JENNIE

I rode the enormous hospital elevator to the fourth floor and crossed my arms over my chest as I stepped into the chilly hallway. It was hot and humid outside, but in the hospital, it was arctic.

The hallway was lined with windows, and the sun was sinking in the sky, glaring off windshields of cars in the parking lot below. Had Liss even seen the sun today? She'd been on call since four a.m.

It was quiet as I walked along the empty hallway. There was a space to my left with a few rows of chairs, but no one was seated there waiting. I pulled out my phone and stared at the text I'd received from her a few minutes ago.

Lisa: Go to the desk and tell the receptionist you're here to see me.

My heart tripped along at double-speed. The idea of role-playing as a patient of hers? God, it turned me on. I was filled with anticipation for later tonight, excited to do this. But I also had anxiety about pretending now with strangers. Not just strangers, but her co-workers. It was dangerous, and maybe a little exciting too.

The desk was basically a wall with a sliding glass window, which was open, and when I approached, the woman seated behind it barely looked up.

"Hi. I'm here for Dr. Manoban," I said. Could she hear how unsteady my voice was?

If she did, she didn't seem to think anything of it. "Your name?"

"Jennie Kim."

She plucked a Post-It note off her desk with my name scribbled on it and nodded toward the waiting room chairs. "Have a seat. She'll be with you shortly."

I was tight and edgy as I slipped into one of the chairs and ran my sweaty palms along the side seams of my jeans. There was a clock on the far wall, and every loud tick from its second hand reverberated through my body. The wait was both uncomfortable and . . . pleasurable. My mind ran through different fantasies. How far would she let me go in the role play? Could I be the bold, naughty patient I wanted to be for her?

I practically yelped and leapt from the chair when the door swung open and Lisa leaned out. "Jennie? Come on back."

I didn't get a full look at her because she stood behind the door, holding it open for me. I shuffled along the carpet, and as soon as I stepped through the door into a new hallway, I was ushered to a room on my left.

There was a nice couch on one side, a coffee table with magazines, and two oversized chairs on the other. It was a nicer waiting room than where I'd just been, but much smaller. Only enough room for six people or so.

This had to be the place where doctors delivered their post-op summary to families. I turned to face her, and all the air whooshed from my lungs.

Lisa was essentially wearing a suit. She wore black dress pants, a white collared shirt and a cobalt-colored tie. Her suitcoat was fitted and white, and she completed the look with a turquoise stethoscope slung around her neck. My gaze traced the blue lettering over her right breast.

Lisa Manoban, MD

Trauma Surgery

It didn't matter that she had faint lines around her eyes hinting at her fatigue, or that her normally perfect hair looked disheveled, as if she'd run a hand through it one too many times. It didn't matter because she looked fucking perfect. My dirty doctor fantasy come to life.

And she gazed back at me like she wanted to eat me whole, which was more than fine with me. She sauntered over, and her confidence seemed to build with each step, widening her wicked smile.

Her voice was deep and sinful. "What seems to be the problem?"

"Problem?" I whispered.

"You're flushed. Breathing hard." She seized my wrist, pressed her index finger to my pulse point, and peered down at her watch, counting the seconds. "Your pulse is elevated."

I had no idea my wrist was an erogenous zone, but in Lisa's hands, every inch of my skin felt that way. I swallowed a breath. "I'm having a reaction to something."

God, her expression was corrupt and victorious as she walked me backward toward a wall. She feigned concern. "Any idea what's causing it?"

She wasn't playing fair, but I liked it. "No . . . Doctor."

The second the words left my mouth, we burst into flames. Her lips slammed against mine at the same instant my back hit the wall. Her hands were on my waist, then under my shirt, sliding over my belly and skimming upward. I clenched the lapels of her coat as our tongues tangled with each other, battling for control. She won, of course.

It made sense that our kiss was electric because I was a live wire tonight. Her broad chest flattened against me, her hands molding to my bra-covered breasts while she pushed me against the wall. I tore my mouth from her and turned my head to the side so I could drag air into my lungs, and her hot, wet mouth latched onto the sensitive spot below my ear, biting and sucking until I let out a moan.

It was wild what we were doing, and how fast we attacked each other, but the where we were doing this was craziest part of it. She didn't seem to have any concerns though. "Undo your pants," she rasped into my ear. "I want to check and see how severe this reaction is."

"Oh my God," I gasped. Without thinking, my hands moved to follow her command. She pulled her lower body away from mine, just enough to allow me to do it. The snap of my jeans popped open, and I couldn't get my zipper down fast enough. Should I be worried about someone catching us?

I wasn't. I trusted her. Lisa wouldn't put either of us in a position for that to happen, and her calm, focused expression reinforced it. She looked absolutely in control, both of me and the situation.

Her dark eyes sharpened on mine, studying my response while she slid her hand down the front of my panties. My lips parted as her fingers found me hot and wet for her. What did I look like, clutching her arms right above her elbows as her fingers twitched on my swollen clit? I shuddered with pleasure. Had my pupils dilated? Could she tell my heart rate was racing through the roof?

Her lips peeled back in a smug smile. "That is quite the reaction." Those skilled fingers stirred me further, and I tightened my grip on her arms, biting off a louder moan. Shit, her touch was magic. It lit me up. She could tell too, because her eyes burned with enjoyment. "And you're still not sure what's causing it?"

She liked this scene as much as I did. Maybe more. It gave her both power and the opportunity to fulfill my fantasy.

I couldn't answer her question. It was taking everything I had to stay quiet against the steady slide of her fingertips over my skin, each stroke bringing me closer to losing control.

"Hmm," she continued, leaning into me and murmuring it against my lips. "I have a diagnosis, but we'll have to delay treatment."

"Why?" I gasped. My greedy body moved against her hand. I was close. So fucking close.

"I need to administer it at my house." The kiss she gave me was erotic. "In my bed." Her tongue slashed against mine. "Preferably with my mouth."

She showed me the way she planned to use it, fucking my mouth with her indecent kiss.

My bones went hollow, and for a split second I reverted to a spoiled child who didn't want delayed gratification. I had zero patience. I wanted the pleasure her hand had promised with every ministration, and I wanted it right goddamn now.

"Please," I pleaded. When her fingers began to retreat, I wrapped my hand around her wrist and stopped her. "Please," I whined again on a broken breath, grinding against her fingertips.

Conflict flashed in her eyes and then disappeared. "Soon, Jennie. I don't want you to have to be quiet. I need to hear all those sexy sounds you make." She looked down at her hand still lodged in my panties and how I gyrated against it. "Although, I'm not going to lie, what you're doing right now is really fucking hot."

It was like she'd poured lava on my body. I sagged against the wall as she slowly dragged her hand out, caressing my skin as she went, and then attempted to do up my jeans. I shoved away from the wall and pushed her hands out of my way, because I could do them up much faster than she could.

"Okay, let's go," I said, my tone clipped and needy.

Her grin was enormous.

Lisa had pressed the keyring to her BMW into my hand and told me where she was parked in the doctors' lot, and said she'd meet me at the car in a few minutes.

The damp, aching throb between my legs was persistent. I was annoyed she'd left me right on the edge, but also liked it . . . a little. We both knew she could get me there, so when she'd made the decision not to, it was a way for her to flex her power. The more she did that, the further I fell under her spell.

The lights on the sleek black sedan flashed in the dusky, fading sunlight as I unlocked the doors, and I climbed inside the passenger seat. I'd ridden in her car a few times before, but never in the front seat, and I ran a hand over the smooth, premium leather. The car smelled like her.

I pictured her behind the wheel, day after day, driving this expensive car to the hospital and parking it in the doctors' lot beside the Audis and Range Rovers and Porsches. She worked so much, she barely had a life. All it consisted of was this car, her house . . . and her son.

Would there ever be space in there for me? And would Felix allow that?

I scowled at my thoughts. Why was I thinking about a future with Lisa? I needed to be more like my friends and live in the present. Thinking only about today. I was turning twenty in a few weeks. I was still so young. No one expected me to make all the right decisions at this point in my life, or plan further out than the coming weekend.

A blur of white moving in the distance toward the car caught my attention. That coat. Jesus. My obsession with it wasn't healthy, and I felt feverish when Lisa slipped into the driver's seat and stabbed a finger on the button to start the car's engine. While it roared to life, her gaze raked over me, and I melted against the seat.

"Drive fast," I whispered.

We didn't talk much on the short drive to her house, and the atmosphere in the car was taut with sex. I laced my fingers together and tucked my hands under my knee to keep myself from touching her. I didn't want to distract or slow her down, and I purposefully kept my eyes straight forward as we drove past Somi's house. I refused to see if she was standing by the window, watching Lisa's every move.

My heart clogged my throat as the garage door rolled slowly up and Lisa steered the car inside. Her bedroom was only two doors away, and I clawed at my seatbelt, unfastening it in a hurry. She hadn't even shut the engine off—

Her phone rang.

The dreaded hospital ringtone blasted through the car speakers, and I went wooden.