“Elise?” Luke said, surprised.

His patient, Mr. Phillips, said, “You two know each other?”

If he only knew.

“Yes, Dad, this is my friend Luke—or Dr. L, I’m guessing. We went to college together.”

Friend?

He was more than her friend. After all, he’d been inside her. Although not as recently as he’d have liked to have been.

Luke shook his head. He really needed to concentrate on his patient. He usually didn’t let anything interfere with his work. And he couldn’t let this female start now, no matter how badly he wanted her.

For some reason, Elise’s face had flushed a bright shade of pink when she came into the room. She seemed embarrassed or ashamed.

Was she feeling guilty that they’d slept together now that they were in the same room as her father? It didn’t seem like her.

And it appeared her father had taken note of her blushing, too. “Friends?” Mr. Phillips asked doubtfully. He had dark hair sprinkled with gray and green eyes, like his daughter.

“Yes, Dad.”

“Mr. Phillips, I’m friends with Sean, Rachel’s fiancé. We were roommates in college.”

“Oh,” his patient said. “And you can call me Ward.”

Luke took that as a good sign.

He pulled up the stool from near the computer. He preferred getting down on eye-level with patients. They always seemed more comfortable and more likely to talk to him that way.

Amy walked back into the room and pulled up Mr. Phillips’s chart on the computer as Luke began asking questions about his patient’s condition.

“So, I’ve read your chart, and Amy gave me a rundown of your history. But I’d like to hear the information from you. Can you tell me what brought you in here tonight?”

“My daughter.”

Luke chuckled as Elise rolled her eyes. “Okay. Can you tell me what symptoms brought you here tonight?”

“I have some pain in my chest. And my leg was bothering me earlier, but it doesn’t really hurt anymore.”

“I’m going to take a look,” Luke said as he pulled back the blanket. “Which leg?” he asked as he examined Mr. Phillips’s lower limb. He already knew which one his patient was going to say.

“My left.”

“I can see that it’s red and swollen.” Luke pulled the covers back up. “Can you describe your pain? Is it a pinching pain? Does your chest feel tight?”

“Yeah, tight. But that’s it. I’m starting to feel like someone is hugging me securely.”

Luke turned to Amy. “I’m going to have you put in an order for a chest CT, and let’s get Ward ready to go right away.”

“Do you want the usual labs?” the nurse asked.

“Yes.” Luke moved back to his patient. “Amy is going to take some blood and start an IV while we continue to talk, okay?”

Mr. Phillips nodded. “Sure.”

“When did this pain start?”

“I don’t know. Probably two to three hours ago.”

“Oh my God, Dad.”

Elise’s father waved her off. “She worries about me too much.”

Luke smiled at Mr. Phillips, but he silently agreed with Elise. “Has the pain and tightness been constant, or has it gradually gotten worse?”

“Gotten worse.”

Out of the corner of his eyes, Luke saw Elise bite her lip, like she wanted to say something but was restraining herself.

Luke asked a few more questions and asked about Mr. Phillips’s cancer history and treatments.

“All right, Ward, we’re going to start with this blood work. Then, we’ll get a urine sample, and we’re going to order a chest CT. You’ve had a CT before, correct?”

“The CAT scan thing? Yes. That’s how they found the cancer.”

Luke stood. “Okay, I’m going to go and make sure all your orders are in the computer while Amy finishes up with your lab work.”

Luke nodded at Elise and exited the room.

He went to his own computer and put in his notes and orders for Mr. Phillips. While he did that, he kept an eye out for radiology to come and pick up Elise’s dad to take him to CT.

As soon as they wheeled Mr. Phillips out of his room, Luke went back in and closed the door.

Elise, who had been facing the corner with her phone in her hand, spun around upon hearing the door latch.

“Luke,” she said with tears in her eyes.

Luke stepped toward her with open arms, and she slid into his embrace.

He held her for a few minutes, letting her lean on him and absorb his strength.

“Are you going to be okay?” he asked her.

She pulled away, far enough for him to see her face. “I’m scared.”

He reached up and wiped her tears from under her eyes.

“It’s a PE, isn’t it?” she asked quietly.

He was kind of surprised she knew what that was. “Most likely.”

“Oh God.”

“Hey. I know it’s scary, but we can treat it.”

“I know. And I know it’s not the same thing, but I keep thinking about my patient on Friday who had a stroke. I don’t want my dad to be like that lady.”

“Patient?” he asked, recognizing that he didn’t know exactly what Elise did for a living.

Of all the things they’d talked about in their time together, that had never been one of them. They’d texted back and forth from work, but they hadn’t really discussed their jobs when doing so. It was kind of pathetic that he didn’t know, but at the same time, it meant they’d seemed to have plenty of other things to talk about.

“Yes, I’m a speech therapist. I’ve been dealing with a difficult stroke patient.”

“Ah,” he said, understanding. “I guess I never really knew what you did. I didn’t pay attention to what you majored in back in college.”

Not that he’d really paid attention to what anyone majored in back in college. They had all been too busy having fun when they weren’t in class or studying.

She shrugged and stepped away from him. “That’s okay. It’s not like we’re dating or anything.”

She was right, but it still made him flinch.

“Besides, I had no idea you were a doctor.”

With those words, he felt a wave of relief that was unexpected. In college, most girls had wanted him because he was a hockey player. Now, most of the women he met wanted to date him as soon as they’d found out he was a doctor. He hadn’t even realized he’d been worried that Elise’s interest in him now due to his profession, as she had stayed away from him in college.

“You didn’t?”

“No, Rachel said something about you working at Southdale, and I assumed you worked at Southdale Center. I don’t know if it’s because you and Sean were friends and roommates, but I always thought you both had the same major.”

Elise was turned slightly away from him, her eyes cast down, and he studied her face. She was red again.

“Why are you blushing?”

She looked at him. “Because it’s embarrassing. You know what they say about assuming. I don’t know why I didn’t ask more about what you did for work. I guess I assumed, again, that it was some fancy title that wouldn’t mean anything to me, so I didn’t even question it. Now, I understand why Tera and Heidi were asking whether you were McSteamy or McDreamy. And why you were looking at Tera’s leg after she got hurt. I feel so stupid.”

Luke pulled her into his arms again. “You’re not stupid. You’re cute.”

She shook her head. “I doubt that. I probably look frazzled.”

“Sexy frazzled.”

Her blonde hair looked like she’d run her fingers through it quite a bit, and she looked tired, but he still found her attractive.

She laughed. “I don’t think those two words go together in a sentence.”

“Well, I think you’re sexy, frazzled or not.” He kissed her.

He had meant it to be a sweet kiss to let her know she was beautiful to him and to take her mind off her father for even just a short amount of time. But she turned the kiss into something hungry and urgent. She tried to slip her hands under his scrubs, and, man, did he want to let her. He wanted to strip them both down and slide into her tight heat.

But he was at work. And her father could come back from his test at any moment. They couldn’t be caught doing anything unprofessional.

Luke was saved from having to rein them both in by a shrill, “Elise,” from the hallway.

Elise stepped back and broke their kiss. Her green eyes were round and panicked. “It’s my mother. If she finds me kissing Dad’s doctor, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

He wiped the moisture of her bottom lip and asked, “Why? Because she’ll think you’re distracting me?” He pulled her close for a second and rubbed his hard dick across her stomach. “Because you are.”

She looked down at his obvious erection that his scrubs did nothing to hide. “Oh my God, put that thing away.”

Luke laughed. “It’s not that easy, babe. I can’t just make it go away like that.” He snapped his fingers. “Especially with you still looking at it.”

Her eyes flew up to his, and she looked guilty. “I’m sorry.”

He brushed a finger down her cheek. “I’m not,” he said, grabbing something off the desk in the corner. “That’s what clipboards are for,” he said, waving it.

He walked over and quietly opened the door. A blonde lady was marching down the hallway toward Mr. Phillips’s room. Now, this lady looked frazzled. Her blue eyes were bright with worry.

“Where’s my husband?”

“Are you Mrs. Phillips?”

“Yes,” she said, walking past him and into the room. She looked around, and upon seeing it empty, except for her daughter, she said, “Oh no. Oh no, Elise.”

“Oh, Mom, no, no.” She rushed over and put a reassuring hand on her mom’s arm. “Dad is just getting a test done.”

Mrs. Phillips put her palm on her chest and sighed with relief. “Thank you, Lord.” She whipped around to look at Luke. “And who are you, young man?”

Luke had to stifle a laugh at her authoritative tone. “I’m Dr. L, Mrs. Phillips.”

“Dr. L? Did your parents not give you a full last name?”

“It’s Dr. Long, ma’am. I go by Dr. L though. It’s easier that way.”

Mrs. Phillips frowned. “How does it make it easier?”

“Then, I don’t get any jokes about my last name.”

Elise giggled and covered her mouth.

Her mom looked at Elise and then back at Luke. “I don’t understand,” she said, seriously confused.

Luke cleared his throat. “Um…well…you know…my last name is Long.”

“And?”

Oh, jeez, how was he supposed to explain that, just because he worked with medical professionals, it didn’t mean they didn’t make inappropriate jokes? Most of his coworkers seemed to have their minds in the gutter seventy-five percent of the time. And don’t even get him started on the smart-ass teenagers and young adults he had to deal with. Dr. L was easier for everyone involved.

Elise came to the rescue. “Mom, Luke is a doctor in the ER, where it can take a long time to be seen. People like to complain and make jokes about his last name, like, Oh, your name is Dr. Long. That’s why I had to wait forever.”

Luke mouthed a, Thank you, to Elise behind her mom’s back.

“Oh,” Mrs. Phillips said. She turned back to Luke. “Why didn’t you just say so?”

“Uh…”

She didn’t even give him a chance to finish, her mind already on the next thing.

“Elise, did you just call this young man by his first name?”

“Your daughter and I went to college together,” Luke offered.

“Are you single, Luke?”

Luke backed up a step without even realizing it. “Uh…yes, ma’am.”

“You know, my Elise is single, too.”

“Mom. Leave him alone.”

Elise mouthed, I’m sorry, to him.

“I’m just asking him some questions,” her mom defended herself.

“Mom, did you bring Dad’s meds?”

Thank God Elise had changed the subject, and her mom let her.

“Oh, yes,” she said, pulling out a list from her purse.

“Good. We need to get that to the nurse.”

Luke saw his escape and was about to tell them he would get it to Amy when Mrs. Phillips said, “I’ll go find her,” and charged out of the room.

“Ma’am,” he called after her.

“Too late. She’s already gone,” Elise said, coming over to him. She put her hand on his chest. “I’m so sorry. She doesn’t normally come across this…strong. I think she’s worried about my dad.”

“Does she always try to set you up with guys?”

“Not always. Only when she sees someone who she thinks would make a good prospect. Now, you know why I didn’t want her to know that we were kissing. She’d have been writing out our wedding invitations by midnight.”

Luke laughed, and surprisingly, he wasn’t completely frightened by the idea.