Chapter 6
Amelia’s POV
I slipped my stethoscope from around my neck and placed it gently on the small table beside my patient’s bed. The elderly woman’s soft eyes followed my every movement, hopeful, almost childlike.
“You’re doing good,” I said with a reassuring smile, checking the monitor one last time.
Her lips curved into a faint grin. “So…. am I ready to be discharged, doctor?”
I chuckled softly, shaking my head. “Unfortunately, no. Your health has improved, no doubt, but we still have to keep you here a little longer–just to assess and make sure there are no side effects from the surgery. You understand, right?”
She sighed but nodded. “I do.”
“Good.” I picked up my stethoscope and slung it over my shoulders again. “Alright then, that will be all for now. If you have any issue or even the smallest complaint, please press that red button beside you, and a nurse will be here immediately, okay?”
“Yeah, okay.”
I gave her a small smile. “Perfect. Have a nice day.”
I stepped out of her room, closing the door quietly behind me, and checked the next name on my list.
Edmund.
Just the thought of him made my heart trip over itself. My pulse quickened, and I suddenly became hyperaware of my breathing, of the way my palms were starting to feel clammy.
Why was I nervous?
I’d seen him before, I’d treated him before. But that had been different. Last week his wife, Lewis, and even the nurse were in the room. I hadn’t felt the full weight of his attention on me. Today, it was going to be just him and me.
My stomach tightened. What was I going to say to him? How was I supposed to act when his eyes, those same eyes I remembered from years ago locked onto mine again?
For a moment, I froze in the hallway, hating myself for even letting my mind wander down this path. What the hell was I thinking?
The man was married.
And worse, he was my patient. I had no business feeling like this. I shouldn’t even be thinking about him in that way.
I closed my eyes and forced myself to inhale deeply. Breathe in. Breathe out. My chest rose and fell as I repeated the exercise, trying to slow my racing heart. Once. Twice. Three times.
When I finally felt steady enough, I opened my eyes, squared my shoulders, and continued my walk down the corridor. The sound of my own footsteps echoed in my ears as I neared his room, each step heavy with unspoken questions and emotions I wasn’t sure I wanted to face.
After all the breathing exercises, my damn heart still picked up the moment I reached his door.
God.
1/3
3:53 pm PPM M
Chapters
I felt like a clite ken, an unprofessional one at that. What the hell was wrong with the
I took a steady breath. Just lock it all up and be professional, I muttered under my breath. I repeated it like a chant, hoping if I said it enough times, it would somehow register in my brain.
Shaking off my nerves, I straightened my coat, tugged it neatly in place, then reached for the door handle. I held the cool metal like a lifeline for only a second before I pushed it down and stepped inside.
He was scrolling through his phone, his brows drawn in concentration. But the moment his eyes lifted and found mine, all the pep talk I’d armed myself with evaporated like smoke.
I was so utterly, completely screwed.
“If it isn’t my favorite doctor,” he said with a smile that hit me like a punch to the chest. “Hey, Amelia.”
And just like that, I melted inside like a puddle.
Edmund didn’t smile often, not back then anyways, and I doubted he did much now. But when he did, it made everything brighter, warmer, as if someone had pulled open the curtains and let the sun in. And the way he said my name… God.
Get a grip, Amelia.
I broke our gaze, forcing my attention down to the chart in my hands. My fingers tightened around it like a lifeline as 1 crossed the room, keeping my steps measured and professional.
“Mr. Montgomery,” I began, keeping my tone as firm as possible, although my insides were a mess, “you know full well you should be resting, not fiddling with your phone.”
He lifted one hand in mock surrender, chuckling as he set the device aside. “I know, I know. I just had some important emails to look through. You know I’ve always been a workaholic.”
My chest fluttered against my will. It shouldn’t have. It was just a sentence, but it pulled me back to the six months we’d spent all those years ago, tangled in that contract marriage, an emotionless agreement that turned out to be more.
Six months of vulnerability, of laughter, of moments I’d never allowed myself to fully unpack.
I exhaled slowly, slipping the stethoscope into my ears and placing the diaphragm gently against his chest.
“Well, work can wait until you’re better,” I said softly, moving the stethoscope across his chest with practiced care. “Your body needs rest if you want to recuperate faster.”
“Aye aye, Captain.” He gave me a cheeky salute, and before I could stop myself, a laugh broke through my carefully built wall of professionalism.
God, that laugh slipped out too easily. I cleared my throat quickly, replacing the smile with a frown as I tried to mask my slip
- up.
Finally I reached for the sphygmomanometer and proceeded to check his blood pressure. Once I was done checking it, I noted it down on the chart and forced my focus back to the numbers.
I took a step back and said, “You’re doing good. Nothing is out of place. The nurse will be here soon with some medication. Make sure you take them.”
“Yeah, yeah,” he said lightly. Then his tone shifted, softened. “Enough about my recuperating self. How are you?”
“I’m good,” I answered quickly, too curtly. My voice didn’t sound like mine. It sounded like someone else’s. Defensive, clipped, detached. “Well, I have to go. I have other patients to attend to, and I’m—”
2/3
3:53 pm PPM M
Chapter 6
My words died when his hand suddenly caught mine. Warm. Firm. Familiar.
He rubbed his thumb over my skin gently, almost reverently, his eyes locked on mine. “I’ve missed you” he whispered.
My entire body froze.
And just like that, I was pulled back in time, back to that day I came back from my mother’s place. The way he had hugged me so tightly, like he never wanted to let go. The way his hand had found mine, his thumb stroking just like this, before he leaned down and pressed a kiss to my forehead. I missed you, he’d said that day too.
My stomach twisted with a thousand butterflies, my chest aching with memories I thought 1 had buried seven years ago after our divorce.
No. No, I couldn’t do this.
I yanked my hand back quickly, almost too harshly, the loss of his warmth startling me.
His brows furrowed in confusion. “Is everything okay? Did I do something wrong?”
I forced a weak smile, fumbling for the first excuse I could reach. “No, it’s nothing… I just–I really have to go. Urgently.”
Before he could say anything else, I turned on my heel and stormed toward the door.
“Amelia!” he called after me, his voice tugging at the very core of me.
But I didn’t stop. Didn’t dare. I pulled the door shut behind me, leaning against the cool wood for half a second before pushing myself away and walking to the next patient’s room.
3/3
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
