Open Heart (Dr. Love): A Steamy Standalone Instalove Romance Read online

  Although I know that’s not completely true. The thought of Evelyn in a swimsuit, on a beach filled with young men.

  I don’t know that I’d be able to let her be on display like that without eyeballing every guy, threatening to punch their bulging eyes to the backs of their heads.

  “I’m just shy, Mark,” she confides. “I’ve never been the ideal weight or shape that other girls are. Being on a beach with someone as perfect as you are-”

  “You weren’t shy last night,” I cut in, and we both smile. She even giggles a bit which makes us both feel better.

  “It’s different with you. I just don’t want to feel like I’m on display,” she says finally. “I know it’s silly, but if we can have some privacy, I’d like that.”

  “Oh, I didn’t plan on sharing you,” I admit. “I still don’t. I want you all to myself, Evelyn. And just so you know, there’s nothing wrong with your body. It’s perfect, but that’s not the only reason why I love you,” I confess, making us both blush a little before I have to lean in and kiss her.

  Pulling her onto my lap as I engulf her in my arms, I feel her gasp when she feels just how much I love her, my hopelessly stiff length pressing into her soft flesh, yearning to be inside her already.

  I guide her hand to it, groaning loudly when I feel her grip tighten on my shaft starting to pump up and down, her breathing as quick and hard as mine in seconds.

  For a moment, all thoughts of Bermuda disappear and we’re both in the grip of our primal feelings. The urge, the need to connect on another level.

  “I want you so bad,” I hear my voice groaning. Her own soft body starts to twist and press into my hardness.

  She whimpers and gasps, biting her lip as she tries to tell me she wants me to.

  Like, right. Fucking. Now.

  But I wanted this to be special, not some rushed fuck at her dad’s place.

  Something that tells her how much she means to me. How special she is.

  Her body shudders under mine and she whines my name louder as I see her start to lose all control.

  My dick’s already twitching in my pants, almost pained to be just inches away from her sweetness.

  The urge is past thinking by now, and we both know how much we need each other.

  “This was supposed to be special,” I try to protest, feeling her hair against my face as she purrs deeply, grinning with a new purpose. Her hands moving up to my chest before wrapping around my neck

  “Anything with you is special Mark, and giving myself to you is what matters most… Please?” she asks, her breath shivering with arousal close to my ear. Shaking with what I know is her deep need to come with me inside her.

  Moving her legs so she’s straddled me in the chair. It’s like I’m already to enter her, feeling my straining tip against the heat of her sex as she starts to press harder against me, making us both moan again.

  I won’t refuse her, not if she insists. But I really wanted our first time to be magical. Under the stars on our own private beach.

  Something that doesn’t involve a kitchen table and her dad’s place.

  That’s the main thing. Just everything being so much about Nick as well as Evelyn in this house.

  It’s like he’s right here watching over us. Those damned photos so fresh in my mind.

  His own heart pulsing weakly superimposed over them from the memory of his surgery.

  Sensing my shift in mood, she relaxes a little. Pouting with mock disappointment, I think we both silently agree that somewhere special is just that.

  Maybe she’s more comfortable losing her virginity at home though?

  “I’ve waited my whole life for you, Mark,” she says cryptically.

  I hear myself swallowing hard, my heartbeat thumping in my ears in time with the pulse in my pants.

  The throbbing pressed against her.

  So close, yet so far away if I don’t take her right now.

  “I guess I can wait a little longer,” she sighs, catching her breath a little.

  “Just a few hours,” I remind her, squeezing her rump with both my hands, feeling how small she is and not understanding anything about her worrying about her size.

  I’m a big guy, and she’s the perfect fit.

  “A few hours,” she cautions me, her eyes flashing with the satisfaction of close enough is good enough for now.

  “I promise,” I tell her, pushing my hips up and lifting her higher as we both enjoy a little more of as good as it gets with our clothes on.

  My phone rings and I roll my eyes, grateful we didn’t go any further just yet.

  “It might be about dad,” she says, echoing my own thoughts.

  I get up from the chair, still holding her, and answer. Setting her back down once I know who it is.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Evelyn

  I guess I can wait.

  Like Mark says, it’s just a few hours really, and the thought of me like that, on the kitchen table.

  Nah.

  I’d never be able to eat breakfast or have a coffee with dad there again.

  “Dean Winters, thanks for getting back to me so soon…” I hear Mark saying as he sets me down.

  He’s made more calls than I expected by the looks, while I was looking up Bermuda. Where it is and what there is to do there.

  But it sounds like Mark Love has already taken care of more than just where we’re going and what we’ll be doing too.

  “It’s regarding a recent scholarship applicant, Evelyn Partridge,” he continues and I hear myself stifle a shriek, rushing over to him, begging him as quietly as I can not to interfere.

  How embarrassing.

  Mark’s hand goes up and he gives me a firm look, his head shaking just enough to let me know not to interfere myself now.

  He’s got this.

  Dr. Love has got everything under control, all the time. Even when he’s in the middle of… Well.

  Maybe it’s for the best, just a few hours more.

  My heart quickens at the thought.

  Dad safe and well from surgery. And I’m about to bed the good doctor in Bermuda, and now hearing him explain why I was a no show to my scholarship interview.

  I heave a sigh, feeling my nipples stiffen under my blouse as I watch Mark speak.

  His deep, commanding voice in total control but with a friendly air that just makes me want to cry I love him so much.

  “…Well. I operated on her father, Nick Partridge. He was taken ill quite suddenly and Evelyn was called to the hospital, meaning she missed… Oh no, he’ll be fine. A similar procedure to your own… He’s an old college buddy actually. Friend of the family. What’s that? That’s right. Uh huh… Well, if you could see your way clear too…?”

  He smiles broadly, shooting me a wink I know means he’s saved the day yet again.

  “Thanks, Dean. I guess I owe you one. She can expect a new time for a second interview? Great. I think post would be best, might be a week or two before things are back to normal for her and her dad,” he adds with a clinical tone.

  I feel a bit giddy all of a sudden, needing to sit down again.

  To take all this in.

  Maybe long enough for me to hold off a few hours? I don’t know.

  I hurl myself into his arms again, once he’s off the phone, playfully punching him and telling him off for doing what he’s just done for me.

  “You shouldn’t have done that,” I tell him. Totally lying and so glad that he did. There’s no way I would have had the confidence, let alone the contacts to pull that off.

  “Friend of the family?” I ask him after kissing him as many thank you’s as I can muster.

  “For a while, we were the only family each other had,” Mark reminds me.

  “And anything that will give you that second shot at what you want to do is fine by me,” he adds.

  It’s so refreshing to have someone support me for once.

  I love my dad, but if he knew I wanted to be a doctor, he�
�d do everything in his power to stop it.

  Mark’s doing everything he can to make it happen, but I know I’ll have a lot of work to do. If I get accepted.

  I wince at the thought though.

  Dad finding out, his reaction to me studying medicine.

  Dear God, his reaction to Mark and me.

  “Let me handle your dad, too,” Mark says reassuringly, holding me closer and reading my thoughts as his body comforts me.

  “And let’s get ready, for heaven’s sakes. We only have a few hours before we need to be at the airport,” he adds with a smile. Both of us keen to get there now, knowing what’s at the end of the travel rainbow.

  I think about the few things I know I could pack. My passport, which is good to go. Some clothes, a shower pack.

  “Anything you need?” he asks, his smile broadening as he scans my body with hungry eyes.

  “What about visas and stuff like that…and money?” I hear my logic blurting out of sheer nerves now. Knowing I have neither.

  This is actually happening.

  “Everything has been arranged. Private hospital business,” Mark grins and then frowns just as quickly.

  “Money, we have plenty of. I meant what do you need? What do you want to take, maybe some new clothes? That swimsuit I’ll never let anyone else see you in?” he teases.

  “Maybe even some new lingerie?” his voice growls gently, moving dangerously close to the place we only just managed to move back from moments ago.

  “Can we make just one more call?” I ask, feeling the familiar stab of guilt in my chest.

  “Your dad?” Mark asks nodding, of course.

  He dials the recovery ward directly and gets an update. Like he said, if there’s a real problem, they’ll call him directly even though there’s a new post-surgical team in place now that he’s officially on holiday.

  But Dr. Love being Dr. Love, always insists on being kept in the loop, especially with this patient.

  It’s never easy hearing my dad spoken about like just some patient, but it’s Mark’s job, and I trust his judgment a hundred and ten percent.

  Signing off from the hospital he nods with a creased mouth.

  “He’s doing well, but will most likely be sedated for the next few days as a precaution. We’ll see him as soon as we get back if you want?” he asks, but as much as I hope dad’s okay it’s the last thing on my mind right now.

  Seeing him, knowing just what he’ll say once he has enough strength to be his old self again.

  Kind of dreading it actually.

  “Tell you what,” Mark says with renewed enthusiasm, “Just take your passport, we can stop on the way and grab anything you want.”

  His eyes dance at the suggestion, but I’m still not sure. I feel awkward having him pay for everything like this, but he reminds me I’d better get used to it.

  “I hate packing anyway, let’s just get a few outfits and some new luggage,” he suggests, practically talking over me as he literally pushes me out the door, both of us laughing at how crazy and spontaneous all this feels.

  How wonderful it all is.

  I lock up and with my arm hooked in Mark’s, he walks me to his car opening the door for me like a true gentleman and we’re away.

  The main shopping strip I frequent is a mall about ten miles away, but Mark is headed downtown on the way to the airport.

  To stores that have one name, which is usually always a brand name.

  Stores I’d never shop in, but Mark only shrugs when I try to tell him that.

  “We actually have plenty of time,” he says, glancing at his watch as he parks right out front of a group of stores, flipping over a sign in his window.

  He explains with a touch of guilt that he has MD plates as well as a Doctor in attendance notification for his car.

  “I’ve never used it before,” he protests when I gasp in amazement. “But, who knows? Somebody could start choking, happens all the time,” he quips.

  “I hope it doesn’t,” I murmur, knowing I have to wait for him to open my side now.

  If I don’t let him spoil me, I know Mark will think he’s doing something wrong.

  This is gonna take some time to get used to. But I like it so far, love being so close to Mark. Love how much he shows he cares every step of the way even more.

  I know there’s one thing I can do that will show him right back, but I gulp and turn red every time I think about it.

  I have no idea what I’m doing in bed with a real man as much as I do when he takes me shopping.

  How could I possibly wow him, after all, he’s done for me so far?

  “Hey,” he whispers in my ear, bending down as he helps me out of the car. “None of that,” he says calmly, reading my thoughts as if they were words off a page.

  “There’s a place here where we can get clothes and luggage,” he adds quickly, making me feel less awkward and more like a queen on a tour with her king.

  Yeah, you can buy everything in a boutique brand name store, who knew?

  I knew, but I’ve never dreamed of even being able to afford to walk through the door let alone buy anything.

  “Doctor Love,” A shrill, overly excited voice calls out. A handsome enough man in a perfect suit minces down a short flight of steps, his eyes wide once he sees Mark but narrowing when they finally settle on me.

  Mark explains the situation, briefly. And in seconds I can tell Mark’s a regular customer.

  Client, I think they’d say.

  People who spend that much are usually called clients, aren’t they?

  “Evelyn and I are leaving for Bermuda directly. We just need the basics for a few days, and some luggage, Paul,” Mark clips, like he’s ordering from a drive-through window.

  Our assistant turns his head while he listens, nodding as his eyes dart in his head. Making his own decisions about what his regular client might be most satisfied with.

  He promises to return, and I murmur to Mark, “How many other girls have you taken to Bermuda?” I regret it as soon as I say it.

  I’m trying to be funny, but I can see the near hurt in Mark’s eyes as the assistant returns with an equally sharply dressed female assistant.

  “Daphne,” she says softly, almost bowing and making me blush.

  She looks perfect, but Mark doesn’t even blink, doesn’t even look at her. He’s only interested in holding my gaze with his.

  “Don’t go too far,” is all he says, keeping his eyes on mine before Daphne invites me to follow her so she can take us to the obvious female side of the huge store, which looks like a vaulted safe that’s been opened in bright sunlight.

  Everything’s perfect, designer and expensive, shimmering like treasure in front of my eyes.

  With a surgical precision of her own, Daphne makes some suggestions of what I might like to look at first.

  I fall in love with all of it, but at her suggestion, she invites me to make my own choices.

  “We have more styles and colors, anything you want,” she says.

  “Uh… There are no prices on anything,” I stammer, noticing the lack of size labels too. “And I’m not sure I’ll fit into-”

  “Try something on,” Daphne assures me, with the air of someone who’s no slouch when it comes to knowing her job, or being able to read my taste.

  Pressing a few things into my hands, she leads me to a private dressing room, where champagne and what looks like a buffet are waiting.

  I don’t drink, and the thought of food right now is just bleh.

  My whole stomach’s in a knot.

  I feel stupid.

  Until I slip into the first thing she’s chosen.

  A swimsuit.

  Then a light summer dress, then slacks and then jeans…

  Everything fits perfectly and although I’d normally feel like a pig wearing any swimsuit, the lighting and mirrors are just right enough for me to think this might the right one for me.

  If I can get the same in black.

>   CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Mark

  I like the best of everything, but I really am the easiest guy to shop for.

  I keep trying to find Evelyn as I scan the other side of the huge boutique store, but eventually have to tell myself she’s in safe hands here.

  I can’t have her with me every second of every single day.

  Why the hell not?

  I sure do feel it already though whenever she’s out of arm’s reach, and I know it’s something I’m not liking so far.

  She’ll have to get used to having whatever she wants, spoiled rotten. And I guess I’ll have to accept the fact that sometimes, maybe just sometimes, Evelyn will have to go do her own thing from time to time.

  Like, go to the ladies and maybe be out of the room for a minute or two.

  I guess I can live with that.

  I’ve picked out a small wheeled suitcase and filled it with everything I guess I’ll need.

  The house does have everything except clothes. Maybe I should have mentioned that to Evelyn?

  After I check my watch, wondering if we’ll even make our flight, I finally see her.

  She winces at me across the way, mouthing the word sorry, but I’ve never been happier to see her.

  And not just because I know we’ll make our flight on time either.

  I’ve never been gladder to see some of all this money I have actually being put to use for a change.

  Decades of solo meals and going to bed alone only when I’m nearly falling over exhausted from work is no way to live.

  Having someone to share everything with, the good and the not-so-good times.

  That’s what matters.

  And from now on, there’s only gonna be good times for Evelyn, even her dad.

  Good times for all of us from now on, I promise myself that.

  I’ve heard some women like to shop, that some men even can spend a long time picking and choosing just the right things.

  But it’s only a couple of days.

  “Everything alright?” I ask her, pulling her close as I hook my arm around her waist, glad to feel her chest pressing into me.

  “Fine,” she squeaks. But I think I know her well enough already.