Page 42 of One Night Only

Their presence is a stark reminder that she has a whole life outside this suite, one that doesn’t include me. My heart plummets all the way to my stomach.

Last night, whatever she was seeking, she found it with me. But can I truly be a part of her world? Would she want me, even if we got over all the other hurdles?

Yes. That gut instinct that got me this far in my life screams back at me. I would never hurt her like these idiots, never neglect her like her older siblings, never want her to be someone else like her parents had.

I’ve never felt seen like I do with you.

I clutch her words from last night as if they are a lifeline. Then, I school my expression and clear my throat.

Ani’s gaze lifts first, sweeping over my damp hair, the small nick on my jaw, and my clothes. For just a second, her brilliant smile falls, as if someone has flipped a switch inside her.

I know the precise emotion she’s feeling right then—falling endlessly. And as pathetic as it is to want her to be as miserable as I am, at least she is right there with me.

She steps back from her friends. “Good morning, Dr. Cross,” she says, a little too fast. “Uh, this is Zach and Rahul.”

They both turn, looking at me fully. The beat of silence that follows is as deafening as the storm’s shenanigans last night. Rahul moves toward Ani in a very late, near-pathetic attempt to protect her.From me?

I don’t know whether to laugh that this bear of a man considers me a threat or to be annoyed when he’s the one who hurt her last night.

“You are Dr. Cross?” Rahul finally says, eyes wide. “Martha’s son?”

I raise a brow. “Do you want to see identification?”

Zach whistles low, gaze running over me as if I’m a designer jacket he just spotted in the spring lineup. “Jesus, Ani,” he says, looking between us. “You run out into a storm and fall smack dab into the arms of a DILF surgeon? How’s life even fair?”

Ani slaps his shoulder. “Do you want to go over why I ran out in the first place? As for Dr. Cross, he isn’t...he’s not some stranger I picked up on the street,” she finishes awkwardly.

My heart prowls in my chest like a caged animal. God, I’m too old for this kind of rollercoaster of emotions. But I’m not running away either. The panic in her eyes makes me want to hold her tight and soothe her. “You don’t have to give this a label just to satisfy their juvenile curiosity, sweetheart.”

She stares at me as if I’ve sprouted two horns.

“I think I understand why,” Rahul clears his throat as his brown eyes meet mine, “you forgave us so easily.”

“Got some good, did you, pet?” Zach says to her with a smirk.

Heat rushes to my cheeks, a little from embarrassment and a little from anger. “You have the nerve to tease her after the stunt you pulled last night? She could have been seriously hurt because of your asinine behavior.”

Rahul pales, while Zach covers up his guilt with a defensive lift of his shoulders.

I place my hand on Ani’s back slowly, giving her time to back away if she needs to. Even though it would cut me up. Like I just reassured her, we don’t have to perform our relationship for anyone. All I want is to be a safe space for her, whatever the situation.

My breath settles when she presses her side into me with a quiet sigh. The scent of her—deeper and warmer in the morning—sweeps through me, coiling around my muscles. I swallow at the sudden longing and press a quick kiss to her temple. “Why are they here?”

“Oh, they brought me a change of clothes and my medication.”

“Medication?”

She stiffens and I tighten my grip on her waist. “Just my ADHD meds. I have a lot of things on the agenda for the day.”

A lot of things she said, about how her family perceives her and how she perceives herself, fall into place for me. I ache to tell her, over and over, how magnificent she is and how lucky I am to know her.

Her voice turns soft. “I didn’t think you would mind if I let them come up.”

“Of course I don’t,” I say, lying easily. Clearly, she needs a buffer in the morning, a dose of normality, after the intense interlude at dawn.

I slant the two men my I’m very displeased look that I usually save for first-year residents. “They should have been here last night then. If they were truly worried about you.”

Rahul winces. “I texted her. She said to stay away.” He turns those puppy-dog eyes on Ani. “I never meant to hurt you.”

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