Page 36 of Love Medley (Med Wreck Romance #1)
Chapter twenty-six
Lucy
W e both act like we’ve been starving for weeks, the way we dive into that food. I ordered pad thai, yellow curry, basil fried rice, papaya salad, and mango and sticky rice for dessert.
“This is so good,” Jake moans as he scoops up another spoonful of rice. “What’s this place called?”
“Thai Goddess,” I say around a mouthful of papaya salad, the tangy fruit mixed with vinegar blasting into my mouth. “It’s my favorite Thai restaurant in the city, and it’s close to my apartment.”
“I’ve eaten so well in the past couple of weeks,” Jake says. “I have you to thank.”
“There are so many great places that I haven’t tried yet. Oooh! We should go on a foodie adventure around the city!” I bounce in my seat. Now that Weston is no longer restricting my diet, I want to explore all the food I’ve been dying to try. Bill’s and Koi Palace were just the beginning.
And Jake will be the perfect person to do it with.
He chuckles at my excitement. “I think we can arrange that. What’s your schedule like after this month? You make your fourth year sound like a vacation, but I know you work your ass off in the ER.”
I laugh. “I guess everything is relative to a medical student. But yes, this year will be a lot more flexible. I think they design it that way, so we have time to interview for residency and to decide where we want to be for the next three to four years.”
There’s a silence and immediately, I get a choking feeling in my throat.
Why did I say that? Bringing up residency equals bringing up the concept of a future together, and that’s too soon, right?
I forget Jake and I didn’t meet so long ago, because he makes me feel so comfortable.
But I probably freaked him out. Of course I did, who in their right mind—
Jake’s next words interrupt my downward spiral. “Are you thinking of staying here?”
I rub my sternum, trying to physically make my chest stop hurting. “Well, I love the program here,” I manage to get out before falling right back into my riptide of panic .
What did he mean by that question? Does he expects me to stick around for him, rewrite my whole existence for him like Weston, and—
Jake puts down his fork and places a hand on mine, as if he senses my fraying nerves.
His gray eyes, so open and sincere, search mine.
“I’m hoping that I’m still around by the time you make your choice for residency, but regardless, I don’t want you to consider me in your decision.
I’m flexible and can move anywhere. And I would. ”
All of the gnawing worry just immediately eases. Just like that.
Oh. This man.
In my last relationship, I was the one who was expected to mold myself to another person’s career, dreams, aspirations.
But even without my asking, Jake is already offering the same to me.
It means…everything. While I would never ask this of him, the fact that he’s willing to uproot his life from everything he knows—his family and friends, his new job…
It’s a lot to take in.
How does Jake always know what to do? How does he ground me so quickly? He’s done that from the very beginning. From the moment I ran out of Tanya’s room, it’s as if he’s been reaching out a steady hand to slow down my crazily spinning axis.
But…I can’t deny that I’m also feeling a multitude of contrasting emotions: flustered but buoyant, uncertain but thrilled, apprehensive but giddy.
In the end, the soft joy I feel from his quiet, steady conviction supersedes any doubt.
“You know, saying stuff like that makes me want to take you right back to the bedroom,” I say, blushing at my forwardness.
It’s surreal that I’m so comfortable saying what I actually want, but it’s just so easy to be myself around him.
I wonder if this confident Lucy has always been inside of me, just waiting to get out.
Jake grins wickedly at me. “Pretty much just seeing you and hearing your voice makes me want you again. So let’s just put that on the table for now and get back to it later tonight.”
His words thrill me to my core. I’ve never wanted sex more than once a day, but I have a feeling I could go multiple times with Jake and still not have enough.
Who knew that feeling safe could be such a turn-on?
“I agree. Plus, I’m stuffed,” I sigh, leaning back into my chair. “Oh, I wanted to tell you that I emailed Dr. Simons to see if there were any projects on physical abuse screening already ongoing in the ER. So I’m just waiting for a response now.”
“Oh, awesome. Keep me posted on that.”
“What if Dr. Simons thinks it’s a dumb idea?” She’s such a role model for me, so I’m extra nervous about her response.
“I think it’s a great idea.” Jake’s voice only exudes pride and confidence.
I hesitate. “If there isn’t a study already, do you think it would be weird to ask her about initiating one?”
I said that out loud? Six months ago, this sort of project would never have crossed my radar. And even if it had, I’d never have the guts to seek it out .
Jake’s eyes glow. “Not at all. Honestly, I have a feeling there isn’t one. Otherwise, wouldn’t Dr. Simons have told you about it when you saw Tanya the other day?”
He has a point.
“Wow.” I’m silent. Do I even dare to take on such a huge undertaking? Am I even up to the task? Suddenly, I feel almost paralyzed with fear.
“It’s daunting to even think about starting a project from scratch,” I admit, my insides clenching.
“If anyone is up to the challenge, it’s you,” Jake says, his eyes clear and serious. “You don’t seem to realize how incredible you are, Lucy.”
Immediately, the knot inside me loosens.
How does he do that?
I swear he’s a Lucy whisperer.
Being with Jake is so different than being with Weston. Weston tore me down; Jake only boosts me up.
“Thank you,” I say, moved.
We are silent for a beat, staring into each other's eyes.
Then Jake clears his throat, breaking the moment. “I guess we can see that awful movie you suggested.”
I poke him in the ribs. “Hey, you said you liked sci-fi, and I like romance. This is the compromise—this movie has both.”
“Barely,” Jake chuckles. “But I’d watch infomercials with you if that was the only thing you liked.”
My heart pulses with some emotion I’m too nervous to name .
“Don’t say that, because I might take you up on it. Let’s put this stuff in your fridge. I’ll definitely want dessert later,” I say, pushing down my confusion.
“I definitely want dessert later,” Jake murmurs as he gets up and nuzzles my neck. Shivers creep down my spine.
“Remember? Full? Wait to recharge?” I ask, but honestly, I don’t need much encouragement—sex was a tangible way to connect to him, and it’s an addictive feeling.
Jake groans. “I know I need some time to recover, but damn, woman, you make me forget every rational thought I have.”
And there goes my heart again.
We clean up the remains of dinner, and Jake settles us in front of his flat screen TV, tucking a blanket around me. Then picking up the remote, he scrolls down the options on the screen until he finds Armageddon .
After Jake hits play, he readjusts, drawing me closer to him, and I snuggle into his chest. This movie is one of my favorites, and I’ve always wanted to watch it with someone special.
When I asked Weston to watch it with me, he got pissed and immediately selected another option without my input.
In fact, I can’t remember a time when we saw my choice of movie, not his.
Being with Jake has only clarified how horrible Weston is. Why did I stay with him for so long? As sad as it seems, I wonder if I equated his controlling nature with feeling safe. Making decisions has always been terrifying for me, and with Weston, I never had to make any .
I glance at Jake. Maybe choices wouldn’t have been so terrifying if I’d known I had a soft spot to land.
In the movie, we are approaching the scene where AJ is leaving Grace to depart on his mission to save the world.
Jake starts singing “I’m Leaving On a Jet Plane” softly to me, and a deep warmth blossoms in my chest. It should feel like goodbye. But it doesn’t—not when he’s looking at me like that.
Somehow, even though the words say the opposite, I know what Jake’s actually saying.
I’m the calm to your chaos.
I’m the eye to your storm.
I’m your home.
Maybe, if I’m lucky, he’ll be the man who stays.