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“I’m a trauma surgeon.”
His head tilts in my direction, and his eyes dance about my face. “Funny, so am I. And we happen to be stuck in the same elevator together. That’s an odd coincidence.”
“Well, you know what they say about coincidences, don’t you?”
His lips twitch. “No. What?”
“They’re coincidental,” I deadpan.
He laughs at my corny joke and inches in closer to me. “So they are.” He angles his head the other way, giving me a knowing smirk. “You didn’t seem surprised I was a trauma surgeon too.”
I shake my head, unable to stop my Cheshire grin.
“You know who I am, don’t you? Even though you’re not supposed to yet.”
I fold my knees and lean forward, twisting so I can see his face. “Yep. That same phone-shouting cousin of mine was telling me about you before I got on the elevator. In addition to knowing everyone in this hospital, she also knows all the gossip before everyone else does.”
“Ah.” He shifts, extending his legs and crossing them at the ankles. “That explains the wild look she was giving you.”
“A look I clearly missed since I didn’t even register you were on the elevator with me. I thought I was alone.”
“Instead of on an elevator with your new boss,” he plays, shifting in even closer to me until his leg almost touches mine and his shoulder is only a few inches away. “I’m sorry you found out that way. I believe Wes was planning to tell each of his fifth-year residents individually before the announcement was made.”
I shrug. “It’s fine.” It’s actually not fine. Wes knows I plan to try and get pregnant on my own in the coming months, and he was on board with it. Who knows how Bennett will take to that or if it’ll affect my chances at the fellowship I’m after? “He texted me right when I got on the elevator. I suppose panicking in an elevator isn’t the best first impression a trauma surgeon can make on her new boss.”
“The first time this happened, I panicked too. I think that’s a pretty standard reaction.” He leans in, his lips twisting into a wicked grin. “And trust me, Katy, you’ve already made a perfect impression on me.”
My belly flutters, and I have to remind myself that he’s simply being polite. Nothing more. “I likely should take this time to suck up to you. Tell you I’m the best trauma surgeon in the program. But that’s not exactly my style.”
He dips his head, almost as if he’s telling me a secret, his mouth near my ear. “You don’t have to. I already know you are. Wes speaks very highly of you. He tells me you’re his ace.”
I inch in too. I can’t seem to stop it. The energy flowing between us is too electric, too delicious to resist. Even if I know I should. “Rumor has it you’re a hotshot from somewhere in the Midwest.”
“I came here from the Mayo Clinic.”
A smile curls up my face. “You’re not denying you’re a hotshot.”
“You’re not denying you’re an ace,” he retorts, playing with me.
“Nope. I’m the best.”
“Of that, I have no doubt,” he maintains, tipping his head down and inching forward. His shoulder brushes mine, and my breath catches. I’m positive he hears it. “Still, I’ll refrain from making a final determination until after I see you in action in the OR.”
The air drifts out of my lungs as he tucks a strand of wayward hair behind my ears, making warm tingles skate across my skin and raising the hairs on the back of my neck. His touch is so unexpected, so intimate, it shocks me, making my heart lurch in my chest.
Like his hand on my chin or the brush of his shoulder, just as quickly as it was there, it’s gone, his hand returning to his lap, but his magnetic gaze hasn’t left mine, making the air in the elevator feel thick and intense.
But worse than that, he smells good. Not like the hospital—which is what I’m positive I must smell like—but like tea tree oil and musk. Like sandalwood and spice. Like men’s bodywash, which in my humble opinion, is more delicious than cologne.
I’m not thinking about the fact that I’m stuck in an elevator or that he’s my new boss. I’m thinking about that night so long ago. The one where he pulled me into a corner and kissed me like my mouth was everything he had been searching for his entire life.
And it needs to stop. Now.
That was a long time ago, and I’m not that girl anymore. Moreover, I refuse to ever be her again. My career and the things I’m trying for mean too much to me, and with him now running the trauma department, he holds my future in his hands.
I move to pull back, suddenly realizing our proximity when the lights pop on and the elevator bounces before it starts moving again. I shoot up to my feet, and he does the same, albeit at a slightly slower pace.
“Looks like the power came back on. And we survived without plummeting to our deaths,” I tease awkwardly, my voice high-pitched. Mercifully, the elevator chimes, and the doors open. “Thank you for, well, I don’t know. Making it so I didn’t panic too much. I have to go check on my patient. See you around, Dr. Lawson.”
