Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
CALVIN
Jesus fuck, Atlas Sinclair can kiss. My tiredness is forgotten, and all I can focus on is his mouth on mine, his tongue licking inside. His firm hands hold me in place, one hand on the small of my back, the other framing my face just so.
God, his hands on me… feel so fucking good. So strong, so sure. I’m a fucking puddle for Atlas.
He slowly walks me back to the wall beside the door and I go without protest, wrapping my arms around his neck while he continues to devour me.
Just when I think it can’t get any better, Atlas presses his body into mine, our pelvis’s slotting together.
Oh God, he’s big. And hard. And thick.
“Atlas,” I murmur when he pulls away and rests his forehead against mine, his warm breaths drifting across my wet lips.
“Love how you say my name,” he whispers, his hand tightening on my back, as if to make sure I don’t leave the circle of his arms. Like I’d imagine going anywhere else. “Say it again.”
I breathe a chuckle, but a moan cuts me off when Atlas grips my hip in a way that makes my toes curl. “Fuck, Atlas.”
“There you go,” he whispers before dipping back in to kiss me more.
God, I could do this for hours—fuck, days.
It’s been so long since I’ve had anything close to this. Not even Mitchell made me feel so cherished from a single kiss. Atlas holds me like he never wants to let go, like I’m some kind of prize he doesn’t want taken from him.
I hardly know the man, but this attraction to him can’t be denied. I felt it before, but I was trying to protect myself, trying to protect my heart. After my ex-husband, I didn’t—
No, Mitchell has no place here. Not when I’m being owned by the handsome man who’s made me feel alive in a way I didn’t know was possible. I want to stay in this moment with Atlas, in his arms where I feel like the most precious thing in his life.
Atlas breaks the kiss and I fucking whimper, wanting more. He tastes so good, feels so fucking good.
I stand on my tiptoes to get more of his mouth, but he chuckles and leans away. “I’m sorry,” he says. “I lost control there for a minute.”
“It’s okay,” I whisper, meeting his gray eyes that swim with lust. “We can… we can take it to the bedroom.” It’s only then that I realize my front door is still wide open. Anyone could have come in and I would have been none the wiser, too wrapped up in Atlas to care.
I reach to close it, but he stops me. “No, I should go. You need to sleep, Nurse Hayes.”
I pout, and Atlas smiles, his eyes crinkling around the edges. God, he’s so fucking fine. And he’s interested in me? I’m not a bad-looking man, but Atlas is… I don’t have words. He’s fucking fire.
Removing my hand, I cross my arms over my chest, disappointment settling in my gut. It’s been so long since I’ve kissed someone like that. Maybe I did it wrong and he didn’t like it. Is that why he’s trying to leave? But he wanted to kiss me.
Right?
“Hey,” he murmurs, his large hand framing my face in a way that makes me feel priceless. “You just had a long shift. You need to rest since you work again tonight. That’s the only reason I stopped. There’s nothing more I want than to have you under me, saying my name for the rest of the day.”
I bite my lip, my cock twitching in my scrubs. That sounds like the perfect way to end a shift in my opinion.
“You’re exhausted, Calvin, and I like to at least pretend I’m a gentleman.” He thumbs under my left eye where I’m sure there are dark circles. “Get some rest. I’ll be back at six thirty to get you to work on time. Okay?”
I have to swallow three times before I can push words past the dryness in my throat. “Okay.”
Making me say his name for the rest of the day? Am I even ready for that? My body is, sure, but what about my mind? My heart?
After so many years, I’m not sure I can separate sex from something deeper.
Mitchell still remains the only man I’ve been with. I’ve been on a few dates, and even kissed some of them, but I never felt a connection that made me want more. Even when I was younger, I knew I wasn’t built for hooking up or having one-night stands.
Why Atlas came along and made me want something beyond a kiss…
I can’t answer that. But I want to find out.
Maybe it’s his age, maybe it’s his effortless confidence, or maybe it’s his swag that has me tied up in knots, but I want to explore whatever it is we have.
So him putting a stop to sharing my bed right now is probably wise.
Doesn’t mean I have to like it.
Nodding, I put some space between us—so I don’t grab him and try to paste myself to him again. “You’re right. I really am tired.” Exhaustion covers me and I sway. Atlas steps up to steady me, smiling smugly at me when I thank him. “You’re the worst.”
“Nah. I might not be good, but I’m not the worst.”
I raise an eyebrow and he smiles, but it’s… blank. Like it’s just a motion, but he doesn’t mean it. It’s like a switch flipped from the man who was just ravaging me in the doorway to the man who’s holding me now. Dammit, am I jumping into something with someone I shouldn’t?
Like cold water tossed over us, the mood is shattered and my desires are tamped out. I step out of Atlas’s arms and wrap mine around my middle. “Thank you again for the ride home.”
His sad eyes lock onto mine and he opens his mouth as if to say something, but he closes it again, threading his fingers through his hair.
“You’re welcome, Calvin. I’ll be back at six thirty.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Okay, I think I’ve thanked him enough.
His lips tip up in a gentle smile. “We’ve covered that. Get some sleep, okay?” Atlas places a quick kiss on my lips that I melt into, then he breezes out of the door with a quick, “Lock the door behind me,” tossed over his shoulder.
I do what he says and only when the lock clicks do I hear his footsteps receding.
God, why is he so fucking sweet and why do I feel this draw to him? It’s insane, wanting someone as much as I want Atlas when I don’t know if he’s hiding something or is simply a mysterious guy.
No, he has to be hiding something. I know that look he gave me. I have intimate experience with that look.
But is it enough to put me off wanting to see where things go with him? I don’t think so. Whatever he’s hiding might hurt—hell, it might be a fucking gut punch—but I can’t not see where things could go.
I’m a fucking fool, but that’s fine. If whatever he’s hiding ends up being too much, I’ll walk away. I’ve done it before, I can do it again.
Sighing, I rest my forehead against the front door. “I’m too tired to think about this shit,” I mutter.
I blow out a long breath, then head to my bathroom to shower. I’m so fucking tired, but I can’t lie down in my clean bed with dirty scrubs on.
My shower is thorough but quick, the hot water relaxing me and making me even more sleepy.
I ignore my throbbing cock, not wanting to touch myself to thoughts of Atlas and how he owned my mouth.
If I start, I’ll be up for hours, going over and over in my imagination how that mouth would have felt on other places.
After I’m clean, I towel off quickly and pad to my room, ready to crash. I’m loopy with exhaustion, a giggle bubbling up my throat as I think about the date I just went on. A fucking tea date. I’ve never done that before. I’ve also never been given flowers this early in the morning.
“Fuck, I have to put those in water,” I murmur as I lie in bed, my pillow soft as I nestle into it. “Later tonight, I’ll do it.” I yawn so wide, my jaw cracks. “Tonight, for sure.”
“Fuck!” I shout as I sit up, looking around frantically. Scrambling across my bed, I grab my phone and see that it’s six fifteen. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!”
As I rush out of bed, I check my alarm app and see that I set my alarm, I just didn’t turn it on. Thank God my body woke me up.
But I won’t have time to make coffee while I’m getting myself together. If I had my own car, I’d push leaving until six forty-five, praying I got to work on time, but Atlas is giving me a ride.
Warmth blooms over my body as I think about him. It would have been nice to wake up with his strong arms wrapped around me after a night of him making me say his name.
It’s been so long. God, I feel like a bumbling virgin with his first crush. I shouldn’t be constantly thinking about that man after one date. I’m acting like I’ve never had a man’s interest before.
I rush to my bathroom to brush my teeth, then hurry to my room to get dressed.
By the time Atlas knocks on my door, I’m ready, but without coffee. I’m going to have to drink some of the break-room coffee and it’s the worst.
I scowl when I open the door, happy to see Atlas but in a pissy mood because I have to drink hospital sludge. My frown turns upside down when Atlas extends a large cup toward me. God, could this man get any more perfect?
“Good evening, Calvin.” That smug smile is back, like he knows me. “Figured you’d need this. I wasn’t sure how you took it, so I got three creams, three sugars.”
I usually do five sugars, but I should probably cut back. Three is fine. More than fine. It’s salvation from coffee that tastes like tar and regret.
“It’s perfect. Thank you.” I hoist my bag higher on my shoulder and step outside.
Before I can lock my door, Atlas snakes his arm around my waist and pulls me in for a soft kiss. “Did you sleep well?”
I nod but roll my eyes. I never oversleep. I’m always diligent about setting my alarm, then checking and double checking that it’s actually on. But my mind was on Atlas before I crashed, so I forgot my routine. Not like I have any regrets about that, though. “I did. Too well. Almost overslept.”
He hums. “Do I need to be your wake-up call?”
I chuckle and shake my head. “I can handle it, Mr. Sinclair.”
“Atlas.”
“Umm hmm.”
I lock up and Atlas escorts me to his car with a hand on the small of my back. It sends shivers up my spine. When he opens my car door for me? I almost swoon.
Grinning shyly, I slide into the passenger seat. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Nurse Hayes.” I scowl and Atlas bursts out laughing. Okay, I see what he means. Atlas makes Calvin sound sexy.
The drive to the hospital is not exactly tense, but there’s something there. Something I can’t put a finger on. Atlas is being his usual charming self, but it’s like he’s holding back. Is it because of the kiss last night? Or because he turned down sleeping with me?
Nah, that can’t be it. It has to be his comment about not being the worst. I want to poke at that, but what if it’s too bad? What if it has the power to break me like Mitchell did?
Yeah, that can wait. For now, I want to enjoy this feeling of lightness Atlas has brought out in me.
I haven’t felt this buoyant in years. Whatever he has to tell me can wait for just a little while.
I have my own secrets—Mitchell, his crimes, why I ran.
That’s shit that Atlas will have to know, but not right now.
We just had our first date, for fuck’s sake.
No need to delve into our life stories. We can work up to that.
We can build.
“Did you have to work today?” I ask, sipping my coffee. I could use more sugar, but it doesn’t taste like sadness and long nights, so it’s a win in my book.
He shakes his head. “Not today. I can’t work until I’m healed. Doctor’s orders.” He looks over at me and winks and I chuckle.
“How are you feeling? Are your dressings—”
“I’m fine, Calvin. I’ve been in plenty of scraps before. I know how to handle a wound.”
That shouldn’t be sexy. Him getting hurt or taking care of himself should not be hot as fuck. What is wrong with me?
“Well, if you need help with it,” I say, butterflies dancing in my belly. “I’m here. You can come by and I’ll change it or whatever.”
“Or whatever,” he repeats in a sultry purr. Atlas knows exactly what he’s doing when he does shit like that. “I’ll keep that in mind, Nurse Hayes.”
I glower at him.
We pull up into the hospital parking lot and Atlas drives up near the emergency room. He puts the car in park and glances over at me, taking me in with a look in his eyes that sets me on fire. This man is effortlessly fucking hot.
“I’d like to take you on another date, Calvin.”
“I’d like that too, Atlas.”
His smile is wide and filthy, like his name on my lips is… erotic.
Grabbing the back of my neck, he pulls me in for a brief but dirty kiss that pulls an unexpected moan from me. My dick hardens in a flash, begging to be let free to rub against Atlas.
“Have a great day at work,” Atlas says in a teasing tone when he releases my mouth. “I’ll call you.”
“You do that, Mr. Sinclair.”
He gives me a dry look and I laugh and lean forward, stealing a kiss of my own. His face is a picture of surprise and arousal when I pull back, making a smile bloom across my face.
Two can play that game, Mr. Sinclair.