CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“Should we really be doing this in here?” Nikki asked in a whisper, almost laughing at how unbelievable the situation was. “Won’t you get into trouble?”
Jeff gripped her hips, pulling her closer to the edge of the counter. “I thought you came in here for an exam,” he growled, his already-dark eyes darkening further as they moved over her body.
“Is this the way you treat all your female patients, Doctor?”
“Only the ones who do to me what you do.”
There was no chance to offer anything more before he cut her off with a deep, searching kiss, his tongue plunging in and out of her mouth the way she wished he would plunge in and out of other places.
Places that now hummed and tingled, thanks to the attention his hands were paying to her jean-clad thighs, to that little strip of bare skin at the top of her waistband.
She knew she should be a good girl and gently but firmly push him away. She should shake a finger at him and accuse him of being a very bad boy for trying to do this at work, in one of his exam rooms.
She should.
But for some reason, she chose instead to slide her hands under his white lab coat and push it back over his shoulders, to work the buttons of his shirt so her hands could feel his warm skin, over the muscles flexing just underneath.
He closed a hand over her breast, molding it in his palm, groaning into her mouth.
“Shh!” she whispered, flushed and giddy, and he nipped at her neck in response until she had to bury her face against his shoulder and bite her lip or else risk giving them away.
Yes, this is good. Just enough like what happened in the butler’s pantry but changed up enough that it fits the book’s trope.
It’s hard to write this without getting swept up in the memories of what really did happen.
How exciting it was to walk the line between passion and danger.
Not that the danger was as serious as the trouble my characters could get into if somebody were to walk in and find them screwing in an exam room in the middle of a busy workday.
But if it had been anyone else but my grandmother who stepped through that door and discovered us on the verge of whatever we were on the verge of, it could’ve made for a very embarrassing end to the evening.
As it was, I couldn’t meet her gaze for the rest of the night—not that we stayed very long after that.
Once the cake was cut, the guests started drifting away one and two at a time.
I made sure we joined the exodus before Whitney Wilson could sink her claws any deeper into Jake.
For all I know, Grandmother is currently planning on throwing a shower to celebrate the arrival of her first great-grandchild.
“She wasn’t really as okay with that as she seemed, was she?” Jake asked once we were outside.
“Don’t let appearances fool you,” I reminded him. “I’m surprised she didn’t stick around to give us instructions. Not that she is a pervert or anything, but she’s very … open-minded for somebody her age.”
“I would like to get to know her better.” He grinned.
“Something tells me the feeling is mutual,” I sighed, glancing up at the house and wondering if Whitney Wilson was watching.
Considering how badly the night could’ve gone, things ended up not so bad after all. Aside from the fact that I came home alone since Jake made a point to warn me that he had to be in the ER early the next morning, I don’t think it could’ve gone better.
Especially since he promised we could pick up where we’d left off whenever I wanted. As far as I was concerned at the time, that meant in the backseat of the cab. No such luck, though we did do a little smooching before he left me outside my building.
Nothing nearly as hot as what went down in the pantry, and I’m definitely craving more as my thoughts keep returning to that same point in the night.
What’s happening to me? Am I turning into some sort of sex addict?
No. In fact, the opposite is true, I think.
It’s been so long since I had a regular partner that every little sexy, exciting situation replays itself over and over in my head because its rareness makes it even more special.
Though the fact that Jake played a part in it has a lot to do with that, I’m guessing. Now that I’ve seen how naughty he’s willing to be, a whole new crop of fantasies are just waiting to be explored. I wonder how many of them will make it into this book.
Frankly, a man as sexy as Jake could just stand still in one place and not say a word, and I could come up with enough filthy scenarios to fill an entire series of books.
For once, the site of my editor’s name on my phone’s screen doesn’t fill my heart with dread. For once, I can tell her things are going well, and that’s what I do as soon as I pick up the call. “The words are flowing,” I chirp in lieu of a greeting.
“That’s good to hear,” Maggie chirps right back. “So, your first pass will make the deadline?”
“Most definitely,” I announce with a lot more confidence than I feel.
Really, there’s nobody stopping me from meeting my deadline, except for me. I have to push through the days when the words don’t want to come—and that’s the same no matter what I’m writing, no matter the tropes or anything like that.
“Excellent! So …” The woman is practically overflowing with curiosity. I can hear it in her voice.
“You want to know who this book is about? Is that what you’re trying to ask me without actually saying it out loud?”
“Wouldn’t you want to know if you were in my shoes? I mean, the entire story hinges upon its hero and heroine—”
“You don’t have to defend yourself,” I sigh. “It just so happens, I met a doctor recently.”
“Through the dating site?”
“How did you know about that?”
Silence. Then, “I might have checked in with your friend Hayley when I didn’t hear from you for a day or two. I wanted to be sure you were on the way to the next book without making you feel like I was hounding you.”
It’s enough to make my head hurt. I rub the bridge of my nose, trying to push it back. “You don’t have to do that. Please, don’t do that again. She has a life and a career of her own. Okay?”
“Fine. Be more communicative then.”
“Fine.”
“So, was it through the site?”
“No, I did it the old-fashioned way. I ended up in the emergency room—everything is fine,” I add when she gasps. “But it did lead me to him, so things could have been much worse.”
“Describe.”
When she starts talking in one-worded sentences, I know better than to drag my feet.
“The man’s muscles have muscles,” I gush. Okay, so maybe it’s a little gross, talking about him this way, but I know Maggie won’t leave me alone until I paint a picture. Blake Marlin, she could look up online. For all I knew, she might have met him in person before we started dating.
“A promising start.”
“He oozes sensuality, but he has a playful spirit. He’s never too serious, so he’s always up for fun.”
“Naughty fun? Sexy fun?”
“You sound so hopeful.”
“Can you blame me?”
No, I guess I can’t. Rather than leave her hanging, I giggle. “Yes, naughty and sexy fun. I’m not getting any further into details,” I warn before she can ask any questions that have me truly cringing.
“No fair.”
“You’ll have to wait to read about it,” I tease.
“Can you at least send me a few chapters to peruse?” It’s almost cute, the way she phrases that like an actual question.
Like she’s not ordering me as my editor to provide a few chapters so she’s clear on the direction I’m taking the book.
Like we haven’t worked together for years, like I don’t know the way things go.
But I’m still riding high after last night and living in hope of picking up where we left off, so I’m feeling generous enough to bite back a sarcastic comment. “Of course,” I assure her. “I can send you something tonight once I polish up whatever I worked on over the weekend.”
“Wonderful. I can hardly wait. I guess I’ll leave you to it then,” she adds before ending the call in her usual abrupt way. As friendly and kissy-kissy as she tries to act, this is a business relationship after all.
I only wish she hadn’t taken me out of the scene I was working on before she called.
Okay, so my hero and heroine are in the examination room, and they’re about to get it on with patients and other staff members walking back and forth on the other side of the door.
Exciting, dangerous, and all of it makes things feel so much sexier.
Now, I know that for a fact.
Maybe Maggie was right. Maybe I needed to experience certain things for myself before writing about them.
By the time my phone buzzes again, another couple of hours have passed, and I’m editing the chapters I plan to send to Maggie.
There’s nothing like knowing your editor wants to read something to get those fingers moving over the keys.
Granted, sometimes, the pressure ends up resulting in writer’s block, but that hasn’t been the case today. Thank goodness.
I’m so busy trying to finish things up that I barely take notice of the text, when my phone buzzes. Only Jake’s name could yank me out of my work frenzy—even Hayley would normally have to wait for a response.
How about I make it up to you tonight?
I love a man who gets right to the point.
What do you have in mind? I ask, biting my lip.
You. Me. My place. Takeout. Maybe a movie … maybe not.
Oh boy. I have to fan myself since, all of a sudden, it feels like the temperature in the room just jumped up.
Any specific time in mind? I ask, already imagining what I’ll wear. And I don’t mean which jeans or top I should pick.
A situation like this calls for sexy underwear.
Seven o’clock? I have a few errands to run, and I could swing by the Chinese restaurant down the street to pick up food and bring it back.
That sounds good to me, and I tell him so. It gives me another hour to finish my work, take a special shower—the kind of shower a girl takes when she knows the night’s going to go in a certain direction—and hustle over to his apartment.
Is it totally sick that I can’t help thinking how pleased Maggie would be if she knew what was happening tonight? Yes, it’s definitely pretty sick. I need to get her out of my head. My personal life is my own. It doesn’t belong to her or to my readers.
I’m still telling myself this as I climb out of the car in front of Jake’s building. It’s one of those newly renovated buildings with all the amenities a young professional requires nowadays—a gym, a coffee shop in the lobby, a dry cleaner, even maid service.
Maybe I should move into a place like this. Then, I wouldn’t even have to leave the building to get my caffeine fix. And I wouldn’t have to deal with certain pesky neighbors.
Darn it. I need to get Matt out of my head too.
It’s only a couple of minutes to seven when I knock on the door to Jake’s apartment, close to the top floor. There is a skittering of paws on wood, telling me the dogs are freaking out at the idea of a visitor. I brace myself for the impending attack the second the door opens.
Only, when the door swings open, it’s not a husky attack that hits me or the sight of a clean, spacious apartment.
It’s the stunning young woman who opened the door. The woman standing there with one hand on her hip, looking me up and down. “Yes?”