Page 21 of Dr. Attending

When I first met her, she was full of stubborn fire and unamused scowls—Parker’s kid sister who was too smart for her own good and immune to my charm. But now, as she holds my gaze like she’s challenging me to say something else, I realize something I should’ve seen long ago.

Caroline Winters isn’t a princess.

She’s a goddamn queen.

“I’m going to kill my brother,” she sneers, turning on the heel of her bright-white tennis shoe abruptly.

I’m about to call after her as she storms down the stairs, assuming this trip is already a lost cause. But she turns and throws a dangerous glare over her shoulder. “Let’s go, asshat. We’re already late.”

I chuckle as I look at my son who is also gawking at the stunning woman walking away from us.

“Don’t let her scare you, buddy,” I say, loud enough for her to hear. “She likes to pretend she hates me, but we both know she secretly has a thing for daddy.”

Carter giggles as I grab his car seat in my free hand, following behind her at a safe distance since she’s been known to throw things at me when she is feeling particularly feisty. And considering she clearly didn’t know about her brother’s grand plan, I’d say she’s already left the feisty station and is headed full speed toward Angertown U.S.A.

Caroline doesn’t look up as I approach the car, still muttering under her breath as she moves things around her trunk to make room for our assortment of bags.

I give her some room and open the back door, freezing as I set the car seat down on the tan leather interior because I have absolutely no idea how to install this thing. I left the base in mycar because I assumed that it wouldn’t be that hard to use the seatbelt method.

Turns out it is.

It almost looks like the buckle should feed through the opening at the bottom and click into place, but the more that I think about it, that doesn’t seem secure.

I take a break to buckle Carter first, hoping that a little extra time will help me work through the mechanics of where everything should go.

It doesn’t.

So, I try my first idea and attempt to feed the seatbelt through the bottom. I tug on the side when the buckle clicks into place, but I feel myself frown because it still doesn’t look right.

“You’re a surgeon, and you can’t figure out a car seat?” Caroline’s silky voice cuts through my haze of confusion. “Haven’t you done this a million times?”

My mouth twitches, wanting to smile despite my frustration. She hasn’t changed one bit.

I straighten and turn to find her standing behind me with her hands on her narrow hips. She looks like she can’t decide whether she should be concerned or amused by my incompetence.

To be fair . . . neither can I.

“I haven’t had to,” I answer, tossing the same tone back to her that she used with me. “And I was almost there, but you interrupted before I could finish.”

Caroline’s thin brow arches in challenge, like she knows I’m talking out of my ass.

“Go on then,” she says, crossing her arms like she’s settling in for a show.

Damn.

I should have known she would call my bluff—that’s one of the reasons I’ve been drawn to her since the day I met her. She’s always seen straight through me.

I look back at the car seat, hoping that it’ll magically transmit the answer for what’s wrong into my brain. The instructional image on the plastic looks identical to what I just did. The level on the side is centered. Aside from pulling out my phone to watch a help video, I’m not sure what else to try.

Fortunately, Caroline doesn’t make me pretend like I know what I’m doing for long.

“Move,” she drawls, her tone just as fiery as her touch as she pushes me aside. “I’ll do it. Go get your stuff.”

I blink for a second, distracted by the warm tingle on my arm where she pressed into me.

That’s weird.

I shake it off and step back, watching her for a second too long as she bends down to undo everything I just did.

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