mind. Your libido wants him to be back as soon as he can, but that doesn’t mean anything.
I let out a soft sigh. Snarky, bitchy me was right, though. I had no reason to trust this doctor and his being attractive didn’t change that.
Well, okay, maybe it wasn’t entirely true that I had no reason to trust him. Hunter had told me Chris had been the one to recognize Adi as my daughter. He’d also instructed Hunter to call security if Craig became threatening in any way and he’d supposedly gone toe to toe with him until he’d decided Craig wasn’t worth his time.
Maybe I can trust him.
The man I couldn’t trust was my ex. It came as no surprise, but I still never really would’ve believed he’d let things go this far. If I had, he definitely wouldn’t even have seen Adi without my supervision.
Fuck his mother’s supervision, too. Apparently, not even she could be trusted.
“Baby,” I said to Adi, giving her hand another gentle squeeze. “How did this happen? Why did you get on that motorcycle?”
I kept any trace of accusation out of my tone. The last thing I wanted was for her to feel guilty about this.
“Daddy wanted me to go on it with him.” She looked away from me and focused on the branches of the tree swaying gently in the breeze outside her window. “I didn’t want to, but he told me it would be fun.”
I bet he did. Rage bubbled in my tummy, the feeling so intense that it sent a shiver racing up my spine and begged for the explosive urges to be set free, but I wrestled it all down. I cannot rip his dick off. I cannot rip his dick off.
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” I said as soothingly as I could manage. “What happened next?”
She squeezed her eyes shut. “I got scared and accidentally let go. That’s all I remember. Please don’t be angry.”
“I’m not, promise.” Not at her anyway. “It’s not your fault, sweetie. It was just an accident.”
An accident Craig should’ve seen coming. What the hell was he doing letting a nine-year-old who’d only ever seen a motorcycle from afar ride one?
Adi was quiet for a beat before her eyes opened and slid back to mine. “I don’t want to go with him again, Mommy.”
My heart shattered at the pain in her voice. Scooting forward on my chair, I leaned over to press a kiss against her temple and brushed her bangs out of her eyes.
“You don’t have to. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you again.”
There was a swift, firm knock on the door before it opened to reveal Doctor Sexy himself.
Instead of focusing on the high chiseled cheekbones and the straight perfectly curved lines of his jaw, all I saw was the apprehension shining in his eyes. “Good afternoon, ladies.”
He flashed us all of his straight white teeth when he smiled. But I was willing to bet the farm it was a fake one. “Do you have the results?”
Nerves crashed into me like someone had dumped a bucket of them over my head. He nodded and lifted the clipboard in his hands but didn’t look down at it. “Adi has a pinched nerve in her neck. I was hoping once the swelling went down that we might be able to fix it without surgery, but that’s no longer an option.”
Blood rushed from my head, making me dizzy. Chris must have moved to me because suddenly his hand was on my shoulder and his eyes were hovering in front of mine.
“April?” He said my name like I meant something to him. “Are you okay?”
I dragged in a breath and nodded, forcing my body to calm the hell down. “I’m fine. I just… she’s only nine.”
“I know, but the doctors won’t let anything happen to her. I’ve spoken to a very good friend of mine who’s an orthopedic surgeon here and he’s agreed to do Adi’s operation. He’s the guy I’d pick to do surgery on me.”
“Wait, why don’t you do it?” I asked, and Adi nodded along with me.
Chris’s lips twisted as he shook his head. “I wish I could, but I only ever perform surgery here when there’s really no one else available. I’m rusty and I hate to say it but not the best man for the job.”
“Well, I suppose there are modest surgeons out there after all,” I muttered but then felt a flush spreading across my cheeks. “I’m sorry. I should really just