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I peek up at him, still confused, wondering why the hell we are going to a donors party. Blood donors? Organ donors? What the hell are we doing here?
She escorts us through the dining area to a private room in the back, checking out Sloan over her shoulder as she makes polite conversation with us. French doors open to an impressive space with leather couches built into the walls and dinner tables placed throughout the room, with fresh flowers and lit candles on all the tabletops. On our right is a long wooden bar that ends at the entrance to the kitchen.
Packed with men and women in formal wear, from the bar to the couches, I can hardly see a foot in front of me. Some of the people in the private dining room look somewhat familiar, though I can’t quite place their faces. Not until someone calls Sloan Dr. Hart does it dawn on my why I know some of them. It’s a donor party, as in rich men who give money to the hospital to create new wings and fund some of our projects.
Why am I here? Now, I’m even more confused.
I tug on Sloan’s suit jacket to get his attention. “Explain,” I whisper to him.
He dips down to my height. The heat from his breath on the back of my neck sends chills down my spine. “The chief told me to pick a first-year resident to bring to the party, and since your father is one of the donors being honored, I thought you would like to see him.”
My mouth widens in surprise when I follow Sloan’s finger to find my father at the other end of it. Across the room, dressed in one of his signature Ralph Lauren suits, Dr. Lawrence Roberts looks like a million bucks. Whether it’s his scrubs and lab coat or a tailored suit, my father exudes confidence and wealth. A brilliant man, one who comes from a long line of successful doctors, raised me to walk in his shoes. Cardio is where he thinks I belong. I still have no idea where I fit.
With Sloan at my side, I stroll over to meet my dad, who has a group of men hovering around him, hanging on to his every word. He has the kind of magnetism I saw in Sloan from the start. People are drawn to men like my father and Sloan. It’s not just their good looks or killer charm. No, they i
mpress with their minds, a quality I love most about each of them.
My dad’s face lights up when he locks eyes with me. “Excuse me,” he says to the men next to him and makes his way toward me. He kisses me on each cheek as he pulls me into his arms. “Darling, I had no idea you would be here.”
I kiss him back and laugh. “Well, I guess that makes two of us. I had no idea I was coming here until an hour ago.”
He smiles, holding me at arm’s length. “You were chosen as the first-year resident. I’m happy to hear it. Of course you were. Anyone who knows their ass from a hole in the ground knows the Roberts name means something in this town.”
Sloan holds out his hand for my father to shake. “Dr. Roberts, nice to see you again.”
“Ahh, Dr. Hart, I see you have good taste. The apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree with my daughter. I can assure you she will be the best in her residency class.”
“She already is,” Sloan confesses. “Ava helped me with a exploratory laparotomy on her first day. She’s a very gifted doctor. I have no doubt that some day she will become one of our top surgeons at Penn General.”
“Glad to hear it,” my dad says with pride. “Pretty soon Ava will be assisting me with triple bypass surgeries. From there, the sky’s the limit.”
“Dad, I haven’t picked a specialty yet,” I remind him because he seems to need one all the time.
“Cardio is in your blood. You know what they say, the heart wants what the heart wants. You will see for yourself soon enough.”
My father loves to make his usual lame jokes about the heart. At least he’s not a dentist. I would have to hear stupid jokes about plaque. Well, I still hear his plaque jokes, except he’s referring to the kind that builds up in your arteries.
“General surgery is just as good,” Sloan says to my dad. “It provides a surgeon with more opportunities to expand their horizon.”
In typical Lawrence Roberts fashion, he flashes a smile that I know is forced and pats Sloan on the arm. “Of course. It’s just as admirable. But my Ava will follow in my footsteps. I know she will make the right choice.”
Translation—nothing is better than cardiothoracic surgery. I have no choice. My father made it for me when I was a child. In fact, he probably made it for me before I was even born. The Cardiology wing at Penn General is named for my great grandfather, Wellington Roberts III. So, when my father says I was born into cardio, he’s not kidding.
As much as I try to deny him, even I know that cardio is very much in my blood. That doesn’t mean I can’t give him a hard time in the process. My mother was my father’s nurse anesthetist. Much like Sloan and me, they met at the hospital where my father began his residency. Even my mom convinces me on a weekly basis to choose what I already know will be my endgame.
“There is no right or wrong choice,” Sloan says to my father, holding his ground.
Dad goes rigid from his comment. But only someone who knows him as well as I do would notice the slight change in his stance, the way he carefully bites his tongue. “I suppose that is true.”
As always, my dear old dad shoots back with a politician’s response. I have no doubt I will hear an earful about Sloan tomorrow. I like Sloan more than I already did for challenging my dad—because no one ever voices their opinion with him. Other than me.
“I have to make my rounds,” my dad says to me, now ignoring Sloan’s gaze. He’s pissed, as I knew he would be the minute Sloan opened his mouth. “Make sure you mingle, Ava. One day one of these men could be funding your passion project. Make a good impression.”
I give him a closed-mouth smile and nod.
My dad tips his head at Sloan. “Dr. Hart. A pleasure, as always.”
Translation: He doesn’t like Sloan. Well, fuck me. If my dad doesn’t approve of Sloan, he sure as hell won’t like the fact that I am sort of dating him. Sloan is the director of my residency program, which is no small feat. It takes years of training and skill to hold such a coveted position at a teaching hospital such as Penn General.
