a beat.
“So, they know you here, huh?”
“I’ve been here a few times. They have the best steak in San Francisco.”
“Hmm,” she muttered, looking around. “A private room, too. You must be important.” She said this in a way similar to how one would observe that it was a warm day outside rather than someone who was actually impressed.
“I’ve had the opportunity to make a lot of connections through my job,” Mark said carefully.
Her eyes widened. “Are you in the mafia or something?”
Mark let out a genuine laugh. “Nothing so dramatic, I’m just a doctor. I mean, I was until a few years ago.”
“Oh… what does that mean? What kind of doctor?”
“I went to school for radiology. But then I ended up inventing a new technology to improve MRI machines. It took about a year to get the patents and business stuff worked out with some college buddies, and then it just blew up. Turns out the money in health care tech is huge.”
“Oh,” Jenna said, picking up her glass of wine and taking a sip. “So, you’re… pretty set, then.”
The waitress returned and took their order, and Jenna ordered for herself this time, after a brief pause and a glance at him. He may have just been reading into things, but he thought he noticed a slight hint of disappointment flicker over her face when he didn’t comment on her choice of the lobster tortelli.
Fuck, this girl is intoxicating.
He boldly reached out to take her hand once the waitress had left.
“So, what about you?” he asked.
“What about me?” Jenna asked, uncomfortable that the conversation had shifted so quickly to her.
“Tell me about yourself. What do you do?”
Oh shit. This is the part where he judges me for being a complete basket case.
Jenna took a breath, quieting her inner voice. She shouldn’t be worrying about what this guy thought of her career prospects—or lack thereof—anyway. She should be worrying about flirting sufficiently for him to offer to pay her bills.
“I’m kind of… between jobs right now. I was a bartender, but it wasn’t really for me. But I’m thinking of going back to school for something. Nursing, maybe.”
Where the fuck had that come from?
She’d never thought of going into medicine before. She’d never even gone to college. Apparently, all it took was a handsome, super-rich doctor sitting in front of her for her career aspirations to shift to being a nurse… his nurse, preferably.
