Playing Doctor

I miss you, she mouthed, her glance moving to the nurse who had her back to them.

Me too, he mouthed back without making a sound, then sighed. He really wanted to pull her into his arms and hug the crap out of her and make sure she was all right emotionally after everything with Marcus, but of course he couldn't. "Well, everything is sounding as good as can be expected. I think we'll keep you here for another day, just so we can make sure you're on the mend. I'll check back in on you tomorrow and we'll see if you're ready to be discharged."

"Thank you, Doctor." Aurelia smiled at him, but she looked so tired it didn't quite reach her eyes.

A month later, Daniel waited in his office for Aurelia to show up for her appointment. She'd been making rapid progress with the stress of Marcus and his harassment gone from her life. He'd been convicted and sentenced to three months in jail, which was giving Aurelia a chance to make a good recovery.

Every appointment was beautiful torture because he couldn't take her in his arms and hold her or tell her that he loved her. Instead, he had to be professional. He had to keep everything bottled up. But at night, over the phone and in video chats, he told her everything he was thinking and feeling. He couldn't want for the day he could release her as his patient, and it was getting closer the faster she improved.

"Ms. Carson is here, Doctor. Exam room two."

"Thank you, Helen." He rose from his desk, stepped into the hall, and headed for the room labeled Exam Two. He pulled her file from the holder on the wall and went in. "Good afternoon, Ms. Carson, how are you feeling today?"

"Pretty good, actually. No pain, my breathing is improving, and I've been able to up my exercise, as the weakness is starting to go away."

"That is good to hear. How are you managing your stress? Any issues?"

"Nope, I'm pretty stress free at the moment." She smiled and rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness of the conversation.

Of course, it was only ridiculous because he already knew all of this from video chatting with her the evening before. He grinned and winked at her. "Well, let's give your heart a listen and we'll get you back on your way, alright?"

"Great, because I have a client file waiting for me to go over back at the office."

"How is work going?" he asked, as he would any patient who'd brought up their job, only with her, he was really interested in hearing. They'd talked about this as well the night before, but she'd been hoping to gain a particular new client and he had a feeling this was the client she was speaking about.

"It's going really well. I landed a new client for the firm, so that's the file that’s awaiting me. I can't wait to get started on it."

Daniel put his stethoscope away after listening to her heart. "Well, good luck with it. Everything is looking good. Your heart is sounding stronger. Just keep to your routine, and I'll see you next Tuesday."

"Okay, thank you, Dr. West." She smiled and left the exam room.

The next few months were going to be a pain in the ass, Daniel sighed, but worth it when he could officially start dating her for real.

Chapter 18

Aurelia

Two months later

"I can't believe you asked him out!" Aurelia frowned at her next-door neighbor and best friend as they sat at the outdoor tables of the local coffee shop.

"Why? He's a fox, and he's got a job. He enjoys photography—"

"Of course, he does! He's a freaking private investigator!" Aurelia shook her head.

"He takes other pictures too, Lia, not just of husbands and wives committing adultery." Kelly rolled her eyes.

"So, tell me everything! How did it go?"

Kelly grinned. "We're going out again on Friday."

"Really? You like him that much?"

"Nathan's pretty cool, he was a cop before he became a PI. He's doing really well. And yes, I like him." Kelly blushed as she looked down at her coffee mug. "He did give me the shots he took of you and Daniel, and he told me he deleted them from his camera. He's a good guy, Lia."

Aurelia reached a hand out to her and smiled. "If you say he is, then he must be. I'm glad you two hit it off."

"Really? I don't want you to hate him, you know?"

"I don't. He was just doing his job. He could have been a bit nicer about it, talked to me instead of smirking and running off before I could confront him, but I get it. I mean, I'm sure he gets many angry cheaters who try to confront him. Except I wasn't cheating. But he didn't know that, so I'll let it slide."