Page 10 of His to Keep

Liam blinked in surprise at the question, thrown off by the sudden change in topic. He hesitated before answering, averting his gaze. "He's... not here right now," he said vaguely, clearly unwilling to divulge more information.

"Shame," Colt mused, stepping closer to Liam. Their eyes locked. "If you were mine, I'd make sure you were taken care of."

Liam swallowed hard, his cheeks flushing a deep shade of pink. But even as he looked away, Colt could see the spark of confusion in his eyes, the curiosity that stirred beneath the surface.

Outside the bar last night, Colt had seen the way that Liam had eyed him when he'd thought Colt wasn't watching. There might have been a ring on his finger, but that hadn't stopped the good doctor from taking a long, hard look at Colt.

"Look, I don't want anything from your family," Liam said finally, breaking the silence. He stepped back, trying to put as much distance between them as possible. "Nothing at all."

With that, Liam turned on his heel and practically sprinted away, his white coat flapping behind him like a flag of surrender.

Colt watched him go, his eyes taking in every detail of Liam's retreating figure. Overworked, overtired, a little underweight — and, although he hadn't admitted as much, clearly lonely. Liam needed something more than a sad cafeteria sandwich. It made Colt's protector instincts flare up inside him.

"Watch out, Doc," Colt muttered under his breath as he walked away. "I'm going to find you something you can't refuse."

Chapter four

Liam strode through the staff entrance of the emergency department, the familiar smell of antiseptic and the hushed urgency of the hospital greeting him like a long-lost friend.

It had been days since his second encounter with Colt. At first, Liam had jumped at every shadow, fearing that the Thorne enforcer was about to ambush him again.

He'd seen the Thorne men dotted around certain hallways of the hospital. It hadn't taken a genius to figure out who it was in the special ward upstairs.

So if Zane was up there, so was Colt. Liam had seen enough of Colt to appreciate how loyal he was to his boss.

But after the incident at the cafeteria, Colt hadn't bothered Liam again. Everything had gone quiet. Back to normal.

Maybe Colt had actually listened to him.

Liam could only hope that was the case.

He entered the staff entrance, his mind already filled with thoughts about the long day ahead.

"Liam! What are you doing here?" Susan, his manager, approached him with a surprised and confused smile.

He paused, puzzled by her reaction. "I'm here for my shift, of course. Why do you ask?"

"But… you're off the roster for the week! HR was very emphatic about that — not that they bothered to tell mewhy, of course." She raked him over with her eyes, clearly interested in whatever gossip she could worm out of him.

As she chattered on, fishing for gossip, Liam's blood began to boil.

He hadn't requested any time off.

There was only one person who could have interfered: Colt.

Liam had turned him down! The thought of the mafia enforcer meddling in his life despite his will sent a surge of anger coursing through him.

Liam clenched his jaw, struggling to maintain his composure. "Actually, Susan, I didn't request any time off," he said, trying to keep his voice level. "There must have been some kind of mix-up."

"Oh, well... I'll look into it," she replied, her curiosity dampened. "But either way, you have the week off. I've already reshuffled the roster, and I amnotabout to do it again. Try to make the best of it."

Oh, for the love of…! "Sure thing," Liam muttered, forcing a tight-lipped smile.

As soon as she walked away, Liam's thoughts turned to Colt. The infuriating man had gone behind his back to reward him with something he never asked for. He could feel the heat rising in his cheeks, the anger simmering just below the surface.

How dare Colt interfere in his life like this? The last thing Liam wanted was for the mafia to think they had any influence over him.

Instead of heading home to enjoy the unexpected time off, Liam's fury fueled him up the hospital stairs towards Zane Thorne's room. He needed answers, and he knew he'd find them there. Each step brought him closer to confrontation, but there was no turning back now.

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