All The Wild Ones | Wildfire Series

Number 54

GRAYSON

"The infamous Nessa!"

I dragged my hand over my face as Dr. Martinez slid into the small exam room. She was going to embarrass me, wasn't she? If that was her mission today, I was doomed. That big brain of hers housed an infinite amount of ammo she could deploy to make me turn red in the cheeks.

But it wasn't me who was turning red. Not yet, anyway. A light blush spread over Nessa's face as the two women shook hands. She probably didn't realize how much attention she was going to get at this visit.

My moms had decided to stay home today. They were present the first time Dr. Martinez had gone over my options, and while they weren't happy with my decision, she had put them at ease like she was usually able to do.

I didn't miss how Grace and Lillian were whispering with Nessa in the kitchen this morning, though. It couldn't be more evident that they were all on a team against me.

"I promise you that I'm not the least bit famous or important," Nessa said, tucking into herself as she sat in the chair beside me. Always making herself smaller than she really was.

Dr. Martinez waved her comment away. "You are around here. There are at least five nurses who would die to meet you after taking care of this one for a month." She jabbed a finger toward me, and I braced myself for the embarrassing parts. "Wouldn't shut up about you."

"Longest fucking month of my life," I said, grabbing Nessa's hand and giving it a squeeze.

She shook her head, eyes shining as she glanced over at me. "You're so...."

"Ridiculous?"

Nessa paused, like she had been considering a different word. Dare I say...a nicer word. But then she eventually settled with, "Very."

My doctor—my Ph.D. toting, nationally renowned doctor—snorted. "That's one way to put it. I was ready to cuff him to his bed because he kept threatening to leave before he was cleared and go find you." She mumbled something else under her breath, and I was pretty sure it was stupid would be a better word.

"Harsh, doc. Harsh."

She sighed. "In this field, you learn pretty quickly who leads with their head and who leads with their heart." A glance at Nessa. "For this conversation, you'll need to use both."

Nessa sat up primly in her chair and gave a distinct nod. I could see in every inch of her body that she came prepared for battle.

"So let's talk about your man, huh?"

I flicked away the deep satisfaction of being labeled Nessa's man and tried to focus. But Dr. Martinez didn't even look at me. She sat on her little swivel stool wheeled toward my girlfriend.

"I don't know if Grayson told you, but we've known each other a very long time," she said.

"Since birth," I added.

Nessa looked surprised to hear that, her eyes assessing Dr. Martinez's youthful face and black, thick hair that didn't contain a single gray hair. Sure, she could dye it. But even then, she didn't look like she was old enough to have grown up with a rotary phone.

"Grayson said that he had surgery when he was a baby. Did you..." Nessa drifted off as Dr. Martinez began to shake her head.

I tensed, knowing what was coming. Nessa was about to realize just how many opportunities I had to tell her about my heart and just how many times I had skipped over it.

"Dr. Wilder, my attending and the best damn mentor I ever had...He was the one who recognized Grayson's symptoms before anyone else. He completed the initial procedure when Grayson was only a few months old."