Veronica notices me the second I walk in carrying Emily. She rushes to my side, and I immediately ask her which beds are open. I’m staying strong for Emily’s sake, but I’m boiling with anger inside as the realization of what happened hits me hard in my gut. Richard could’ve driven her right off the road, her car could’ve rolled over, and her condition could be much worse right now.

“Put her in bed thirteen,” she tells me, leading the way. “What happened?”

I give her a brief rundown as the officer stands nearby. Emily is pale, and the cut on her forehead is bleeding. She might have a concussion from whiplash or the fall, depending on how hard she hit her head, but I need to lay her down first and make sure her heart doesn’t burst out of her chest.

Dr. Moody walks in with Fiona as I’m putting pressure on Emily’s bleed. Veronica hands me supplies so I can clean her and examine it to see if she needs stitches. I ask her the same questions she’s asked patients many times.

“You shouldn’t be doing that,” Dr. Moody barks. “You’re off the clock. Let me look at her.”

“I’ve got it,” I clip. “She smacked her head and might have whiplash. There’s a cut on her head that needs to be cleaned. She was also having trouble breathing.”

“It’s just a panic attack,” Emily mutters, glancing over at the police officer standing in the hallway.

“Veronica, give her fluids and an order for alprazolam.”

“Do you have these often?” Dr. Moody asks Emily. I’m relieved when she shakes her head.

“I’ve had a few over the past year, but nothing regular,” she admits.

“Do you want a psych evaluation?” he asks, resting his palm on top of her wrist, and it takes everything inside me not to rip off his hand. “It might help if you target the triggers leading to them and lower the severity.”

I turn my head and roll my eyes. Emily isn’t just a regular patient; she’s a goddamn doctor. She knows this shit.

“Her trigger is getting hit in her car and nearly getting run off the road,” I blurt out, bringing everyone’s attention to me. I give them a quick rundown on Richard—who he is, and why he’s after Emily.

“Evan’s right.” Emily speaks up, breaking the awkward silence once they learn of the situation. “I’m okay.” Her chest is rising and falling rapidly, and I know she’s trying to be brave in front of everyone.

“Can Dr. Bell get some privacy?” I snap. “It’s not helping her to have an audience right now.”

“He’s right,” Veronica chimes in. “I’ll finish her IV and give her the Xanax as soon as the order is filled.”

Dr. Moody gives me a pointed look, and I know he’s not happy with me, but I don’t give a shit. Emily and I may bump heads ninety-nine percent of the time, but I’d never want her to get hurt.

“Here’s my number,” the officer says, entering the room and handing me his business card. “Call when she’s feeling up to it, and we’ll get her statement for the police report.”

“Thank you,” Emily and I both say.

“It’ll be within the next day or two,” I tell him. That asshole isn’t getting away with this.

The room clears after Veronica hands her the pills, and then it’s just Emily and me alone. She tilts her head and looks at me as I take another look at her cut.

“It’s gonna bruise,” I say softly, getting my tools ready to stitch it up. “But fortunately, you’ll live.” I smirk.

“Thanks to you,” she says with a grin. “However, if I had died tonight, I would’ve been really pissed I had no underwear on, and the coroner would’ve seen an eyeful.”

I burst out laughing, completely forgetting I’d put them in my pocket. “Guess that’ll teach you to always have a spare pair on you.”

“You’re relentless, you know that?” she quips.

“We should talk about today,” I say in all seriousness. “But later.”

“No, we don’t have to.” Her eyes lower as I bring my hands up to her forehead and start the sutures.

“It’s a deep cut, but it shouldn’t scar,” I tell her once I’m finished, needing to fill the silence.

“Dang. No sexy battle wound?” she mocks, lifting a finger to her head. Looks like the Xanax is kicking in.

“Do you have a headache or feel any neck pain? I want to make sure you don’t have a concussion.”

“No, Dr. Bishop. Just a little sore,” she tells me with a lifted eyebrow.

“Let’s get you discharged then,” I say, fighting to hold back a smirk at the goofy smile on her face. Grabbing her hand, I help her move to the edge of the bed. “I’m going to drive you home tonight and call for your car in the morning, okay?”

“That’s not necessary. I’ll just call Kiera.”

Studying her face, I realize it’s probably for the best if I don’t drive her home tonight because then I’ll be tempted to stay and watch over her. “I’ll call her,” I say, reaching for my phone.

Emily’s discharge papers arrive, and Veronica checks her stats one more time before taking out the IV. Thankfully, her heartbeat has steadied to normal, and her dizzy spells aren’t as bad. She looks so vulnerable sitting on the hospital bed, and I feel an urge to hold her in my arms right now. Tonight was tense as hell, but I’m so relieved she’s okay. If I ever come face-to-face with that Richard guy, there’s no telling what I might do. The bastard is lucky he drove off when he did.

“You ready?” Kiera asks once the papers are signed, and Emily is free to leave. Emily agrees to stay at Kiera’s house for the night and is told to take tomorrow off. She wasn’t happy about the last request, but I don’t give her the option to argue.

“Evan.” Emily grabs my attention once Kiera is out of hearing distance.

I raise my brows, waiting to hear what she has to say.

“Don’t think because you saved my life tonight that I’m not going to get back at you for stealing my underwear,” she states, a smirk playing on her lips.

The corners of my mouth tilt up, enjoying this side of her even when she drives me crazy more times than not. “Don’t worry, Dr. Bell. This changes nothing.” I wink, knowing the bachelor auction is this weekend, and if I’ve learned anything from Emily thus far, it’s not to underestimate her abilities.

It’s been a few days since Emily’s injury, and thankfully, she’s feeling just fine but still a bit on edge. She took a couple of days off, and I was glad when she came back and looked a hell of a lot better. We worked side by side as we normally do, but I could tell some of her light had dimmed, though she reassured me she was still planning to come to the bachelor auction today to taunt me.

Mama insists we wear slacks and a tie to this thing as if we’re not capable of dressing ourselves. Then I remember Jackson, and well damn, he can’t be trusted, so I somewhat understand. I choose navy slacks, a white button-up dress shirt rolled to the elbow because it’s hot as fuck outside, then a navy tie for good measure. I run my fingers through my hair, then head to the venue. The sun is barely setting over the horizon, and I hope the night goes by quickly because, while I love supporting the event, I’d almost rather write a check in lieu of being up for auction. I wonder if bidding on myself is against the rules. I laugh at the thought and know Mama would kick my ass if I even attempted it.

As soon as I walk in, I’m amazed at what Mama was able to do with the old bank building. Lanterns and soft lights are strung around the high ceilings of the brick building, creating the perfect ambience. A stage with black velvet curtains and colored lights is the main attraction. Music lightly plays in the background, setting the mood that this party is fancy as fuck. Round tables with chairs line the outer edges of the room, and waitresses walk around with cocktails. Mama knows if you want people to spend money, the best thing to do is serve booze to loosen the hold on their wallets.

As I look for Mama to get the rundown of the itinerary for tonight, I feel a hand on my shoulder.

“Almost didn’t recognize you without a scowl on your face,” Jackson says, trying to make a joke but failing miserably.

“Shut the hell up,” I tell him, grabbing a shot from the waitress.

He adjusts himself. “I hate these clothes. I feel like an idiot.”

“You look like one too,” I say just as John walks up.

He’s pissed, and when I look over at Jackson, I realize it’s because they’re wearing the same thing, to a T.

“How’re the ladies going to tell you two apart?” I joke, trying to contain my laughter.

“Considering Jackson doesn’t know how to keep his damn mouth shut, I doubt it’ll be too hard.” John says with a smile.

Alex and River walk through the entrance. River is smiling wide at the whole display, but Alex doesn’t look pleased to be here. Not even being married could get us out of this “bachelor” auction.

“I hate this shit,” Alex says, walking up to us. “Ridiculous I even have to participate.”

“It’s for a good cause,” River reminds him. “Be a good sport; I am.”

Alex rolls his eyes, then pulls her into his arms. “You better bid high. All the ladies want this,” he says semi-seriously, but all she does is laugh.

“I think you going on a date with one of the older ladies from church would be cute. And Mama already told me Jackson brings in the most money out of all of you, so stop exaggerating.” River looks at Jackson who is obviously proud of his big accomplishment.

“Reigning champion, five years in a row. We’re gonna make it six tonight.” He’s already trying to make it a competition, but none of us are taking the bait. We’re not that stupid.

“It’s only because you have no standards and sleep with whoever wins,” I remind him. “They all know it. And the divorced cougars are desperate.”

“And they’re sixty and up,” John adds, and we all laugh at Jackson’s expense as he flips us off with both hands.

“They’ll be here soon,” Jackson leans in and whispers. I furrow my brows and look over at him. He shoots me a wink as if I’m supposed to know what that even means.

The place is filling up quickly, and Mama is busying herself with greeting everyone and giving orders to the other volunteers. I find myself glancing at the door more times than I’d like to admit, and just as we’re about to head to our table, Kiera and Emily enter the building.

My eyes widen as I take her in. Jackson slaps me on the shoulder, grinning. “Told ya. Looking fine as fuck too. Have fun.” He snickers before walking away.

I clear my throat to throw a comment back at him, but my mouth goes dry. Emily’s wearing a long, glittery dark blue dress. The straps wrap around her neck, showing off way too much cleavage—not that I’d typically mind, but I hate the idea of anyone else looking. Her hair is half pinned up with curls at the ends, and she’s wearing long, dangly earrings. She’s fucking stunning. Seeing her all dressed up brings back memories of meeting her at the wedding and everything we did that night. The taste of her lips, the smell of her hair, the smoothness of her skin pressed against me. Shit. I’m so fucked.

Her eyes finally meet me, and a red-stained smile appears on her face. Kiera walks toward the table where Mama is standing with the boys and River while Emily comes right for me.

My breath hitches the closer she gets. Something hits me right in the gut, and it’s a feeling I’ve never had before, but seeing her brings all kinds of new ones to the surface.

“You look gorgeous,” I tell her, unable to take my eyes off her. “Way too gorgeous.”

She smiles, brushing a piece of hair off her face, and I’m almost certain I see a faint blush on her cheeks. “You clean up nice,” she replies. “Blue is definitely your color.”

“Yeah, it’s why I made the hospital switch to navy blue scrubs. I had to make sure I looked good at all times.”

She chuckles, and the sound goes straight to my dick. Goddammit. “I’m sure you made a very convincing case.”

“Oh I did. I’m pretty sure I was a lawyer in another life. I’m good at arguing to get my way.” I flash her a wink, and she responds with an eye roll.

“Now that I don’t doubt for a second.”

“So you ready to spend some of your hard-earned money?” I taunt as we walk to the table.

“Oh definitely. From all the rumors, Jackson’s a sure thing, so I plan to bid as high as it takes to get a piece of the action.”

Jackson overhears her comment and whistles. “Well, don’t you look stunning?” He stands up and takes her hand, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. I’m two seconds away from ripping his hands off her when Kiera interrupts.

“Jackson is always a sure thing so don’t bother wasting your money. Just wear a cowbell around your neck, and he’ll come running.”

“That’s a mildly disturbing image.” Emily snorts, pulling her hand back.

As Mama taps on the microphone from the stage, we take our seats. Dad finds his chair and sits next to River who’s holding Alex as if he’s her lifeline. Poor River. I know she’ll claw any woman’s eyes out who tries to outbid her.

“Welcome everyone! Thank y’all for coming to the sixth annual food drive fundraiser! We’re so glad y’all are here, and tonight we expect to beat our goal from last year, so we hope you brought your wallets with you.” Mama continues talking about the charity, and everyone applauds. The servers bring the food out, and we chat casually as we eat. There’s a silent auction where you can bid on basket items until the end of the event.

“Where’s Trent?” I hear Emily asking Kiera.

“He’s sitting with his folks since we haven’t exactly made it official, but after tonight, I plan to make it known to everyone in town that Trent Laken is mine.” She smirks while Emily giggles. Looking over at Jackson, I see his jaw is about to snap in half.

Stupid bastard.

I shake my head, grinning at his expense.

“So how are you liking the hospital?” River asks Emily. “Too bad I don’t get to see you guys more. We’ve been jam-packed for weeks.”

“Yeah the ER is basically nonstop, but I’m really enjoying it.” Then she turns her head toward me. “Mostly.”

“So you guys are working well together then?” Alex chuckles.

“Why wouldn’t they?” Dad asks, and I almost forgot he was sitting here with us because he’s so quiet.

“It’s fine,” Emily blurts out. “He’s just an egotistical bastard most days.”

That gets a smirk out of Dad, which surprises me. “Sounds like my son.”

“Sounds like all of your sons,” Kiera adds.

“Hey, I’m a married family man, thank you,” Alex protests.

“Yeah, but what about your first twenty-five years?” Kiera teases.

Alex looks into River’s eyes and grins. “Was just waiting for the right one to come along; that’s all.” He wraps his arm around her shoulders and kisses her cheek.

“Oh for fuck’s sake, some of us are trying to eat here.” Jackson grunts.

“I think it’s sweet,” Emily says, smiling at Alex and River.

“It is sweet,” River confirms. “Plus, how hot is he as a dad? I mean, seriously.”

Everyone groans at their sickly-sweet moment, and I thank the stars when Mama comes back to the mic. She announces the bachelor auction will be starting in ten minutes and then tells the women to get all their money out.

“Evan Bishop!” I hear my name being screamed, and the voice makes all the hair on the back of my neck stand. It’s one I recognize, and unfortunately for me, not one you really want to hear screaming your name in the first place. “Evan, oh my God! I was hoping I’d see ya here!” April comes barreling through, and when I turn to see how far away she is and whether I have time to run away, she stumbles when someone suddenly pulls their chair out and falls right into my lap.

“Well, that’s one way to say hello.” She giggles, and it’s the most annoying sound I’ve ever heard.

“You okay?” I ask before pushing her off my lap.

“I plan to bid on you tonight. You’re not getting away from me this year.” She bops me on the nose as if I’m a child. She giggles again, though no one else is laughing.

Emily sees how uncomfortable I am and fortunately takes mercy on me by interrupting.

“Hi, I’m Emily.” She puts her hand out, and April reluctantly shakes it, giving her a look as if she’s the competition.

“I’m April. Evan and I go way back.” Way back to misery.

“Oh how nice. What a great friend for bidding on him, too.” I hear the condescending tone in Emily’s voice and fight back a smile, but April misses it completely.

“Well he got away from me last time, but I’ve been saving for a year and plan to finally get a date with Mr. Undateable over here.”

Oh God. Kill me now.

“Mr. Undateable?” Emily inquires with a mischievous smirk. “Hadn’t realized he penned a nickname.”

“Uh yeah. He doesn’t date, and anytime I’ve asked, he always tells me how busy he is with work, which yeah, I get, but you’d think he’d get one day off eventually, right?” April’s rambling on and on, and I pray my ears burn off because I can’t take another minute of this.

“I think it suits him,” Emily agrees. “Well, I hope you win and get your date.” She winks, causing an overly excited squeal from April to erupt.

“C’mon, it’s time to head back,” Alex says, breaking this whole awkward situation.

“Alright, April. Well, I better get going.”

“See you soon!” she calls as she skips off.

I inhale a deep breath, wondering if I can fake a stroke or something to get out of this, but then Mama walks over and tells us we need to get lined up.

I stand while Dad and the ladies stay at the table. The guys are all pouting, rightfully so, but before I walk off, I stop behind Emily’s chair.

“Emily…” I whisper in her ear. “I will do anything if you bid on me. And I do mean anything.”

I see her cheeks heat as she contemplates my words.

“Hmm, I don’t know. I kinda enjoy watching you sweat.”

“C’mon, you can’t hate me that much. Plus you kind of owe me for saving your life and all.” It’s a low blow, I know, but I’m desperate at this point. I can’t go on a date with April Devin. She’ll attach to me like a guppy fish as she claws her nails into me.

She turns her head slightly and clenches her jaw. “I worked half my shift with no panties on,” she reminds me. “Hate is an understatement.”

I groan, getting ready to beg before Jackson grabs my arm and pulls me away.

“Good luck,” Emily shouts with a cocky smile, flashing me a one-finger salute.

Fuck my life.