Heartthrob (The Bennett Brothers 3)

I stare after him, my mind spinning with the turn of our conversation. Charlene Sams may have thought she was going to get her way by sending my boss to convince me to join her, but she’s going to be pissed if, instead, he creates his own research study, and I lead.

My ass doesn’t hit the seat before Clint appears, walking right in. “Dr. Mathis, you got a minute?”

“Seems like the theme of the day.”

“Excuse me?”

“Nothing,” I motion to a chair, “have a seat.”

He sits, and I notice immediately something is off. His body language is tense, his eyes glazed, and his vibe nervous and unfocused.

“Are you okay?” I ask.

“I need to tap into your medical expertise.”

“On what?”

“Statistical analysis on the various mortality and survival rates concerning treatments on Lymphoma, stage three.”

I jerk back, not expecting that. “That’s very involved. It

could take a while for me to give you my opinions, but I would never advise without seeing a specific case. Treatments are all individualized, for children especially.”

“Can you tell me about Josh?”

“What about Josh?”

“His case, his treatment plan, all of it.”

“Why are you interested? This is extremely advanced for physician assistant curriculum.”

“Something about him gets to me. I know it’s not wise to get emotionally involved with patients, especially considering my status here as an intern, but after what happened with Kesha, Josh has been weighing heavily on my mind.”

I’ve been doing this long enough to see it clearly. It’s not what he said but how he said it. Somewhere along the line, he’s been personally affected by cancer.

“I don’t mind discussing it with you, but as I mentioned, all treatment plans are individualized and cases are different.”

“Got it.”

Like most patients, I remember the specifics about Josh’s diagnosis. Symptomatically, he was originally diagnosed with meningitis until the illness didn’t go away. I launch into the story with Clint, explaining how his plan was devised, his response to the chemotherapy, and remission rates among other patients in similar cases. When I’m finished, my early thought is confirmed. He’s staring intensely at me, and it’s obvious his mind is on someone.

I stay quiet, watching him process the information, and see the moment it sinks in. Josh’s chances of hitting remission are high, which seems to encourage Clint.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I’m impressed you’ve taken an interest in him.”

“I hope the little guy pulls through.”

“We all do.”

“When he does, you may be in trouble.” His demeanor changes.

“Why is that?”

“You have to know he has his sights set on Claire. I’d say it’s more than a crush.” He chuckles, sitting back casually.

“That has not gone unnoticed. It’s also not uncommon. She has that effect on a lot of people.”