Page 5 of Misdeeds of a Billionaire

Once the doctor strode in, her entire focus was on him. My gut told me it wasn’t for pretense either. She was serious about her job.

“Odette.”Odette.It suited her.

The doctor gave “Nurse Betty” a nod and extended his hand for me to shake. The man’s silver hair was evidence of his many years in the field.

“Hello, Mr. Ashford.” His voice was heavily accented. A Frenchman. “I’m Doctor Swan. How are you?”

It only registered at that moment that Odette had no accent. She was an American.

“Could be better,” I answered, my eyes flickering back to her.

“We’ll get you fixed up and on your way in no time,” he assured. He turned his attention away from me. “Odette, do you have the vitals?”

“Of course.”

“And the patient’s chart?”

“All here,” she answered, smiling. She handed the doctor my chart, and as he read the notes, he asked, “Your recommendation?” His eyes breezed over the pages. He must be her mentor, maybe she would be completing her residency here?

“Injection of corticosteroids and a weeklong application of silicone gel.”

He raised his head and met her eyes, his smile warm and affectionate. A love affair maybe?

“Excellent, and the right choice. Good job, Odette.”

The woman nodded and met his gaze, but she didn’t gush. No blush. She must have been accustomed to praise. Then the doctor turned to me and I realized my assumption of a love affair was all wrong. This had to be her father or a family member. They had the exact same eyes.

“I agree with the treatment,” he said. “Odette helps me. She’s in school and I take advantage of her skills when she’s home.” I nodded, feigning disinterest. “If you’re going to be in town in seven days, we can do an extra injection before you depart, but no lying out in the sun. If you must, a UV-protection long-sleeve shirt should do the trick.”

“That won’t be a problem,” I assured him. However, I might have to think of an excuse to see this young woman one more time.

“Good.” The doctor slid his glasses up his nose, then turned to Odette, switching to French. “Go ahead home. I will finish here. Will I see you later?”

“Yes. I’m meeting some friends at Le Bar Américain for drinks. But I’ll have dinner with you beforehand,” she answered in fluent French.Fuck. I immediately found myself wondering if she moaned and whimpered words in French when she was getting fucked.

Wrong time to get a hard-on. Especially in the state of pain I was in with this fucking burn.

“Bien. Go get some rest, then,” he said, switching back to English

With a last look my way, she nodded, kissing his cheek on her way out. “See you later.”

And it wasn’t until she was leaving the room that her eyes found me one more time.

Dr. Swan prepared the injection while my thoughts drifted to that fucking day my back burned the first time, leaving me with my scars. My second deployment with my SEAL team could have killed me. If my commander hadn’t come back when he did, I probably would have been burned alive. But he did, and we’d been best friends ever since.

As I sat on the hospital bed, I let the doctor inject me with that fucking needle. I didn’t feel the stick, but I felt the cool sensation that followed right after. Leaving me with a promise that someone would be right back to attend to me and apply lotion on my back, he wished me well and left the room.

The door opened shortly after. I didn’t look up, expecting a nurse.

“I’m just going to apply this to your back and you can be on your way.” The same voice. Husky. Warm. So fucking warm. I liked it. Scratch that. I loved her voice.

“Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Silence followed. I heard her soft footsteps against the tile floor of the room as she worked efficiently, preparing whatever it was she was about to do.

“Odette, huh?”