Page 22 of Love Medley (Med Wreck Romance #1)
Chapter sixteen
Jake
I n hindsight, it should have occurred to me that Sterling might be here, especially given how well-known he is in the medical community. I also should have considered that Sterling and Sam might attend this particular event together.
But I was zeroed in on helping Lucy with Weston, not on how I might run into people I knew.
“Oh no, Jake,” Lucy says, a look of dismay crossing her face. “This never crossed my mind as a possibility.”
“You aren’t the only one,” I say grimly.
Lucy squeezes my hand as if to remind me she's there. As if I could forget.
I sigh. “This doesn’t change anything. We’re here to make sure that Weston believes you're completely over him, so hopefully he’ll back off.”
There's something in her eyes that I can’t quite decipher. She says, “Well, actually, maybe this isn’t a bad thing.”
“What do you mean?”
“This way we can kill two birds with one stone,” she says, eyes flicking away. “If we can convince Sam and Weston that we’re together, then we'll both reach our objectives.”
Inwardly, I groan, simultaneously noticing Lucy seems distracted. Well, I guess that would make sense—this situation would unnerve most people. But I really don’t want to parade Lucy in front of Sterling and Sam. That said, I’m not sure how I could dodge them at this point.
“Okay,” I say aloud, even while my insides are twisting.
Before I know it, Sterling and Sam are in front of us. Sam’s gaze flits quickly to me and then away, her posture stiff. And while it still feels weird as hell, I have to admit…they make a handsome couple. The kind of couple that makes sense.
“Hi, little brother, long time, no see,” Sterling says, grinning. He cuts a fine figure in his tailored tux, and I have an impulse to wrestle him to the ground, maybe muss up his polished veneer a bit.
“Hi, Sterling,” I say flatly. “Hello, Sam.” It takes everything in me to even greet them—I have a deer-in-the-headlights response to conflict. Although I admit I haven’t experienced anything quite like this before.
Before Sam can say anything, Sterling places a possessive hand on Sam’s hip. “Sam did tell me that you two know each other. Funny you never told me that. It’s almost like you were worried what would happen if I found out. Like you realized there was only one way for this to go.”
My jaw clenches, and Lucy eyes me with an unreadable expression.
But unfortunately, I'm so flooded I can’t focus on her.
I’m still fixated on the fact Sterling is making this out to be a competition.
I also have no idea what Sam told him, so I’m unsure how to play this.
There’s a sensation of glue in my throat—and any words I possess remain stuck inside.
“Hi, I’m Lucy Chang.” Her voice jolts me out of my rising panic. She sticks her hand out for Sam to shake first, and then Sterling after. I’m pretty sure none of us misses the order of handshakes.
My relief from Lucy's interjection is quickly followed by shame. I should’ve introduced Lucy to them myself, but usual social conventions have left me.
Being around Sterling always does this to me.
It’s like no matter how much I try to separate myself from the toxicity of my family, all it takes is one moment with Sterling, and his presence and general assholery shrink me into someone I don’t recognize.
“Charmed,” Sterling says, sounding anything but, and I resist the urge to roll my eyes.
“I haven’t talked to my little brother in a while, and he certainly doesn’t tell me about the women he’s dating.” At this, Sterling gives me a pointed look.
Welp. I guess that cat’s out of the bag. Sam must have told Sterling that she and I dated. And it wouldn’t take much to fill in the gaps. Like the fact he knew nothing about her.
Red hot embarrassment races through me. I already feel an inch tall around my older brother—and now he has even more fodder to use against me.
This is why I don’t talk to him. When I’m not around him, I can pretend that I measure up. But next to him…all the old trauma resurfaces.
Sterling is still talking: “So I’m afraid I don’t know anything about you, Lucy. How long have you two been together?”
“Only about a month,” Lucy says, looking at me adoringly, twisting a lock of hair between her fingers. “But it feels like so much longer.”
She’s selling this performance so flawlessly that it hurts. We’re here for her , and yet, here she is, leaping to my defense in a way no one has before. Gratitude and mortification swirl inside me. How will I ever look Lucy in the eye after tonight?
As I sort through my increasingly turbulent feelings, I notice that Sam is worrying at her lip, a sign that means she’s stressed out.
Wait. Why is she stressed out? Why does she even care about who I date? Or maybe she’s embarrassed that Sterling is acting like a total asshole ?
“How…how did you guys meet?” Sam asks, her voice higher pitched than it typically is.
“Oh, it was a perfect meet cute,” Lucy gushes. I would smile at Lucy’s pitch-perfect delivery if I weren’t so conflicted. “Unbeknownst to us, we shared a patient in the ER. Jake came over to the doctor’s station to touch base with me. The moment we met, it was like magic.”
Part of me wants to burst out laughing at Lucy’s deliberate earnestness, but another part of me wants to curl up and die because I remember it not so differently from the way Lucy relays it. To me, meeting her was magic.
Who’s the chump now?
“That’s adorable . Are you a nurse too, Lucy? Or maybe a PCT?” Sterling sneers.
Anger flares in me that he just assumes she’s a nurse or PCT—what, because she’s a woman? Then there’s the fact he obviously looks down on those jobs like the snob he is.
And in true Sterling fashion, it’s not just about Lucy. It’s a dig at me, too. After all, he’s had a lifetime to perfect this multi-pronged attack.
And Sterling is skilled at everything he does.
“Actually, I’m a fourth-year med student,” Lucy says chirpily.
Before I can drag her away from Sterling and Sam, she plunges along headfirst. “I love the fact that Jake is a nurse, you know? First, he’s just so darned good at it.
It’s a calling, not a fallback option. Second, he has a way higher emotional IQ than most guys, which is super sexy.
He doesn’t feel intimidated by the fact I’m going to become a doctor.
He just supports me in everything I do. So many other guys would feel emasculated by a woman having a career.
” Here, she lowers her voice to a stage whisper.
“That’s probably why so many men with high-profile jobs can’t keep their women happy and end up getting divorced, you know what I mean? ”
Sterling’s face has gotten progressively redder throughout Lucy’s spiel. Did I ever even tell her that Sterling’s been divorced twice?
But already I’m reeling for a completely different reason. I know she said before that nursing suited me—but her labeling my job as a calling, not a fallback option?
That hits so much harder.
Then I wonder…how much of what she said was real, and how much was just for show? A performance to get under Sterling’s skin?
“I’m so proud of Lucy,” I say, matching her cheery tone, although on the inside, I’m shaken in a way I can’t quite explain. “She can do anything she sets her mind to. I’m lucky that she brings me to events like this so I can be her arm candy.”
I’m amazed that the words are coming out calmly and believably.
But I guess…everything I'm saying is true. So why wouldn’t they?
Okay, it’s time to end this tomfuckery. I give Lucy an exaggerated wink. “Which reminds me, there’s a free bar, so if you’ll excuse us, we’re headed in that direction. Nice to see you two. ”
As Lucy waves goodbye to them, I see Sterling stomp away with Sam trailing after him. Sam shoots me a crushed look, which I can’t interpret. Is she pissed that I didn’t handle this interaction better?
I don’t have time to think more about it because Lucy hisses in my ear, “Okay, I know he’s your brother, but he’s a total ass .”
Chuckling, I tug her closer to my side. I know it’s fake, but having her pressed against me in that killer of a dress is something I cannot resist. “Wow, I think this is the first time you’ve cursed in my presence. And you’re preaching to the choir.”
Lucy is too fired up to acknowledge my teasing. “And Sam? How could she even date him? I could barely stand him for a single conversation. I just don’t even get it. There’s no contest between you and Sterling. You’re a million times the man he is.”
My heart swells like the Grinch’s in that Christmas book. I’m not sure anyone’s ever told me that before.
And the fact that Lucy is the one saying it? That's the best part.
“I like this fierce Lucy who defends my honor. Where have you been hiding her?”
Lucy giggles. “It feels so freeing to actually speak up for once. It’s easy to do when someone attacks a person I care about. I guess it’s harder to stand up for myself.”
And there goes my heart again. She hinted I’m someone she cares about.
I know she’s still working through things, but maybe one day, she might think of me as more than just a friend?
Even though I shouldn’t hope, it’s hard not to.
Whenever I’m with Lucy, my common sense flies out the window, and the only thing left is her.
I clear my throat. “Well, I’m here to help with that.”
She smiles at me, and my chest expands at the sight.
Then I can’t resist asking. “Did you know that Sterling got divorced twice?”
Lucy snickers. “Yeah, actually one of the nurses told me. I couldn’t resist slipping that in and taking Sterling down a notch. He was being such a pompous prick! Gosh, I never say things like that to anyone. But you're just so amazing, and it kills me that your family puts you down like that.”
Until that moment, I never realized how much it stung to be so misunderstood by Sam.
There’s such a stark contrast between how Sam reacted to my family and how Lucy continues to support me in exactly the right way.
When Sam and I were dating, she would never have stuck up for me in front of a family member like Lucy just did.
It’s getting harder and harder to deny that Lucy Chang has become my solace. A place where I can just be me—and it be a good thing.
But I don’t have time to mull over this moment of clarity.
Because we run into none other than Weston Ashcroft.