The Forbidden Throb (Emma and Daniel) novel Chapter 78

You

Chapter 78

Emma’s POV:

521

I’d finished the last bite of strawberry cake, licking a stray bit of frosting from my thumb as I read Daniel’s

response.

You were very attentive during last night’s lesson. There are some materials at the hospital that might interest you.

I stared at the message, heat creeping up my neck,

Attentive. Right. Attentive was one way to describe how I’d spent the first half of the evening staring at his hands instead of listening to his explanations. And then there was the second half, where I’d literally fallen asleep mid-

lecture.

Was he complimenting me? Or subtly teasing me?

With Daniel, it was impossible to tell.

That would be helpful, I typed back carefully. I could stop by this afternoon.

Third floor, cardiac wing. The nurses‘ station can direct you to my office.

It was pure Daniel–direct, practical.

I’ll head over now, I replied, gathering up my things from the bench.

The T ride to Mass General passed in a blur of overthinking. I emerged from the station and spotted a small fruit

shop, its window display arranged with autumn produce–crisp apples, golden pears, deep purple grapes clustered

in artful pyramids.

1 pushed open the door, a small bell chiming overhead.

“Can I help you, dear?” An older woman looked up from behind the counter, her reading glasses perched on the

end of her nose.

“I need a fruit basket,” I said.

“Gift for someone at the hospital?” She was already moving toward a shelf lined with wicker baskets in various sizes. “We do a lot of those. Visitors, mostly, or folks thanking their doctors.”

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Chapter 78

My cheeks warmed. “Something like that.”

She selected a medium–sized basket and began arranging fruit with practiced efficiency. Then she added a small bunch of flowers, some sprigs of greenery, and wrapped the whole thing in clear cellophane tied with a burgundy

ribbon.

“There,” she said, setting it on the counter with satisfaction. “Elegant but not overdone. Will this do?”

“It’s perfect,” I said, meaning it. The basket looked thoughtful without being ostentatious.

I paid and walked toward the hospital’s main entrance,

The revolving doors deposited me into the vast lobby, and I made my way to the elevators, the basket balanced awkwardly in my arms as I pressed the button for the third floor.

My reflection in the polished steel doors showed a girl in jeans and a cream sweater, her hair pulled back in a

messy ponytail.

Wife visiting husband at work, I thought, and my stomach did a nervous flip.

The elevator chimed, pulling me from my spiraling thoughts.

The nurses‘ station sat directly across from the elevators, a large circular desk where several nurses in colorful

scrubs worked at computers.

I approached slowly. Before I could speak, one of the nurses looked up–and her entire face lit up with

recognition.

“Emma!”

1 froze. The nurse stood quickly, her name tag reading Jenny in cheerful letters.

Recognition clicked into place I’d seen her before. That morning, when I’d been discharged from the ER, feverish

and disoriented, trying to figure out the paperwork.

She’d been the one at the desk who’d told me with barely concealed amusement that “Dr. Prescott has already

taken care of everything.”

I remembered the way she’d looked at me then, eyebrows slightly raised, a knowing smile playing at her lips.

“You probably remember me,” Jenny said warmly. “From the ER? And before that, when you came by looking for Dr. Prescott?

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“]—yes,” I managed, shifting the fruit basket in my arms. “I remember.”

Her smile widened. “Are you here to see Dr. Prescott?”

“Yes,” I said quickly. “If he’s not too busy.”

Her gaze dropped pointedly to my left hand–to the ring that caught the fluorescent light.

“I have to ask–last week, I saw you two walking through the hospital, and you were wearing matching rings, holding hands…” She leaned in slightly, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. “What’s the story there?”

I glanced around the nurses‘ station. Several other nurses had paused in their work, their attention subtly shifting

our direction.

The news was going to spread regardless of what I said–might as well control the narrative.

Besides, wasn’t this exactly what Daniel had wanted? Part of the whole arrangement–to project the image of a happily married man, to ward off unwanted attention and matchmaking attempts.

“We’re married,” I said, the words feeling strange and solid in my mouth.

For a moment, Jenny just stared at me, her eyes widening. Then her face broke into a radiant smile.

“I knew it!” She clapped her hands together, earning startled looks from her colleagues,

“I told Sarah-” she gestured to another nurse who was now openly watching us, “-1 said there was something

going on. The way Dr. Prescott looked at you during your discharge, how he handled everything personally… I

knew I wasn’t imagining things.”

My cheeks burned. “I don’t want to be any trouble. If you could just point me toward-”

ou could just

“No trouble at all! Let me send someone to fetch Dr. Prescott. He’ll want to know you’re here.” Jenny was already

reaching for the phone, her movements quick and efficient.

“His office is just down that hallway, third door on the left. But you should stay here for a moment—”

“Thank you,” I managed, backing away before she could say anything else. “I’ll just… I’ll head that way.”

I could feel multiple pairs of eyes tracking my movement as I walked down the corridor, the fruit basket suddenly feeling incredibly conspicuous. Behind me, I heard the nurses station erupt in whispered conversation.

“Is that really her?”

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