to him about it.
He listened."
He rubbed his fingers over his brow.
"I get it, I do.
If he told me he wanted to bang some other guy while seeing me, it'd bother the fuck out of me."
"But not if it were a woman?" "No.
I don't know.
Shit."
His bloodshot green eyes pleaded with me.
"Would it make a difference to you if Cross were banging another man? Or just another woman?" The door opened and Gideon walked in.
I held his gaze when I said, "If Gideon's dick touched anything but his hand or me, we'd be over."
His brows rose.
"Well, then."
I smiled sweetly and winked.
"Hi, ace."
"Angel."
He looked at Cary.
"How are you feeling this morning?" Cary's lips twisted wryly.
"Like I got hit by a bus .
or a bat."
"We're working on getting you set up at home.
It looks like we can make that happen by Wednesday."
"Big tits, please," Cary said.
"Or bulging muscles.
Either will do."
Gideon looked at me.
I grinned.
"The private nurse."
"Ah."
"If it's a woman," Cary went on, "can you get her to wear one of those white nurse dresses with the zipper down the front."
"I can only imagine the media frenzy over that sexual-harassment lawsuit," Gideon said dryly.
"How about a collection of naughty-nurse porn instead?" "Dude."
Cary smiled wide and looked, for a moment, like his old self.
"You're the man."
Gideon looked at me.
"Eva."
I stood and bent over to kiss Cary on the cheek.
"I'll be right back."
We stepped out of the room and I saw my mother in conversation with the doctor, who looked dazzled by her.
"I talked to Garrity this morning," Gideon said, referring to Mark, my boss.
"So don't worry about that."
I hadn't been, because he said he'd handle it.
"Thank you.
I'll need to go in tomorrow.
I'm going to see if I can get hold of Trey, Cary's boyfriend.
Maybe he can stop in while I'm at work."
"Let me know if you need any help with that."
Gideon glanced at his watch.
"You'll want to stay here again tonight?" "Yes, if that's possible.
Until Cary comes home."
He took my face in his hands and pressed his lips to mine.
"All right.
I have a lot of work to catch up on.
Charge your cell so I can reach you."
I heard a faint buzzing.
Gideon backed away and reached into an inner jacket pocket to withdraw his phone.
He read the screen, then said, "I have to get this.
I'll talk to you later."
Then he was gone, striding down the hallway as quickly as he'd arrived.
"He's going to marry you," my mother said, coming up to stand beside me.
"You know that, don't you?" I didn't, no.
I still felt a little flare of gratitude every morning when I woke up and realized that we were still together.
"What makes you say that?" My mother looked at me with her baby blue eyes.
It was one of the rare physical traits we didn't share.
"He's completely taken you over and assumed control of everything."
"That's just his nature."
"That's the nature of all powerful men," she said, reaching up to fuss with my no-nonsense ponytail.
"And he'll indulge you, because he's making an investment in you.
You're an asset to him.
You're beautiful, well bred and well connected, and independently wealthy.
You're also in love with him and he can't take his eyes off you.
I bet he can't keep his hands off you, either."
"Mother, please."
I was so not in the mood for one of her lectures on the fine points of catching and marrying a rich man.
"Eva Lauren," she scolded, facing me directly.
"I don't care if you listen to me because I'm your mother and you have to - or because you love him and don't want to lose him, but you will listen."
"Like I have a choice," I muttered.
"You're an asset now," she repeated.
"See that your life choices don't make you a liability."
"Are you talking about Cary?" Anger sharpened my voice.
"I'm talking about the bruise on Gideon's jaw! Tell me that has nothing to do with you."
I flushed.
She tsked.
"I knew it.
Yes, he's your lover and you see an intimate side to him that few see, but don't ever forget that he's also Gideon Cross.
You've got everything you need to be the perfect wife for a man of his stature, but you're still replaceable, Eva.
What he's built is not.
You jeopardize his empire and he'll leave you."
My jaw tightened.
"Are you done?" She ran her fingertips over my brows, her gaze shrewd and assessing.
I knew she was giving me a mini- makeover in her mind, thinking of ways to improve what she'd given me from birth.
"You think I'm a coldhearted gold digger, but my concern is maternal, believe it or not.
I want very desperately for
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