A blast from the past (6)

The evident anger in his eyes was all it took for her to figure out what was going on though his mind. If looks could kill, Wilson's head would be rolling. He had obviously assumed that she and Wilson had something going on between them.

It was not necessarily a bad thing because it would make him stop bugging her.

So she waved at him politely. "Dr. Aubert, hello."

He blocked her path to the elevator before she could get to it. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To the hospital. You know, where I work?" She stumbled back and managed to steady herself.

He grabbed her by the shoulders. "Who the fuck is he?"

Wilson was by his side before she could answer him, pulling him away from her.

She held back a smile. He really wasn't going to let anyone lay a finger on her.

"It's none of your business. See you in the research center in twenty minutes. Cleo will show you to my reading nook."

She entered the elevator and he watched it close with fury coursing through him.

Who the hell was that guy? He wanted to believe that she had hired a bodyguard but when he realized that the guy wasn't keeping enough distance from her, he was convinced otherwise. There was no way he would address her by her first name if she was her boss. Besides, why would Kara need a bodyguard? She was the villainess people needed protection from.

The research center was only open to qualified doctors. She could easily use her position as the CEO to get him in but she couldn't risk offending Shera over a man. He had to be someone important. The thought of it was driving him nuts.

He finally sought Cleo when he was certain he wouldn't punch some innocent person's nose out of anger.

"Dr. Aubert!" The young woman was certainly thrilled to see him. Her face was flushed and she couldn't meet his gaze, but she still knew what had to be done. "Dr. Willaims is in the library. I'll show you the way."

He followed her lead to the library, where Kara had an ornate reading nook of her own. It consisted of two cozy couches, an egg hammock, a coffee table, and shelves of books he didn't think he could ever find in her personal space.

"A dark romance novel?" He eyed the book in her hand when he got in. She was always reading something to do with medical research. He would never have thought of her as the type to sneak away into her book during working hours for a few chapters of a romance novel.

"A new hobby." She uncrossed her legs, and he accidentally caught sight of more skin than she intended for him to see. It was a sliver but he couldn't focus on anything else but her body. His gaze ran up her body and paused at her chest. She was dressed quite conservatively in a blouse that didn't reveal much cleavage but with her position, he got a seductive view.

"My eyes are up here, pervert." She called him out.

"I'm not…"

"You were clearly checking me out, Dr. Aubert." She interrupted him, sliding off her reading glasses and placing them gently on the coffee table. When she looked up at him, there was a glint of mischief in her eyes. "Did you like what you saw?"

But she didn't let him answer before asking her to take a seat.

"Who is he?" Was the first thing he asked.

It took her moments to register that he was still asking about Wilson. "It wasn't your business twenty minutes ago and now, it isn't your concern either."

She slotted a bookmark between her novel pages and closed it. "I'm going to Luxenville and will be there for two days. You will be in charge until I return." She announced.

He reclined back on his couch, tipping his head back in laughter. "Are you running away already? I thought you weren't scared of me."

She would need years of therapy after dealing with this man. "This might come as a huge shock to you but not everything revolves around you, Carlos."

He snickered. "Yeah."

She rubbed her temples impatiently.

"What are you going to do?" When she glared at him, he shrugged. "I'm going to take over your responsibilities until you return so I deserve to know, don't I?"

She couldn't argue with that. "A highly invasive surgery." She answered in four words, not wanting to waste her time explaining the details to him.

"Do you need help?" He offered.

"Here, yes." She shot back, reminding him why they were having this conversation.

"I mean, on the operation table." He leaned closer. "Will you be scared? I could hold your hand if you are nervous."

"You know, you would be cuter if you weren't such an ass." She rolled her eyes at him.

"Would I? But you love me more this way." He countered.

"Just get the fuck out." She had reached her limit of tolerating his antics. Why couldn't he be a clown and be done with it?

He knew she was letting herself imagine something evil when she burst into laughter. He ignored it and stood to examine her bookshelf.

"That's not my definition of out." Her voice sounded nearly nervous.

"You are actually a hopeless romantic." He scanned her books with interest. "Hey, do you think you can lend me some of these sometime?"

She paused in her tracks. She had been so anxious by him seeing her collection that she jumped over to stop him. She was confused when she heard his request. "You read novels?"

"I don't." He admitted.

She was even more infuriated. "Then why the hell do you need me to lend them?"

He eyed the spine of a black-covered book mischievously. "I want that one. 'Beast In My Bed'. Just for comparison. I'd like to know if he can beat me at being a beast in your bed."

Her jaw dropped.