The Match

by Jillian Quinn

  “It’s the same night we met.”

  “Oh, right. But I didn’t think we were celebrating our one-night stand.”

  “We wouldn’t be standing here right now if it was just a one-night stand, now would we?”

  She rolls her eyes at me and smirks. “Well, Mr. Smarty Pants, I didn’t think we were celebrating the night we had sex. What does this make it? Our sex anniversary? Our sexiversary?”

  We both laugh at the stupid idea that I thought would be romantic. To some extent, I guess celebrating the first night we had sex is romantic for me.

  I shrug, staring out into the city that’s full of life. “I guess so. I wanted to do something special for us to remember the night. Meeting you is the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

  I press my lips to hers, taking in the scent of her vanilla lip gloss that is now on my skin. “One thing I will never regret is meeting you. I will never stop loving you. Because of you, I’m a better man.”

  Ava smiles and reaches up to plant a kiss on my cheek. Holding onto her, I steer Ava toward the chairs and help her into one. Instead of taking the seat next to Ava, I get down on one knee in front of her. She gasps when I remove the ring box from my pocket and flip the top for her to see the five-carat diamond I bought her from Tiffany’s.

  Ava covers her mouth with her hand, her eyes wide with surprise. “Oh my God. Sloan, this is…” Her words die off in her throat, as tears stream down her face.

  I pluck the ring from the box and set it on the table. Holding the ring with one hand, I take Ava’s hand in the other, pinning her down with one look.

  She locks onto me and flashes a bright smile that lights up her beautiful face. Even though she looks as though she wants to say something, Ava keeps her mouth shut. For once. I was afraid she would get more nervous than me and ask a million questions or ramble on about something to distract me. Ava has a habit of doing that when she’s anxious. But it’s one of the things I love most about her. All of her quirks are what had drawn me to her in the first place. And those subtle imperfections are what has made me love her even more.

  “You came into my life when I least expected it and turned my world upside down. I never thought a hook-up in an on-call room would turn into something real, but it did. What we have is special. My life is better because you are in it. Will you marry me?”

  She nods, sobbing, and wipes the tears from her face with the back of her hand. I slip the ring onto her finger and then reach up to help her dry the tears. “Yes, of course I will marry you.” Ava fans herself, her cheeks growing redder by the second.

  “You will make a beautiful bride. I can’t wait for you to be my wife.”

  Ava runs her thumb along the stubble on my jaw and stares into my eyes. “I forgot to tell you something.”

  I get up from the ground and sit in the chair next to Ava, still holding her hand. “What’s that?”

  “Happy sexiversary.” She chuckles.

  I shake my head and laugh at her. “I was trying to be romantic by remembering the night we met. I guess I should have picked another day, huh? Who celebrates the anniversary of when they first had sex?”

  “This is perfect. If I hadn’t been so reckless the night I met you, we wouldn’t be here right now.”

  “Now that I know you, I am even more thankful that you lowered your guard with me. It was fate when you walked into that conference room for orientation.”

  “I guess it was. Best and worst day of my life. I was so sure I would get kicked out of the residency program or have to switch hospitals.”

  “As much as I wanted to resist you, I never would have let that happen.”

  “I love you,” she mouths and I say it back to her. Three words I never meant more in my life.

  I never want to let Ava go. From the moment we met, I felt a special connection to the quirky raven-haired girl. Instead of the one-night stand I had wanted, I got so much more. My life feels complete, all because I took a chance, broke my rules, and allowed Ava into my heart.

  Epilogue

  SLOAN

  Four years later

  “Sloan, I did it. I’m a member.”

  I spin around in the crowded hall to see Ava running toward me. She’s wearing navy scrubs and a white lab coat that now reads Dr. Hart over her left breast. She lunges herself into my arms, holding a paper in her hand and an envelope in the other.

  “You are looking at the newest member of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery. All of that hard work paid off.” She kisses me on the cheek, and I set her down on the floor in front of me.

  I take the letter she shoves in my face and study every word, unable to contain my excitement for her. “They would have been stupid not to want you. You earned this. I am so proud of you, baby.”

  “What can I say? I had a great teacher.” She winks at me with a smile on her beautiful face.

  I smirk. “You were a good student.”

  After finishing her seventh year as a resident at Penn General, Ava was finally eligible to become board certified in thoracic surgery. There was never a doubt in my mind that she would pass the board certification. She followed in her father’s footsteps in every way.

  It took Ava’s dad a while to accept the outspoken Chief of Surgery as his son-in-law, and even though we almost never see eye to eye, he’s welcomed me into their family with open arms ever since the wedding. I married Ava in the hotel where we met, which had no meaning to anyone but us. It was the perfect location for our big day.

  “Why don’t we celebrate over dinner tonight? We can go to that wine bar you like and get a nice bottle of red to go with our steak.”

  “I can’t,” she says.

  “Why not? Your shift ends in an hour. I’ll be done by six.”

  “There’s something else I have to tell you,” she confesses. Ava slips her fingers between mine and peeks up at me with those big, blue eyes that make me forget everything around us.

  “You’d rather celebrate in the on-call room?” I wiggle my eyebrows at her, and she laughs.

  “Yes, but that’s not what I wanted to tell you.” Ava takes my hand and holds it over her stomach. “I had Stacey run my labs at lunch. You’re going to be a father, Sloan.”

  My mouth widens in shock. Even though we still have sex as much as when we first met, I wasn’t expecting Ava to drop this bomb on me. At first, I’m not sure how I feel about it until I allow myself to absorb everything. “You’re pregnant.”

  She nods.

  “I’m going to be a father,” I say, repeating her words, still stunned by the news.

  “Can you believe it? Everything is coming together all at once.”

  I bend down to kiss her on the lips, holding her tight against my chest. As much as I want to cry on the inside, I push back my happy tears. I was an only child, left parentless after my mother’s death. I had never given children much thought because of my upbringing. But I want kids, something I never realized until Ava told me I am about to become a father.

  “We’re going to have another doctor in the family,” I choke out. “I know just the medical set to get our baby. The same one my mom got me.”

  She hugs me again and rests her head on my chest. “Another Dr. Hart. I like the sound of that.”

  “I love it,” I admit. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too, Sloan.”

  Lowering my voice to a whisper, I guide Ava to the opposite side of the hallway, closer to our favorite spot in the building. “Paging Dr. Hart! You’re wanted in the on-call room.”

  She peeks up at me, the corners of her mouth turned up into a smile. “Our kid better not even think about doing this.”

  “Are you joking? Our kid will never be allowed out of the house. No way would I want my daughter to go sneaking around with a doctor to have sex in the on-call room.”

  “You know, the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree in the Roberts family.”

  “You’re a Hart now, but let’s hope for a b
oy,” I say, dragging her in the on-call room. “Just in case.”

  Once our lips meet, I reach behind Ava and lock the door, not giving a damn if everyone in the hospital can hear us.

  Looking for more steamy reads? I have a friends to lovers romance that’s perfect for you. Keep reading for a free preview of More than Friends.

  Chapter One

  DEAN

  Freshman Year

  For the first time in my life, I am afraid to talk to a girl. And not just any girl. Kat is the daughter of Nick Baldwin, the professional hockey player I have idolized for most of my life. I still have NHL posters of her dad on the walls in my bedroom back home. Her father is the reason I wanted to become a hockey player, and now, I am stalking her.

  My teammates laughed at me, told me I was crazy for seeking out Kat. When I’d heard that Nick’s daughter made the women’s ice hockey team at Strickland University, I had to see for myself if she lives up to the Baldwin name. She doesn’t disappoint, not even a little bit. In fact, Kat might be a faster skater than her dad.

  Kat skates down the ice, with a few girls in tow, switching the puck to her right, as she the winger comes up on her left side. They collide against the boards, scrambling for the puck. With a front-row seat to the action, I get up from my chair and lean into the Plexiglas, watching Kat fight to keep possession of the puck. She elbows one of the girls in the jaw, but the official doesn’t catch it.

  I laugh. While Kat has her father’s skating and puck-handling abilities, she has her older brother’s scrappiness. Duke and Austin Baldwin are two of the best defensive players in the NHL. I see a lot of her brothers in Kat. Even from the stands, I am in awe of her, smiling at the thought of meeting her.

  After the game ends, I wait by the rink entrance for Kat as the Strickland Senators smack the hands of their opponents. Kat was the sole reason for this win at home. She dominated every second she was on the ice.

  Wiping my sweaty palms down the front of my jeans, I call out to Kat, who narrows her eyes at me. I hold up my index finger and gesture for her to come over to me.

  She rolls her eyes but follows my request.

  “Hey,” I manage to say before she interrupts my train of thought.

  “Did you just beckon me?” She rips off her gloves and holds them against her navy-and-white jersey.

  “Umm…I guess so.” I shove my hands into my pockets to dry them off.

  Why is she making me so damn anxious? I wasn’t even this nervous when I tried out for the varsity hockey team.

  “I’m not a puck bunny or your beckon call girl. You don’t point your finger at me and expect me to come running over.”

  The corners of my mouth turn up into a wicked grin. “But you did.”

  “No, don’t do that.” She shakes her head. “Does that smirk normally work for you?”

  Thrown off by her question and the awful turn that this conversation is taking, I have no idea how to respond. From watching her play, I knew she would be a no bullshit kind of girl, yet I treated her as if she were some puck bunny hanging out after one of my games.

  Total dick move.

  “Yeah, I guess it does,” I admit, holding out my less sweaty hand. “I’m Dean Crawford, the starting center for the men’s team.”

  “I know who you are, Dean. Your reputation precedes you.”

  “Is that a good or bad thing?”

  She shrugs. “Depends if we’re talking about hockey or your extracurricular activities.”

  “This is not how I was hoping this would go,” I confess.

  She chuckles. “You had this all planned out? I thought you were a ladies man. I have to say I’m not that impressed.”

  “Oh, yeah. Why is that?” I try to hide my smile and fail.

  “You’re not as smooth as I thought you would be.”

  “At least you know who I am.”

  “C’mon, Baldwin,” her coach yells from behind her on her way into the locker room. “Let’s get a move on.”

  Kat glances over her shoulder and says okay, before turning her focus back to me. “I have to go. Is there something you wanted?”

  I’ve never had this issue with women. Most of the girls on campus throw themselves at my teammates and me. “I wanted to meet you.”

  She huffs. “Are you one of my dad’s fanboys? I don’t have time for that shit. Do you know how many guys talk to me every week because of my dad and brothers?”

  “I won’t lie to you. Your dad is the reason I came here today, but your talent is what kept me watching.”

  Her face lights up with a genuine smile. “Now, you’re just trying to flatter me.”

  “Is it working?” I wiggle my eyebrows at her.

  “I don’t know,” she groans. “Maybe.”

  “What are you doing later?”

  “I might hang out with my friend at the SAC.” She bites down on her bottom lip as if I’m the one who is making her nervous. “We play air hockey up on the third floor if you want to come.”

  Then, it hits me that she thinks I’m asking her on a date when that wasn’t my intention. Kat is beautiful that much I can tell beneath the helmet that covers her blonde hair and the layers of gear that fill out her frame. But I wasn’t even thinking that far ahead. Despite my reputation, I don’t sleep around as much as everyone thinks. I don’t correct the people spreading the rumors either. So, I suppose that is my fault.

  “Well, I guess I will see you in the game room.”

  “Okay.” She smiles one last time before she turns away from me. “See ya later, Dean. Don’t think for one second that I will let you win just because I’m a girl.”

  I laugh in response. “Girl or not, I wouldn’t expect that from a Baldwin.”

  She glances over her shoulder at me and winks.

  Kat is everything I had imagined and more. Girls like her don’t come along that often. She has me so intrigued that I panic all over again at the thought of hanging out with her outside the rink. As I watch Kat leave, my heart pounds in my chest. I am in trouble.

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  Also by Jillian Quinn

  MORE THAN SERIES

  More Than Friends

  More Than Roommates

  LOVE IN THE END ZONE SERIES

  Roughing

  Holding

  FACE-OFF SERIES

  Parker

  Kane

  Donovan

  Jameson

  For more information, visit JillianQuinnBooks.com.

  About the Author

  Jillian Quinn is an international bestselling romance author who likes her females just as alpha as their swoon-worthy counterparts. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Jillian sets all of her books in the City of Brotherly Love, cheers for her local sports teams, and enjoys a good cheesesteak. When she’s not writing, reading, or blogging, she’s fangirling over hockey and can be found wherever she can watch the next game.

  For more information about Jillian’s books, visit her website at JillianQuinnBooks.com.

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