“I had a patient waiting for me in the infirmary. It was an emergency.”
“How convenient.”
I exhale through my nose.
He’s testing me, pushing to see where the edge is, and I hate that I can already tell it’s not personal. It’s just what he does when it’s time to talk.
“How about we make this more interesting?”
I arch a brow. “Interesting how?”
“I tell you something about myself, you tell me something about you.”
I shake my head as I organize my papers. “That’s not how this works, Tom.”
“Oh, come on, Doc. This is all about trust, right? A mutual exchange. A connection.”
He lowers his voice in a whisper. “How am I supposed to open up if I don’t know the person I’m talking to?”
I keep my face neutral, but the tension coils low in my spine. And for some reason, that tingly feeling in my tailbone agitates something pleasant in my brain.
I love being challenged like this. The downfall? Dangerously close. He can’t push me out of my role, and there’s also this thingcalled professional boundaries I simply can’t cross, no matter what.
Don’t go there, Yosh. It won’t end well.
“Once again, Tom, I’m on this side of the table, not you.”
“I see. But you’re a person with a story. Or did you fall like an angel out of the sky with your baggage neatly sorted out?”
I look up. He keeps searching for fragile spots, the little predator. Waiting for a sign of weakness. Where did he learn to hunt like that?
It’s a good thing I’m armed with my own venomous fangs.
“Nice try, McKenna.”
“So what’s your damage, Yosh?”
“Tom…”
“Oh, come on.” He tilts his head, studying me.
“You want me to spill my guts, but I can’t even ask a single question? Are you afraid I’ll actually find out something interesting about you?”
I cross my arms, tilting my chin up. “You’re deflecting.”
“Maybe. But so are you.”
I bite my lip.Unbelievable.
“You’re good,” he says all of a sudden.
“At what?”
“At not giving a damn thing away.”
“Or maybe I know when someone’s flipping the conversation because they don’t want to talk.”
I lean back in my chair and fold my arms. “Are you afraid to lose control?”
