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“Damn, you’ve given this a lot of thought.”
“Let’s just say, I’ve had my share of stalkers and crazy women.”
Aiden closed his locker and turned to his friend. “Well, it’s our third date, so…”
“Third date?” Miles waggled his eyebrows. “You know what that means.”
He laughed. “Yeah, she mentioned that, too.”
Miles watched him carefully. “Why do I get a feeling there’s a ‘but,’ in there?”
Aiden shrugged. “No buts. I just don’t know if I want to take it to that level yet. Especially on Valentine’s Day. You made some valid points about the day’s significance that I hadn’t considered.”
“Yeah, that’s not it. You’re not over Dakota.”
He sighed. “Not entirely. But I’m getting there. I don’t think about her every freaking waking minute anymore. And, like I said, this is my third date with Jean, so I’m moving on.”
“Good for you, man. If Bridget ever left me, I think I’d be drunk for at least a year, and a wreck for the next decade.”
Aiden didn’t mention he had been drunk for almost a week after it happened.
“Bridget loves you, and that makes all the difference.”
Miles nodded. He understood what Aiden was leaving unsaid, and being a good friend, didn’t push for more.
“Well, enjoy Valentine’s Day with your new lady. I promised my wife a romantic night out, so hopefully today’s surgery goes smoothly, and I get out of here on time.”
“You and me, both.”
“Remember—you’re not the only cardiologist who works here. I never realized how fucking out of whack my personal and professional life was until I got married and had a daughter. I don’t want to miss a minute of her growing up. But people aren’t used to me having a home life, so they seem surprised and get their nose out of joint when I tell them no.”
“I’m working on the whole work-life balance thing myself. Working one hundred hours a week didn’t make my problems go away, it just helped me put off dealing with them for a while.”
Miles grinned. “Too bad your problems aren’t financial, I’m sure the hundred-hour weeks would’ve helped that.”
“Yeah, Kailey is definitely going to benefit. I’m buying her a car.”
“I can’t believe she’s sixteen. I remember when she started kindergarten.”
Aiden smiled at the memory of her in pigtails, wearing the navy-blue jumper with the bright red apple on the front that she’d picked out at the mall. How she’d smiled brightly as she waved when he and Susan left her classroom.
“Yeah, me too. It goes fast. You make sure to enjoy that baby girl while she’s still a baby.”
“Way ahead of ya. Enjoy your date.” With a cocky smirk, he added, “Don’t let her pressure you into doing anything you don’t want to do. Men have a right to say no just as much as women.”
“Fuck you.”
With a cackle, Miles walked out of the locker room, leaving Aiden alone with his thoughts.
Jean was a great woman. She was smart, pretty, and had a terrific sense of humor. There wasn’t a reason in the world he shouldn’t be attracted to her.
Yet, their goodnight kisses had done nothing for him. His dick didn’t get hard simply by her walking in the room, not like it had when he was with Dakota, when all he ever wanted was her in his arms, all the time.
Maybe that was the problem. They were too hot, too fast.
Bullshit,his inner voice chided.I loved her with her clothes on, too.
It didn’t matter. She didn’t love him back.
