Page 26 of Egotistical Jerk
As much as I would've liked to stand there and analyze my thoughts, it wasn't the time. So I pushed them to the back of my mind and after taking the water bottles from Simon, I followed him back outside.
As soon as we stepped foot on the deck, the twins came barreling toward us. "Mommy said we could go watchFrozen."
"Again?" My friend asked dramatically. "Aren't you girls tired ofAnnaandElsayet?"
"No!" they cried in unison before dashing past us into the house.
"I swearDisneyhas taken over my house," Simon muttered. "Our daughters need new movies to watch," he said to Bridget as he placed one of the wine glasses in front of her.
Dragging the glass closer, she gave him a sideways glance. "Don't pretend you don't like it; I've heard you sing along more than once."
"Busted!" He laughed heartily.
Bending down, he pressed a kiss to the top of her head before slipping into the chair opposite her. When my gaze turned to Mia, I'd expected her to be watching the exchange between Simon and Bridget. She wasn't. Her eyes had been on me, and damn if that didn't have a thrill licking its way down my spine.
What excited me even more was even though she had been caught red-handed, she refused to look away. Bright red stained her cheeks but she kept her eyes trained on me as I slowly approached to place her water in front of her.
She eyed the bottle before meeting my gaze again. "Thank you."
My lips stretched into a grin. "You're very welcome."
And because I couldn't help myself, I winked before moving around the table to collapse into the chair opposite her. Leaning back, I stretched out and got a kick out of her sucking in a quick breath when our legs brushed. Nibbling on her lip, Mia shook her head slightly and snatched the bottle off the table, unscrewed the cap and swallowed down half the water.
"So, Mia," Simon's voice sounded. "How long have you been in Providence?"
She set the bottle and the cap on the table. With a small smile, she focused on my friend. "All my life."
I sat up straighter. How had I not run into her before? I must've said it out loud because her attention was on me when she spoke, "You're a lot older than I am and we don't exactly run in the same circles."
A lot older…
Yeah, like that wasn't a punch to the balls. I was impressed with myself when I managed to keep my voice steady. "Same circles?"
"Your parents are world-renowned surgeons. The best in their fields. My dad was the school janitor." Her shoulders rose and fell as if that was all the explanation that was needed.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Bridget reaching for her. "Was? Your dad—"
I saw the pain in her eyes before I heard a hint of it in her words. "He died a year and a half ago."
She didn't elaborate, and no one asked her to. The conversation quickly moved to a happier subject, or at least as happy as it can get when you're talking about the weirdest cases to enter the ER.
"In his butt?" Mia choked on her water. Brushing the back of her hand over her mouth, she leaned closer to Bridget. "As ininside?"
Shaking her head, Bridget held up her hands. "I swear on my life, he had a little dolphin car freshener right up in there."
"But why?"
I kept my gaze on Mia while Bridget explained to her that the young man and his girlfriend wanted to spice up their lunch-time car hookup but couldn't find anything to stick up in there, so they just grabbed the poor dolphin dangling from the rearview mirror.
Laughter spilled from her lips. It wasn't one of those delicate laughs, either. It was loud and a little off-key, but so damn beautiful. I wanted to hear more of it.Iwanted to be the reason for that joyous sound.
"The ER is a very interesting place," Simon said. "If things don't work out in diagnostics, I'd be more than happy to have you on the team."
My narrowed gaze shot to my friend, who simply winked while pulling his shoulders to his ears. "You have no shame, Simon. Trying to poach my doctor right in front of me."
"It's only poaching if I go," Mia announced. Watching me carefully, she added, "I don't want to be anywhere else, my heart has been in diagnostics for years."
I heard the truth and conviction in her words. Felt it in my bones. We might've had very different childhoods, but Mia and I were cut from the same cloth. Every time I heard the passion in her voice when she spoke of medicine, it was like a puzzle piece clicking into place.
