Playing With The Doctor: A Romantic Comedy: Milestone Mischief #1

by Piper James

  “I love you, Rafe,” Jessa whispered as she pressed her cheek against mine.

  I wrapped my arms around her as I fell back against the mattress, pulling her with me. She pushed herself up on her arms, her hair forming a curtain around our faces. I pressed a palm against her cheek, and she nuzzled her face into it.

  “I love you, Jessa Maddox,” I said.

  And someday soon, I’m going to ask you to be my wife.

  I smiled at the thought, the fear and guilt I’d harbored for the last decade nowhere to be found. Jessa had done that. She’d healed me in ways I never thought possible.

  I might’ve been the doctor, but Jessa’s love was the prescription for true happiness. And I would never let her doubt that.

  Never.

  Jessa

  The party was in full swing and everyone seemed to be having a good time. I’d changed into my actual costume—a set of purple scrubs and a stethoscope to match Rafe’s blue set—after my pretend costume got me the results I’d been hoping for…driving my man insane with lust.

  I chuckled at the thought. I couldn’t believe he actually thought I’d wear that skimpy costume in front of our friends and family…including my dad, who happened to have arrived dressed as a cowboy with a very beautiful cowgirl on his arm—Janice.

  It appeared as if he’d finally worn her down and convinced her they belonged together. They were so stinking cute, I wanted to pinch their cheeks, but I managed to control the urge. I couldn’t stop smiling, knowing Dad was happy, healthy, and in love.

  Just like me.

  I drank a shot with Karly and Felicia, who wore coordinating angel and devil costumes, respectively. After assuring them that one shot was my limit for the evening, my eyes sought out Rafe, who appeared to be in an intense conversation with his brother. As if he could sense my eyes on him, he looked up, giving me a lopsided grin before turning his attention back to Nate.

  “Something is going on with him,” I mumbled.

  I scanned the rest of the room. Lola had approached Dad and Janice, who appeared to be having a lively conversation with her. The only person missing was Ivy. I could see the bathroom door from where I stood, and it was open with no light inside.

  I excused myself from my friends and walked through the kitchen to the back door. Peeking through the window, I spotted her sitting on the top step of the wide porch. I opened the door and stepped out into the cool night air, pulling it closed behind me.

  “Mind if I join you?” I asked, parking my butt next to her before she could answer.

  “Of course,” she said. “I was just getting some air.”

  “Not having fun?” I kept my voice light and airy so she wouldn’t think I was offended in any way.

  “It’s not that,” she said, sighing. “It’s Nate.”

  “What’s the deal with you two?” I asked, honestly curious.

  I knew they hated each other, but I had no idea why. Rafe didn’t know either, which was weird since he was so close to both of them. He said he never pushed the issue, as it wasn’t really any of his business. I could respect that, but if Ivy wanted to tell me…

  “When I first met Rafe at the hospital, we became instant friends,” she said in a soft, weary voice. “I immediately felt this kinship with him, like he was a long-lost brother or something. But when I met Nate, my feelings were anything but sisterly.”

  She barked out a self-deprecating laugh, and I had to force the shock off my face as I asked, “You were attracted to him?”

  She gave me an incredulous look. “Have you seen him?”

  “Eh,” I said, holding out a palm and tilting it back and forth. “He’s alright.”

  “Whatever,” she said, laughing for real this time. Then she sobered. “I thought I felt a connection. I was so into him, and I thought he liked me, too. But I was wrong.”

  “What happened?” I asked, almost afraid to hear the answer.

  “I caught him fucking some waitress in the bathroom at Hero’s.”

  “Shit,” I groaned. “I’m sorry, Ivy.” What a douchebag.

  I shook my head. This was Rafe’s brother. And his best friend. I shouldn’t take sides, or things could get sticky. But it was so hard not to.

  “It was a long time ago,” she said, waving a hand in the air. “I’m over it.”

  “Then why are you sitting out here all alone?” I asked, lifting one eyebrow.

  “Because he approached me tonight with a proposition. One I’m having trouble refusing, even though I know I should run fast in the other direction.”

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “I can’t say,” she said. “Anyway, thanks for listening. I’ll figure it out. Let’s go back inside.”

  I didn’t push. I knew she’d come to me or Rafe if she wanted our advice. So I followed her back inside and wandered up to Rafe.

  “Excuse me, Dr. Walton,” I said, tapping him on the shoulder.

  “Yes, Dr. Maddox?” he asked, wrapping an arm around my waist.

  “I’m feeling a little chilled, and I think dancing is the best medicine,” I said.

  “Sounds like just what the doctor ordered,” he said, wrapping his other arm around me as my hands clasped behind his neck.

  As we swayed to the soft music playing in the background, I knew. This was where I wanted to be for the rest of my life. In this house, wrapped in Rafe’s arms. Listening to his breathing. His laughter. His voice. Feeling like my own words and thoughts mattered to him above all others. Feeling his devotion in my heart as my own love overflowed for him.

  And spending the rest of our lives playing doctor every chance we got.

  Thank you so much for reading Playing With the Doctor! I hope you loved it and will consider leaving a review!

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  And read ahead for a sample of Milestone Mischief Book Two: Faking With the Enemy!

  Faking with the Enemy

  Nate

  Ever had one of those days when everything seemed to go to shit, and you just couldn’t seem to drag yourself out of the muck? Yeah? Me, too.

  “Damn that woman.”

  I’d been staring at the blank form on my computer screen for at least ten minutes, the flashing cursor mocking me as I fought the urge to toss the laptop out the nearest window. Mr. Stevenson was waiting for his quote, and I could see him checking his watch for the hundredth time through the glass partition that separated my office from the waiting room.

  I should’ve been done with it seven minutes ago, but I was having trouble focusing.

  Damn her.

  Shaking my head and taking a deep breath, I began to type.

  Brake pads are at fifteen percent in front and twenty percent in back. Recommend replacements, as well as a new air filter, tire rotation and windshield wiper blades. Total cost: $200

  I tapped the keys that would send the quote to the tech’s tablet and leaned back in my chair. I could’ve recommended a dozen other repairs and upgrades, but Mr. Stevenson was retired and living month-to-month on meager social security checks. I knew he couldn’t afford to anything but the bare minimum, which was why I only charged him half the labor costs and discounted his parts whenever he brought his truck in.

  Of course, he didn’t know that. He’d flat-out order me to charge him full price if he did. His pride wouldn’t allow him to accept anything less.

  With that task off my plate, my mind refocused on what had recently become the bane of my existence—Charity Glasscott.

  Her high-heeled shoes had tapped their way across the concrete floors of my shop this morning, the noise echoing around me like a bad omen as her smile sent a shiver skittering down my spine. A shiver
of revulsion.

  I’d made a mistake—a big one.

  Two weeks ago, after a couple of beers with my best friend Dane, she’d walked into the bar with that pretty face and those long, luscious legs and set out turn me into another notch on her bedpost. Maybe I was horny. Maybe I was just bored. Whatever it was, I’d shrugged at Dane and agreed to let Charity take me home.

  When it was over, she was a boneless mess, puddled in her sheets with a satisfied grin on her face. The whole thing for me was barely above a “meh” on the sex scale, but I was careful not to let her know that. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings.

  God, I wished I had.

  Because one taste of my magic dick was never enough.

  I barked a self-deprecating laugh at the thought. Back when I was younger, my older brother Rafe constantly tried to curb my gluttonous sexcapades. He told me they’d get me in trouble one day, and I’d always scoffed at his efforts.

  I’d told him it wasn’t my fault. That my magic dick had become the stuff of legends, and girls were coming out of the woodwork to experience it for themselves. How was I supposed to resist? I was only human.

  I was such a fucking cocky idiot back then. And apparently, still was.

  Charity had walked right into my office and told me in no uncertain terms that she wanted me again. When I tried to let her down gently, she’d gone on the offensive with calculated candor. She wanted me in her bed, and she always got what she wanted.

  And if I refused her demands, she would go straight to daddy.

  Normally, I would have laughed at the threat, but her words had sent a new chill prickling down my spine. Her father was Chester Glasscott, owner of Milestone Bank and Trust…the very bank that holds the loan for my shop, Walton’s Auto Repair.

  Charity didn’t mince words, telling me outright that if I didn’t fall into line and become her lover, exclusively, she’d go to her father, give him some sob story about how I’d used and abused her, and have him fudge the numbers to make my loan fall into default.

  I could lose my business. And depending how depraved Charity’s lying mouth became, I could lose my freedom.

  I could lose everything.

  I’d considered giving in. I could give her what she wanted…maybe. I was so pissed and frankly, appalled by her demands, I wasn’t sure I could even get it up for her at this point.

  But where would it end? Would I be stuck, performing for her every whim until my loan was fully paid off? I still owed ten years’ worth of payments.

  No fucking way.

  I’d considered applying for a new loan at a different bank, but unfortunately, MB&T held a monopoly in Milestone—there were no other choices. And the national bank chains had offered me exorbitant interest rates. I was stuck.

  Between a rock and a hard place.

  “Hey, Nate,” Dane said, poking his head through my door. “It’s almost closing time, and I’ve got Jason pulling in the cars. Do you need anything else?”

  “No,” I said. “You go ahead. I’m just going to finish up here, then I’ll lock up.”

  “You okay?” he asked, stepping fully into my office and closing the door behind him. “You seem…off.”

  I knew what he was asking. He’d seen Charity come in, and had caught my eye through the glass window while she’d been laying out her demands. It had been obvious I was pissed, and he’d raised his eyebrows before pointing at himself then at me, silently asking if I’d needed his help.

  I’d shaken my head slightly at him, and he’d shrugged, leaving me to handle it on my own. Now, though, was another matter.

  “You’ve been in a funk since that chick from the bar showed up her earlier. What did she want, anyway? More sex?”

  He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, and my frown deepened. The mischievous glint disappeared from his eyes, and his lips turned down as he waited for me to answer.

  “Charity Glasscott. Daughter of Chester Glasscott,” I said.

  “Why does that name ring a bell?” he asked, scratching his head.

  “Because he owns the bank.”

  “Oh, that’s right,” he said, cocking his head. “What did she want?”

  “You weren’t wrong,” I sighed. “She wants more sex.”

  “And that’s a bad thing, because…” he said, waiting for me to finish the sentence.

  “Because I don’t want to,” I said, “and she threatened to have her father put my loan into default if I don’t give it up—wherever and whenever she wants it.”

  “What the fuck?” he shouted. “That’s bullshit. Not to mention illegal. You should go to the cops.”

  “I don’t have any proof, Dane. And besides, who’s going to believe me over her? She’s one of Milestone’s elite, while I’m just a grease monkey who barely graduated high school.”

  “Nate,” he said, his voice deep with reprimand.

  “I know,” I said, waving a hand in the air. “I’ve made something of myself, and I should be proud. I am proud of what I’ve accomplished here, Dane. And Charity Glasscott could take it all away, just like that.”

  I snapped my fingers and slumped back into my chair. What a fucking nightmare.

  “All of your hard work has turned this place into a success,” he said. “Just apply some of that cunning and work ethic into getting out of this situation, and you’ll figure it out.”

  “You think so?” I asked, arching one brow at him.

  “I know so,” he said, turning to leave. “Good night, boss man.”

  “Night, Dane.”

  I sat in silence, my brain working overtime to come up with a solution. I couldn’t see a way past this, and I was becoming more and more agitated as the minutes ticked by. I had to figure something out, because becoming Charity Glasscott’s whore was not an acceptable choice. Not by any stretch of the imagination.

  My phone chimed with an alert, and I groaned as I read the message. It was reminder from my sister Lola that we had dinner plans tonight with Rafe. We were meeting up with his girlfriend—though I wasn’t sure girlfriend was the right word for her—and his best friend from work.

  Ivy Anderson. If anything could take my mind off the shit storm that hit me today, it was her.

  Check out the book on Amazon!

  Acknowledgments

  Thanks to all the contemporary romcom authors out there who made me fall in love with their books and inspired me to write this series.

  Thanks to Heather Renee, Krista Street, T.L. McDonald, and Kathleen Stiles for loving this story and helping me mold it into what it is today.

  Thanks to my husband for encouraging me to embark on this journey. He’s my biggest cheerleader, and I love him for it.

  And thanks to Molly Phipps at We Got You Covered Book Design for creating these incredible covers.

  About the Author

  Piper James is an emerging author of contemporary romantic comedy. She loves coffee above all things…well, except for her family, her ferrets, her dog and cat, and writing steamy-sweet novels…

  Follow her on Facebook- @PiperJamesAuthor and join her mailing list for news, sales, and other updates.

  Also by Piper James

  Faking with the Enemy