Page 5 of Fierce-Jax

Least of all people trying to play matchmaker!

“Tori,”Carolyn Fierce said, popping her head into an office, waving to one of her current matchmaking couples and moving along.

She’d been on her way to talk to Jax, but he had an employee sitting in there while he went to take care of something else.

As much as she wanted to get a head start on their next conquest, she knew enough to not make a nuisance of herself while they were working.

She got off the elevator on the first floor and was walking out when she saw one of her old students moving toward her with a bottle of juice in her hand. Bet she’d come down to the vending machines.

“Dillion,” she said, moving forward. “Fancy meeting you here.”

Dillion grinned. “Mrs. Fierce. You know I’ve been here for a few months. You say that every time you see me. Or come into my office to see me.”

It was a game they played.

“You know me,” she said. “Got to get my jokes in there. And when are you going to stop calling me Mrs. Fierce? It makes me sound so old now.”

Dillion laughed. What a beautiful woman she’d turned out to be.

“I wouldn’t want you to feel old. But you know, we’ve got a thing or two that could help you in my practice if you’re interested.”

Carolyn snorted. She knew Dillion did some cosmetic procedures. Or had staff that did.

“I always say I’ll pass, but if anyone can convince me to get a bit of Botox or filler to reduce the lines my children have put on my face, it’d be you.”

Dillion laughed. “Good thing I’ve got access to it when I need it. At four, Gianna might be turning my hair gray.” Dillion leaned down. “I pulled out two this week. It’s part of my daily routine now searching for them.”

“It’s only beginning,” she said. “Imagine having two sets of twins ages four and two.”

“No,” Dillion said, shaking her head rapidly. “Gianna is four going on fourteen. She scares me. I hope I wasn’t like this with my mother.”

“You were,” she said. “I guarantee it.”

“That’s what I was afraid of,” Dillion said, sighing. “It was nice talking to you. I need to get back to my office.”

“You have a lovely day,” she said, smiling.

Hmmm, Jax and Dillion might look good together.

This day wasn’t a total loss, just a redirection from what she’d started.

2

A DELICATE PROCESS

“Hi, I’m Dr. Dillion Patrick. It’s nice to meet you. Do you go by Jaxon or something else?” She put her hand out to shake, but he lifted it and pointed to a rash on it.

“Nice to meet you too, but I’m not sure if I should be shaking. This is why I’m here. And Jax is fine,” he said.

“Let me take a look,” she said, grabbing his hand and leaning down. The minute she did, she got a pleasant whiff of something musky. Not cologne but maybe aftershave since he was clean-shaven. “When did you first notice it?”

She reached into the pocket of her lab coat, pulled out her epiluminescence microscopy and looked closer.

“It’s been a few weeks,” he said. “I’m not sure when I noticed it. I think I just saw it one day when my hand itched. I thought it was dry skin and put lotion on it.”

“Smart,” she said, pulling latex gloves out of the box on the counter to put on. “I’m going to take a scraping for a biopsy.”

“Biopsy?” he asked, his voice not as calm as it’d been.

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