Page 64 of Accidental Doctor Daddy

I sat back slightly, the question hitting harder than I expected. My jaw clenched as I looked away for a beat, running a hand down my face. “Not yet.”

Her brows drew together. “Not ever? Or… just not now?”

I met her gaze again. “Just give me a little more time. I’m this close to locking in the administrator role. If Seth finds out I had a personal relationship with a patient—no matter how complicated the situation was—it’ll be over. He’ll use it to bury me.”

She was quiet for a moment, chewing her bottom lip like she was trying to bite down a dozen thoughts.

“Is the promotion really that important?” she asked softly.

I didn’t hesitate. “Yes. Especially now.”

She blinked, caught off guard by how quickly I answered.

I leaned in, brushing my fingers over hers. “It’s not about the money. You know I don’t need this job for that.”

Her brows lifted slightly, but she didn’t speak.

“This promotion… it’s about proving I still have something to offer. That I’m not done. That I can still lead, still build something meaningful. I’ve built companies, teams, and systems—but this hospital? It’s personal. I’ve given twenty years of my life to it. And now, with the girls here, with you… I want to show them what it means to fight for something that matters. I want to make them proud.”

Her eyes softened. “So this is about legacy.”

I nodded. “Exactly. It’s not about the title. It’s about who I get to be—for them.”

Ella smiled softly at my words, that little dimple of hers showing. It felt like the air shifted—lighter, less tense.

Then I added, “Also, I heard you and Carrie talking about a nanny.”

Her brow arched. “You were eavesdropping now, too?”

“I was trapped in a goddamn closet. I didn’t exactly have a choice.” I gave her a crooked grin. “But it’s a good idea.”

Her lips quirked. “You think I should hire a stranger to watch the twins?”

“I think,” I said, moving in closer, “we need a night out. Just you and me. Somewhere no one knows us. Somewhere we’re not parents or coworkers or secrets. Just… two people who really want to see where this goes.”

She looked at me for a long moment. “A real date?”

“A real date,” I confirmed. “No hospital scrubs. No baby monitors. Just us. Maybe even some bad lighting and overpriced cocktails.”

Ella laughed, the sound like a balm after everything we’d been through. “I don’t even know if I remember how to flirt.”

I pulled her on top of my lap, my mouth brushing the shell of her ear. “Lucky for you, I do.”

She shivered, just slightly, and tilted her face up to mine. “Dom…”

“I never got to finish what I started this morning,” I murmured, letting my hand drift to the knot of her robe. “You said yes, remember?”

Her breath hitched. “I remember.”

My mouth found hers, slow at first, deepening as her hands slid up my chest. The robe slipped open, and my hand found her waist, pulling her flush against me. God, the feel of her bodystill made me dizzy. She melted into me, and I was already hard again, ready to lose myself in her.

Straddling my lap, her robe parted just enough to drive me insane. Our mouths moved in sync—hungry, unfiltered, the kiss deepening until I was dizzy with need. My hands slid up her thighs, slow and teasing, and then one found its way between them.

She gasped as my fingers brushed over her slick heat.

I found her clit and circled it, slow at first, then firmer, just the way I remembered she liked. Her hips rolled instinctively, chasing the friction.

Ella let her head fall back with a moan, lips parted, hair tumbling wild over her shoulders.

---